Drama - Year A - Holy Trinity (Pentecost 01)

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Drama - Year A - Holy Trinity (Pentecost 01)

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DRAMA—SERIES A—TRINITY

Bible reference: Matthew 28:19,20

 

PREPARED TO GO

 

Characters: John (a typical Christian in the pew)

      Narrator (Story-telling style)

      God’s voice

Props:

Seats set up like pews, cushion, hymnbook/songbook, packet of Kool Mints

 

(This drama could be done as a whole, or the Pastor/speaker could prepare the three talks to be interspersed through drama)

 

NARRATOR:

      Once upon a time in a church far, far away sat a Christian named John. (John enters carrying cushion and hymnbook/songbook)

      As Christians go, John was experienced.

      He’d been sitting in churches since he was head-high to a communion rail. (John walks towards ‘church’). Each Sunday he made the trip to church, (Looks for a seat) found himself a seat towards the back, (Places a cushion carefully on the seat) placed his cushion on the cold hard pews, (Sits down and wriggles round to find a comfortable position, then settles back) and settled in for the duration of whatever liturgy was being used that morning.

 

      When it was time to pray, John prayed. (John prays)

      When it was time to sing, he sang. (John opens hymnbook and mimes singing loudly)

      When it was time to listen, he listened. (John sits , adopts listening pose)

 

      However, the one thing John liked about church more than anything else, even more than the Scotch Finger biscuits for morning tea, was the sermon. He found them inspiring. They made him feel good inside and proud to be part of his church.

 

      In fact, had John been a little more of the charismatic persuasion he might well have shouted out ‘Amen, Brother’ (Raises hand as if to say ‘Amen brother’ but looks around embarrassed and hides his hand) at the end of a few of them over the years. But being a good Lutheran he always contented himself by singing the next hymn extra loud. (Opens hymnbook and mimes singing extra loud)

 

      Always, that is, until Trinity Sunday 1999. (Or other appropriate day and date)

 

      You see, something strange happened to John that day. Something that had never ever happened before. Something that threw him completely.

 

      And it happened right in the middle of the sermon. (John adopts listening pose)

 

      The sermon theme was ‘Prepared to go’. The congregation was attentive. The pastor was in fine form. He talked about the great mission of the church. He talked about the urgency of        the task at hand. He talked about all God’s people putting on the full armour of Christ and marching out to battle. Fine stuff.

 

      (John opens a packet of Kool Mints and fishes one out) John was just humming a few bars of ‘Onward Christian Soldiers’ to himself and popping another Kool Mint into his mouth, (Goes        to pop Kool Mint in mouth) it looked like being a four Kool Mint sermon, when suddenly he heard a voice,

 

GOD’S VOICE:

      John. (John looks around for the voice)

 

NARRATOR:


      He turned to offer his wife a Kool Mint (Turns to the seat beside him with Kool Mint in hand)       but suddenly realised that Raylene was sitting with her eyes closed listening to the pastor. (Waves hand in front of eyes of imaginary wife) At least, he supposed she was listening to        the pastor. (Shrugs and turns away from her, pops Kool Mint in mouth)

 

              Anyway there wasn’t time to find out, for at that instant the voice came again,

 

GOD’S VOICE:

      John.

 

NARRATOR:


      He looked left. (John looks left) He looked right. (Looks right) But wherever he looked, no-one appeared to be speaking to him. (Looks under seat for voice)

 

GOD’S VOICE :

      John.

 

NARRATOR:

      There it was again. It was at this point that it suddenly dawned on him who it was that was speaking. (Looks up slowly, shocked) It was God.

 

              This was a shock for John. (Puts hand over heart)

 

      ‘No’, he thought, ‘it can’t be. (Shakes head in disbelief) Why would God (Looks up                        cautiously) want to talk to me? (Points to himself) It must be some kind of mistake.Õ (Shakes                head again) But there it was again.

 

GOD’S VOICE:

      John

 

NARRATOR:

      (John looks up) The voice was starting to sound a little bit irritated.

 

JOHN: (Nervously) Who, me?

 

GOD:

      Yes, you! Thank goodness you’re finally listening. I want to have a word with you about this sermon. I want to get one thing straight. When the guy up the front talks about God’s people he means you!

