Felton E. May - Sermon Untitled (February 12, 1995)
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Transcript
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- | We'd like to welcome you to Duke Chapel. | 0:00 |
We have a number of special guests with us today | 0:02 | |
that I would like to mention to you. | 0:05 | |
Our preacher is the Reverend Doctor Felton May. | 0:07 | |
He is the resident bishop | 0:10 | |
of the Central Pennsylvania Conference | 0:12 | |
of the United Methodist Church in the Harrisburg area. | 0:14 | |
Bishop May is known best for his work | 0:18 | |
in social justice ministries. | 0:20 | |
He is the national chair of the Communities of Shalom, | 0:22 | |
and the coordinator of the Task Force | 0:26 | |
Dealing with Chemical Dependency, Alcoholism and Violence. | 0:28 | |
He is also the father of two children, | 0:32 | |
and the proud grandparent of two grandchildren, | 0:35 | |
with a third expected any minute, | 0:38 | |
and we trust that that call won't come | 0:40 | |
while he's preaching today, but will wait | 0:42 | |
until he has a chance to return this afternoon. | 0:45 | |
We are also privileged to welcome with us Brother Pedro | 0:47 | |
from the Brothers of Taize, and Sister Joel | 0:51 | |
from the Little Sisters of Jesus. | 0:54 | |
They have been sharing with us in a wonderful week | 0:56 | |
of worship, we've had services three times a day | 0:59 | |
in the chapel, and an all day retreat yesterday, | 1:02 | |
and we welcome them and are glad | 1:04 | |
they can share this time with us. | 1:06 | |
Also, as you've already heard, we have | 1:09 | |
the Wake Forest Concert Choir, with their director, | 1:11 | |
Dr. Brian Gorelick, we are pleased to welcome them | 1:15 | |
and to have them share their music with us. | 1:18 | |
Let us continue our worship with the greeting | 1:21 | |
as we stand. | 1:23 | |
(crowd rumbling) | ||
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ | 1:30 | |
be with you. | 1:31 | |
- | And also with you. | |
- | The splendor of Christ shines upon us. | 1:34 |
Congregation | Praise the Lord. | 1:38 |
(majestic organ music) | 1:41 | |
♪ O for a thousand tongues to sing ♪ | 2:05 | |
♪ My great Redeemer's praise ♪ | 2:10 | |
♪ The glories of my God and king ♪ | 2:16 | |
♪ The triumphs of his grace ♪ | 2:21 | |
♪ My gracious master and my God ♪ | 2:29 | |
♪ Assist me to proclaim ♪ | 2:35 | |
♪ To spread through all the earth abroad ♪ | 2:41 | |
♪ The honors of thy name ♪ | 2:46 | |
♪ Jesus the name that charms our fears ♪ | 2:54 | |
♪ That bids our sorrows cease ♪ | 2:59 | |
♪ Tis music in the sinners ear ♪ | 3:05 | |
♪ Tis life and health and peace ♪ | 3:11 | |
♪ He breaks the power of canceled sin ♪ | 3:18 | |
♪ He sets the prisoner free ♪ | 3:24 | |
♪ His blood can make the foulest clean ♪ | 3:30 | |
♪ His blood availed for me ♪ | 3:35 | |
♪ He speaks and listening to his voice ♪ | 3:44 | |
♪ New life the dead receive ♪ | 3:49 | |
♪ The mournful broken hearts rejoice ♪ | 3:55 | |
♪ The humble poor believe ♪ | 4:00 | |
♪ Hear him ye deaf ♪ | 4:09 | |
♪ His praise ye dumb ♪ | 4:11 | |
♪ Your loosened tongues employ ♪ | 4:13 | |
♪ Ye blind behold your savior come ♪ | 4:20 | |
♪ And leap ye lame for joy ♪ | 4:26 | |
(majestic organ music) | 4:33 | |
♪ In Christ your head you then shall know ♪ | 5:43 | |
♪ Shall feel your sins forgiven ♪ | 5:48 | |
♪ Anticipate your heaven below ♪ | 5:55 | |
♪ And own that love is heaven ♪ | 6:01 | |
Debra | Let us pray. | 6:13 |
Almighty and everlasting God, | 6:18 | |
in whom we live and move and have our being, | 6:21 | |
you created us for yourself, | 6:25 | |
so that our hearts are restless | 6:28 | |
until they find rest in you. | 6:31 | |
Grant to us such piety of heart | 6:34 | |
and strength of purpose | 6:37 | |
that no selfish passion may hinder us | 6:39 | |
from knowing your will, | 6:42 | |
and no weakness from doing it. | 6:44 | |
In your light, may we see life clearly, | 6:47 | |
and in your service find perfect freedom | 6:51 | |
through Jesus Christ our Lord, amen. | 6:54 | |
You may be seated. | 6:59 | |
(congregation rumbling) | 7:02 | |
- | Please join me with the prayer for illumination. | 7:12 |
All | Open our hearts and minds, oh God, | 7:18 |
by the power of your Holy Spirit, | 7:22 | |
so that as the Word is read and proclaimed | 7:24 | |
we may hear with joy what you say to us this day, amen. | 7:28 | |
- | From the book of the prophet Jeremiah, | 7:39 |
chapter 17, verses five to 10. | 7:42 | |
Thus says the Lord, | 7:50 | |
"Cursed are those who trust in mere mortals | 7:52 | |
"and make mere flesh their strength, | 7:57 | |
"whose hearts turn away from the Lord. | 8:01 | |
"They shall be like a bush in the desert, | 8:06 | |
"and shall not see when relief comes. | 8:10 | |
"They shall live in the parched places of the wilderness, | 8:15 | |
"in a desolate salt land. | 8:20 | |
"Blessed are those who trust in the Lord, | 8:25 | |
"whose trust is the Lord. | 8:29 | |
"They shall be like a tree planted by water, | 8:32 | |
"sending out its roots by the stream. | 8:36 | |
"It shall not fear when heat comes, | 8:40 | |
"and its leaves shall stay green; | 8:45 | |
"in the year of drought it is not anxious, | 8:50 | |
"and it does not cease to bear fruit. | 8:54 | |
"The heart is devious above all else; | 8:59 | |
"it is perverse, who can understand it? | 9:03 | |
"I the Lord test the mind and search the heart, | 9:08 | |
"to give to all according to their ways, | 9:13 | |
"according to the fruit of their doings." | 9:17 | |
This is the word of the Lord. | 9:22 | |
Congregation | Thanks be to God. | 9:26 |
(soft organ music) | 9:42 | |
♪ Blessed are the men who fear him ♪ | 9:50 | |
♪ They ever walk in the ways of peace ♪ | 9:55 | |
♪ Blessed are the men who fear him ♪ | 10:01 | |
♪ They ever walk in the ways of peace ♪ | 10:06 | |
