Worship on the Lord’s Day
Fourth Sunday after Epiphany
10:00 am, 29 January 2023
3Online & Onsite (Mixed Presence) Gathering as a Worshipping Community
Led by Raymond Baker
Children’s time: Lynn Vaughan
Music director: Binu Kapadia Vocalist: Lynn Vaughan
Elder: Sam Malayang
We gather to worship God
Music prelude
Greeting
L: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
P: and also with you.
Lighting of the Christ candle
Welcome and announcements
Silent preparation for worship
Call to Worship
L: Loving God, we come this morning seeking to abide in your presence.
P: Open our minds to your spirit of wisdom, that we may know how to live as your people.
L: Open our hearts to your spirit of truth,
P: that we may love all your people with a love that speaks of justice, kindness, and radical grace.
L: May this time of worship be authentic and pleasing to you.
P: In Jesus name we prayer. Amen
Opening praise: Lord, I need You
Prayers of approach and confession
Most merciful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we confess that we have sinned in thought, word and deed. We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. In your mercy, forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are, and direct what we shall be; that we may do justly, love mercy and walk humbly with you, our God. Amen.
Response: I waited, I waited on You, Lord
Assurance of God’s forgiveness
Lord, you are compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in loving kindness. You have not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is your loving kindness toward us who fear You. As far as the east is from the west, You, Lord God, removed our transgressions from us because of the Atoning Work of the Cross–if we believe that because you died for our sins– we will inherit eternal life. You did all this because you love us. Thank you, In Jesus Name we pray.
We listen for the voice of God
Children’s time
Gradual: Open our eyes, Lord (445)
Story
Good morning, everyone, good morning. How are we today?
Welcome to all the children that are here in the sanctuary and to those who are on ZOOM.
Welcome to all the people that are young at heart.
So I wanted to share with you something that I got recently that I thought you might like. It’s a candle holder.
Do you have any candle holders at your house?
Now let me put a candle in it, and we’ll see if it works.
Here’s my candle. Safety first. Alright!
Now, how does it look?
Can you see the candle? Isn’t it so pretty?
So, we’re going to pretend that it smashed on the ground.
What would you do if you had this beautiful candle holder and it smashed into pieces, but you still wanted to use it
What could you do? Do you see what I dd?
I glued it together so now let’s try and put our candle inside and see if we can see it all right.
Can you see it? I’m telling you it would look a lot better if the lights were off in the sun wasn’t shining.
Here’s a better one that Mr. Baker lit with the Christ candle.
We will see if that shines brighter.
Can you see that better?
Okay, so this reminds me of people, because sometimes there are people in the world that think they’re kind of perfect and they don’t have any cracks in them.
But all of us are a little bit broken.
Can you think of what would make somebody broken?
Give me an example of why, someone might think they’re broken.
Could they maybe be sad?
Yes, maybe something’s going on in their life that’s making them sad.
Maybe they got hurt.
Maybe they broke a bone so they’re actually broken.
What else?
What else could make somebody feel like they’re broken inside themselves.
Maybe their friends don’t want to play with them.
Maybe they’ve done something they weren’t supposed to do, and they know that they have some sin, that they have to deal with.
So this example of this broken candle holder is just a reminder that sometimes, when we’re feeling like we’re broken and we’re sad, or we’re sick, that maybe we need God to pick up those pieces of our lives and kind of put us back together.
So just a reminder that even people that feel broken can shine.
God’s light can come out even more beautiful on the other side.
So let’s pray, and you can repeat after me, okay.
Prayer
Dear God, when we are feeling broken,
Please pick up the pieces of our lives,
and wrap them in your loving arms.
So that we can shine your light more beautifully than before.
Now together we’ll say the prayer that Jesus taught us ….
The Lord’s Prayer (535)
Transition music
Song: We lay our broken world (202)
Today’s Message
Scripture readings: Acts 6:1-4
Gradual: Jesus, remember me
Message: “Support the hurting”
Good morning, Dayspring! I am so happy to be here with you today. I went to seminary with Reverend Brad and believe that you are blessed to have such a kind and Christ focused minister.
