Where do you place your faith? Does the idea of trusting God for protection, provision and justice sound naive and unrealistic to you? Yet, this is exactly what the Scriptures call us to do – to live differently from the self-protective, wealth accumulating, customs of our world, and place our trust in God. In the face of the huge challenges we face in the world this may sound completely out of touch, but, when the role of money in so many of those challenges is recognised, the call to give up our faith in finance and reclaim a true, child-like faith in God becomes disturbingly relevant and subversive.

Here is a reminder about the countdown excerpts from my book The Hour That Changes Everything – How worship forms us into the people God wants us to be. If you’re interested in learning more about this soon-to-be-released book, click through to the Sacredise blog for the daily excerpts that are being posted there throughout this month.

May your worship this week move you into a place of deeper trust in God, and more courageous challenge of the culture of accumulation in our world.

READINGS:
Hosea 11:1-11: Judgement is prophesied for Israel because of the people’s idolatry and unfaithfulness, but God’s compassion and love for God’s people makes judgement difficult for God, and so restoration is also promised.
OR Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23: The teacher laments that everything is meaningless, and reflects on the futility of working hard to accumulate wealth that will ultimately be inherited by others, who may or may not use it wisely.

Psalm 107:1-9, 43: Praise for God’s unfailing love, and God’s salvation of God’s people when in distress. The history of God’s people reveals God’s faithful love.
OR Psalm 49:1-12: Not even the wealthy can save themselves from death or buy their way into eternal life. Therefore, there is no reason to fear those who trust in their wealth.

Colossians 3:1-11: Because of Christ’s life in us, we are called to prioritise the values of heaven over the values of earth, and to avoid the greed and lust that of “earth-bound” existence. Rather, recognising that we are all the same in Christ, we are to find our life in Christ, and seek to become like our God.

Luke 12:13-21: In warning against greed, Jesus tells a parable of a wealthy man who feels secure because of his great riches, but whose wealth becomes meaningless when he dies. Then Christ challenges us to seek a rich relationship with God instead of material riches.

REFLECTIONS ON THEME:
The theme of this week’s readings is not hard to discern – all of the readings contrast a life of dependence on wealth with the life of dependence on God. The teacher in Ecclesiastes, the Psalmist in Psalm 49, the Apostle in Colossians and Jesus all warn against greed and speak about the danger of making wealth our goal and our security. In Hosea and in Psalm 107, God’s salvation and care is promised, even when God’s people have needed to be disciplined and corrected. When it comes to making our way in the world, the quest for money too easily becomes an end in itself, and will ultimately lead us into destruction, and to bringing suffering on ourselves and others. However, when life is found in our relationship with God, and in basing our lives on the values of God’s reign, we bring life and joy to ourselves and others, and our lives have eternal value. Ultimately, we all need to choose the priorities by which we will live.

CONNECTING WITH LIFE:
GLOBAL APPLICATION: So much of the suffering and injustice in our world can be traced to the quest for money and to the greed of certain individuals or groups. The ongoing pain from the global economic crisis, the ecological disaster resulting from the Deepwater Horizon accident, the war and violence which arises between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’ (so often justified as a “protection of interests”), the debates around health care, immigration and climate change – all have strong – albeit often hidden – financial agendas intertwined within the other issues. The challenge is to recognise the powerful, and often destructive, role that money plays in global affairs, and to challenge our world leaders, our business leaders and ourselves to embrace a financial ethic of sharing and giving, over accumulating and ‘protecting’. Ultimately, in a world where economic performance is measured quarterly, it will be difficult to begin to embrace an eternal view of wealth, but if the voices of Christ-followers remain silent on this difficult, prophetic, Gospel call, all hope of a more just and equitable world is lost. In what ways can you make your voice heard a little more clearly?

