Sing to the Lord, and praise him! Proclaim every day the good news that he has saved us (Psalm 96.2, GNB).
If you would like to receive these by email, please click here.
Opening
Speak these words out loud:
By his power God raised Jesus from the dead,
and he will raise us also.
1 Corinthians 6.14 (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.
Those who guard their mouths and their tongues keep themselves from calamity. (NIV)
If you want to stay out of trouble, be careful what you say. (GNB)
Proverbs 21.23
Have you ever had that slightly odd disembodied feeling as you are saying something, and you know you shouldn’t, but somehow you can’t stop yourself?
I have! My brain says, ‘Why are you saying this?? Shut up, shut up!’ But my mouth carries on regardless.
Probably more common is the regret that comes immediately or soon after saying something like I shouldn’t, wishing I could go back in time and tell Yesterday Ben to put a sock in it.
The words might be angry and cruel, or they might be foolish. The words might be true, but unkind. Someone once told me that a good test for whether or not you should say something is:
- is it true?
- is it necessary?
- is it kind?
Unless it is all three, you should keep your mouth shut. Sometimes things might be true and necessary, but in the moment it wouldn’t be kind – or it wouldn’t be kind for us to say it (an example might be when someone is grieving).
I’m not offering this as a rule but as a test, a practical example of how to ‘guard’ our mouths and tongues. My mother’s suggestion? ‘Think before you speak.’ Learn to take a breath before diving in – and you may just save yourself from calamity.
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:
Doug & Irene Dean, Dot Betts, Vicky Moss
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: Poverty & Deprivation in 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.