General Chat

Good morning :-)

Today is Palm Sunday, that day when we remember Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem on a donkey.

The following is taken from The Iona Community - a Christian Ecumenical Community based on the Isle of Iona.


Cheers, Jesus!
Cheers to you, champion of the poor.
Cheers to you, lifter up of the downtrodden.
Cheers to you, fearless voice of truth to power.
It’s your green carpet day!
Send up pomp and ceremony.
Send up military prowess.
Send up the tyrants’ parade.
Your glory is trotted out!
Here’s to you, Jesus.
We salute you with flung down coats
and brandished branches.
Lead us on
in your way,
Amen


There are many hymns which are suitable for today - here are a couple to keep you singing happily........

https://youtu.be/Zo5pfl6z6lA

https://youtu.be/8t8zA1N6mCY


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


A popular hymn with a Lenten theme - a tune which can go round in your head for hours!!



Amazing grace, How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now I am found,
Was blind, but now I see.

'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved.
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.

Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come,
'Tis grace has brought me safe thus far
And grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promised good to me
His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures.

Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease
I shall possess within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

When we've been there ten thousand years
Bright shining as the sun,
We've no less days to sing God's praise
Than when we've first begun.

Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


God our Father,
in your love and goodness
you have taught us to come close to you in penitence
with prayer, fasting and generosity;
accept our Lenten discipline,
and when we fall by our weakness,
raise us up by your unfailing mercy;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


Lent is a time of going very deeply into ourselves.
What is it that stands between us and God?
Between us and our brothers and sisters?
Between us and life, the life of the Spirit?
Whatever it is, let us relentlessly tear it out, without a moment's hesitation

. - Catherine Doherty


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


The same here Kandj. Whilst some churches were open in different areas, our church and the other 6 in the cluster remained closed. Sad.


God our hearts are heavy, with sins untold
and cares unshared.
Our lives are burdened with doubts unvoiced
and fears unmentioned.
God who is greater than our hearts, deeper than our minds,
always alive,
always longing for our response, may we stretch out our hands
and surrender,
walking with you through the wilderness, to find freedom in
following Christ alone.
May we willingly walk with Jesus, The One who carries our burdens
to the cross where fear is transformed into love, and loneliness
into communion with you.
Amen

Cx :-)

Hello all

On this National Day of Reflection I was saddened that the village church has remained closed even for private prayer.

Heavenly Father
Be near as we remember all that has happened this past year.
Be close as we think about those whom we have loved and lost and are no longer with us because of the Corona virus.
Help us to reach out to others in kind deeds and
bring hope into all of our lives and our homes.
Amen.

Good morning :-)

Today is a very special day as we remember what has happened over the last 12 months, with our world, our country, our people, our lives, hearts and minds.


Dear God,
Be with us as we think about all that has changed this year,
And help us to trust that you are always with us.
Be close to us as we remember those who have died,
And help us to trust they are at peace with you.
Show us how to reach out to others with kindness and care,
So that hope shines out in every heart and home,
Amen


https://www.churchofengland.org/.../national-day-reflection

Cx :-)

Good morning :-)

Good news was announced yesterday......our church is opening up at Easter...people are so pleased.

Yes, its now Spring and I would think everyone on here has filled in their census form. Haven't they changed over the years? Why on earth they want to know what sort of central heating we have is beyond me though.



A hymn often sung during Lent - very comforting words.

How sweet the Name of Jesus sounds
in a believer's ear!
It soothes his sorrows, heals his wounds,
and drives away his fear.

It makes the wounded spirit whole,
and calms the troubled breast;
'tis manna to the hungry soul,
and to the weary, rest.

Dear Name, the rock on which I build,
my shield and hiding-place,
my never-failing treasury, filled
with boundless stores of grace!

Jesus! my Shepherd, Brother, Friend,
my Prophet, Priest and King,
my Lord, my Life, my Way, my End,
accept the praise I bring.

Cx :-)

Hello all

It's the 5th Sunday in Lent which is Passion Sunday and it feels strange not to have taken part in any Lent Courses in other local churches this year.

Gracious Father
You gave up your Son
out of love for the world:
Lead us to ponder on the mysteries
of his compassion,
that we may know eternal peace
through the shedding of our Saviour's blood,
In Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Today is the 1st day of Spring and also the
2021 Census day. Keep safe everybody.

Good morning :-)

The Collect (special prayer) for today :

Most merciful God,
who by the death and resurrection of thy Son Jesus Christ
hast delivered and saved the world:
grant that by faith in him who suffered on the cross
we may triumph in the power of his victory;
through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord,
who liveth and reigneth with thee,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Cx :-)

Good morning :-)

God, we come with hesitant steps and uncertain motives, to sweep out the corners where sin has accumulated and uncover the ways we have strayed from your truth.

