The bidding today is LORD OF LENT and the response is RENEW OUR LIVESLet us pray.Lord Jesus, you called us to renounce evil and we remember today that, at the start of your ministry, you were tried and tempted by the forces of evil. You resisted the chance to be popular instead of faithful;to choose fame instead of service and power instead of sacrifice - but you set us all an example to follow by choosing the way of the Father.Teach us how to recognise the approach of evil in all its forms and to be on our guard against it. You faced temptation in your life and because of this may we never be ashamed of temptation in our own lives - but save us from the weakness that gives way to it. Grant us all the strength to stand up against all that is evil and keep us firm in times of trial and temptation knowing that your support and love are always close at hand.Make us resolute in obeying your will and seeking your kingdom that we may stay true to you.Lord of LentRenew Our LivesLord Jesus, we pray for your blessing on all who confess belief in you that they may witness powerfully to your unselfish love and humility. We offer you our thanks that we can meet together in this church and pray openly to you. We remember and pray for those who are denied this opportunity and are persecuted for their faith. We pray for all Christians wherever they may be and may they be strengthened by the power of your love.Help each one of us to see our priorities and not be led astray, Too often we fail to live up to our ideals; we compromise for comfort; we become too concerned about material things and seek our own glory. We fail to put our trust in you, trusting only in our own schemes and plans. During this time of Lent help us more clearly to see the ways by which we follow you and as we come to you for direction and nourishment, help us to forget ourselves and find true happiness in serving you. As we re examine our lives through self discipline, prayer and study may we enter your stillness, be sensitive to your call and know your will for us.Lord of LentRenew Our LivesLord Jesus, we pray for all people who hold positions of authority that they do not misuse their power to the detriment of those they are supposed to be helping. We pray for all the world’s leaders and for our own leaders who are responsible for making decisions about our future. We pray that they will be given the insight and integrity to govern wisely according to your will, being fully aware of the true needs of the people.Lord Jesus, look with compassion on all those whose minds are full of anxiety and bewilderment and for whom everyday is one of despair. We pray especially for the 3 International Aid workers kidnapped in the Sudan, for their safe return.
We pray for those caught up in conflict in Ethiopia, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.
We pray that you will turn their despair to hope and free them from fear and self hatred. Whatever the future may bring them, may they know that you are the rock on whom they depend and that your love will help to ease their burden.Lord of LentRenew Our Lives
Lord Jesus, we pray that you will bless and protect our homes, our families and our friends. Help us to build bridges of tolerance and understanding between the different generations. May our homes be havens of peace and rest – a place to call our own and a community in which we can feel safe and secure.Help us to be mindful of those who have no homes, families or friends. Make us grateful for all that we have so that we may use every endeavour to ensure that every person has a home to call his own and feels wanted within his own community.
We pray for the children and young people connected to our church through the various groups and especially for those who are beginning to sense the wonder, mysteries and difficulties of life. We ask that you will hold them in your love. May they, through the good influence of parents, families and the church, grow into a fuller understanding of your love and purpose. Help each one of us to respond to their needs. Give us patience and compassion, and help us to offer them our time and our experience with true sincerity and love.Lord of LentRenew Our LivesWe pray for all people everywhere in their varying needs. Into the gentleness of your healing love we bring before you the lonely, the hungry, those living in poverty and those without hope. We remember all those who are ill and in pain: those recovering from surgery - giving thanks for the work and dedication of our doctors and nurses: for those involved in crippling accidents. Today we pray for the victims, their families and the survivors of the recent German shootings and we offer our thanks for the work of the emergency services throughout the world.We have in our hearts some people known only to ourselves, who are in need of our prayers and we remember them in a moment of quiet……………….And this morning we pray especially for those who have been made known to us….PEW SHEET
May your healing touch support and strengthen them and we pray that you will remove from them all that hurts, harms and hinders.Lord of LentRenew Our LivesWe pray for all those who are mourning the loss of loved ones that you will comfort and strengthen them in their time of need.We remember before God all those who have died…………..
This morning we pray for and remember those whose anniversaries fall at this time …………………………Confident in the promise that those who believe in you will live though they have died, we give you thanks for all who have left their earthly body and now share with you the joys of heaven. Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your son, Our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Sunday 15 March 2009
Wednesday 11 March 2009
Discerment
Glen has a very good job with good working conditions and a great compensation package. He is an electrical engineer with a manufacturing company. His boss is very pleased with his work and Glen has good chances of continued promotions. He is well liked by those with whom he works. Glen and his wife Carol have raised three children who have all left home each with established lives and careers. Glen's life is comfortable, predictable and the road ahead seems very bright.
