Today’s service will be offered in 2 formats – video and text.
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Please contact office@waltonmemorial.com if you would like to be added to our email list.
• Hop on the GO-VAXX bus for your COVID-19 vaccine: 1st, 2nd, boosters and pediatric Pfizer vaccines are available.
WHEN: May 10th from 10am-5pm
WHERE: The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 486, Bronte, 79 Jones Street.
• Spruce up day May 14th, 2022 – 8:30am to afternoon – We have a variety of jobs needing to be done around the church, including cleaning, painting, repair, gardening and general maintenance. There’s room for any skill level on the day. If you can do 1-2 hours or the whole time, please contact the church office to sign up. See you there!
• Register now for VBS – Welcome to Knights of North Castle – Walton’s 2022 Vacation Bible School summer day camp. We invite children and youth to be strong in the Lord and in the strength of God’s power by exploring how we put on the Armour of God. Important update: We will be running one week of camp this year, from Monday, July 11 – Friday, July 15. Space is limited so register early to secure your spot as a camper or leader..
Camp hours
Full day: 8:30am – 4:00pm
Half day: 8:30am – 12:00pm
Ages and eligibility
Campers – SK to Grade 5
Junior Leaders – Grade 6-8
Teen Leaders – Grade 9-12
Cost
Full day camper – $110
Half day camper – $55
Junior leader – $55
Teen leader – No charge. Earn volunteer hours for school!
*Confidential fee assistance is available. Please contact the church office for information.
To register online, log into your Church Centre account or visit waltonmemorial.com
• Theatre ticket & gift card sale – We have a few remaining gift card items and tickets to several wonderful plays at the Stratford Festival remaining for sale. Cards and tickets are being sold at face value, with all proceeds going to support our General Fund. At each of Walton’s entrances/exits there is a paper list of available items. Please pick up a copy and take it home if you wish. Read it at your leisure, and select the card(s) or tickets of your choice from the list and contact the church office, Tuesday through Friday to arrange payment and pickup/delivery time, office@waltonmemorial.com or 905-827-1643. It’s that easy! Thank you to our generous donors and purchasers for your support.
• Children and youth are invited to view this week’s virtual Sunday School lesson online. This week we’re celebrating all the ways moms and mother figures serve.
• Walton’s prayer chain is open. Confidential prayers requests can be sent to office@waltonmemorial.com
• If you need Rev. Jim for a pastoral emergency, please email him directly at jamescgillwuc@gmail.com
As we gather today on these treaty lands, we are in solidarity with Indigenous brothers and sisters to honour and respect the four directions, lands, waters, plants, animals and ancestors that walked before us, and all of the wonderful elements of creation that exist. We acknowledge and thank the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation for being stewards of this traditional territory.
Jim: Welcome to our Christian Family Sunday service. Happy Mother’s Day! Happy Nanny’s Day!
Val: Well, Happy Christian Family Sunday to you too, Jim. Isn’t it great we can celebrate together with our church family this morning, both here in the Sanctuary and through our hybrid service?
Jim: Yes it sure is. What a blessing to be able to gather together today in whatever way that can be for you.
Val: “Come in, come in and sit down, you are a part of the family.” Let us join together in singing.
One: This candle lighting is dedicated to mothers, and fathers, and to all who take on the role of parenting in our lives. For all parents of every form and kind, everywhere.
All: Bless them with your love, O God,
One: (a candle is lit) As they cradle us with care,
All: Bless them with your love, O God,
One: (a candle is lit) Remind us to help them out.
All: Bless them with your love, O God,
One: (a candle is lit) To work together. Never shout!
All: Bless them with your love, O God,
One: (a candle is lit) For parents of every gender and connection everywhere, God is with us. Don’t
despair!
All: Bless them with your love, O God,
One: (a candle is lit)
(adapted Tammy Fergusson, The Gathering L/E 2022)
Loving God, Creator and keeper of all life, we praise you this day. In each opening bud, in each blossoming tree, you invite us to experience your presence and to find ourselves as part of all life. You, our maker, nourish us with beauty and ancient words of wisdom. We are born from you, and in you, we live and move and grow as your community of faith. Deepen our appreciation for your wonder and mystery rooted in our veins as lifeblood, as spirit song, as the ground of our being. As a child is formed in their mother’s womb, we are formed in you, each one of us being made into your body, your church, your blessing for the world. For this, we give you thanks, today and every day. Amen.
(adapted Wendy MacLean, The Gathering L/E2022)
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.
