Praying Together 14th July 2024

Special Children and Young People Edition

Let us come from our everyday routine and meet with God – the one who made us, and who gave us our daily bread through the week just gone.

The gathering prayer

Loving Lord, thank you that you meet us where we are, in the middle and muddle of our daily tasks. Help us to hear your call, to recognise your voice, and to respond to your invitation to be with you now. Amen.

Deuteronomy 6:6-7: “These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

Psalm 127:3-5: “Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him

Proverbs 17:6: “Children’s children are a crown to the aged,

Proverbs 22:6: “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.”

Proverbs 29:17: “Discipline your children, and they will give you peace; they will bring you the delights you desire.”

Ephesians 6:4: “Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.”

Matthew 18:2-5: “He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.'”

Mark 10:13-16: “People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.'”

Colossians 3:21: “Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged.”

You may remember (of course, you may not) that last week we considered the question asked by people who had heard of John the Baptist’s somewhat unusual naming ceremony, when his dad Zechariah was released from his months of silence. ‘What then is this child to be?’

We considered life’s journey – even though we know that through Christ our destiny is sure, we have no idea of the route by which we’ll get there, each of us in different ways.

But there is one thing we all have in common. We were children once. And our grown-up personalities and beliefs have been hugely influenced by our experiences in the first few years of our lives – some good, and some, sadly, not so good.

I remember Marjorie’s Mum Lily asking a new nurse trainee ‘Who is the most important person in the Hospital?’ “Matron” the student replied. “The Patient” corrected Lily.

Who is the most important person in Church? Well, it sure ain’t me.

It’s every one of God’s children, irrespective of their age. When we come to worship, we come as family. It’s the one time in the week when we are together around the table – and each has an individual need. Some look for teaching, some to offer praise and thanksgiving, some for fellowship. Our very young ones simply want to be made welcome and loved as members of that family. You will often hear it said that “Children are the future of the Church”. Wrong. They are it’s present, the here and now.

So sometimes, us grownups put aside our own preferences for silence and serious Scripture study (we don’t have to be in church to do that anyway). We come together, always aware of the need to bring the children to Him, as He told us we must.

They may wriggle and squawk a bit – sing in the wrong place – toddle up the aisle to have a close look at that strange person standing at the front dressed up in funny clothes – embarrass their parents. So what. I don’t remember the Ten Commandments saying they shouldn’t.

With thanks to Suzanne, you may wish to sing the following to the tune of ‘Wheels on the Bus’

Some grownups in the Church go ‘Tut Tut Tut”…

The parents in the Church say ‘Just sit still”…

Jesus says to everyone ‘Bring them to Me’

God in His heaven says, “You are all mine”

And remember:

If there is no laughter, Jesus has gone somewhere else. If there is no joy and freedom, it is not a church: it is simply a crowd of melancholy people reciting familiar words. If there is no celebration, there is no worship.”
Steve Brown (altd)