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:
Let us not become weary in doing good,
for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
Galatians 6.9 (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.
Like one who takes away a garment on a cold day, or like vinegar poured on a wound, is one who sings songs to a heavy heart. (NIV)
Singing to a person who is depressed is like taking off a person’s clothes on a cold day or like rubbing salt in a wound. (GNB)
Proverbs 25.20
It is not easy to support someone who is sad, and even harder when it becomes depression.
What makes it worse, is someone saying, ‘buck up Chuck!’ or ‘other people are worse off than you,’ or ‘you don’t know how lucky you are,’ or ‘turn that frown upside-down’, or giving advice on sleep improvement, or diet improvement, or any manner of other perhaps well-intentioned but unkind things (all of those have been said to me)..
When someone is sad, what we normally need is someone to show us some care, to listen to us talk about how we’re feeling (if we want to – sometimes we don’t), maybe to offer some practical help (i.e. words and advice are cheap, but going out of your way to give us something we actually need is of great worth).
Compassion literally means ‘suffering with’. It means showing love, in a kind way. It means being thoughtful about what the other person actually needs, not what you want to give them / think they need to hear.
Can you be that person to others?
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:
Mary Wilson, Cynthia Taylor, Doug & Irene Dean
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: Pre-Schools 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.