Koonung Heights Uniting Church
Service of Worship at Home
Season of Creation 5 – 29 September 2024 – 10am or whenever possible
You may like to light a candle during your time of worship.
Feel free to text the Peace to other members of the congregation.
Introit: “Like A Rock” – (Seasons of the Spirit)
Like a rock, like a rock God is under our feet.
Like the starry night sky God is over our head.
Like the sun on the horizon God is ever before.
Like the river runs to ocean, our home is in God evermore.
Candle Lighting:
Jesus is the light of the world
the One who brings love and peace to everyone.
As we light this candle,
may we remember that Jesus is always with us.
Acknowledgement of Country:
As we come to worship,
I acknowledge the Traditional Custodians
of the land where we meet,
the Wurundjeri WoiWurrung People of the Kulin Nation.
I pay my respects to their Elders, past and present,
and to all future leaders and generations.
As First and Second Peoples walking together,
may we commit ourselves to be people of the covenant,
listening, truth telling and seeking justice for all.
Call to Worship:
Let us worship God.
The world belongs to God,
the earth and all its people.
Love and peace come together,
justice and peace join hands.
How good and how lovely it is
to live together in unity.
If the Lord’s disciples keep silent
these stones would shout aloud.
Lord, open our lips
and our mouths shall proclaim your praise.
We Sing: “Praise to the living God” – (TiS 102)
Praise to the living God, all praise be to his name,
who was, and is, and is to be, and still the same:
the one eternal God before what now appears,
the First, the Last, beyond all thought, his timeless years!
Formless, all lovely forms declare his loveliness;
holy, no holiness of earth can his express.
Behold the Lord of all: creation speaks his praise,
and everywhere, above, below, his will obeys.
God’s Spirit freely flows, high surging where it will:
in prophet’s word he spoke of old, is speaking still.
Established is God’s law and changeless it shall stand,
deep written on the human heart, on sea, on land.
God has eternal life implanted in the soul:
his love shall be our strength and stay while ages roll.
Praise to the living God, all praise be to his name,
who was, and is, and is to be, and still the same!
Prayer of Adoration and Confession:
Loving God,
all your children are written on your hands;
you are a mother who neither forgets nor forsakes her own.
All creation is held within your very self.
Before we were born, you knew us.
In our mother’s wombs, you formed us.
All creation is held within your very self.
Before all beginnings, you called us by name.
Beyond all endings, you will remember us in your heart.
All creation is held within your very self.
You, O wisdom,
do not forget your children;
like a hen, you gather your chicks.
All creation is held within your very self.
Gracious God,
we come to God,
knowing that we have failed to obey the call of Jesus
to love God and one another with our whole being;
but we come also to a God who reaches out to us
with healing and reconciliation.
God of all mercy,
give us grace today to make a fresh start.
We know we have not loved you
with our whole heart,
nor have we loved our neighbour as ourselves.
As we hope to be forgiven,
teach us how to forgive,
and lead us forward in a new life
where neither grudges
nor resentment have a part;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Words of Assurance:
Friends, hear this good news,
no matter what we have done or left undone, we are loved by God.
In love, God sent Christ, who is our wisdom and our way.
In Christ, we are forgiven.
Thanks be to God.
The Peace:
Peace I give to you, not as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid.
May the Peace of God dwell with you
and also with you.
A Time for All:
I am currently in the final stage of my candidacy process. Once I graduate in early November, I will have completed all my studies and will begin the process for placement. Last week, I had a chance to speak with the placement executive committee. One of the questions they asked was if I could share the most memorable experience from my ministry. I didn’t know what to say at first, but then an experience from my time in Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) quickly came to mind.
I completed my Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) at Austin Hospital last summer, where I learned the importance of actively listening to patients’ stories without judgment. I often felt nervous when starting conversations with patients, especially when I didn’t know much about them. Before each visit, I would pray, asking the Lord, who knows their situation, to give me wisdom and be present with me.
One day, as I was walking down the corridor in the ward, I noticed an elderly man staring down the hallway. He looked very lonely, and for a moment, I was reminded of my own father living alone in Korea, which made me feel sad. I wanted to walk past, but I found the courage to turn back and talk to him.
