Worship resources for May 2020

Worship resources

Burton Joyce Community Church 

Radio & Television | Circuit & Synod | Sunday worship plan

Radio & television

You could try some of these for worship & prayers during lockdown

BBC Radio 3 & 4 services

Daily Service: Radio 4 at 9.45am only on LW / DAB / internet (NOT on FM)

Choral Evensong: Radio 3 at 3.30pm Wednesday afternoon (repeated Sunday afternoon at 3pm)

Sunday worship: Radio 4 at 8.10am on Sunday morning on FM / DAB / internet

BBC television worship

Sunday Worship: BBC1 at 10.45am on Sunday morning

Songs of Praise: BBC1 at 1.15pm* on Sunday afternoon (*times vary)

Circuit & Synod

Methodist Circuit

on Facebook: “Nottingham North East Circuit”

Prayer of the Day

Daily reflections

Webpage: “Nottingham North East Circuit”

Sunday sermons via Youtube

URC Synod

On Facebook: “URC East Midlands Synod”

Live-streamed Evening Prayer at 9.30pm daily

Outline plan for Sunday worship at BJCC, May 2020

Bible readings are from the lectionary (more or less)

Date in May	Bible reading	Topic	Songs of Fellowship	Hymn
3	John 10,   1-18	Good Shepherd	533	The King of love
10	John 14,   1-21	Way, Truth & Life	1158	All my days (Beautiful Saviour)
17	John 21,   1-14	In Galilee	50	Break thou the bread of life
21 (Thursday)	Luke 24,  44-53 &     Acts 1	Ascension	302	Jesus shall take the highest honour
24	John 21,   15-19	“Do you love me?”	830	I, the Lord of sea & sky
31	Acts 2,       1-21	Pentecost	407	O, Breath of life

Easter 4

EASTER 4

A service outline for the fourth Sunday of Easter
Burton Joyce Community Church

Sunday May 3rd 2020

A Song
Songs of Fellowship 533
The King of love my shepherd is, whose goodness faileth never

Read
Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want 

A Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, you have come to us, born as one of us, Mary's son. Led out to die on Calvary, risen from death to set us free, living Lord Jesus, help us see: you are Lord. Amen
[verse 2 of Lord Jesus Christ, Songs of Fellowship 357]

Our Father who art in heaven ...

A Reading
John 10, 1-18
The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep

A Reflection
Jesus longs to gather us together under his care. Like a mother hen (see Matthew 23, 37 ff), like a shepherd, Jesus says (Matthew 11, 28) 

"Come to me ... and you will find rest for your souls." 

This is God's offer of grace.

Prayer for the world
Lord in your mercy, Hear our prayer

A Blessing
Hebrews 13, 20-21
May the God of peace who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ, that great shepherd of the sheep, equip you with every good thing to do his will & work in us what is pleasing to him. Amen


A Hymn
Hymns & Psalms 142. Tune: Angelus

At even when the sun was set
The sick, O Lord, around you lay,
O in what divers pains they met,
O with what joy they went away!

Once more we come to you today
Oppressed with various ills. Draw near.
What if your form we cannot see?
We know and feel that you are here.

O Saviour Christ, our woes dispel;
For some are sick and some are sad,
 And some have never loved you well,
And some have lost the love they had.

And none, O Lord, has perfect rest,
For none is wholly free from sin;
And they who fain would serve you best
Are conscious most of wrong within.

O Saviour Christ, you understand,
You have been troubled, tempted, tried;
Your kind but searching glance can scan
The very wounds that shame would hide.

Your touch has still its ancient power;
No word from you can fruitless fall:
Hear, in this present troubled hour,
And in your mercy heal us all. Amen

Henry Twells (1823-1900) alt.

Friendships that sustain us

Friendships that sustain us

That's the heading of a chapter in a book I'm reading during lockdown: Friendships that sustain us.

It seems to be exactly right for our situation.