LOCAL APPLICATION: The way we view, earn and use money in our churches, families and individual lives, is a window into how we understand and live the Gospel. Too often there is little difference between the economic values of the “world” and those of the “Church”. Too often we spend (or hoard) money selfishly, and measure success by the accumulation of wealth – somehow falling into the trap of seeing wealth as a sign of God’s blessing – while ministry to the poor, the marginalised and the vulnerable is left undone or poorly resourced. Apart from sexuality, perhaps, money is the issue that we deal with least helpfully and honestly in the church, and yet it is a primary issue in the Scriptures. Dependence on God sounds like a quaint, outdated and unrealistic way of living in today’s wealth-focussed world. Simplicity is all too often equated with stupidity and a “sour-grapes” attitude. The imbalance between the rich and the poor, and the unequal way that the world’s resources are shared and used, are all justified – often with biblical support. But, if we will allow the Gospel to challenge us and change us, we will find our hands opening, our trust moving from wealth to God, and our lives shifting from accumulation and protection, to sharing and giving. In what ways are these shifts happening in your community?

RESOURCES FOR WORSHIP:
Prayers:
A Simple Choice
Plenty
Enough

Hymn Suggestions:
I Need Thee Every Hour
Bigger Barns
Take My Life And Let It Be
When I Survey The Wondrous Cross (Especially verse 4)
I Surrender All
Lord, I Give You My Heart (Link to YouTube video)
I Will Offer Up My Heart (Link to YouTube video)
Lord, You Are More Precious Than Silver (Link to YouTube video)
My Life Is In You, Lord (Link to YouTube video)
We Are An Offering (Link to YouTube video)

Liturgy:
A Liturgy for the Eucharist

Video Suggestions:
Abolishing Wealth & Poverty
Relational Tithe

The journey continues – all the different ways – small but significant ways – that we participate with God in bringing God’s reign into the world and into the lives of its people. There can be no question that the work of faith, of receiving God’s grace, and of following Christ in worship and service, is a life long journey of perseverance and faithfulness. And it is because of God’s faithfulness toward us that we can even contemplate this life. But, if we will, and if we can commit to the long haul, we will see change happening in us and we will see justice coming a little more to our world.

You may have noticed that the site was down for about six hours this weekend. My hosting company had some database server issues, and it took them a while to fix it. If this inconvenienced you in your preparation in any way, I apologise. I do hope that it came back soon enough to still be useful to you.

One last note: If you’re interested in hearing more about my upcoming new book The Hour That Changes Everything – How worship forms us into the people God wants us to be, you may want to click through to the Sacredise blog for the countdown. Every day of July, in a thirty-one day countdown, I’m posting an excerpt from the book. Feel free to take a look, and please spread the word. If you’ve missed them, you may also want to see Day 31 and Day 30.

May God’s faithfulness inspire your commitment and perseverance this week.

READINGS:
Hosea 1:2-10: God instructs Hosea to marry and prostitute, and give his children names that prophesy God’s judgement on Israel, but also God’s ultimate restoration.
OR Genesis 18:20-32: Abraham bargains with God to try and avert the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and God agrees that if ten righteous people are found, God will spare the city.

Psalm 85: A song in celebration of God’s grace and forgiveness, and God’s blessing in restoring God’s people.
OR Psalm 138: A song of David praising God for God’s love, faithfulness and trustworthy promises, and pleading for God’s continued protection and care.

Colossians 2:6-15 (16-19): Paul encourages believers to sink their roots deep into Christ and find their completeness in Christ. He reminds us that in Christ our sinful nature was ‘circumcised’ and we have been raised to nee life. So we no longer need pander to legalism.

Luke 11:1-13: Jesus teaches on prayer, and on the need for persistence in prayer, reminding the disciples that God gives the Holy Spirit to all who ask.

REFLECTIONS ON THEME:
The Gospel reading sets the tone for this week’s theme. The call to persistence is clear from Jesus, and it is directly linked with our prayer life – our relationship with God. In a similar way, Hosea’s persistent faithfulness to his unfaithful wife reflects God’s faithfulness to God’s people, and Abraham’s bargaining with God reveals both the value of persistence in our seeking God’s resources, and God’s persistence in seeking our restoration. Both Psalms offer praise and requests in the assurance of God’s faithfulness, and out of a persistent committing to God’s ways. Finally, Paul instructs the believers to stay true to the new life that they have received in Christ, and not be drawn away by legalism or by dramatic visions and stories. If we are to follow Christ and make a difference in the world then it will not be quick, dramatic or constantly changing innovations that will help, but rather – to use the name of one of Eugene Peterson’s books – “a long obedience in the same direction.” This does not mean we cannot be creativity or adopt new ideas and strategies, but that we remain faithful and committed to Christ and the Gospel proclamation of God’s reign, working consistently and persistently to fulfill God’s purposes in our world a little more each day.

