Virtual Worship - 5 July 2020

Service sheet (pdf)

Call to worship

Come Holy Spirit into our homes and our hearts as we worship, and draw us out of ourselves into your holy space as we worship God in spirit and in truth.

Read the words of HP 416, “As pants the hart for cooling streams” or Sing StF 544 As the deer pants for the water.

Prayer

We turn to you in praise, O God, for you have formed us, and you watch us as we grow;
You pour your love upon us and draw us to yourself.
In Jesus you offered yourself for us, the greatest love that has ever been.
Help us today to receive that love and enjoy it.
Forgive us when we are selfish and keep that love to ourselves.
Forgive us when we hurt those who have a different skin colour, or ability, or way of being or worshipping.
Help us to see the beauty in all as we join with so many people in worship today.
May we see us and others, as you see us, and seek to share your good news of hope for all people. Amen

Reading: Song of Songs 2:8-13

Roses

Have a look at this drawing of wild roses. We’ve got a special soft spot for roses, whether cultivated in our gardens or growing wild among our hedgerows.

They so often symbolise love.

This is not just a modern thing. Long ago, in the Song of Songs in the Bible, a girl recognises that she is a rose in the eyes of her lover, she knows herself precious and joy fills her heart (2:1-2). To be likened to a rose is high praise.

And that’s us, in the eyes and heart of Jesus, lover of our souls, for human love signifies and celebrates divine love: the love of the Lord for each of his people.

• Do you feel beloved by the Lord?
• If that’s hard, can you at least trust his words (1 Jn 3:16; 4:19)? We love because he first loved us
The promise of his love is something to hang on to in dark trials and testing times.
But besides beauty, a rose has thorns, which can painfully scratch and tear! And we’ve got prickly thorns too – like when selfishness gets the better of us, and we go our own way (Gen 3:18). That hurts God (Eph 4:30), like the crown at his crucifixion (Mt 27:29), and it can damage others too.
We’re far more conscious of pain caused to us, of course, but our own selfishness can hurt other people and harm the world – even when we don’t mean to. Thorns start so small and seem so innocent; they’re “just the way we are”; but uncontrolled they grow toxic.
• What behavioural ‘thorns’ are you conscious of in yourself?
• How do you seek to get rid of them, because thorns have no proper place in the garden of God?
Jesus carried all our selfish sins to the cross, symbolised by that crown of thorns. So we don’t seek to be thorn-free to make ourselves acceptable to God, but because we have been accepted, we no longer want to hurt him. God’s Kingdom ways are loving and healing, and that’s what we strive for, with the help of the Holy Spirit within us. Who said the Christian life wasn’t a bed of roses?

Reading: Matthew 11:16-30

Reflection

There’s an American tv series that I used to enjoy watching, called “The Big Bang Theory”. It’s a very funny show about a group of extremely intelligent young men who have no idea how to relate to people. The nerdiest one is called Sheldon. He went to High School when he was just 9, and started college at 13. His grasp of physics is astonishing, and he devotes his life to making new discoveries. But when it comes to relationships of any kind, he insists on drawing up contracts. There’s a room-mate agreement that covers everything from which breakfast cereal they can have, to bathroom trips, to how and when changes can be made to the agreement; and when Sheldon meets Amy, he draws up a relationship agreement. This is a 31-page document that “enumerates, iterates and codifies the rights and responsibilities of Sheldon and Amy in their relationship.” It specifies, for example, that the second Thursday of every month, or the third Thursday in a month with five Thursdays, is date night. Under Section 5, hand-holding is only allowed under the following circumstances: a) either party is in danger of falling off a cliff, precipice or ledge; b) either party is deserving of a hearty handshake after winning a Nobel prize; c) moral support during flu shots. Every eventuality is covered and legislated for, apart from one: Falling in love. And as the series progress, Amy falls in love with Sheldon and he’s in danger of missing it because he can’t see past the contract.

Our reading from Song of Solomon depicts the relationship between God and human beings as that of lover and beloved. God seeks out his people and calls them into intimacy with himself. But human beings found rules easier to deal with, because they are more predictable, and you can tell if you have kept the rule or broken it. They tried to harness the movement of the Spirit that could inspire people to give their all for God, and fit that movement to certain times and ways and demands. So they are like children that demand of others that when they play happy songs, those others should dance, and when the tunes are sad, they should cry. When they come across one who doesn’t fit the pattern, they reject him: John the Baptist for fasting and Jesus for feasting – they will make up reasons to suit. And before we look back in condemnation from our secure position, let’s humbly admit that we too can try to hold back the Spirit and turn instead to regulations that help us feel secure. Whether it’s “We’ve always done it this way” or “We tried that once and it didn’t work” or “That’s not what our denomination does” we can stand in the way of God’s work. We can also close our ears to what the Spirit is saying when we only turn to those Bible passages that bring comfort and we ignore those that challenge; or we read the parts that back up our arguments and overlook those that show a different point of view.

Jesus calls to us to listen as he called to the towns and villages of Israel. He calls to us in this time of change to hear what he has to say and to work with him as we move forward. He calls out the good news of his Kingdom, and shares the pictures of how that might look – a place of welcome for all who will respond; a place where injustices are put right; a place from which we sow seeds that will lead to growth. He makes it clear that there are consequences of not listening that we cannot avoid, because our very insistence on the rules will render us deaf to the voice of the one who loves us.

