Notes on the Notes – June 23, 2024

Fifth Sunday after Pentecost

This week’s music: 

“Come and Find the Quiet Centre” (VU #374)

“Come and find the quiet centre in the crowded life we lead,
Find the room for hope to enter, find the frame where we are freed:
Clear the chaos and the clutter, clear our eyes, that we can see
All the things that really matter, be at peace, and simply be.

Silence is a friend who claims us, cools the heat and slows the pace,
God it is who speaks and names us, knows our being, face to face,
Making space within our thinking, lifting shades to show the sun,
Raising courage when we’re shrinking, finding scope for faith begun.

In the Spirit let us travel, open to each other’s pain,
Let our loves and fears unravel, celebrate the space we gain:
There’s a place for deepest dreaming, there’s a time for heart to care,
In the Spirit’s lively scheming there is always room to spare!”

This hymn was written by Shirley Erena Murray for a Presbyterian Women’s Conference on the theme of “Making Space.”  In our busy and chaotic world, it is a reminder to take the time to “be at peace, and simply be.”  When we give ourselves the space, we welcome in God and the Spirit.

Hear the Harmony Singers at:

“Spirit of Life” (VU #381)

“Spirit of Life, come unto me.
Sing in my heart all the stirrings of compassion.
Blow in the wind, rise in the sea; move in the hand, giving life the shape of justice.
Roots hold me close; wings set me free;
Spirit of Life, come to me, come to me.”

This sung prayer will be our response to the words of assurance.  It was written by Carolyn McDade in 1981 and arranged by Grace Lewis-McLaren and published in 1993.

“Calm Me, Lord”

“Calm me, Lord, as you calmed the storm;
        Still me, Lord, keep me from harm.
        Let all the tumult within me cease;
        Enfold me, Lord, in your peace.

        Calm me, Lord, as you calmed the storm;
        Still me, Lord, keep me from harm.
        Let all the tumult within me cease;
        Enfold me, Lord,
        Enfold me in your peace.”

This centering song is taken from the collection “Sing the Story.”  The words are by David Adam with music by Margaret Rizza (1998). As we think about the story of Jesus calming the storm at sea, we ask that our inner storms be calmed as well.

“We Do Not Know What Lies Ahead”

“We do not know what lies ahead.
Will we meet storms, or sun instead?
Do we hope Christ will calm the waves,
Or is our faith enough to save?

There will be times when we maintain
That all our efforts are in vain.
If we give up, what can we give?
For what we leave is how we’ve lived.

But Christ gives hope which makes us bold;
To take a risk, though trials unfold;
For love is patient, and sustains,
When we are lost, love still remains.

In welcome shared and kindness shown,
The love of God is truly known.
When we attempt to live shalom,
We find the road that leads us home.”

This song was written by Allan Baer in 2017 and arranged by S. Porter.

The story behind the song:

It was an overcast day. My wife had the car and I had an errand to run. The simplest way would be by bike, but I had no rain gear with me. So I took a chance and sure enough, I ran into a cloudburst 10 minutes before arriving back home. Would I have set out had I known that the storm would catch me mid-journey? Perhaps not, but my sodden clothes eventually dried, and my misadventure still yielded the beginnings of this song and a few lyrics that ran through my head as I cycled. That opportunity might not normally have arisen in my usual schedule. Christ often pointed out that his future and that of his disciples would not always be bright. But knowing the time and date of our troubles does not necessarily prevent them from arriving. Our instinct is to avoid such events, but in doing so, we may miss out on helping in a way that is uniquely ours. We may not know in advance what role we are to play. In fact, how we act – with compassion and generosity – may be more important than what we do. In God’s world, success as we know it may not be the object. But God’s kingdom is now and there is work to be done, even if we are not the ones to finish it. (Source:  https://www.crossroadsunited.ca/spirit/)

Hear the song at:  https://youtu.be/Y9wpDVzV28Y

“We Give You But Your Own” (VU #542)

“We give you but your own,
Whate’er the gift may be,
All that we have is yours alone,
We give it gratefully.”

The words for our offering response were written by William Walsham How in 1858, and updated for use in Voices United. The music is by Johann Balthasar Konig (1738), with adaptations by William Henry Havergal (1847).

“I Come With Joy” (VU #477)

“I come with joy, a child of God, forgiven, loved and free,
The life of Jesus to recall in love laid down for me,
In love laid down for me.

I come with Christians far and near to find, as all are fed,
The new community of love in Christ’s communion bread,
In Christ’s communion bread.

As Christ breaks bread, and bids us share, each proud division ends.
The love that made us, makes us one, and strangers now are friends,
And strangers now are friends.

The Spirit of the risen Christ, unseen, but ever near,
Is in such friendship better known, alive among us here,
Alive among us here.

Together met, together bound by all that God has done,
We’ll go with joy, to give the world the love that makes us one,
The love that makes us one.”

This song, one of Brian Wren’s most widely-published hymns, was written for the congregation at Hockley in Essex in 1968, at the end of a series of sermons on communion. It was first published in The Hymn Book (1971). The tune, DOVE OF PEACE, is an American folk tune from Southern Harmony (1835). The arrangement in Voices United is by Austin C. Lovelace.

Hear the melody played on piano at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMFLyMvOro4

“Will Your Anchor Hold” (VU #675) 

“Will your anchor hold in the storms of life,
When the clouds unfold their wings of strife?
When the strong tides lift, and the cables strain,
Will your anchor drift or firm remain?

We have an anchor that keeps the soul steadfast and sure while the billows roll;
Fastened to the rock which cannot move,
Grounded firm and deep in the Saviour’s love.

It will surely hold in the straits of fear,
When the breakers tell that the reef is near?
Though the tempest rave and the wild winds blow,
Not an angry wave shall our bark o’erflow. 

We have an anchor that keeps the soul steadfast and sure while the billows roll;
Fastened to the rock which cannot move,
Grounded firm and deep in the Saviour’s love.

When our eyes behold through the gathering night,
The city of gold, our harbour bright?
We shall anchor fast by the heavenly shore,
With the storms all past forevermore.

We have an anchor that keeps the soul steadfast and sure while the billows roll;
Fastened to the rock which cannot move,
Grounded firm and deep in the Saviour’s love.”

Our closing hymn uses a sea-faring metaphor for our life of faith, focusing on the anchor of the boat.  The Oxford dictionary defines the word “anchor” as “a heavy object attached to a rope or chain and used to moor a vessel to the sea bottom,” for example, “The boat, no longer held fast by its anchor, swung wildly.”

“A Benediction”  

“May the grace of Christ attend us,
And the love of God surround us,
And the Holy Spirit keep us,
Now and ever, always.
Amen, amen, forever and ever,
Amen.”

Our benediction response was written by Jeeva Sam.

Thank you to members of the Worship Choir
for providing music leadership for this week’s service.