One day, while on a break at work, Glen reads a magazine article about a water project in El Salvador. The local people are trying to develop a system of wind-generated electricity to pump water for drinking and irrigation. They are seeking expertise from an electrical engineer. The magazine article promises that the work will be very rewarding. What could be more rewarding than helping people obtain a basic necessity of life like water? However, there is a catch. The person who comes to lead this project will be paid very little, will live in a small modest room, will work with mostly untrained labourers, and the weather could be very hot! Dream job…no not really!
Glen puts the article down and goes back to work. A little later that afternoon the article reappears in his mind, then the next day and the next. He starts waking up with the project as his first thoughts. Glen becomes restless, not able to sleep well at night. Why won't this leave him? He is very comfortable with his current job, the people with whom he works, the town in which he lives, and all parts of his life. He wants to enjoy the freedom he and Carol have. He has earned this lifestyle and he is going to take pleasure from it. After a few weeks of continuously trying to rid himself of the thoughts of the project with no success Glen finally confides in Carol. He tells her about the article and the project in El Salvador and how he just can't shake the thought of these people without water. He doesn't know what to do.
Carol patiently listens to Glen and then calmly says, "Honey, maybe this is God calling you to do this work."… Glen looks at her in disbelief. God calling him…Why he hardly knows anything about God, he hasn't been to church for years. Why would God pick him? Couldn't God see that he is quite happy where he is, doing what he is doing? Carol feels Glen's despair and suggests that they pray together. They have never prayed together as a couple, but this day they do. They ask God for direction. Is this really God calling them to go to El Salvador or is Glen just too stressed and this idea has taken hold in him? Carol also suggests that Glen talk with a few trusted friends to get their opinion. One particular person Glen seeks advice from is his mentor Gary. Gary, who is about to retire, had taken Glen under his wing when he first joined the company. Gary listens thoughtfully. He too thinks this may be God nudging him and asking him to leave behind the comfortable world to help those in need. Glen contacts the people in El Salvador and learns more about the project.
After much prayer and listening for God's direction, Glen and Carol believe that this is truly God's call upon their skills and accept the idea of going to El Salvador. Glen takes an extended leave from work and they fly to their new home. Glen begins work with limited technology and with little capital for needed supplies. Many of the workers do not understand English. Quite honestly some days Glen wonders if he has made the right decision. And yet each time when it seems like he has come to a crossroad with no direction, help comes. Glen becomes more and more excited as he learns to feel and see the presence of God in his work. As he claims God's presence in his life Glen is more alive than he has been in years. After months and months of planning, construction and very hard work the windmills are generating water. Hallelujah! Glen and Carol often pray together during this time and grow closer to one another and with God. Glen says that he would never have known such joy, peace and sense of satisfaction if he had stayed in his comfortable safe, secure world. He thanks God for the call upon his skills and life.
Each one of us is called to ministry…to share the skills and talents that we have been given by God. Not all of us are called to leave our homes and families. God calls many of us to use our gifts right were we live and work. God gives us different skills, varying abilities so that all talents may be used to benefit the world. But how do we know that it is truly God calling us to do something? How does discernment happen? God's call sometimes comes as a nudging of the Spirit, like Glen reading the article and then not being able to let it go. Many will say that the principal sign of the Holy Spirit is surprise. When we have ideas that we would not have dreamed up on our own I invite you to wonder if it is God. At times God's call comes to us as someone asking us to do a particular task or project… this person sees gifts and talents in us that we honestly cannot see in ourselves. My guess is, this has happened to you. Someone comes with an outrageous suggestion that they think you can respond to, and you just know they've lost their minds. And your immediate response is, "I can't do that!" But after giving it some thought you say, "God this seems like you are calling me, let's give it a try."
