NEWCASTLE UNITED CHURCHJune 21, 2020 10:30 a.m.

Father’s DayThe Season of Pentecost

“As followers of Christ, we are called to be a worshipping and learning, receiving and giving community of faith, hope and love.” – Newcastle United Church Mission Statement

Surely God is in this place. Help me notice.We Approach God

Lighting The Christ Candle

A Time of Centring – “Spirit, Open My Heart” (chorus) MV # 79(Words Copyright 1996 The Pilgrim Press)

Spirit, open my heart to the joy and pain of living. As you love may I love, in receiving and in giving, Spirit, open my heart. (sung through twice)

Call to Worship (Responsive)

Come, fathers and those who father.We have all been fathered.Come, those for whom today is difficult and confusing, those for whom today brings anger or grief.We worship today our God who loves us with a paternal love. A love beyond anything we could ask or imagine.Come, let us worship God.

Hymn of Praise “Loving Spirit” # 387(Words copyright 1987 The Hymn Society. Used by permission of Hope Publishing Company)

Loving Spirit, loving Spirit, you have chosen me to be, you have drawn me to your wonder, you have set your sign on me.Like a father, you protect me, teach me the discerning eye,

hoist me up upon your shoulder, let me see the world from high.

Prayer of Approach (Unison)

As we worship together, God, help us to understand what you are calling us to do and to be so that we may follow in faithfulness. You are the one who created us to be your children. You love us unconditionally. May we live as your family, now and always. Amen.

Below is the service I have created for this Sunday. I hope this is something you can use for personal/family worship. We are all worshiping together, no matter where we are. If you are joining us online this week then please have this resource with you so you have the words

to the responses and hymns at your fingertips in case you can’t see the screen.Rev. Mary-Jane

The words provided for the hymns are done with permission under One License # A-727596.

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We Hear God’s WordHymn “God Of The Sparrow” # 229(Words copyright Jaroslav Vajda 1983. Music copyright 1983 G.I.A Publications, Inc.)

God of the sparrow God of the whale God of the swirling stars How does the creature say Awe How does the creature say Praise.God the ages God near at hand God of the loving heart How do your children say Joy How do your children say Home.

A Time To Be Children

This week let’s think about our fathers (or mothers, grandparents). Maybe interview your dad, if you can. See what your dad knows about you. Ask questions like: How many fingers do I have? What is my name? How old am I? When is my birthday? What’s one of my favourite foods? Do I have a favourite colour? What is it? What do I like to do? What time did I wake up today? Do you know what I dreamed about last night? What am I thinking about right now? And finally, ask: How many hairs do I have growing on my head?The questions started out pretty easy to answer, didn’t they? Some of the questions could have been answered by someone who didn’t know you very well, but other questions could only be answered by a good friend or a parent, someone who really knows you.What questions couldn’t be answered? You might not have told anyone what you dreamed about last night. It would be very hard to know exactly what someone was thinking without asking them. And it would take a very long time to count all the hairs growing on your head. Who do you think knows us even better than our parents or our best friends? Yes! God knows everything about us.

In Matthew’s gospel it says, “The very hairs on your head are all numbered.” God knows how many hairs each one of us have on our heads. That’s pretty small detail, isn’t it? Our family and friends know a lot about us, both good and bad, and they love us so much for who we are. There’s no one in the whole world like you. God knows even more about us – every thought, every wish – and God loves us more than we can imagine.The next time you brush your hair, remember that God cares about every little detail in your life, right down to the number of hairs on your head.

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.Thy kingdom come, thy will be done

on earth as it is in heaven.Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those that trespass against us.And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,

For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory,for ever and ever. Amen.

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Genesis 21:8-21 Hagar and Ishmael are sent away.

Psalm 86:1-10, 16-17 Turn your ear to me, O God. VU #803Sung Response: In the day of my trouble I call unto you for you will answer me.

Turn your ear to me, O God, and answer me, for I am poor and in misery.Preserve my life for I am faithful; save your servant for I trust in

you.Be merciful to me, my lord, for I call to you all day long.

Gladden the heart of your servant, for to you I lift up my soul.For you, my lord, are good and forgiving, and great in mercy to all who call on you.

Give heed, O God, to my prayer, and listen to my cry of supplication. RAmong the gods there is none like you, my lord, nor can the deeds of any be compared to yours.

