Compline (night prayer) - Saturday, 6 June 2020

Today we said goodbye to one of life's lovely people, may he, and all who have died this day rest in peace and rise in Glory.

As we prayed for those who remain we also prayed for the needs of the world, those in it (known and unknown) and for ourselves and all that they day has held.

Then, job done, we head for bed in readiness for a new day of blessing, joy, sorrow and challenge.

Compline (Not a milky drink!)

Compline (night prayer) - Tuesday, 19 May 2020

Compline: the very last word of the day as we come to God with all that has been and entrust it, and us, into His hands :-)


 

Compline (night prayer) - Saturday, 9 May 2020

As is our custom and practice we end our day with this short, but beautiful and most valuable, service of prayer as closure for the day now past and preparation for our beds. Another day of challenge, joy and blessing done :-)

A New Year Prayer

I know it's early, but some of you will have beds to go to (or will see this tomorrow): Regardless, I trust, hope and pray that you and yours will have a most blessed, peaceful and joy-filled New Year.

(Click on the image to see it full-size if it's too small).

How will we pray this week?

It seems to me that so often people regard prayer as an opportunity to tell God what they want!

For many, prayer is the opportunity to return to the childhood days - when you wanted something, all we needed to do was . . .

Climb on his knee and tell Him what we wanted!

And for so many of us, this is the model of prayer we've adopted and used in our Christian lives.

The question has to be: How will you pray this week?

God knows our needs before we even ask. We pray to remind ourselves how important people and things are, not to tell God what we want Him to do.

Perhaps, for many of us, having lost sight of this can best be explained by this . . .

There are others of us who will be totally bound up in the formulaic ACTS - a great thing to teach people to pray, moving past the 'gimme, gimme.gimme' praying. But so often ACTS is the end point, not the starting point - so if that's what we think prayer is, then we need to grow our prayer life a bit more.

And of course there's that prayer we ought to be saying every day:

Let's try to pray for people and things in a different, more engaged, less demanding way this week and perhaps, where we can be the answer - we will determine to be the answer!

Journal: Sound of silence

One of the greatest funeral challenges comes in the shape of the unsaid eulogy. Now usually I make sure that I have sufficient notes to do something regardless of whoever it is that is doing the eulogy, but the temptation to scrimp on a person's history is always with us and when a eulogy turns into a poem, you can find yourself on thin ice! Just saying.

Yesterday was an action packed event with a church service, a couple of crem' visits (with a Warden's meeting in the space between), kid's club and a dinner to speak at. Add to this a garnish of administration (which, like the poor will always be with us) and you have yourself a fairly rammed sixteen hours of vicaring.

Reflecting in the day I found myself ticking 'hoped for' many boxes.
Dead honoured - yep.
Gospel preached - every opportunity I had.
Pastorally engaged - pretty much, although wilted a bit by the afternoon with my engagement and wasn't as sparkly and whatever as I could have been.
Prayer - felt a bit of a 'cat's lick and a promise' day once daily office was squared away.
Abrasiveness - kept being smiley and suffered fools (and there were a few yesterday) pretty well: Must be growing up a bit!
Worship - loads of it.
Paperwork and admin' - enough to avoid drowning :-)

So Lord, we've come through another day together and survived.
Thank You for today - let's do it again tomorrow, perhaps with a bit of 'slow time' in it. (Did I really used to teach time management?)

Journal: a joyous day

Time off is upon me and I'm loving it. That said still had to organise some funerals that have just come in and do some telephone calls but enjoying time with the wife.

God continues to bless, provide and wipe slate clean and that's more than any of us deserve - but thankfully Grace has that covered!

Praying for:

P, who has gone into hospital with a trip to the theatre for heart surgery tomorrow,

D, who had a mental health review today,

C, who needs a home and some stability.

K, for continued progress with their life.

L, for the bargain bucket of needs they, and their family, have,

LA & LP that God would continue to bless and that the journey would be gentle,

Lord, hear our Prayer.

(Feel free to pray for the needs above and stand with me in prayer for them)

This place of reflection is here for me to dialogue internally and gain insight and perspective. It first appeared in this current form for some of those looking at creating their own journal as part of the their journey to discerning vocation. The Morning prayer is there also for that same purpose: to create the discipline of prayer.

Journal: visiting a new old place

This morning started with heavy frost and the sort of beautiful blue skies that Winter often provides as I climbed out of bed and made my way to a new place of worship for an 'early' Book of Common Prayer (BCP) Communion. The morning may have been cold but the welcome, and the building, were warm - and that's always a blessing!

