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READING: Hosea 11:1-4 and Ephesians 6:1-4, 10-12 SERMON : "A Father's Love" Rev. Richard J. Fairchild a-fathsm.y-a 674 The following is a more or less complete liturgy and sermon for the upcoming Sunday. Hymn numbers, designated as VU are found in the United Church of Canada Hymnal "Voices United". SFPG is "Songs For A Gospel People", also available from the UCC. This sermon and liturgy is prepared for Father's Day and is not based on the RCL readings for this day. Our tradition at St. Andrew's is to have a briefer than usual worship time and then to follow that service time with a congregational picnic. The Prayer of Invocation, Prayer of Dedication, and Benediction are taken and modified from John Maynard (maynard@SYMPAC.COM.AU) "Prayers and Litanies for Ordinary 12" as sent to the PRCL-List, June 1999). GATHERING AND MUSICAL PRELUDE (* = please stand) * WORDS OF WELCOME AND CALL TO WORSHIP L The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. P And also with you. L With loving kindness God blesses our days. P By night God's song is with us. L O God, my God, you have multiplied your wondrous deeds. P We will proclaim and tell of them to all your people. * INTROIT: "Holy, Holy, Holy" (VU 315, verse 1) * PRAYER OF INVOCATION: Almighty God, through the power of Your Holy Spirit You enable us to do and be more than we can think or imagine. Come now, dwell within our worship, and make us strong to do your work and will and so bring you praise and glory through Christ our Lord. AMEN. * HYMN: "Open My Eyes" - VU 371 * HYMN: "Jesu, Jesu, Fill Us With Your Love" - VU 593 * HYMN: "This is My Father's World" - VU 296 (substituting the above phrase where needed as a celebration of the Fatherhood of God - God's parenting always being the ideal model for our own) A READING FROM HOSEA 11:1-4 (NRSV) When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. The more I called them, the more they went from me; they kept sacrificing to the Baals, and offering incense to idols. Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk, I took them up in my arms; but they did not know that I healed them. I led them with cords of human kindness, with bands of love. I was to them like those who lift infants to their cheeks. I bent down to them and fed them. L This is the Word of the Lord P Thanks be to God. A READING FROM EPHESIANS 6:1-4,10-12 (NRSV) Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. "Honour your father and mother"--this is the first commandment with a promise: "so that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth." And, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armour of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. L This is the Word of the Lord P Thanks be to God. * HYMN: "Blessed Assurance" - VU 337 SERMON: "A Father's Love" "Gracious God - bless now the words of my lips and the meditations of our hearts. Breath your Spirit into us and grant that we may hear and in hearing be led in the way you want us to go. Amen. Surfing the Internet a couple of weeks ago Charlene and I came across the following item - it is called Kids speak a different language: Parents frequently make the mistake of thinking they speak the same language as their children. We see this kind of misunderstanding all the time when an American and an Englishman converse, for example. When Americans say "bonnet" they mean a kind of hat. When the English say "bonnet" they mean the hood of a car. The same is true when talking with your kids. At first it seems we're all speaking English but, on closer inspection, it becomes clear that kids and parents speak entirely different dialects. In the interest of better transgenerational communication, here are some key phrases and their translations. "I don't have room to finish my hamburger." Meaning: Your kid has eaten enough. "I don't have room to finish my fish." Meaning: Your kid, who doesn't much like fish in the first place, figures she's eaten enough to satisfy you and still get dessert. "I don't have room to finish my dessert." Meaning: Your child is sick and should be taken to the doctor ASAP. "I didn't do it." Meaning: It hasn't been conclusively proven that I did it. "Frankie Smith is such a no-good rotten liar!" Meaning: Expect a call from Frankie's parents. "Mom said it was okay." Meaning: I'm going to ask Mom as soon as you say "yes." "Dad, can I have a dog?" Meaning: Your kid wants a dog. "Dad, can I have a boa constrictor?" Meaning: Your kid wants a dog, but figures asking for something really awful puts him in a better bargaining position. I think that all parents can testify that their children do speak a different language than they do - and it is one of the reasons that it is HARD TO BRING UP CHILDREN - there are other reasons of course - but I don't want to go into those today - rather I want to speak to the parents who are here today - and especially to the Fathers who are here - about some of the things we can do make ourselves better parents. IT is written in Proverbs 22:6 "Bring up a child in the way he should go - and when he is old he will not soon depart from it". That is a wonderful promise from God. One that comes true time and time again! We love our kids - and treat them well and sometimes they turn away from us; - sometimes