To begin, I have a question for you. Do you know someone who is hurting, because of the death of a loved one, or a diagnosis of cancer, maybe someone who is feeling isolated, or someone who is just getting over a traumatic event? I believe all of us know someone who is hurting or we may be hurting.
As Christians what do we do for those that are hurting?
This morning I would like to address ways that we as Christians can help those who are facing a difficult time in their lives. Today I will talk about Stephen Ministry and how we all can help.
My wife and I are Stephen Ministers at Greenfield Community Church located just down the road from here and we are very excited about the partnership going on between our two churches. One of the ways our churches are partnered is through Stephen Ministry.
This ministry is designed for lay people to actively help those going through a tough life circumstance. It is realistic to say that every church has congregants in need of someone to come alongside them for a period of time. Usually, Church leaders are the first to help, but many times the person needs support for a long period of time and on a consistent basis. Church leaders are simply too busy to provide this type of care to everyone who is hurting.
This is where church volunteers who become trained Stephen ministers can help. These individuals participate in fifty hours of Stephen ministry training. Stephen ministers learn how to guide their care receiver to make process-oriented goals in a Christ centred manner. This congregation is blessed to have three trained Stephen ministers: Nesta, Martin and Iris.
Now let’s look at why training is important and how we all can help those who are hurting.
Who here has heard, “God does not give you more than you can handle?” This is a notion I have heard many times from well-meaning Christians. However, this is not what the Bible says. It may be loosely based on 1 Corinthians 10:13 that reads like this:
No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. (NIV)
Many people misinterpret this verse to mean that God will not let bad things happen in life that we cannot handle. Such an interpretation contradicts Paul’s later writings found in 2 Corinthians 1:8-9 where he said he experienced hardship in Asia where he personally was under great pressure, far beyond his ability to endure it, so he despaired of life itself. God allowed Paul, and allows us to experience difficulties that are too much for us to bear so we lean on God for strength, and do not rely on ourselves. 2 Corinthians 1:10 states, He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again.(NIV) On him we have set our hope that He will continue to deliver us. It is always God who we rely on.
In the past, I have worked in palliative care centres as a chaplain. There, I often heard people trying to provide comfort, yet what they said was not supportive to the one hurting. For example, saying to someone in despair, “She is in a better place now.” Can you imagine if my wife, whom I love, died and someone said to me, “Oh don’t worry, she is in a better place now.”? My question would be: “Was the place with me not a good place?”
Or another example is, “At least she is not suffering now.” Often this is not helpful. If I have lost someone I love and the speaker is focusing on the dead person being in heaven, leaving me behind, I do not feel better. I am devastated that my loved one is not here. My suggestion would be to say to the bereaved that “I, personally, will continue to pray for you and your family at this time.” This is a larger statement for the one grieving as it assures them that you will petition God for them, because it may be hard for them to pray and it points them to God.
Proverbs 25:20 states: Like one who takes away a garment on a cold day, or like vinegar poured on a wound, is one who sings songs to a heavy heart. (NIV)
Dr. Kenneth C. Hauck, the founder of Stephen Ministry explains it well when he says that this proverb describes an all-too-human problem each of us faces from time to time. We want to reach out and help those who are hurting—but the words or actions we use may unintentionally add to their burden instead of easing their pain. As Stephen Ministers we are trained to offer Christ-Centred support.[1]
Who was this Stephen that Stephen Ministry is named after?
Stephen is first mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles as one of seven deacons appointed by the Apostles to distribute food and charitable aid to poorer members of the community, those that were discriminated against and were mostly widows who were in the early church.
Let me read from Acts 6.
In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews [those that had adopted the Greek way of life] among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”
This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; … They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.
So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith. (NIV)
Similarly, Church and Stephen leaders today chose mature Christians to become trained as Stephen ministers to bring the love of Christ to those that are hurting. They were also chosen so as to allow the early church leaders time to preach and teach the Word of God just like the present day Stephen Ministry frees up the ministers in the church to preach and teach.
