|
Spreading Love & Hope...
Welcome to this week's devotion. These resources have been gathered for your use at home during these days of physical social distancing and virtual social connection. May this devotion and the links provided help you stay connected to God and the wider community.
|
Now that our church photo competition is complete, you'll be seeing those beautiful photos! To start, here's the Cuillin Hills from Raasey (I still don't know the photographers!).
|
If you have items to share -- a prayer, song, Bible verse, reflection, photo, link -- please send it, so we can share them with everyone.
|
|
Please share these devotions with friends.
|
|
Blessings & peace, Ana & Tod
|
|
|
|
|
|
A prayer from the United Reformed Church
‘God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.’
Psalm 46:1 NRSV
Living, loving God,
we praise you,
and through times of peril we lean into you,
for in Jesus Christ
you have trodden paths as difficult as ours,
revealing there a love that nothing defeats,
a love that bears us through.
Even as we strive to behave responsibly,
and to care reliably,
we feel after you
that in these uncertain times we might trust you are with us,
our refuge and strength,
and our faith, hope and love might be renewed,
through Jesus Christ, Amen.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Music
|
|
|
Not getting enough church music in your life? Try this...
|
Lots and lots of hymns have been sung and recorded by the congregations at three Methodist churches in London: Westminster Chapel, Grace Community Church and Metropolitan Tabernacle. The playlists are arranged by title and composer and are easy to navigate, so you can find the songs you like best and can listen to your hearts content.
|
|
While you're listening, may your spirit soar with the music! Could be great background music while you try out the 'Relax in God' prayer and meditation exercise.
|
|
|
|
|
Have a listen to 'You’ve got a friend', performed by the worldwide cast of BEAUTIFUL (while in quarantine) to benefit the The Actors Fund. This old favourite, once sung by Carole King, brings warmth to my heart!
|
|
|
Send in your favourite music links to share.
|
|
|
|
|
Relax in God
|
Now that you're familiar with this relaxation practice,
|
|
open yourself today to a new level of relaxation and peace.
|
|
May this time of quiet reflection and prayer, for you,
|
release tension, stress, and anxiety
and bring calm, peace, and clarity.
|
Place your hand or finger over your heart.
Breathe deeply, in and out.
|
|
Continue to breathe deeply
|
as you reflect on these things and feel them in your mind and heart.
|
Think of who or what you CARE about.
Think of who or what you APPRECIATE.
Think of who or what you have GRATITUDE about.
Think of who or what you have COMPASSION about.
|
|
'Be still and know that I am God'
|
Rest and rejoice in this place of goodness and peace.
|
Note: you only need to focus on one or two of the qualities. The more you can FEEL them, the better. You should do this for at least three minutes at a time.
|
|
This practice is adapted from Reiki, a Japanese system of relaxation which is an embodied prayer connecting with the universal energy, life force, and love of God.
|
|
|
|
|
20 Prayers to Pray During This Pandemic
by Jen Pollock Michelmarch
As COVID-19 sends the globe into crisis, it also sends us to our knees.
As COVID-19 has been declared a global pandemic..., the crisis is urgent, and I feel powerless. But perhaps feeling small is the best reminder to pray. Prayer is how we actively practice believing, so simply, so confidently, that God has the whole world in his [sic] hands. It’s where we 'let petitions and praises shape our worries into prayers, letting God know our concerns' (Phil. 4:6–7, The Message). Prayer is never the last resort of God’s people. It is our first point of action.
|
With that in mind, I’ve put together a list of 20 prayers to pray during this pandemic. Each one addresses the specific needs of a specific community. I’m fortunate to be a part of a church with many medical professionals, some of whom gave me advice on how best to pray for them at this time. I’ve included their responses here. I’ve also tried to think broadly about how the rest of us are impacted by the current crisis.