they journey on roads that we do not understand or approve of; but in the end - if our hearts are open - if the foundation is well laid - we see them return to us - as the Prodigal Son returned to his Father. This is the record of things. If the door is open, they will normally pass through it. I think part of the problem we have as parents is not that we have difficult children or even that they speak a different language than we do - though all this is very often true; I think that part of the problem it is that we so often do not know the way our kids should go and even more importantly - even when we know the way - we so often fail to live it, and so our kids become angry - and distant - alienated from us - and from God. So what is the way? For the last few years there has been movement afoot in North America called Promise Keepers. It is a movement that is addressed to Men - to husbands and fathers and that movement suggests very clearly that if we - as men - actually live Godly lives if we make and keep promises concerning our relationship to the Lord, our relationships with other men and our relationships with our family that if we actually commit ourselves to building strong biblical marriages and really support the mission of our church with our time and our talent and our prayer and devote ourselves to demonstrating the love of Christ in our community and our world and live moral and virtuous lives based on scriptural principles then the result will not only be the renewal of our lives as men but the renewal of our families -of our churches and ultimately of our world. And it is working -- it is working - because the secret of all successful marriages -- and of all successful parenting always rests in two sets of hands - in the hands of God - and in our hands. If those hands get linked together - the results are incredible. Lives get changed. Lives improve. Families are healed.... We teach our children by example and not by any other way. If we lead godly lives - then the odds are that they will lead godly lives But if we tell our children things like - you should go to church until you are old enough to make your minds and then drop them off at the Sunday School door (with or without their mother) the child figures out very quickly that we don't think that church - that God - is important and they will end up champing at the bit to accompany you on Sunday mornings to your yard sales, your golf games, your ball fields -or whatever it is that you do when you fail to worship God with them. If you tell your child that honesty is important or that keeping your promises is important and then brag about how you have cheated the government out of few tax dollars - or, after promising that you will take them out on the weekend to a tournament or attend a celebration with them on a weekday evening - and then end up accepting instead a few hours of overtime at your plant instead you drive them away from the path you want them to travel because you yourself are not travelling it. The best thing that we can do for our children is for each one of us to personally get right with God and to walk in the way of the Lord the way that he showed us - with his prayers and his worship the way he showed us - with his acceptance and his forgiveness the way he showed us - with his reaching out to people to show them love - to bring them healing - and to teach them the truth. I had our Lector today read from the Prophet Hosea because that passage speaks of how God loves his children - his wayward children - how despite all the evil that they did - he continued to lead them with cords of human kindness and ties of love - how he continued to lift the yoke from their necks and bend down to feed them. It is powerful stuff - the love that God has for us - and that is the love that is the way that we are called to raise our children in. But we can't do it - we can't be successful parents in the way that God is a successful God - unless we walk in the way that God wants us to walk. In Ephesians - and again in Colossians - Paul shares the word that he received from the Lord concerning children and their parents. As we heard - he writes: "Children, obey your parents in the Lord - for this is right. Honour your mother and father - which is the first commandment with a promise - that if may go right with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth." Then he writes: "Fathers, do not provoke your children - do not exasperate your children - instead bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord" Whatever you may think of Paul - these last words are surely inspired. Do not provoke, do not exasperate your children - do not break your promises to them - do not neglect them - or mindlessly indulge their every whim so that they lose all respect for you instead bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord..... There is a site on the Internet where Children, now adults, were asked to describe the best thing that their father ever did for them. I would like to share a four of them with you before I end off: From a lady called Nancy: The best thing my dad ever did was read to me every evening before dinner. He read to me the new National Geographic when it came in. He read to me when he found a poem he liked. From Cathy -- My Dad has