Prayer is an essential part of discernment. Like Samuel, we may need to sit in silence and say to God, "Speak Lord, for your servant is listening." Samuel needed the guidance of Eli his mentor, as he did not know whose voice he heard. We too need to seek out the wisdom of our mentors and trusted friends, those in our community of faith, as God works through them as well. Someone with an outside viewpoint can see the bigger picture and help us sort through what might feel very confusing… Someone who knows us and can truly say, "Go for it…You have the God given skills to do this piece of work to which you are called." It is interesting that Eli, Samuel's mentor, has to make Samuel do what God has called him to do. We may try to avoid the call of God and a mentor or trusted friend can keep us accountable to the call.
Learning to recognize God's Word for us individually and as a community of faith may involve more than just our willingness to serve God. Like Samuel we need mentors who will help us recognize when God wants us to sit in silence and listen. We need friends like Philip who encourages Nathanael to "come and see" …to discover God's activity in our lives. We need leaders like Eli who encourage the telling of God's truth no matter how painful or life-changing that Word may be. We need those who help us recognize God's prophetic Word so that we may be faithful servants whose response to God is "Here I am."
One day, while on a break at work, Glen reads a magazine article about a water project in El Salvador. The local people are trying to develop a system of wind-generated electricity to pump water for drinking and irrigation. They are seeking expertise from an electrical engineer. The magazine article promises that the work will be very rewarding. What could be more rewarding than helping people obtain a basic necessity of life like water? However, there is a catch. The person who comes to lead this project will be paid very little, will live in a small modest room, will work with mostly untrained labourers, and the weather could be very hot! Dream job…no not really!
Glen puts the article down and goes back to work. A little later that afternoon the article reappears in his mind, then the next day and the next. He starts waking up with the project as his first thoughts. Glen becomes restless, not able to sleep well at night. Why won't this leave him? He is very comfortable with his current job, the people with whom he works, the town in which he lives, and all parts of his life. He wants to enjoy the freedom he and Carol have. He has earned this lifestyle and he is going to take pleasure from it. After a few weeks of continuously trying to rid himself of the thoughts of the project with no success Glen finally confides in Carol. He tells her about the article and the project in El Salvador and how he just can't shake the thought of these people without water. He doesn't know what to do.
Carol patiently listens to Glen and then calmly says, "Honey, maybe this is God calling you to do this work."… Glen looks at her in disbelief. God calling him…Why he hardly knows anything about God, he hasn't been to church for years. Why would God pick him? Couldn't God see that he is quite happy where he is, doing what he is doing? Carol feels Glen's despair and suggests that they pray together. They have never prayed together as a couple, but this day they do. They ask God for direction. Is this really God calling them to go to El Salvador or is Glen just too stressed and this idea has taken hold in him? Carol also suggests that Glen talk with a few trusted friends to get their opinion. One particular person Glen seeks advice from is his mentor Gary. Gary, who is about to retire, had taken Glen under his wing when he first joined the company. Gary listens thoughtfully. He too thinks this may be God nudging him and asking him to leave behind the comfortable world to help those in need. Glen contacts the people in El Salvador and learns more about the project.
After much prayer and listening for God's direction, Glen and Carol believe that this is truly God's call upon their skills and accept the idea of going to El Salvador. Glen takes an extended leave from work and they fly to their new home. Glen begins work with limited technology and with little capital for needed supplies. Many of the workers do not understand English. Quite honestly some days Glen wonders if he has made the right decision. And yet each time when it seems like he has come to a crossroad with no direction, help comes. Glen becomes more and more excited as he learns to feel and see the presence of God in his work. As he claims God's presence in his life Glen is more alive than he has been in years. After months and months of planning, construction and very hard work the windmills are generating water. Hallelujah! Glen and Carol often pray together during this time and grow closer to one another and with God. Glen says that he would never have known such joy, peace and sense of satisfaction if he had stayed in his comfortable safe, secure world. He thanks God for the call upon his skills and life.
Each one of us is called to ministry…to share the skills and talents that we have been given by God. Not all of us are called to leave our homes and families. God calls many of us to use our gifts right were we live and work. God gives us different skills, varying abilities so that all talents may be used to benefit the world. But how do we know that it is truly God calling us to do something? How does discernment happen? God's call sometimes comes as a nudging of the Spirit, like Glen reading the article and then not being able to let it go. Many will say that the principal sign of the Holy Spirit is surprise. When we have ideas that we would not have dreamed up on our own I invite you to wonder if it is God. At times God's call comes to us as someone asking us to do a particular task or project… this person sees gifts and talents in us that we honestly cannot see in ourselves. My guess is, this has happened to you. Someone comes with an outrageous suggestion that they think you can respond to, and you just know they've lost their minds. And your immediate response is, "I can't do that!" But after giving it some thought you say, "God this seems like you are calling me, let's give it a try."
