September 13th 2020, Sunday service

September 13th 2020, Sunday service

BURTON JOYCE COMMUNITY CHURCH

A short service for use at home: Sunday 13th September 2020 

Prepared for Burton Joyce Community Church by Phil Colbourn and Dinah Dudley. Spend a few moments with God knowing that others share in this time of worship with you. 

WELCOME

HYMN: Songs of Fellowship 321 

Lead us, heavenly Father, lead us

PRAYER OF ADORATION AND THANKSGIVING 

Dear Lord, our Saviour, our guide, our Redeemer, we praise and bless your name.  You lead us through this troubled world, refreshing our hearts with beauty, calm and love.  Your Spirit surrounds and upholds us, filling us with your joy, your peace and your love.  We thank you Lord for all the blessings you have heaped upon us, and we ask that you will show us how best to share these with all we come across.     Amen

CONFESSION

We know Lord that we have failed you in so many ways this week.  The phone calls we have not made, the irritation we have shown, the lack of sympathy that we have shown as we concentrated on our own needs, all these and more, mean that we have not followed your will for us.  We are sorry, Lord, and we ask forgiveness for our weakness and our lack of concern for others.  Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.  Amen

HYMN: Songs of Fellowship 41 

Be still and know that I am God

READING: EXODUS 14:19-31   

Crossing the Red Sea

REFLECTION

In this, the third in our series following the children of Israel as they escape from exploitation and abuse, we have a problem. We are stuck between the devil, in the form of Pharaoh and his armies, and the deep blue sea. Do we panic or do we trust the God who has led us out? In the circumstances, I think I would panic. There’s nowhere to go. They are caught like a rat in a trap and the people wonder, naturally, if they’ve done the right thing: setting off like this into the unknown. Some are understandably terrified. They know what Pharaoh can do.

But God has other ideas. Be still. It might be an idea to sing again - Be still and know that I am God - and let it soak into our soul.

God has other ideas. Taking the form, in this instance, of a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, God surrounds and protects his people. This is the God who leads us out of slavery and oppression into new life. This is the God & Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who, at the cross, endured the agony of eternal separation in death to free us from the tyranny of sin. But there is more.

That sea. There is a way across. Moses! Do what I tell you. Everything will be ok. The waters divide. We cross on dry land. We arrive safe on the farther shore. The terrors of the night are swept away. Praise God. Alleluia! The people were afraid, the people were terrified, but the Lord has saved his people.

There is such uncertainty at the moment. Let’s just take hold of this: The Lord who leads us out will bring us home. God will protect and guide and surround us in love and joy and peace. God’s goodness will prevail even though the way may be tough in the meantime. Or perhaps I should say: The way will be tough but let us learn to lean on God, our shield and our protector. Amen

HYMN: Songs of Fellowship 587 

We rest on thee, our shield and our defender

INTERCESSORY PRAYERS 

Lord as we pray for all who are in need in this troubled world, we concentrate today on those who are mourning their loved ones.  We remember Sheila, following the sudden death of Colin, and we continue to pray for the Byass family as they mourn for Richard’s father who died recently.  There are others in our village in mourning Lord, and we hold them all up to you and ask that your Holy Spirit will surround and uphold them.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer: Our Father

HYMN: Songs of Fellowship 466 

Praise, my soul, the king of heaven

CLOSING PRAYERS 

This I believe: God goes before to protect me and God comes behind to guard; God to my right hand gives me strength and God to my left hand is my power; God underneath me will carry me, God above will lift me on wings like eagles: God in love surrounds me and God within renews me, this and every day. Amen

And the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit be with us and all we love and pray for, this day and for evermore. Amen.