♪ Blessed are the men who fear him ♪ | 10:12 | |
♪ They ever walk in the ways of peace ♪ | 10:24 | |
♪ They ever walk in the ways of peace ♪ | 10:30 | |
♪ They ever walk in the ways of peace ♪ | 10:37 | |
♪ They ever walk in the ways of peace ♪ | 10:43 | |
♪ They ever walk in the ways of peace ♪ | 10:53 | |
♪ Through darkness riseth light ♪ | 11:02 | |
♪ Light to the upright ♪ | 11:06 | |
♪ Through darkness riseth light to the upright ♪ | 11:10 | |
♪ Through darkness riseth light ♪ | 11:19 | |
♪ Riseth light ♪ | 11:23 | |
♪ To the upright ♪ | 11:28 | |
♪ He is gracious ♪ | 11:32 | |
♪ Compassionate ♪ | 11:34 | |
♪ Compassionate ♪ | 11:37 | |
♪ He is righteous ♪ | 11:39 | |
♪ Blessed are the men who fear him ♪ | 11:45 | |
♪ Blessed are the men who fear him ♪ | 11:50 | |
♪ They ever walk in the ways of peace ♪ | 11:57 | |
♪ Through darkness riseth light to the upright ♪ | 12:11 | |
♪ Blessed are the men who fear him ♪ | 12:22 | |
♪ They ever walk in the ways of peace ♪ | 12:27 | |
♪ Blessed ♪ | 12:44 | |
♪ Blessed ♪ | 12:47 | |
♪ Blessed ♪ | 12:50 | |
- | Today's psalm is Psalm One, found on page 738 | 13:17 |
in the hymnal, please stand and sing the psalm | 13:20 | |
and the Gloria response of it. | 13:23 | |
(majestic organ music) | 13:27 | |
♪ Blessed are those who do not walk ♪ | 13:33 | |
♪ In the counsel of the wicked ♪ | 13:36 | |
♪ Or stand in the way of sinners ♪ | 13:40 | |
♪ Or sit in the seat of scoffers ♪ | 13:44 | |
♪ But their delight is in the law of the Lord ♪ | 13:49 | |
♪ And on God's law they meditate day and night ♪ | 13:55 | |
♪ They are like trees planted by streams of water ♪ | 14:02 | |
♪ That yield their fruit in season ♪ | 14:09 | |
♪ And their leaves do not wither ♪ | 14:14 | |
♪ In all that they do they prosper ♪ | 14:18 | |
♪ The wicked are not so ♪ | 14:25 | |
♪ But are like chaff which the wind drives away ♪ | 14:29 | |
♪ Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment ♪ | 14:36 | |
♪ Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous ♪ | 14:43 | |
♪ For the Lord knows the way of the righteous ♪ | 14:51 | |
♪ But the way of the wicked will perish ♪ | 14:57 | |
♪ All glory be to you Creator ♪ | 15:04 | |
♪ And to Jesus Christ our Savior ♪ | 15:08 | |
♪ And to the Holy Spirit ♪ | 15:12 | |
♪ Blessed trinity ♪ | 15:16 | |
♪ As it was as time began ♪ | 15:21 | |
♪ Is now and will be forevermore ♪ | 15:25 | |
- | You may be seated. | 15:37 |
- | A reading from the first letter of Paul | 16:00 |
to the Corinthians, chapter 15, verses 12 to 20. | 16:02 | |
Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, | 16:12 | |
how can some of you say there is | 16:18 | |
no resurrection of the dead? | 16:19 | |
If there is no resurrection of the dead, | 16:24 | |
then Christ has not been raised. | 16:29 | |
And if Christ has not been raised, | 16:33 | |
then our proclamation has been in vain | 16:37 | |
and your faith has been in vain. | 16:41 | |
We are even found to be misrepresenting God | 16:46 | |
because we testified of God that he raised Christ | 16:53 | |
whom he did not raise, if it is true | 17:00 | |
that the dead are not raised. | 17:02 | |
For if the dead are not raised, | 17:08 | |
then Christ has not been raised. | 17:11 | |
If Christ has not been raised, | 17:16 | |
your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. | 17:20 | |
Then, those also who have died in Christ hath perished. | 17:31 | |
If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, | 17:39 | |
we are of all people most to be pitied. | 17:45 | |
But, in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead, | 17:53 | |
the firstfruits of those who have died. | 17:59 | |
This is the word of the Lord. | 18:05 | |
Congregation | Thanks be to God. | 18:09 |
- | A reading from the holy gospel | 18:18 |
according to Luke, chapter six, verses 17 to 26. | 18:20 | |
He came down with them and stood on a level place, | 18:29 | |
with a great crowd of his disciples | 18:35 | |
and a great multitude of people | 18:39 | |
from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon. | 18:41 | |
They had come to hear him and to be healed | 18:51 | |
of their diseases, and those who were troubled | 18:55 | |
with unclean spirits were cured. | 19:00 | |
And all in the crowd were trying to touch him, | 19:06 | |
for power came out from him and healed all of them. | 19:11 | |
Then he looked up at his disciples and said, | 19:18 | |
"Blessed are you who are poor, | 19:25 | |
"for yours is the kingdom of God. | 19:29 | |
"Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. | 19:33 | |
"Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. | 19:43 | |
"Blessed are you when people hate you, | 19:52 | |
"and when they exclude you, revile you, | 19:55 | |
"and defame you on account of the Son of Man. | 19:58 | |
"Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, | 20:05 | |
"for surely your reward is great in heaven, | 20:11 | |
"for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets. | 20:17 | |
"But woe to you who are rich, | 20:24 | |
"for you have received your consolation. | 20:30 | |
"Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. | 20:35 | |
"Woe to you who are laughing now, | 20:43 | |
"for you will mourn and weep. | 20:48 | |
"Woe to you when all speak well of you, | 20:53 | |
"for that is what their ancestors | 20:59 | |
"did to the false prophets." | 21:00 | |
This is the word of the Lord. | 21:07 | |
Congregation | Thanks be to God. | 21:10 |
- | Good morning, a greeting that is as old | 21:22 |
as the church itself, grace to you | 21:27 | |
and peace from God our Creator | 21:31 | |
and our Lord Jesus Christ. | 21:35 | |
And to that, all of you could have said amen, | 21:39 | |
so allow me to try it again. | 21:44 | |
Grace to you and peace | 21:48 | |
from God our Creator | 21:52 | |