done so many nice things - he coached my softball and soccer teams throughout my entire childhood, gave a love of learning, and always had unwavering faith in my abilities. He is always there to listen whenever any of his kids have a problem. The most recent nice thing was that when I moved across the country to attend graduate school, he took a week of work, drove across country in a rented van and was great company during the trip. From Robert - Dad was always there for us and helped us out of every situation we ever got into -- and he never threw it back in our faces or got angry about having to rescue us. I once was desperately ill with mono and had to drive his car to the doctor's office. On the way one of engine gaskets broke and all the oil drained out of the engine - but I kept driving because I was so sick. Dad said he could follow the trail of oil down the road when he went to pick up the car. But he never once yelled at me for destroying the car and making him buy a new engine. From Emma - when I was very young my dad's job took him to Paris for a few weeks. It seemed like a lifetime to me at three years old - , but he sent me a postcard every day. Thirty years later I still have them and they remind me of special I am to him. What unites these stories from these four writers are personal care and loving attention - in the little things - and in the big things. Suggestive isn't it of what we fathers - and grandfathers ought to be about? Suggestive too for mothers and grandmothers - and for men and women everywhere. How do we love our kids? Whatever way we do - it sure helps to love the Lord first to love the Lord not in a dry stern doctrinal way but in a liberating joyful personal manner. That kind of love communicates itself to all around it makes the light of God shine. Love the Lord and, as Paul writes in the second portion of our reading from the Letter to the Ephesians today: - be strong in the Lord and his mighty power - be strong in the Lord and his mighty power; put on, yourself - personally, put on the whole armour of God - so that you yourself can stand against the devil's schemes - for our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Parenting is never easy being a father - or a mother - has incredible challenges - incredible pains - as well as incredible joys. We can do no better thing for our children than personally walking in the way we should go so that we can bring them up in that way and have the assurance that then, when they are old - they themselves will not soon depart from it. Blessed be the name of God. Day by Day. Day by Day. Amen ANNOUNCEMENTS AND SHARING JOYS AND CONCERNS Gathering in of prayer concerns and joys PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE AND THE LORD'S PRAYER Thank God for how he loves us how he sets the example of parenthood We also thank you God today for our parents - especially for our fathers - We pray that whether they are here with us still - or with you - that you might bless them that you would forgive - as we forgive - any failings that they may have had or still have that you might bring to yourself and hallow all the good they did or do, and lead them in righteousness with cords of human kindness and ties of love now and forevermore. * Ask God that we might be better parents and set the example in all things We pray for the young people in our families for the young people in our community - for a good example from us for the desire to walk in the way of blessedness. Lastly we lift up this day those whom we thought of during this worship time and those whose names were just now named by us ---- Intercessions taken from the sharing time ---- Bless, O God, each of us, and make us a blessing. Bless indeed your whole church - here and throughout the world. We ask it remembering your promise to us and according to your call upon our lives - that call issued to us through Christ Jesus our Lord and our brother - the one who taught us to pray as your family, saying... OUR FATHER * HYMN: "O Jesus I Have Promised" - VU 120 * SHARING GOD'S BLESSINGS: As the Offering is presented all stand for the Doxology (Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow - VU 541) and Prayer of Dedication O God, as Christ calls us, Your Spirit empowers us. We accept Your charge to be His servants in the world. Reconciled by Christ through love and acceptance, we seek to bring justice, Lord, and peace and goodwill to all whom we meet and pray for. Accept our lives and these our gifts and use them for your glory. We ask it in Christ's name. Amen * DEPARTING HYMN: "Shall We Gather At The River" - VU 710 * COMMISSIONING (Unison): In the power of the Holy Spirit we now go forth into the world, to fulfil our calling as the people of God, the body of Christ. * BENEDICTION AND THREEFOLD AMEN Go in peace; Remember the Lord's presence often and take strength from the knowledge that the One who calls and sends also sustains. May the Lord bless you as you walk the Way of Christ Jesus, in thought, word and deed. May His life be yours, now and always. AMEN. * CHORAL BLESSING: "Go Now In Peace" - VU 964 copyright - Rev. Richard J. Fairchild - Spirit Networks, 1999 - 2006 please acknowledge the appropriate author if citing these sermons.
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