Today's service was a straightforward BCP service in which we reflected upon The Presentation and Jesus coming into contact with Simeon and Anna. The people alongside me were keen to make sure I had what I needed to get through the service and as I was about to leave the altar rail a hand grabbed me to let me know that we stayed where we were until everyone was communicated.

When the service was done I had a quick look around the building (and having been pointed to 'something of interest' I paid an interesting tomb a bit of a visit before mooching for a few minutes before heading for the door, only to find myself engaged with by one of the people who'd been at the service and offered tea and toast!

What made this nice was that I got to chat to people, and the local dogcollar too, and learnt much about the building and the changes, glimpses of the ministry and the 'messy church' like children's work to be engaged with the following week (please pray for those running it and those who might come to St Hilda's). The pews in the place had gone and they'd installed effective heating and the warmth of the place bore testimony to that - But the sacred space that this building is and the rubbing shoulders with saints past was made special by rubbing shoulders with those present.

I can honestly say that this has to be one of the best church visits I have made for ages.
The building was welcoming and obviously cared for,
The liturgy was straightforward and thoughtfully presented without deviating or distracting us from the particular form that is BCP.
The Church made real in the living stones alongside me was engaged and welcoming - the offer of tea and toast was earnest and hard to pass up as the person asking me, having ascertained that I was merely passing though, didn't walk away as they realised I was a scalp but persevered as if they valued the fact that I was family.

So I stayed for tea and toast and engaged in making koinonia a reality - and am sure that the next time I'm in that place I'll be visiting again. And until I do thee will be prayers offered up for the work of the Church in that building that doors would be opened and lives changed by its ministry, history and the work of the people there. A real bleeding and great start to my day.

And the day continued to be just as good - a new addition to the family engaged with, and the in-laws looking good, and the new family unit being everything one could pray for - Lord, bless them and surround them with your love and your presence. Sadly though time was such that before it got going the road to Tamworth beckoned and we had to depart.

Lord for our families, for new life (and for old life too) I can but thank you. Keep us united and help us to see the strength and value that each one of us bring to, and the importance that thee is in, family.

Thank you for the places of worship, and the welcome, warmth, and family that is to be found within their walls - bless the family of St Hilda's and strengthen their arms that the battle might be won in that place.

Thank you for my own places of worship - help us to look to You and stay authentic, tolerant, selfless and open-handed. Help us to not see the fault in others but to see the feet of clay that impede us in our journey through this life, and thus enlightened, bless those who might otherwise be cursed by our own folly.

I pray for the day ahead and the opportunities a new week will bring - help us to do nothing in our own strength and to pray, consider, and obediently go forward - in Your name and for Your namesake.

Bless our families, biological, ecclesial, and gathered by means odd and otherwise and make us a blessing in them also.

For the bread today, the forgiveness and the presence of you love I give you thanks and looking expectantly to another day, bless you for all You are to me, and in me.

Jesus, I thank You for the cross and the ability to proclaim that You are risen indeed!

The day Thou gavest . . .

. . . is drawing to a close and there is so much to be thankful for that I might still be here when tomorrow gets underway. I've managed to be involved in an Ofsted inspection, taught Values and Standards, engaged with senior school pupils on a variety of issues and topics, been out on a community engagement thing, did study on the radio and been to Lichfield for too!

There have been a number of warm and fuzzy moments today - I don't think I missed any of the opportunities that arose and neither did I force the issue either. I've played with technology on the web and done some post-production sound engineering and enjoyed reading the Word and chatting to the Boss.

It's amazing how chilled and positive life can be when you fill it with people and God at every possible opprtunity - I love listening to God and think making connections between Him and the world He made for us is perhaps the greatest privilege and joy open to us.

Conversations with those who are 'far off' is often more Christocentric that those which occur with those who might otherwise consider themselves to be near, how strange is that?

Weirdest conversations today's all related to whether groupings were. hristian or not. We kicked off with the Jehovah's Witnesses (must stop calling them witlesses, sorry Lord) and then another and then another regarding the Morons (I know, I'm trying to change, honest God)! Just got through the Charles Taizé Russell and Joseph Smith and their 'dodgy' bits when up popped a Quaker issue - problem was they assumed that they were all Christians groups, even though they acknowledged that all three surely weren't. There are times when the need to draw lines and the desire to minimise the potential for conflict just become too difficult, I took the easy route and told the truth.

The Most joy from conversations was found in conversations about what is orthodox (right thinking and theology) and what is heresy (wrong thinking and doctrine) and find myself agreed with my logic endorsed. When the darkness appears, turn on the lights and let all see by the light.

