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:
The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
a light has dawned.
Isaiah 9.2 (NIV)
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.
A hot-tempered person must pay the penalty; rescue them, and you will have to do it again. (NIV)
If someone has a hot temper, let him take the consequences. If you get him out of trouble once, you will have to do it again. (GNB)
Proverbs 19.19
Last time we were thinking about children and discipline – and how a key principle is helping them learn that actions have consequences – and how to face those consequences for themselves without being bailed out.
The same applies to people with a temper. In fact, the same applies for lots of different situations and behaviours. A key biblical principle is that our actions have consequences, and we need to face up to that.
In all sorts of ways the world around us pretends that isn’t the case. Cheap clothes have consequences – in the sweatshops in other countries. Cheap food has consequences – for the animals farmed in inhumane conditions, the ecosystems destroyed for crops, the insects killed by pesticides. Buying SUVs, having pets, travelling overseas – these all have consequences for the environment. Doing whatever ‘feels good’ or ‘right’ has consequences – for ourselves and even those around us. And so it goes on – the world does an excellent job at pretending those consequences aren’t there, but they are.
It’s a pretty depressing thing! We need to be mindful of the effect we have on the world and those around us – we need to do our best to live ‘lightly’. But above all we need the forgiveness God offers us in Jesus, and the power to change that he gives us in the Holy Spirit.
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:
Peter & Jane Sheppard, John & Cathy Ward
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: Tamworth Christian Churches (TCC)
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.