 

JOHN: Who, me?

 

GOD:

      When he talks about my people getting their hands dirty in my work he means you.

 

JOHN: Who, me?

 

GOD:

      When he talks about God’s chosen ones being ready, willing and able, he means you.

 

JOHN: Who, me?

 

GOD:

      Yes, you!

 

NARRATOR:


      John’s mind raced. His half-finished Kool Mint stuck to the roof of his mouth. (John tries to get Kool Mint off roof of mouth) Surely God        couldn’t be serious. And then he spoke.

 

JOHN:

      Hang on, God. Hang on just one minute!

 

(Optional: The first section of the sermon/talk could now be presented—the gist being that while John tells God to hang on, meaning to tell him to slow down, God tells John to Hang On to him in faith. Being prepared to go out in mission means a step out in faith, a hanging onto the coat tails of God and his Spirit as he leads and directs. Or God continues...)

 

GOD:

      No, you need to hang on to me.

 

JOHN :   (Rolls eyes at God) Well! Just like God to turn your own words back on you.

 

NARRATOR:


      He felt a little put out. (John looks put out) He had meant to slow things down but instead God had told him to ‘Hang on’. That was all very well, but John felt like a passenger on a runaway train. (Holds tightly onto seat)

 

              He sucked reflectively on his Kool Mint (Sucks Kool Mint, thoughtfully) for a moment and thought about what God expected of him. Suddenly he felt very, very small. (Shrinks down in his seat)

 

JOHN : (Looks up) But I’m only me...I’m only John...an ordinary Christian.

 

(Optional: The second part of the sermon/talk could be included here, focussing on our excuses for not going out as God calls us to. ‘But I’m only...an ordinary Christian, a layperson, a farmer, new Christian, a whatever. Talk directs us to God’s strength being made perfect in weakness. Or God continues...)

 

GOD:

      But I’m me, and my strength is made perfect in weakness.

              For where human strength ends, God’s strength begins.


      And where human strength begins, God’s strength ends.

 

JOHN : (Thoughtfully) For where human strength ends, God’s strength begins.


And where human strength begins, God’s strength ends.

 

NARRATOR:


      John knew deep down that God was right.

 

              The thought both frightened and excited him. It all depended on whether he focussed his thoughts on himself (Points to self) or on God. (Looks up)

 

              John took a deep breath (John takes deep breath) and decided to bite the bullet.

 

JOHN : OK, God You’re right, I am prepared to go. Just one question. Where is it that I’m going?

 

GOD’S VOICE :

      John. You’re going to die.

 

NARRATOR:


      John coughed. (John coughs...) He spluttered.(Splutters) He went bright red. (Coughs again) There wasn’t much of the Kool Mint left in his mouth but at the mention of death John sat bolt upright (Sits upright and starts to choke) and the morsel somehow found its way to the back of his throat and lodged there. (Coughs again and Kool Mint goes flying) He said weakly...

 

JOHN:

      (He sags weakly in chair, looking up) Going to die?

 

(Optional: The third part of the sermon/talk takes up the path of the cross to which Jesus calls us. We are to be bearers of the cross just as he was. This means sacrifice, service, cross-bearing. Or God continues...)

 

GOD:

      Yes. You need to take up the path of the cross that Jesus calls you to. You are to be a bearer of the cross just as he was. That means sacrifice, service, cross-bearing.

 

NARRATOR:


      John the Christian liked sermons. But on that Sunday he didn’t sing extra loud during the hymn that followed.

 

              Instead he sat still and silent and he prayed. (John sits and prays)

              John prayed for three things.

 

              For strength to hang on to God.

              For focus on God’s strength and not his own.

              For courage to die as Jesus had done.

 

              Then he took a fresh Kool Mint from his pocket (Gets Kool Mint out and pops it in mouth) and popped it in his mouth. As it dissolved slowly he thought about how, when and where he was going to go in his mission as one of God’s people. With God’s help, of course. (Exits)

 

© Michael Fulwood 1991

 

Permission is given for the owner of this disk to make sufficient copies of this script for their group or congregation, for rehearsal and performance purposes only.