Sunday Service for 30 August 2020, fourteenth Sunday of Pentecost
30 August 2020: 14th Sunday of Pentecost
Service prepared by the Rev. Teri C Peterson,
Gourock St. John’s Church of Scotland
Contact: tpeterson@churchofscotland.org.uk
* NEXT SUNDAY: weather permitting, we plan to join with all the Connect churches to have an open air service in the Battery Park. It’ll be at 11am — bring your own rug or chair, and plan to stay appropriately distanced from other households so that we can safely gather and worship together!
* At this time the St John’s Kirk Session has decided, for a variety of reasons, not to open the building yet. We will continue to worship online and via the telephone recording ministry, with mid-week offerings on video and by email, and through phone calls and zoom gatherings. If you have questions about this, please do contact Teri, or Cameron, or your elder. However, the building works that were suspended during lockdown are again underway. If you see people around the church building, they are likely contractors, and we would ask that you go ahead and say hello but keep a safe distance, and do not enter the building at this time. It’s important that we do everything we can to ensure they have a safe worksite, so that they can continue the work both on the tower and inside the sanctuary as quickly and safely as possible.
Though we cannot be together in person, we can be together in spirit! Please note the following announcements:
* Coffee Fellowship Time will happen today on Zoom! The room will be open from 11:45 – 12:45 for you to drop in for however long you wish, so grab a cup of tea or coffee (or juice or whatever you prefer!) and maybe a biscuit, and come have a chat! We look forward to seeing you!
* The Kirk now has online giving! If you have not already set up a standing order in order to facilitate your spiritual discipline of giving, or if you would like to make an extra gift to support the ministry St. John’s does in our parish, you can give online here! If you would like to set up a standing order, please contact Peter Bennett, our treasurer, or Teri and she can give you his details. You can also send your envelopes to the church by post and we will ensure they are received. Remember: no one is coming to your door to collect your envelopes, so please stay safe!
* We also now have an audio recording of the service available on the phone! Simply dial 01475 270 037 to listen to the most recent service. Please share this number with your neighbours, friends, family, and fellow church goers who don’t have the internet, so they can listen in!
* The theme for worship this summer is “Postcards of Faith” — we’ll be getting some postcards from God’s people throughout scripture, following their journeys with God and each other.
* This summer we are taking a Church Family summer trip! We’ll be journeying together from Shore to Shore — the shores of the Clyde to the shores of the sea of Galilee, to the hometown of St. John the Evangelist. Keep track of how much time you spend in prayer, reading the Bible, serving others, or going for a walk. For every 10 minutes, you move us 1km along the journey! Then each week send Teri a note, text, or phone call saying how far you “traveled” this week. On our return journey, we have now reached Calais! Only 800km to get home, and one week to go. Keep praying and walking! Perhaps as we virtually pass through Calais, we can pray especially for refugees and asylum seekers, people who have had to leave all they knew and all they had, and risk everything seeking a safer and more prosperous life for themselves and their families.
* Children’s Time happens each Sunday morning at 11am on Zoom. If you would like the login details, please contact Teri.
* The Young Adult Bible Study (BYOPizza) meets via Zoom at 1pm next Sunday, reading chapter 2 of the Book of Revelation! If you’re aged 15-25 and would like the login details, please contact Teri.
* Churches across Scotland are calling people to join together in prayer on Sunday evenings at 7pm, placing a lit candle in the window and spending time in prayer for others. Our Sunday evening prayer services will be shared across our “Fuzzy Parish” (now called CONNECT). Tonight’s service will be a special one led by all three Connect Clergy, from an undisclosed location, and will begin at 6:57pm on the Connect Facebook page, and be sure to like / follow it while you’re there!
* Feel free to share this with others, with the attribution information at the top. If you know someone who does not have access to the internet and who also does not receive the tape ministry, you can either print this service out and share it with them, or let Teri know via email or phone call and we will be sure they receive a printed copy.
