BELLS CORNERS UNITED CHURCH
6TH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
SUMMER WORSHIP SERVICE
July 12, 2020
The video of this service can be found here.
You can also dial-in by phone to listen to the audio recording at 613-820-8104
Gathering Music: What a Wonderful World – Weiss/Thiele Abe:keyboards
Welcome & Announcements
Good day everyone! Let me greet you with these inspiring verse from Isaiah 40 that most of us know: “those who wait for God shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”
On behalf of Bells Corners United Church, I welcome and greet you wherever you are on this third Sunday in our Psalms sermon series as we reflect on the timeless words of Psalm 91, which is a psalm of assurance for those who are seeking refuge and safety in times of fear, grief and uncertainty.
During this time when we are not able to worship in the church sanctuary, please know that BCUC offers worship service in a number of ways. Check our website at bcuc.org, for our worship service in audio, video and text formats along with the weekly announcements, online meetings, events and other updates. You can also listen to the service via telephone by dialing 613-820-8104. I also encourage you to show that you care by connecting with each other through emails, phone calls and prayers.
Here are some announcements:
Join us for a simultaneous prayer circle every Wednesday at 8 pm. Wherever you are, you may light a candle and say a prayer.
David’s Flowers are back drive-through style and they are available every Saturday from 10:30 to 11:30 am. The flowers will be displayed on tables outside the main entrance, and everyone is asked to remain in their car, bring exact change or prepared cheque for donations, and follow instructions of volunteers. Thank you for your support!
And for those of you who are able to join us via Zoom, there will be zoom fellowship every Sunday at 11 am. Link will be emailed to you or call the office for more information.
Friends, in the quiet of this moment, in the stillness of our hearts, I now invite you to seek the shelter of God’s refuge as we gather in worship.
Lighting of the Christ Candle Acolytes: David Stafford & Barbara Bole
Let the light of Christ draw us in: beautiful, life-giving, healing, sheltering.
Come into the welcoming light. Come into the light of grace and peace.
Call to Gather: Lorrie Lowes, DM
As a mother eagle lifts up her young,
lift up those who wait for you, O. God.
Renew us in this time of worship.
Trusting in your steadfast love, we wait for your presence.
Believing you are our source of strength,
we wait for you to empower us.
Longing for your healing touch,
we wait for you to transform us.
We wait, O God, for you.
Prayer of Praise: (by Richard Bott, 2016)
From our hearts, with our hands,
through our voices, in our love,
we thank you, God!
For every sunrise and sunset,
for every smile and tear,
for every moment that has passed,
and for every moment yet to come.
May our thanksgiving fill the world
with gratitude and joy. Amen.
Hymn: This is God’s Wondrous World – Voices United #296
1 This is God's wondrous world,
and to my listening ears
all nature sings, and round me rings
the music of the spheres.
This is God's wondrous world;
I rest me in the thought
of rocks and trees, of skies and seas,
God's hand the wonders wrought.
2 This is God's wondrous world:
the birds their carols raise,
the morning light, the lily white,
declare their Maker's praise.
This is God's wondrous world:
God shines in all that's fair;
in the rustling grass or mountain pass,
God's voice speaks everywhere.
3 This is God's wondrous world:
O let me ne'er forget
that though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the Ruler yet.
This is God's wondrous world:
why should my heart be sad?
Let voices sing, let the heavens ring:
God reigns, let earth be glad.
Public Domain - Words; Maltbie D. Babcock, English melody; adapt. Franklin L. Sheppard, alt.
Song # 97195, Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-733214.
Storytime for the Young at Heart Lorrie Lowes DM
Good morning!
Have you ever had the chance to watch a baby bird learn how to fly? In the last house where we lived, we used to have a lot of robin’s nests around in a lot of different places on the property. We would watch all summer while the eggs would hatch and the mother bird would feed those babies and they would grow and grow and eventually, about this time of year, we would watch them come out of the nest and learn to fly. Often, they hopped around on the ground for quite some time and we would worry that they might not make it back up to the nest to keep warm for the night.
In our Psalm for today, there’s a line that is probably familiar to most of us. It talks about being lifted up on eagle’s wings. So, when I heard that, I was thinking about baby eagles and about eagles’ nests. You know, a robin’s nest is pretty high – but nothing like an eagle’s nest! An eagle’s nest is usually way up high, either on a large pole or on a tall, tall cliff. So, for those baby birds, it must be very, very scary to come out of the nest and trust those wings to fly. My first image was that, perhaps, the baby eagles would come out of the nest and the mother would fly underneath them so if they really couldn’t figure it out, the mother would lift them back up into the nest. That was pretty comforting. But, I did a little bit of research and that’s not what happens at all.
