Prayer meeting – Thursday 24th October 9.00 -10.00 am (and every Thursday).
A time of prayer for God’s renewing work in All Saints’ and in Christ Church. All welcome. Come when you can.
Wendy’s Prayer Thought for October 2019
I was alarmed to see pictures of the raging fires in the Amazon rain forest of Brazil, and even more so to discover that most are started through people. There have been a staggering 74,000 fires this year, an increase of 84% on figures for 2018. Many are deliberately set ablaze for clearing by loggers and farmers, in the process denuding the area of flora and fauna, as well as seriously effecting the indigenous peoples, by denying them of their home and sense of belonging with their dependence on the forests for food, clothing and medicines.
The Amazonian rain forest is rich in biodiversity, home to 3 million species of plants and animals, and the habitat of 1 million people. Britain has donated £9.5 million pounds to help in the prevention of further devastation through the rapid spreading of the flames, estimated to be at the rate of a football pitch a minute. The rain forest is a source of the world’s oxygen, providing 16-20% , so vital for the slowing down of global warming. The severity of the situation was witnessed 17,000 miles away by the city of Sao Paul when it was plunged into night time darkness in the middle of the day. (20th August). The reason for the blackout was the smoke which carries soot and carbon dioxide on the humid air.
James 3:5-6 compares the tongue to a forest fire. The Message translation reads: “It takes only a spark, remember to set a forest fire. A careless or wrong placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech, we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on reputation, send the whole world up in smoke.”
Words spoken by tongues out of control quickly destroy, spread evil, destroy relationships and like accompanying smoke pollute and choke. This was not the intention of God, the Creator. He gave us tongues that through the medium of speech we might be able to communicate with Him in praise and prayer, and communicate with each other , Our tongues were meant to further life and spread truth, not to be destructive like fire which consumes the oxygen we need to survive. The tongue is a wonderful part of our anatomy. It’s a movable set of muscles supplied with blood and nerves. It enables us to suck, swallow and differentiate taste, telling us whether we experience sweetness, sourness, bitterness, or saltiness.
Since none of us are immune from Satan’s wiles, for he is always ready to corrupt our words we must ask the Holy Spirit to direct our words so the they neither run wild, nor cause widespread damage. We can pray for our tongues to utter words with sensitivity. David asked for God’s help in this. Let us make it our prayer. “Set a guard, O Lord, before my mouth; keep watch at the door of my lips.” Psalm 141:2-3. For this he sought God’s grace praying: “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and Redeemer Psalm19:14 (Amplified Bible ).
Father God, help me to be careful with the words from my mouth
Three Minute Retreat
Do you feel that it’s hard to find time for prayer?
Even a short time spent in prayer can help you to refocus and to connect with God. Rev’d Sue and Reader Diane recommend this website which offers a guided 3 minute retreat. There’s a time to pause, a short reading, two questions to get you thinking and a little prayer. You can get it as an app for different types of mobile phone too.
https://www.loyolapress.com/retreats/simple-rules-start-retreat
United Christian Broadcasters (UCB)
UCB produce a great daily devotional which is recommend by our church. It is a helpful reflection on a very short daily Bible reading which helps readers to apply Biblical truths to their everyday lives. Click on the link below to read or listen to the UCB ‘Word for Today’
https://www.ucb.co.uk/word-for-today
Pause/Pray
Pause/Pray is a free series of Bible reflections, available as a podcast or download. They include original music, guided prayers and themes related to daily life. A new one is available each fortnight. To stream or download the episodes or subscribe to the podcast go to iTunes or your regular podcast app.https://www.engageworship.org/pausepray
Pathways to Prayer
The Diocese are running 3 ‘Pathways to Prayer’ events over the next few months. This is a wonderful opportunity for all people of every tradition to explore fresh perspectives on patterns and styles of prayer, contemplation and meditation through a diverse range of workshops. For further details, and to book, click on the links below.
Day with Bishop Jill 19th October at Xavarian Mission Spirituality Centre
Our Diocesan Prayer.
Heavenly Father, we embrace Your call for us to make disciples, to be witnesses and to grow leaders. Give us the eyes to see Your vision, ears to hear the prompting of Your Spirit and courage to follow in the footsteps of your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. AMEN
This Prayer Page
At All Saints’ Appley Bridge, we believe that earnest, thoughtful, regular and honest prayer is the key to our individual and collective relationship with our wonderful Creator, God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. If you want to share a prayer or prayers on this page, do not hesitate to contact us with your thoughts. If there is a situation that you wish to bring before God and would like us to be mindful of as a Church family, share it with us. We want to share together what we want to say to Him.