The Reflectionary

I am away at a writer’s conference in Cumbernauld, Scotland this weekend. You can see me being smug about the food over on my Instagram feed, but here’s a sample, just to make you jel. (That’s Gen-Z speak for jealous.)

Yes, I’m sitting on the top table, feeling very under-dressed and wondering a) which of the knives and forks I should use next, and b) what I am doing, sitting next to some of the luminaries of the Scottish writing world.

I am currently lounging on one of plushest sofas imaginable, looking out over the golf course and guzzling yet more tea, fully refreshed from a night spent in a bed so huge I could literally have slept sideway on it! (Pretty impressive for someone my height!) Ah, its a hard life being a writer.

But dry your tears, dear friend, and rejoice in this week’s goodies. We have an all age talk on God’s Good- Better-Best based on Acts 3 (but applicable to many other texts as well) and your liturgy resources for the Valley of Dry Bones, Psalm 130 and Romans 8 (also linking with Lazarus in John 11).

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Good-Better-Best

Good, Better, Best

Acts 3:1-10

You will need:

• Four volunteers (oldest is chooser)
• Four bags or boxes containing
  • Four small treats (eg chews) – make sure you can identify this one
  • Four medium treats (eg bags of Haribo)
  • Four large treats (eg chocolate bars)
  • Sweet wrappers
• A choosing hat

Today we are looking at a famous story from Acts 3. Those of a certain age may remember a popular Sunday School song:

Peter and John went to pray;
they met a lame man on the way.
He asked for alms and held out his palms,
and this is what Peter did say:

“Silver and gold have I none,
but what I have I give to you. (Or but such as I have give I thee)
In the name of Jesus Christ
of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”

And he went [encourage cong to join in]
walking and leaping and praising God,
walking and leaping and praising God.

The disabled man asked Peter and John for money, because that is what he thought he needed.
Money would have been good. Perhaps this man even prayed that he would get a good amount of money that day. But God didn’t want to give him just Good. God was planning Better and Best.

Let’s play a game called Good, Better, Best.

I need four volunteers to hold these bags, and one of you will do the choosing. Chooser, you can wear this choosing hat. [Give hat and bag with small treats] The rest of you have these bags.

Now, each of these bags contains different treats for you all. Whatever our chooser chooses, you all get. BUT you can only have the contents of ONE bag.

Chooser, have a look inside your bag. Hmmn, that’s good, but its quite a small treat. Do you think you want to swap and try for something better?

You can keep this treat if you want and that’s the end of the game. But if you decide to swap, you have to give this up, and you will never get it back. You might get something better, but you might get something worse. What do you want to do? Do you think what you’ve got is Good, Better or Best?

[Take away any rejected bags. Comment as chooser swaps for other bags to try to get the best. Look in unopened bags when finished, and give all children their treats (or the best treats if they ended up with wrappers) and throw other treats to cong.]

Sometimes we try to tell God what we want, what we think he should do, and that’s a good thing; God loves to hear our hopes and plans. But sometimes God says ‘no’ to what we ask, even if that is a  Good thing. Sometimes God is planning Better and Best.

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Liturgy for Lent 5

Ezekiel 37:1-14, Psalm 130, Romans 8:6-11

Confession and Absolution

Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord;
O Lord, hear my voice.

May your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.
O Lord, hear my voice.

If you, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand?
O Lord, hear my voice.

But with you there is forgiveness,
and with you is full redemption.

With you is unfailing love,
and with you is full redemption.

You yourself will redeem us from all sins
and with you is full redemption.

Blessing and Dismissal

May your mind be set on Christ
and may the Spirit of God dwell in you.
May you please God the Father who raised Jesus from the dead
and may his give life to your mortal bodies
through his Spirit who is life and peace.
And the blessing of God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit –
be upon you and those you love
this day and always.
Amen.

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
In the name of Christ,
Amen.