Most difficult conversation has to be the person who wanted help but didn't want it to come for free. "If I don't pay, how can you do what I need they asked?" Explaining the Jesus came to bring eternal life for free and how the inability to flash the cash and pay 'your way' was one of the tests of a situation to permit others to step into the gap; and reflect on how we can neither 'outgive' God nor reduce the Lord to a token role, especially at Christmas, was something rather important.

The sad bit came in the death of a nice bloke leaving a family broken at the fragility of life. Seizing the day and living life to the full is essential for we have no idea how long we have. All the days numbered for us were written in the Lamb's book of life before one of them came to be.There is nowhere, and nothing, that can separate us from God's love. So we pray for the family and commend the person who has gone to grace, love, care and mercy of God and be willing, and be ready, to be part of the healing if we can and be caught up in prayer regardless.

So there we go, a busy day mades pleasurable by the people with whom I have engaged - and the greatest of these is, as ever, God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) - and challenging by the person I am. Changes: Good, bad and indifferent are always present. HElp me to take the opportunities for good, shun the opportunities for bad and take the opportunities to change and become more like you. Tomorrow.

Goodnight Lord, let's do this all over again; exactly the same and yet different - counter-cultural, diverse, one.

Pax

Who is building your house today?

I was taken up by the opening words of Psalm 127 and then struck down by them as I reflected upon what they really say. How often have you heard this Psalm used as a bit of prooftexting in a sermon to speak of vision and 'working with/for God'?

But have we really ever stopped to think about the emphasis and impact of the passage as I've scribbled it below:

Unless God is behind it - we labour is in vain.
Unless the Lord defends it - we guard it in vain.
Up early and bed late - working with God or because we don't trust Him?

Unless we are in step with God, we labour in vain. The problem is that we don't seem to do a lot of listening to God when it comes to what He wants, in fact whenever I find myself in a 'vision' setting it seems that the majority of the process is about telling God what we want Him to do! The people around me know what God wants and so never bother to ask Him or listen for an answer and that all-important direction.

Last night I saw a programme where a man was setting out to restore/develop a castle yet had no drawings or plans, everything was in his head and eventually (through a number of factors), the project stalled, stumbled and failed. How many times have I seen this sad reality enacted in the world of Christian endeavour that is mission?

Who is the architect of the building we seek to create?
Who has drawn up the plans?
Who is the project manager for that which we seek to build?

Moving on the next line smacked me around the head (in a nice 'God awareness' sort of way - Thank You Lord!) as I recalled something I have recently read by a man who turns science upside down to make it look like his ideas of what God has done, and wants, are supported. But unless God defends it, any defence we create is defined to fall and, as in the case of this man, damage the reputation of the God we serve.

Isn't God big enough to defend His own Church?

Now I'm not saying walk away and leave the ramparts such that there is no defence, but conflict has always been about taking stock of the situation, gaining intelligence and listening to orders from the chain of command. Too often I find no one is listening to God (or reading the book He so kindly gave us) but instead are setting out to defend what is undefendable in a ways that look like war crimes!

So let us cease fire and gather round the Boss of an orders meeting (which we call 'prayers' in a military setting - ironic that, innit?). We should be fighting intelligently and with an obvious integrity!!!

Then comes a sour, barb, thorn and concern for me. I get up early to do my daily Office (the prayers I promised I'd do when I was ordained) and more often than not hit the sack when tomorrow has become today: what does this line do for me?

Am I trying to prove something or seeking to 'outlive God'?

Are my actions working with God or working hard because I don't think God is up to the task?

'God gives His faithful people rest,' that's what it says in the Psalm. Well I get enough rest (usually) so I can breathe a little easier here I guess. But we do need to make sure that, once again, what we do comes out of listening to God.

How do those three lines at the top work for you?

Are you listening in the same way as I, and others, obviously aren't?

Failure to do so might just render our action to be not just in vain but perhaps vanity.

All yours Lord.

Terrorist Attacks - an exercise in Selectivity?

The awful happenings in Brussels yesterday has seen people changing their avatars to include the colours of the Belgian flag in support for them in the face of acts of terror against an innocent people.

In fact the Church of England even offered a public prayer for Brussels:

The same prayer was offered up and placed in the media when Paris saw terrorism hit on the 7th January 2016.

Sadly though - on the 13th March 2016 - Thankfully thoughwhen terrorist attacks in Ankara claimed the lives of 37 people and saw 125 injured - the outcry, the appearance of people standing with this nation and prayers being offered up were nowhere to be found.

