East Oldham Cafe Church

Welcome:

Choose 2 songs:

The power of your Love

Psalm 45 How Great

Genesis 1: 1-19 (selections from NRSV)

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth…

Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light….

And God said, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters God called the dome Sky…

And God said, “Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; …and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.” And it was so.

God made the two great lights…and the stars.

God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth…

And God saw that it was good.

Song

Creator God

Intro Talk

Have you ever been where it is really dark? In one of those dark patches, like up in Northumberland, where the lights of our towns and cities do not permeate the dark night sky?

A story:

Once upon a time, in rural Zimbabwe, Theo bundles his wife and two children into their Toyota truck, and drives out the dirt road, away from their little town, away from the few lights, away even from the cooking fires. About 5 kilometres out, where the baboons and warthogs begin to reside, he stopped the truck, right in the middle of the road – not lots of traffic!

Then he switches off the headlights, plunging the family into blackness – the kind where you cannot see your hand in front of your face. The children squeal. Theo opens the door and leads his wife and children out, one by one, clasping hands so they don’t lose anyone in the blackness. They clamber into the flatbed of the truck where they lie down and peer up. The heavens seem to open above them, bursting into a shimmering canopy of light. Then Theo passes the binoculars around, and the moon’s craters and mountains jump into focus, and the distant stars appear that much closer. They gaze in awe at God’s amazing dome of creation.

Conversation

These questions and responses might be shared in pairs or threes. Inform everyone that there will not be any plenary or feedback time.

When was the last time you looked up at the moon or stars? How might gazing at the heavens “in awe and wonder” connect you to God’s creation? Where do you fit into God’s creation?

Reading

Psalm 145:3-5 NRSV

Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised.

God’s greatness is unsearchable.

One generation shall laud your

works to another,

and shall declare your mighty acts.

On the glorious splendour of your majesty,

and on your wondrous works,

I will meditate.

Antoine De Saint Exupery wrote.

“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly. What is essential is invisible to the eye.”

Conversation

Perhaps God, like Theo on that starry night in Zimbabwe, invites us on a journey into un-knowing, into mystery.

When has God invited you into a risky activity, stepping out from the place you stand, into a world of complete trust and faith? When has God invited you to dream of possibilities beyond your personal world, beyond your familiar world of family, work, and community? Is God inviting you now to look beyond your familiar world? Where might God be inviting you to employ a new lens, like the Hubble telescope, in your seeing and understanding? Who has guided you and offered you, new lenses, new perspectives in your life – a new telescope or pair of binoculars? Who, like Theo in the reflection, has seemingly plunged you into darkness only to bring to light the things once hidden in the darkness, sometimes with a vivid new brilliance?

Consider these questions about our world:

With this new lens, what do we see in our world? Can you envision a world in which no one is hungry, no one is cold, no one is alone, no one is marginalized or hated?

1 Corinthians 4: 1-2,5

Paul writes to the Corinthians:

Think of us in this way, as servants of Christ and stewards of God’s mysteries. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy…. Therefore, do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart.

Conversation

Christ invites us to meditate on these things, to look both inward and outward, into the mystery of our ground of being and outward into the mystery of the ever-expanding universe, always being open to the possibility of transformation – of ourselves and of our “universe.”

Where in your life are you being called to transform?

Reading Psalm 104: 1-4

Bless the LORD, O my soul,

O LORD my God, you are very great.

You are clothed with honour and majesty,

wrapped in light as with a garment.

You stretch out the heavens like a tent,

you set the beams of your chambers on the waters,

you make the clouds your chariot,

you ride on the wings of the wind,

you make the winds your messengers,

fire and flame your ministers.

As we meditate upon the mysteries of God’s creation, if you would like to light a candle, to either celebrate part of creation, or to express concern about an aspect of creation or how people are treating it, please do so at this time. If you would like to share your joy or your concern, feel free to share with the group, or you may light a candle in silence.

Psalm 113:1-9 NRSV

Praise the LORD!…

Blessed be the name of the LORD

from this time on and forevermore.

From the rising of the sun to its setting

the name of the LORD is to be praised.

The LORD is high above all nations,

and God’s glory above the heavens.

Who is like the LORD our God,

who is seated on high,

who looks far down

on the heavens and the earth?…

Praise the LORD!

Lord’s Prayer

Song

How great thou Art

Closing prayer

God, creator of all that has been, all that is, and all that shall be, we celebrate your endless creation. Open our minds and hearts to your mysteries. Thank you for making us who we are and bringing us together today. Illuminate our path that we may shine as your beloved children. Amen.