Sunday service for 9th August

 Sunday service for 9th August

BURTON JOYCE COMMUNITY CHURCH

Working with Nottingham North East Circuit of the Methodist Church 

Sunday 9 August 2020 

This short act of worship has been prepared by local preacher Phil Colbourn 

Loving God, we come to you here in our homes but together in spirit, and greet you with adoration and thanks for your love. Amen

Psalm 105 tells the story of the people of God & their escape from Egypt

Oh, give thanks to the Lord and call upon his name; 

make known his deeds among the peoples! Hallelujah!

We sing (Songs of Fellowship 895) Lord, I come to you

Prayers 

Lord, we come to you knowing our own frailty but also your glory

We grieve over the state of our world and our own shortcomings but we rejoice in your loving-kindness and your faithfulness and thank you for your love. We rejoice in your eternal goodness and once again we praise you: Creator, Almighty, Father, Lord of life. Amen

Confession 

Lord, when we see ourselves in the light of your love, we can see how much we lack that love ourselves. Forgive us. Renew us & remake us, so that we are kind &full of compassion. We are so gratefuil that you do not abandon us but search us out & lift us up & bring us home. Amen

Reading
Genesis 37, 1-4, 12-28

Joseph’s brothers sell him to Midianite traders who take him to Egypt.

Hymn (Songs of Fellowship 89) Faithful One

Reflection 

Joseph was a dream child. Rachel’s boy. Jacob’s favourite. Joseph was a dreamer and his father loved him: Joseph, and his Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat. But Joseph really got on people’s nerves. So annoying! Which view of Joseph is correct? Did the sun shine out of him or was he a pest?

Think about Jesus. He never puts a foot wrong. He knows better than anyone else, even his elders and betters; at the age of twelve! He must have been *so* annoying! He could even walk on water! 

But God says: “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” You can almost hear Jacob saying the same to Joseph. So, who is right? And if God is right, what is the matter with everybody else - Joseph’s brothers and the scribes & Pharisees, the High Priest & the rest who were annoyed by Jesus?

Perhaps, when all is said and done, God can be a very annoying person.

Perhaps we find it all too threatening? God can disturb our sense of who we think we are, undermine our basic assumptions, and challenge our rights & privileges. So, we say to God: “We are who we are. Don’t mess with us.” But God says to us: “I am who I am.”

Joseph comes to his brothers, wearing his coat, his head full of dreams and they get rid of him. Jesus comes, walking on water, stilling the storm. What do we do? Let’s leap out of the boat like Peter and go to Jesus, sink if we have to, but welcome Christ with open arms. He is Lord, the Lord Almighty. God comes to us trailing clouds of glory. God, this God, is our eternal home. 

Take time to be still for a moment 

We sing (Songs of Fellowship 1030) The Lord’s my shepherd

Intercession 

Annoying and Redeeming God, help us.

Your love is eternal, your joy all embracing.

Your peace is a healing touch.

Generous God, we pray for the exploited and powerless.

For good government and for people who care. 

For the sick and the bereaved. For families in difficult circumstances.

Finally, we pray for each other and our own needs. Amen. 

Together we pray the Lord’s Prayer 

(Songs of Fellowship 192) How lovely on the mountains (Our God reigns)

We bless one another 

God of Jacob and Joseph, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, go with us; comfort and strengthen us on the way, in trouble and in joy;

and may the blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

be with us and remain with us now, today, and every day. Amen.