Order of Service for April 22nd 2007

3rd SUNDAY OF EASTER

WELCOME, MINUTE FOR MISSION & ANNOUNCEMENTS

HYMN # 415 God, We Praise You for the Morning

CALL TO WORSHIP:
One: Binding us into community.
All: Christ is among us!
One: Banishing out doubts,
All: Christ is among us!
One: Ending our fears,
All: Christ is among us!
One: Bringing us hope,
All: Christ is among us!

PRAYER OF APPROACH:
One: Singing praises to God, you faithful,
give thanks to God’s holy name!
All: Weeping may linger for a night,
but joy comes in the morning.
One: God turns our weeping to dancing
and clothes us in gladness.
All: May we praise God and not be silent!
Thanks to you, O God, forever! Amen.

HYMN # 166 Joy Comes with the Dawn

PRAYER FOR WHOLENESS:
One: Christ, you shed light into our darkened world.
All: Yet we choose to walk in shadows of indifference and fear: forgive us, Risen Christ.
One: From the cool, refreshing waters of a deep well,
you offer us a drink of life-giving water.
All: Yet we choose to drink from wells of bitterness and anger:
forgive us, Risen Christ.
One: As life emerges from fertile soil,
you invite us to newness and growth.
All: Yet we choose the parched soil of hatred,
materialism and greed:
forgive us, Risen Christ.
One: With songs of celebration,
you invite us to join the dance of God’s tomorrow.

All: Yet we choose to sit, ignoring the music.
(silent confession)
One: Take our hands, O Christ,
All: and lead us in the dance of your tomorrow.

CHOIR ANTHEM: Bless Me, Lord

SCRIPTURE READING: Revelation 5: 11 – 14
Psalm 30 (# 757 VU)

THE STORY STOOL

HYMN: We Are the Church
I am the church! You are the church! We are the church together!
All who follow Jesus, all around the world! Yes, we’re the church together!
vs 1: The church is not a building, the church is not a steeple,
The church is not a resting-place; the church is a people!
vs 2: We’re many kinds of people with many kinds of faces,
All colors and all ages, too from all times and places.

SCRIPTURE READING: Acts 9: 1 – 20
John 21: 1 – 19

HYMN # 563 Jesus, You Have Come to the Lakeshore

SERMON: “Come and See …”
Did you know that in our world today there are in excess of 2.3 million children suffering with HIV/AIDS?
And a full 88% of them are in Africa?

Did you know that each year an additional 640 000 children contract HIV/AIDS, and less than 100 of that number live in Europe or North America?

Did you know that over one half of those children will die before their 2nd Birthday?

Did you know that 500 000 children die each year of this horrible disease?

Perhaps most startling of all – did you know that every three seconds, a child dies in our world?
Every three seconds a future Gandhi, a future Nobel Prize winner, a future doctor, a future teacher, a future parent, a future grandparent, … every three seconds a future is snuffed out when a young life ends …

Every three seconds a child dies …
Every three seconds another child dies ... every three seconds ...

Those were just some of the horrifying and shocking statistics that were shared last night at the STARVE (Support the families and Children with HIV-AIDS in Ethiopia) Benefit organized and put on by the participants of the 30 Hour Starve event held at MCI this past week …

As we reeled from the statistics the group who gathered in the school gymnasium to hear the presentations were able to look around the room at a group of young people who have embraced the commandment of the Risen Christ to “Feed My Sheep …”

What is truly startling for me is the knowledge that in that group of less than 50 kids from THIS community, I could count on ONE hand the number of them who attend Church at all … These kids are doing the very thing Churches are struggling to do – and they are NOT church kids.

I spent some time at the school on Friday afternoon with the kids as they did a session on volunteering – one of the questions they worked on was simply – “Who attends Church?” the group I was with had 2 out of the 12 kids … there was less than 10 kids in that room who come to Church … YET, this group of teens, in a week where we’ve heard of teens stealing cars in Winnipeg (again), we’ve heard of teens bringing guns to school, and we’ve heard of teens beating each other – this group of teens not only raised their awareness of the issue of HIV/AIDS in Africa – they ALSO raised close to 7000 dollars to benefit a Junior School in GOBA province in Ethiopia.

