The Worship Team led this morning’s service, beginning with the singing of O Canada and the Land Acknowledgement. Our first worship song was a new one, “Give Me Jesus”.
Next, they introduced this week’s theme – A Servant’s Heart, before moving to the Teacher Interview segment with Ms. Tam and Miss Errington. Both teachers shared their experiences about when they chose to have a servant’s heart, how they try to be intentional about serving others, serving as part of the body of Christ, and how they try to show appreciation to other members of the body of Christ. Some key points they communicated included the following:
- Serving others can be uncomfortable and/or require sacrifice (e.g. Zambia – no electricity, poor food, etc.) but remember why you are doing it and how God is using you to make a difference in other people’s lives
- God can use you and others to work together to show God’s love to others
- Be intentional and remember that even small gestures can have big impact
- Be observant to notice others, especially those who do small things
- Remember to thank and acknowledge those who do things behind the scenes
The students also had a short period of time to discuss practical ways they can choose to have a servant’s heart.
To the delight of some of our younger students, the next worship song that was sung was “Pharaoh, Pharaoh”. Our Worship Team guitarist switched to an electric guitar and the percussion was even louder for this song!
Next, representatives from the Grade 1 classes announced their Care & Share event. On Thursday, May 28th, we will be collecting money for Sick Kids Hospital. Last year, we were able to raise $1,033 for this world class children’s hospital. Given that it is their 150th birthday, the Grade 1 classes would like to ask for your help in raising $1,150!
Our third worship song was “Battle Belongs” by Phil Wickham. The gym filled with praise, especially during the chorus. Our Grade 1 and 2 students could be seen doing all the actions.
Our guest speaker this morning was Pastor Jeremiah from The Olive Branch Community Church. After sharing a story about his adventurous morning before arriving at Wesley, he opened with 1Peter 4:10. This verse is about using our gifts from God to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace. He reflected that he has volunteered to speak at nearly every chapel service about a servant’s heart this school year and gave a brief recap of what he spoke about. Then, he showed a photo of himself when he was in Grade 4 with another boy that was taken in Sri Lanka. The boy was in Grade 2 but was so undernourished that he looked like he could have been only 4 years old. Pastor Jeremiah used this photo to explain that you do not need to go abroad to serve in the mission field and you do not have to be an adult. You can serve where you are – in your classroom, your home, your neighbourhood, your sports arena, etc. You do not have to have great musical or singing skills. You can use the gifts that God has given you – drawing, making people laugh, listening, organizing, etc. As Pastor Jeremiah continued to build on examples of service, he emphasized that when we choose to serve others, we become more and more like Jesus. He encouraged the students to find a way to serve in their own immediate spaces and to learn to be a servant now. There is no need to wait. God has provided each of us with gifts/ talents and opportunities. We just need to take them. Pastor Jeremiah closed in prayer. He asked God to help us to have a heart like Him, to not overlook the small things , to see our gifts – not to make ourselves happy but to serve others joyfully with them.
To end the service, our Worship Leaders led the recitation of our aspirational passage.