and our Lord Jesus Christ. | 21:55 | |
- | Amen. | |
- | After the Duke experience yesterday, | 22:00 |
at that game, | 22:03 | |
I think you are a bit quiet. | 22:08 | |
For if the dead are not raised, | 22:18 | |
then Christ has not been raised. | 22:26 | |
If Christ has not been raised, | 22:30 | |
your faith is futile | 22:35 | |
and you are still in your sins. | 22:39 | |
Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished, | 22:45 | |
if for this life only we have hope in Christ, | 22:52 | |
we are of all persons most to be pitied. | 22:57 | |
But, in fact, | 23:04 | |
Christ has been raised from the dead, | 23:06 | |
the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. | 23:11 | |
This is the word of the Lord. | 23:17 | |
Thanks be to God. | 23:21 | |
To choose or not to choose, | 23:24 | |
that is the dilemma. | 23:28 | |
Let us pray. | 23:31 | |
Breathe on me, breath of God | 23:35 | |
till I am wholly thine, | 23:39 | |
till all this earthly part of me | 23:43 | |
glows in your fire divine. | 23:48 | |
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart | 23:53 | |
be acceptable unto you, O Lord, | 24:00 | |
my strength and my redeemer, | 24:03 | |
amen. | 24:08 | |
The choice really is ours. | 24:12 | |
The choice to have communities of shalom | 24:17 | |
or to have communities of chaos. | 24:23 | |
The choice is ours: to be blessed of God | 24:28 | |
with health and wholeness and wellbeing, | 24:34 | |
over and against pestilence and poison and fear. | 24:40 | |
The choice is ours. | 24:47 | |
And that choice, as United Methodists, | 24:49 | |
grows out of who we are and whose we are | 24:52 | |
and what it is that we believe. | 24:58 | |
There has been a small bit of controversy | 25:03 | |
in our denomination over the past several months | 25:08 | |
about what we believe and in whom we believe, | 25:11 | |
but I want you to join me this morning | 25:16 | |
in this not so trivial exercise, | 25:18 | |
but to proclaim together what we believe | 25:22 | |
to set the context from | 25:26 | |
which I shall share a few thoughts. | 25:28 | |
Join me, won't you, in the historic creed of our faith. | 25:33 | |
All | I believe in God the father almighty, | 25:38 |
maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus | 25:42 | |
his only son, our Lord, who was conceived | 25:46 | |
by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, | 25:49 | |
suffered under Pontius Pilate, | 25:54 | |
was crucified, dead and buried. | 25:56 | |
The third day, he arose from the dead, | 25:59 | |
he ascended into heaven and sitteth at the right hand | 26:02 | |
of God the father almighty. | 26:05 | |
From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. | 26:07 | |
I believe in the Holy Spirit, | 26:11 | |
the holy catholic church, | 26:14 | |
the communion of saints, | 26:16 | |
the forgiveness of sins, | 26:18 | |
the resurrection of the body, | 26:20 | |
and life everlasting, amen. | 26:22 | |
You remember, you know. | 26:27 | |
We remember and we know who we are | 26:32 | |
and whose we are, that we are held together | 26:34 | |
by one Lord, one faith, one baptism, | 26:38 | |
and one way to eternal life. | 26:44 | |
Oh, there are many modes of transportation | 26:47 | |
on the road to eternal life, many variations | 26:52 | |
of that mode, but only one way. | 26:56 | |
And for me, that way is Jesus Christ | 27:00 | |
our Lord, our risen savior. | 27:05 | |
It would not surprise you if I would say to you | 27:09 | |
on this Sunday morning, a Christ is risen. | 27:12 | |
What would your response be? | 27:18 | |
Oh, I know it's not Easter Sunday morning, | 27:21 | |
and when we're outside of our liturgical rubric, | 27:23 | |
we somehow tend to forget the responses, | 27:26 | |
but I'll try it one more time. | 27:31 | |
Christ is risen. | 27:33 | |
- | He is risen indeed. | |
- | Now yesterday I saw those marvelous cheerleaders | 27:38 |
and students who seemed to have rehearsed | 27:42 | |
their choreography in such a way | 27:45 | |
that no one missed a beat and everyone knew | 27:48 | |
the response except me, | 27:51 | |
Christ is risen. | 27:55 | |
Congregation | He is risen indeed. | 27:57 |
Felton | We really do not have a choice. | 28:00 |
If we believe that Christ is risen from the dead | 28:03 | |
or we are God's people | 28:07 | |
and we are the sheep of his pasture. | 28:11 | |
Our task, then, without equivocation, | 28:15 | |
is to bring wholeness and healing and wellbeing | 28:20 | |
to that which God has created and called good, | 28:23 | |
to establish communities of shalom | 28:29 | |
all over the land. | 28:33 | |
There is a Baptist Sunday school teacher | 28:36 | |
from Plains, Georgia, who happened to have been, | 28:41 | |
at one point in his life, the president | 28:45 | |
of the United States of America. | 28:48 | |
In an article written by Jim Wooten, | 28:51 | |
that appeared recently in the New York Times, | 28:54 | |
under a rather cryptic title, | 28:57 | |
sometimes calling him a meddler, | 29:03 | |
an interventionist, | 29:08 | |
a moralizer, | 29:12 | |
President Carter writes these words. | 29:14 | |
I have one life and one chance | 29:19 | |
to make it count for something. | 29:23 | |
I'm free to choose what that something is. | 29:27 | |
And the something I've chosen | 29:33 | |
is my faith. | 29:37 | |
Now, my faith goes beyond theology and religion, | 29:40 | |
and requires considerable work and effort. | 29:45 | |
My faith demands, this is not optional, | 29:50 | |
my faith demands that I do whatever I can, | 29:55 | |
wherever I can, whenever I can, | 30:01 | |
for as long as I can, | 30:06 | |
with whatever I have, | 30:09 | |
to try to make a difference. | 30:12 | |
Sounds a little bit like John Wesley, | 30:16 | |
but we'll forgive him for that. | 30:18 | |