Personally, I think we should be very proud of our community teens … and at the same time we should be a little ashamed of ourselves … The cause these teens are embracing is one that is central to the ethos of the United Church. It is central to the ethos of the Church Universal and Catholic. It is central to our faith, and the Churches were notably absent … BUT, like the number of teens who attend church, I could count on both hands the number of people in that room who attend church regularly who came and supported the teens in their awareness and fund raising event … This is one of those moments when we of the Church should be there en mass … this is what we yearn to see happening in our community – people beyond the pews caring for and caring about others … Feeding the sheep …

And when it was happening … we weren’t there …

Ann Weems, the poet and theologian writes:

He said, “Feed my sheep.”
There were no conditions:
Least of all, Feed my sheep if they deserve it.
Feed my sheep if you have any leftovers.
Feed my sheep if the mood strikes …
if the economy’s OK …
if you’re not too busy …
No conditions, … just … “Feed my sheep.”
Could it be that God’s Kingdom will come when each lamb is fed?
We who have agreed to keep covenant
Are called to feed sheep
Even when it means the grazing will be done
On our own front lawns …

In our readings today we heard the words – “Feed my sheep Peter” … show your love – show your faith … Feed my sheep …

As a poet, Ms Weems names the harsh and sad truth for the Church – we WILL feed the sheep, so long as they are content with the pennies we offer … we will feed the sheep, so long as we are NOT inconvenienced … we will feed the sheep, so long as they are OVER THERE somewhere … we will feed the sheep, so long as we can feel good about it, and we aren’t asked to really look in the mirror and see ourselves lacking … We will feed the sheep … BUT …

Yesterday the young people of our community made a commitment to feed the sheep of Ethiopia … their fundraising was nothing short of impressive … They raised awareness in our community of ways in which we – that is you and I – can make a difference – a real difference in the world.

Yet, in the Church too often we rub our hands together uncertain of what to do … we look at the problems in the world and wonder how we could possibly make a difference.

Father Elias Chacour a Palestinian Christian priest who lives in a village not far from a city called Nazareth shares the story of a moment in his training when he was asked a telling question about his journey of faith …

Father Chacour relates the story of one of his last lectures at Seminary when his mentor sat before the class of eager young priests and said – If there is a problem somewhere this is what happens. Three people will try to do something concrete to settle the issue. Ten people will give a lecture analyzing what the three are doing. One hundred people will commend or condemn the ten for their lecture. One thousand people will argue about he problem. AND one person – only ONE – will involve himself so deeply in the true solution that he is simply too busy to listen to any of it … Now, the kindly mentor looked each of the young priests in the eyes as he asked the question – which person are YOU??

Which person are you ??
Feed my sheep ??

They are part of the same challenge … are we one of the thousands who talk, argue, commend or condemn? Or are we among the handful who are doing something concrete to bring about the true solution?

Yesterday, in our little town on the Canadian Prairie, we were privileged to witness our TEENS, the young people that we so easily dismiss and criticize – we were privileged to witness our TEENS doing something significant and meaningful to address a problem in our world … Thanks to our teens, the Hesu Junior School has almost 7000 dollars to help make a difference …

Feed My Sheep … “Feed my sheep.”
There were no conditions:
Least of all, Feed my sheep if they deserve it.
Feed my sheep if you have any leftovers.
Feed my sheep if the mood strikes …
if the economy’s OK …
if you’re not too busy …
No conditions, … just … “Feed my sheep.”

Could it be that God’s Kingdom will come when each lamb is fed?

Today, I for one am thankful and proud of the teens at MCI – the teens in this town, for showing the rest of us how to do it … for feeding the sheep …

Now, the challenge for us is simply to follow their example, rather than condemning, criticizing, or debating it … They shown us how … our job as a Church is to catch up and follow their lead …

May it be so – thanks be to God … let us pray

OFFERING, OFFERTORY AND PRAYER OF DEDICATION

HYMN #433 Day Is Done

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE /THE LORD’S PRAYER (# 959 VU)

HYMN # 438 The Day Thou Gavest, Lord, Is Ended

COMMISSIONING & BENEDICTION
One: Doubts cannot hold us.
All: Fear cannot hide us.
One: Apathy cannot subdue us.
All: Death cannot defeat us.
One: Love cannot reject us.
All: Time cannot capture us.
One: Christ is for us.
All: God will eternally secure us.

SUNG RESPONSE: HYMN # 958 Halle, Halle, Halle

The worship has ended….
…the work of God’s people has just begun.
Go in peace.