Sing to the Lord, and praise him! Proclaim every day the good news that he has saved us (Psalm 96.2, GNB).
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Opening
Speak these words out loud:
Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,
whose confidence is in him.
Jeremiah 17.7 (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.
The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty. (NIV)
Plan carefully and you will have plenty; if you act too quickly, you will never have enough. (GNB)
Proverbs 21.5
Are you a planner, or a make-it-up-as-you-go-along person?
I’m a planner – though I’m often forced to improvise, not least this past year! Quite early on I realised that making plans was foolish. I’ve lost count of the number of times the Church of England Coronavirus guidance has changed since March. The risk assessment alone has been updated more than a dozen times.
What sorts of things do you plan? As I write it’s Christmas Eve, and our families’ Christmas plans have changed so many times – I’m still not entirely sure what’s happening tomorrow. Jess and I bought a back-up joint of beef a couple of weeks ago in case everything went really wrong and we ended up not being able to see anyone at all!
We tend to plan the things we take seriously, and make up the rest. Weddings, holidays, jobs, moving house, having children – these things, we normally plan, because we take them seriously.
Do you plan your discipleship? Or do you make it up as you go along and expect to grow in your faith?
The first step in creating a plan is working out where are now, and where we want to be or do. Then we start to think about what needs to happen to get from here to there, and then some practical steps for how we make that journey.
So the question is: are you happy in your faith, or do you want to grow? If you want to grow – what do you need to do to start growing? Are you willing to plan and put the effort in?
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:
Rosemary Baxter, Allan & Anne Baldwin
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: Couples Getting Married
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.