Alison is in bed with an empty breakfast tray beside her.
Good morning and happy Mother’s Day! I’m feeling very blessed because my kids decided to serve me breakfast in bed this morning. What a treat!
If you’ve got a mom or a mother figure in your life, you know they spend almost all their time serving others. Not just bringing people food and drink – although they do a lot of that too. I mean serving others the way Jesus meant it. Helping others. Being of service to others.
Let’s think of all the things moms and mother figures do to serve: We nurture, which means to take care of something and help it grow. We teach. Our moms help teach us everything. Not just the hard stuff, like math and science, but how to walk, how to talk, how to take care of ourselves, how to be the best people we can possibly be. We work – at home, at our jobs, and in our communities.
But you know what? We also do some pretty disgusting jobs to serve others. We change diapers, clean up barf, and pick up dog poop. Yuck!
Do we enjoy doing such gross things? Not even a little bit. So why do we do it? Because a mom’s most important job is to love. There aren’t many things more powerful than a mother’s love and we would do anything – even clean up barf – for those we love.
Who else served others and would do anything for those he loved? Jesus!
Do you remember the story about Jesus washing his disciples’ feet? It was his way of serving the people who usually served him, and washing his disciples’ feet was a way of showing that he would do even the yuckiest, dirtiest jobs for the people he loves.
And since Jesus loves all of us so much – including you and me – he made the ultimate sacrifice for us, dying on the cross to save us.
There’s nothing you could say or do that would make the moms and mother figures in your life stop loving you. It’s the same for Jesus. He loves you, exactly the way you are. We are so blessed to know love like that in our lives, aren’t we? Let’s say a prayer.
Loving God, thank you for the gift of amazing, incredible love. The love of Jesus. The love of mothers – birth mothers, foster mothers, stepmothers, adoptive mothers, grandmothers, mothers in law, godmothers. The love of all who play a mothering role by serving, nurturing, and teaching us: family members, friends, teachers, and mentors. Help us serve others as they do. Amen.
Today we are dedicating the Angel Garden in memory of Duncan Cochrane (whose birthday is today), Les Hackett, and now with her passing, in loving memory of the garden’s donor Jacqueline Cochrane, a long-time Walton member. Her photo is on the screen. There is a plaque now up on the south wall of the Bronte Hall foyer with other plaques commemorating memorial gift projects at the front exterior area of the church. This area has become our garden oasis of calm and community. The Angel Garden project was truly a team effort.
Hilary Sadler was very helpful from the beginning of the process in investigating Jacqueline’s original vision for a sundial. We collectively realized that there were potential safety issues, as well as inconsistent sunlight on the south side of the church. The idea of the sundial changed to creating a screen to block views of the main exterior utility box on the church and the addition of an angel feature to the garden.
Jacqueline was very happy with this alternative concept, which features a wood screen in three sections and an angel statue as a focal point in the centre.
Jim Wilcox and Jill Jeffries spent countless hours reviewing the church site, measuring, purchasing hand-selected lumber and hardware, and transporting materials. Utilizing their professional carpentry skills, they accurately measured, cut, and fit the wood materials and hardware together to create and install the expertly-crafted screen backdrop for the Angel Garden at the front of the church building.
While I was driving through the Town of Erin one day, the Holy Spirit led me to the perfect angel figure after a long search for just the right angel sculpture to highlight the garden.
Ron Tidy installed the electrical connections within the church and the spotlight outside, which beautifully illuminates the garden at night.
Rob Norman was the gifted landscape architect who designed the inspiration of the 3 screens. There is so much symbolism in these screens that you may not be aware of.
The screens represent the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We will celebrate Trinity Sunday this year on June 12, but the wooden screens help us recall the blessing of the Trinity every day we walk or drive past the garden.
The odd number of screens relates to nature, while the horizontal boards of the screens and the treatment cap at their top echo Walton’s historic 1912 architectural cornice feature and the character of the exterior wall of the church’s addition, as well as the horizontal ground plane.
The three variable heights of the screens bring one’s eyes progressively up towards heaven, therefore is a subtle suggestion of a “Stairway to Heaven.”
The lowest screen respects the at grade level window in the church and promotes natural surveillance of the church’s property.
The three screens together hide the original utility box on the church’s facade, while still visually connecting with the existing garden and adjacent seating area.
Finally, the tallest centre screen provides the backdrop to the central angel feature and captures its shadow at night.