* Sign up to our YouTube Channel so you never miss a video. Don’t miss “wine and the word” — an occasional series during the 5pm hour that helps us transition from one part of the day to the next, via reflections similar to those that would normally have been in the “God’s Story, Our Story” take home inserts given out each week.
* Mid-week there is a devotional email, which is also printed and included with the following Sunday’s sermon distribution to those without internet access. You can sign up for the email here.
* If you or a church member you know is in need of friendly phone calls or help with anything while they self-isolate, please contact Teri. Elders are already in contact with people in their districts as well, and you can pass information to them! We are hoping to continue and even deepen our connections to one another, building up the Body of Christ even when we can’t be in the building.
* Rab Gowans shared an update on the school in Venda, you can view the video here!
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Call to Worship and Prayer
The peace of Christ be with you!
Whoever you are, wherever you are,
whatever else you have to do today,
whenever you have made time to worship,
you are welcome here.
Scripture tells us we are to practice paying attention
to things that are good, true, holy, just, and lovely.
Today we take some time for this practice,
because often we find what we are looking for —
so let us, together, look
for God’s goodness, Christ’s peace, and the Spirit’s power.
Let us pray.
Holy God, you call us your own people,
and give us reason to rejoice!
You lay out the path before us,
and you take us by the hand and bring us along the journey to your kingdom.
We give you thanks for drawing us into your presence,
and for continually choosing us,
even when we do not always choose you.
For we confess that sometimes
we are busy looking back at where we’ve been,
rather than following where you are leading now.
And sometimes we are busy looking inward at what we desire,
rather than following your vision.
We admit that we find it hard to focus on what is excellent and worthy of praise,
because there is so much else that clamours for our attention,
and then we blame you when we cannot recognise you in our midst.
Forgive us, Lord.
Turn us around again, and face us forward on your way.
Fix our eyes and our hearts on you,
and teach us again to rejoice in your calling.
We ask in the name of Jesus the Christ,
whose grace transforms us,
and who taught us to pray together:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come, your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread,
and forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,
now and forever, Amen.
Sung Prayer #159
(words: Timothy Dudley-Smith, tune: Lord of the Years by Michael Baughen)
Lord, for ourselves; in living power remake us,
self on the cross and Christ upon the throne;
past put behind us, for the future take us,
Lord of our lives, to live for Christ alone.
Friends, hear and believe this good news: if anyone is in Christ the whole creation is made new, the old has gone and the new has come. So know that you are forgiven, believe that you are forgiven, live as if you are forgiven, and be at peace. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Scripture Reading: Philippians 3.12-4.9 (Common English Bible)
It’s not that I have already reached this goal or have already been perfected, but I pursue it, so that I may grab hold of it because Christ grabbed hold of me for just this purpose. Brothers and sisters, I myself don’t think I’ve reached it, but I do this one thing: I forget about the things behind me and reach out for the things ahead of me. The goal I pursue is the prize of God’s upward call in Christ Jesus. So all of us who are spiritually mature should think this way, and if anyone thinks differently, God will reveal it to him or her. Only let’s live in a way that is consistent with whatever level we have reached.
Brothers and sisters, become imitators of me and watch those who live this way—you can use us as models. As I have told you many times and now say with deep sadness, many people live as enemies of the cross. Their lives end with destruction. Their god is their stomach, and they take pride in their disgrace because their thoughts focus on earthly things. Our citizenship is in heaven. We look forward to a saviour that comes from there—the Lord Jesus Christ. He will transform our humble bodies so that they are like his glorious body, by the power that also makes him able to subject all things to himself.
Therefore, my brothers and sisters whom I love and miss, who are my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord.
Loved ones, I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to come to an agreement in the Lord. Yes, and I’m also asking you, loyal friend, to help these women who have struggled together with me in the ministry of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my coworkers whose names are in the scroll of life.
Rejoice in the Lord always! Again I say, rejoice! Let your gentleness show in your treatment of all people. The Lord is near. Don’t be anxious about anything; rather, bring up all of your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks. Then the peace of God that exceeds all understanding will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus.