But what he was coming to was that, as a man of faith, | 30:22 | |
who understands that he was molded and shaped | 30:27 | |
in the image of God, that his choice | 30:30 | |
was not to simply consume the goods of the world, | 30:34 | |
but to make every effort to bring shalom. | 30:40 | |
He made a choice, | 30:46 | |
and so the choice is also ours | 30:48 | |
as the people of God. | 30:53 | |
Choosing to be God's person can be difficult. | 30:56 | |
Several years ago, Mrs. May and I, | 31:02 | |
as a part of the Council of Bishops Concerned | 31:05 | |
For Chemical Dependency and Alcoholism and Violence, | 31:09 | |
I went to Edmond, Oklahoma, which is a bedroom | 31:15 | |
community of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. | 31:18 | |
We were field testing some newly written curriculum | 31:22 | |
entitled Born Free, Stay Free. | 31:27 | |
It is marvelous material that involves youngsters | 31:32 | |
from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade, | 31:36 | |
and their parents or older brothers and sisters | 31:40 | |
or an adult, bonding them together | 31:44 | |
to choose to live lives | 31:48 | |
free of addiction. | 31:53 | |
Although we focus on alcohol | 31:55 | |
and drugs, | 32:01 | |
we also talk about those addictions | 32:03 | |
that all of us possess in one form or another. | 32:05 | |
Greed and sex and racism and ageism, | 32:11 | |
those things that we have coveted | 32:17 | |
for ourselves as we have forgotten | 32:19 | |
that we belong to God and God belongs to us, | 32:21 | |
that which stands between us and God | 32:25 | |
that gives us momentary satisfaction, | 32:28 | |
becomes an addiction. | 32:31 | |
In order for the young people to be involved, their parents | 32:36 | |
interacted in the 72 hour period over a weekend. | 32:40 | |
I was field testing the junior high material. | 32:44 | |
I love junior highs, because they speak their mind, | 32:47 | |
unashamedly, and sometimes very painfully, | 32:51 | |
but yet they speak. | 32:55 | |
And on Saturday afternoon, the parents of the junior highs, | 32:58 | |
about 17 of them, gathered in a circle | 33:02 | |
for a conversation with the bishop. | 33:05 | |
It was an interesting conversation | 33:10 | |
coming from some very well-heeled leaders | 33:12 | |
of the community of Edmond, Oklahoma. | 33:17 | |
Doctors and nurses and teachers, a federal court judge, | 33:21 | |
all highly acclaimed and | 33:27 | |
prosperous. | 33:33 | |
As the conversation intensified, | 33:36 | |
a woman looked at me intently and said, | 33:39 | |
"Bishop, I have a question for you." | 33:42 | |
I took a deep breath, looked as wise | 33:44 | |
as I could possibly look in the afternoon, | 33:47 | |
and I said, "Yes, may I help you?" | 33:50 | |
She said, "I wanna tell you about my daughter. | 33:53 | |
"We had an awful time getting her to come to this event. | 33:55 | |
"In fact, this child of ours was absolutely outrageous. | 34:01 | |
"I mean, she rebelled, she did not want to come, | 34:06 | |
"and we just forced her to do so. | 34:10 | |
"She talked back to us, bishop. | 34:14 | |
"I mean, we've trained," she said, | 34:17 | |
"This child to be polite, we've given her ballet lessons | 34:19 | |
"and tennis lessons, she's traveled to Europe, | 34:23 | |
"she wears designer clothes, she goes to a private school, | 34:26 | |
"she lives in a good community, | 34:30 | |
"and she does not appreciate it. | 34:32 | |
"She talked back to us in no uncertain terms. | 34:35 | |
"She said, Why should I go to that blankety-blank program? | 34:39 | |
"You and dad, mom, drink and you're probably doing drugs | 34:45 | |
"and you seem to be all right, | 34:49 | |
why do I need to go?" | 34:53 | |
Then she took a deep breath and said, | 34:58 | |
"Bishop, what should I have said to her? | 35:00 | |
"How would you deal with this child of mine? | 35:07 | |
"We're adults, if we want to take a little alcohol, | 35:13 | |
"or even if we're at a party and we want to sniff | 35:19 | |
"just a little bit of pure unadulterated cocaine, | 35:24 | |
"what difference should it make to you | 35:29 | |
or to the world? | 35:34 | |
"This child is a minor, we are adults | 35:35 | |
"and we know how to live, and bishop, we live well." | 35:40 | |
I said, "I'll give you the answer tomorrow morning." | 35:47 | |
I consulted with the staff, and tossed and turned overnight, | 35:51 | |
because I really did not know how to enter | 35:56 | |
into the lives of that rather well heeled group of adults | 36:00 | |
raising children that seemed to be | 36:06 | |
just a little bit off center, but quite wise. | 36:08 | |
The next day came, and there they were, | 36:15 | |
looking at me with eyes of real interest, | 36:17 | |
and she said to me, "Bishop, do you have an answer for us?" | 36:22 | |
And I said, "Yes, I think it is something of an answer. | 36:25 | |
"The child," I said, "has chosen to emulate you | 36:34 | |
"without knowing the full effect | 36:38 | |
of that which you do. | 36:42 | |
"There's no way for you to share with a child | 36:45 | |
"all of the dangers inherent in the behavior | 36:48 | |
"that she is emulating, and so I'm wondering | 36:51 | |
"if, as her parents, you would be willing | 36:56 | |
"to give up your drinking | 37:00 | |
and your drugging? | 37:05 | |
"If you would be able to give up your behavior | 37:07 | |
"that she is trying to mimic without taking on | 37:11 | |
"the full responsibility for the next 10 years, | 37:15 | |
"so that your daughter would have a healthy, | 37:20 | |
"vibrant, God-fearing mother to emulate. | 37:23 | |
"Would you change your lifestyle | 37:28 | |
"so that your child might live?" | 37:30 | |
She dropped her head, | 37:37 | |
and the tears came. | 37:41 | |
And she did not choose | 37:46 | |
to answer. | 37:51 | |
Could it be that our young people, | 37:56 | |
