All age talks, are very very difficult and there are many pitfalls and trip hazards along the way when presenting one. The vast difference between the vocabulary, experience, and needs of two year olds and eighty year olds is almost impossible to reconcile. These difficulties are compounded in a large building such as a minster or cathedral, or even in a small building with bad sight lines. It is because of these difficulties that, a few years ago, I wrote a number of story/talks for crib services. Here is one of them. It was originally written for Leeds Minster, but I have also used it in Winchester Cathedral at the family carol services. Please feel free to borrow or adapt this for your worship situation, should you find it useful!
Here is the story I wrote for our very first crib service today. Please feel free to use it if you wish.
Ever since Benjamin was little, he always wondered what God looked like. People told him a lot of things about God. That he was powerful, that he made the world and all the beautiful things in the world. That he saved the Jewish people from slavery. Yes, but what did he look like. Benji asked his dad, Moshy.
“Dad. What does God look like?”
“I don’t know young Benji. No-one has seen God, and we’re not allowed to make pictures of him. Why do you keep asking?”
“Because I really really want to know.”
“Well why don’t you go and see Abraham the rabbi.”
So young Ben went to see him. Abraham was very wise, he taught all the small Jewish children stories from the bible. He was kind and smiley, and he had a very long white beard that went all the way down his chest.
“Rabbi. What does God look like? I want to see him.”
Abraham laughed. “Little Benji . You can’t see God. He is too big. Too amazing, too wonderful for us. We wouldn’t be able to cope with the brightness of his face, just like you can’t stare at the sun without hurting your eyes. God is even brighter than that. Even the holy prophet Moses only got to see God’s back, and afterwards his face shone so brightly that it gave everyone a headache and he had to wear a veil.”
Benjamin went home sadly. He had really hoped that the rabbi would be able to help him.
Many months passed. And still Benji wondered. Sometimes he looked up at the sky and tried to stare very hard past the stars. Maybe he would see God peeping around the corner of the star curtain of the sky, peeping from Heaven. But he never saw anything.
Until one night. Something amazing happened.
Benji was helping his father and his brothers mind the sheep on the hillside. It was a very cold night. They had wrapped up warm in fur jackets and they had lit a fire to keep their toes warm. Then suddenly a big white shiny person appeared. It was so scary at first that Benji hid behind a really fat sheep with fuzzy hair.
The shiny person was an angel - and the angel had a message.
“Don’t be afraid shepherds.
You can come out from behind that sheep Benji! I’ve got some really happy news to tell you. A baby has been born in Bethlehem. He’s the Christ who will make our sad world happy again. Look for the one wrapped in cloth in an animal’s feeding trough.”
Benji felt braver. In the sky he could hear beautiful singing. It was so beautiful that he came out, and while the others were listening to the song, he went right up to the angel.
“What’s your name?”
Gabriel, the angel said.
“Have you ever seen God?’
“Oh yes. It was God who sent me here.”
“Then what does God look like?”
“I can’t tell you that. Its something you have to discover for yourself.”
And then the angel disappeared.
And the sky was very quiet once more.
Benji was sad that the angel hadn’t told him what God looked like. But he figured that if the angel was so bright and big and beautiful. Then God must be even bigger and brighter and more beautiful still.
And so the shepherds walked down the hill into Bethlehem, looking for a particular stable. In the end it was very easy to find, because a very bright star was shining in the sky, lighting up the way. There was a beautiful lady, looking very tired, and a man and a donkey and a cow. And a baby lying in a feeding trough, just as the angel had said. Benji bent over and looked closely at the baby. It was very very tiny. He looked deep into the baby’s eyes and as he looked the baby reached out a tiny little hand, grabbed his little finger and gave it a squeeze.
Then Benji heard a voice whispering in his ear. It was Gabriel, the angel. He had shrunk himself very small and was standing on his shoulder. “Look Benji. That’s what God looks like? Benji whispererd back. “I don’t understand. This is a baby. He’s so little that he can’t even sit up yet”
“Yes but he’s the Son of God. He’s the one who will grow up and say ‘If you have seen me, you have seen God our father’ Look again!”
