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Rossendale Circuit
Jun 18, 20218 min read

The Peace of the Presence of God- Sunday Service 20.06.21

with Revd. David Burrow


Video Service

Watch on youtube here.



All Suggested Hymns:


MP 107 'Give thanks with a grateful heart'


MP 50 'Be still, for the presence of the Lord'


After the first prayer


MP 359 'Jesus calls us o’er the tumult'


MP 400 'Lead us heavenly Father lead us'


After the sermon before the intercessions


MP 115 'Do not be afraid'

MP 111 'Dear Lord and Father of mankind'


To finish:


MP 770 'Will your anchor hold in the storms of life'


A more upbeat version by Gloria Bailey:


MP 932 'Standing on the promises of Christ my King'


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSDByrcWQV8 No lyrics but watch that pianist go!



Other Links





Our Email Address: rossendalemethodistcircuit@gmail.com





Transcript


Welcome – ask whether people want to continue with a recorded service after we eventually get back to meeting in church again. You can email us through our website www.rossendalemethodistcircuit.co.uk to let us know your thoughts or feel free to give me a ring if you have my number – it’s on all the church notice boards.


Psalm 107:1-3 and 23-32


Suggested Hymns (links below):


MP 107 'Give thanks with a grateful heart' or


MP 50 'Be still for the presence of the Lord'


Prayer


Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, tells us to ‘Put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; . . . be made new in the attitude of your minds; put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness’ (Ephesians 4:22-24).


Father God, please remind me of the ways in which I have sinned this week through negligence, through weakness or my own deliberate fault. I take a moment to confess my sins before You now.

God of grace, thank You that when I confess my sins, You are faithful and just, forgiving and purifying me from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9). I receive your forgiveness now.

Please fill me now with your Holy Spirit that I might know your power, your presence and the gift of your peace. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.


Suggested Hymns (links below):


MP 359 'Jesus calls us o’er the tumult'


MP 400 'Lead us heavenly Father lead us'


Our Bible reading finds Jesus, after a day of teaching beside Lake Galilee, with his disciples needing a break from the crowds. The easiest way was to get in a boat and cross the Lake. Lake Galilee is surrounded by hills divided by valleys which funnel winds down on to the water. Storms suddenly springing up was not an uncommon event and this evening was one of those times.


Mark 4:35-41


Who is this man who has the authority to control the wind and the sea?

We know the answer to that question because Mark has already told us, in chapter one, through the words of the demons Jesus cast out of a man in the synagogue at Capernaum. This man who can control the wind and sea is none other than, Jesus - the Holy one of God! 1:24

We know the truth, but the disciples didn't.

Even after Jesus had calmed the storm, they still struggled to understand that here was Jesus the man, doing what only God should be able to do! It must have been mind blowing!


The Jewish people believed that the sea was a symbol of chaos. And God's work was to bring order out of chaos, life out of death. Yet when Jesus showed his power over the sea, the disciples were still afraid!

They still did not know the peace of the presence of Jesus. A friendly familiar human Jesus they could handle, but not the supernatural Son of God!


Let's go back to the storm for a moment. The disciples asked another question of Jesus, “Teacher, don't you care if we drown?

Of course Jesus cared. The disciples would find out later just how much Jesus cared when he went to the cross, but here in a life-threatening crisis they were not so sure.


Have you ever been in a crisis? Have you ever shouted, "Jesus, don't you care?" Or, do you say . . . .

"Have faith in God, my heart, trust and be unafraid: God will fulfill in every part

each promise he has made. H&P 675



Photo by David Kovalenko via Unsplash


In the middle of a crisis God cares for you, and you can cast all your anxieties on him. 1Peter 5:7

We know that God has the power to breathe his love and his peace into the very centre of the storm, to say to you and to me, "Be still, and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10a

Having said that it’s not always easy to simply, be still, and rely on the peace of the presence of Jesus.

Just before Christmas 1988 a family friend learnt that his wife had cancer. The funeral was on Christmas Eve. Tom and Betty had been married for over 30 years, and obviously Tom felt his loss a great deal. He didn't go anywhere except church for several weeks. Several months later he told me a little of what he had been through, of how sometimes he had gone into the house after being out on the farm and he had just laid on the settee with his head in a cushion and not known what to do except cry. Yet even in those darkest moments when he felt so close to giving up he knew that God was there with him.

The Bible tells us that God, "A bruised reed he will not break" [Isa.42:3]

Tom was that reed, battered and bruised, but thanks to the love and power of God, and the care of the Christian community, he wasn't broken. In the midst of the storm of bereavement Tom found the peace of God - the peace of the presence of Jesus.


Most people faced with a crisis turn to God. They might blame God or start to pray!

