Freelton Strabane United Church
To live our discipleship with integrity and grace.
Horseshoe Falls Regional Council
Palm Sunday
Sunday, April 2 2023
Minister: Rev. Will Wheeler, B.A. M. Div. 905-659-3380 E-mail: wwwheeler@sympatico.ca
Music Director Joan Simpson
Announcements
April 4 Art for the Soul 1pm
Tech Tuesday April 4 1pm in the Hall. This is a make up for the one cancelled last week.
April 6 Maundy Thursday Supper at the church still working on details As we come to the end of Lent and Holy week we invite you to join us for a Passover meal. We will gather at 6pm in Hall for a traditional Passover celebrate and we are asking that people bring finger foods to share as the meal. (please no pork dishes)
April 7 Our long standing tradition of sharing Good Friday with our sisters and brother in Christ at Mountsberg Westover continues as we join them this year at the Westover Baptist Church at 11am with a light refreshments to follow. We hope you will come and join us on this most holiest of days
April 7 Join us for our Good Friday walk and pot luck dinner. We will be gathering at the Church for 3pm and driving up to the Halton Forest for our walk. Then it is a pot luck dinner at the Church for 5. If you feel you are unable to walk please still join us for dinner.
April 9 Rejoice in the Risen Lord. Come and celebrate with us as we gather first for our Sun Rise Service 7:30am at the Church and then a Breakfast to follow Today we return to the Sanctuary to Celebrate the Risen Christ at our 10:30 Worship
If you wish to order flowers for the Sanctuary on Easter please see Barb Woodburn for an order sheet.
April 16 Studio and Studies at Freelton Strabane are pleased to offer you “ It’s a Small world the art of the Miniature” with Will Wheeler A look how miniatures are built, inspiration and photographing join us at the Church a 2p with light refreshments included. This is a free will offering event with proceeds being divided between Mission and Service and the former Freelton Church Window installation fund.
Prepare ye the way to Sing
We are planning a Spring Concert for Sunday, April 30, at 7 PM.
There will be a variety of musical spots including the choir presenting selections from Godspell.
Anyone interested can join us for practices at Freelton Strabane Wednesday afternoons, starting at 1:30 PM.
Inspiration for our Lenten liturgy was taken from an article by Jayson Flores, May 15th 2014 “Seven Modern Sins”
April 16 Studio and Studies at Freelton Strabane are pleased to offer you “ It’s a Small world the art of the Miniature” with Will Wheeler A look how miniatures are built, inspiration and photographing join us at the Church a 2p with light refreshments included. This is a free will offering event with proceeds being divided between Mission and Service and the former Freelton Church Window installation fund.
Studies and Studies is pleased to present on May 7 2023 at 2pm at Freelton Strabane United Church 1565 Brock Road Strabane. (how to register at bottom)
SoulCollage® Rise Up!
with
The Rev.Allison Playfair
Spring is here – finally! All around us there is new birth and rebirth in creation. If you are like me, you may be rediscovering where those bulbs were planted (or moved by squirrels) in your garden. After sleeping underground over winter, our friends, the perennials emerge. Birds return and begin building nests. Everywhere are signs of new life rising up. So too, in our lives, there may be parts of our inner life ready to rise up.
In our time together, we will open ourselves to the spirit within. Using meditative reflection, poetry and creation of a SoulCollage® card, we will explore and give expression to an aspect of ourselves that may be ready to Rise Up in our lives.
What is SoulCollage®?
SoulCollage® is an expressive arts practice done individually or in community. Founded by Seena B. Frost, the method develops creativity and intuition, encourages self-discovery, and provides personal guidance.
SoulCollage® meets you wherever you are on this journey called life. You don’t have to be an artist to make SoulCollage® cards. Anyone can create and enjoy this powerful practice. In this practice, we cut out images that speak to us and create a collage that will give expression to an aspect of your inner life and bring inner wisdom and discovery to the surface.
Cost: $10. To cover the cost of materials. Allison is donating her time and expertise
What we will provide
We will provide a blank card, a frame, glue stick and many illustrations and images to choose the pieces to create your own card as well as light refreshments.
What you need to bring
A pair of sharp scissors and/or a fine point exacto knife, a journal (any kind will do) and a pen/pencil for writing.
Who is the facilitator?
Allison Playfair is a United Church Minister who is a certified SoulCollage® facilitator, Labyrinth facilitator and experienced workshop leader who is open to the Spirit. She worked as a server and bartender in the first half of her working life and brings all her life experience, compassion and sense of humour to her leadership. Allison is on a journey of reclamation and creative restoration of her body, mind and Spirit. In her workshops, she holds inclusive and affirming space for safe and creative exploration.
