Sunday, February 23, 2025

Transfiguration of Jesus C (March 02): Reflecting the God-stuff/Son-light

 
























Bible Readings: Exodus 34:29-35, Psalm 99, 2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2, Luke 9:28-43
 

About the images:
Upper Left: I have permission to use this photo by Tamar Dolev - see this and  more of her work at http://www.tamardolev.com Please ask permission before using any work of any artist.
Upper Right: Sunset from Norfolk Island. This is my photo so please feel free to use it for worship and related activities. If you want to know more about this beautiful island, then visit 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norfolk_Island
Middle Left: This is the view from the top of Mt Sinai. This is my photo so please feel free to use it for worship and related activities.
Middle RightThis image comes from the awesome Church Galleries website which is no longer operating.
Lower Left and Right: Free images from the Heartlight site - see my link column at left. 
Bottom Left: Another amazingly good image from Cerezo Barredo. See my link column at lest for all his brilliant interpretations of the gospel readings. 

Decor of the worship space:
Decorate the focal point of your worship space with any combination of heaps of lit candles, spotlights, and white and gold material.

Listening Song: Great Light of the World
By Bebo Norman on his album, Myself When I Am Real (pictured at left), 2002, or on WOW 2004.

Prayer: Confession
Found in Dorothy McRae-McMahon, Prayers for Life’s Particular Moments, SPCK, 2001, page 10-11

Prayer:
By Hildegard of Bingham, in Imaging the Word Volume 1 by Kenneth T Lawrence (ed.), United Church Press, 1994, ISBN 0829809716, page 141 (pictured at left)

Kids Story: Reflections
Place a large mirror in a dim part of your church and put the lighted Christ candle on it. Give each kid (with supervision if necessary) a tea light. Ask them to light their tea lights from the Christ candle and place them on the mirror. The effect should speak for itself.
 
Kid's S
tory:
I have a collection of large cards with dinner plate sized round faces drawn on them - each face reflecting a different emotion; eg tired, scared, surprised, sad, happy, excited, puzzled etc etc. The transfiguration lends itself very much to a retelling of the story using these cards to reflect the emotions of the disciples. You can either hand out the faces and get kids to hold up the one they have when they think that is how the disciples must have felt or you can hold up a relevant card at the relevant time and ask the kids (and the congregation?) to reflect the same face. It can be lots of fun.

Film Clip: Amelie
Show the clip where Amelie walks the blind man across the road. As she does so, she begins to detail all the things around him so that she gives him his sight.


Discussion Questions: For the film clip or as stand alones
To think about by yourself: 
      When have you felt closest to God's glory?
Brainstorm: 
      How did it make you feel?
Together: 
1. Why do you think God sometimes is revealed in these ways?
2. How has the experience impinged on your daily life?
3. How are we able to reflect God's glory on to other people?
4. What happens when we do?

Drama: We Can't Tell You
Found in Mega Drama 5 by Verena Johnson, (Ed.), Open Book, 2002, ISBN 0859109194, page 61 (pictured at left). This drama is based on the gospel reading.

Sermon Starter: Space Jump
Liken the disciples experience on the mountain to the Theatre Sports game, Space Jump, and then compare the game with the business and diversity of modern life.

Story: Spiritual Disciplines
Found in 
Story 664 in 750 Engaging Illustrations for Preachers, Teachers and Writers by Craig Brian Larson and Leadership Journal, Baker Books, 2002, ISBN 0801091551 (pictured at right). This story goes well with the Corinthians reading.

Story: Testimony
Found in Story 719 in 750 Engaging Illustrations for Preachers, Teachers and Writers by Craig Brian Larson and Leadership Journal, Baker Books, 2002, ISBN 0801091551 (pictured at right). This story also goes well with the Corinthians reading.