From now on, brothers and sisters, if anything is excellent and if anything is admirable, focus your thoughts on these things: all that is true, all that is holy, all that is just, all that is pure, all that is lovely, and all that is worthy of praise. Practice these things: whatever you learned, received, heard, or saw in us. The God of peace will be with you.
Sermon: Looking for the Good (postcards of faith 11)
A few months ago I learned a new word that perfectly summed up what I often found myself doing during the height of pandemic lockdown: “doomscrolling.” It seems I was not the only one who was caught in the trap of constantly refreshing and scrolling through news stories and social media feeds trying to find the latest live updates on the statistics, horror stories, scientific advances or lack thereof, and political responses — there were enough people doing it that a new word was invented! Doom-scrolling: when you can’t stop yourself from constantly reading the next update, and the next, and the next, even when it’s only bad news. It’s almost an addiction to the bad news, actually.
Now, let me be clear: it’s important for us to be informed. We need to know what our leaders are doing in our name, we need to know how the science works so that we can make smart choices, and we need to know what’s happening in our communities so we know how to take care of ourselves and others.
But that’s not what doomscrolling does. It isn’t about being informed, it’s about addictively and automatically consuming every drop of bad news as it rolls past on your screen, without the time or energy put in to critical thinking or reflection. Experts say it can cause an increase in stress hormones, and it’s linked to a decline in mental and physical health during lockdown.
I’ve been thinking a lot about doomscrolling ever since I learned the word that described how I’d spent more hours than I care to admit. But this week’s reading from Philippians threw it into sharp relief, as I heard the words “if anything is excellent, if anything is admirable, focus your thoughts on these things: all that is true, all that is holy, all that is just, all that is pure, all that is lovely, and all that is worthy of praise. Practice these things.”
Basically, Paul writes that we are to do the exact opposite of doomscrolling! He even flat out says not to be anxious but to bring our worries to God alongside our thanksgivings — not just one or the other, but everything we have on our minds and hearts, good and bad — and doing so will help us experience peace that passes all understanding.
Rather than looking for the bad news, Paul says to look for the good news. Rather than focusing on our own self-centred desires, he says to focus on what Christ wants. And rather than looking behind us at what has happened before, he says to look ahead, to pursue the goal of God’s kingdom with all our attention.
He even tells us this is a hallmark of spiritual maturity — to leave behind the past and reach forward, not just seeking good news but practicing it.
We all know the adage that practice makes perfect. In this case, Paul says that we haven’t already reached the goal of perfection, and honestly we might not ever reach that in this life, but since Christ has already taken our hand to guide us along the journey, we can continue in confidence that our practice matters. Practice looking for the good. Practice rejoicing in God’s presence always. Practice focusing our thoughts on what is true, holy, just, and lovely.
And as if that wasn’t hard enough in this world where truth is elusive and justice feels far off and we downplay excellence, he tells us to practice letting our gentleness show in our treatment of all people.
Gentleness…toward all people.
Even those people.
Even the ones who don’t deserve it.
Even the ones who irritate and provoke us.
Even the people we disagree with.
Even the person whose choices make us cringe.
And the one that I can hardly bring myself to say: even the politicians. Which is not to say we should let them off the hook for anything, but it is to say that the manner in which we hold them to account, and the things we choose to advocate for, are a sign of our own spiritual well-being.
How can our gentleness show in our treatment of all people? In our words and our actions, of course, both in the way we talk to people and the way we talk about them. And also in the ways we contribute to the public discourse on social media or outside the shops or down the pub. And in the choices we make that may affect people we never meet — people who make our clothes, or grow our food, or tidy our streets, or run scientific tests. And in the expectations we have of ourselves and of each other, especially during this time when stress is high.
