Croeso i wefan Ardal Weinidogaeth Bro Ardudwy
Today we have two pictures and words from Morning Prayer.
If we pray the office daily, we may become so used to the words that we do not think about their enormity. The pictures show how the rocks were built up layer by layer over millennia, we can see the turmoil and upheaval in the strata, but through it all God is gracious, merciful and faithful.
Take time to ponder, through earthquake, wind and fire, through storm and sun God remains unchanged.
Psalm 100 : Jubilate
1 O be joyful in the Lord all ye lands: serve the Lord with gladness, and come before his presence with a song.
2 Be ye sure that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us and we are his; we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.
3 go your way into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him and bless his holy name.
For the Lord is gracious, his mercy is everlasting:
and his faithfulness endureth from generation to generation.
DIGNUS ES (Revelation 4.11 and 5.9, 10, 13b)
1 Worthy art thou, our Lord and God: to receive glory and honour and power,
2 For thou didst create all things: and by thy will they existed and were created.
3 Worthy art thou O Chrlst for thou wast slain: and by thy blood didst ransom men for God,
4 From every tribe and tongue and people and nation: and hast made them a kingdom and priests to our God.
5 To him who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb: be blessing and honour and glory and might for ever and ever. Amen.
Yesterday, whilst looking for something else, I came across a drawing done by one of the boys. It was his ‘picture’ of God. I know it was God because he had labelled it “Duw”. Had that label not been there I would have seen it as a mass of scribble filing the page.
One of the earliest descriptions of God in the Bible is of God as Shepherd
Joseph had taken his sons to his Father for a blessing, And Israel refers to God as “the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day”, Genesis 48:15
When Moses was seeking a successor he asked God to “ appoint a man over the congregation who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the LORD may not be as sheep that have no shepherd.” So the LORD said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him. Numbers 27:16-18
David was given the task of being both Shepherd and prince, and of course God as shepherd is a recurrent theme in the Psalms.
The prophets often refer to God as shepherd, perhaps the best known of these is the reference in Isaiah 40: Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might, and his arm rules for him; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.
He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young. v 10-11 the words of which form the beautiful arias in Handel’s Messiah.
It is of course to the shepherds that the angels bring news of the birth of Jesus. And early on in his ministry that Jesus looked on the crowds When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” Matthew 9:36
Jesus describes himself as the shepherd in John 10 :14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.
We are God’s flock and the Parable of the lost sheep reminds us that we matter to God,
What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray?
And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray.
So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.
Matthew 18:12-14
So, let us pray for those who in the name of Christ shepherd the flocks today, praying the benediction from Hebrews 13:20-21
Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
The heavens are the LORD’s heavens, but the earth he has given to the children of man. Psalm 115:16
A single verse taken from Psalm 115 to accompany the picture today, but it is well worth reading the whole Psalm because there is a great deal we can learn from it.
Jupiter (left) a meteor and the Milky Way on the old railway line at Cwm Prysor. — in Trawsfynydd.
Picture taken by local photographer Keith O Brian
It was composed during the early days of the return from Babylon, when the small groups of settlers who had returned from exile were surrounded by the jeers and scoffs of their enemies. This was their reply, as they sang of the contrast between the idols of their neighbours and the majesty of Jehovah.
Verses 1-8 were sung in unison by the whole congregation, while the sacrifice was being offered; 9-11, by a solo voice giving the first line of each couplet, the whole audience chanting the refrain:
12-15 , by the priest as a benediction;
16-18 by the whole congregation, which ends with
But we will bless the LORD from this time forth and forevermore. Praise the LORD!
The Heavens Are Telling from Haydn’s Creation is well known but possibly less so this version with music set by Ludwig van Beethoven
The Text by based on Psalm 14 is by Christian Fürchtegott Gellert
The heavens are telling the Lord’s endless glory.
Through all the earth His praise is found.
The seas re-echo the marvellous story:
Human, repeat that glorious sound!
The starry hosts He doth order and number,
He fills the morning’s golden springs,
He wakes the sun from his night-curtained slumber.
Human, adore the King of Kings!
The heavens are His and the earth knows His favour,
His power in all things thou dost see.
The Lord of hosts who for ever and ever
Thy God and Father still shall be.
He is thy Maker whose love shall not waver,
A God of wisdom, ever kind.
Praise Him and love Him with all thy endeavour,
In Him salvation shalt thou find.