Four days earlier, the Church of England offered up many prayers (9th March 2016) for Syria on the resumption of UN peace talks and to draw attention on what was to be the fifth anniversary of the Syrian conflict on March 15 (two days after Ankara).

A few years back, after a Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) service, as I rubbed shoulders with the great and the good as they munched the sandwiches and drank their tea and coffee, I was drawn into a conversation with some of what I had, until then, considered to be some of the brighter people of our community. The discussion centred on the awfulness of genocide and how events like HMD were, "So very distressing."

One of those in the group made the observation, "Thank goodness we don't have genocide anymore!"

Without thinking I jumped in and pointed to the atrocities that were Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur and the genocide that surrounds us in recent history - that are going on today. The comment that came back from the, until then assumed 'bright' person, shook me to the core:

"Oh yes, but when we said 'Never Again' we meant in Europe!"

Thankfully, rather than make a scene I chose to walk away - but I often wonder, when I see prayers for Paris, Belgium and places close to us in Europe whether singling one place out for prayer whilst ignoring the plight of others is really communicating something positive about us.

After all - didn't Jesus tell us that even the wicked pray for their friends?

I was drawn to Matthew 5. 43-48 and the words:

 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’
   But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
   so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. 
   For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the 
   unjust.

   For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have?
   Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
   And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? 
   Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
   You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect."

Now please don't misunderstand me - I am as grateful to see prayers for Syria, Paris and Brussels as I am sad to see that there is a need for them. BUT  we need to have balance and perspective.

As I write this I see that there have been 96 terror attacks around the world.

They have taken place in Iraq and Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. Places that are just not as 'sexy' in terms of media attention as Europe and perhaps Israel and Palestine (for they are old news now aren't they?).

So when we pray - pray for the whole world - Please.

ps. Not a pop at the C of E or anyone - just a point as to how easy it gets to become just a little myopic.

When Good Friday turns bad - Christians hijacking Easter (again)!

So many Christians talk about the lack of support from Councils and Newspapers. Here in Tamworth we are fortunate to have an extremely supportive presence in Tamworth Borough Council and the Tamworth Herald. Please pray for the Christians of Bedworth as they struggle this Easter (and a thumbs up to the newspaper for making the situation known):

A small footnote to this - (0) Comments?

Surely not? Oh yeah. I forgot - we're meek and mild aren't we?

A couple of years back, as we made our way into the town centre for a Good Friday 'Act of Witness' - a woman looked pointedly at me and said, "**!!** Christians, you even have to hijack Easter!"

So I stopped and engaged her and explained what Good Friday was about and how, in fact, Easter had been hijacked by the consumerist, chocolate and fluffy-chick selling, world. Turned out she had never been taught that.

Where had the Church been for the previous twenty-something years to let that happen I wonder?

Please remember that one side sounds great until you know all the facts - so I'm off to check them :-)

40Acts - Day Nine ' DIAL UP '

Today's act is all about activating the gift of prayer.

Wait, what? How is prayer generous, you ask?

When we pray, we spend time talking to a God who lives and moves and acts on our behalf and for the good of those who love him. It's generous because you're asking the creator of the universe to do a good thing for someone else. Powerful stuff, folks.

This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord. (Acts ‪19:10 NIV)

I had been a decent self-respecting agnostic for some time. I had absorbed the misinformation that there were no real answers to the honest questions a young person would ask: Is there any evidence for God’s existence? Why is there all this suffering? Etc.  But when studying maths at university, I met a Christian who was confident of his faith and was willing to meet and let me argue the issues. To my great surprise I discovered there were answers and gradually learned that I, the agnostic, was the one without the evidence and he, the Christian, was basing his faith on evidence. After some months I realised I needed to respond.

It was probably the most honest prayer I had prayed, and in a totally unreligious setting – the second floor of the West Wing of Birmingham University library with maths books in front of me: ’God if you are there, and I’m not sure you are, but if you are I want to know you.’ Two weeks later I knew he was! I had reached a point of trusting God with my whole life, and then one morning I was alone in my room and found myself overwhelmed with a sense of peace, joy and excitement all rolled together into one four-hour experience. I knew that Jesus was alive and was at work in my life from then on.

Don’t you find it remarkable that God is interested in us and wants us to have honest conversation with him? We don’t need any special skills or high-level clearance to get in contact with him.  In fact there are no barriers (except those we put up ourselves). Wherever we are, whatever we’re doing, day or night, we can talk. So how about praying an honest prayer just now before you stop reading this? You could tell God what is important to you that you are concerned about. You could say something you are grateful for. You could … well, just be honest. Here’s some space to do it …


Praying. Millions of people in the UK do it: believers, sceptics, grannies, young people, people who are desperate and people who are not. And God responds.