All the nations you have made shall come and bow before you.They shall glorify your name, my lord,

for you are great and do marvellous things; you alone are God. RTurn to me then, and have mercy; give your strength to your servant.

Save your handmaiden’s child; give me a sign of your favour!Then those who hate me will see and be ashamed,

for you, God, have helped and comforted me. R

Matthew 10:24-39 Discipleship: lose your life to save it.This is the Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Hymn “There’s A Wideness In God’s Mercy” # 271

There’s a wideness in God’s mercy like the wideness of the sea; there’s a kindness in God’s justice which is more than liberty.For the love of God is broader than the measures of the mind, and the heart of the Eternal is most wonderfully kind.

Message

"Father Abraham had many sons, many sons had father Abraham."

Well, that is what the song says. When we think of Father Abraham and his sons we think of Isaac. And one of the most famous stories is that of Abraham offering up Isaac. You know the story. God comes to Abraham and says, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and offer him up to me at a place that I will show you." And Abraham does just as the Lord commanded despite the pain that is caused him. He is ready to sacrifice Isaac when the Lord stops him and tells him to sacrifice in place of his son a ram that has providentially gotten caught in a thicket near by. But, that is the story for next week!

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But that was not the first time Abraham offered up one of his sons at God's command. It is true that Father Abraham had many sons (and daughters), "I am one of them and so are you," but Isaac was not his first son. In a sense the story today tells how Abraham offered up his firstborn son, Ishmael, at God's command.

The story actually starts several chapters earlier. God calls old man Abraham and his barren wife Sarah to go where God will lead. And God promises that they will have descendants. But years pass and Sarah is not getting any younger. She is already twice the life expectancy for a woman in her century. So, she decides to help God's plan along. She gives Abraham her servant Hagar to be his wife. And old man Abraham has a son by this young wife. But that was not God's plan. As well intentioned as Sarah was, it would not do. It is nothing for an old man to have a son by a young wife; it happens all the time. God wanted to perform a miracle and cause old barren Sarah herself to bear Abraham a son.

So, Sarah finally does have a son and she names him Isaac which means laughter. And Abraham dearly loved both his sons. But there is a problem, and Sarah notices it when they are celebrating the weaning of Isaac. In their day most children died in infancy so when a child was weaned, they celebrated because it had survived those early years. But Sarah saw Ishmael playing with Isaac and she realized that Ishmael was the elder son. That gave him a right to a larger share of the Father's inheritance. In other words, before long old man Abraham would die and her servant's son would be her son's master. So Sarah asked Abraham to send Ishmael and his mother away.

The Bible says that this matter was very distressing to Abraham on account of his son. Sarah wanted Abraham to send Hagar and Ishmael away, to cast them out of their family. This would mean, in essence, disowning his firstborn son and sending them to fend for themselves in an uncertain world. Abraham loved his son Ishmael and did not want to abandon him, possibly leaving him to die. But he probably realized that Isaac was the child of promise.

To solve this dilemma Abraham turned to God. Probably to Abraham's dismay, God told him to do as Sarah wished. But God promised to care for the boy. God said that He would watch over Ishmael and make a great nation out of him on account of Abraham.

So early in the morning Abraham gathered Hagar and the boy and sent them off. Bible scholars point out that the description of that morning parallels the description of Abraham setting out to sacrifice Isaac a few chapters later. In a sense Abraham is sacrificing his eldest son to do what God has told him to. We are told that God did care for Ishmael and even sent an angel to protect and provide just as God had promised. We speak of Israel as the descendants of Abraham but the Moslem world claims to be Abraham's descendants too by Ishmael.

Since today is Father's Day, I thought that a nice safe story about Father Abraham would make for a good sermon. But this story of Father Abraham is hardly safe or easy to deal with. Good old Father Abraham's family hardly corresponds to any 20th century ideal of a nuclear family. And what does this business of sending his son off say in a society of deadbeat Dads. We have an epidemic of so called "fathers" who physically, financially, emotionally, and/or spiritually abandon their children. And what does this story of Father Abraham tell us about the Fatherhood of God!

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Putting all that aside, the overwhelming lesson that I believe comes out of this story is Abraham's trust in God. Abraham didn't want to send off his firstborn son Ishmael. Every indication we have is that he loved Ishmael as much as Isaac. Sarah's suggestion that he send Ishmael away grieved Abraham because he loved him. Yet because it was God's will Abraham did it. He trusted that God would take care of and bless Ishmael.