that the world is looking for, | 37:59 | |
not just a role model, but that the world | 38:02 | |
is looking for the people of God | 38:06 | |
who claim Jesus Christ not only is Lord, but is risen, | 38:08 | |
they are looking for us to act like it, | 38:13 | |
and to behave like it, and to follow the way | 38:17 | |
that comes only through knowing that | 38:23 | |
Christ belongs to us, | 38:27 | |
and we belong to Christ. | 38:29 | |
There is no other way that I can explain | 38:35 | |
what is taking place in our nation. | 38:37 | |
One nation under God, | 38:42 | |
with liberty and justice for all. | 38:46 | |
We're building more prisons, | 38:53 | |
and hiring more police persons, | 38:57 | |
and we are politically maneuvering the poor, | 39:02 | |
depressed and the oppressed as political pawns | 39:06 | |
that makes for a woeful life, | 39:13 | |
all under the banner of peace | 39:16 | |
and prosperity. | 39:21 | |
And there shall be no peace. | 39:25 | |
There shall be no ultimate prosperity | 39:28 | |
if we do not change | 39:33 | |
our way of life | 39:37 | |
and remember who we are | 39:41 | |
and whose we are. | 39:45 | |
The world is waiting for us to be Christ. | 39:48 | |
Two young missionaries invited us to visit | 39:54 | |
the drug park in Zurich, Switzerland. | 39:56 | |
I was not prepared for it, I had taken several days | 40:00 | |
extra time before I would engage the folk in Zurich | 40:04 | |
around their horrendous drug problem. | 40:09 | |
A young missionary called a day early | 40:13 | |
and asked if I would go with her to the needle park. | 40:15 | |
Four to five thousand young adults inhabit the park | 40:20 | |
at any given time, more than 10,000 needles a day | 40:25 | |
are distributed to the addicts in the park. | 40:30 | |
Every drug known to humankind is sold there, | 40:34 | |
and God's children, laying on the ground | 40:39 | |
and on park benches and beside trees, | 40:43 | |
perhaps overdosed or simply nodding, | 40:46 | |
the young missionary led me around, | 40:49 | |
stepping over bodies to a young man | 40:52 | |
who several days earlier had claimed | 40:55 | |
that Christ was indeed Lord and had taken on | 40:57 | |
a new life because he had chosen rightly. | 41:02 | |
They protected him day and night, | 41:06 | |
until they were able to find a bed for him. | 41:08 | |
He was seated cross legged on the ground, | 41:12 | |
sort of rocking back and forth, as if he was in a trance. | 41:15 | |
The young missionary said to me, | 41:19 | |
"Bishop, will you have a prayer with George?" | 41:21 | |
I said, "Yes, I'll have prayer with George," | 41:26 | |
and because I had on my Levi's and could not bend easily, | 41:29 | |
I sort of leaned over him, | 41:33 | |
and began to intone a prayer, | 41:37 | |
when she said, "No, sit down, bishop, sit down." | 41:39 | |
I have a habit of carrying my New Testament | 41:43 | |
in my back pocket, so I sat on it for a cushion, | 41:46 | |
and looked George in the face. | 41:50 | |
He opened his eyes and as he rocked back and forth, | 41:53 | |
he said, "Speak Bible to me, speak Bible to me." | 41:56 | |
He was part German and part Spanish. | 42:01 | |
As I gazed into his eyes, I said, | 42:06 | |
"What Bible verse will I recite to him?" | 42:08 | |
And then, in the twinkling of an eye, | 42:11 | |
I remembered this man that has this wonderful travel budget | 42:14 | |
that goes all over the country to every game of basketball | 42:18 | |
or football, carrying the sign, John 3:16. | 42:22 | |
I looked for him yesterday, but he was not there. | 42:27 | |
(congregation laughs) | 42:29 | |
On this moment of inspiration, I intoned | 42:32 | |
in my best Episcopal voice, "For God so loved the world, | 42:37 | |
"that he gave his only begotten son | 42:41 | |
"that whosoever believeth in him | 42:44 | |
"should not perish, but have everlasting life." | 42:47 | |
And he closed his eyes, and he rocked backwards | 42:51 | |
and forwards, and he opened his eyes again | 42:55 | |
and he said, "Say more Bible to me." | 42:57 | |
The missionaries were listening, | 43:02 | |
I said, "For God did not send his son | 43:05 | |
"into the world to condemn the world, | 43:08 | |
"but that the world might be saved through him." | 43:10 | |
And he closed his eyes and rocked backwards and forwards, | 43:15 | |
and I said, Oh my goodness, | 43:19 | |
I've done John 3:16 and 17, | 43:21 | |
and I don't remember John 3:18 and 19, | 43:25 | |
and these missionaries will say, You see, | 43:30 | |
a bishop can't even remember scripture? | 43:32 | |
So I broke out into a perspiration, | 43:35 | |
trying to think of what I was gonna say if he said | 43:37 | |
say more Bible to me, I thought I would go | 43:40 | |
to the 23rd Psalm or to the Lord's Prayer, | 43:43 | |
or something, and sure enough, he opened his eyes, | 43:46 | |
and he said, "Say Bible to me," | 43:51 | |
and in a bit of inspiration, I for some reason | 43:54 | |
remembered John 3:14 and 15, | 43:57 | |
As Moses lifted up | 44:02 | |
the serpent in the wilderness, | 44:04 | |
so the Son of Man must also be lifted up. | 44:06 | |
Ah, he closed his eyes again, and I said, I'm done for. | 44:11 | |
I waited and sure enough, he opened his eyes, | 44:16 | |
and I said, All right, I'm ready for you, | 44:20 | |
I'll start the Lord's Prayer, and he looked at me | 44:21 | |
with intent eyes and he said, | 44:26 | |
"Will you be the Son of Man | 44:29 | |
for me?" | 44:35 | |
That is the question | 44:46 | |
that the world is asking, in no uncertain terms. | 44:48 | |
Will you be the Son of Man for the world? | 44:54 | |
The body of Christ, to be lifted up | 45:00 | |
that all might find wholeness | 45:04 | |
and healing and wellbeing? | 45:07 | |
How will you choose? | 45:12 | |
The world is waiting. | 45:18 | |