And here’s a thought: who could you offer the gift of prayer to today?

Today's blog was written by David Hill from try praying. 
Find out more about him and support his chosen charity here

To see today's challenge in full - Click HERE

Eight days of prayer for Christian unity

Day One

And the Christians of Tamworth will ne gathering at Tamworth's Elim Church (Bamford Street) to pray together.

The full programme looks like this:

If you live in, or near, Tamworth (Staffs) I hope to see you tonight (and for the duration).

If you live elsewhere - where are the meetings near you?

Take the time to find out and attend  - it's a real blessing

Can't make it to church? 15 November 2015

Today's readings sit so well in the aftermath of all that has gone on in Paris; after all, those who believe in the God of Jesus Christ know all too well that life is no bed of roses and that conflict and wicked people are to be found wheresoever life takes us. It is this that teaches us that in all things, all situations, every trial and tribulation we can give thanks for our God for His loving-kindness and mercy.

But how do we help others to see God in the dark places; in the wickedness that is evidenced in so many places around us?

Today's texts help address this question, differently and yet in unison as we encounter a faithful God who keeps His promises. We aren't given easy or comfortable reading, but we can find a clear voice of hope in them!

Daniel 12 speaks of judgment and rescue in words that would have been so real to the hearers of them as the suffered at the hands of wicked men. The Hebrews reading continues our thinking about Christ as a high priest like no other; the Gospel (Mark) talks of redemption, judgment and the falling of those things we think of as able to stand the test of time; using the Temple as the example in this case.

Daniel is such a difficult read (the lion’s den excepted) because it is a hard and quite strange piece of writing. Today we focus on resurrection - and considering the fact the people are oppressed and in exile, this is what they'd want to hear I'm sure. 

Times are difficult, but God will bring resurrection and the wicked will be judged But there's a barb here, because some of those who were 'God's people' were going to be on the wrong side of the judgment when The LORD comes! (So perhaps an end to universalist - 'every gets in to heaven' thinking here perhaps? 

The archangel Michael turns up the people will be redeemed and resurrected.: Some to eternal life and others to eternal disgrace. But there is justice on offer here - something Paris cries out for. But whose justice (or is it revenge that is called for?)

Hebrews 10 again shows God’s faithfulness and constancy in the difficult times too as we  think of Jesus' priesthood and its value and worth. Jesus, the high priest who offers once and for all the sacrifice that takes away the sin of  all people - who reconciles us to God and opens the way for us to be made wholesome and holy. Again the word judgment makes an appearance though! For having reconciled us to God, the Father, Jesus sits at the right hand of God, His enemies as his footstool, in readiness to judge the living and the dead: Saint and sinner alike.

But we have an assurance and an opportunity; forgiveness and ability combining in a new and living way that brings us into proximity with God. We are reconciled and can live within the building that this reality provides. This is our assuredness, our certainty and our hope in our lives of constant change and persistent challenge. Things in which we have confidence may fail and fall but God is consistent and sure.

Talking of buildings falling, for they they do. Jesus brings us to a place where we are reminded that empires may fall and those we trust might crumble but there is a hope that is steadfast and certain. Those around Him, on hearing His words about the magnificent Temple falling, were no doubt a bit shocked. After all, replace it with some modern building and the thought of it toppling and becoming dust is fantastic (here meaning something of fantasy, not something good!). Good job Mark 13 was there to help remind us - eh?

But there will be a time when all things will pass away - don't know when, but I know it's assured, because that's what my big black book says; and as we wait there will be many who seek to deceive and lead the faithful astray.

and all we know is that we must be ready, watching and waiting. The poor souls in a concert venue were not, I am sure, thinking about the end of their lives - why would they, they were young and life's end is so very far away when you are young - but the end came at a time, and in a way, that was unexpected.

The key is this: It is set up such that we all live one, then die and then are judged (Heb 9.27): the key is to be ready, not in a morbid and fate-filled way, but in a way that we should be ready to accept challenges and opportunities as they occur. How many missed chances pass us by because we were not ready (or willing) to take it up

What has happened in Paris is awful and worrying: it changed what I thought I'd be saying this Sunday! (you can hear what I actually said HERE )

I read this during our Sunday services

Daniel 12.1-3 12
At that time Michael, the great prince, the protector of your people, shall arise. There shall be a time of anguish, such as has never occurred since nations first came into existence. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone who is found written in the book. Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.