And so Benji looked again, and deep inside the baby’s eyes he saw such love. The baby loved him so much that a little tear leaked out of the corner of his tiny eye. He loved him so very very much that he would do anything for him. Anything to make his world better, even if that thing was going to hurt him and make him sad.
And then Benji understood. In the little baby,Jesus, he had seen the face of God. And what did God look like? God looked like someone who loved him very very much.
Friday, February 22, 2019
The story of Gabriel and the Shepherds
All age talks, are very very difficult and there are many pitfalls and trip hazards along the way when presenting one. The vast difference between the vocabulary, experience, and needs of two year olds and eighty year olds is almost impossible to reconcile. These difficulties are compounded in a large building such as a minster or cathedral, or even in a small building with bad sight lines. It is because of these difficulties that, a few years ago, I wrote a number of story/talks for crib services. Here is one of them. It was originally written for Leeds Minster, but I have also used it in Winchester Cathedral. Please feel free to borrow or adapt this for your worship situation, should you find it useful!
Gabriel and the Shepherds.
This story is about a very special angel called Gabriel. Angels are God’s messengers, and you can see lots of them flying up to Heaven on our glass screen over there.
One day God the Father called the angel Gabriel to go and see him. He said he had a very important task for him to do. He was to go and see a woman in Nazareth called Mary, and tell her that she was going to give birth to a baby called Jesus. Gabriel was puzzled.
“Jesus? But that’s your son’s name.”
“Yes that’s right. He’s going to be born as a human being.”
“A human. But humans aren’t very nice. They shout at each other and fight each other. They can be really mean and horrible.”
“Yes, I know,” said God, “He is going to go and teach them how to be better and love each other. He’s going to fix it so that they don’t have to die anymore.”
“Wow,” said Gabriel. “That’s a very brave and wonderful thing to do.” And off he went.
Nine months later God called Gabriel again.
“Its nearly time for Jesus to be born. I’d like this birth to be really special, really unusual. I’ve got a lovely manger lined up for him. It can be a sign so that people looking for him will know they have found the right baby. All the other babies are lying in beds and cots.”
“What? A manger. A dirty, smelly manger that cows eat from?”
“Yes. But its not dirty. We’ll make sure he has some lovely clean straw, and the animals will help watch over him. Anyway, I have another task for you. I’d like you to book the angel choir to sing and I’d like you to make an announcement of the birth. A really amazing announcement. But you can only make it to one group of people.”
“Can’t we tell the whole town?”
“No. Just one group of people. Go away and have a look at all the different people in Bethlehem and decide which group you are going to make the announcement to.”
So Gabriel went away, and started visiting different groups of people.
He thought that maybe he should look at the important people first. Surely he ought to tell the people who run Bethlehem that there is a new king. So he went to Bethlehem town hall and looked through the window. Two councillors were pushing each other. “No! I’m having the best seat at the new year dinner."
"No, me! I’m more important than you.”
Gabriel disguised himself as a human and opened the door.
“Go away!” they said “We’re having an important meeting.”
So he did. These proud and horrible people didn’t deserve to hear the news.
Then he went to see the weavers, but they were so busy weaving a piece of cloth for King Herod that they didn’t even look up to say hello to him. He coughed and tried to attract their attention but they simply weren’t listening. So he went away.
Then he went to see the ladies who make cheese in the town. He heard them talking about the shepherds.
“Those shepherds are horrible. They smell. I won’t talk to them.”
“No I won’t talk to them either. I’m sure they steal things when we’re not looking. And they never go to the synagogue to pray.”
“Well isn’t that because they have to stay in the fields to look after the sheep?”
“That’s no excuse. I bet they’ve got fleas.”
Gabriel thought the cheesemakers were cruel saying such nasty things about a whole group of other people. So he went to see the shepherds. He hid behind a tree so he could listen to what they were saying without them seeing him.