So often people faced with a bereavement want to pray, or rather, want me to pray with them and for them. I have to admit it can be difficult to suddenly turn to Jesus in a crisis, particularly if you haven't been aware of Jesus' presence in your everyday life.

Unlike the disciples in their boat, we can't just turn round and wake Jesus up. Or can we?


Jesus isn’t asleep, and he longs for us to turn to him but, if we want to be able to turn to Jesus in a storm and hear what he is saying to us, we must first build a relationship with him.

Jesus is our Saviour, he died for us on the cross, and was raised from the dead; we know this to be true, but Jesus is also our brother and friend. And Jesus is present with us through the Holy Spirit who comes to live in us when we become Christians and ask him to take up residence in our lives.


Any relationship needs commitment and constant working on if it is going to grow and deepen.

To know the peace of Jesus' presence in a crisis you need to know his presence in the mundane, in the everyday.

From January 1984 to December 1986, I worked in Papua New Guinea as a volunteer teacher. For the first seven months I was the only white person in the village. I didn't know the local language, and the people didn't know very much English.

I lived alone and found myself spending more and more time just chatting to Jesus. Doing the washing up I would discuss the day’s work with Him. There was no electricity and it went dark at 6:30pm. The evenings were very long but that gave me more opportunity to build my relationship with Jesus, to know and experience better the peace of the presence of Jesus.

And I found that when a crisis hit, like a pupil getting malaria, or being bitten by a snake, or breaking his jaw, or myself being ill, I was able in the same natural way to take a deep breath, hand the panic over to Jesus and get on, in his strength, with sorting out the problem!

I learnt through everyday events to trust Jesus, to build my trust and faith, so when the crisis hit I didn't have to ask where Jesus was, I knew through past experience that he was there. That sounds like I always got it right - of course I didn't, and I still don't.

There were times, and still are, when I find myself trying to do a deal with God, or I moan at him because church membership numbers keep falling, or I get angry because something hasn't worked out, which means that I constantly need to work on my relationship with Jesus.


Through the dynamic presence of the Holy Spirit, Jesus is with us every moment of every day. Through prayer, Bible study, worship, fellowship with other Christians we build, deepen, and strengthen our relationship - we come to know the peace of the presence of Jesus.

Knowing the peace of the presence of Jesus in the ordinary, will mean that we will always be ready to face the storms of life. A young Christian friend, whenever she prays, pictures herself cradled in the arms of Jesus. So, when the storms of life break around her there she is, still safe in the arms of Jesus, She knows, the peace of the presence of Jesus.

Believe in Jesus, commit yourself to him fully. Experience his love and forgiveness for you, work on your relationship with him and so come to know, to really know the peace of his presence. Amen.


Suggested Hymns (links below):


MP 115 'Do not be afraid'


MP 111 'Dear Lord and Father of mankind'


Prayer of Intercession


Jesus, you calmed the storm, commanded the waves to be still, and the wind to fall silent.

Over the world in the midst of the chaos of the pandemic we pray that you would speak words of peace.

Into the lives of those who have suffered the storms of grief, speak words of comfort.

In the name of the living God Speak your word of power.

Into the lives of those who live in war-torn nations, especially Yemen, the Middle East and Afghanistan speak words of hope.

In the name of the living God Speak your word of power.

Into the hearts of those who live in fear of redundancy and the loss of their businesses speak words of strength.

In the name of the living God Speak your word of power.

Jesus, calm the storms in the hearts of all your people that we may be messengers of the peace of your presence.

In the name of the living God Speak your word of power.

By the power of your Holy Spirit guide us in your way of peace, for we ask it in the name of Jesus. Amen.


Suggested Hymns (links below):


MP 770 'Will your anchor hold in the storms of life'


MP 932 'Standing on the promises of Christ my King'


Blessing: The peace of the earth be with you, the peace of the heavens too;

the peace of the rivers be with you, the peace of the oceans too.

Deep peace falling over you. God’s peace, God’s peace growing in you.

Guatemalan text Translated by Christine Carson (b. 1965)



All Suggested Hymns:


MP 107 'Give thanks with a grateful heart'


MP 50 'Be still, for the presence of the Lord'


After the first prayer


MP 359 'Jesus calls us o’er the tumult'


MP 400 'Lead us heavenly Father lead us'


After the sermon before the intercessions


MP 115 'Do not be afraid'

MP 111 'Dear Lord and Father of mankind'


To finish:


MP 770 'Will your anchor hold in the storms of life'


A more upbeat version by Gloria Bailey:


MP 932 'Standing on the promises of Christ my King'


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSDByrcWQV8 No lyrics but watch that pianist go!


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