To Register please call the Manse at 905 659 3380 Payment can be made through E Transfer, or cash the day of.
Let us Gather together for worship.
Come touch our souls that we may know and love you
Your quiet presence all our fears dispel
Create a space for sprit to grow in us
Let life and beauty fill us,
Come touch and bless our souls.
Come touch us now, this people who are gathered,
To break the bread and share the cup of peace;
That we may love you with our heart our soul,
Our mind, our strength, our all,
Come touch us with your grace.
Call To Worship
One: Hosanna in the highest that ancient song we sing
All: For Christ is our Redeemer; earth let your anthems ring
One: Hosanna loud hosanna the happy children sing
All: Crucify
One: O may we every praise him with heart and life and voice
All Crucify him, Crucify.
One: Hosanna in the highest that ancient song we sing
For Christ is our Redeemer; earth let your anthems ring
O may we every praise him with heart and life and voice
All: Crucify, Crucify him Crucify him we have no king but Caesar
Crucify, Crucify him Crucify him we have no king but Caesar
When the wind of Winter Blows
Bringing lent we’ve come to know
Fill the silent icy night be our hearts compassion
Holy light warm our night
Warm this Lenten journey
Holy light warm our night
Warm this Lenten journey
One: The dark of lent shadows our hearts
All Our hearts are but snow and icicles
One Melt the snow and this ice in your love of God
All Nothing but your love can free us from this iced time.
One: The iced indifference of this world shroud the cross We journey from darkness to light owning our faults, lamenting the sins of the world We light this light to lament systems that complicate .
All: Cold darkness of night is dispelled by your promise of a coming light O God .
All: We pray for a world which has become frozen in a mire of systems of Bureaucracy a reflection of our compulsion to control grows our society creates more systems. It becomes a means of controlling others. O God Systems reduce humanity to numbers and then use rules and regulations to reduce people to less than they are. Send your light of God to engender in us a voice that well sound to to put a face on humanity and find ways to make systems work with out crushing the creative spirit. Amen
One: Our story begins. When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me.
One: If anyone says anything to you, just say this, ‘The Lord needs them.’ And he will send them immediately.” This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying, “Tell the daughter of Zion, Look, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
” The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
All When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, “Who is this?” The crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.”
One: As Jesus prepared to offer up himself and offered the gift of live in the bread and the wine so let us bring our gifts before God.
Offering Prayer
All As Christ sacrificed life for us, so may each of us commit ourselves to carrying forward the work to which we are called in our own day. Bless us and all the gifts we bring, in Jesus’ name amen.
One Into the garden they went. To Pray. Jesus looked up and offered to god all his fears all his burdens. What shall we offer up to God, whose names shall we hold up to God.
Song, Be still and know that I am God
And there is none beside me
Be still and know that I am God
And there is none be side me
I am the one whose love never fails
And there is none beside me
Be still and know that I am God
And there is none be side me
Prayers
God of the Journey we come to you and prayer For justice, for freedom, and for mercy hear our prayers
We come to you O God and offer you prayers for those that know sorrow, and grief be near hear and hear our prayer, O God
We come to you O god and ask For wisdom, for courage, for comfort:
In our weakness and in our fear: be near, hear our prayer, O God
We come to you O God For healing, for wholeness, for new life hear our prayer. Be with those who we hold up to you. In sickness, in death be near, hear our prayers O God and hear the names of those we hold up to you.
God of the journey as we begin this Most sacred week be with us to draw us into a time of deep reflection as we walk the road to the cross and beyond. Open us once more to own and experience our story of faith.
Hear our own personal prayers and in your time and way answer.
Lord’s Prayer
Sermon
Matthew 27:11-54
Prayer
Lord as we ponder your words open our hearts that we may understand and know you. Amen
A day like no other day
Did he come through the Damascus Gates or perhaps the Shushan Gates the Golden Gate the main gates into the temple from the mount of Olives.
Imagine that day people following all asking the question “Who is this man? “
‘Jesus the prophet of Galilee from Nazareth” How can this be?
That moment riding into the city. The city that he has lamented. The city the center of life in his country the center of faith. Did he remember the stories of his childhood his mother riding on a donkey to the place where he would be born, does her remember the stories of the donkey rides into Egypt and back again. Did these thoughts cross his brow
Perhaps these where fleeting thoughts. Perhaps he could not help but smile and laugh with the enthusiasm of the crowd.
The priests of the temple watching. Asking again and again who is this man. How can this be?
Does he ride the conquering hero? Does he ride that beast to insult Rome?
