Home Worshipping

Worshipping at Home 3rd May 2020

Home Worshipping 3rd May 2020

Opening Comments

The above video is 2 minutes 6 Seconds long

The First Hymn

Worshipping at Home
3rd May 2020

During this Easter season we have heard again the stories of eye witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Today we celebrate Jesus as the Lord of Life – not just the giver of life after death but the giver of quality life here and now.

Psalm 95: 1-7

Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord;

let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.

Let us come before him with thanksgiving

and extol him with music and song.

For the Lord is the great God,

the great King above all gods.

In his hand are the depths of the earth,

and the mountain peaks belong to him.

The sea is his, for he made it,

and his hands formed the dry land.

Come, let us bow down in worship,

let us kneel before the Lord our Maker;

for he is our God

and we are the people of his pasture,

the flock under his care.

Acclamation

The body that is sown is perishable,

it is raised imperishable;

it is sown in dishonour,

it is raised in glory;

it is sown in weakness,

it is raised in power;

it is sown a natural body,

it is raised a spiritual body.

So will it be

with the resurrection of the dead!

1 Corinthians 15: 42-44

The Collect Prayer

Risen Christ,

faithful shepherd

of your Father’s sheep:

teach us to hear your voice

and to follow your command,

that all your people

may be gathered into one ﬂock,

to the glory of God the Father.

Amen.

Sharing the Peace

We are the Family of God;

In the one Spirit we were all baptised

into one body.

Let us then pursue all that makes for peace

and builds up our common life.

(At this point please think of others

and in your heart send them

the message: Peace be with you.)

Bible Reading

John 10: 1-10

‘Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognise a stranger’s voice.’ Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them.

Therefore Jesus said again, ‘Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

Thought for the Day

I’ve been seeing a lot of sheep recently. Our daily walks with Lottie the dog often take us near flocks of sheep. Funny animals. There they are, happily grazing away when suddenly they become aware of us. For a moment they stand still, checking us out. Then they become unpredictable – they either all head towards us to take a closer look or they all decide to leg it. They do this by following a leader and by acting together. In a field of a hundred sheep you don’t get a hundred independently minded decision-makers saying, “OK, so here we have two humans and a dog. I will assess the situation and decide for myself on a course of action.” No, sheep follow the leader and act together. One twitches in a certain direction and that’s the way they all go. Their behaviour has sometimes been described as stupid.

If sheep are stupid, then we have a problem. What are we to make of Jesus referring to himself as a Shepherd and likening us to sheep? Are we to understand that we are gullible and easily led? Are we being told to have no opinions of our own but to go with the flow? Few of us would like the reputation of being ‘as meek as a lamb’. We’d rather be stubborn old goats! So, what are we to make of this biblical imagery? I had better not tell you because you will want to work it out for yourselves!

But maybe I will be allowed to make two observations:

First of all, sheep aren’t stupid. Apparently sheep are intelligent. They possess a very good memory and recognition skills. They are complex and sociable. It’s just that they have been the victims of thousands of years of bad press.

Secondly, Jesus primarily focusses on the relationship between a shepherd and his sheep. Whatever we might make of sheep, Jesus saw something very attractive and commendable in the way a good shepherd cares for his sheep. I guess he is saying that however intelligent, complex and sociable we might be, we can be led astray. We need someone to watch over us who is prepared to lay down his life for us. With Jesus as the Shepherd, this old goat is happy to be his sheep.

Lets us Pray

Lord Jesus Christ, good Shepherd of the Sheep, we thank you for watching over us. We thank you for the life of faith that fosters that close bond between us. We look to you and our hearts are filled with a calm reassurance that all is well. With that gift of inner peace within us help us to live out our lives in a way that serves others and pleases you. Amen.

Heavenly Father, we pray for people in their different needs. We pray for the unwell; we pray for those who work for our healing. We pray for the anxious and for those who calm our fears. We pray for the bereaved and for your arm to be around them. We pray for decision makers and for the granting of your wisdom. Amen.

The Blessing

The above video is 27 Seconds long

Our Second Hymn

Bible Readings for the week:

Monday: Ezekiel 34:17-23; 1 Peter 5:1-5

Tuesday: Ezekiel 34:23-31; Hebrews 13:20-21

Wednesday: Jeremiah 23:1-8; Matthew 20:17-28

Thursday: Genesis 12:1-3; Acts 6:8-15

Friday: Exodus 3:1-12; Acts 7:1-16

Saturday: Jeremiah 26:20-24; John 8:48-59

If you have any thoughts, questions or concerns, please contact us

Henley in Arden The incumbent/priest in charge John Ganjavi

telephone 01564 792570 or email Incumbent/ Priest in charge

For a full list of church contact details please click here

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I believe if you keep your faith, you keep your trust, you keep the right attitude, if you're grateful, you'll see God open up new doors.