Others who worked on the project include Margaret Ramsay and company on the planting and Tina Thompson on the stone walkway behind the wooden screen. Marg Jardine, Val Waldron, and Alison King each had roles to play in the project completion and update.
The Angel Garden has not yet been fully cleaned up or planted this year due to our delayed spring weather, but will later this month. During these past Covid months the Angel Garden has hosted everything from weddings to baptisms and has been featured in countless Walton virtual services and mid-week check-ins.
Val added painted rocks with messages to the garden to be sources of inspiration. We also asked Walton people to bring flat stones to be used in the walkway behind the wooden screens. These stones could be from where you live, a vacation, if you have a second home, cottage or trailer or where your family roots are from. The stones speak of all the different places, experiences and backgrounds that people bring together to make up our Walton family of faith. I am aware of stones from these places, and there may be more I don’t know about:
Kashe Lake
– Burlington Beach
– Hamilton Beach
– Bronte Beach
– Coronation Park
– Peacock Point, Lake Erie
– Carousel
– Port Dover
– 12 Mile Lake
– Grand Bend
– Southampton
– The bottom of the East Street walkway- Shell Park Beach
– Belwood Lake
– Lake Joseph
– Kingston, Ontario
– Georgetown, Ontario
– Salmon River, Quebec
– Hudson, Quebec
– Prince Edward Island
– Cape Onion, Newfoundland: a stone that is shaped like a sailboat but has lines in it that look like a cross.
– Middle Cove, Newfoundland
– Logan’s Pass, Montana
– The Grand Canyon, Arizona
– Antigua
Thank you to all the stone donors.
Please stand as you are able for the act of dedication.
Peter in Lydda and Joppa
Now in Joppa there was a disciple whose name was Tabitha, which in Greek is Dorcas.
She was devoted to good works and acts of charity. At that time she became ill and died.
When they had washed her, they laid her in a room upstairs.
Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, who heard that Peter was there, sent two men to him with the request, “Please come to us without delay.”
So Peter got up and went with them; and when he arrived, they took him to the room upstairs.
All the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing tunics and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was with them.
Peter put all of them outside, and then he knelt down and prayed.
He turned to the body and said, “Tabitha, get up.”
Then she opened her eyes, and seeing Peter, she sat up. He gave her his hand and helped her up. Then calling the saints and widows, he showed her to be alive.
This became known throughout Joppa, and many believed in the Lord. Meanwhile, he stayed in Joppa for some time with a certain Simon, a tanner.
Blessings on this Christian Family Sunday – Mother’s Day 2022. It is a day full of assorted emotions for many of us. It is a day of appreciation and thanksgiving for those who as family or friends have mothered us in one way or another in our lives. It is as well a day of seeking a blessing upon those who are now mothering this very hour
The story of Dorcas today is a story of devotion. It is a positive quality and I would suggest to you that devotion is what Christ-like mothering can look like. Dorcas lived in Joppa, a town situated on the shore of the Mediterranean, which at that time was the chief seaport of Palestine. It is the exact same port from which Jonah left for his trip to escape God. You know how that turned out? It was a “whale” of an adventure!
Joppa still exists today and I have been there. There was an active Christian church at Joppa which we hear about this morning. Some, in fact, suggest it is possible that those believers met for worship in Dorcas’ home, which was what we call a “house church.” It was one of the ways that the early church met and some churches still meet today, especially those in countries where Christians are persecuted.
The story involves Tabitha, but in Greek she was known as Dorcas. It means “antelope” or “gazelle.” Dorcas is referred to as a disciple even though she was a woman. This is important, very important, for there are some still today who believe women should not be in the pulpit providing leadership. Of course, that is not the policy of Walton Church or the United Church of Canada. In fact, two-thirds of United Church ministers currently are women.
The name disciple was applied to the early followers of Jesus. A disciple of Jesus is someone who sits at Jesus’ feet and learns. It is what we are all invited to be in our lives, sitting at Jesus’s feet and learning every day.
In the passage, we are told Dorcas was devoted to doing good deeds. Devotion is “love, loyalty, or enthusiasm for a person, activity, or cause.” Verse 36 tells us that she, “was always doing good and helping the poor.” In today’s language, she was offering what we call pastoral care or outreach. Dorcas was a doer, not just a talker! She walked her talk in a powerful way. Amen for those like Dorcas who follow up on their words with actions.
