Week beginning 13th August

Song: Immortal, invisible, God only wise,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oGuGzCFEWI

Psalm 121

A song of ascents.

1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains—  where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

3 He will not let your foot slip—  he who watches over you will not slumber;
4 indeed, he who watches over Israel   will neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The Lord watches over you—   the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
6 the sun will not harm you by day,  nor the moon by night.

7 The Lord will keep you from all harm—  he will watch over your life;
8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going  both now and forever more.

Prayers praise,

Lord God It is good to praise and honour your holy name for you are ever close at hand.

How great are your works although you are invisible creation bows down in recognition of its creator. All wisdom comes from you from the beginning of time to life’s end you are there ever living. You are for loving for ever forgiving. Only You are worthy of true praise Blessed be your name. Amen

Reading: Philippians 4: 10-20

Song: More more about Jesus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9FhQICSJX4

More More more in Our Daily Bread Wednesday Feb 15^th 2012 . 

Jennifer Benson Schuldt penned

Now that my daughter is learning to talk, she has adopted a favourite word: more. She will say “more” and point to toast with jam. She held out her palm and said “More!” when my husband gave her some coins for her piggy bank. She even exclaimed, “More Daddy!” one morning after her father left for work.

Like my little one, many of us look around and call for “more.” Unfortunately, enough is never enough. We need the power of Christ to break the cycle so that we can say with Paul, “I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content” (Phil. 4:11).

The phrase “I have learned” tells me that Paul did not meet every situation with a smile. Learning contentment required practice. His testimony included ups and downs ranging from snake bites to soul-saving; false accusations to founding churches. Yet he claimed that Jesus was the answer to soul-level satisfaction. He said, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (v.13). Jesus had given him the spiritual muscle to endure lean times and to avoid the pitfalls of abundance.

If you find yourself angling for “more, more, more,” remember that contentment comes when you have “more” of Christ.

Song: O teach me what it meaneth

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-eGCoaXZc8

How can you live sweetly amid the vexatious things, the irritating things, the multitude of little worries and frets, which lie all along your way and which you cannot evade. You cannot at present change your surroundings.

J R Miller writes
“Whatever kind of life you are to live must be lived amid precisely the experiences in which you are now moving. Here you must win your victories or suffer your defeats. No restlessness or discontent can change your lot. You had better make up your mind to accept what you cannot alter.

“Strive to realise a state of inward happiness, independent of circumstances.”

James Pierrepont Greaves

With these quotes there is one thing that comes to mind what ever we feel we are never alone

Even when we feel we are. We have different trials that come and test us. No matter how hard we struggle some times we can not change our circumstances, life feels unfair. There are other times when all is going well or we feel too well and wait for things to come crashing down around us.

Other time we may brag about the our great idea the promotion we have been given and gloat over the underdog. We then get reminded the higher you clime in your own strength the further the fall

it pays to be humble to give the credit for the good things and trust him in the hard or barren time He is the same God he is always with you. Are you willing to be ever with him and to trust Him with every aspect of your life this is not an easy question but when some one who loves you and cares so much about you and only wants what is good for you loves you unconditionally then knowing this open your heart and ask him into your life.

God dose not hold your past to count but he will forgive you if you ask. Then you can go forward

with peace in you heart. Knowing that through God son Jesus life ever lasting is offered to you.

Reading: 2 Corinthians 12: 1 – 21

Song: I know not why God’s wondrous grace

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpJ9oyxvyhs

This closing prayer was penned by Reinhold Niebuhr you may have seen it on many mugs and plates, plaques, and posters, but to day I would like to think about the words as it is a prayer to God and comes from the heart.

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time; accepting hardship as a pathway to peace;
taking, as Jesus did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; trusting that You will make all things right if I surrender to Your will; so that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with You forever in the next. Amen.

Jesus gave His all for you

read the story about our the next hymn at https://oasischurch.com.au/4868-2/

Song: All to Jesus I surrender

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7FhoxqX2Dk

May the peace of God which passes understanding, Keep your hearts and minds within His love.
May the grace of Christ the risen Son, And the fellowship of the Spirit fill you and remain with you always. Amen

Week beginning 6th August

 Song: Give to our God immortal praise

Give To Our God Immortal Praise - YouTube

Prayer:

We come before you, humbly and broken, for our spirits are heavy and our souls can find no rest outside of your Presence.

