General Chat

Good morning :-)

Next week we will be approaching the start of Lent – a time of quietness and reflection.

Before we reach that time, I thought it would be good to share some happiness……something good, funny or quirky during the next few days.

Today, we have a prayer for laughter…

Dear God,
As I stumble through this life, help me to create more laughter than tears, dispense more cheer than gloom, spread more cheer than despair. Never let me become so indifferent, that I will fail to see the wonders in the eyes of a child, or the twinkle in the eyes of the aged.

Never let me forget that my total effort is to cheer people, make them happy, and forget momentarily, all the unpleasantness in their lives. And in my final moment, may I hear You whisper: When you made My people smile, you made Me smile.
Amen

Cx :-)

Good morning... :-)


I totally agree Vera....without those unsung heroes, the volunteers, many charities and helpful agencies would flounder. We thank God for those who are able and willing to give up their time to help others.

This past week we have been praying for various aspects of our communities.
To end, we pray for our church communities scattered across the area. We are blessed to live in a country where we have religious freedom and many churches of all denominations.

Lord, we pray for ourselves and for our friends in these other churches. Enable our churches to do your will. Make them outward looking to care deeply. Make them communities of peacemakers and bridge builders in the midst of a troubled world. Let our churches make space for the hearing of your still small voice. Amen.

Cx :-)

Good morning all

Lovely to see you Kandj. I have never thought of prayer-walking. It seems a good idea.

I hope your eye is comfortable Emma and the cataract removal will improve your sight for you.

Amen to the prayers this week, Cynthia, which must be relevant to all of us. Can I add a prayer of thanks for the volunteers who bind local communities together. I’m thinking of those who give so much time and effort to run the neighbourhood clubs and social groups, the youth organisations, the local newsletter and so on. Thanks to them all.

Hope you all have a peaceful and enjoyable weekend.

Good morning... :-)

Lovely to hear from you both this morning.. <3 Emma, I do hope the cataract op is really successful and that your sight is much improved. Sending love.

Also very glad to hear about your daily prayer walks Kandj…..you will be wearing lycra and jogging soon!! :-D

Prayers for our communities..

Sadly, each community has its share of crime in all its forms. Today we think of those who are involved in such a life but who would desperately like to leave it behind.

Heavenly Father, please hear me tonight,
I need so much guidance to live my life right.
Sometimes the pressure is too hard to bear,
I even often wonder if anyone cares.
How can I wake up and face a new day,
Knowing I must live this crazy way?
Heavenly Father, forgive all my sins.

Give me strength to resist the life I desire.
Help me escape temptation and the fire.
Please help my family, whose eyes silently plead,
For me not to do wrong, as they pray for me.
God bless my mother who cries every night,
worrying if I might be killed in a fight.

Heavenly Father, answer my prayer,
Please let me know you’re listening up there.
When will it end? What’s it all for?
To prove to my peers, 'I'm down? I'm hardcore? '.
Sometimes I wonder how I will die...
By a bullet to the chest, or a knife in my side?
Heavenly Father, please hear me tonight.

Show me the way Lord; show me the Light,
Give my heart peace so I don't have to fight.
Thank you for your forgiveness, and for being there.
But most of all, thank you for hearing my prayer.

Cx :-)

Hello Cynthia and all :-)

Have just caught up with your posts Cynthia as had a cataract op on Tuesday.

As always much appreciate your time and knowing you are
busy doing nursing duties hope you are able to take time
for yourself.
I do hope your husband and daughter are coping.

xx

Hello all.

Amen to your prayer for the community today Cynthia and thank you for your postings

I push myself to go for a daily walk around the block. It gets me out of four walls for fresh air and gentle exercise. I also use this time to "prayer-walk" for all neighbours which is a good and productive way to spend my time.

Gentle hugs to all struggling a little today xx

Good morning :-)

Prayers for our communities.

Every community has a nursing/care home which cares for our family members and friends who can no longer cope on their own.

