Sticks and Stones

The readings for the Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost were:
Proverbs 1:20-33
Psalm 19
James 3:1-12

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits. How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, but no one can tame the tongue-- a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.

Mark 8:27-38
The pastor preached from the Epistle lesson. It was very appropriate as we enter the mud-slinging political ad season. Diane Sawyer had a program on the problem of mean teenage girls taunting and bullying other kids through text messaging.

The hymns and choral music were all reflective of the Psalter today instead of the Gospel lesson.

For the introit we sang Beethoven’s The Heavens Are Telling.

Our first hymn was
Morning Has Broken by Eleanor Farjeon. The hymn tune is the Scottish folktune Bunessan.

Morning has broken,
Like the first morning,
Blackbird has spoken
Like the first bird;
Praise for the singing,
Praise for the morning,
Praise for them springing
Fresh from the Word.

Sweet the rain's new fall,
Sunlit from heaven,
Like the first dewfall
On the first grass;
Praise for the sweetness,
Of the wet garden,
Sprung in completeness
Where his feet pass.

Mine is the sunlight,
Mine is the morning,
Born of the one light
Eden saw play;
Praise with elation,
Praise every morning,
God's re-creation
Of the new day.

The second hymn was Be Thou My Vision, an ancient Irish hymn; translated Mary Byrne, 1905, and versified by Eleanor Hull, 1912. The Irish folk tune is called Slane.

Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart,
be all else but naught to me, save that thou art;
be thou my best thought in the day and the night,
both waking and sleeping, thy presence my light.

Be thou my wisdom, be thou my true word,
be thou ever with me, and I with thee Lord;
be thou my great Father, and I thy true son;
be thou in me dwelling, and I with thee one.

Be thou my breastplate, my sword for the fight;
be thou my whole armor, be thou my true might;
be thou my soul's shelter, be thou my strong tower:
O raise thou me heavenward, great Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise:
be thou mine inheritance now and always;
be thou and thou only the first in my heart;
O Sovereign of heaven, my treasure thou art.

High King of heaven, thou heaven's bright sun,
O grant me its joys after victory is won;
great Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
still be thou my vision, O Ruler of all.

Our anthem was Handel’s Let Joyful Anthems Rise

Our final hymn was Gift of Love by Hal Hopson.

Though I may speak with bravest fire,
And have the gift to all inspire,
And have not love, my words are vain,
As sounding brass, and hopeless gain.

Though I may give all I possess,
And striving so my love profess,
But not be given by love within,
The profit soon turns strangely thin.

Come, Spirit, come, our hearts control,
Our spirits long to be made whole.
Let inward love guide every deed;
By this we worship, and are freed.

Just Do It!

The readings for September 10, 2006, the Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost were:

Proverbs 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23
Psalm 125
James 2:1-10, (11-13), 14-17
Mark 7:24-37

The pastor preached from Mark's Gospel and titled the sermon "Just Do It".

The first hymn was Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise by Walter Chalmers Smith. The tune is St. Denio.

Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, thy great Name we praise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
nor wanting, nor wasting, thou rulest in might;
thy justice like mountains high soaring above
thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

To all life thou givest, to both great and small;
in all life thou livest, the true life of all;
we blossom and flourish, like leaves on the tree,
then wither and perish; but nought changeth thee.

Great Father of glory, pure Father of light,
thine angels adore thee, all veiling their sight;
all laud we would render: O help us to see
'tis only the splendor of light hideth thee.

The second hymn was Jesu, Jesu
by Tom Colvin, set to Chereponi, a folk song from Ghana.

Refrain:
Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve
the neighbors we have from you.

Kneels at the feet of his friends,
silently washes their feet,
master who acts as a slave to them. Refrain

Neighbors are rich and poor,
varied in color and race,
neighbors are near and far away. Refrain

These are the ones we should serve,
these are the ones we should love;
all these are neighbors to us and you. Refrain

Loving puts us on our knees,
serving as though we are slaves;
this is the way we should live with you. Refrain

Kneel at the feet of our friends,
silently washing their feet;
this is the way we should live with you. Refrain

Words & Melody © 1969 by Hope Publishing Co., Carol Stream, IL 60188.
Arrangement by Jane Manton Marshall
Arrangement © 1982 by Hope Publishing Co., Carol Stream, IL 60188.

Our anthem was Thy Church, O God, Her Heart to Thee Upraiseth by Eric Thiman. The choir I've linked to is from All Souls Episcopal Church in San Diego. They put recordings of the almost the entire service in their online bulletin. I love it.

Thy Church, o God, her heart to Thee upraiseth;
with her the nation bows before thy face.
With high thanksgiving Thee thy glad Church praiseth;
our strength thy spirit, our trust and hope thy grace.
Unto great honour, glory undeserved,
hast Thou exalted us, and drawn Thee nigh.

Nor, from thy judgments when our feet had served,
didst Thou forsake, nor leave us, Lord most high.
Unto our minds give freedom and uprightness;
let strength and courage lead o’er land and wave.
To our souls’ armor grant celestial brightness,
joy to our hearts, and faith beyond the grave.

Our plenteous nation still in power extending,
increase our joy, uphold us by Thy word;
beauty and wisdom all our ways attending.
Goodwill to all and peace through Christ our Lord.

The final hymn was Lord, You Give the Great Commission by Jeffery Rowthorn. The hymn tune is Abbot’s Leigh.

