This week's worship has been provided by Matt Forsyth of All We Can, the Methodist Church's relief and development agency. Matt will be leading this worship live via Zoom at 10:30am on Sunday Morning. If you would like to join us live, then we just drop me (Dalwyn) an email and we would be glad to provide the log-in details.
Following the live worship, there will be an opportunity to stay and chat in break-out rooms with others from the Churches involved over 'coffee.'
Welcome
Opening
Prayers
God of welcome, throughout the Old
Testament, the New Testament, and throughout history, you invite people to be a
part of your larger story, the story of God’s love expressed in hospitality.
God of welcome, you have invited us to
worship you today and we respond with joy.
Jesus Christ, you were invited to a
wedding and you transformed the ordinary into the special.
Jesus Christ, you were invited into the homes of sinners and you brought salvation and rejoicing.
Jesus Christ, you were invited into the homes of friends and you offered blessing and grace.
Jesus Christ, you came amongst us as a human child and we respond with joy.
Jesus Christ, you were invited into the homes of sinners and you brought salvation and rejoicing.
Jesus Christ, you were invited into the homes of friends and you offered blessing and grace.
Jesus Christ, you came amongst us as a human child and we respond with joy.
Holy Spirit, you were welcomed by the
prophets of old who testified in your power.
Holy Spirit, you were welcomed by the early church who witnessed in your power.
Holy Spirit, you were welcomed into every generation of the church who sought to live in your power.
Holy Spirit, we welcome you today into our worship, our prayers, our hearts and our service.
Holy Spirit, you were welcomed by the early church who witnessed in your power.
Holy Spirit, you were welcomed into every generation of the church who sought to live in your power.
Holy Spirit, we welcome you today into our worship, our prayers, our hearts and our service.
Amen.
Let
us say the Lord’s Prayer
Prayer
of praise and thanksgiving
Living and life-giving God,
You spoke, and light dawned.
You breathed, and life flourished.
By your words and hands creation burst with colour and
vibrancy, and we praise you.
Through your grace, we were made in your image,
From your great love, your son came.
Lord God,
You are grace and you love mercy.
In the face of our sin, you breathe out forgiveness.
We confess those times Lord, when our lives have not
reflected love into the world.
We confess the words that we have said, the things that we
have done and thought
that have lacked love.
We give thanks that it is your very nature to be forgiving
and ask that you renew your
love and light in our lives.
Amen.
Hymn- 10,000 reasons https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2M58JuV-FU
All We Can is an international development and emergency relief organisation. Focusing on those in greatest need, it is inspired by Christian principles, and is an integral part of the Methodist family.
Our purpose
All We Can helps find solutions to poverty by engaging with local people and organisations in some of the world’s poorest communities to end the suffering caused by inequality and injustice.
Can you imagine having to face Coronavirus without access to running water and soap? In cramped and unhygienic conditions, where social distancing simply isn’t possible?
This is the reality facing people living in some of the world’s poorest communities right now. All We Can, the Methodist Church in Britain and World Development & Relief Ireland have launched an Emergency Coronavirus Appeal, to help equip vulnerable communities across the globe to combat coronavirus (Covid-19).
For communities with weaker healthcare systems, or who lack access to clean water and handwashing facilities, the impact of Coronavirus will be catastrophic. That’s why we’re asking: please do all that you can to help save lives today.
You can give by visiting allwecan.org.uk or ringing 020 7467 5132.
All We Can helps find solutions to poverty by engaging with local people and organisations in some of the world’s poorest communities to end the suffering caused by inequality and injustice.
Can you imagine having to face Coronavirus without access to running water and soap? In cramped and unhygienic conditions, where social distancing simply isn’t possible?
This is the reality facing people living in some of the world’s poorest communities right now. All We Can, the Methodist Church in Britain and World Development & Relief Ireland have launched an Emergency Coronavirus Appeal, to help equip vulnerable communities across the globe to combat coronavirus (Covid-19).
For communities with weaker healthcare systems, or who lack access to clean water and handwashing facilities, the impact of Coronavirus will be catastrophic. That’s why we’re asking: please do all that you can to help save lives today.
You can give by visiting allwecan.org.uk or ringing 020 7467 5132.
Bible
reading- Genesis 2:4-18
4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.
5 Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth[a] and no plant had yet sprung up, for the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, 6 but streams[b] came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. 7 Then the Lord God formed a man[c] from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
8 Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
10 A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. 11 The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin[d] and onyx are also there.) 13 The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush.[e] 14 The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
18 The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”
Sermon
How’s your Soul?
For a day and a time such as this there is one
question that I want to ask you today?
How’s your
soul?
Already, I
might have lost some of you in the room as you begin to answer that in your
mind. Or you might be thinking what does he even mean by soul!
I want to
talk about the soul in terms of our inner-spiritual self. That part of you which
you know is there not in physical.
Now I have
given a small explanation I probably have lost even more of you when I ask:
How’s your
Soul?
Some of you
might be feeling that ‘ dark night of the soul moment’- a period of spiritual
desolation suffered by a mystic in which all sense of consolation is removed.
You might be answering that question because outwardly things have to keep
ticking but inwardly things you know deep down things are not ok.
Or maybe
You’re in the
mountain tops- like Moses meeting with God and experiencing life in His
fullness and feeling amazing. (maybe you should be leading this session not me)
However, as I
prayed I felt we would have a room full of people maybe in between those two
things.