Hebrews 10.11-25 11
And every priest stands day after day at his service, offering again and again the same sacrifices that can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, ‘he sat down at the right hand of God’, and since then has been waiting ‘until his enemies would be made a footstool for his feet.’ 1or by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us, for after saying, ‘This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds’, he also adds, ‘I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.’ Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin. Therefore, my friends, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain (that is, through his flesh), and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful. And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Mark 13.1-8
As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!’ Then Jesus asked him, ‘Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.’

When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, ‘Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?’ Then Jesus began to say to them, ‘Beware that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name and say, “I am he!” and they will lead many astray. When you hear of wars and rumours of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs.

The Collect
Heavenly Lord, you long for the world’s salvation:
stir us from apathy, restrain us from excess and revive in us new hope that all creation will one day be healed in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Post Communion Prayer
Gracious Lord,
in this holy sacrament you give substance to our hope:
bring us at the last to that fullness of life for which we long;
through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.

When we wil we mean 'Never Again'?

A simple question: One answered by someone who should have known better with the words, 'Oh, we meant in Europe!'

Well, take a look at Europe and pray and then think and then make a measured, balanced and right response.

'All we want is a service on a Sunday!'

One of the saddest things I encounter are the words above given voice by one or more members of a church's congregation. The suspicion made flesh causes the heart to miss a beat and the energy  to become dissipated and drained away through the hole the words have punched.

The reality is that, for some, all they require from their church is a Sunday morning service and that, having ticked the boxes, is the sum total of it all. And why not? After all there's loads on the TV and who would want to be in a church building when you can watch the many tempting offerings before us?

When I first became a Christian I couldn't keep out of the church building; I longed for the company of other Christians as discussions of the challenging bits the Bible and our praying together. As I grew up I found myself married and slowly and surely along came our children. We'd go to church as a family in the morning and then, leaving Wendy to look after the kids, would go back in the evening to get more of the same. Sometimes we'd switch and Wendy would go to the evening service and I'd stay at home - but the reality was that the Sunday evening slot was something special. The same was true of the various groups we belonged to during the day for Wendy and in the evening for me.

Now I'm not saying this to display my Pharisee-like observance of doing church but making the point that from the earliest days church was an opportunity to meet with other believers and sing God's praise, to hear His word and to continue my love affair with Him and those who shared my passion. My parents used to complain that I was never home for when I wasn't in church I was playing sport or woking shifts as an engineer.

'Times have changed,' people tell me when this topic arises, 'We have family and other things which crowd in and demand our attention,' and yet it was ever so and yet evening services were still being well supported!

The Christian faith is about so much more than 'just going to church'; it is about being so taken up with the love of God that you cannot wait to be with other believers and get excited about God in their company (you do get excited about God don't you?) and sing songs which put your feelings into words and excite you still further and hear words from the Big Black Book which excite you and challenge you and  . . .   Sorry, you seemed to have nodded off then!

There are many who tell me (by words or attendance patterns) that church is something that happens when there are no other distractions or demands: Church is, it seems, something we have to do rather than something we want to do!

So here is a challenge for you (and me - even though I know people tell me it's different for me because, 'I have to be in church,').

Step back for a moment and ask yourself what your church attendance looks like: Regular and frequent or hit and miss? Sitting in a pew or sat in front of the TV?

Now ask yourself when you last opened your Bible and read it; or took the sheets with the readings home and read that? Can you even find your Bible (last time I asked someone that it was under the coffee table stopping it rocking - honest!)?

When did you last spend time talking to God? What was your last prayer over (sorry, praying the person in front would get out of the way doesn't count!)?

Church attendance is a habit many of us has lost and as we allow our faith life to slow we begin a process which sees it eventually come to a halt. Just like some places and their evening services perhaps?

O Lord HEAR my prayer ...

... And give me what I ask for!

I wonder if this is this how you pray - because that's what it feels like from the place I often find myself occupying. As I talk to people I am often told of the prayers of people and, if I am hearing correctly then generally:

We come to God with our shopping lists of needs and our litany of woes.

We come in the hope that our imprecatory prayers will cause fire from heaven to fall on those who offend or oppose us.

We come to God praying that He will build His Church (so that we don't have to and so we can continue as we are in the places we inhabit as places of worship??)

Sometimes we come broken and confused, sinful (and sinned against) and it it in this place that I find a place of renewal and restoration for it is a place of solace and renewing. This is the place where we find direction and correction, leading and bleeding - and this is right for too often we are bound up in our needs rather than bound up in God's will.