There was a small, old picture frame on his desk, and I asked him what it was. He told me it was a childhood photo of his son, taken 40 years ago. He said that time was the happiest of his life. Then he shared that his children didn’t visit him for various reasons, and pointing to the walking aid nearby, he mentioned that his wife, who used to push it, had passed away three years ago. He tearfully said that he missed his son and wife very much.
As I listened, I imagined his son and wife running towards him with joy, and then I thought about my own family, whom I longed to see, running towards me. At that moment, I felt an overwhelming sense of emotion.
The next week, I visited him again, bringing a small box of chocolates as a gift, since it was Christmas Eve, and I wanted to bring him a little bit of joy.
When I arrived, he warmly welcomed me and asked if I was from the church. He then recalled how, after the war, he had gone to church a few times to receive food when there was nothing to eat.
He said he missed his parents, who were still alive at that time. I sat with him and listened to his story. Then, I unwrapped the chocolate and gave him a piece. He thanked me by kissing me on the cheek.
That moment was one of the most sacred experiences I’ve ever had. My supervisor later reflected that it was a kind of Holy Communion, teaching me that even chocolate could become the bread of Communion when it carries God’s presence. Through this unexpected experience, I learned to trust Jesus more. Jesus works in ways we cannot imagine, and we are invited to participate in His ministry. Even giving a cup of water in Jesus’ name is a significant act, as He reminds us.
We Sing: “Kneels at the feet of his friends” – (TiS 640)
Kneels at the feet of his friends, silently washes their feet:
master who acts as a slave to them.
Yesu, Yesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbours we have from you.
Neighbours are wealthy and poor, varied in colour and race,
neighbours are near us and far away.
Yesu, Yesu …
These are the ones we should serve, these are the ones we should love;
all these are neighbours to us and you.
Yesu, Yesu …
Loving puts us on our knees, silently washing their feet,
this is the way we should live with you.
Yesu, Yesu …
Bible Reading: Numbers 11:4-6, 10-16, 24-29
4 The camp followers with them had a strong craving, and the Israelites also wept again and said, “If only we had meat to eat! 5 We remember the fish we used to eat in Egypt for nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic,
6 but now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.
10 Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, all at the entrances of their tents. Then the Lord became very angry, and Moses was displeased.
11 So Moses said to the Lord, “Why have you treated your servant so badly? Why have I not found favour in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me? 12 Did I conceive all this people? Did I give birth to them, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom as a wet nurse carries a nursing child, to the land that you promised on oath to their ancestors’? 13 Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they come weeping to me, saying, ‘Give us meat to eat!’ 14 I am not able to carry all this people alone, for they are too heavy for me. 15 If this is the way you are going to treat me, put me to death at once—if I have found favour in your sight—and do not let me see my misery.”
The Seventy Elders
16 So the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tent of meeting and have them take their place there with you.
24 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord, and he gathered seventy of the elders of the people and placed them all around the tent. 25 Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him and took some of the spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders, and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they did not do so again.
26 Two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad and the other named Medad, and the spirit rested on them; they were among those registered, but they had not gone out to the tent, so they prophesied in the camp. 27 And a young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” 28 And Joshua son of Nun, the assistant of Moses, one of his chosen men, said, “My lord Moses, stop them!” 29 But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put his spirit on them!”
Bible Reading: Mark 9:38-50
– Another Exorcist
38 John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him because he was not following us.” 39 But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. 40 Whoever is not against us is for us. 41 For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.
Temptations to Sin
42 “If any of you cause one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. 43 If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.
45 And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell. 47 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, 48 where their worm never dies and the fire is never quenched.
49 “For everyone will be salted with fire. 50 Salt is good, but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”
Reflection:
Throughout the month of September, Christians around the world celebrate the Season of Creation. It is a time of prayer and reflection, a time to respond to the call to care for God’s beloved creation—our common home, the Earth.
The theme for the 2024 Season of Creation is “Hope and Act with Creation.” This theme emphasises that hope cannot remain just an emotion or a thought. It must be put into action. We must act through prayer, dialogue, service, and solidarity.
As followers of Christ, we must show Christ’s love across cultures and boundaries. Caring for the Earth is a mission for everyone, and every act of care for the environment is an expression of love for our neighbours and future generations.
Today, we will reflect on how we can fulfil our responsibility to care for God’s creation and how we can work together to be faithful stewards of the world. Caring for God’s creation is not something we can do alone. It requires cooperation and a collective effort.
