Ketton and Tinwell Benefice

Family Service For Sunday 2nd August 2020

God can do the most amazing things. All we have to do is trust Him.
Click the play button on the video above to view the full family service. The transcript is included below.

Hello and a warm welcome to our online family service from St Mary’s Ketton.

Today we will be looking at a very familiar bible passage from Matthew 14. 
Jesus’s amazing miracle “The feeding of the 5,000”. Before we start the service I’d like to thank the family service team, Chris and Caroline, also Hugh for a fantastic reading and Sara for providing our intercessions. 
We’ll start the service with a lovely song that calls us all to focus our hearts and minds and worship our Heavenly Father. 
“Come now is the time to worship”

HYMN Come Now is the Time to Worship

Our Opening prayer:

Lord God, as you have given to us,
Help us to be generous towards others.
May we see that resources we have
Are not wasted or squandered
But are used to your glory and the benefit of all.
Amen

Saying sorry to God

God our father we come to you in sorrow for our sins.
For turning away from you and ignoring you.
Father Forgive Us.
Save us and Help us.

For behaving just as we like without thinking of you
Our friends, our neighbours and our family.
Father Forgive Us.
Save us and Help us.

For all the things we think say and do.
The things that hurt other people.
Father Forgive Us.
Save us and Help us.

For letting ourselves be drawn further away from you
By temptations in the world about us.
Father Forgive Us.
Save us and Help us.

For living as if we were ashamed
To belong to your son Jesus
Father Forgive Us.
Save us and Help us.

We are forgiven

May the God of love and power
forgive you and free you from your sins,
heal and strengthen you by his Spirit,
and raise you to new life in Christ our Lord. Amen

The Collect

Gracious Father,
revive your Church in our day,
and make her holy, strong and faithful,
for your glory’s sake
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

READING: Matthew 14: 13-21 Read by Hugh Tervet
Jesus Feeds Five Thousand

Jesus heard what had happened to John. He wanted to be alone. So he went in a boat to a quiet place. The crowds heard about this. They followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When Jesus came ashore, he saw a large crowd. He felt deep concern for them. He healed their sick people.
When it was almost evening, the disciples came to him. “There is nothing here,” they said. “It’s already getting late. Send the crowds away. They can go and buy some food in the villages.”
Jesus replied, “They don’t need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
“We have only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.
“Bring them here to me,” he said. Then Jesus directed the people to sit down on the grass. He took the five loaves and the two fish. He looked up to heaven and gave thanks. He broke the loaves into pieces. Then he gave them to the disciples. And the disciples gave them to the people. All of them ate and were satisfied. The disciples picked up 12 baskets of leftover pieces. The number of men who ate was about 5,000. Women and children also ate.

HYMN The Lords My Shepherd

TALK
The Miracle of the feeding of the Five Thousand: Caroline Longlands
(Featuring a video of the Tervet during talk)

I’m just preparing a picnic for my family to share later on today.

I love a picnic! There’s something very special about preparing food and eating out of doors. Sitting on the beach, in the park, on top of a hill in the Lake District with wonderful views, outdoor theatre events ( big sigh) and in our own back gardens. I know I’m painting a romantic picture here of an ideal occasion but in reality there’s nearly always wasps, whingeing, weather and animals to add to the party… I could bore you forever with tales of memorable picnics many of them ending in laughter. But for me what makes having a picnic special is the sharing a meal with family or friends.

I expect by now you’re all thinking of your own picnic fun and disasters.

The Tervet family have been on holiday. Lets see how they got on

Thanks for that Matt, Lucy, Hugh and Fraser.

Back to the BIG PICNIC

The Bible Story we heard is about a huge picnic. I shall be inviting you to do lots of imagining this morning…

Jesus and his disciples had been working very hard, they had been going about healing the sick and telling people about God. They were exhausted and wanted some time to themselves and Jesus had recently received the sad news that his cousin John had died cruelly at the hand of Herod. So Jesus took a boat across the Sea of Galilee to a remote place where He intended to rest and pray.

And we can understand the need to be alone and quiet when times are tough.

But best laid plans… As soon as He arrives on the other side of the lake He is greeted by a huge crowd.

The people were so eager to witness more miracles and hear more of Jesus teaching that they had gone round the lake to find Him. I don’t know about you but I can be very irritable when I’m tired and hungry. But this is about Jesus. And tired and sad though he was, he was full of love and compassion for the crowd so He continued to heal those who were sick and see to their needs. When the disciples arrived in the evening I think they were really concerned about Jesus so they said: “its late”. Send these people away so that they can find food for themselves. But instead of agreeing with the disciples, Jesus surprised them by saying quietly,

“It’s ok let them stay. You can give them something to eat.”

You give them something to eat!

