John Wesley once referred to the Methodists as ‘a peculiar people’. One of our peculiarities is treating September as the beginning of a New Year.
At another level we live in a world in conflict and, in the UK with a government with a new Prime Minister.
All of us together are faced with decisions.
At a time of decision for the people of Israel Moses challenged them – ‘I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live’. (Deuternomy30: 19)
The following hymn asks what choosing life might mean for us today.
1 What are the gifts we would treasure most highly:
freedom or justice or money or wealth;
food for the hungry, or drink for the thirsty,
love for our children, or power, or health?
2 Once God had given a choice to the people:
they could decide to choose life or choose death.
They were encouraged towards life's enhancement,
shunning the ways that would quench life and breath.
3 What does it mean for ourselves at this moment,
challenged by God, as to what we should choose?
What does ‘life’ mean, for each friend, for each neighbour,
what will encourage and never abuse?
4 Now at each crisis, each time of decision,
save us from selfishness, things that oppress;
help us, O God, to be wise, never grasping,
help us to cherish those things you would bless.
Andrew Pratt (born 1948)
Words © 2011 alt by the author 2022 © Stainer & Bell Ltd, London, England copyright@stainer.co.uk . Please include any reproduction for local church use on your CCL Licence returns. All wider and any commercial use requires prior application to Stainer & Bell Ltd.
alt 2022 by the author.
Metre: 11 10 11 10
Tune: EPIPHANY HYMN
Tag: treasure
A hymn for this time…Ukraine, Russia, NATO, the world…and its people…
As we move towards Shrove Tuesday, Ash Wednesday and Lent, a moment to pause. By the time you read this the tension in Ukraine may have eased or increased. Let this be a moment to remember that our faith has a worldwide perspective as we share words written in Poland while listening to a lecture by Joachim Waloszek on Polish hymns. 1 The words we sing are wrung from broken hearts, are formed within the soil of time and place, are rooted in our history and this time, yet ring with changeless mystery and grace. 2 Our treasure is the very grace of God, the pearl that we would lose our lives to hold, this gift we guard with frail yet gentle hands, to share among God's people young or old. 3 We sing with others met along the way who speak our language or another tongue, who walk beside us on the road to heaven, who stumble, fly or fall till life is won. 4 The words we sing now whisper sighs of joy, transcending all we fear within this place, they ring with endless, everlasting hope, they celebrate the freedom of God's grace. Andrew Pratt (born 1948) Words © 2009 Stainer & Bell Ltd, London, England copyright@stainer.co.uk . Please include any reproduction for local church use on your CCL Licence returns. All wider and any commercial use requires prior application to Stainer & Bell Ltd
Such a fragment, just a remnant – On hearing John A Bell preaching at Comberbach Harvest
Such a fragment, just a remnant, nothing wasted, nothing lost; all creation has its value, has its purpose, place or cost. Things we count of little value have inestimable worth; every grain of soil we’re tilling, in each land upon this earth. We must treasure earth’s resources and each moment of our time, life and all we have for living, bound in loving’s endless rhyme. On hearing John A Bell preaching at Comberbach Methodist Church Harvest Andrew Pratt 26/9/2021 Words © 2021 Stainer & Bell Ltd, London, England copyright@stainer.co.uk . Please include any reproduction for local church use on your CCL Licence returns. All wider and any commercial use requires prior application to Stainer & Bell Ltd
Tune composed by Frances S. Drake (USA) in the week following the composition of the text. Frances can be contacted by emailing – hymncat@yahoo.com
Hear the tune at –
hymnsandbooks 