Worship - 27 July 2025

Summary of this week's theme

Forty-six years ago, The Police released Walking on the Moon, a song born more from wordplay than lunar ambition.  Yet the title unintentionally evokes something deeper: the feeling of being in love as ‘relieved of gravity.’  That same year, we marked the tenth anniversary of the first moon landing - an act of courage and vision, driven by John F. Kennedy’s 1961 pledge to reach the Moon by decade’s end.  The astronauts who made the journey often spoke of the spiritual impact: Buzz Aldrin took communion on the Moon; Eugene Cernan was awed by the view of Earth, saying science couldn't explain what he felt.

Most of us won’t walk on the Moon, but we do walk - and walking itself is a spiritual act.  It’s a rhythm that connects us with God’s creation and with biblical tradition.  Scripture happens at walking pace.  Jesus walked with his disciples, and after the resurrection, he walked the road to Emmaus.  Paul exhorted believers to walk in love, honour, and faith.

Colossians invites us to ‘continue to walk in [Christ].’  This is no passive existence - it’s an active journey. Even the Book of Common Prayer says, ‘do all such good works as thou hast prepared for us to walk in.’

Walking with Christ means walking with intention.  Jesus’ own prayer - the Lord’s Prayer - teaches us that God’s kingdom is not distant but present: ‘Thy kingdom come.’  Now.  It’s a call to action.  We pray not only for daily bread and forgiveness, but also for a transformed world - starting with us.

Jesus models prayer as an intimate conversation with ‘Abba’ (the closest to which in English is Daddy), a term rich with trust and closeness.  He teaches that prayer is to be persistent and bold, like the neighbour knocking at midnight.  It’s not passive; it’s engaging.  And in praying, we ask not only what God can do for us, but what we can do for God.

John Kennedy’s challenge - ‘Ask not what your country can do for you …’ - echoes here.  Ask not only what your God can do for you, but what you can do in God’s name.

Being loved by God lifts us - it frees us from the pull of self-doubt and fear.  It allows us to walk with bigger steps than we might have imagined.  So let us pray.  And then let us walk - with Christ, in faith, love, and purpose.