GUARD THE GOOD

Welcome to Sanctuary First. The theme this month is entitled ‘Guard the Good”, we must guard against those ideas and actions that would rob us of our potential as People of God. This worship service is centered on the parable of “The Sower”. We think the parable of The Sower has a great deal to say about the whole issue of loss and change. Our prayers and readings this month invite us all to guard and protect the good soil and seed in our lives. In a world where there is so much cynicism and fear, we ask that we might all allow God’s Word to take root in our hearts. We are suggesting that we all might set up scarecrows around the good seed to protect its growth and save it from being stolen. Again check out the service to find the significance of the “scarecrows”. Let us be the people who have fruitful lives. The plant pot with a scarecrow will be a lasting symbol of our intention to be fruitful people. Week 1 The Path This week the prayers have been written by Scott Burton using the idea of the path we will be reflecting on the journey hat we all make. It’s interesting that former Prime Minister Tony Blair has used this idea of the journey as the title for his autobiography. The path of life that we all journey on has many curve and bends and hills. On thing is for certain all of us carry a certain amount of self-doubt, which often takes root in our hearts through loss and change. It is in the changing seasons of life that we often discover growth out of a sense of failure The Beatles once wrote about ‘the Long and Winding Road. Anyway for most of us there are times when we feel we have lost something of great value and we don’t know how to get it back, sometimes we can’t. It’s like the birds that have stolen the seed from the path. This wee we invite you to reflect on the journey your life has taken and to face up to the good things that have been lost and to begin to protect the good that still lies before you on your path. Week 2 The Soil This week the prayers have been written by Liz Crumlish Using the idea of different soils the prayers and readings invite us to reflect on the various ways we have responded to the call of God on our lives. The Sower goes out sowing knowing that the seed he scatters may lie dormant and produce no fruit. Seeds may be lost. However he still sows generously, sowing over all kinds of soil, from stony paths to thorny hard ground. He sows generously for the sake of the seed that will bear fruit. In our lives all of us we have reflected all the soils mentioned in the parable. The one great thing is God doesn’t give up on us. His word will accomplish all it sets out to do. Week 3 The weeds In this week we’ve given Donald MacEwan the prayer writer the theme of weeds about which to write. Someone once said that a weed is simply a flower in the wrong place. Often things that are bad for us can also be good for us at the right time and in the right place and context. In our world of materialism and media spin, money sex and power seem to be the weeks that choke out the good seed in our hearts. Like flowers in the wrong place they grow into weeds often dominating lives and creating a wilderness of emptiness and frustration. There will always be a higher bench - mark with which to measure yourself. You might be the richest man in the town but not in the city or the country but not in the world, when does our striving cease? Jesus once said ’ Where is the profit if you gain everything and lose your soul or indeed yourself. Its time to guard the good protect the seed by doing a bit of weeding. Week 4 The Sun This week the prayers have been written by Jessie Bell. We are being asked to reflect on the importance of the light in our lives. Without the sun nothing can grow. It may be at times painful as direct sunlight can scorch a young plant. How often have we tried to run before we can even walk. There is always a temptation for church leaders to expect more from an enthusiastic church member who perhaps isn’t just ready. Going back to the analogy of the plant, but if it is nourished and watered it will grow producing not only fruit but also oxygen which in turn serves others. Our lives should be like that, the process of growing in God’s light will produce fruit and the by-product will be something useful to those around us. The oxygen from the plant is perhaps like the prayers and acts of random kindness that we produce as a result of having been with and growing in God.