I thought, I wonder then what the psalmist was trying to say to us in this line. And so, I got thinking about that baby bird falling out the nest and going down, down and down. How frightening that would be! But then I thought, I bet the air from the falling like that would eventually lift up their wings and that would help them figure out what exactly to do with those wings that would help them fly and they would be lifted up again. They would be lifted up on eagle’s wings, like the psalmist says – but not on their mother’s wings, on their very own wings! That’s pretty amazing when you think about it, and very comforting for sure.
Then I wondered, “What is it that the psalmist is trying to tell us?” We don’t have wings, so it can’t be that literal… I wonder what it means to be lifted up on eagle’s wings for us… What I’ve come up with is, that in this life, when we have to do something really scary and we have to be very, very brave, sometimes we are just like that little eagle falling out of the nest. Just like the wind lifts up those wings and helps them to rise again, I think God gives us wings to fly in some way, gives us a way that we can face that scary thing, or that need to be brave, to make it work. So, I wonder today… What are your wings? What has God given you that helps you when you are in a scary situation?
Hymn: May God’s Sheltering Wings – More Voices #214
May God’s sheltering wings, her gathering wings protect you.
May God’s nurturing arms, her cradling arms sustain you,
and hold you in her love, and hold you in her love.
Words and Music © 2004 Judith Snowden Song # 40424,
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-733214. All rights reserved
Prayer for Illumination Reader: Sue Morrison
Your Word, O God, sheds light to our spirit and brings healing to our hearts. Open our hearts and minds in contemplation, in praise, in wonder and in reflection. Amen.
Psalm Reading: Psalm 91 (NRSV)
Assurance of God’s Protection
1 You who live in the shelter of the Most High,
who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,
2 will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress;
my God, in whom I trust.”
3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler
and from the deadly pestilence;
4 he will cover you with his pinions,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
5 You will not fear the terror of the night,
or the arrow that flies by day,
6 or the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
or the destruction that wastes at noonday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
8 You will only look with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.
9 Because you have made the Lord your refuge,
the Most High your dwelling place,
10 no evil shall befall you,
no scourge come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways.
12 On their hands they will bear you up,
so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the adder,
the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot.
14 Those who love me, I will deliver;
I will protect those who know my name.
15 When they call to me, I will answer them;
I will be with them in trouble,
I will rescue them and honor them.
16 With long life I will satisfy them,
and show them my salvation.
Hear what the Spirit is saying to all of us! Thanks be to God!
Sermon: “Under God’s Wings” Rev. Kim Vidal
Psalm 91 is the psalm that inspires the famous hymn, On Eagle’s Wings, that most of us love to sing, composed by Fr. Michael Joncas in 1979 for a very close friend’s father who died. This psalm is saturated with images that make us think what was the world like when the writer wrote this psalm? A “fowler’s snare” sounds like the land mines concealed under the ground to destroy the enemies in wars. A “deadly pestilence” reminds me of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Terrors in the night sound like a description of anarchy and lawlessness. Flying arrows indicate people in battlefields killing each other with all sorts of weapons. Thousands falling reminds me of mass murders or terrorist attacks. These words are pretty scary. The language is evocative even disturbing. They present a world or a situation that is violent, fearful, deadly. Not our dream of an ideal world, if you ask me.
This psalm builds on the assumption that lies at the core of the ancient Israel’s covenant with God: the assumption that faith begins with hope; and hope begins with memory. Where memory fails, the faith of a hopeful individual or a community is threatened: be it political or social, personal enticement of ease and comfort, and the painful experience of being subjected to fear, brokenness and abandonment. We are like that too. When we are in the midst of a crisis, we easily forget the power and grace of God who journeys with us. We wonder whether God’s presence has left us altogether. Psalm 91 may be interpreted to describe the times in which we live. But a description of our times is not the main focus of this ancient psalm. The message of Psalm 91 is not “we are living in a time of uncertainty and fear period” but this: “yes, there is fear and uncertainty and yes, death is very real but our faith in God assures us of God’s protection and presence.”
Biblical scholars have proposed several situations why this psalm was written. It might be a testimony of someone who has found refuge in God’s temple, or a thankful prayer by someone who has recovered from a serious illness or perhaps a liturgical prayer by a king or a warrior before going to battle. It could be an affirmation of faith of one who believes in a God who provides protection and security. The words articulate comfort, confidence, courage and hope by one who trusts God in the midst of fear and hopelessness. The writer also talks about God’s faithfulness as being “shield and buckler”. These are things worn by a warrior in the arm and hand used to protect the warrior from harm and death. The Psalmist declares through these images that God will protect God’s people like a shield who will come between God’s people and their enemies as promised in the covenant. This is the Psalmist’s source of safety and security.