Prayer is an essential part of discernment. Like Samuel, we may need to sit in silence and say to God, "Speak Lord, for your servant is listening." Samuel needed the guidance of Eli his mentor, as he did not know whose voice he heard. We too need to seek out the wisdom of our mentors and trusted friends, those in our community of faith, as God works through them as well. Someone with an outside viewpoint can see the bigger picture and help us sort through what might feel very confusing… Someone who knows us and can truly say, "Go for it…You have the God given skills to do this piece of work to which you are called." It is interesting that Eli, Samuel's mentor, has to make Samuel do what God has called him to do. We may try to avoid the call of God and a mentor or trusted friend can keep us accountable to the call.
Learning to recognize God's Word for us individually and as a community of faith may involve more than just our willingness to serve God. Like Samuel we need mentors who will help us recognize when God wants us to sit in silence and listen. We need friends like Philip who encourages Nathanael to "come and see" …to discover God's activity in our lives. We need leaders like Eli who encourage the telling of God's truth no matter how painful or life-changing that Word may be. We need those who help us recognize God's prophetic Word so that we may be faithful servants whose response to God is "Here I am."
Discernment
Each one of us is called to ministry…to share the skills and talents that we have been given by God. Not all of us are called to leave our homes and families. God calls many of us to use our gifts right were we live and work. God gives us different skills, varying abilities so that all talents may be used to benefit the world. But how do we know that it is truly God calling us to do something? How does discernment happen?
Tuesday 10 March 2009
Prayer - Nourishment
I was thinking about how prayer gives me nourishment to carry on or helps me to put aside problems and trust in what God is doing with me. I believe I am always learning when praying, prayer gets better, when praying I do not stray and see things through God. But I do find it hard to trust, to understand and to make sure that I open up fully. I know God is around me and knows my inner most thoughts but sometimes I cannot get them out myself.
Each time we pray it gets easier, it is a relationship and we need to work at it and build it up over a period of time. We need to do this daily as we would in any relationship, I speak to my mum each day, my wife everyday, we need to speak to God everyday. Imagine if we were building a house and we did some building today and then left it, prayer is often left out of our lives for various reasons. Sometimes work is very busy, sometime home life can be busy and challenging so we miss the things we think we can do without. I don't believe we can do without prayer it is the nourishment that sustains us in our daily lives.
Each time we pray it gets easier, it is a relationship and we need to work at it and build it up over a period of time. We need to do this daily as we would in any relationship, I speak to my mum each day, my wife everyday, we need to speak to God everyday. Imagine if we were building a house and we did some building today and then left it, prayer is often left out of our lives for various reasons. Sometimes work is very busy, sometime home life can be busy and challenging so we miss the things we think we can do without. I don't believe we can do without prayer it is the nourishment that sustains us in our daily lives.
Thursday 5 March 2009
Ramblings about the week and Lent
A fair old week I've just had and although I haven't done much except lie down and read I'm still extremely tired. I have gone back to work today and now I'm even more exhausted, I'll have to have a afternoon snooze.
My Lenten plans have been messed up and I'm really eager to get them back on track. Along with the more frequent mass attendances and beefing up my prayer life in other ways as well. It is easy to miss out on prayer and attending extra services at church. Sometimes it cannot be helped such as when your ill but now I'm recovering I want to return to my plans. My other plans included some extra reading, especially on calling/vocation and discerning my own vocation within the Church.
Calling, vocation whatever word you want to use has been at the back of my mind for a few years now. How do you know you have a calling, people tell you. I know I need to follow up. Ever since my return to the church the whole experience has been different, not just participating but growing. Up to now I have attended several vocation evening's, a Living Stones conference and a chat with the DDO. I am aware that this is a new relationship with God and I see ordination simply as an outward public sign of that relationship and that the change in you as a person when you are ordained that others see in your ministry. So it doesn't have to be ordination into Priesthood but it could be another area, reader ministry or OLM for instance.
Anyway, it's the second week of our Lent course tonight. We are looking at what nourishes and sustains us on our journey to follow Christ. I'll let you know all about it.
