Our church building may be closed, but God’s eyes are open and his ears are attentive to our prayers (2 Chronicles 7.15).

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Opening

Speak these words out loud:

Let us take up the cross and follow Jesus,
whatever the cost.

from Luke 14.27-28

Today’s Proverb

Read the proverb through three or four times, slowly. Pause in-between, maybe write it out by hand – savour the words, let them speak deeply to you.

Proverbs 17.12

The year I turned 30, I was also leaving IT and heading back into full-time ministry, so to mark both occasions I blew all my savings on a six-week road trip through twelve states in the Western USA. I spent most it doing one of three things: driving my convertible Mustang, walking in the mountains and National Parks, and eating colossal amounts of food. It was worth every penny.

One of those National Parks had a lot of bears in it. All the requisite warnings were there, and most people were carrying some form of bear spray on the outside of their rucksacks, for easy access.

I was not.

By that point I had done several walks, and seen several of those signs, and not seen a single bear, so I didn’t really care that I didn’t have bear spray. (I have no idea what it was, I imagine some form of pepper spray?) I was also travelling by myself, so the warnings not to walk alone were impossible to heed – so I didn’t.

About halfway round, I stumbled across a mother bear in the woods who had been separated from her cubs, and was crashing around – very angry. There was a park ranger there stopping anyone from continuing along the walk, because it was so dangerous. He wouldn’t let me continue alone, but also couldn’t leave himself, so we were at an impasse until a lovely Canadian couple – fully kitted out – walked round the corner and offered to walk back to the car park with me.

Bears robbed of their cubs are dangerous. A fool bent on folly is more dangerous. Don’t be that fool! In the time of prayer this morning ask God to show you if you are bent on any folly… so you can turn away from it.

Prayers

Pray for Five – pray for your five friends / family from Thy Kingdom Come.

Our daily prayer sheet includes the names of everyone for whom we have a signed church family directory form – and local parishes and senior church leaders. Today we are praying for:

Ray & Jane Skarratt, Carol Chadwick

Father, please bless them with your peace, and a deep awareness of your presence with them, every day and in every way.

We also pray for: People moving in to Amington

Please pray for our leaders and healthcare workers, and all those working to keep us safe, well, and fed. Please pray that people would unselfishly put others before themselves.

Church Family Prayer

Come Holy Spirit,
and make us one in heart and action,
so that we can serve God faithfully:
abounding in love,
maturing in holiness,
and seeking out the lost.
Help us grow as disciples of Jesus –
in commitment, in depth, and in number –
that we may be a blessing to Amington;
to the glory and praise of God the Father.
Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.

Closing Prayer

Unless the Lord builds the house,
the builders labour in vain.
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus
the only way to the Father.

Psalm 127.1, Hebrews 12.2 & John 14.6

May Christ our Saviour give us peace.
Amen.