Like children with homework we truly intend to do it well and to act diligently and yet, when it is before us, like children, attractions draw us away and we produce the minimum needed to tick the box.

Like those who came before we, I am sure, find ourselves (as in psalm 78 verse 35) like those who whenever Test and trial came would repent and earnestly search for Him.

But we too, like them, and the child with the homework, remember what is that we are called to do  and, more importantly, be and yet this soon slips and the attractions, the desire to do those things which are not helpful (we call this 'sin' in the Church - not a popular word) swamp us and we drown in the waters of our own folly.

in Psalm 78 we find the words:
They remembered that God was their rock and the Most High God their redeemer.
Their heart was not steadfast towards him, neither were they faithful to his covenant.

Recognise this?
I know I do!

BUT

God was so merciful that He forgave their misdeeds and did not destroy them; many a time He turned back His wrath and did not suffer His whole displeasure to be roused. For he remembered that they were but flesh, a wind that passes by and does not return.

Because God, our God, is indeed merciful.

Thank God for His written word and for Jesus, the Christ, His living Word and let us pray that He will fill us with His Holy Spirit and heal us now and cause us to walk in the right paths from this place forward.

Please remember today:

those who have loved one beset by ill health

those who you know who are running out of steam

those who you know who face trials and tests (of their own making and because of theirs)

those people around the world who work for peace: For  our armed forces, aid and charity organisations and for peacekeepers

Today as we focus upon unexpected loss in a sunny holiday setting - upon the death of a 54 year old custody office who was 'just doing her job' - on a nation that is so in debt that old age pensioners have to decide whether to eat or buy necessary medicines:

What will our prayer be?

Church Growth strategies: 'Messy Church!!'

Still keeping on with Hauerwas' thought that:

'Church growth strategies are the death rattle of a church that has lost its way.' 

and  having considered just some of the many strategies for church growth I've encountered thus far, we return to that most lauded and even more often wrongly places element of church growth: The 'messy church' approach!

One of the more intriguing things about this, and there are many that intrigue me, is the fact that many of those who 'do' it don't actually catch on to what it is all about. So let's start with three things that I think it actually is:

i. It is 'church'. This means that it is a body of people who come together to hear the word, to break bread together in a 'fellowship meal' *, to sing praise and to enjoy being part of a fully sacramental community**

ii. It is about bringing families into a place (which might not be a 'church') where there are activities and fun and food and friendship on offer - yeah, not like Sundays at all then is it?

iii. It focusses on reconciliation to God through the cross of Jesus, the Christ - But it is not about claiming scalps. We do it to share God's love, not pay the parish share or 'bring children in' (but of course it will do that too, but that's not the goal).

Not 'messy evangelism'
One of things that really winds me up is people coming to me and complaining thus:
'We've been doing messy church for over a year and no one has come to the other services!'

It's not supposed to be the means by which we bring the people in and then, once they're comfortable in the place, repot them in the Sunday services like young plants taken from the greenhouse! It is evangelism, but not the sort that builds up your ageing and largely failing Sunday gatherings. The messy folk might come to have a look  at a Sunday but wherever and whenever the messy church takes place: That's church for them!

Having told this to some church groups I've been met with the response, 'So what's in it for us then?' 

The answer is simple: 'You're building the Church (universal) and not the local expression of it in your building. You are being obedient and going into all the world and making disciples and all that stuff!'

As usual with Church. It isn't rocket science!

Not an overnight success
Well it hasn't been where I am anyway!

Messy church is hard work because you need:

i. People who will be praying for it (and during it too is good),

ii. People who will plan and lead and cater and assist and wash and clean and be there to become familiar faces and to be 'friends' (this means actually being friends but he way, not just pretending to be such).

iii. People who will keep on doing i. and ii. for a jolly long time - through the feast and the famine times - as faithful and committed members of the project. 

iv. A church (or group of people) who are willing to fund the thing (but I believe there should always be a charge for the event - this is important) for as long as it needs funding.

Messy church is about servanthood and sacrificial giving (of time, money and self) - it is great fun and one of the most rewarding things I have done with families ever.

Some points to ponder
Paying and messy church
I've met some who claim that asking people to pay to come to messy church is wrong. I don't think so because it starts people off on the right foot with them realising that there are bill to be paid and costs met and Church doesn't have bottomless pockets. It's good value and good practice we need to be looking at here. (I must add the caveat that where there is financial hardship then costs should be reduced or removed - but making people feel like a charity case often sees them leave, never to return). (whoops - was moving this and forgot to paste it) . . . The thing is that if we see messy church as a fresh expression (FE) then we need to start as we ought to go on, for those who make up the Church are also responsible for making sure it pays its way. I have met many who tell me that ALL FEs should be paid for by the diocese or the church who are organising it, or someone else, because, like children, 'They didn't ask to be brought into the world so why should they pay?'