But when we respond, when we listen and turn, we find that Jesus offers us rest, relief from burdens, and time to recover. His burden is easy and his yoke is light, and he calls us to grow and to blossom into the people he has made us to be. We do not need to strive to keep myriad rules that we don’t fully understand. Jesus has fulfilled the Law in his self-offering for us, and all he asks of us is our Yes to his gift and our Yes to his calling to work with him in the world he is creating, the kingdom that is growing and taking shape all around and within us.

Will we give him that Yes and allow him to sweep us off our feet so that we learn to rely on him alone as we adapt to his movements and his ways in his kingdom?

Prayer

Patient God, there are times when we must try your patience sorely.
Times when we will not listen,
no matter how many messages you are sending to us.
Times when we go our own way,
sure that we know better than you do –
after all, we have had a lot of experience of Christian work.
Forgive us Father, when we don’t want to hear you.
Help us to listen.

©Marjorie Dobson, www.twelvebaskets.co.uk

Burdens

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11: 28 – 30)

These words of Jesus, recorded for us in St Matthew’s account of the Good News, bear listening to, or reading, over and over again, don’t they?

We’re going to pause now to reflect on what burdens we might be carrying, what they might look like, how they feel and how we can bring them to Jesus.

Have a look at this photograph.

Notice the large flat rock in the bottom right hand corner.
Perhaps our burdens, like this rock, have sharp, painful edges and are so heavy we wonder sometimes if we are going to be able to continue carrying them, or if they will crush us.

Next, see the smooth stone in the middle of the photograph.
Maybe we have been carrying our burdens for such a long time that the sharp edges have worn away and we have become so used to their weight, we don’t realise quite how heavy they are until we lay them down.

What about the little white pebble on top of the large rock?
Perhaps our burdens are not big, but like a stone in our shoe, they make us limp through life.
The small glass bottle in the photograph contains sand and tiny shells, collected from the seaside.
Maybe we are just weighed down by the everyday frustrations, irritations and disappointments that, like sand at a beach picnic, get everywhere; in our mouths, dulling our appetite for life; and in our eyes, making them teary so we find it difficult to see clearly.

Take a few moments of quiet to consider what you are finding burdensome at present.

Laying down our burdens

Look closely at the group of three objects on the left side of the photograph.

A Bible in the case, in which we find our invitation to come to Jesus.
A cross, made from a laburnum tree, the symbol of Jesus’ self-sacrifice to put us right with God.
A heart shaped tealight holder, the flame alight, reminding us that we live, grow, flourish and blossom in the light of God’s love for us; that his Spirit is with us always.

Notice the different colours of the wood grain in the cross, the contrast of dark and light, a reminder that Jesus experienced a fully human life, so whatever we going through, he understands. The cross is offset, a holding cross, carved to fit closely into your hand as you pray, reminding us that as we lay down our burdens, our hands are freed to hold tight to Jesus.

Now imagine yourself doing just that; laying down whatever is burdening you with the stones and sand, grasping the holding cross and then resting for a time in the warm light of God’s love, delighting in his presence as he is surely delighting in yours.

Prayers of intercession

Father God, as Your Scripture teaches us we pray firstly for world leaders, as we see the nations and their faces,
We pray for Your Holy Spirit to be poured out
That there may be justice for all
And nations would have you as their God
…. Father God in Your love:
Your Response: Help them to turn to You

We pray for this nation,
For England, Scotland, Wales and N Ireland;
For the Queen, Prince Philip and all their family;
For the Houses of Parliament and Lords;
For those serving in the cabinet, and those holding the government to account;
Boris Johnson, Matt Hancock and Rishi Sunak;
For 70 years of the NHS;
…. Father God in Your love:
Your Response: Help them to turn to You

Father God, we pray for West Yorkshire:
For our MP’s: Judith Cummins, Philip Davies, Robbie Noore and Naz Shah;
For Susan Hinchcliffe leader of Bradford Council;
For Bradford Royal Infirmary, GP surgeries, care workers and Mental Health outreach workers;
For businesses and shops becoming used to the new normal;
…. Father God in Your love:
Your Response: Help them to turn to You

We pray for the Methodist Church
For Barbara Glasson and Clive Marsh as they come to the end of their (vice-)presidential year;
For Kerry Tankard, Chair of Yorkshire West,
For Bradford North, for each church, for Nick Blundell, Christine Crabtree, Phil Drake, those that hold office and all laity;
For leaders of all denominations;
And especially for the persecuted church, those fearing arrest or loss of life at this very moment;
Pour out Your Holy Spirit to guide us into the new normal
…. Father God in Your love:
Your Response: Help them to turn to You

Father God, we lift the faces of our family, friends, neighbours and colleagues who are struggling just now, those grieving, ill, afraid, those who cannot make ends meet;
For those facing redundancy, those in broken or abusive relationships.
We pray too for those who do not know you, that You would take the veil from their eyes and let them discover your love, forgiveness and escape routes out of mess
…. Father God in Your love:
Your Response: Help them to turn to You

Lastly Father we climb on Your knee and ask for ourselves,
We offer you our diaries empty or full,
For arranged events and God-incidental meetings,
That we may share Your Glory with those around,
Fill us with Your Spirit do that we can be what You want us to be.
…. Father God in Your love:
Your Response: Help us to turn to You.

We ask all our prayers in the Glorious name of Jesus, Your Son, our Saviour. Amen

With all Christians everywhere, we join as one family in the words of the Lord’s Prayer.

Sing HP 378 / StF 545 Be thou my vision.

Blessing

We go from here into our world. However narrow or wide is our world, however repetitive or varied our days, however important or mundane our tasks, however many or few people we see or speak to, God goes with us. May we know him always present, every step, every breath, and may the blessing of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, remain with us and with those we love, now and always, Amen.