Welcome to this Sunday’s worship time. I’m Lloyd Walker, one of the Lay Preachers at St Luke’s Uniting Church here in Highton. Paul, St Luke’s Highton Ordained Minister, will be back next week.
Today I’m continuing the theme Paul started a couple of weeks ago – Remaining Afloat in Challenging times. My focus is going to be supporting each other – particularly those with little experience of faith and the younger members of our family and community.
Readings:
Psalm 34:1-8 – stay close to God
1 John 3:11-24 – love one another
Background: https://faith.yale.edu/media/you-do-you
Ethics of authenticity in Disney’s Frozen & Moana
Reflection as we come to worship.
Out of my depth in your love – by Noel Richards & Horley (SCE255)
Acknowledgement of Country and welcome
This land is God’s land and God’s Spirit dwells here. We acknowledge the Wadawurrung people, traditional custodians of this land under God. We recognise that they have walked and cared for this land, respecting the Creator Spirit’s tender care for all around us. May we draw together in our humanity and kinship as children of God in this great South Land
Opening prayer
God, like David before us, we find our comfort and our hope in you. We celebrate your generosity to us – a land of contrasts, with space, clean air and such diversity of climate, plants and animals. In recent centuries our human diversity has added to this colour and community.
And over these years you have continued to speak into our community and our lives – calling us to care and protect:
- each other, and particularly the vulnerable
- this land in which we live – and the natural world that we share it with
- truth and justice, looking always to you for guidance.
Forgive us God that we are stiff necked people.
That we do not embrace the generosity and self-sacrifice that your Son modelled – we focus too often on ourselves
That we are stubborn and turn deaf ears to your still small voice, or even the clanging alarm, when you call us to repent of destructive and evil ways
When we claim we are too busy or avoid going out of our way, to pick up after ourselves, lend a hand to others in need, or even to listen to our sisters and brothers, even our children, crying out for help and care.
Today open our ears and our hearts to listen and learn from you, the lessons from your Son Jesus, and the guidance and courage offered by your Holy Spirit. Inspire and challenge us to join with your saints as your hands and feet, your physical presence to those who feel alone, lost and struggling to stay afloat.
Amen
Family of God, God is always present, even in the darkest of times and when our actions (or inaction) shake us to our core. There is enough mercy to cover all your sins, and not yours only, but those of the whole world. Therefore put the past and its errors behind you, vowing to live as Christ called you to serve in the world.
Live as forgiven people, for in Christ, such you truly are!
Thanks be to God! Amen.
Today I want to draw from a podcast that provoked me to rethink about a song (or a couple of songs) that played over and over in our house around 2013.
The Podcast was from the Yale Centre for Faith and Culture called “You do You”
https://faith.yale.edu/media/you-do-you
One of the speakers leads a 7 week course called “Life Worth Living”. https://gracefarms.org/life-worth-living/
And as part of that course, they reflect on some of the Movies and other popular culture that we connect with. As promised the two movies I want to look at today are Disney’s Frozen and Moana. They both struck a cord with my tweenage daughters; and each had heroine characters.
Frozen is a rewriting of Hans Christian Andersons ‘The Snow Queen’ story, like a number of recent movies and musicals it upends the simplistic good vs evil character (think for example “Wicked” the musical – a different take on Wizard of Oz).
The hit song from Frozen is ‘Let it Go’ by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez. Here the teenage young Queen Elsa – cursed that everything she touches turns to ice – runs away, in her mind to protect her sister Anna. These young women have been orphaned for several years after their parents were lost at sea. Elsa has high expectations on her shoulders.
The song starts in a minor key to match Elsa’s mood. And her words are a reflection, not just of her feelings, but the pain of years trying to live up to expectations:
Clip 1 – Wind is howling…
Many in our world today, and particularly our young people, are struggling with expectations. Play fair, work hard, study to get a good qualification and job…. And so it goes. “Be the good girl/boy to make us proud” whether said or unsaid is there. And for some it doesn’t stop as they look for a partner, have children, seek job, a house….
In our mostly capitalist society, jumping off or going feral is rarely an option for most except the well off.
Now Elsa decides to cut herself off, and ‘break free’ – but listen to her new expectations… now in a Major key so full of hope.
Clip 2 – It’s time to see what I can do
You can see why she’s excited, so much potential, she can do anything.
And some get away with living their lives this way, ‘test the limits of what I can do’
But in the same breath are the compromises – “no right, no wrong, no rules for me.”
In recent years we’ve seen corporate giants, politicians, world leaders all with the same view point – the rules don’t apply to me – I don’t accept there is ‘right or wrong’…. It’s my way or the highway!
And you’ll find this conundrum in the boy’s movies too – Captain America and Thor (the good guys) seem to operate on their own rules at times as if things like torture is OK if you are a good guy.
Frozen unpacks what this all leads to: a bit winter, pain and suffering for all (including Elsa), and eventually a willingness to seek forgiveness.