We need you Lord to show up strong on our behalf right now. We’re tired of wrestling, we’re weary in the struggle of it all.

We don’t understand what you’re doing, we can’t fully wrap our minds around your ways, but our hearts cry out to you for help and peace in our time of desperate need.

We proclaim again, that no matter what we face, we trust you, Father God.

We know that your plans for us are good and filled with hope. We know that you have the best in store for us, even though our circumstances seem too hard to bear right now.

We believe that this storm won’t last forever.

We know that light will break through the dark. And we have confidence in you to bring us through. 

God, we confess to you that sometimes our worries seem too big.

We don’t see a way out of our current situation, and your timing seems different than what we would have chosen. But we know and believe that no matter how much we’ve struggled, you alone can see the big picture. And we praise you, that you are with us in it all.

Help us to hear your voice through the difficult days. Help us to set our eyes on you alone. Help us to keep moving in the direction you are leading us. Thank you for your reminders that through every weakness and hard place, your strength is displayed in beautiful ways through our lives. We can’t do it on our own Lord. We’re so freshly aware of that. But you can work your great miracles in us, and through us.

Thank you that this battle will never have the final say over our lives. And because of your power and compassion, we will come through to the other side, with greater perseverance, stronger faith, and deeper awareness of your presence with us. Thank you that you are fighting for us, and will bring us out as gold.

In Jesus’ Name,

Amen.

From www.ibelieve.com

Song: Fight the good fight

Fight the Good Fight With All Thy Might (Tune: Duke Street - 4vv) [with lyrics for congregations] - YouTube

Reading: Genesis, chapter 32, verses 22 to 31

Reading: Matthew’s gospel, Chapter 14, verses 13 to 21

Song: Come O thou traveller unknown

Come, O Thou Traveler Unknown - YouTube

The story of Jacob strikes different people in different ways. It is a complex story with various aspects and understandings. There is a possibility of word play with Jacob and Jabbok, the consonants are the same in Hebrew. Jacob is expecting to meet with Esau, but here, whilst he is on his own, at night this mystery figure appears. Whether or not it is God depends on the understanding of the reader; it could be, or it might be Esau, or even a River “god” of ancient stories which could only exist in the dark, it cannot stand light, and the figure disappears at dawn.

After the encounter Jacob is given a new name, “Israel”. The name means He struggles/strives/wrestles with God. Whether it means with God in the sense that someone might say that they struggle with mathematics, or in the sense of struggling alongside depends on one’s understanding.

The figure says nothing, they are a shadowy figure, and the winner of the struggle is uncertain. There is a mention of a thigh injury, which is used as an explanation of why Jews do not eat that part of a joint. Perhaps this prohibition is in memory of Jacob’s struggle?

The name Peniel means “face of God”. The figure asks his name, and this could be a reference to him giving the wrong name (Esau) to his father. There are a number of other passages in scripture which tell of the prohibition on seeing God.

Alan Boesak, the south African anti-apartheid campaigner, and church cleric, preacher on this passage. He exp0lained that Jacob got to meet his brother, but first he had to meet God. This asks the question, what sort of God wrestles with humans? The sort that doesn’t need to win! He doesn’t need power or strength to oppress, and because of this, a new future opens. We need to ask the question “How can we leave our tarnished past behind and then go to our brothers and sisters.

Matthew’s account of the feeding of the 5000 parallels the accounts in the other three gospels. At first reading, most of us wonder what has happened to the small boy who’s lunch was used. In fact, the boy is only mentioned in John’s account.

As in many situations, Jesus was teaching from a boat. He had withdrawn, but the crowd had followed him. Then what? Should the crowd be sent away? “You feed them.” the disciples were told. The cost would be enormous, about 200 days wages. What was available was blessed, and everyone got a meal, even to the extent that there were leftovers. A miracle, but it would be futile to try to explain the mean by which it was done. Putting what was available into God’s hands was all that was necessary.

There are parallels with other stories, Elijah feeding the widow, God feeding the people with Mannah in the desert, after the resurrection, Jesus feeding the disciples by the lakeside.

Both stories tell us something of the nature of God. And the need to take action when there is a calling to do something. Both the disciples and Jacob were challenged to do something by their circumstances, the rest is history.