“No-one ever talks to us. When we say hello to them they never say hello back and when I go into a shop they put everything away behind the counter. They don’t trust us.”
“I don’t have any friends. People think we’re dirty and smelly. Nobody loves us. We never get invited to anyone’s parties.”
“I’ve never been invited to a birthday party in my whole life.”
“Oh that’s so sad.” thought Gabriel. “Well this birthday party is one you will get invited to!”
He called up the angel choir, turned on the shiny lights on his robes and appeared to the shepherds in all his glory.
“Wow” the shepherds said. “Don’t be afraid!” Gabriel said. “I bring you the most joyful news ever announced, and it is good news for everyone!
“Even us?” the shepherds said “Yes. Especially you.” Gabriel replied. “The Saviour baby Jesus has been born tonight in Bethlehem! You’ll find him wrapped in cloth and lying in a manger.”
Then the angel choir began to sing some fantastic music so beautiful that it took the shepherds’ breath away.
“Wow! That was amazing” they said.”Lets go and see the new baby”
So they went down the hill to Bethlehem, taking their sheep with them, and saw Mary, Joseph and the baby. When baby Jesus saw them he gave an extra big smile and stretched out his tiny baby hands.
“At last there is somebody who is pleased to see us.”
It was a day the shepherds remembered for the rest of their lives, and the funny thing was, that after that, everyone else in town started to be nicer to them too.
THE END.
Gabriel and the Shepherds.
This story is about a very special angel called Gabriel. Angels are God’s messengers, and you can see lots of them flying up to Heaven on our glass screen over there.
One day God the Father called the angel Gabriel to go and see him. He said he had a very important task for him to do. He was to go and see a woman in Nazareth called Mary, and tell her that she was going to give birth to a baby called Jesus. Gabriel was puzzled.
“Jesus? But that’s your son’s name.”
“Yes that’s right. He’s going to be born as a human being.”
“A human. But humans aren’t very nice. They shout at each other and fight each other. They can be really mean and horrible.”
“Yes, I know,” said God, “He is going to go and teach them how to be better and love each other. He’s going to fix it so that they don’t have to die anymore.”
“Wow,” said Gabriel. “That’s a very brave and wonderful thing to do.” And off he went.
Nine months later God called Gabriel again.
“Its nearly time for Jesus to be born. I’d like this birth to be really special, really unusual. I’ve got a lovely manger lined up for him. It can be a sign so that people looking for him will know they have found the right baby. All the other babies are lying in beds and cots.”
“What? A manger. A dirty, smelly manger that cows eat from?”
“Yes. But its not dirty. We’ll make sure he has some lovely clean straw, and the animals will help watch over him. Anyway, I have another task for you. I’d like you to book the angel choir to sing and I’d like you to make an announcement of the birth. A really amazing announcement. But you can only make it to one group of people.”
“Can’t we tell the whole town?”
“No. Just one group of people. Go away and have a look at all the different people in Bethlehem and decide which group you are going to make the announcement to.”
So Gabriel went away, and started visiting different groups of people.
He thought that maybe he should look at the important people first. Surely he ought to tell the people who run Bethlehem that there is a new king. So he went to Bethlehem town hall and looked through the window. Two councillors were pushing each other. “No! I’m having the best seat at the new year dinner."
"No, me! I’m more important than you.”
Gabriel disguised himself as a human and opened the door.
“Go away!” they said “We’re having an important meeting.”
So he did. These proud and horrible people didn’t deserve to hear the news.
Then he went to see the weavers, but they were so busy weaving a piece of cloth for King Herod that they didn’t even look up to say hello to him. He coughed and tried to attract their attention but they simply weren’t listening. So he went away.
Then he went to see the ladies who make cheese in the town. He heard them talking about the shepherds.
“Those shepherds are horrible. They smell. I won’t talk to them.”
“No I won’t talk to them either. I’m sure they steal things when we’re not looking. And they never go to the synagogue to pray.”