CONNECTING WITH LIFE:
GLOBAL APPLICATION: There is so much that needs to be changed in our world and the stakes are so high that we can easily be disillusioned when the work of justice changes things slowly or in less than dramatic ways. It is easy to begin to believe that it is only in expedient partnerships, or in cynical pragmatism that we can succeed fast enough. We can too eaily begin to compromise our ideals and our souls in the quest to make head way. But, ultimately a justice earned this way is no justice at all, and will end up leaveing with new battles to fight – or with us becoming the very thing we strive against. The message of this week’s Lectionary Readings is a difficult but important one – as we stay faithful to Christ and God’s reign, as we continue to pray earnestly, and work persistently, and as we celebrate the little victories along the way, remembering how far we’ve come, even as we recognise how far we still have to go, the work of justice is served, and lives are changed for the better a little more each day. So, whatever justice you pray for, whatever work you do, stay faithful, persistent and prayerful – many victories that we celebrate today we a long time in the winning (Civil Rights, abolition of slavery, equality of women etc.).

LOCAL APPLICATION: As you reflect on the ministries of your community, and the people who are involved in them, where do you detect signs of fatigue, frustration and the temptation to take short cuts? In what ways do you long to see change in your church and/or in your neighbourhood or society? Which of these changes show signs of movement, and which appear to be stalling? Are there perhaps areas of need or injustice that you have resisted getting involved with because you’re feeling overwhelmed by the magnitude of the issue, or because you feel pessismistic about the possibility of change? Perhaps this week’s readings can encourage and motivate you. Perhaps you can use your worship this week to pray for and encourage those who work for justice in your community, and recommit to the work you do. Perhaps you can allow for time of rest and refreshing, not to give up on the tough work of proclaiming and demonstrating God’s reign, but to gain new energy to continue a persistent, faithful, prayerful witness to God’s justice.

RESOURCES FOR WORSHIP:
Prayers:
Relentless Love
Staying Faithful

Hymn Suggestions:
O Master, Let Me Walk With Thee
Praise My Soul, The King Of Heaven
Come Let Us Use The Grace Divine
Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah (Redeemer)
The Power Of Prayer
Forever (Link to YouTube video)
Everlasting God (Link to YouTube video)
Unfailing Love (Link to YouTube video)
Always Forever (Link to YouTube video)

Liturgy:
A Liturgy for the Foretaste of the Heavenly Banquet

Video Suggestions:
Wounded Bride
Shine Your Light
The Persistent Quarterback

This week it’s all about listening – to God’s word – and to living it out in compassion, integrity and justice – which requires listening to others. This can be easier than it sounds with all the noise that bombards us each day. That’s why the discipline of worship is so important. It gives us the time and the space to learn the practice of listening well.

May your listening abilities be enhanced by your worship this week.

READINGS:
Amos 8:1-12: Amos sees a vision of a basket of ripe fruit, which God explains indicates that Israel is ripe for judgement. Amos then prophesies God’s judgement against the corruption of God’s people, and the famine of hearing God’s word that is to come.
OR Genesis 18:1-10a: Abraham entertains three mysterious visitors, who prophesy that within the next year Sarah will have a child.

Psalm 52: David speaks words of judgement against Doeg, proclaiming that he will be punished for his lies, while David will prosper under God’s care.
OR Psalm 15: Only those who live lives of truth and justice can worship in God’s sanctuary and enjoy God’s presence.

Colossians 1:15-28: Paul celebrates Christ as the visible image of God, the Creator and reconciler of all, and describes his ministry of proclaiming the Good News that leads us into relationship with God.

Luke 10:38-42: Jesus is welcomed into the home of Mary and Martha. While Martha serves, Mary sits at Jesus’ feet – and he refuses to chide Mary for this as Martha requests.