Song: Now thank we all our God

081 ii Now thank we all our God GRACIAS - YouTube

Week beginning 30th July

 

Shout for joy to God, all the earth!
Sing the glory of his name;
make his praise glorious.

Psalm 66, verses 1 and 2

Song: To God be the glory

To God Be The Glory ( Royal Albert Hall, London) - YouTube

Reading: John’s gospel, chapter 4, verses 1 to 42

Song: As the deer pants for the water

♬ As The Deer - Virtual Choir Worship Song - YouTube

God of all peoples,
just as Jesus and his disciples journeyed through Samaria to reach their appointed destination;
teach us to how to walk through strange, foreign places,
how to meet people different from ourselves—
that they we might say to them "come and see".
You bypass no one; in this may we follow you.

May we also be like the Samaritan woman: willing to examine our lives in Jesus’ presence
that we may continue to true worshippers of the Father in spirit and in truth,
that we may share with those we know what it is like to meet with Jesus.
The truth revealed her faults, yet liberated the unnamed woman.
This Lent, may your truth reveal us to ourselves and set us free in you.

God of the nations, lead and direct so that truth and truthfulness may direct our leaders, inform our nation, govern our business and our everyday lives, that we may live in justice and peace together.

Give us and all who thirst for you that living water of your Spirit:
water of refreshment,
water of healing,
water of cleansing,
water of life.

Amen.

From nottoomuch.com

Song: Come thou fount of every blessing

Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing - Chris Rice (worship song with lyrics) - YouTube

In this hymn the phrase “Here I raise my Ebenezer” is a reference to Samuel. He raised his Ebenezer, or stone of help, to commemorate how much the Lord had helped the people to get this far. Some modern hymn books use the phrase “Greatest treasure”

A young man had an acquaintance at school. Someone he knew at a distance, but did not really know well. After school, they went their separate ways, he went to college, the other went to an apprenticeship. Some time later, the acquaintance started calling at his house and talking, at first for a few minutes, but as time went by, for longer. The visits got more frequent and as the visitor talked, he would listen to him on the step. These rather one-sided conversations started to become something of a burden. The young man even sometimes asked his parents to say he was not in! But usually he would listen, and even invited the visitor in.

He was what you might call a “reluctant friend”.

Jesus can be like that. He is tolerant of us, and will listen politely, even when we run on a bit. Even when we irritate him. Does this resonate with you?

Jesus had every reason to be a bit distant with the Samaritan woman, to be a reluctant friend. But he was not. He was eager. He wanted to offer her salvation. Uncharacteristically for a Jew, he was travelling through Samaria. He reached Sychar, and sat down at the well. This is not familiar to modern, western minds. Most of us do not have a well. Perhaps you do, perhaps the daily (or more often) ritual of meeting at the well to draw water is familiar to you?

There were barriers to establishing conversation. It was not seemly for a woman to talk to a man, especially a rabbi. She was a Samaritan.

Historically, the Samaritans had intermarried with other races. Unlike the Jews who had married within themselves. They were seen as “half bloods” to use a modern, uncomplimentary, term. A modern parallel might be familiar to readers and viewers of the Harry Potter books and films, where certain “pure blood” wizards saw themselves as better than the “mudbloods”

Jesus should have moved away from her.

Another barrier was that midday was not the time to draw water. Was she an outcast for some reason. Much has been speculated on this subject, but little is known.

Jesus knew these barriers. But in spite of this, he treats her with respect. He listens. He asks for help, and draws near to her. Jesus was Eager, not reluctant, he went out of his way, and undoubtedly took a risk.

The barriers exist today, and are different for each one of us. But Jesus is eager to make himself known.

In a relatively shore time, the woman’s perception changed from a dismissive “You’re a Jew”, to “You’re the Messiah”.

It’s a bit like climbing a hill, it seems to go on forever, but eventually the summit is reached, the view is seen, and the reason for the climb is apparent.

Jesus leads the woman up the hill, and she sees who he is. He is not just a Jewish man, he is someone really special.

Eventually, he leads her to see that worship is not just a matter of where, but that it should be “in spirit and truth”. He is really saying that the temple is becoming irrelevant, and he is saying this, not to the religious hierarchy, but to a marginalised Samaritan woman.

Christianity is a relationship, not a religion. This transforms the woman.