It will take practice. And I think Paul writes his letter in this order on purpose, telling us first to Rejoice Always, and then to let our gentleness show, and then to pray about everything good and bad, and then to practice focusing on what is excellent, just, pure, and praise-worthy. Because that last instruction, to discipline our mind and heart to look for the good, may well be the most difficult even as it is the thing that makes the rest possible.
When we practice looking for what is admirable and holy and lovely, we will be more likely to find it. And then we start to see good things in more places. And that changes the way we move through the world. It changes how we interact with people. It changes what we want to pray about. It changes what we value, and what we care about. When we are looking for truth, we are more likely to demand it from our leaders. When we are looking for excellence, we are more likely to create conditions where people can achieve it. When we are looking for what is just, we are more likely to notice conditions that are unjust and want to do something to rectify them. When we are looking for holiness, we are more likely to see God’s face in others as well as ourselves. When we are looking for things that are worthy of praise, we are more likely to express gratitude, wonder, and love.
This is the part of going on a journey where we realise that having traveled this road, we will not be the same when we return home. A pilgrimage like the one we have been on this summer transforms us, because the experiences we have along the way give us new insight into who we are, who God is, and how we and God work together in the world. Part of a pilgrimage is about learning new ways of seeing and being. And that’s what Paul invites us into in this letter — to practice a new way of seeing, because it will change our way of being.
So rather than doomscrolling, and rather than looking back longing for the way things used to be, let’s practice reaching out for the things ahead of us, pursuing God’s goals ahead of our own, by looking for and focusing on what is just, admirable, lovely, excellent, and true. That is when we will at last experience the peace of Christ that exceeds all understanding — for us and for the world.
We’ll start now, by hearing a few stories of good things people have encountered while on their own journeys during this pandemic season. Perhaps they will spark your own reflections on where you have seen God and good news during this time, and how you can practice looking for the good in coming days and weeks.
(videos of church members sharing good things they have seen during lockdown)
Hymn 465: Be Thou My Vision
Prayers of Thanksgiving and Intercession
Paul wrote to the Philippians that we are to bring up our requests to God along with our thanksgivings. So today’s prayers will include times of silence for you to name your thanks and your petitions.
Let us pray.
Loving God, we offer you our gratitude and praise for your many blessings.
Though the ways you care for us are too numerous to name,
we take this time to try, naming before you some things that we are thankful for today.
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Thank you, God, for your generosity, your goodness, and your continual presence with us.
We come with gratitude and also concern, for ourselves, for others, and for the world.
We lift up to you now ourselves and our families and friends, asking for your help.
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Take our hands and guide us, O God — into health, into wholeness, into joy.
We lift up before you the needs of this world — for people who are ill, and those who care for them, that they may know healing and compassion; for the leaders of communities and nations, that they may be wise and courageous in their search for the greater good; for places where violence reigns and fear is widespread; for people who suffer at the hands of others; for those who ago hungry even in this world of plenty; for people who have found themselves in the path of natural disasters: hurricane and windstorm, fire and flood. In this space we offer our prayers for others, asking for your help and power.
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May your peace and justice be known throughout the world.
Lord of all, we bring our desire to be your people, and pray you would empower us with your grace to follow in your way. Direct our thoughts and actions, that we, your Church, might reveal your love to all. May our lives bear the fruit of your Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, generosity, and self-control.
We ask in the name of Christ, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Amen.
Benediction
Go into your week looking for the good, and focusing on what is true, just, lovely, and worthy of praise—and let that focus change your attitude and your life. And as you go, may the Spirit of God go above you to watch over you; may the Spirit of God go beside you to be your companion; may the Spirit of God go before you to show you the way and behind you to push you into places you might not go alone; and may the Spirit of God go within you, to remind you that you are loved more deeply than you can possibly imagine. May the fire of God’s love burn brightly in you, and through you into the world. Go in peace. Amen.
Benediction Response
Words and tune (Gourock St. John’s): John L Bell
Now may the Lord of all be blessed;
Now may Christ’s gospel be confessed;
Now may the Spirit, when we meet,
Bless sanctuary and street.