And what of the Fatherhood of God? It shows us that God keeps his promises. God promised to bless Ishmael because of Abraham and God did. God sent his angels to preserve and protect Ishmael and Hagar even though they did not fit into God's original plan. This story shows us that God doesn't abandon the unwanted and "inconvenient" people of our world.

Being a father, or a mother for that fact, is like this story. It is not neat and easy, and there are difficult decisions to be made. The solutions that seem the best often are not. And I certainly feel for God because even the best people God could find, Abraham and Sarah, managed to mess up God's plans. I just wonder how much we complicate God's plans for our children? But this story shows us that God will take care of those who turn to Him. So, like Abraham we should turn to God with our messy problems and our difficult decisions and trust God to guide us. And we can rest sure in the truth that God cares for and blesses his children.

Since today is Father's Day, I could give the fathers a lot of advice. I could tell you how to do this or do that. But it would all pale in comparison to this one piece of advice: just trust the Lord; and that is good advice for everyone whether they are fathers or not. Just go to God with your difficulties, decisions, and questions. God didn't steer Father Abraham wrong and God won't steer you wrong either. Amen.

We Respond To God’s WordOffering InvitationAs the Spirit blows through our lives and our world, we are moved to share the good news. Part of that good news is that we have life, the abundant life Christ offered us. It is from that abundance that we offer our time, talent and treasure, each and every day…

The Offertory (As we are not together, take a moment to think of all you can offer to God this week, even cooped up in your own home. Dedicate those things to God now.)

Your work, O God, needs many hands to help you everywhere, and some there are who cannot serve unless our gifts we share.

(VU #537 v.1)

Dedication Prayer (Unison)During the season of Pentecost, we are reminded, O God, that the church is not a

physical place, but a people, your people. You fill your people with your Spirit and send us into the world. Send all we have to offer into the world that our church, our community and our world may know the power of your Spirit. Amen.

Prayers of the People Holy and most generous friend, we say thanks for the breath we breathe at this moment; for the precarious, precious gift of life and the beauties that unfold before us by day, and the wonders revealed by night. For the beauty of the world; seashore and mountain, forest and farmland, sunrise and dusk, springtime and autumn, starlight and moonlight. 

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For the beauty of courage; the handicapped defying the odds, young folk rising to high achievement despite neglect and abuse at home, elderly people bearing hardship or pain without complaint. For the beauty of trust; a baby asleep in its mother’s arms, a church welcoming a new minister, a patient trusting a surgeon, a distressed person risking all with a counsellor. For the beauty of forgiveness; a child forgiving a parental injustice, an injured victim showing mercy to the offender, lovers putting hurts behind them, a war victim forgiving the enemy, a wife forgiving her husband’s killer. For the beauty of love; parent, child, sister, brother, friend, lover, and for that awesome love when some lay down their own life not only for a friend but also for a stranger. For the beauty of your love; Jesus your true Child in action, healing and pardoning, telling parables and washing feet, defying the threats against him, betrayed and abused, suffering and dying, rising and celebrating. Holy and most generous God, for the sublime beauty of your simplicity and humility in being Friend of all who turn to your light, and Friend of those who still stubbornly stand in the darkness,

we give you thanks and praise.  

Compassionate God, prayerfully we tune our hearts and minds to the needs of other people, and we pray that our small yet sincere compassion may unite with your immense love and bring blessing to those for whom we pray. Deal gently with the timid and the anxious, those who jump at their own shadow, and those whose phobias make it a major project to go down the street or visit a neighbour. Deal patiently with the foolish who have placed themselves in sordid situations from which it is hard to break free, and with the slow learners who repeat old mistakes. 

Deal confrontingly with the excuse makers who won’t face up to their mistakes, and with the evasive ones who won’t accept their responsibilities. Deal forcefully with the arrogant who trample over the well being of others, and with the rich and powerful  that buy and bully their way past the rights of others. Deal mercifully with victims of the callous, the neglectful, and the cruel, and especially with the many who today feel exhausted, physically, or emotionally or spiritually. Deal comfortingly with the sick, the dying and the bereaved, and especially with those who have no knowledge of you, or are afraid of you rather than trusting your love. Deal bluntly or gently with your churches according to their respective needs, and especially give your love to any who are suffering harassment, ridicule or persecution.Deal lovingly with all those who this day need your presence and those whom we lift to you now in the silence of our hearts…

 

God of unspeakable love, if you can use us to answer any of these prayers, or the prayers of our fellow Christians around the world, please take us, guide us, and employ us, to the glory of your name. Through Christ Jesus our Redeemer. Amen.(inspired by and adapted from Bruce Prewer and used with permission.)

