|
|
Welcome to The Village Shepherd, where you can find hundreds of insightful sermons, imaginative children's stories, and intercessory prayers, all from the creative pen of Janice Scott ...
Read More About The Village Shepherd
|
| Proper 9 | OT 14 (Trinity 7) |
Retail Therapy | Romans 7:15-25a | Sermon
I went to the Royal Norfolk Show this year, with my daughter. It was a few years since either of us had been, and we were impressed by the size of the show. As well as the cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, horses, ducks, geese, hens and turkeys of every description, there were guinea pigs and rabbits and caged birds. There...
click here for the full sermon
|
Eternal life - for the childish, or the childlike? | Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30 | Sermon
Here in England we're now well into the wedding season, in which many young couples will follow the age old tradition of plighting their troth. Some of them will do so here in Pulham St. Mary church, and several more here in our benefice in South Norfolk. Although our country has the highest divorce rate in the whole of Europe...
click here for the full sermon
|
Coincidences | Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67 | Sermon
In a recent television documentary showing the possible long-term effects of the use of cannabis, a young man who had become mentally ill was featured. Since his constant use of cannabis started, he had gradually lost touch with reality and had begun to hear voices in his head. Now he had been off cannabis for some years, but the voices...
click here for the full sermon
|
We piped to you and you did not dance? | Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30 | Children's Story
He was such a nice man. He spent time with the children and seemed to enjoy playing their games. He was quite a musician, and would often gather a crowd of children around him by playing his pipe. It was a pipe he'd made himself, and on one occasion he took the children down to the nearby meadow and showed...
click here for the full story
|
The Sad Tale Of Simon Slug | Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30 | Children's Liturgy and Story
It can be really difficult to lay our burdens on Jesus. The human response is to keep going over and over our problems in our minds, allowing or encouraging ourselves to feel upset or angry or hurt all over again. This is a story about forgiving (ourselves) and forgetting....
click here for the full liturgy
|
God, lover of the childlike | Intercession
God, lover of the childlike, so often I catch myself being utterly childish. I pout and sulk when things don't go my way, and pretend I can't do anything unless someone comes with me. I know you understand the inner fears which cause me to act in this way, but such childish behaviour is ugly and cramping. Help me to develop the childlike qualities of fun and delight and laughter....
click here for the full prayer
|
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.
For every Sunday in all three cycles of the Revised Common Lectionary, you'll find:
- Sermons based on the Gospel readings
- Sermons based on the Epistle readings
- Children's stories linked with the Gospel readings (most are original,
through some are adaptations of old Christian legends or Bible stories)
- A group of intercessory prayers for your worship service
For just $29.95 for a one-year subscription, you can access this entire treasure trove of valuable sermon material and sermon resources. And our convenient search engine enables you to quickly find exactly what you need -- all the rich content of The Village Shepherd can be searched by scripture or keyword, as well as by the lectionary calendar.
>> Subscribe to The Village Shepherd
|
|
Reverend Janice Scott
Janice Scott is the Rural Dean of Redenhall Deanery, covering 32 parishes in South Norfolk, England. Her introduction to the Norfolk area came in 1999 when she received an e-mail from someone in a country parish, pleading for a priest. The writer turned out to be nine years old. As a result of that e-mail she became rector of six small country parishes in rural Norfolk, where she resides today.
Her career as a priest began in 1994 when she was ordained at Norwich Cathedral with the first group of women clergy in the UK.
In addition to her parish duties and writing The Village Shepherd, Rev. Janice Scott is a freelance writer for Redemptorist publications in the UK. She also broadcasts a "Pause for Thought" on a local radio station.
|
|