SO I ask
again…. How’s your soul?
When it comes
to the human soul, I don’t think any of us can claim to have everything figured
out. More than twenty-five hundred years ago the prophet Jeremiah gave the
ancient nation of Israel a message from God: “The heart is deceitful above all
things and desperately sick. Who can understand it?” (17:9).
That’s hardly
encouraging. But Jeremiah wasn’t being cynical—he was being honest. He was
simply stating the human condition. He had apparently come face-to-face with
the same fears we confront: that maybe deep inside, we don’t have it all
together; maybe our insides are not okay.
God’s message
in Jeremiah doesn’t stop there, though. The next verse says, “I the Lord search
the heart and test the mind” (17:10). In other words, we can’t always figure
ourselves out, but God can. He knows us better than we know ourselves.
Why is this
important? Why do our souls matter? Why should we care about the health of our
souls? Because no matter who we are and no matter how long or how well we’ve
been navigating life, there will be times when our souls find themselves in
dark places—times when we doubt our internal stability and when we wonder if we
are really okay.
If I have
seen one thing, it matters that we look at our souls in this difficult time.
Your soul’s health will enable us to keep on this journey that God has called
us to.
You have
heard the phrase- there’s no place like home right? I love travelling but I
long to be home- this week I will away from home for three nights- but I know
when I am away I will be thinking of being there.
I was
thinking- our physical body needs be home to healthy, but what about our soul?
Does my soul need to be home to remain healthy?
In the NT 3
John references the health of our souls. It is not surprising but the apostle
John who labels himself ‘the disciple that Jesus loved’ wrote
‘Beloved I
pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health as it
goes well with your soul’ the message version paraphrases it like this
‘we’re the
best of friends, and I pray for good fortune in everything you do and for your
good health- that your everyday affairs prosper
as well as your soul’
Often this
verse can be used to proclaim a gospel that is prosperous. However, I feel that
in the excitement over the external that we gloss over and forget that despite
being saved and given God’s love that we don’t think about our everyday soul.
You ever said
after coming back from a holiday- I need a holiday after that holiday.
Same thing
for sabbaticals-
So here are
four key areas I want us to think about real quickly. To do this I want to take
us to Genesis 2
1)
Rest – verses 7-9 (read verse 7) God breathed his soul
into Adam and in verse 8 there is a description of optimum, soul nurturing
environment that God created for humanity- read verses 8-9. God himself took rest after the earth was
created. So if God breathed his image into us we to must be people of rest and
sabbath.
Rest also
means letting go- as leaders and individuals we find that hard as we have more
‘ power’ than most. However being in rest means we are trusting in God, it’s a
posture of our hearts to rest in his promises and plans. Psalm 127:1-2 shows
how useless and burdened heart is-
Unless
the Lord builds the house,
the builders labour in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the guards stand watch in vain.
2 In vain you rise early
and stay up late,
toiling for food to eat—
for he grants sleep to[a] those he loves.
the builders labour in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the guards stand watch in vain.
2 In vain you rise early
and stay up late,
toiling for food to eat—
for he grants sleep to[a] those he loves.
This is true
for our modern culture- Working late into the night, skipping on sleep, waking
up extra early to get those emails done as id we are in complete (notice the
word complete( control and provider in our lives. Where is the rest?
Jesus even
said come to me all who are weary and heavy burdened and I will give you ….
REST
We need to
find rest and find it in our own way so that we can deepen our souls
relationship with Jesus.
2)
Responsibility- the second aspect is found in Genesis 2:15.
What people
often fail to understand is that work was giving by God as punishment for sin
but work was in the garden before the fall. The joy is not in your role title
but in the responsibility of the role and I know that not always seem the way.
In this
uncertain time we will have face responsibilities of different kinds. Rather
than seeing your to do list as just that, might it be a WORSHIP LIST- of things
that God has called YOU to do. Allow your soul to revel in the responsibility
3)
Restraint- The next element that helps our souls appear in
Genesis 16-17
It is
indicative of God’s grace that he gave permission before restriction. Eat
everything BUT not this. He set them up for success so it seems.
I feel part
of that tree was actually there for restriction/ restraint. I sound like a
parent but, for my children sometimes there needs to be a no even though the
answer might not be clear.
Adam and Eve
could walk around the garden and say I could but I won’t because it’s good for
me not to. So self-imposed restraint is the goal
So knowing
when to say no is important.
4)
Relationships- Genesis 2:18- this verse shows that we are
relational beings. One of the main things covid-19 has taught us is the
importance of relationships and the need for us to continue to invest in
them.
If we commit
to working at these four aspects- Rest, Responsibility, restraint and
relationships that we find in the garden of Eden then our souls will be
strengthened and as a result our relationship with the Lord will be to. In a
time such as this, we need our souls strength to beat strong so that we can
Trust the Lord God in His plans and enable us to run the race he has set before
each one of us.
Prayers
of intercession
Dismissal
Creator of the universe,
Lord of all time and space,
You are present in this place, in this moment.
We go into the days ahead, seeking to encounter more of you, our God.
Lord of all time and space,
You are present in this place, in this moment.
We go into the days ahead, seeking to encounter more of you, our God.
Amen.
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