In Numbers 11, we see a powerful example of the need for cooperation in leadership. The Israelites were constantly complaining, and Moses was overwhelmed by the burden of leading them. Moses cried out to God, acknowledging that he could not handle the responsibility alone. In response, God instructed Moses to gather 70 elders, and God poured His Spirit on them to help Moses lead the people.
This shows that leadership, like caring for creation, requires cooperation. It’s not a task for one person but a shared responsibility. The Gospel of Mark also shows the need for cooperation and inclusiveness.
In Mark 9, John saw someone casting out demons in Jesus’ name and tried to stop him because he was not part of their group. Even though the man was doing good in Jesus’ name, John felt the need to stop him because he wasn’t part of their group. This reaction reveals John’s exclusiveness and jealousy.
The disciples had recently failed to heal a boy with epilepsy (Mark 9:14-29). So, when they saw someone outside their group successfully casting out demons in Jesus’ name, they might have felt uncomfortable and jealous. Their focus was not on whether the man was acting in Jesus’ power, but on whether he was part of their group.
However, Jesus said to them, “Do not stop him… for whoever is not against us is for us” (Mark 9:40). Jesus was teaching that if someone is doing good in His name, they are participating in God’s work, whether or not they are part of the same group.
This story reminds us that God’s work is not limited to any one group. We are called to cooperate with and embrace those who are working for God’s kingdom, even if they are not part of our circle.
Jesus goes on to say in Mark 9:41, “Truly I tell you, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to the Messiah will certainly not lose their reward.” This emphasises the importance of how we treat each other as fellow believers and co-workers in Christ’s mission.
Numbers 11 also offers another important lesson about the Spirit of God. In this chapter, God pours out His Spirit on the 70 elders, and they begin to prophesy. However, something unusual happens: two men, Eldad and Medad, who did not go to the Tent of Meeting, stayed in the camp and still received the Spirit of God. They too began to prophesy. Typically, the Spirit of God was poured out in the Tent of Meeting, but Eldad and Medad received the Spirit even though they were not there.
When Joshua saw this, he ran to Moses and asked him to stop them. Joshua was uncomfortable because they had not been with the other elders in the Tent. He might have thought that prophesying was a special privilege given only to Moses and the 70 elders.
But Moses’ response was remarkable. He said to Joshua, “Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit on them!” (Numbers 11:29). Moses did not seek to limit or control God’s power for himself. Instead, he desired that all people receive God’s Spirit. Moses recognised that God’s Spirit could be poured out on anyone, and he longed for all people to be equipped to do God’s work.
This story reminds us that God’s calling is for everyone. We are all called to participate in God’s mission, regardless of who we are or where we come from. God’s calling is not limited to an elite few or to those with special qualifications. The Spirit of God is not limited to a particular place or group of people; it moves freely and touches anyone, anywhere.
We must recognise and celebrate how God works through different people in various ways, welcoming them as fellow workers in God’s mission. While each of us have different roles and missions, we are all valuable participants in God’s work. No matter what background we come from or where we are, every person is precious in the eyes of God.
This teaches us that true leadership is not about holding onto authority but about empowering others and helping them to be used by God. We must learn from Moses’ humble leadership. Moses rejoiced in the idea that God’s Spirit could be poured out on anyone. He recognised that the gift of prophecy and leadership was not based on authority or status but was a gift of God’s grace.
This kind of leadership is essential in the church and community today. Leaders should not feel threatened or exclude others; rather, they should welcome and encourage those whom God calls to join in the work of ministry. This message also applies to our mission of caring for creation. Just as God’s Spirit is not confined to a particular group, the responsibility to care for the Earth is not limited to environmental activists or certain groups of people. It is a mission for all of us. We must work together, regardless of our differences, to protect and restore God’s creation.
Let us remember that the Earth is not simply a resource for humans to use but a fellow creation. God has entrusted each of us with the responsibility to care for His world, and we must respond to that call together. We must respond to this call with humility and a willingness to cooperate with others as we care for the world that God has made.
As I come to the conclusion of today’s message, I’d like to share a Korean poem with you that beautifully reflects the themes we’ve discussed.
The poem is titled “A Flower is a Flower No Matter Where It Blooms.” It speaks to the truth that every flower is precious, no matter where it blooms or how it looks.
