Call to worship

As he walked by a lake, Jesus called people to follow him.

And immediately, immediately they left their work and went with him.

As Jesus journeys through our lives, he asks us to follow him.

In this moment, we have another chance to join with him as God is moving in, and being with, this world.

As Jesus wanders in our world, he invites others be his companions.

We would be partners in this ministry, reaching out to our neighbours, and our world in peace and love to serve.

Opening prayer

Creator God,
you call us to love and serve you
with body, mind, and spirit
through loving your creation
and our sisters and brothers.
Open our hearts in compassion as we respond to your call today.

Candle Lighting

We gather here as the human ones of creation.
We name ourselves threads in the web of life.
We give thanks for connection,
that we are all part of one another
and that we are part of the sacred .

As we light the flame, so let us celebrate the richness and diversity of life.

Re-Connect

A pause for beauty

Scripture reading

Mark 10:35-45
James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What is it you want me to do for you?”
And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.”

But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They replied, “We are able.” Then Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.”

When the ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John. So Jesus called them and said to them, “You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them.
But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.”

Reflection threads and conversation questions

It makes a difference how we hear this teaching on serving, or more accurately, it makes a difference where we hear it from. If we stand at the surface of our being and hear that we must make ourselves lowest and least, we will very likely react from the surface – we will react from our personality. I believe this teaching needs to be heard and embraced from the fullness at the depths of your being.

I’m not saying your personality is bad, just that it sits at the surface and so it simply isn’t equipped to understand and accept this teaching. It might help to think of the personality as a mask. The ancient Romans were wisely insightful when they gave masks to the actors of their dramas and named them as personas. Each of us, no matter how wonderful our family, inevitably experiences a significant lack in some way because our parents are human, and the demands of the child-rearing years are relentless. The personality mask is a way of shielding us from further loss or lack, and a way of streamlining what we present to the world so that the ‘unlovable’ parts don’t get in the way and cause us pain.

But here’s the thing: sadly, most of us grow up having confused our personality with our whole self, and we lose touch with any awareness of what lies beneath. In fact most of us will often actively avoid looking at the hidden mass below the waterline of our living because if we did look, we would have to begin acknowledging how deeply committed we are to our defences against pain, and we’d have to start recognising our real motivations for what we do.

But this teaching challenges us to look and move deeper because:

if we want to grow into fullness of life, we need to be able to bring our whole selves to the journey of healing and reconciliation;

God does not want to be reconciled with your personality – that would be like trying to love a mask and God is not fooled for a moment;

if our sense of self is only at the surface, we’ll be stuck in beliefs and behaviours that limit us to the mask’s version of how worthy we are of love and belonging (and the mask says ‘You are not worthy as you are‘).

And most importantly, Jesus is not encouraging us to wear a mask of servanthood. He is inviting us into the freedom of serving from our deepest self – a freedom that he models for us throughout his life.

• If you consider Jesus’ life, what are some of the ways you see him acting in complete freedom (you might recall the people he talked to, ate with, rebuked or praised as well as the stories he told, places he went etc) – and then consider together: what are some of the things that happen for others when Jesus uses his freedom to serve? Keep in mind that Jesus’ actions lead us to the cross – how do you see that fitting in with what is happening for others?
• Do you have a story of liberation, perhaps of changing or letting go of a limiting belief or behaviour? Did that also have impact on others that you are aware of?
• What did you hear in the scripture reading that stood out to you and how do you sense that is touching your life now?

Prayers of the people

Blessing

The blessing of God be ours

Warmth and courage

And strength and healing

All the nights and days

of our journey home.  AMEN

~an Iona blessing