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The Village Shepherd

Janice Scott ... The Village Shepherd

After being ordained in 1994 with the first wave of women priests, Janice became curate in a large city centre parish in Norwich and from there, moved to South Norfolk in 1999 as Rector of a rural benefice of six parishes. After completing her MA in Pastoral Theology with the Cambridge Theological Foundation in 2008 she was appointed Honorary Canon of Norwich Cathedral. Janice now lives with her husband Ian just outside Norwich. In addition to her diocesan work and writing "The Village Shepherd," she is a freelance writer for Redemptorist Publications in the UK. She has also written and broadcasts "Pause For Thought" on a local radio station and has written several novels, all with a church background.

Proper 15 | Ordinary Time 20 - B

Children's Liturgy and Story

John 6:51-58

Janice B. Scott
Call to Worship:

Jesus is the living bread, and those who eat this bread will live forever. Let us eat our fill of the living bread in our worship today.

Invitation to Confession:

Jesus, sometimes we want everything on the cheap, including eternal life.
Lord, have mercy.

Jesus, sometimes we aren't prepared to work for what we want.
Christ, have mercy.

Jesus, sometimes we're so familiar with your sacrifice on the cross that it fails to touch us.
Lord, have mercy.

Reading:

John 6:51-58

Children's Story

John 6:51-58

Janice B. Scott
Roly Poly Prickle was in something of a mess. His mother had warned him never to go near the rubbish bins in the park, but Roly Poly had been curious. He knew that human beings threw things away in the rubbish bins, and he wanted to know exactly what it was they threw away. So he scurried along on his four short legs as quickly as he could, keeping out of the way of park keepers and other awkward people.

When he reached the rubbish bins he found he was in luck, for one of the bins had been tipped over on its side and all its contents were sprawled over the path. Roly Poly squeaked to himself in delight. Then he began to rummage amongst the remains.

Intercession

John 6:51-58

Janice B. Scott
Prayers usually include these concerns and may follow this sequence:

The Church of Christ

Creation, human society, the Sovereign and those in authority

The local community

Those who suffer

The communion of saints


These responses may be used:


Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayer
Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.

Sermon

1 Kings 2:10-12; 3:3-14

Janice B. Scott
The USA probably has the right idea. Americans only allow their presidents to remain in office for two terms. After that, no matter how good they are or how popular they are, presidents have to make way for someone else. Politicians, like everyone else, can become hostage to the pressures of high office. They may start very well, but after a number of years at the top sometimes seem to lose touch with the very people they are representing. And then it can be difficult to remove them and their country suffers.

It has ever been thus. When Solomon was crowned king of Israel, it seemed that perhaps the problems thrown up towards the end of David's time were at last over and there was a new beginning for the people.

Sermon

Ephesians 5:15-20

Janice B. Scott
Our diocese recently had a three-day residential clergy conference. It was an interesting experience to spend three days in the company of no-one but clergy. By the end of the three days I was very glad to get home and back to some normal conversation.

Sermon

John 6:51-58

Janice B. Scott
A schoolteacher friend of mine tells the story of a class of five-year-olds who were lining up to receive their inoculation against one of the childhood diseases. They all had their sleeves rolled up and were waiting for the dreaded jab. After a while my friend noticed that one child was missing. She walked back along the line of children round the corner, and discovered the missing child out cold on the floor where he'd fainted.

Naturally she was horrified, and asked the other children why they hadn't told her that this little boy had passed out.

"Oh," they replied, "we thought he was dead, so we just stepped over him." Children have such literal minds!

What is The Village Shepherd?

The Village Shepherd offers sermons, bible stories, children's stories and prayers based on the Revised Common Lectionary. These inspirational sermons, stories, and prayers are sure to touch your heart, because they reflect the simple virtues and tranquil serenity that characterize Reverend Scott's English countryside pastorate. The questions "Where is God in this particular situation?" and "Where does the Gospel story cross our own human story?" are always at the heart of these meditations -- but rather than finding overt answers, instead you will be gently led to make your own connections and discover the powerful ways in which God works. Janice Scott has the unique ability to find interesting details in ordinary life that illuminate scripture, while still challenging even the most intellectual reader. And that gift is precisely what also makes her an outstanding communicator with children.

