A Jack of All Trades

Pastor Jack Hayford died on January 8, 2023 at the age of eighty-eight

Jack Hayford was a preacher.
Just to hear him speak you’d think
you were standing in the presence of a king.
And when Jack would lead the hymns he wrote
we’d stand with upraised hands
and worship Christ the Savior as we’d sing.

Jack Hayford was an author.
Truths he’d gleaned within The Book
were planted first then watered on each page.
Jack helped us see our kinship
as the family of God
regardless of our gender or our age.

Jack Hayford was the leader
of the Foursquare Church at-large.
To the church of Aimee Semple he brought cred.
Jack helped show that Pentecostals
weren’t just feelings focused folk.
He was thoughtful in the things he wrote and read.

And Jack Hayford gave us Majesty.
I love that worship song.
In his lyrics he sees Christ upon the throne.
As His subjects we give honor
as we pay Him homage due
for the glories of His grace He has made known.  

Peace to his memory!

A Prayer for God’s Reign

King Charles walks with those who carry his mother’s casket at her funeral

With half the world
we watched, O God,
as one so dearly loved
was carried on the shoulders of our grief.

In silence and in song,
we heard You speak, Lord.
Through the words of Your Book,
we were reminded
of the pages of our lives
still being written.

Ironically, we recognize that
a world divided by race, religion, injustices and war
was united in this sacred moment
by a common task:
to remember Her Grace,
with somber gratitude,
as we contemplate Yours.

We acknowledge our alienation
from one another
and from You.
We confess our need of a Savior.
We embrace the gifts
of His presence and forgiveness.

For Elizabeth,
we voice our praise.
With knowledge of Your sovereign reign, we quiet our pride.
With a desire for Thy Kingdom come,
Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven, we pray.
Amen!

May God Save the Queen

Remembering Great Britain’s longest reigning monarch

Your Majesty, you claimed your crown
the year that I was born.
You grieved your father’s death atop the throne.
And now it is my time to grieve
for one so loved as you.
Your reign has been the longest Britain’s known.

You showed courageous dignity.
You modeled poise and grace.
You lived your faith with reverence, quietly.
Your Highness, when life bent you down
and you were feeling low,
you found the strength to stand tall capably.

Elizabeth, you’ve left your mark
on more than England’s soil.
Your legacy around the globe will shine.
And as the world bids you goodbye
with tributes well-deserved,
we sing “God Save the Queen” one final time.