Jesus, we ask for comfort
and hope for those who
are in nursing homes
May they feel your presence
and know you see them
as precious and having
your love in their hearts
May they be treated with dignity
We also pray for the caregivers
They have such a hard job
and many times don't receive
acknowledgement for what they do
May they know the importance
and beauty of their job
and realize they are
bringing you to the people
they are serving
Please give them strength
when they become tired and
when the job becomes very stressful
May the people who make decisions
regarding the money that
nursing homes receive
know they too will be older
one day and to be sensitive
to the needs and challenges
of these wonderful people
Amen


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)

Ooops...missed another day....sorry! I spent a fair amount of time sorting out a furniture delivery, only to discover that the firm had got the order wrong.....sigh. Will take up the cudgels again today probably... :-D


Prayers for our community

Pray for those who are pregnant. Pray for those who have unexpected pregnancies to have wise decision-making skills and support. Pray for those suffering from postpartum depression to receive help and experience hope and healing.

Father, You are the Creator of all life. You know us whole we are still in our mothers’ wombs, and you know all the days of our lives before they happen. Thank You for the lives growing within mothers. Protect the children growing inside them. May this be a special time of seeing You in deep and meaningful ways. Ease their fears and anxieties about giving birth. Should they experience complications in their pregnancies, help them know the peace and comfort of Your presence.

Surround those with unexpected pregnancies with a community to love and support them long-term through the challenges ahead. For those who are suffering from depression and anxiety, give them courage to ask for help. Enable the community around them to see signs of their despair and offer help in ways they can accept. Help them to receive Your love and healing. Amen.

Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


This week we will think of various aspects of our own communities.

Today we think of those in our community who are waiting to adopt children, waiting children, foster parents, and children who are in care.

Father, we pray for every child to be part of a loving family. Be with these families and provide for their financial, emotional, and physical needs as they adopt.

Give wisdom to the adoption agencies and foster families and comfort birth parents as they make the hard choice to release their child.

Thank you for the nurseries and staff who care for young children.

Watch over children as they wait for their forever family. Continue to knit together these families who have completed their adoptions.

May our loving community support and encourage all those who are involved in this aspect of life. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)

Oops...sorry, I missed yesterday and hadn't realised...... :-(


The Collect (special prayer) for today :

Almighty God, who alone can bring order to the unruly wills
and passions of sinful humanity: give your people grace so to love
what you command and to desire what you promise, that,
among the many changes of this world, our hearts may surely there
be fixed where true joys are to be found;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The gospel for today concentrates on Jesus teaching the crowds the Beatitudes.


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)

The Syrophoenician Woman’s Faith

From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet.

Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” But she answered him, “Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Then he said to her, “For saying that, you may go—the demon has left your daughter.” So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.

Lord, let my faith be full and unreserved,
and let it penetrate my thoughts.
Lord, let my faith be joyful,
and give peace and gladness to my spirit.
Lord, let my faith be humble,
and let it surrender to the testimony of the Holy Spirit. Amen.


Cx :-)

Good morning and Happy Valentine's Day. <3 <3


Continuing on from yesterday with St. Mark…….

Then he called the crowd again and said to them, “Listen to me, all of you, and understand: there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.”

When he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about the parable. He said to them, “Then do you also fail to understand? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile, since it enters, not the heart but the stomach, and goes out into the sewer?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.)

And he said, “It is what comes out of a person that defiles. For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”


Guard your heart above all else,
for it determines the course of your life.
Avoid all perverse talk;
stay away from corrupt speech.
Look straight ahead,
and fix your eyes on what lies before you.
Mark out a straight path for your feet;
stay on the safe path.
Don’t get sidetracked;
keep your feet from following evil. (Proverbs 4:23-27)


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


I think this 'running a nursing home' business is a long term thing to be honest. OH will not improve and it will be a long time before daughter will settle down. Excuse me whilst I adjust my apron and cap :-D :-D


Going with Mark, and its quite a long reading so I have split it into two to cover today and tomorrow ...

The Tradition of the Elders
Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. (For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders; and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.)

