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:
Wait for the Lord;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord.
Psalm 27.14 (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 wicked crave evil; their neighbours get no mercy from them. (NIV)
Wicked people are always hungry for evil; they have no mercy on anyone. (GNB)
Proverbs 21.10
I wonder where you would draw the line? What does someone have to do to be ‘wicked’? Maybe something deserving prison? But what about someone who defrauds a massive bank? And what about someone who constantly spreads lies and cheats round a community?
It’s not easy – which is why I’m glad the final decision is up to God!
What challenges me is the word ‘crave’, or ‘hungry’ – I don’t know about you, but I often wish I could do whatever I wanted and get away with it, from small to big things! If I’m being brutally honest with myself, there is part of me that craves evil – big or small – and I don’t always manage to resist it.
It’s a constant battle – one of my favourite bands has a song that goes like this:
Yeah, it’s where the fight begins
The War Inside, Switchfoot
Yeah, underneath the skin
Beneath these hopes and where we’ve been
Every fight comes from the fight within
I am the war inside
I am the battle line
Friends, we only lose that war when we try to insist it isn’t happening, that we are ‘good’ people. When we recognise it, and turn to God for help, we find that in him we are ‘more than conquerors’. The war may be inside – but we don’t fight alone; as David said, ‘the battle is the Lord’s’ (1 Samuel 17.47).
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:
Rose Swaddle, Linda Dearne, Simon Dearne
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: Evangelism & Outreach
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.