Jesus is eager to do his father’s will. The long hidden mystery is revealed. His work is his food.

Jesus, the eager saviour, not the reluctant friend.

Song: There is a redeemer

There Is A Redeemer Praise and Harmony Singers - YouTube

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Letter to the Hebrews, chapter 4, verse 16

Week beginning 23rd July

 I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart;

before the “gods” I will sing your praise.
I will bow down toward your holy temple
and will praise your name
for your unfailing love and your faithfulness,
for you have so exalted your solemn decree
that it surpasses your fame.

When I called, you answered me;
you greatly emboldened me.

Psalm 138, verses 1 to 3

Song: Jesus is the name we honour

481 Jesus is the Name we Honour - YouTube

Prayer:

Lord, there are so many things to give thanks for; there is all the beauty of creation, which we can enjoy, and see your glory; we are thankful that we can be brought together in your praise.

But we are human, and finds so many things to complain about. Sometimes, the things we grumble about would be a blessing to others. In England, we complain about the rain, where in other countries at the moment it would be something to give thanks for.

May we always see your hand in what we encounter, and praise you for your glory.

Amen

Song: Majesty

"Majesty" - Hour of Power Choir - YouTube

Reading: John’s gospel, chapter 20, verses 19 to 31

Song: Be still, for the presence of the Lord

Be still for the presence of the Lord - YouTube

In our modern world, we often hear things like, “I’ll believe it when I see it” or “Prove it to me and I will believe you.” In business, traders often have to prove a product to their customers, perhaps by offering a sample, or the short term use of an item. However, it is not always possible to prove things, such as relationships.

Relationships are based on compassion, especially when mistakes are made!

In order to understand today’s reading, we need to go back, prior to the crucifixion.

6 says before, Jesus had ridden into Jerusalem on a donkey, in what we usually call the triumphal entry.

Expectations would have been high. All had been amazed at his works, words and miracles. They would have hoped that he, as the Messiah, was going to drive out the Romans, and free them their bondage.

Then, he had celebrated the Passover with his disciples. This was the festival at which they celebrated the deliverance of the people out of the bondage of slavery in Egypt.

Six days after the procession, the shouts of “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord” became “Crucify Him!” The crowd had been turned. Influenced and deceived by those who hated Him. Closed minds, ears and hearts could not understand the Truth.

God could turn apparent disaster into triumph.. Jesus’ death at Passover was taken as a sacrifice. A Passover Lamb for the deliverance of the people.

In the modern world, people refuse to believe the gospel. But we should keep on promoting it, simply because it is true.

When we go through tests, we need to remember that Jesus has already won the battle. We will face difficulties. We were never promised that life would be easy. But, He will strengthen us.

When people’s hearts are hardened, because their expectations have not been met, they will reject the truth. But they need to keep on being reminded that Jesus has already won the battle.

Jesus came to liberate us from the grip of sin, from the power of sin. He brought the kingdom of light to those separated from God. He came that those in the grip of sin might be made righteous. That they might be forgiven.

As Paul says in the letter to the Romans “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Through His sacrifice, we can come boldly to the throne of grace. We can come to God the father.

After 8 days, Jesus appeared to the disciples. When He finally Appeared to Thomas, Jesus could have rebuked him, but he did not. Similarly, when we are weak, Jesus will meet us there. Thomas experienced Jesus’ closeness and compassion. As a result he proclaimed “My Lord, and my God.”

Faith in the resurrection is the foundation of faith. If there is no resurrection, there is no hope. We have hope. We receive salvation by faith.

God’s work of redemption lets us enter God’s true peace.

Prayer:

Lord, sometimes we have heavy hearts and doubts. When we face difficulties, strengthen us; give us faith and hope.

Build the church, the body of Christ, in its fellowship and ministry.

May we speak with boldness as we bring the good news of faith and healing to the people.

We pray for the country and the government, may it be in accordance with your wishes.

As we look at the world, and hear the news, it is easy to become discouraged. Help us to see that wherever people are, you are there with them. May they be aware of your presence in their troubles.

We pray for our families and friends who do not know Jesus in their lives, way we be good witnesses to them.

May your message be proclaimed faithfully, may people receive your word and bear much fruit.

In Jesus’ name

Amen.

Song: Bind us together Lord

Bind us Together (With Lyrics) - YouTube