The book - Scattered & Gathered by Neil Hudson - is about how we do church, what a church is and how to make sense of the way we live our lives. As the people-church, if I can use that term (as opposed to the building), we live most of our lives apart: we are scattered. Generally speaking, we only come together, that is, we are only gathered, on Sundays and at other specific times or events.

In this chapter in particular, the author contends that we can only be church if we care for each other in real and meaningful ways. To do this we need to know each other. We need to know what failures and successes we meet in our scattered lives and offer approppriate support and encouragement when it is needed.

 There was one quote at the end of the chapter I wanted to remember:

The most interesting creative and political solutions we Christians have to offer our troubled society are not new laws ... or increased funding for social programmes. ... The most creative social strategy we have to offer is the church. ... We serve the world by showing it something it is not, namely, a place where God is forming a family out of strangers.

From Resident Aliens: Life in the Christian Colony by Stanley Hauerwas and William Willimon, 1989

A place where God is forming a family out of strangers. That's us. That is what it means to be church. And at a time when we are all completely scattered and not able to gather together in any way at all, let alone Sunday services, it is something we need.

Jesus says: Come. Come to me and I will give you rest. If we all gather to Jesus, we can be together - virtually, spiritually - and find, together, that rest for our souls in these troubled times. And learn perhaps a bit more about being friends; discover what it means to be formed into a family by God.

Ends

Easter reflection

Easter Reflection

Here is a helpful reflection from the Church of England in their Easter Pilgrim series of daily reflections, which is on the theme of last Sunday's service

The Bread of Life

 You can listen to, or read, the reflection HERE

EASTER 3

EASTER 3

Sunday 26th April 2020
(Sorry. It seems that I failed to put this on the blog last week. Apologies)

JESUS, THE LIVING BREAD

 Mark 14
Jesus took the bread and ... broke it

READINGS
Psalm 116
The Lord is gracious & righteous, full of compassion
John 6
I am the Bread of Life

HYMNS
(Songs of Fellowship)
50
Break thou the bread of life
120
From heaven you came

PRAYERS
Lord God, we see your love in Jesus your Son; help us to hear his teaching, believe his word & find fulness of loveso that we can bring joy to everyone we meet. Amen

We continue to pray for the world

REFLECTION
After the events of the Easter weekend, did the first disciples share bread & wine together? Did they remember those conversations - arguments, maybe - with Jesus, about him being the bread of life? Did they understand?

What does it mean to "feed on Christ"?
We'll have to stretch our imaginations, & our faith, if we're to comprehend

Feast on him. the Living Bread. 
Jesus is our everyday supply. He is our sustenance and joy

Our Father in heaven ...
Give us this day our daily bread ...
For yours is the kingdom
the power and the glory
For ever and ever. Amen

Second Sunday of Easter

Second Sunday of Easter

EASTER 2
Sunday 19th April 2020

Lovingly he greets us

A Song (Songs of Fellowship 304)
Jesus, stand among us, in thy risen power

A Prayer

Lo Jesus meets us, risen from the tomb
Lovingly he greets us, scatters fear and gloom
Let the church with gladness hymns of triumph sing
For the Lord now lives & death has lost its sting.

[verse 2; Thine be the glory]

Our Father ...

A Reading (Luke 24: 13-35)
That day, two of them were going to a village called Emmaus

It's not a bad pattern to emulate:
Jesus meets them where they are (with appropriate distancing!)
Jesus listens to what is troubling them
Jesus offers them God's grace
Jesus channels God's peace to them, and also to us.

We can do the same, if we are in Christ.
We can draw alongside, listen, offer God's grace
and be channels of God's peace for other people. Amen

We pray for the world
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer

A Blessing

May the God of love & grace
Meet with you in the way
And give you peace. Amen

Acknowledgement and Thanks
The following hymn was provided by Rev John Wiseman (Sherwood Methodist Church) for this Sunday's worship. The above service was developed from materials created by Rev John Wiseman.

Emmaus-bound on Easter Day

(Tune: We have a gospel to proclaim)

Emmaus-bound on Easter Day
Two travellers walked along the way.
The'd once had hope but hope had died
When you, O Lord, were crucified.