Mrs. May and I visited this year, Zaire, | 45:24 | |
we were there to look at the one million refugees | 45:30 | |
and to see what we could do for the children of refugees | 45:32 | |
that came streaming out of Rwanda and Burundi. | 45:36 | |
We visited Uvira and Bukavu and then, | 45:41 | |
that hell spot, by virtue of environment | 45:44 | |
and pain and pestilence, called Goma. | 45:48 | |
We encountered a Zaire doctor, a woman | 45:53 | |
who gave up her lucrative practice | 45:56 | |
and came to Goma to care especially for the children. | 45:59 | |
On her first day there, she said, | 46:06 | |
by her own count, that she collected 28. | 46:08 | |
Pitched a tent and brought them in | 46:13 | |
and began to care for their serious illnesses. | 46:15 | |
Within 30 days, she had more than 2,700. | 46:20 | |
They had created a triage, those who were going | 46:27 | |
to surely die were placed by themselves, | 46:32 | |
and then gradations that made it possible | 46:35 | |
for some to live, and she pointed | 46:40 | |
to what she called a small clinic, across a clearing | 46:43 | |
of gravel and volcanic rock, | 46:47 | |
and she said, "If you want to see the children, go there." | 46:50 | |
So with photographers, I trekked across | 46:55 | |
the volcanic rock toward this shed, | 46:58 | |
and looked at what appeared | 47:01 | |
to be little puppies running around | 47:03 | |
and squatting, but they were children. | 47:07 | |
Children browned from the mud | 47:12 | |
and browned from their own body waste, | 47:15 | |
in and around a shed. | 47:21 | |
Children inside, 14 to a cot, | 47:24 | |
with dysentery and meningitis. | 47:28 | |
I have never been so horrified in all my life. | 47:34 | |
I exited, mind stretched, | 47:41 | |
heart pounding, | 47:45 | |
not knowing, really, how to come to grips with it. | 47:49 | |
A few weeks later, we journeyed to Zimbabwe | 47:54 | |
to do four days of a revival for the United Methodist women. | 47:56 | |
5,000 women gather in an encampment | 48:01 | |
from early morning till late at night, | 48:05 | |
in rather cool weather, the mornings | 48:07 | |
are no warmer than 45 degrees, | 48:10 | |
so coats and sweaters are needed. | 48:13 | |
The first morning, the women gathered | 48:16 | |
in their coats and sweaters at about 8:00 a.m. | 48:18 | |
to hear the sermon, and as I was in the midst of the sermon, | 48:21 | |
this horrific vision of Zaire came to mind, | 48:25 | |
and I began to share it more graphically | 48:30 | |
than I shared it this morning. | 48:33 | |
And then, from that sharing, I went into the powerful | 48:36 | |
scripture of Matthew 25, and said, cryptically, | 48:39 | |
as the translator was trying to keep up with me, | 48:43 | |
that it was Jesus who was naked and we did not clothe him | 48:46 | |
and it was Jesus who was hungry and we did not feed him | 48:50 | |
and it was Jesus who was sick and we did not care for him. | 48:54 | |
And as I was moving through that scripture, | 48:58 | |
all of a sudden, a woman stood, | 49:02 | |
took off her coat and brought it | 49:06 | |
and laid it at the altar. | 49:09 | |
And then three, and then five, and then 40 | 49:12 | |
and then a hundred, and then 200, and then, | 49:15 | |
these women, in the cold of the morning, | 49:19 | |
took off their sweaters and coats | 49:22 | |
and brought them to the chancel area | 49:25 | |
and piled them up around us because they wanted | 49:28 | |
the children of Zaire to be warm. | 49:33 | |
And as they did it, song broke forth. | 49:39 | |
Joyous, exuberant singing came up from the earth | 49:44 | |
with the dust and these women began to sing | 49:48 | |
and dance for blessed are the poor. | 49:52 | |
They are indeed happy | 49:59 | |
and they decided, | 50:03 | |
they made a choice, | 50:06 | |
to share all that they had on. | 50:08 | |
For the next morning, they were wrapped in plastic | 50:13 | |
and newspaper to stave off the cold. | 50:17 | |
They believed that the risen savior | 50:23 | |
did not intend for the children of Zaire | 50:27 | |
or the children of the world to suffer, | 50:29 | |
let alone the children of our own | 50:33 | |
nation under God. | 50:36 | |
To choose or not to choose, | 50:41 | |
that is the dilemma | 50:45 | |
for those who claim Christ as Lord | 50:47 | |
and believe that he is indeed our risen savior. | 50:49 | |
And it's really no choice, when we clearly understand | 50:55 | |
the great love that God has for us through Christ. | 51:00 | |
Tuesday is St. Valentine's Day. | 51:07 | |
And I've got a string tied around my mental finger | 51:11 | |
not to forget that which will please, | 51:15 | |
and sometimes on Valentine's Day, I get very corny. | 51:22 | |
I can't remember the lyrics to the raps, | 51:27 | |
or to anything else that's being played these days, | 51:30 | |
so my mind goes back to the ancient of times, | 51:33 | |
and at dinner, I will reach out | 51:37 | |
and take hold of Phyllis's hand, | 51:40 | |
the one that I have chosen, because she chose me first. | 51:42 | |
(congregation laughs) | 51:47 | |
And I'll recite this lyric that I never get right, | 51:49 | |
but it comes to mind now, | 51:53 | |
I'll be loving you always, | 51:56 | |
with a heart that's true, always, | 52:00 | |
things may not be grand, | 52:04 | |
but I'll understand | 52:08 | |
not for just an hour, not for just a day, | 52:10 | |
not for just a year, | 52:13 | |
but always, always. | 52:16 | |
The church, the body of Christ | 52:21 | |
has an opportunity to be a community of shalom. | 52:23 | |
The church has an opportunity | 52:32 | |
to become role models, even if it means | 52:35 | |
changing our lifestyles so that | 52:39 | |
the children of God might live. | 52:43 | |
The church of Christ, the supreme example of love, | 52:48 | |
has the opportunity to sing that love song | 52:56 | |