Most weeks include:

  • Sermon based on the Gospel reading
  • Sermon based on the Epistle reading
  • Sermon based on the First reading
  • Children's stories linked with the Gospel readings
  • Children's liturgy and story (a different story than mentioned above)
  • An intercessory prayer
UPCOMING WEEKS
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Proper 13 | OT 18 | Pentecost 11
31 – Sermons
180+ – Illustrations / Stories
34 – Children's Sermons / Resources
22 – Worship Resources
30 – Commentary / Exegesis
2 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Proper 14 | OT 19 | Pentecost 12
30 – Sermons
180+ – Illustrations / Stories
29 – Children's Sermons / Resources
22 – Worship Resources
29 – Commentary / Exegesis
2 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Proper 15 | OT 20 | Pentecost 13
30 – Sermons
180+ – Illustrations / Stories
33 – Children's Sermons / Resources
21 – Worship Resources
30 – Commentary / Exegesis
2 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Plus thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...
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New & Featured This Week

The Immediate Word

Katy Stenta
Mary Austin
Christopher Keating
Dean Feldmeyer
George Reed
Tom Willadsen
For August 18, 2024:

StoryShare

Frank Ramirez
At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, “Ask what I should give you.” (v. 5)

Wishes are wonderful — and mostly imaginary. Those of us who remember back in the day when the arrival of the Sears catalog was a big deal may remember circling items as a sort of wish list. After all, who hasn’t at one time, or another wished their wish — or wishes — would come true? But of course, in any good story about wishes, there are limitations, a catch, or a twist. Remember. Wishes are tricky.

Emphasis Preaching Journal

Frank Ramirez
Mark Ellingsen
Bill Thomas
Bonnie Bates
1 Kings 2:10-12, 3:3-14
One of Aesop’s fables is about a turtle who envied the ducks who swam in the pond where he lived. He heard their stories describing the wonders of the world that they had seen, and he was filled with a great desire to travel. Being a turtle, though, he was unable to travel far. Finally, two ducks offered to help him. One of the ducks said, “We will each hold an end of a stick in our mouths. You hold the stick in your mouth. We will carry you through the air so that you can see what we see when we fly. But be quiet or you will be sorry.”
Mark Ellingsen
1 Kings 2:10-12; 3:3-14

The Village Shepherd

Janice B. Scott
Roly Poly Prickle was in something of a mess. His mother had warned him never to go near the rubbish bins in the park, but Roly Poly had been curious. He knew that human beings threw things away in the rubbish bins, and he wanted to know exactly what it was they threw away. So he scurried along on his four short legs as quickly as he could, keeping out of the way of park keepers and other awkward people.

SermonStudio

John E. Sumwalt
Jo Perry-Sumwalt
There was no warning. One moment, busy afternoon rush hour crowds were bustling in and out of the subway terminal. Men and women of various ages, carrying briefcases, shopping bags, backpacks and young children, brushed determinedly past one another on their way to and from countless locations. A group of tourists with floral print shirts and cameras craned their necks to take in the vaulted ceilings and marble pillars of the old 96th Street terminal as they descended into its artificially lit atmosphere.
James Evans
(See Epiphany 4/Ordinary Time 4, Cycle B, for an alternative approach.)

Psalm 111 is a carefully crafted, alphabetic acrostic. The subject of the acrostic is the praise of God, for all that God is and does. This theme is developed by 22 lines of Hebrew poetry, each one of which begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The content of this psalm makes it very clear that it was written by someone who wanted to give thankful testimony about God's goodness to the worshiping community.

Robert Leslie Holmes
This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world ... Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
-- John 6:51, 54

Richard E. Gribble, CSC
John Harding had it all; his credentials were impeccable. He had a wonderful family. His wife, Sally, was one of those people everyone enjoys meeting. His eight-year-old son, Rick, was a good student, enjoyed athletics, and obeyed his parents. John himself had moved up the corporate ladder. After graduating from Arizona State University, where he played baseball well enough to be offered a professional contract, he moved to California's "Silicon Valley" and signed on with one of the many software companies with headquarters in the region.
Sue Anne Steffey Morrow
In three swift verses, the succession is accomplished, finally. And David sleeps with his fathers and is buried in the city of David. Our prayer for David, companion in these past weeks, is that David sleeps, at last, in peace. For in those last years, David is so advanced in years, so old, that he cannot get warm. They cover him with clothes, but he does not get warm. They bring him a young maiden to lie beside him, but he does not get warm. I imagine David shivers in the knowledge of all that his life has taught him, the hard way.

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