“Well isn’t that because they have to stay in the fields to look after the sheep?”
“That’s no excuse. I bet they’ve got fleas.”
Gabriel thought the cheesemakers were cruel saying such nasty things about a whole group of other people. So he went to see the shepherds. He hid behind a tree so he could listen to what they were saying without them seeing him.
“No-one ever talks to us. When we say hello to them they never say hello back and when I go into a shop they put everything away behind the counter. They don’t trust us.”
“I don’t have any friends. People think we’re dirty and smelly. Nobody loves us. We never get invited to anyone’s parties.”
“I’ve never been invited to a birthday party in my whole life.”
“Oh that’s so sad.” thought Gabriel. “Well this birthday party is one you will get invited to!”
He called up the angel choir, turned on the shiny lights on his robes and appeared to the shepherds in all his glory.
“Wow” the shepherds said. “Don’t be afraid!” Gabriel said. “I bring you the most joyful news ever announced, and it is good news for everyone!
“Even us?” the shepherds said “Yes. Especially you.” Gabriel replied. “The Saviour baby Jesus has been born tonight in Bethlehem! You’ll find him wrapped in cloth and lying in a manger.”
Then the angel choir began to sing some fantastic music so beautiful that it took the shepherds’ breath away.
“Wow! That was amazing” they said.”Lets go and see the new baby”
So they went down the hill to Bethlehem, taking their sheep with them, and saw Mary, Joseph and the baby. When baby Jesus saw them he gave an extra big smile and stretched out his tiny baby hands.
“At last there is somebody who is pleased to see us.”
It was a day the shepherds remembered for the rest of their lives, and the funny thing was, that after that, everyone else in town started to be nicer to them too.
THE END.
Sunday, February 10, 2019
A prayer for guidance
This prayer as written by members of the Visions community in York on Wednesday 6th February 2019. Whether you consider yourself a Brexiteer, a Remainer or just anxious, they are encouraging you to feel free to use or adopt this prayer.
God of all nations,
Sovereign in our hearts,
You set the stars on their courses,
made order out of chaos,
and care even for the sparrows.
We are ashamed,
we weep for our nation.
Open the minds of our leaders,
the attitude of our representatives,
and the hearts of the people;
so that we can build bridges,
find understanding,
and heal the rifts.
Speak wisdom into the processes adrift,
and speak into the heart of our Prime Minister;
inspiring her through the example of your Son the Servant King.
Guide the government to a fair solution,
and protect the hard won peace in the island of Ireland.
We ask this in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
Amen.
God of all nations,
Sovereign in our hearts,
You set the stars on their courses,
made order out of chaos,
and care even for the sparrows.
We are ashamed,
we weep for our nation.
Open the minds of our leaders,
the attitude of our representatives,
and the hearts of the people;
so that we can build bridges,
find understanding,
and heal the rifts.
Speak wisdom into the processes adrift,
and speak into the heart of our Prime Minister;
inspiring her through the example of your Son the Servant King.
Guide the government to a fair solution,
and protect the hard won peace in the island of Ireland.
We ask this in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
Amen.
Friday, July 6, 2018
A litany of thanksgiving for the NHS
Almighty God, creator of the universe and author of creation, you have blessed and enriched our lives with healing and compassion. For all this and for the founding of the NHS, we give our heartfelt thanks and praise.
All We give you thanks, O God.
For the wonder and the joy of healthcare for all, and for all
the achievements and discoveries of the past seventy years.
All We give you thanks, O God.
For doctors and for dentists, for nurses and for midwives,
for volunteers, therapists and fundraisers:
All We give you thanks, O God.
For psychiatrists and paramedics, for scientists and for
drivers, for counsellors and listeners:
All We give you thanks, O God.
For those who answer the phone, for anaesthetists and
radiologists, for pharmacists and physios:
All We give you thanks, O God.
For those who clean, maintain and fix, for porters and
electricians, for those who cook and those who eat:
All We give you thanks, O God.