REFLECTIONS ON THEME:
Truth and lies; prophecies and the silencing of prophecy; sitting at Jesus’ feet or serving; Christ as the image of God, and the Gospel as the saving message that reconciles us with God. This week it’s all about God speaking, and the question of whether we will listen or not. As tempting as it might be, based on the Gospel reading, to create a dichotomy between listening and serving, hearing and doing, the other readings don’t allow us this luxury. Listening to God’s word is inextricably connected to following God’s ways of justice, truth and compassion. Perhaps Jesus simply wanted Martha to listen before she acted, rather than assuming she knew what needed to be done? Whatever the case, the message of this week flows easily out of last week’s theme. Not only are ordinary things powerful in the work of God’s reign, it is as we listen to God’s message and implement God’s saving reconciling word through simple acts of justice, compassion and a commitment to truth and integrity, that we find ourselves living out the reality of God’s reign in our lives and our world.

CONNECTING WITH LIFE:
GLOBAL APPLICATION: Words, used as propaganda, mere rhetoric or to inspire, are a massive feature of today’s media-driven world. So many messages call us to label certain individuals or groups in certain ways. So many speakers claim to have the final word on certain situations or problems. So many speeches give little more than double-speak, finger-pointing or denial of responsibility. And, in all of the words, little actually changes. Lives are not saved. Injustice is not exposed and removed. Peace is not created, and solutons are not found to our big crises. One could be forgiven for thinking that we are living in the times Amos spoke about - a famine of God’s word. But, God’s word is not absent. It has not changed since Jesus lived it and preached it. The essential message of the Gospel – integrity, compassion and justice – has not changed or been silenced. All that is required is for those of us who follow the message of Christ to speak up, in words that are supported by accompanying actions, to challenge the empty words of our time, and call our leaders and our peers to account. But, we cannot do this unless we are prepared to be held to our own standards.

LOCAL APPLICATION: It is all too easy, in our personal lives and in our communities, to decide that we know what is needed, and what is to be done, without taking the time to listen. It is all too easy to speak, without taking the time to hear carefully and prayerfully, what God’s message for us really is, or what the stories of those we seek to serve really are. If we are to be a people who bring Christ’s grace and justice into our communities, we will need to listen carefully, and then act justly, compassioantely and with integrity in response. We will need to avoid the temptation to assume we know what our communities need, and we will need to resist the urge to see ourselves as ‘saviours’ coming in to ‘fix’ things ‘for’ those who ‘need’ us. Rather we will need to adopt the humility of Mary, the hospitality of Abraham, the commitment of Paul, the integrity of Amos, and the faithfulness of David, as we come alongside the people within and ‘outside’ of our churches, and speak, in listening and word and action, the Gospel message of Christ.

RESOURCES FOR WORSHIP:
Prayers:
Listening
Word of God
Messengers

Hymn Suggestions:
And Can It Be
Where Cross The Crowded Ways Of Life
Master, Speak! Thy Servant Heareth
O Word Of God Incarnate
Lord, Speak To Me
All The Way My Saviour Leads Me (Link to YouTube video)
Thy Word (Link to YouTube video)
Living For Your Glory (Link to YouTube video)
Your Word: Mp3 Download (Amazon.com), Chord chart (Scroll down for the link)

Liturgy:
A Liturgy for the Sacrament

Video Suggestions:
Listen: Alone
Listen: Failing
Always Listening
Protest vs. Listening

It is appropriate this week, in Ordinary Time, that the readings focus on the transforming power of the ordinary. In a world of celebrity, of “Reality TV”, and of value given only to winners and to those who are larger than life, it can be tempting to think that the ordinary has no contribution to make, that “vanilla” people can make no difference. But, the Gospel is a message that does not despise the small things. God’s reign is a reality in which the least, the child and the marginalised all have significant value to offer.

May you celebrate the small and the ordinary in your worship this week.

READINGS:
2 Kings 5:1-14: Elisha is visited by Naaman, the commander of the army of the king of Aram, who has a serious skin disease. He instructs him through a messenger to wash himself seven times in the Jordan, which, after some complaining, Naaman does, and he is healed.
OR Isaiah 66:10-14: A prophecy of restoration and comfort, like being nursed and cared for by a mother, for Jerusalem and her people.

Psalm 30: David celebrates God’s deliverance, healing and mercy, and that God has turned his mourning into dancing, committing to a life of praise.
OR Psalm 66:1-9: A psalm in praise of God who is glorious and who saves God’s people in miraculous ways.