In verse 39 we are told about the particular ministry which occupied so much of Dorcas’ time. The passage tells us, “she made robes and other clothing…” It makes me think of the Walton prayer shawl ministry and those who knit for the Outreach Committee’s mitten tree near Christmas. Dorcas was a believer who was full of good works and here is a most needful lesson. We do good works in response to deciding to follow Jesus in all aspects of our lives.
There were also a variety of ministries taking place around Dorcas’ death in the Joppa congregation of faith.
1. Some of the women ministered by washing her body and laying it in an upper room (verse 37).
2. Two men ministered by going on an errand to the nearby community of Lydda to fetch Peter (verse 38).
3. Peter came and exercised a special ministry of prayer over Dorcas’ body (verses 39-41).
4. The widows also ministered in the room upstairs (verse 39).
These devoted people all ministered to others without being named by Luke, the writer of the Book of Acts. That’s important to note; we do not need to always get credit for the good acts we do. God knows. We do it out of Christian love to help others in Jesus’ name, not for acknowledgement. We are the devoted hands of Jesus. In parenting, there are so many roles we play, so many tasks big and small. We do them out of devotion, whether we are up with a colicky newborn in the middle of the night or we are up waiting for a teenager to come home way past curfew.
Why we are reading this passage a few Sundays after Easter is that the story of Dorcas did not end with her death. Easter’s message is that death is not the end. Peter prayed a prayer of faith and Dorcas was brought back to life. Not resurrected like Jesus, but in Jesus’s name brought back to life like Lazarus. The message of Easter is that there’s eternal life beyond this earthly life. This is not the end of the story. Of course, Dorcas herself sometime later died again, and there was then the promise of everlasting life in heaven.
Today let’s celebrate those whose devotion has blessed us in our lives. Happy Mother’s Day.
Almighty Lord, Heavenly Father, Mothering God, beyond our understanding, yet deep within our hearts, we cry out to you. As your beloved children, we bring before you all that we feel: sorrow, pain, hope, joy.
Compassionate God, console those denied the chance to celebrate Mother’s Day, those who are abandoned, separated, disappointed, abused; bring us all together as your family of faith. Sustain those who mourn loved ones, for whom today is a day of grief. Comfort us with the wellspring of our memories.
Unifying God: Inspire us to advocate for peace and guide us to see the part we can play in creating harmony in this world. Reconcile us to each other, that we might embody your forgiveness and live as one.
Bountiful God: kindle in us a celebration of the diversity of all families, of all shapes and sizes, of all colours and faiths. Teach us to grow in compassion and understanding, remembering that even with our differences, we are all your children.
Nurturing God: encourage us to share in the joy and effort of making healthy, peaceful communities. Open our hearts to reach out to our neighbours in charity and acceptance.
Mothering God, beyond our understanding, yet deep within our hearts, we reach up to you:
Take us up in your arms and heal us. Bend down to us and feed us. Wrap us in your bands of love.
Glory be to you, O God; your comfort and care know no bounds. May we rest in your abundant love, which nurtures us from age to age. Amen.
(Gill LeFevre, The Gathering L/E 2021)
In our offering we share not only measurable treasures of time, talents and resources, we also radically commit to sharing immeasurable gifts of forgiveness, grace, compassion, acceptance, and loving concern with each other and with ourselves.
(by Rev. Dr. Alydia Smith, Radical Belonging, United Church of Canada)
♥ by secure online payment from your debit or credit card. Click here to go to our donation page to make a single or recurring donation. Multiple funds can be included in one donation by using the “Add Donation” button
♥ by cheque through the mail slot at the Church office entrance or by Canada Post
♥ by monthly PAR payments. To sign up contact stuart@waltonmemorial.com
All: Loving God, open us to a new world. Where there is no longer least and greatest, rich and poor, haves and have nots. A world where all are treated as beloved precious children. Until that day comes, bless our small contributions of time, talent and treasures and may they work towards the building of your new world. May these gifts help to build the community of radical belonging that we hope to create. May they be a legacy of justice, hope, faith and most importantly love. Amen.
( by Rev. Dr. Alydia Smith, Radical Belonging, United Church of Canada)
Our Parent God bids us go forth into the world, and we go with confidence, for our lunch kit of communion is packed to sustain us, our thermoses of baptism are ready to revive us, and our coats of faith are zipped to warm us. Mother God waves goodbye from the window of love, yet her hands reach out in the hands of others, her eyes watch over us in the eyes of others, and her heart beats within to share with others.
(adapted Gord Dunbar, The Gathering L/E 2014)
Here is Rev. Jim’s mid-week update for Wednesday, May 4th