Here is how the poem goes:
Even if it blooms on the mountain, it’s a flower.
Even if it blooms in the field, it’s a flower.
Even if it blooms by the roadside, it’s a flower.
Everything is a flower.
No matter where it blooms, no matter how it looks,
even if it blooms without a name, it’s still a flower.
Even if it blooms in spring, it’s a flower.
Even if it blooms in summer, it’s a flower.
Even if it blooms in secret, it’s still a flower.
Everything is a flower.
No matter where it blooms, no matter how it looks,
Even if it blooms without a name, it’s still a flower.
This poem reminds us that, just as every flower has value and beauty, so does every person, every creature, and every part of creation.
We are all part of God’s creation, and we are all precious in His sight. Look around you. We are all flowers.
Amen.
We Sing: “In heavenly love abiding” – (TiS 588)
In heavenly love abiding, no change my heart shall fear;
and safe is such confiding, for nothing changes here:
the storm may roar without me, my heart may low be laid;
but God is round about me, and can I be dismayed?
Whever he may guide me no want shall turn me back,
my shepherd is beside me and nothing can I lack:
his wisdom ever waking, his sight is never dim,
he knows the way he’s taking and I will walk with him.
Green pastures are before me which yet I have not seen;
bright skies will soon be o’er me where dark the clouds have been:
my hope I cannot measure, my path to life is free;
my Saviour has my treasure, and he will walk with me.
Prayer for Others (prepared by Rhonwen Pierce):
Let us pray …
Lord God,
We come to you Lord with our prayers for others and the world you created. As time passes we learn more of how you created such a special place and we know we must do all we can to protect it and keep it as you have made it. We see the beauty of nature, we see the animals and birds and insects all created in harmony with each other – all with its place in the whole working of creation. We humans thank and praise you for this whole balance and pray we can work to restore the balance to how it was more than two hundred years ago but we have learnt to like the huge changes.
Let us remember the people in war zones and the huge numbers being made homeless. The relentless destruction is destroying the country and making food production impossible for many years to come. Displaced people are starving with none of the love and forgiveness that we are being taught as Christians.
We pray for all the people affected by rising sea levels. Even small rises that have already occurred are compounded by the violent storms that are occurring. Be with all the workers who are involved in rescues and other aid. Keep them all safe. As more water is released from the melting ice round the world so these situations will worsen and make it all much more difficult.
Thank you, Lord, that the huge asteroids seen at the last minute have safely passed us by. There are so many more unusual things that you created in the universe that science is only just discovering. Man was said to be created in your image and so we are learning more and more about you – trying to be you.
We remember those in our local community. Each one who is unable to be with us here in church. Care for those who are unwell as we name those we know in our hearts. We pray for all who serve on Church Council, Presbytery and Synod. We give thanks for all the volunteers who so faithfully serve you. Thank you, Lord.
Let us say together a version of the Lord’s Prayer by Sherri J Weinberg
God , Heart of the world:
revealed through every aspect of creation: understood through our awareness.
May we honour the holiness of creation and act accordingly
so that your love is reflected in the way we live.
May we always be thankful for the food we eat and the friends we have.
May we forgive those who transgress against us and be forgiven for our own.
In the freedom of love may we live as your heartbeat
and not be compromised by hesitation.
Through our freedom, may your justice be seen and heard and experienced
for ever and ever.
Amen.
We Sing: “Great is your faithfulness” – (TiS 642)
Great is your faithfulness, O God my Father,
in you no shadow of turning we see;
you never fail and your love is unchanging:
as you have been you for ever will be.
Great is your faithfulness,
great is your faithfulness,
morning by morning new mercies we see;
all we have needed your hand has provided:
great is your faithfulness, Lord God, to me.
Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,
sun, moon and stars in their courses above,
join with all nature in unspoken witness
to your great faithfulness, mercy and love.
Great is your faithfulness, great is your faithfulness …
Pardon for sin and a peace that’s enduring,
your living presence to cheer and to guide,
strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow –
these are the blessings your love will provide.
Great is your faithfulness, great is your faithfulness …
Blessing:
The blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,
be upon you and remain with you always.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
In the name of Christ.
Amen
Thanks to all those who have assisted in preparation for this liturgy with encouragement, prayers and conversation. Liturgy created by Jane Yun.