April 2016: Lighting-up Time

What makes you 'light up' in spontaneous worship? How do our lives and actions 'light up' God? Who's lighting who? Let your little light shine at Grace - all welcome. This is a cafe format service so drinkable contributions will be appreciated to assist us in lighting up.

Slideshow here.

Set up

This is a cafe service with single screen for images and film/gifs to complement words and music.

For at least part of this service, the lighting is minimal, allowing LED lights/films to have maximum effect.

Enough light on each table for the discussions/activities

Intro

(Music: The Host of Seraphim by Dead Can Dance)

Reading:

Ezekiel 1 heavily edited climaxing with:

“When the creatures moved, I heard the sound of their wings, like the roar of rushing waters, like the voice of the Almighty, like the tumult of an army. When they stood still, they lowered their wings.

Then there came a voice from above the vault over their heads as they stood with lowered wings.”

How do we worship? How are we “lit up” by God? And when we prepare to interact with the overwhelming light that is God, how do we “fold our wings” - ways that we prepare ourselves.

Moment of reflection

Reading is repeated (music: Voices by Roger Eno) (also 2 or 3 audio snippets of how people prepare for worship)

Considering ways we prepare to worship God “who is light and in Him is no darkness”.

When they have thought of a meaningful way to prepare, drop an LED rose into the bowl on their table, the darkened café slowly lights up.

What lights you up?

Reflection on the ways that we have been and can be “lit up” in a worshipful way. Includes table discussion.

Possible song: Michael Kiwanuka (2 or 3 audio snippets of people’s experiences of being lit up)

Segue: or is it the other way around?

Emphasis on personal experience in corporate worship. Is it more about offering worship that “lights up” God, whether it is experienced by us or not.

Lighting up God/True worship

Story of automata

Readings:

John 4:23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.


Isaiah 1:10-17 (Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.)

Round table discussion on how our lives and our desire to worship may be out of sync.

Pre communion reflection

We’re going to have a short time to reflect.

While the music is playing, think about ways how your life might currently be out of balance.

Are there places where you haven’t always lived your life as an act of worship – maybe the opposite.

And, then think, is there some simple action you could do, some simple pledge that you could make...

Something that would help to bring your life further in line with your worship of God.

When you’ve thought of something, take one of the little plastic flowers and place it on the glass table.

Tell God about your desire to be a worshipping creature, lit up by his Spirit and his priorities.

Communion

Prayer of confession

Music: Blackfriars by Anna Meredith

Merciful God
You understand our brokenness, and the pain that comes from our lives and worship being out of balance

So many times we try to set our thoughts on your goodness
And then, moments later, our minds settle back into the furrows of our own preoccupations
How we can be well thought of
How we can be vindicated at work or on Facebook
Thoughts about our own private empire of self.

Lord have mercy
Lord have mercy

So many times, we have used our lips to worship you
And then, moments later, out of our mouths comes a torrent of words to belittle and to destroy.

Christ have mercy
Christ have mercy

So many times we sing and pray about your lordship
Your kingdom come on earth as in heaven
And then we set about dividing heaven and earth again with so many of the simple choices we make.
How we consume, how we prioritise: your kingdom and ours

Lord have mercy
Lord have mercy

Eucharistic prayers

When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them.31Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”

Luke 24:28-32

What God has done for us:

He has taken a place at the dining table of our everyday life
He seeks to set our hearts ablaze at any and every opportunity – whether we recognise him or not
He seeks to light us up in the simple act of friendship with us.

The Lord is here
His Spirit is with us
Lift up your hearts
We lift them to the Lord
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God
It is right to give Him thanks and praise

O Lord our God, sustainer of the universe, at your command all things came to be: the vast expanse of interstellar space; galaxies, suns, the planets in their courses and this fragile earth, our island home. By your will they were created and have their being.

Redeemer God, word become flesh, we remember you in bread and wine; your body, your blood, broken so we with all creation may be made perfect. Through your sacrifice death is nulled. Through your resurrection we have a future.

Therefore with angels and animals, microbes and mountains, and all that lives for you we proclaim how wonderful you are, we pour out our thanks to you in song that never sleeps:

Holy holy holy Lord
God of power and might
Heaven and earth are full of your glory
Hosanna in the highest

And now we ask that by the power of your Holy Spirit this bread and wine may be to us Christ's body and his blood; who, on the night that he was handed over to suffering and death, took bread, thanked you and broke it. He gave it to his friends saying 'Eat this, it is my body given for you. Do this in memory of me.'

Later after supper he took the cup, thanked you, and gave it to them saying 'Drink this all of you, this is my blood of the new covenant which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this whenever you drink it in memory of me.'

Christ has died,
Christ is risen
Christ will come again

In this place where heaven and earth meet under the rainbow of God's promise,

in this sharing of bread and wine
future hope becomes reality now.

Turn our frail attempts at worship into a song fit for the king of heaven. When we are distracted, call us back to you. When we are overcome by annoyance or frustration at the people around us, draw us back to your table where the light of your Spirit is rekindled in us.

Let this bread and this wine be for us the body and blood of your Son, Jesus Christ, who draws us to you with gentleness and persistence, to ignite in us the fire of worship that transforms our being and our doing, so that Your light shining from us illuminates the world.
Amen.

People take LED roses and place on an altar/sacred surface offering a sacrifice of their inner light to God, and then receive communion.

Closing prayer:

animated and lit up by friendship. Go in peace to gently smoulder and blaze for God (sort of thing)

(Poss music for ending: Visionary Mountains Joan Armatrading)