Galatians 6:(1-6), 7-14: Paul instructs the Galatiands to give themselves in bringing goodness into the world – correcting one another, working faithfully, providing for their teachers, and doing good (justice) at every opportunity.

Luke 10:1-11, 16-20: Jesus sends the seventy two disciples out to preach the Kingdom, instructing them to bless the homes where they stay, accepting hospitality. On their return he celebrates with them, but stresses that the best thing is to have “names written in heaven”.

REFLECTIONS ON THEME:
The central message this week is simple but significant – do not despise the saving power of small things. God’s commitment to justice, restoration and healing is proclaimed strongly through the Psalms and Isaiah’s song, but the way God’s saving work comes into being is often through small, ordinary people and actions. Naaman complains because Elisha speaks to him through a servant and asks him to wash in an ordinary river in Israel – yet he can only be healed by changing his attitude, and embracing this ordinary way to healing. The picture of God’s care and comfort in Isaiah is that of an ordinary, familiar domestic scene – a child being nursed by its mother. Galatians speaks about the work of following Christ in the every day terms of our relationships with one another (correcting each other and sharing burdens), taking responsibility and doing good for all. And Jesus sends his disciples out to share the message of God’s reign, while accepting hospitality along the way – a very ordinary practice for travelers. Even when they celebrate overcoming demons, Jesus downplays it. Psalm 30 recounts an ordinary journey from joy to pain and back again, relying on God’s mercy and grace – a common human experience. The one reading that appears to be out of place is the alternative Psalm (66) – but here the focus is on the Exodus, which, although proclaimed through retelling the miraculous story, is about the very ordinary human longing for liberation and salvation – which is, of course, the essence of the message that Jesus’ disciples would have preached.

CONNECTING WITH LIFE:
GLOBAL APPLICATION: It is important that the work of celebrities and high profile leaders in the struggle for justice is recognised and celebrated, but justice is really achieved not by these few. If we are to reverse the impact of climate change, it will take small but significant shifts in the habits of many ordinary people. If our world is to become more peaceful, it will mean ordinary people must learn to understand and respect one another, recognising our common humanity. If wealth is to be equitably distributed, it will mean changing the values by which ordinary individuals live from consumerism to simplicity and from accumulating to giving. If these shifts were just taken seriously by Christ-followers alone, the impact would be nothing short of miraculous. As Christians around the world join together in peace-making, hospitality, taking responsibility for the change we can bring and doing small acts of goodness, the Gospel message would be preached clearly and powerfully, with very few words necessary.

LOCAL APPLICATION: It is often tempting as we seek to share Christ’s message in the Church and into our communities to think about making big changes and attempting big, attention grabbing projects. However, our impact is often less about how we structure our services or what kind of music we use or how “prominent” we are in our community. Often it is in the quiet work of nurturing care and service within our community, and in doing the slow, transformative work of growing into caring, serving Christ-followers in our homes, workplaces and sports clubs that ultimately determines how effective our ministry is. When, instead of pointing fingers at “the world” we are willing to accept its “hospitality” speaking blessing, and offering grace and mercy and justice in every situation and with every person, then people begin coming to us to learn more about our faith and the One we follow. But, if we fail to do this, then no amount of words or programs will be enough to compensate for our lack of grace and goodness.

RESOURCES FOR WORSHIP:
Prayers:
Extraordinary Ordinariness
Good News By Degrees
The Call Of Compassion

Hymn Suggestions:
Come Let Us Sing Of A Wonderful Love
Dear Jesus In Whose Life I See
Praise To The Lord, The Almighty
O Jesus I Have Promised
May The Words Of My Mouth (Link to YouTube video)
Lord, Reign In Me (Link to YouTube video)
When It’s All Been Said And Done (Link to YouTube video)
What Can I Do (Link to YouTube video)
With Kindness (Scroll down to listen the preview – Track 1)

Liturgy:
A Liturgy For The Lord’s Supper

Video Suggestions:
Psalm 66
Martyn Joseph – The Revolution

Image Suggestions:
These images use the road to evoke both the traveling of the disciples as they were sent out by Jesus, and our journey through life as we seek to follow Christ and make whatever small difference we can.
Forest Path
Road