Spoiler alert – And ‘true love’ that breaks the spell – isn’t in a lover’s kiss – it is a gift of self-sacrifice her younger sister offers to save her beloved Elsa.
I’m sure you can see plenty of parallels in the reading from 1 John today – v16 & 17: We know what love is because Jesus gave his life for us. That’s why we must give our lives for each other. If we have all we need and see one of our own people in need, we must have pity on that person, or else we cannot say we love God.
Let’s look at Moana – set in our Pacific Region, drawing on First People mythology.
Moana is the daughter of the Chief of the island Tribe and this enlightened community recognises the authority of women and men to lead, so Moana is in line to become Chief after her father.
It is a generally happy community, everyone seems to know their place and all is well. Except that Moana can’t understand why she is drawn to the ocean – something strictly out of bounds to go beyond the protected bay. In this story though is a grandparent figure – the wise and somewhat mischievous Gramma Tala.
When their food supplies start to go bad, Moana follows her heart and the stories of the past from her Gramma to seek the solution – to right an ancient wrong. Here though there is uncertainty. And the presence of her beloved Gramma comes to her.
Moana – Clip 1.
You can see similar pains to Elsa’s being reflected in the words of Gramma Tala as she supports Moana. But the solution isn’t cutting yourself off.
To give her courage to keep going, a further reflection of what growing up, learning but also something else…
Moana – Clip 2.
Wise counsel indeed. That ‘voice inside you’ for those of us who follow Christ (and even those who don’t yet) is often the ‘still small voice of God.’ This is the counsel needed for those who stand with Christ against oppression, injustice or evil – yes learn from family, friends, and history, but don’t ignore that voice calling you to be true to who you are!
Here is a story of someone who is supported by wise elders, a person who truly believes in them and wants to take up their God given role true to their calling – not constrained by the accepted norms of the world. We should remember that Jesus family came to ‘take him home’ because the crowds were saying he was mad because he spoke out against the Pharisees and Saducees. It was only because Jesus remained in conversation with his Father God – through at least daily prayer – that he stayed the course.
This is the love that has seen Greta Thunberg’s parents support her to speak out about climate change, Archbishop Desmond Tutu to follow a calling not to power and control, but to transformation of a whole society through a deep love and sense of the love of God for all.
Moana – Clip 3
May we too know the way for our lives as we follow Jesus’ lead, and support others – young and old – and they try to understand God’s voice to them and that ‘you do you’ authentically.
MOVIE CLIPS FROM: Frozen ©2013 Walt Disney Animation Studios “Let it Go” by Kristen Anderson-Lopez & Robert Lopez. Performed by: Idina Menzel
And Moana ©2016 Walt Disney Animation Studios “I am Moana”
Sung by Auli’i Cravalho and Rachel House; Composer: Mark Mancina Lyrics: Lin-manuel Miranda, Opetaia Tavita Foa’i
We respond
Christ Jesus, source of my healing and joy of my desiring,
I believe in you.
I believe in you more than the boasts of the arrogant,
more than the duplicity of the cunning,
more than the cynicism of the embittered.
Holy Spirit, breath of my hoping and fire of my loving,
I believe in you.
I believe in you more than the myopia of the clever,
more than the evasions of the cowardly,
more than the apathy of the negligent.
Holy God, you are far too big for our minds yet humble enough
to reside with the meek and the poor
and to craft beauty out of disasters.
I believe in you! Live and guide me – today and forever.
Prayers of the People (from Dr Diedre Palmer – past President of the UCA )
Gracious and loving God,
You call us to love you with our whole being, and to love our neighbours as ourselves.
At this time of upheaval and distress for nations and people across our world, may your love hold us together.
May your love be the lens through which we see each other and your world.
Lord Jesus Christ, you are present with us, as one who knows our suffering, bring comfort and peace to all those who are grieving the loss of loved ones, work, connection and hope for the future.
May we embody your compassion – responding to the suffering of our neighbours, our families, our friends, and strangers with generosity.
Life-giving Spirit, you weave us together as the Body of Christ, strengthen our life together, even though we are physically separated. Nurture us in faith and discipleship, that we may bear witness through our living, to your abundant grace and liberating hope for all people, and the whole creation.
Through Christ our Life and Hope, we pray. Amen..
AMEN.
(Lords prayer)
Our Father who is in heaven
Hallowed be your name
Your kingdom come, your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us
Save us from the time of trial, and deliver us
For yours is the kingdom, the power and the glory
Now and forever
. Amen.
Blessing
Will you take the time to listen for the cry of one seeking answers in this complex world?
Will you always seek to discover the humanity and child of God in all you meet – and help them find God’s words for them.
When others try to shut down or supress your prophets and servants, call out to hear more of God’s message, even if it hurts and is uncomfortable.
And rest assured, that nothing can separate you from the love of God – NOTHING, not even your own self-doubt!
And the empowering grace of Christ Jesus,
the overflowing love of God,
and the embrace of the Spirit,
rest with you now and always,
Amen!
Youtube song
Lord I come to You – Geoff Bullock ©1992