For those who teach and those who train, for those who study or step into the unknown, for those involved in developing new therapies and treatments:
All We give you thanks, O God.
For chaplains and for advocates, for those who visit others and for those who help unseen, for all who offer comfort and compassion:
All We give you thanks, O God.
For technicians and publicists, for managers and helpers, for those who plan and those who guide; for those with wisdom and with insight:
All We give you thanks, O God.
For our past and for our future, for the ways that we are present for the needy. For our our calling as those who care for others:
All We ask your help O God.
For the sick and those in trouble, for the injured and the
dying, for the hungry and the suffering:
All We ask your help O God.
For the stressed and those in poverty, for those struggling with addiction, for those who work long hours and for their families:
All We ask your help O God.
For those who suffer in silence. For the lonely and forgotten. For the grieving and the traumatised. For those known to you alone:
All We ask your help O God.
May Jesus Christ the healer who called all to love and to
compassion, inspire us to serve others in everything we do.
All Amen.
Wednesday, May 2, 2018
A prayer for those taking exams this Summer
A prayer for those taking exams this Summer. Please feel free to use if you wish
Eternal and loving God:
In you are hidden all
treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
We pray for those who are
sitting exams this summer,
especially those whose future journey
depends on their grades.
Bring your peace that
calms anxious hearts and minds;
bring your clarity of thought that
guides the pens of poets and writers;
and most of all bring your love and reassurance,
your blessing, and your guidance
that each of us is uniquely called,
uniquely gifted, and precious in your sight
whatever grades we get.
Through Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.
Monday, March 19, 2018
A Palm Sunday Procession Hymn
Writing this hymn has been on my wishlist for a while. There aren't enough processional hymns that everyone knows, that are easy to sing, that tell the Palm Sunday story and which have an easy-to-remember chorus. Please feel free to use, photocopy, tweak, etc etc.
So here we are....
The tune is Cwm Rhondda (Guide me O Thou Great Redeemer).
By the road the Hebrew children
Waving branches in their hands
Come and greet the great Messiah,
Singing praise at God’s command.
Sing Hosanna, sing Hosanna,
sing Hosanna to the King;
sing Hosanna to the King of Kings.
This Messiah rides a donkey,
Not a chariot or a horse.
Jesus is a humble leader
“Prince of Peace”, not “Czar of War”
Sing Hosanna, sing Hosanna,
sing Hosanna to the King;
sing Hosanna to the King of Kings.
Come and greet the New Messiah!
Come and greet the one who saves!
See the man who cured the lepers
And raised Laz’rus from the grave!
Sing Hosanna, sing Hosanna,
sing Hosanna to the King;
sing Hosanna to the King of Kings.
Wave your palms and wave your olives,
Wave your branches, shout and sing.
Spread your cloaks upon the roadway
like a carpet for a king.
Sing Hosanna, sing Hosanna,
sing Hosanna to the King;
sing Hosanna to the King of Kings.
Blessed is the coming kingdom
Blessed is the coming King
He who enters in the Lord’s name
Our salvation he will bring.
Sing Hosanna, sing Hosanna,
sing Hosanna to the King;
sing Hosanna to the King of Kings.
Prophets had foretold his coming,
Riding on a donkey’s foal,
Battle-bows will soon be broken,
Love and peace will be his goal.
Sing Hosanna, sing Hosanna,
sing Hosanna to the King;
sing Hosanna to the King of Kings.
Pharisees will hate this tumult
And the praises of the crowd.
Yet if children cease their singing
then the rocks will cry aloud.
Sing Hosanna, sing Hosanna,
sing Hosanna to the King;
sing Hosanna to the King of Kings.
Come and join this joyful movement!
Bring a royal diadem!
Why do you not want to join us
Leaders of Jerusalem?
Sing Hosanna, sing Hosanna,
sing Hosanna to the King;
sing Hosanna to the King of Kings.