Story: Reflected Son-light 
Index 2166 from Bible Illustrator for Windows Version 1.0d, Parsons Technology Inc., 1990

Story: A Candle in the Darkness
Found in More Hot Illustrations for Youth Talks by Wayne Rice, Zondervan, 1995, ISBN 0310207681, page 17 (pictured at left). When I first told this story, I illustrated it with a self lighting candle ie you cannot put out God's light.

 
Story: Wouldn't He stick Out?
Found in Illustrations, Stories and Quotes to Hang Your Message On 
by Jim Burns and Greg McKinnon, Gospel Light, 1997, ISBN 0830718834, page 203 (pictured at left).

Poem: Transfiguration
By Bruce Prewer and found 
his site at www.textweek.com (see my links at left) under Prayers, Prefaces, Litanies, etc. on the Transfiguration C page.
 
Prayer: Transfiguration
This is a great three reader prayer written by Roddy Hamilton and found on his Mucky Paws blog (see my links) in his Archives for February 16 2007.

Response Activity:

Project or give everybody a copy of 2 Corinthians 3:17-18 and ask them to underline the part that gives them the most hope. Be generous with time to do this - make it a spiritual exercise. Then ask them to share their response with two other people.
 

Response Activity:
Give each person a small candle or tea light and ask them to light it at their main meal each day this week to remind themselves of God's love for them and that they are reflectors of God's light.

Response Activity:
Brainstorm ideas on how your congregation can be a light in the community? As each idea is suggested, write it on a separate piece of paper. Put them around the walls. Give everybody three stickers each and ask them to put a sticker on the three which excite them the most.  After the service, give the six with the most dots to a member of your church council or leadership team :-) !!


Also:

Drama: Transfiguration 
Found in From Advent to Emmaus by Jim Hayward, page 70 (pictured at right). This book is available in Print and Digital PDF versions, is based on Luke's gospel and is ideal for Lectionary Year C. For more information and/or to buy, visit the CMLA website - cmla.org.au.  

Poem: Leaf and seed
Found in In Due Season by Herbert F Brokering, Augsburg Publishing, 1966 (pictured at right) in the Autumn section and based on the 2 Corinthians reading.













Sunday, February 09, 2025

Epiphany 7 C Proper 2 C (February 23): Forgiveness












































Bible Readings:
 Genesis 45: 3-11, 15, Psalm 37:1-11, 39-40, 1 Corinthians 15: 35-38, 42-50,  Luke 6:27-38


About the Images:
Upper Left : This is a free image from Cerezzo Barredo - see my link column at left.
Upper Right: This is free image from the Heartlight site. See my link column at left.
Middle Left: This is another free image from the Heartlight site. See my link column at left.
Middle Right: This is a free image from Misioneros Del Sagrado Corazón en el Perú. 
Lower Left and RightMore free images from the Heartlight site. See my link column at left.
Bottom Left: An image from the now defunct  but awesome Church Galleries site. 

Poem and Prayers: space

Found in Dad and Daughter by Ron Gordon and Jennie Gordon, 2012, ISBN 9780646586601, page 140 (pictured at left). These are based on the gospel reading.