Why not listen to it on U Tube
When I drew back the curtains this morning the world was shrouded in mist, I could not see beyond the end of my garden, however gradually as the sun came up the mist burned off and everything was revealed in full detail.
Some verses of Scripture, words of Jesus about our being light in the world, and a prayer all inspired by the wonderful picture of a sunset taken locally this last week.
As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” John 9: 5
Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 5:14-16
God of creation, shaper of seas and stars
Of planets and of people
Call us out of darkness
Call us out of darkness into your marvellous light
God, born in Bethlehem,
Gurgling crying, laid in a manger
Call us out of darkness
Call us out of darkness into your marvellous light
God, breath of the universe,
Flickering dancing in the candle flame
Call us out of darkness
Call us out of darkness into your marvellous light
Mysterious God, confounding our expectations
Meeting with us where we least expect to find you
Call us out of darkness into your marvellous light
Come God,
Come seek and find and lead us in your way
For you alone are the light in our darkness
Call us out of darkness into your marvellous light
For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:6
Much has been written about nature recovering itself during lockdown, and of course that is true. In May Dr Pearson told BBC News; “There have been many reports of wild animals increasing in numbers and turning up in places they haven’t been seen in a long time,"
" This carries implications that certain species may be benefiting from the absence of human influence during lockdowns or possibly because of reduced pollution, especially in waterways.”
Environmental scientists have called for the conservation of nature to be at the centre of the economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. "How we emerge from lockdowns," they say, "will drive a new world economy."
Yes, but already we see the debris of Covid 19 littering our beaches, riverbanks and hedgerows. Discarded blue plastic gloves and single use masks just thrown away. In China pollution as lockdown has eased pollution levels are exceeding those experienced prior to Covid 19.
“The earth, our home, is beginning to look more and more like an immense pile of filth.”
Pope Francis writing in Laudatus si
God gave humankind a command to tend or keep the garden in Genesis 2:15 . The Hebrew word for “tend” or some translations say “keep” it is “shamar” and it means more than just keep it neat and tidy. The Hebrew word means “to guard” or “to watch and protect.” The other Hebrew word that is very important is the word “work” or as some translations more accurately say “to cultivate” and is from the Hebrew word “`abad” meaning “to serve” so Genesis 2:15 should be read as: “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to serve it and to guard and protect it.”
To look after the Earth, and thus God’s dominion, is then the responsibility of the Christian steward. "The Earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it". Psalm 24:1
God’s compassion and love for His creatures is evident throughout the Bible for example “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey going astray, you shall bring it back to him” Exodus 23:4 and “If you see your fellow Israelite’s ox or sheep straying, do not ignore it but be sure to take it back to its owner” Deuteronomy 22:1. Jesus himself asks “Which one of you who has a sheep, if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift it out” Matthew 12:11.
It is up to each and every one of us to consider what impact our actions have on the world around us and how we can do our bit to protect and conserve nature.
We all are responsible for how we live our lives . We might not be able to tend the world, but we can guard and protect our own little corner of it and do what we can serve it where we live.
This hymn is very special to me, I first sang it at my confirmation service and it has been one I have returned to many times over the years This hymn reminds me to entirely trust and allow the Holy Spirit to lead me on the path of God’s will.
Thy way, not mine, O Lord,
However dark it be;
Lead me by Thine own hand,
Choose out the Path for me.
Smooth let it be, or rough,
It will be still the best;
Winding or straight it leads
Right onward to Thy rest.
I dare not choose my lot;
I would not if I might:
Choose Thou for me, my God,
So shall I walk aright.
The kingdom that I seek
is Thine; so let the way
that leads to it be Thine,
else I must surely stray.
Take Thou my cup, and it
With joy or sorrow fill,
As best to Thee may seem;
Choose Thou my good and ill.
Choose Thou for me my friends,
My sickness or my health.
Choose Thou my cares for me,
My poverty or wealth.
Not mine, not mine the choice,
In things both great and small;
Be Thou my guide, my strength,
My wisdom and my all.
Bonar (1808-1889) was a Scottish preacher and hymn writer. He lived a life of service, suffering and humility which included the death of five children. He was one of the more respected and influential leaders of the revolt against the established state church of Scotland and associated himself with the Free Church Movement. He began to write hymns to inspire the young people out of their complacency because at that time the Scottish Presbyterian Church only sang psalms (and then only ever on a Sunday, they practised the tunes with alternative words during the week). He wrote more than 600 hymns of which many are still in hymn books even today. His hymns cover a wide spectrum including truth, praise, service, consecration, and experience.