Expose the empty and barren places where we don’t allow you to enter. Reveal our half-hearted struggles where we have been indifferent to the suffering of others.

Nurture the faint stirrings of new life where your spirit has begun to grow. Let your healing light transform us into the image of your Son. For you alone can bring new life and make us whole. Amen


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)

I have a hairdresser's appointment - in 5 weeks!! It will be goodbye to the Albert Einstein look!


For Lent.


"Lent stimulates us to let the Word of God penetrate our life and, in this way, to know the fundamental truth: Who we are, where we come from, where we must go, what path we must take in life." - Pope Benedict XVI


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


Lent:


O God, you see that we have no strength in ourselves.
Keep us both outwardly and inwardly.
Defend us from all adversities which hurt the body,
and cleanse us from all evil thoughts which afflict the mind;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.

Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


Kandj, that's great news and I am so pleased for you. We are still waiting to hear what is happening in our area but I know where I will be going if my church stays closed. As for the hymn, that is actually a new one on me - one lives and learns! :-D

Lent.

Lent is a time for discipline, for confession, for honesty, not because God is mean or fault- finding or finger-pointing but because he wants us to know the joy of being cleaned out, ready for all the good things he now has in store. - N.T. Wright

Cx :-)

Hello all

Our church is planned to open on Easter Sunday and I'm already counting down the days. Woohoo!!

I doubt we will be allowed to sing then but one of my favourite Lenten hymns is this one..................

How deep the Father's love for us?
How vast beyond all measure?
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure.

How great the pain of searing loss?
The Father turns His face away
As wounds which mar the Chosen One
Bring many sons to glory.

Behold the man upon the cross
My sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed I hear my mocking voice
Call out among the scoffers.

It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life
I know that it is finished.

I will not boast in anything
No gifts, no power, no wisdom
But I will boast in Jesus Christ
His death and resurrection.

Sending out gentle hugs for all in need today.

Good morning :-)


A hymn which is often sung during Lent - it gives us a reminder of our Christian responsibilities and encourages us along the way.


1 "Take up your cross," the Saviour said,
"if you would my disciple be;
take up your cross with willing heart,
and humbly follow after me."

2 Take up your cross; let not its weight
fill your weak spirit with alarm;
Christ's strength shall bear your spirit up
and brace your heart and nerve your arm.

3 Take up your cross, heed not the shame,
and let your foolish heart be still;
the Lord for you accepted death
upon a cross, on Calv'ry's hill.

4 Take up your cross, then, in Christ's strength,
and calmly ev'ry danger brave:
it guides you to abundant life
and leads to vict'ry o'er the grave.



Cx :-)

Good morning :-)

Good heaven's Vera, your poor friend and what she must have gone through at those sad times bless her heart. <3


Our Lent prayer for today :


God, I pray for my prayer life to become vibrant and strong in this season of Lent. I pray that your voice, even though a whisper, would ring loud and true in my life. I pray for the courage and boldness to follow wherever you lead, to love and serve whomever and however you invite me. Amen.

Cx :-)

A beautiful prayer Cynthia.

Vera, that is so very sad. It must be devastating.

A relative lost her first baby to S.I.D at 10 weeks old.

Eventually, she and her husband were fortunate to have a daughter and a son, but many years later the Mum told me that her thoughts on Mothering Sunday always return to the little one, who first made her a mother.

A loud Amen to your prayer Cynthia.

I am thinking particularly today of my German friend who now has dementia. Sadly she lost her first child, a little boy, to an inherited disease when he was only 8 months old. She later adopted a boy and a girl. In his 20s both the boy and his fiancée were killed in a terrible autobahn accident caused by a driver who fell asleep at the wheel. I just cannot imagine how you get over such losses.

I can only echo today’s prayer and send my love and thoughts to mothers everywhere <3

Good morning :-)


Happy Mothering Sunday.....and a special prayer for this special day....



Loving God,
Thank you for mums, for those who have mothered us
and for all the joy of family life.
We pray especially for all who find Mothering Sunday painful:
We pray for mothers who watch over children who are ill
and children who watch over their suffering mothers;
We remember mothers who are apart from their children
and mothers who grieve because their children have died.
Be with those who are grieving because they have no mother;
Be close to those who are struggling because they have no children;
Be near to those who are sad because they are far apart from those they love.
Let your love be present in every home,
And help your church to have eyes to see and ears to hear the needs of all who come.
We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.


Cx :-)