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Closing Hymn “Faith Of Our Fathers” # 580(Words v. 4 copyright 1981 Joseph R. Alfred.)

Faith of our fathers, living still in spite of dungeon, fire, and sword, O how our hearts beat high with joy, whene’er we hear that glorious word: faith of our fathers, holy faith, we will be true to you till death.Faith born of God, O call us yet; bind us with all who follow you, sharing the struggle of your cross until the world is made anew. Faith born of God, O living faith, we will be true to you till death.

Commissioning and Benediction Siblings in Christ, let us go forth in trust. Knowing that God goes with us and Jesus has given us an example of how to serve. All God’s children are loved unconditionally.We go loved to share love.And may the grace of Christ attend you, the love of God surround you, and the Holy Spirit keep each one of you, now and always. Amen.

Sung Blessing “Dance With The Spirit” MV # 156(Words & Music copyright 1995 Desert Flower Music)

Dance with the Spirit early in the mornin’, walk with the Spirit throughout the long day. Work and hope for the new life abornin’, listen to the Spirit to show you the way.

And online we end together (wait for me to get your mics unmuted) And the people say:

Hallelujah and Amen!

Faith in Motion (FIM) enjoyed take-out this weekend. Take-Out Church! The young people in the church were each delivered a special box containing activities they can do with their family throughout the summer. Inside each box were activities sheets relating to our bible readings this summer, a thankful beach ball they can make, conversation starters, a

prayer cube, helping your neighbour challenge and skittle prayer. Our families are

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encouraged to take Flat Jesus with them on their adventures this summer to reinforce the idea that Jesus is always with us! We can’t wait to see some of the activities Flat Jesus does this summer! Please email us your pictures. If you would like to join us, there are some Flat Jesus’ in the mail-slot in the Emily St. entrance.

Vacation Time – Cottage Rental OpportunityHeather Griffin is offering a chance for you to get away with a chance to stay at her cottage. This is one of Heather’s ‘Grow Your Dough’ activities. She is looking at a cost of $50 per night, for one to four nights.

Also, it’s never too early to be thinking about Christmas! Heather is interested in taking orders for winter planters for delivery in late November. $30 each or two for $50.

For either item please contact Heather at 905-440-0038 or hgriff551@gmail.com.

Car Wash Time! – Ken Crichton is at it again!

• $25 car & van detailing service for the church building fund• This is a car wash, trunk vacuum, cabin clean & carpet vacuum, inside & outside glass,

plastic and rubber engine clean & wheels/rims.  Wax an extra $5.• Call Ken at 905-987-4162 for appointment

While we are apart, we are still gathering together at various times, for different activities on Zoom. If you haven’t thought about joining any of the gatherings, please know you are welcome to join at any time. The link for each activity is sent out during the week so you can join with relative ease.

Tuesday Tea & Talk on Tuesdays at 2 pm is a relaxed gathering where we wander wherever the conversation takes us. It is a great way to just gather with others from the church community and get to know one another and chat.

Music to Wash Dishes By is recorded by Joanne each Thursday afternoon and then posted to the website by supper time so you can enjoy at your leisure, with or without dishes.

Please note: During this time, and if you are able, please continue giving your church donations regularly. You can contact Lorna McSwan, our treasurer, at le.mcswan@bell.net or 905-987-3940. You can arrange for drop off or pick up of offering envelopes or to register for Pre-Authorized Remittance (PAR) which can be cancelled at any time. You can mail your donations to the church at: 84 Mill St. South, Newcastle, ON L1B 1K2. You can donate via CanadaHelps: https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/newcastle-unted-church/ through this link or the link on our website: www.newcastleunitedchurch.org “Donate” page.Thank you for considering these options. While we may not be gathering together, work is still being done and bills still have to be paid.

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Happy Father’s Day!

Newcastle United Church