Drama: Hmmmm.
Setting : Person praying and five people standing facing him/her who each turn around to the congregation when it is their turn to speak.
Leader: Let us pray (everybody bows their heads). Creator God, we come to you this morning thankful for what you do for us.   Thankyou for all the good things you have done for us this week……
1: Good things!?  What good things?  I’ve had a lousy week.
Leader: We thank you particularly for the rain which filled our tanks earlier this week…..
2: So much for my suntan!
Leader: Thankyou for comfortable homes and plenty to eat…..
3: I’ve had it with my family!  I can’t wait till I can move out.  I’m sick of people telling me what to do all the time!
Leader: Lord, we ask for your forgiveness when our lives are not in keeping with you.  Forgive us when we are ungrateful….
(First three squirm a little)
1: Whoops, I think I might have been.
2: Mmmmm. Maybe I have too.
3: I could have been just a little bit ungrateful.
Leader: Forgive us when we don’t put you first in our lives….
4: Huh, that’d be a friend of my mine for sure.  He thinks more of his car than of anything else in the world!
Leader: Forgive us when we get out of control …
5: Yeah, you should have heard Simmo last night. He completely lost it with the Umpy and swore his head off at him.
Leader: Forgive us when we don’t spend time with you…
1: Huh! That’d be Jamie down the road.  I saw him playing tennis last Sunday morning.
Leader: Forgive us when we don’t spend enough time with those who love us……
4: That’d be my next door neighbour for sure.  She has the rudest kids I’ve ever come across.  If they were mine they’d soon be behaving themselves.  Can’t think why she doesn’t keep them under control.
Leader: Forgive us when we are not content to follow where you lead…….
2: Uh huh.  I knew it!  I saw Dan and Elly down the street together only yesterday.  There’s no smoke without fire.
Leader: Forgive us when we talk about others behind their backs.
5: I hope my committee is listening. They were gossiping so much at our last meeting that I didn’t even get a chance to tell them about Simmo the other night…
Leader: Forgive us when we are jealous of other people..
3: Jealous? Me? Never! I’d never want to keep up with the Jones….(pause)   They’re a daggy family anyway.
Leader: And now creator God, prepare our hearts to hear your words of assurance from Luke 6:37: Jesus said: Don’t judge others and God won’t judge you. Don’t be hard on others and God won’t be hard on you.  Forgive others, and God will forgive you.
(1,2,3,4 and 5 look increasingly uncomfortable and slowly turn back around to the leader and bow their heads).
Leader; Thankyou Lord, for showing us where we go wrong and help us to be your people. Amen.
© Judging by the wording and the age of this drama in my resources (found in my 2001 file seeing that Epiphany 7 does not pop up all that often) I am guessing this was written by Rosemary Broadstock and myself.  If that is the case,  go ahead and use it. However, I am not 100 per cent sure, so if any of you think you know where else it might come from, please let me know.

Film Clip: The War
(pictured at left) Show the scene where Kevin Costner gives the children who beat up his son, some fairy floss.

Story: The Release
Found in Thereby Hangs a Tale by Penelope Wilcock, Kingsway Publications, 1994, ISBN 0854763996 (pictured at right). I found this a bit too long to read out but it is a great story to retell.

Questions for The Release
What kind of God is worshipped by Helen, by Mike, by Jim, by you/me?

Drama: We'll be the Judge of That.
Found in Mega Drama 5 by Verena Johnson, Open Book, 2002, ISBN 0859109194, page 20 (pictured at left). This drama is based on the Luke reading.

ALSO:

Drama: Another Sermon
Found in From Advent to Emmaus by Jim Hayward, page 56 (pictured at right). This book is available in Print and Digital PDF versions, is based on Luke's gospel and is ideal for Lectionary Year C. For more information and/or to buy, visit the CMLA website - cmla.org.au.  


And for the little used Epiphany 8 C Proper 3 C

Bible Readings:  Isaiah 55:10-13, Psalm 92:1-4, 12-15, 1 Corinthians 15:51-58, Luke 6:39-49

Brilliant Comments on the Gospel
Found in Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes by Kenneth E. Bailey, SPCK, 2008, ISBN 9780281059751, pages 321-331 (pictured at left).

Drama: Merely No 2
Found in Mega Drama 5 by Verena Johnson, Open Book, 2002, ISBN 0859109194, page 107 (pictured at right). This drama is based on the 1 Corinthians reading.

Discussion Questions: What is a Soul?
Found in Chapter 5 of The Gospel According to the Simpsons Leaders Guide for Group Study by Mark I Pinsky and Samuel F Parvin, Westminster John Knox Press, 2002, ISBN 0 664 22590 X (pictured at left).  These questions are based on the 1 Corinthians reading.

Symbolic Action: The Log in Your Eye
Found in Present on Earth by Wild Goose Worship Group, Wild Goose Publications, 2002, ISBN 0 901557 64 2, page 219ff (pictured at right).  This is based on the Luke reading.