in behalf of Jesus everywhere we go, | 53:00 | |
for it is true, | 53:05 | |
that God does love us always | 53:09 | |
with a heart that's true, always. | 53:14 | |
Things may not be grand, but God understands | 53:18 | |
not for just an hour, not for just a day, | 53:22 | |
not for just a year, but always. | 53:24 | |
No contract. | 53:32 | |
But a covenant, | 53:36 | |
signed and sealed by the blood of Jesus. | 53:39 | |
What's holding us back? | 53:45 | |
What's stopping us | 53:51 | |
from creating peace on earth | 53:54 | |
and goodwill toward all of humankind? | 53:58 | |
The words of Paul to the church at Rome, | 54:06 | |
If we have chosen Christ who has risen, | 54:13 | |
then we know beyond a shadow of a doubt | 54:18 | |
that if Christ is for us, | 54:21 | |
then who is against us? | 54:26 | |
Who can separate us from the love of God | 54:30 | |
that is in Christ Jesus? | 54:35 | |
Because I have chosen Christ as my Lord, | 54:39 | |
and because you have chosen Christ as your Lord, | 54:44 | |
I am convinced that neither death nor life, | 54:47 | |
nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, | 54:50 | |
nor things to come, nor heighth nor depth, | 54:54 | |
nor anything in all creation, | 54:57 | |
will be able to separate us from the love of God | 55:00 | |
that is in Christ Jesus, and then peace | 55:05 | |
shall be ours | 55:10 | |
until Christ comes again, | 55:12 | |
for he has chosen to come to claim us | 55:17 | |
as we have chosen to claim him. | 55:22 | |
In the name of the Father, | 55:26 | |
the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen. | 55:27 | |
(majestic organ music) | 55:36 | |
♪ How can we sinners know ♪ | 55:59 | |
♪ Our sins on earth forgiven ♪ | 56:05 | |
♪ How can my gracious Savior show ♪ | 56:11 | |
♪ My name inscribed in heaven ♪ | 56:18 | |
♪ What we have felt and seen ♪ | 56:23 | |
♪ With confidence we tell ♪ | 56:30 | |
♪ And publish to the ends of earth ♪ | 56:36 | |
♪ The signs infallible ♪ | 56:42 | |
♪ We who in Christ believe ♪ | 56:50 | |
♪ That he for us hath died ♪ | 56:56 | |
♪ We all his unknown peace receive ♪ | 57:02 | |
♪ And feel his blood applied ♪ | 57:07 | |
♪ We by his Spirit prove ♪ | 57:15 | |
♪ And know the things of God ♪ | 57:21 | |
♪ The things which freely of his love ♪ | 57:27 | |
♪ He hath on us bestowed ♪ | 57:33 | |
♪ The meek and lowly heart ♪ | 57:41 | |
♪ That in our Savior was ♪ | 57:46 | |
♪ To us that Spirit doth impart ♪ | 57:53 | |
♪ And signs us with his cross ♪ | 57:59 | |
♪ Our nature's turned ♪ | 58:07 | |
♪ Our mind transformed in all its powers ♪ | 58:10 | |
♪ And both the witnesses are joined ♪ | 58:20 | |
♪ The Spirit of God with ours ♪ | 58:26 | |
- | You may be seated. | 58:38 |
(congregation rumbling) | ||
In the past week, we've had | 58:45 | |
three Taize prayer services daily | 58:46 | |
and it has been a time of great healing | 58:48 | |
and renewal for this community. | 58:51 | |
To share that experience with you, we'd like to incorporate | 58:53 | |
a Taize prayer response into our worship. | 58:57 | |
If you'll turn to page 484 in your hymnbook, | 59:01 | |
you'll see the Taize prayer response Kyrie Eleison. | 59:05 | |
In order to teach this to you, | 59:10 | |
the organ will play it through once, | 59:11 | |
the choir will sing it. | 59:13 | |
When you get comfortable with that, | 59:15 | |
please join in, and then we'll sing it | 59:17 | |
a third time through together. | 59:19 | |
For each response, I'll lead into the end | 59:21 | |
of the prayer with Lord, we pray, | 59:25 | |
and you'll respond one time through with the Kyrie Eleison. | 59:27 | |
We hope that this will become familiar enough | 59:32 | |
so that you don't have to look at the music | 59:35 | |
through the prayer and the prayer, the sung response | 59:37 | |
is truly part of the prayer. | 59:39 | |
David, if you can play that through for us, thank you. | 59:43 | |
(gentle organ music) | 59:47 | |
♪ Kyrie ♪ | 59:56 | |
♪ Kyrie ♪ | 59:58 | |
♪ Eleison ♪ | 1:00:00 | |
♪ Kyrie ♪ | 1:00:05 | |
♪ Kyrie ♪ | 1:00:07 | |
♪ Eleison ♪ | 1:00:09 | |
- | The Lord be with you. | 1:00:16 |
- | And also with you. | |
- | Let us pray. | 1:00:20 |
Eternal God, you created us in your image, | 1:00:22 | |
and you saved us through your son Jesus Christ. | 1:00:28 | |
Look with compassion upon the entire human family. | 1:00:33 | |
Lord, we pray. | 1:00:37 | |
♪ Kyrie kyrie eleison ♪ | 1:00:39 | |
- | Eternal God, source of justice and peace, | 1:00:50 |
establish peace among the nations, | 1:00:54 | |
the fruit of your salvation, that all peoples | 1:00:57 | |
may sing your praises, Lord, we pray. | 1:01:01 | |
♪ Kyrie kyrie eleison ♪ | 1:01:05 | |
- | Eternal God, your love brings healing | 1:01:16 |
to our hatred and our sadness. | 1:01:19 | |
Bring peace to your church, to the nations, | 1:01:22 | |
to families, and bring inner peace | 1:01:28 | |
to each of us, Lord, we pray. | 1:01:32 | |
♪ Kyrie kyrie eleison ♪ | 1:01:35 | |
- | Eternal God, your Spirit of life dwells | 1:01:47 |
within every human being. | 1:01:50 | |
May the Spirit enable us to tear down walls | 1:01:53 | |
of mistrust and fear, Lord, we pray. | 1:01:56 | |
♪ Kyrie kyrie eleison ♪ | 1:02:01 | |
- | Christ Jesus, you came to proclaim | 1:02:13 |
the joyful news of peace. | 1:02:15 | |
Help us bring an end to depravation, | 1:02:18 | |
poverty and oppression in our societies, Lord, we pray. | 1:02:20 | |
♪ Kyrie kyrie eleison ♪ | 1:02:27 | |
- | Eternal God, you walk alongside | 1:02:38 |
the people of every land, show the leaders of nations | 1:02:41 | |
how to follow the road of justice and peace, Lord, we pray. | 1:02:45 | |
♪ Kyrie kyrie eleison ♪ | 1:02:51 | |
- | Christ Jesus, you wish to reconcile the whole human race. | 1:03:01 |
Teach us to welcome refugees and immigrants, | 1:03:07 | |
