SUNDAY, OCTOBER 11, 10:30 AM
WORSHIP SERVICE
Joseph Scriven was an Irish poet who was best known for writing the beloved hymn, “What A Friend We Have in Jesus.” Joseph’s life was punctuated with heartache. He was engaged to be married at the age of 23, but his fiancé died tragically the night before their wedding. During his days of grieving, he connected with the Christianity of the Plymouth Brethren, and perhaps because of this influence, left Ireland and migrated to Canada when he was 25. Many years later, when he heard that his mother was sick in Ireland, and he was financially unable to travel there, he composed this hymn and sent it to her as a prayer. He never dreamed the hymn would be published in the newspaper, and eventually become so well known to so many. Joseph spent much of his later years walking the Canadian country side seeking to do good for others.
A line in the hymn reads, “Are we weak and heavy laden?” There’s no need to specify the challenges 2020 has brought us all, and how the feelings of weakness and being laden with heavy loads is so deeply common. We all know them. The hymn’s response is “Take it to the Lord in prayer.” So we have to ask, how is it that prayer helps us when we are feeling weakened and wearied, and when the challenges of the pandemic, the protracted quest for racial justice, when the contentious political season drags on? How does prayer strengthen us? What kind of prayers might better equip us to live as the children of light in a season of darkness?
It is clear that Jesus believed prayer to be essential to the spiritual tasks facing disciples. One of the most well known passages in the Gospels is a brief modeling of how those who followed Jesus were to pray. There is much guidance in these few verses in Matthew 6:9-13, but one thing is clear: while we are invited to ask for what we want, prayer is so much more than that. The soulful prayer life to which Jesus points is one of linking up to what the Divine is doing in the world. And what if our very first response to the brokenness is around us is to pray, finding the strength and guidance and forgiveness we need to leave our world more reflective of the Divine will.
We’ll talk about this in worship on Sunday. The sermon is titled, “Are We Weak and Heavy Laden?” The Scripture from Luke will be read by Mike Sonneborn. There will be a Stewardship moment from Jonathan and Brittany Purvis as we move forward with our “Stronger Together” campaign. We will sing hymns, pray and have a children’s moment. And the Sanctuary Singers, under the direction of Gerry Sousa and accompanied by Nara Lee, will sing “This is the Day”, an anthem John Rutter composed for the occasion of the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.
We look forward to connecting with you on the Live Stream, which you will find by visiting www.smumc.church.