Jesus weeps upon the city,
“I would hold you in my arms
like a mother holds her children,
Keep you safe from war and harm”
Sing Hosanna, sing Hosanna,
sing Hosanna to the King;
sing Hosanna to the King of Kings.
Overturn the swindlers tables
Make my house a house of prayer
For the people of all nations
Every soul that loves and cares.
Sing Hosanna, sing Hosanna,
sing Hosanna to the King;
sing Hosanna to the King of Kings.
Sue Wallace, 2018.
Sunday, December 17, 2017
The Innkeeper's Story
At Children's services I sometimes like to present my sermon in story form, from one of the characters at the birth of Jesus. This year it is the turn of the inkeeper. Although the story itself is made up, it is based on research about what it was really like to live in bible times in that place (now in the West Bank) that we call Bethlehem. It’s a real place that you might like to visit yourself one day. So here is the innkeepers tale...
Some of you may call me one of the bad characters of the Christmas story, not as bad as our awful king Herod though.
I am the person some people call the innkeeper. Miriam by name, and Joseph the carpenter’s second cousin. But actually calling me an innkeeper is a bit of an exaggeration. I didn’t own a hotel, or even a Travelodge, it was a bit more like your Air B and B. I have a simple house with one guestroom, and in my basement I have a little cave where I bring the animals to be safe after dark. Jeremiah the donkey, Jezebel the goat, and my little brown ox with a white spot on his back who I called Noah because he doesn’t like the rain. Everyone around here has a little guestroom in their house and somewhere downstairs to keep the animals. Bethlehem is a village on a hillside riddled with caves. The caves are safe and warm and really quite a nice, private place to be.
And so you can probably guess what happened next. Joseph and Mary turned up on my doorstep because they had to take part in this horrible people-count which sent them back to Bethlehem because that is where King David, our great great great great great (X24) grandfather once lived. My brother Jacob and his wife Ruth had already turned up with their brothers and sisters and they had all piled into the guestroom filling it up to bursting.
Poor Mary looked so cold and shivery after her long journey - as it can get very cold up here in Bethlehem. It’s cold because it is built on top of a really really tall hill, so tall that the weather is different from toasty hot Jericho which is only down the road. It really looked like Mary needed somewhere private because she was about to have her baby. But where could I put her?
Our grandfather old Levi was sleeping in the corner of our family room, Zeb and John were playing bat and ball and making a right racket, my own little girl was crying VERY LOUDLY because she had lost her dolly - and everything was getting very cramped. Maybe your Christmases get to be a bit of a squash too if you have lots of people staying. Mary needed some privacy, and, as I mentioned, the “Kataluma” which is what we call our guest room, was full.
So then I thought for a bit, and then I prayed for a bit, and then I had a really good idea. I took Mary downstairs to the stable area where the animals lived and made her and Joseph a little bed down there. It was warm, it was quiet apart from the snuffling of the animals, but if she needed some help, or some food, or some water we were really close by and she only had to call.
That night Mary had her baby, and I got to help her, washing his little tiny body to make it all clean and shiny and wrapping him up in little bandages to keep him warm. She called him Jesus, because it meant “Someone from God who rescues you when you are in trouble” and she said that was what Jesus was going to do for us, because most people were sad and a-bit-mean-to-each -other, and he was going to help us to be happy and good.
But then something really strange happened. Some shepherds knocked on the door. They were the most excited shepherds I’d ever seen in my whole life. They said they’d seen an angel and they were looking for a baby. They said that they’d know which baby it was because it would be lying in a manger, an animal feeding trough. I was amazed because the manger was where I put baby Jesus after I’d wrapped him all up. How did they know that? They also said the little baby was going to be a saviour: someone who could rescue us when we were in trouble, and I was amazed because “Someone from God who rescues you when you are in trouble” was the name Mary had called him.
So you see, I wasn’t really a baddie after all. But if you ever get stuck for an idea; if you want to help someone but you aren’t sure what to do, pray a prayer, tell God about the problem in your own words; then wait and see what happens and maybe God will put a good idea into your head too.
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