Who is this man how can this be?
Can you imagine the crowds
The people there.
zealots in holy fury Roman soldiers mildly amused or indifferent. children excited because who doesn’t like a parade. the disciples some afraid of what would happen. Sadducees and Pharisees Law and order the connection to the Divine shop keepers. Good for business
All crowding together for a look. A maelstrom of bodies.
Who is this Man.
Who is this Jesus Who was he then who is he now.
Imagine that moment. A moment of betrayal Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, “What will you give me if I betray him to you?” They paid him thirty pieces of silver. 16 And from that moment he began to look for an opportunity to betray him. What is the cost of betrayal today? How do we betray God, ourselves. At what cost. $1.95 for an Easter cream egg?
Imagine that moment a moment of denial. You will all become deserters because of me this night; Peter said to him, “Though all become deserters because of you, I will never desert you.” 34 Jesus said to him, “Truly I tell you, this very night, before the cock crows, you will deny me three times.” How do we deny Christ, The denial just another betrayal not me not I. The sin of scapegoating, the sin of denial. Quick fix it, patch it over and deny what is there.
Imagine, a grove of trees, a rock, a dark night a waning moon. A prayer. A cup. Not the holy cup of promise lifted in remembrance. Now a cup full of doubt, “I am deeply grieved, My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not what I want but what you want.” And he was alone, for the second time he prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” And he was still alone, for the third time he prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” Alone. Night close in around. The joy of the day the palms cast to the gutter, the passover feast nothing but dirty dishes and scrapes. And a cup, a cup of fear, a cup of self doubt. We in our way come to the garden, praying for different out comes, for courage, for strength, for resolve knowing that even the way forward will be painful. Take this cup away from me I don’t want to taste its poison.
And then that moment of no return, that final act. A kiss, something so tender, a greeting, an act of friendship, an act of love. A kiss a treasured moment at the beginning of a life, a tearful moment at its ending. A kiss. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; arrest him.” 49 At once he came up to Jesus and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed him. 50 Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you are here to do.” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and arrested him.
Imagine an ending a beginning. A trial of lies, of false witness. A trial of betrayal a trial of denials. A trial of resignation. He comes to this moment resolved. We must come to this moment. Shall we call the pebble dare to but a stone in our shoe and walk his path. Dare not waver in this time. Hear the story, do not turn away, and do not close your ears until the Easter moment. Be here, in this moment, in this time, this is our story, of triumph, of hope and promise, of betrayal of denial, of ending and a beginning.
See, the hour is at hand, once more, once more we come to this week. This day the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of individualism private property money, human first, systems and desire for personal power quick fixes and scapegoating betrayed into all the heavy burdens we have laid on him. All the burdens we have laid at the cross.
Doubt set a side, a 46 Get up, let us be going. See, my betrayer is at hand.” Yet deep in us we know that we do not go alone. For in this time in death, in the life promised we know that we are not alone.
One: So there it is, The ugly shape of beautiful wood, rough hewn by human hands
All Lord Where are you now?
Lenten candle extinguished
One And there it is a tight-shut tomb a borrowed grave sealed with a stone of silence
All Lord, where are you now?
Lent candle extinguished
One And there it is your broken body shrouded in linen clothed in darkness.
All Lord where are you now?
Lent candle extinguished
One And somewhere stand your people crying thought tired of crying their eyes sore and bloodshot They will not rest easy
All Lord, where are you now.
Lent Candle extinguished
One: And out in the streets, the children have stopped their playing , the sound of music has gone sour, even the unlikely people fidget and wonder
All: Lord , where are you now?
Lenten Candle extinguished
One And here are we saying “if only”
All murmuring “surely not “
One Counting the cost for once of our carelessness and our lovelessness and our sin.
All trying to vainly to gain all, we’ve bartered you away in the transaction. We have lost the one who found us.
Lenten Candle extinguished
One With the Peters and Marys of all time, we wait, for only you can tell whether we are worth raising for
All Amen and may Jesus Keep me near the Cross
One: Feet that danced through the streets of Jerusalem, welcoming the Messiah, now softly pad the back alleys in search of shadows
All Hearts that leapt with joy at the sight of David’s true son are thrown out with Golgotha’s garbage
One Hands that wrapped a newborn son in bright bands of cloth, now shroud his broken body and lay him gently, tenderly, softly in death’s manger
All Where glad hosannas rang out , there is now only the silent , weeping heart of God
Christ candle is extinguished
One It is finished.
Yesterdaywe honour our heritage.
Todaywe know that we are not alone,that we live in God's world.
Tomorrowwith God,we will discoverthe undiscovered country.
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