When you appeared beside those two,
They could not see that it was you;
But as they talked and shared their pain,
You gave them hope and joy again.

For as you spoke to them God's word,
Explaining all they'd seen and heard,
They understood what God had done
And that a new day had begun.

They shared their home; you broke the bread.
They saw you, risen from the dead!
That moment's grace helped them to see
The gift of God's eternity.

In scripture and at table too,
O Risen Lord, may we know you.
And may your presence give us grace
To share God's love in every place.

Easter Monday: a hymn

Easter Monday: a hymn

O Come to the Father through Jesus the Son

I woke up with these words in  my head. What was the hymn? It took me a few minutes but I got there eventually without resorting to Google: To God be the glory by Fanny J Crosby

To God be the glory! Great things he has done
So loved he the world that he gave us his Son
Who yielded his life an atonement for sin
And opened the life-gate that all may go in

Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father through Jesus the Son;
And give Him the glory, great things he has done.

You can find this hymn on Youtube here
[usual warning about adverts etc]

O come to the Father through Jesus the Son
Keep singing!

Easter from Ceredigion

Easter from Ceredigion

Another live streamed service from the Ceredigion Circuit of the Methodist Church

Easter Sunday morning worship

With Roger Hides and Sara Windsor-Hides. 

Prayerful. Thoughtful. Full of hope.

And good hymns!

Hysterical confusion

Hysterical confusion. 

Utter disbelief.

How did they feel that first Easter morning?

It is impossible to say. 
Whatever.
Nothing was ever the same again.
That bitter morning. All hope gone. 
An encounter with a gardener.
Rumour. Story.
Hope? 
No.
No?
The impossible said.
God, who had abandoned them 
Had not God abandoned them?
The Shepherd, struck, beaten, mauled
Dead
Not dead
If God be true
What need I
What need we
Anything
 
All things are possible in God who loves us

Happy Easter!

Easter Sunday: an alternative

Easter Sunday: an alternative

Developed with thanks from a short act of worship prepared for use at home by Rev John Wiseman of Nottingham East Methodist Circuit.

Call to worship

⁵ The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. ⁶ He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Matthew 28, 5-6

Sing an Easter hymn

Pray

Life-giving God, Creator, sustainer, redeemer, we offer you praise and worship
Loving God, in Jesus you entered our lives: we thank you 
Empowering God, through your Spirit, we know your presence with us

Jesus, dying, your arms encircled the world in love
You said, 'Forgive them because they don't know what they're doing'
Forgive us for denying, doubting and running away
Forgive us for lack of love
Grant us your grace so that we can begin again
Astonish us, O Lord, with your risen life 

Read: John 20, 1-18
Mary Magdalene and the gardener

Sing an Easter hymn

Reflection: An Egg for Easter

E is for Empty. The tomb is empty
G is for Greeting. Jesus says, "Mary!"
G is for Go. Jesus sends her to tell the others

 John then suggests that we celebrate in the following way:

In these days when we’re unable to receive Communion, you may wish to engage in this act of worship on your own or share it with your household. If you are on your own, why not arrange to do this at the same time as friends? If you’re able to use Zoom, Skype or similar you could join in ‘virtual’ worship together with others. You’ll need a small table, candle, matches, Bible, cross and a bread roll.

(Begin with a time of silence)

In the beginning the Word was with God
And the Word was God
(Place a Bible on the table)

In the beginning it was dark and God said, Let there be light!
And there was light
(Light a candle)

When the time was right, God sent his Son
He came as one of us
(Place a cross on the table)

Keep a time of silence, prayer & intercession

Jesus said: I am the Bread of Life
Whoever comes to me will never be hungry

(Place the bread on the table)
Break the bread, then eat

The disciples said: Didn't our hearts burn within us
As he opened the scriptures to us?

Read:  John 6, 35-40

Sing: Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son

A Blessing:
This is the day that the Lord has made
We will rejoice and be glad in it
Let us pray, live and work together in peace
To love and serve the Lord,

In the name of Christ, Amen.