The psalm’s imagery and language resonate with many of us who are dealing with fear, anxiety, pain, grief and other challenging circumstances. We may use this Psalm to give us assurance that God hears our prayers in this time of pandemic. But we must remember too that humans are not exempt from harms or dangers or pandemics or deaths. We simply live through these challenges knowing that we are not alone and that God will give us the confidence we need to face these human realities; that God is constantly available sustaining those who will seek God’s presence. I like what Paul O’ Myhre said about this Psalm: “the refuge that is found in God alone will sustain people even if the body is destroyed. This refuge will provide rescue from those things that would harm our relationship with God. The refuge is precisely that. It is a refuge of solace that can provide an inner strength to endure the harshest trials of life.”
Few years ago, a country music group called Rascal Flatts had a hit single called God Blessed the Broken Road. The words are inspiring. It goes like this: “God blessed the broken road that led me straight to you… I got lost a time or two, wiped my brow and kept pushin’ through… It’s all part of a grander plan… This much I know is true, God blessed the broken road that led me straight to you. I wondered what the singer songwriter Bobby Boyd led him to write about the broken road. Perhaps he’d experienced heartaches or pains or he might have spoken of some crisis in his life? The themes of pain and suffering, joy and renewal are not unfamiliar ones. The lyrics indeed make sense: God blesses the broken road. Some of us may find this a troubling thought or perhaps even a misguided one. But God blessing the broken road is clearly an indication that God goes with us specially in our darkest moments – in our brokenness and pain. Brokenness is not a new dimension to any of us - we’ve experienced it in our personal lives, we’ve lived through it physically and emotionally through illness, depression, or even death, we’ve seen it in our communal relationships – in a faith community such as ours or even in our homes and workplaces.
In his book entitled Is Life Fair, Rev. Charles Poole, wrote these words in a time of great personal loss: “We limp across the rugged terrain of our complex lives, until our limping becomes its own dancing, because God is at work to make us strong, even in broken places.” In the very midst of this hopelessness, God speaks. Just when you may want to give up, the Psalmist says: “You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty, will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust.”
When we think we have had bad days – try turning for inspiration to the ancient people in Israel who through the ages have complained, whined or questioned God for brokenness, weariness, hunger, loss, or grief.
One of the most expressive illustrations of the divine love and care in Psalm 91, is found in verse 4 that says: “God will cover you with pinions or with feathers and under those wings you will find refuge…” In this verse, the writer pictures God as a mother bird, most likely an eagle, with large feathers and wings to protect those who are in danger. It is a beautiful image of a mother bird sheltering her young ones under her wings. This image runs through all the Scriptures as a picture of God's sheltering love. These words may have been written to the Jewish exiles in Babylon. Jerusalem had been destroyed and people were deported in 587 BCE. Their homes had been ruined in war. They have lost everything. Many had died and those who lived had been carried off to a foreign land as slaves. They were disillusioned. They were discouraged. They were weary and brokenhearted. But through memory, by remembering their covenant with God, the Psalmist reminded the people that God will be with them in their journeys, that God will embrace them under God’s wings blessing their broken roads!
Although not mentioned in Psalm 91 what kind of bird is being described, I readily thought of the eagle, a bird that is significantly important among the ancient Hebrew people. Eagles in that culture are highly respected and considered sacred. They represent strength, speed, power and freedom. As they roam the sky, they are believed to have a special connection with God. Eagle in Hebrew is ne-sher which literally means “a mighty warrior.” Given that one of the possible contexts of Psalm 91 is that of a prayer for those who were in the battlefield, I could only assume that the wings of God imaged in this psalm were likened to the wings of an eagle. To be under God’s wings like that of an eagle is an image most of us would welcome - a wonderful image when confidence has been shaken, when hope becomes foreign to our senses. The wings of God are wings of love, comfort, healing and assurance. They are wide-spreading…an expression of tender care and fierce love.
When Fr. Michael Joncas, composer of On Eagle’s Wings was diagnosed with a life-threatening paralysis in 2003, he spent months in the hospital recovering the use of his arms and legs. During that time, he said he gained insight into suffering and dependence on God and others. In an interview, he said these: “I learned that you don’t solve the problem of suffering,” You enter into the mystery of suffering. And it does change you, and it changes your world.” For a while, he could no longer play the guitar, and when he’s tired he sometimes stumbles. But in due time, he recovered and continued to write music. When asked what he learned from his experience, Father Joncas replied: “I didn’t know my faith would be as strong as it was… Now I can talk about an experience of a God of rescue, which is very different.” He continues to ponder what God was trying to teach him through his lived experience particularly his suffering. He believes it was God’s way of telling him, “You aren’t in charge, you aren’t in control. Let go.”
