PREPARING FOR WORSHIP

• Take a deep breath, exhaling it slowly and let the breath that escapes your body be a cleansing moment when all the anxiety that besets you is expelled.
• Do this breathing exercise again.
• Do it again.
• Now remember a time of comfort and joy.
• Focus on God’s hand in creating, sustaining and guiding you to this place of peace.
• Finally, give thanks for what God has done in your life and say outloud “O GOD I GIVE YOUR NAME PRAISE AND I AM READY TO ENTER INTO THIS TIME OF WORSHIP.”

OPENING PRAYER

For Your abiding presence, O God, hear our thanks. You have guided us through war, sustained in times of want, and brought forth food from the fields. In all of life, your hand has sustained us. Hear us now as we pray for:

• Those who have fallen ill (provide the names of those you know whose health is compromised)
• Those who live in isolation from those they love (provide names of those you know who are isolated or in quarantine)
• Those who provide health care in midst of this pandemic (provide names of those you know who are members of the health care team)
• For troubled parents who have yet another worry on their hands.
• For those in positions of leadership and government.
• For those involved in research who are seeking a treatment and a vaccine.
• For your own personal health — both physical and mental.
• For the nourishing of your soul that trust and hope might remain strong.

For all this we pray. Amen.

SCRIPTURE — PSALM 23 (NEW REVISED STANDARD VERSION)

¹The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
²He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters;
³he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake.
⁴Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff— they comfort me.
⁵You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
⁶Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long.

A Sermon by The Rev. Jeffrey Long-Middleton
Bradford Congregational Church of the United Church of Christ March 22, 2020
“The Still Waters of Faith: An Exploration of the 23^rd Psalm”

“…he leads me beside still waters…” Psalm 23:2ⁱ

His job was on the line and his face carried the weight of uncertainty. He did not know how long his job would last. Like all of us, the present moment was all he knew, all he could trust.

Ellen and I had gone out to eat while in New Orleans celebrating the wedding of our friends’ daughter. We had gone to one of the myriads of hotels and sat at the bar — in large part because they had a television tuned to CNN. Louisiana had zero cases of Covid-19 when we left the state of Vermont on Wednesday. It was now four days later and the number of cases had grown to 77 by Sunday. The hotel had an eerie feeling of winding down, of becoming a mere shell of unused capacity.

As one is want to do, we talked with the barkeeper. There was no smile on his face. He told us that he didn’t think the hotel would be open by the end of the week. He would be without a job.

Continue reading guided worship 3/22/2020 →

“The Jesus Who Divides”
This is the first of a two-part sermon
(Part 2 will be shared on August 25, 2019)
Rev. Jeffrey Long-Middleton
Bradford Congregational Church-UCC
Luke 12: 49-56
August 18, 2019

“Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division!”  — Luke 12:51ⁱ

Things you don’t talk about on a first date: Money, Sex, Politics, and Religion.¹ That leaves the weather which I suppose is a safe enough topic. The object, of course, is to avoid discord…And then there’s Jesus! Money, sex, politics and religion were about all He talked about. Though we may not like to admit it, our text puts these words on the lips of Jesus: “Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.” Continue reading Sermon Aug 18 2019 →

“Shall We Mute the Voice of God?”
Rev. Jeffrey Long-Middleton
Bradford Congregational Church-UCC
Isaiah 1
August 11, 2019

 Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow. – Isaiah 1:16 & 17ⁱ

The United Church of Christ has a slogan that it published on banners and quoted on mastheads: “God is still speaking” You just heard the words of the prophet Isaiah spoken between 750 and 700 B.C. — a long time ago in a place far away. Maybe they mean nothing. Perhaps they speak of a time so unlike our own that this Word from God is not God’s Word for today. If that describes your reaction to our reading this morning, then you are not troubled by the reality of the world we live in because Isaiah’s vision is outdated and out of place. I, unfortunately, cannot share your optimism. When I come to scripture I look for what I call the “Holy intersection.” It is the place where the will of God, expressed long ago, intersects with the world I live in. It is there, at this “Holy intersection” that God’s word comes alive for today. So I share with you this morning a deep feeling of discomfort and look for ways to respond to the calling of God. Continue reading Sermon August 11, 2019 →