The answer to this is that everyone who brings their families to messy church ( and this is every that I've met who have said this) have told me that they pay for other sessional activities for their kids but messy church is THE best value (one of those who said this paid a fiver for 'parents and toddler's' and other groups) - £3 for a whole family: Mum, dad and three kids - they want to pay towards the thing. 

And back to the 'parent and child' debate: As parents I am aware that we need to teach our children to pay their way and to learn that if they want things then those things need to be paid for. This is good parenting and is what we do in other expressions of Church: we call it a gift, tithe or offering in that context though, don't we?

Leaving unattended children at messy church
Another issue is that of letting the parents leave the children at messy church. This one of the big problems and whilst, should there be a pastoral need, I'm happy to see it happen occasionally when a crisis arises, we don't offer messy church as free (see above) or cheap childcare. It is Church and therefore needs to be engaged with as such.

There - that's the missing bit repasted!

Doing what works or doing the same old stuff?
Some of the messy church setups I've visited have been doing the same thing for years and they can't see anything wrong with that because it worked when they started. One even offered the same fare (pizza!) and assumed that pizza and chips was what children liked and had never thought of cooking shepherd's pie, pasta and other things. Don't get stuck in a rut - be inventive with your crafts, flexible with your formats and adventurous with the food (and if you do a beef wellington - call me). 

When and where to do messy church
Times and places should be the time people can come and the place they can easy come to. There are so many people who think that by making the venue 'their church' is a great way to 'add to their church' - but it isn't (and isn't why we do it). Add to this the fact that some like to do it on a Sunday because, as one churchwarden told me, 'Adds children and numbers to the ASA!' If I had my way I'd exclude messy church from the ASA altogether and make it an evangelistic end in itself rather than a means of justifying the church by numbers (we had 30 adults and 7 children at the Sunday communion yesterday by the way - the numbers are small but the gathering was wonderful. The numbers condemn us as a small church - the fellowship confirms us as valid Church. All about perspective).

The point of what we do is to communicate the Gospel and make Jesus, the Christ, known. We do this safe in the knowledge that He in turn will make the Father known and bring about reconciliation with Him and us. It isn't rocket science, is it? 

__________________________________

The way that we do this is to become incarnate; that is to be present 'in the flesh'.  and be real and grounded in reality for those around us. Being 'present' means that we are able to offer friendship and support and also be part of the solution (which means point to the solution rather than actually just be it for people - all about the give a fish/teach them to fish principle).

This is where messy church becomes something of inestimable value.

__________________________________

* I've met some people who want to offer 'a communion' from day one but to do so is to encourage people to enter into something they don't quite understand and to cheapen the Eucharist and diminish the importance of it for those who come and those who put it on too!

** All we have in terms of sacrament is (according to Cranmer) is 'bath and bread' - and these should be on offer in this, as in every, church setting. Messy baptism and confirmation should all be on the menu when the time is right :-)

Quaragosh - A call to prayer

Please read, and respond (by praying and sharing) this message - from Rev Andrew White the Vicar of Baghdad:

"The islamist group (ISIS) just took over Quaragosh, the biggest Christian city in Iraq. 

There are hundreds of men, women and children that are being beheaded. 

The people are asking for prayers to be made on their behalf concerning the ongoing atrocity in their country. 

Please take one minute to pray for them. 

They asked for this special prayer. 

Please, ensure you pass across the prayer request to the body of Christ for fervent prayers offered on behalf of the brothers, sisters and children in Iraq. 

This is an urgent SOS. May God bless you. 

From Andrew White the Vicar of Baghdad."

(I received this for Bishop Laurie Green - who posted it around 21:00 BST today) and am confident of its validity - please pass on to those you know will pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters)

Postscript: 
I saw this posted on the pages of someone I trust. I am aware that there of aspects of this that are perhaps 'old news' but rather than err too much on the side of scepticism, I will keep this in place until the original source comes back to me.

Thanks for those who have communicated with the 'old news' - have to say that if it is erroneously reported, prayer for those (even one minute of it) from those who live in freedom for those who fear the actions of ISIS is a small consideration.

PPS
Checking on Snopes and other sites I use to debunk urban myth and (often well meant) misinformation I can find nothing that looks quite like this story - I have asked for clarification form people I trust and have heard nothing, and so, continue with the piece on the lines given in the PS.

Thanks

Pax