Sunday 5th June, 2022
Prepared by Rev. Joan Pell
Pentecost Sunday – Empowering Change
Call to Worship (Words from StF 396 by Shirley Edwina Murray)
Spirit who broods, Spirit who sings, mothering bird, peace in your wings –
Come from within, come make us one, come and renew the face of the earth.
Spirit of truth, laser and light, searching the path, seeking the right –
Come from within, come make us one, come and renew the face of the earth.
Spirit of love, larger than law, quick to forgive, keeping no score –
Come from within, come make us one, come and renew the face of the earth.
Spirit of hope, never subdued, Spirit of God, Spirit of God –
Come from within, come make us one, come and renew the face of the earth.
Hymn: StF 370 Breathe on me, Breath of God (Edwin Hatch, 1835-1889) Watch on Youtube
Breathe on me, Breath of God;
fill me with life anew,
that I may love what thou dost love,
and do what thou wouldst do.
Breathe on me, breath of God,
until my heart is pure,
until with thee I will one will,
to do and to endure.
Breathe on me, breath of God;
til I am wholly thine,
until this earthly part of me
glows with thy fire divine.
Breathe on me, breath of God;
so shall I never die,
but live with thee the perfect life
of thine eternity.
Opening Prayer (written by the Rev Dr Phillipa Horrex, Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand)
Lord God, thank you for this day of Pentecost when we celebrate the coming of your promised Holy Spirit. We give thanks that in eons past you poured out your Spirit on the earth, fashioning men and women in your image to enjoy the wonders of nature you had created; that you kept rescuing us from ourselves despite our foolish ways and our lack of understanding of what it means to be your children. Lord, we give you thanks that you have kept your promises throughout the ages, even when you despaired of our ever grasping the importance of placing you first in our lives, and that you took steps to show us the futility of our actions. At Easter, through your Son, Jesus the Christ, you were glorified; at Pentecost, through your Holy Spirit, you set the early church on fire and led the disciples into the world to preach your Word. May all praise and worship be yours! Amen.
Scripture Acts 2:1-21 OR watch this video “Fire and Wind, Liturgical Meditations Series” from Fuller Studio, Fuller Theological Seminary.
Sermon Empowering Change
How is change empowered? Where do we get our energy to go through change? There are many things that can generate energy. If we think in terms of how we power cars, heat houses, or operate gadgets, then we use coal, wood, oil, and gas. We can generate electricity from coal, nuclear power or clean energy sources like wind, solar and wave power. Each form of energy is better suited to some tasks than others. You cannot always see the energy but oftentimes, you can feel it and it empowers you to move. In the same way the Holy Spirit comes and speaks to us in different ways and gets us moving. Maybe fire. Maybe wind. Maybe it’s the still small voice. Maybe it’s that coincidence. Maybe it’s those goosebumps. Maybe it’s that nudge that you can’t ignore. Maybe it’s the dream you had. Maybe it’s the choice that brings you the most peace. Maybe it’s the choice that makes you nauseous. Maybe it’s the sight of injustice. Maybe it’s a story that touched your heart. Once you’ve felt the Holy Spirit, you will be filled with a new impetus, and that will empower you to move.
The Spirit’s energy can be unexpected. The Pentecost story is a story of change. The change has already begun. Jesus is gone, and they need to go on without him. In Acts 1:8, Jesus has told them that the Holy Spirit would come upon them so that they could be his witnesses. What do you think they imagined the coming of the Holy Spirit to look like? And what happened? There came a sound like the rush of a violent wind and tongues of fire rested on each of them. Do you think that is what they expected? The Holy Spirit moves in ways that we do not expect. The Spirit comes, surprising us, saying, “Guess who? Change is coming here!” And the Holy Spirit will move in ways that you won’t be expecting! So, watch out!
You never know what changes might be coming! Three years ago, as we were sorting through some old papers to prepare to move to Ipswich, Adrian came across this in his Auntie Phyllis’ papers. She was born in 1910. The handwritten note at the bottom said: Written February 1925. From my School Magazine. The piece was entitled: “The World a 100 Years Hence – A Vision” written by K. Knell in Form 3a. I don’t know if K. Knell was a boy or a girl but in form 3a they would have been around 14 years old, and in their last year of school. So, 97 years on, read what it said:
THE WORLD A HUNDRED YEARS HENCE – A VISION.
“I dipt into the future, far as human eye could see; Saw the vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be.”
If we could visit the world in a hundred years time, should we recognise it? Invention and research are making such rapid strides. I often wonder what we should find!
Would life be brighter and troubles more rare?; or would men be still more restless and dissatisfied – still seeking to invent to save labour?
Would electricity perform the housewife’s tasks? Would the breakfast china wash itself as if by magic, and would the clothes wash themselves while she read or did her shopping?
Would wireless be a thing of the past, and some new invention be on the tip of everyone’s tongue and emptying everyone’s purse?
Would strange men from Jupiter and red-haired beings from Mars be visiting Earth?
Would wireless messages be possible from Saturn?
Should we see a new and more wonderful Wembley in comparison with which the present one is but a ” Portland Fair?”
Would a much later house have superseded that of the steel-type – should we see one erected and ready for occupation in a week?
Would England be like one vast London with no small villages?
Would boys and girls remain at school until twenty years of age instead of fourteen or fifteen?
If we could only have a peep at the world a hundred years hence I am sure we should be as much astonished as our ancestors would if they could see our world to-day with its electric cars and ships like floating towns – to say nothing of our wireless and aerial communications.
K. KNELL, Form 3a. February 1925, Weymouth, Dorset
I wonder what the Holy Spirit will do with next 100 years, or even the next few months and years? Trust that as you go through changes that God will empower you in some different ways. And watch out for the Holy Spirit to move in ways that you won’t be expecting!
Anthem Jubilee Video – Rise Up & Serve
Prayer (Scottish Episcopal Church)
Almighty and eternal God, you uphold and govern all things both in heaven and on earth, and by your grace alone kings and queens do reign. We thank you for all the blessings which you have bestowed upon us throughout the reign of our sovereign lady, Queen Elizabeth, whom you have set over us these threescore years and ten. We thank you for the wisdom of her guidance and her love of peace, for the care and devotion with which she has served her people, for the example of her gracious life. As we rejoice before you with thankful hearts, we pray that we may ever be united in love and service to one another, as people called to live according to your will, for the good of all the world, and the glory of your great name, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Lift up your concerns for creation and the world … Our Father …
Hymn: STF 398 There’s a Spirit in the Air (Brian Wren © 1969, 1995 Stainer & Bell) Watch on Youtube
There’s a spirit in the air,
telling Christians everywhere:
“Praise the love that Christ revealed,
living, working in our world!”
Lose your shyness, find your tongue,
tell the world what God has done:
God in Christ has come to stay.
Live tomorrow’s life today!
When believers break the bread,
when a hungry child is fed,
praise the love that Christ revealed,
living, working in our world.
Still the Spirit gives us light,
seeing wrong and setting right:
God in Christ has come to stay.
Live tomorrow’s life today!
When a stranger’s not alone,
where the homeless find a home,
praise the love that Christ revealed,
living, working in our world.
May the Spirit fill our praise,
guide our thoughts and change our ways.
God in Christ has come to stay.
Live tomorrow’s life today.
There’s a spirit in the air,
telling Christians everywhere:
“Praise the love that Christ revealed,
living, working in our world!”
Blessing:
Go to the world with God’s Spirit in your hearts. Go as disciples to be witnesses to the ends of the earth. May God the Creator, Redeemer & Sustainer be with you now and evermore. Amen.
Hymns reproduced under CCLI No. 9718
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