to form with them a single people | 1:03:10 | |
that belongs to you, Lord, we pray. | 1:03:12 | |
♪ Kyrie kyrie eleison ♪ | 1:03:17 | |
- | Christ our Lord, you have said that whatever we ask for | 1:03:28 |
in your name, you would grant. | 1:03:32 | |
Therefore, we offer you our own petitions | 1:03:34 | |
in the silence of our hearts. | 1:03:37 | |
Lord, we pray. | 1:03:50 | |
♪ Kyrie kyrie eleison ♪ | 1:03:53 | |
- | In following you, oh Christ, | 1:04:04 |
we choose to love and not to harden our hearts, | 1:04:08 | |
even when the incomprehensible happens, | 1:04:12 | |
as we remain in your presence with perseverance, | 1:04:15 | |
day after day, and pray with simplicity of heart, | 1:04:18 | |
you calm and make us into people who are a leaven | 1:04:23 | |
of confident trust by the way we live, | 1:04:26 | |
and all that your gospel calls us to, | 1:04:30 | |
all that you ask of us, you give, amen. | 1:04:33 | |
And now, as an expression of our gratitude, | 1:04:42 | |
let us offer our gifts to the Lord with thanksgiving. | 1:04:44 | |
(somber organ music) | 1:04:51 | |
(choir sings "When David Heard" by Eric Whitacre) | 1:06:37 | |
♪ When David heard ♪ | 1:06:38 | |
♪ When David heard ♪ | 1:06:43 | |
♪ That Absalom was slain ♪ | 1:06:48 | |
♪ He went up into his chamber over the gate ♪ | 1:07:05 | |
♪ He went up into his chamber over the gate ♪ | 1:07:21 | |
♪ And wept ♪ | 1:07:42 | |
♪ And wept ♪ | 1:07:45 | |
♪ And thus he said ♪ | 1:07:51 | |
♪ And thus he said ♪ | 1:07:57 | |
♪ And thus he said ♪ | 1:08:00 | |
♪ And thus he said ♪ | 1:08:03 | |
♪ Oh ♪ | 1:08:12 | |
♪ Oh ♪ | 1:08:14 | |
♪ Oh my son ♪ | 1:08:17 | |
♪ Absalom my son ♪ | 1:08:22 | |
♪ My son ♪ | 1:08:28 | |
♪ Absalom my son ♪ | 1:08:30 | |
♪ My son ♪ | 1:08:39 | |
♪ My son ♪ | 1:08:43 | |
♪ Would God I had died ♪ | 1:08:49 | |
♪ Would God I had died for thee ♪ | 1:08:54 | |
♪ Would God I had died for thee ♪ | 1:09:08 | |
♪ Would God ♪ | 1:09:15 | |
♪ I had died for thee ♪ | 1:09:20 | |
♪ Oh Absalom ♪ | 1:09:28 | |
♪ My son ♪ | 1:09:54 | |
♪ My son ♪ | 1:09:59 | |
♪ My son ♪ | 1:10:04 | |
(majestic organ music) | 1:10:15 | |
♪ Praise God from whom all blessings flow ♪ | 1:10:57 | |
♪ Praise God all creatures here below ♪ | 1:11:04 | |
♪ Alleluia ♪ | 1:11:10 | |
♪ Alleluia ♪ | 1:11:13 | |
♪ Praise God above ye heavenly host ♪ | 1:11:18 | |
♪ Praise Father Son and Holy Ghost ♪ | 1:11:24 | |
♪ Alleluia ♪ | 1:11:31 | |
♪ Alleluia ♪ | 1:11:34 | |
♪ Alleluia ♪ | 1:11:38 | |
♪ Alleluia ♪ | 1:11:41 | |
♪ Alleluia ♪ | 1:11:45 | |
Debra | Let us pray. | 1:11:58 |
Oh God, most merciful and gracious, | 1:12:01 | |
of whose bounty we have all received, | 1:12:04 | |
accept this offering of your people. | 1:12:07 | |
Remember in your love those who have brought it | 1:12:10 | |
and those for whom it is given, | 1:12:13 | |
and so follow it with your blessing, | 1:12:15 | |
that it may promote peace and goodwill | 1:12:18 | |
among all peoples and advance the kingdom | 1:12:20 | |
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. | 1:12:23 | |
And now let us continue our prayers | 1:12:26 | |
with confidence, as the children of God. | 1:12:29 | |
All | Our Father, who art in heaven, | 1:12:32 |
hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, | 1:12:35 | |
thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. | 1:12:39 | |
Give us this day our daily bread, | 1:12:43 | |
and forgive us our trespasses, | 1:12:45 | |
as we forgive those who trespass against us. | 1:12:48 | |
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, | 1:12:51 | |
for thine is the kingdom, and the power, | 1:12:56 | |
and the glory forever, amen. | 1:12:59 | |
(organ plays "Assurance" by Phoebe Knapp) | 1:13:05 | |
♪ Blessed assurance ♪ | 1:14:06 | |
♪ Jesus is mine ♪ | 1:14:09 | |
♪ O what a foretaste of glory divine ♪ | 1:14:13 | |
♪ Heir of salvation ♪ | 1:14:20 | |
♪ Purchase of God ♪ | 1:14:24 | |
♪ Born of his Spirit ♪ | 1:14:28 | |
♪ Washed in his blood ♪ | 1:14:32 | |
♪ This is my story ♪ | 1:14:35 | |
♪ This is my song ♪ | 1:14:39 | |
♪ Praising my Savior all the day long ♪ | 1:14:43 | |
♪ This is my story ♪ | 1:14:50 | |
♪ This is my song ♪ | 1:14:55 | |
♪ Praising my Savior all the day long ♪ | 1:14:59 | |
♪ Perfect submission ♪ | 1:15:08 | |
♪ Perfect delight ♪ | 1:15:12 | |
♪ Visions of rapture now burst on my sight ♪ | 1:15:15 | |
♪ Angels descending bring from above ♪ | 1:15:23 | |
♪ Echoes of mercy ♪ | 1:15:30 | |
♪ Whispers of love ♪ | 1:15:34 | |
♪ This is my story ♪ | 1:15:38 | |
♪ This is my song ♪ | 1:15:42 | |
♪ Praising my Savior all the day long ♪ | 1:15:46 | |
♪ This is my story ♪ | 1:15:53 | |
♪ This is my song ♪ | 1:15:57 | |
♪ Praising my Savior all the day long ♪ | 1:16:03 | |
♪ Perfect submission ♪ | 1:16:11 | |
♪ All is at rest ♪ | 1:16:14 | |
♪ I in my Savior am happy and blest ♪ | 1:16:20 | |
♪ Watching and waiting ♪ | 1:16:26 | |
♪ Looking above ♪ | 1:16:30 | |
♪ Filled with his goodness ♪ | 1:16:35 | |
♪ Lost in his love ♪ | 1:16:38 | |
♪ This is my story ♪ | 1:16:44 | |
♪ This is my song ♪ | 1:16:47 | |
♪ Praising my Savior all the day long ♪ | 1:16:50 | |
♪ This is my story ♪ | 1:16:58 | |
♪ This is my song ♪ | 1:17:03 | |
♪ Praising my Savior all the day long ♪ | 1:17:07 | |
- | Go in peace, to love and serve the Lord. | 1:17:22 |
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, | 1:17:25 | |
the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit | 1:17:27 | |
be with you and keep you. | 1:17:31 | |
♪ God be in my head ♪ | 1:17:35 | |
♪ And in my understanding ♪ | 1:17:41 | |
♪ God be in mine eyes ♪ | 1:17:53 | |
♪ And in my looking ♪ | 1:18:01 | |
♪ God be in my mouth ♪ | 1:18:13 | |
♪ And in my speaking ♪ | 1:18:20 | |
♪ God be in my heart ♪ | 1:18:35 | |
♪ And in my thinking ♪ | 1:18:43 | |
♪ God be at mine end ♪ | 1:18:55 | |
♪ And in my departing ♪ | 1:19:08 |