So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” He said to them, “Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written,

‘This people honour me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me;
in vain do they worship me,
teaching human precepts as doctrines.’

You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition.”
Then he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition! For Moses said, ‘Honour your father and your mother’; and, ‘Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must surely die.’ But you say that if anyone tells father or mother, ‘Whatever support you might have had from me is Corban’ (that is, an offering to God)— then you no longer permit doing anything for a father or mother, thus making void the word of God through your tradition that you have handed on. And you do many things like this.”

Forgive me, Lord, for my wandering heart. Cleanse me from all that draws me away from you. May I turn to you this day, so that I might be found by you and restored into intimate fellowship with you.

Cx :-)

I also hope your invalids recover soon Cynthia.

My husband is my carer and I am blessed. I do
feel guilty because as Vera says it does take its toll
on him at times.

A labour of love. <3

Oh dear, I hope your invalids recover very soon though I have to say that Sister Cynthia has a good ring to it :-)

Caring for someone with a long term problem really can take its toll, so, if you can, make sure you have time for you.

Thinking of carers everywhere <3

Good morning :-)


Thank you Vera.....it's quite interesting to read the various stories individually isn't it? I Helps to build up the bigger picture in a way.

I feel as though I am running a nursing home! Apart from OH, whose Parkinson's is taking its toll, we have also had our daughter with us since before Christmas. I seem to rush from one to the other........Just call me 'Matron' :-D :-D

St. Mark today...

So many wonderful stories from St Mark......

Healing the Sick in Gennesaret

When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored the boat. When they got out of the boat, people at once recognized him, and rushed about that whole region and began to bring the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. And wherever he went, into villages or cities or farms, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his cloak; and all who touched it were healed.

Lord,
help me to be open to your presence.
Help me to slow down and recognize you in my daily life. Remind me of your steadfast commitment to search for, seek out, and find all those who are lost or in need, even me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.


Cx :-)

I can’t believe yet another week has gone by.

I have just been googling St Mark to learn a bit more about him as my knowledge of the saints is woefully inadequate.

Thank you for the continuing posts Cynthia; your time and trouble are appreciated <3

Good morning :-)


Continuing with St. Mark for this week and then, maybe, a change...we can always come back to this gospel. :-D

Jesus Walks on the Water
Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. After saying farewell to them, he went up on the mountain to pray.
When evening came, the boat was out on the sea, and he was alone on the land. When he saw that they were straining at the oars against an adverse wind, he came towards them early in the morning, walking on the sea. He intended to pass them by. But when they saw him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out; for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.” Then he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.


Jesus calls us to step out on to the water with him,
to leave the safety of our boats,
and to walk toward Him in faith,
joining Him in the work He is already doing in our world.
And when the wind and waves get high and threaten to overwhelm us,
we remember His words:
“Don’t be afraid. Take courage. I am here.”
So let’s go with faith,
to follow where Jesus leads,
confident that His love and presence go with us. Amen.


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)



The Collect (special prayer) for today :

O God, you know us to be set in the midst of so many and great dangers, that by reason of the frailty of our nature we cannot always stand upright: grant to us such strength and protection as may support us in all dangers and carry us through all temptations; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

The reading is taken from Peter and gives us instructions on how we should behave.


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)

St. Mark....one of the most familiar stories....


Feeding the Five Thousand

The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. He said to them, “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves.

Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.

When it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now very late send them away so that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy something for themselves to eat.” But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” They said to him, “Are we to go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread, and give it to them to eat?” And he said to them, “How many loaves have you? Go and see.” When they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.”

Then he ordered them to get all the people to sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups of hundreds and of fifties. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and he divided the two fish among them all. And all ate and were filled; and they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. Those who had eaten the loaves numbered five thousand men.


Loving God,
You are our Creator and Sustainer.
When You open Your hand,
You satisfy the hunger and thirst of every living thing.
You once fed the hungry crowds with five loaves and two small fish,
And so we look to You whenever we are in need,
trusting in Your love and Your abundant goodness. Amen.


Cx :-)