In addition to the streamed service today - Rev. Chris Giles would have been with us today and passed these words on.
I shall miss being with you all on Sunday morning. I always so enjoy joining in worship with you at Nether Whitacre - you are a real tonic! I can picture you all, even as I write and I bring you to God in my prayers. I loved Farai’s message last Sunday. Do join me in praying for her. It is incredibly hard being so far from family. Many of us are getting a tiny glimpse of that as we self isolate and are no longer able to see family and friends.
I had been thinking about the theme of ‘Our journey through Lent’ for this Sunday’s Service. Far more appropriate now is ‘Our journey through Coronavirus’. It’s ironic that many of us are in the habit of giving things up for Lent. Little did we anticipate just how much we would be forced to give up this Lent! But as we give up the human interaction that is so precious to us, the hugs I miss so much, maybe our small sacrifice can be offered to God, and He can transform it in ways we would not even dream of.
The verse I seek to live by is Romans 8:28 “We know that in all things God is working for good with those who love Him.“ In the darkest places of my life following my dear sister’s suicide, in faith I claimed that verse and trusted God to weave His purposes when humanly things made no sense at all. Can I encourage you, dear friends, to dare to claim that verse in this situation? Can we dare to believe that in His mysterious ways, God will bring good out of all this? Amidst the pain and suffering, we are seeing it already. People caring for one another in creative ways, communities setting up support links, people forced to re-think priorities. As we struggle to establish a daily routine, let’s make prayer a priority, let’s turn to God’s Word for strength. The prayer group at Solihull set up a prayer time at 9.30a.m. this morning and Marjorie Evans sent me Psalm 86: 1 - 10. Let’s share encouraging Bible verses. Let’s pray for people to turn to Jesus.
I found last Sunday’s District service a real blessing. I pray God will teach us new things during this time. I pray we’ll be willing to be changed. Keep strong, dear friends, encourage one another and let’s keep our eyes on Jesus. God bless you all.
With my love and prayers
Chris
She also sent this reflection which can be accessed here
I shall miss being with you all on Sunday morning. I always so enjoy joining in worship with you at Nether Whitacre - you are a real tonic! I can picture you all, even as I write and I bring you to God in my prayers. I loved Farai’s message last Sunday. Do join me in praying for her. It is incredibly hard being so far from family. Many of us are getting a tiny glimpse of that as we self isolate and are no longer able to see family and friends.
I had been thinking about the theme of ‘Our journey through Lent’ for this Sunday’s Service. Far more appropriate now is ‘Our journey through Coronavirus’. It’s ironic that many of us are in the habit of giving things up for Lent. Little did we anticipate just how much we would be forced to give up this Lent! But as we give up the human interaction that is so precious to us, the hugs I miss so much, maybe our small sacrifice can be offered to God, and He can transform it in ways we would not even dream of.
The verse I seek to live by is Romans 8:28 “We know that in all things God is working for good with those who love Him.“ In the darkest places of my life following my dear sister’s suicide, in faith I claimed that verse and trusted God to weave His purposes when humanly things made no sense at all. Can I encourage you, dear friends, to dare to claim that verse in this situation? Can we dare to believe that in His mysterious ways, God will bring good out of all this? Amidst the pain and suffering, we are seeing it already. People caring for one another in creative ways, communities setting up support links, people forced to re-think priorities. As we struggle to establish a daily routine, let’s make prayer a priority, let’s turn to God’s Word for strength. The prayer group at Solihull set up a prayer time at 9.30a.m. this morning and Marjorie Evans sent me Psalm 86: 1 - 10. Let’s share encouraging Bible verses. Let’s pray for people to turn to Jesus.
I found last Sunday’s District service a real blessing. I pray God will teach us new things during this time. I pray we’ll be willing to be changed. Keep strong, dear friends, encourage one another and let’s keep our eyes on Jesus. God bless you all.
With my love and prayers
Chris
She also sent this reflection which can be accessed here
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