Maybe today you are feeling exhausted, weak and ready to give up. Maybe there are things happening or have happened in your life that you cannot understand, and you wonder why. It is common for us to be tired and weary. It is easy to be discouraged and pessimistic about the world. In any kind of difficult situation whether facing physical illness or grieving a loved one or undergoing some financial stress or dealing with difficult people, Psalm 91 assures us that under God’s wings, hope will come. To be under God’s wings means to stay in God’s presence. When we are under God’s wings we are filled up, enriched, satisfied. We gain new perspective, new direction, new vision. When we are under God’s wings, we find our strength renewed even as we journey on a broken road. Let me close with a Franciscan prayer:
Where eagles’ wings lift to that place beyond fear
and where God’s still clear calm protects all from harm
and where God walks with all year by longing year;
it’s there that God’s perfect love casts out our fear.
Amen.
Prayers of the People and the Lord’s Prayer Lorrie Lowes, DM
Protecting God,
We know that, with you, we are in good hands,
Though sometimes the world draws us away
from trusting that knowledge.
Today, we come to you, secure in our faith
That you care for this world like a loving parent,
Wrapping your love, like wings, around us for protection.
And so, we bring you our joys and our concerns,
The ones we can name, and the ones in our hearts.
The long summer days bring us joy
As many of us contemplate time for rest and renewal,
Time to leave the busy-ness of work behind for a little while,
And time to spend with family and friends.
We give thanks for the blessings that summertime in Canada brings.
We give thanks for the loved ones and neighbours
Who continue to find ways to keep us connected
In these days of social distancing.
We give thanks for all the leaders and the frontline workers
who continue to work to keep us safe.
In their actions, we feel your loving wings surrounding us.
We pray for those who are sick and those who are mourning.
Today we hold the Durst family up to you as they mourn the loss of Cathy.
We pray for those in our world who are feeling isolated and forgotten…
We pray for those who struggle to find some sense of normal
in a time that is anything but…
We pray for those who worry about the future…
We pray for all those whose lives are marred by conflict and fear…
Help us be the presence that assures them of your love and protection.
We pray for a world where the actions of humanity threaten the life of the planet…
We pray for a world where peace and community seem overpowered by acts of
violence and hate…
We pray for a world where angry voices drown out messages of reconciliation and healing…
We pray for a world where the abundance for a few outweighs the comfort of many…
Help us hear your voice amid the chaos so that we can be part of the solutions.
Help us be the voices, the hands, and the feet that spread your love and protection.
In these days when noise and fear send many of us scattering.
Help us to recognize your voice.
Help us to turn to you for protection and guidance
Help us to be the people the world needs.
We ask these things in the name of Jesus
and in the comforting words he gave his disciples so long ago…
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kin-dom 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 who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kin-dom, the power and the glory,
Forever and ever,
Amen.
Invitation to Offer: Rev. Kim Vidal
I now invite you to offer your gifts of time, talents and resources as expressions of your gratitude to God’s blessings. If you are not on PAR and wish to send in your offering and donations, you can drop them in the slot by the kitchen door of the church or mail them to BCUC. You can also send in your support through e-transfer. Thank you for your continued love and support to BCUC.
Offertory Prayer
Generous God, bless these gifts and bless the ministries they make possible. Encourage us to give of ourselves and our resources until we become joyful images of your love and service. Amen.
Sending Forth: Rev. Kim Vidal
May God, our refuge,
who shelters us from every storm,
lift us up in love on eagle’s wings
to sustain us, guide us and heal us
then send us forth
that we may offer shelter and love
to others and the world.
Amen.
Hymn: On Eagle’s Wings - Voices United #808 (choral arrangement Mark Hayes)
You who dwell in the shelter of our God,
Who abide in this shadow for life,
Say to the Lord: "My refuge,
my rock in whom I trust!"
Refrain:
“And I will raise you up on eagles' wings,
bear you on the breath of dawn,
make you to shine like the sun,
and hold you in the palm of my hand.”
The snare of the fowler will never capture you, and famine will bring you no fear:
under God’s wings your refuge,
God’s faithfulness your shield. R
You need not fear the terror of the night,
Nor the arrow that flies by day;
though thousands fall about you,
near you it shall not come. R
For to God’s angels is given a command
to guard you in all of your ways;
upon their hands they will bear you up,
lest you dash your foot against a stone. R
And hold you, hold you in the palm of my hand.
Words and Music © 1979 Michael Joncas, OCP, New Dawn Music Song # 80468, Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-733214. All rights reserved
Choral arrangement: Mark Hayes
Departing Music: The Wind Beneath My Wings - Larry Henley & Jeff Silbar
Zoom Fellowship hosted by Lorrie at 11 am. Link has been emailed. See you there!