God not only uses Stephen Ministers to help the hurting, he uses all of us. He invites us to come alongside him as he works in peoples’ lives. We can’t forget the lesson from Jesus’ teaching in Luke 10:25-37 on who our neighbour is. This is where he describes a man who is beaten up and left at the side of the road and is ultimately helped by a Samaritan. The lesson was that the Samaritan was “the good neighbour” by helping a hurt man. Another lesson we can take from this story is that we are to help those that are hurting no matter who they are.
In Galatians 6:2 it states, Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. We can assume that Paul or whoever wrote Galatians indicates that we should help bear one another’s burdens.
Many years ago, there was a professor of theology dying at the University Hospital who could not leave his bed. Throughout the day he would take an interest in the lives and struggles of the workers that came to help him. Workers were literally taking their breaks to come and see him not because he was some kind of guru, rather he showed the love of Christ to others, listened to them and in some cases prayed for them. This professor made a big impact from his hospital bed. He is an example of how God can use us to bring the love of Christ to those in our circles. We all can be like that professor by listening to others and offering prayer.
In conclusion, I believe that Stephen ministry has helped so many people since it began in 1975. There is always a need for Stephen Ministers, so if you feel God is calling you to this ministry, please call the church office. If you are hurting or know anyone who is hurting and could use a Stephen’s Minister please contact the church office as well.
Many years ago I attended a church with a pastor named AI. He would end his sermons with homework for the congregation. So, our homework for this week is to remember that the Bible makes it clear that we need to give a cup of water to others in the name of Christ. (Mark 9:41) We can be the light on a hill, or a cup of water to a dark world for hurting people. Listen and offer prayer for the people God puts on your path. Amen.
Song: When we are living (630)
We respond to serve God
Reflection on giving: We have been giving faithfully since the beginning of the pandemic and we are committed to continuing the ministry and mission that define Dayspring – using the ways described below. Thank you all for your support of our shared vision and mission.
Prayer of gratitude and prayer for others and ourselves
Lord God, we thank you for your grace and mercy. We thank you for dying on the cross while we were still sinners.
Lord, make us an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let us bring love.
Where there is offence, let us bring pardon.
Where there is discord, let us bring union.
Where there is error, let us bring the truth.
Where there is doubt, let us bring faith.
Where there is despair, let us bring hope.
Where there is darkness, let us bring your light.
Where there is sadness, let us bring joy.
O Master, let us not seek as much
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love,
for it is in giving that one receives,
it is in self-forgetting that one finds,
it is in pardoning that one is pardoned,
It is in dying that one is raised to eternal life.[2]
We thank you for all who volunteer in this Church.
Lord God, we pray that all of us can receive your Word here in this service, including those that are watching or reading this service. We pray for our leaders in this city, province and country. In Jesus Name we pray. Amen.
Song: Lord of all hopefulness (748)
Sending out with God’s blessing
May the Lord give you strength, compassion, and joy to be the light of Christ in a dark world. May the Lord help you to restore the broken hearted and encourage the hurting. May the God of love and peace be with you now and forever. Amen.[3]
Response: The Blessing
Music postlude
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Numbers in brackets after a song/hymn indicate that it is from the 1997 Book of Praise of the Presbyterian Church in Canada. Those and other songs are being used in accordance with the specifications of Dayspring licensing with One Licence (3095377) and CLC (A735555).
The Rev. Brad Childs retains the copyright (© 2022) on all original material presented by him. As far as Brad Childs is aware, all of the material presented that has not been attributed to others is his own creation or is in the public domain. Unacknowledged use of copyrighted material is unintentional and will be corrected immediately upon notification being received.
[1] Don’t Sing Songs to a Heavy Heart by Kenneth C. Hauk Ph.D.
[2] Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi, La Ligue de la Sainte-Messe (translated)
[3] Based on 2 Corinthians 13:11 and Matthew 5:14-16