Imagine you’re one of the disciples being confronted with 5000-10000  hungry men, women and children. That’s a big ask and a lot of food to find

PANIC must have begun to set it. What does Jesus mean “You feed them”. He can’t be serious.

In John’s Gospel account, Phillip immediately starts to add up the cost of buying bread for everyone. Andrew finds a boy with 5 loaves and 2 fish

This is all we have?

Imagine Jesus just smiling as he says “Tell the people to sit down”. Then takes the offered 5 loaves and 2 fish, lifts them up to God and blesses them.

Then he breaks the bread and fish and puts it into a basket and then another basket and hands it over to the disciples who can scarcely believe their eyes as they have enough to feed all those people. The food just keeps on multiplying. Everyone at that picnic witnessed a miracle. And it didn’t stop there. Jesus told the disciples to gather up the leftovers and they had 12 baskets full. Unbelievable!

There’s another story in the Old Testament where God provided food. The Israelites, fed up and hungry and tell Moses they want to go back to Egypt to their old life. Moses pours out his troubles to God and asks for help and the next day the ground is covered with Manna (a substance we’re told is like biscuits). The people are fed for some time.

So getting back to our picnic story… The disciples get back in the boat and cross the Lake leaving Jesus to send the crowd home and finally Jesus goes up into the hills to rest and pray.

So what is this very familiar story saying to us?

Well I think it is reminding us that with God all things are possible when we put our trust in Him.

Jesus was preparing His disciples for the work they would have to do without Him. In order to be fully prepared they had to learn to trust God and bring their needs to Him with what little they had.And in saying “You feed them”. He was reminding the disciples that people needed more than a quick snack they longed for spiritual food. Just as we do.

Jesus was challenging the disciples to give, and when they do, He gives to them and they then give to others.

Andrew gives the 5 loaves and 2 fishes to Jesus. After blessing it, Jesus gives it to the disciples and they in turn give it to the people.

When we give, He gives to us so we can give to others.

So, what have I to offer today?

We can be negative sometimes when asked to do something… But when we are lacking in confidence its safer to say I can’t possibly do that, I’m rubbish at that, too old, my leg hurts, too busy…

But God wants us to offer what we have even if its small and he will use it. Over the past months of lock down we’ve seen what amazing things have been achieved by people of all faiths and none offering what they had to help others, cooking delivering, telephoning, smiling , waving. And we’ve honoured our NHS workers who have given everything to save lives and frontline workers who have kept us going.

So lets remember that God can do the most amazing things. He can perform miracles

All we have to do is Trust HIM.

Lets pray

Heavenly Father, help each of us to use our resources wisely.
Look after the precious gifts we’ve been given,
and show us what we can become when we offer back what we have to you.
AMEN

DECLARATION OF FAITH:

Do you believe and trust in God the Father,
source of all being and life,
the one for whom we exist?
We believe and trust in him.

Do you believe and trust in God the Son, 
who took our human nature,
died for us and rose again?
We believe and trust in him.

Do you believe and trust in God the Holy Spirit,
who gives life to the people of God
and makes Christ known in the world?
We believe and trust in him.

This is the faith of the Church.
This is our faith.
We believe and trust in one God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.   
Amen.

HYMN
: Ten Thousand Reasons – Matt Redmond

PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION – Sara Barrett

Dear Lord, we thank you for the blessings of food, water, shelter, family and well-being.

As we enjoy good food, we will think of those who struggle to feed their families every day. You taught us to pray. As we say “Give us today our daily bread” we make that prayer also for the millions who go hungry every day.

You fed the hungry. Inspire in us the commitment to follow your example, showing compassion in action and sharing what we have with those who have less.

You cared for all. Help us to remember your command to love one another. Help us to see you in each of our brothers and sisters – especially those who are in need. You are the Bread of Life.

Strengthen us as we work for justice in the world. Help us to stand in solidarity with the poorest of the poor. You came so that we could have life and have it to the full.

Our prayer is that this might be true for all. We pray that communities and governments recognise our shared responsibility to be more just in sharing the world’s resources. Help us to care more deeply, live more simply and share more fully.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

THE LORDS PRAYER

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come; thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.  
Amen.


FAMILY PRAYER

Heavenly Father, we thank you for our friends, homes and families.
We ask that your love may surround us, your care may protect us,
and that we may know your peace at all times.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, our Lord. 
Amen

HYMN Be Though My Vision


BLESSING

Go now with love in your hearts,
Light in your eyes, and life in your souls.
Go, in the service of Christ,
To proclaim what is done for you
And share what he has given, to his glory
In the name of Christ
Amen

Go in the joy and peace of Christ.
Thanks be to God


Afterwards: Bach Little Fugue in G Minor