Lord, You give the great commission: “Heal the sick and preach the Word.”
Lest the Church neglect its mission, and the Gospel go unheard,
Help us witness to Your purpose with renewed integrity,
With the Spirit’s gifts empower us for the work of ministry.

Lord, You call us to Your service: “In My Name baptize and teach.”
That the world may trust Your promise, life abundant meant for each,
Give us all new fervor, draw us closer in community.
With the Spirit’s gifts empower us for the work of ministry.

Lord, You make the common holy: “This My body, this My blood.”
Let us all, for earth’s true glory, daily lift life heavenward,
Asking that the world around us share your children’s liberty
With the Spirit’s gifts empower us for the work of ministry.

Lord, You show us love’s true measure: “Father, what they do, forgive.”
Yet we hoard as private treasure all that You so freely give.
May Your care and mercy lead us to a just society.
With the Spirit’s gifts empower us for the work of ministry.

Lord, you bless with words assuring: “I am with you to the end.”
Faith and hope and love restoring, may we serve as you intend
And, amid the cares that claim us, hold in mind eternity.
With the Spirit’s gifts empower us for the work of ministry.

The Condition of the Heart

The readings for the thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost were:

Psalm 45:1-2, 7-10
Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9
James 1:17-27
Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

Pastor Nancy preached from the Gospel lesson about the unimportance of detailed rituals such as handwashing compared to the importance of what is in our hearts. Here's an interesting commentary I found on this scripture called Pharisees Are Us.

Our first hymn was I Come with Joy by Brian Wren

I come with joy to meet my Lord,
forgiven, loved, and free,
in awe and wonder to recall
his life laid down for me.

I come with Christians far and near
to find, as all are fed,
the new community of love
in Christ's communion bread.

As Christ breaks bread and bids us share,
each proud division ends.
That love that made us makes us one,
and strangers now are friends.

And thus with joy we meet our Lord.
His presence, always near,
is in such friendship better known:
we see and praise him here.

Together met, together bound,
we'll go our different ways,
and as his people in the world,
we'll live and speak his praise.

Our second hymn was a real old-fashioned one that people once loved to sing at Wednesday night prayer meeting. There's within My Heart a Melody , text and music by Luther B. Bridgers. The hymntune is called Sweetest Name.

1. There's within my heart a melody
Jesus whispers sweet and low:
Fear not, I am with thee, peace, be still,
in all of life's ebb and flow.
Refrain:
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,
sweetest name I know,
fills my every longing,
keeps me singing as I go.

2. All my life was wrecked by sin and strife,
discord filled my heart with pain;
Jesus swept across the broken strings,
stirred the slumbering chords again.
(Refrain)

3. Though sometimes he leads through waters deep,
trials fall across the way,
though sometimes the path seems rough and steep,
see his footprints all the way.
(Refrain)

4. Feasting on the riches of his grace,
resting neath his sheltering wing,
always looking on his smiling face,
that is why I shout and sing.
(Refrain)

5. Soon he's coming back to welcome me
far beyond the starry sky;
I shall wing my flight to worlds unknown;
I shall reign with him on high.
(Refrain)


My daughter and another woman from the choir sang a beautiful duet of How Beautiful on the Mountains by Felix Mendelssohn.

Our three Eucharistic hymns were:

You Satisfy the Hungry Heart by Robert E. Kreutz.

You satisfy the hungry heart with gift of finest wheat;
Come give to us, O saving Lord, the bread of life to eat.
Is not the cup we bless and share the blood of Christ outpoured?
Do not one cup, one loaf, declare our oneness in the Lord?

You satisfy the hungry heart with gift of finest wheat;
Come give to us, O saving Lord, the bread of life to eat.
You give yourself to us, O Lord; then selfless let us be,
To serve each other in your name in truth and charity.

Here Is Bread by Graham Kendrick.

1. Here is bread, here is wine, Christ is with us, He is with us.
Break the bread, taste the wine, Christ is with us here.

2. Here is grace, here is peace, Christ is with us, He is with us.
Know His grace, find His peace, feast on Jesus here.

Chorus: In this bread there is healing, in this cup is life forever.
In this moment by the Spirit, Christ is with us here.

3. Here we are, joined in one, Christ is with us, He is with us.
We’ll proclaim till He comes, Jesus crucified. (Chorus)

“Here is Bread” words and music by Graham Kendrick © 1991 Make
Way Music CCLI # 1781157

Now Let Us from This Table Rise by Fred Kaan

Now let us from this table rise
renewed in body, mind, and soul;
with Christ we die and live again,
his selfless love has made us whole.

With minds alert, upheld by grace,
to spread the word in speech and deed,
we follow in the steps of Christ,
at one with all in hope and need.

To fill each human house with love,
it is the sacrament of care;
the work that Christ began to do
we humbly pledge ourselves to share.

Then grant us courage, Father God,
to choose again the pilgrim way
and help us to accept with joy
the challenge of tomorrow's day.

Our final hymn was the old spiritual Lord I Want to Be a Christian.

Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart, in my heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart, in my heart.

Lord, I want to be more loving in my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be more loving in my heart, in my heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be more loving in my heart, in my heart.

Lord, I want to be more holy in my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be more holy in my heart, in my heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be more holy in my heart, in my heart.

Lord, I want to be like Jesus in my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be like Jesus in my heart, in my heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be like Jesus in my heart, in my heart.