My Lenten plans have been messed up and I'm really eager to get them back on track. Along with the more frequent mass attendances and beefing up my prayer life in other ways as well. It is easy to miss out on prayer and attending extra services at church. Sometimes it cannot be helped such as when your ill but now I'm recovering I want to return to my plans. My other plans included some extra reading, especially on calling/vocation and discerning my own vocation within the Church.
Calling, vocation whatever word you want to use has been at the back of my mind for a few years now. How do you know you have a calling, people tell you. I know I need to follow up. Ever since my return to the church the whole experience has been different, not just participating but growing. Up to now I have attended several vocation evening's, a Living Stones conference and a chat with the DDO. I am aware that this is a new relationship with God and I see ordination simply as an outward public sign of that relationship and that the change in you as a person when you are ordained that others see in your ministry. So it doesn't have to be ordination into Priesthood but it could be another area, reader ministry or OLM for instance.
Anyway, it's the second week of our Lent course tonight. We are looking at what nourishes and sustains us on our journey to follow Christ. I'll let you know all about it.
Stewardship.org.uk
Last Friday I visited a stewardship seminar at a local church. I wanted to gain two things from the evening;
A understanding of money from a biblical perspective - how should I be with my money & An understanding of what stewardship.org can do for others in the church with financial problems.
The evening was very good and informative, whether I can use this in my own church setting is debatable, however I can use the principles in my own life very easily. Definately worth looking at in the current economic climate.
For more information click on http://www.stewardship.org.uk/money/index.htm and have a look.
A understanding of money from a biblical perspective - how should I be with my money & An understanding of what stewardship.org can do for others in the church with financial problems.
The evening was very good and informative, whether I can use this in my own church setting is debatable, however I can use the principles in my own life very easily. Definately worth looking at in the current economic climate.
For more information click on http://www.stewardship.org.uk/money/index.htm and have a look.
A wake up call!!
Hi, this weeks been a busy week but not in the normal sense, last weekend I had severe chest pains and eventually visited the doctors on Monday night only to be told I have to go straight to A&E.
Once in A&E I was hooked up to an ECG and several syringe fulls of blood were taken away. Whilst waiting for the results to come back I was informed I'm now in the "high risk" category now that I'm 43 (I'd forgot I was 43, my brain doesn't think I'm that old). Anyway while waiting you start to imagine all sorts of things that could be wrong and you become a bit anxious, however around midnight they advise that my heart was in good condition but they didn't know what was actually causing the chest pains so i would have to stay in hospital.
I was admitted to the medical assessment unit for more tests. the next day results started to come in and the consultant visited me. The outcome was inflammation of the chest wall - whatever that means. They also found out I had a raised cholesterol reading of 6.2. I didn't think that was too bad, I know it's high but not as high as most peoples I know.
When you are lay there on the bed you have some time to think - What if this was my heart, what if this was more serious. At home the kids had been waiting for some response from Jackie so that they could all go to sleep, they had stayed up, waiting for some news. I was so glad that I was deemed healthy, so glad to be going home. I need to rest, I need to get rid of the pain, I need to take my tablets. I'll be using the rest of the week to read, paint and sleep.
This is a wake up call and in future I'll be making sure there is time for resting and recharging my batteries.
Once in A&E I was hooked up to an ECG and several syringe fulls of blood were taken away. Whilst waiting for the results to come back I was informed I'm now in the "high risk" category now that I'm 43 (I'd forgot I was 43, my brain doesn't think I'm that old). Anyway while waiting you start to imagine all sorts of things that could be wrong and you become a bit anxious, however around midnight they advise that my heart was in good condition but they didn't know what was actually causing the chest pains so i would have to stay in hospital.
I was admitted to the medical assessment unit for more tests. the next day results started to come in and the consultant visited me. The outcome was inflammation of the chest wall - whatever that means. They also found out I had a raised cholesterol reading of 6.2. I didn't think that was too bad, I know it's high but not as high as most peoples I know.
When you are lay there on the bed you have some time to think - What if this was my heart, what if this was more serious. At home the kids had been waiting for some response from Jackie so that they could all go to sleep, they had stayed up, waiting for some news. I was so glad that I was deemed healthy, so glad to be going home. I need to rest, I need to get rid of the pain, I need to take my tablets. I'll be using the rest of the week to read, paint and sleep.
This is a wake up call and in future I'll be making sure there is time for resting and recharging my batteries.
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