This list isn’t comprehensive, of course, but it’s a good place to start. My hope is that it can provide words for us as we pray collectively (if also virtually!) as a church body. We believe there is a God who bends [an] ear to listen, and so we pray:
|
|
1. For the sick and infected: God, heal and help. Sustain bodies and spirits. Contain the spread of infection.
|
2. For our vulnerable populations: God, protect our elderly and those suffering from chronic disease. Provide for the poor, especially the uninsured.
|
3. For the young and the strong: God, give them the necessary caution to keep them from unwittingly spreading this disease. Inspire them to help.
|
4. For our ... governments: God, help our elected officials as they allocate the necessary resources for combatting this pandemic. Help them to provide more tests.
|
5. For our scientific community, leading the charge to understand the disease and communicate its gravity: God, give them knowledge, wisdom, and a persuasive voice.
|
6. For the media, committed to providing up-to-date information: God, help them to communicate with appropriate seriousness without causing panic.
|
7. For consumers of media, looking to be well-informed: God, help us find the most helpful local information to equip us to be good neighbours. Keep us from anxiety and panic, and enable us to implement the recommended strategies, even at a cost to ourselves.
|
8. For those with mental health challenges who feel isolated, anxious, and helpless: God, provide them every necessary support.
|
9. For the homeless, unable to practice the protocols of social distancing in the shelter system: Protect them from disease, and provide isolation shelters in every city.
|
10. For international travelers stuck in foreign countries: God, help them return home safely and quickly.
|
11. For Christian missionaries throughout the world, especially in areas with high rates of infection: God, provide them with words of hope, and equip them to love and serve those around them.
|
12. For workers in a variety of industries facing [redundancy] and financial hardship: God, keep them from panic, and inspire your church to generously support them.
|
13. For families with young children at home for the foreseeable future: God, help mothers and fathers to partner together creatively for the care and flourishing of their children. For single mothers and fathers, grow their networks of support.
|
14. For parents who cannot stay home from work but must find care for their children: God, present them with creative solutions.
|
15. For those in need of regular therapies and treatments that must now be postponed: God, help them to stay patient and positive.
|
16. For business leaders making difficult decisions that affect the lives of their employees: God, give these women and men wisdom, and help them to lead self-sacrificially.
|
17. For [ministers] and church leaders faced with the challenges of social distancing: God, help them to creatively imagine how to pastor their congregants and love their [communities] well.
|
18. For college and university students, whose courses of study are changing, whose placements are cancelled...: God, show them that while life is uncertain, their trust is in you.
|
|
19. For Christians in every neighbourhood, community, and city: May your Holy Spirit inspire us to pray, to give, to love, to serve, and to proclaim the gospel, that the name of Jesus Christ might be glorified around the world.
|
20. For frontline health care workers, we thank you for their vocational call to serve us.
|
We also pray:
• God, keep them safe and healthy. Keep their families safe and healthy.
• God, help them to be knowledgeable about the diagnosis and treatment of this disease, as well as the changing protocols.
• God, deliver them from anxiety for their own loved ones (aging parents, children, spouses, [partners], roommates).
• God, give them compassion for every patient in their care.
• God, provide for them financially, especially if they fall ill and are unable to work.
• God, help Christians in health care to exhibit extraordinary peace, so that many would ask about the reason for their hope. Give them opportunities to proclaim the gospel.
|
God, we trust that you are good and do good. Teach us be your faithful people in this time of global crisis. Help us follow in the footsteps of our faithful shepherd, Jesus, who laid down his life for the sake of love. Glorify his name as you equip us with everything needed for doing your will. Amen.
|
Jen Pollock Michel is the author of Teach Us to Want, Keeping Place, and Surprised by Paradox. She lives with her husband and their five children in Toronto. This piece was adapted from her recent blog.
|
|
|
|
Sunday Worship online and on-the-phone 10:30
|
Join in through your computer or using your landline telephone. If you would like to learn more so that you can join us in worship and communion, contact your Church Secretary or the Ministers or reply to this email.
|
|
|
Andover, Broad Chalke & Salisbury congregations
|
|
of the United Reformed Church gather for worship.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Click on the blue button above to visit Worship Words for prayers and reflections related to the Lectionary Readings for this Pentecost season of the Church Year.
|
|
|
|
Reminder - Tuesday's Corona Christ Care Zoom Group
|
14:30-16:00 for fellowship, Bible study and prayer.
|
|
Everyone is welcome. Bring your Bible and a cup of tea.
|
|
Readings prepare us for Sunday worship.
|
|
(Zoom Meeting ID: 852 5929 3409)
|
|
Here's the Zoom link to copy into your browser: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85259293409
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
In case you missed it...
|
Yesterdays' Daily Home Devotions
Missed a Daily Devotion? Find it here.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Subscribe to these Home Devotions
|
|
To receive this Daily Home Devotion in your inbox, please click on this www icon and subscribe on the Salisbury United Reformed Church website.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Salisbury URC church copyright license CCL License B 430662
|
|
As this is an email newsletter, and not a publication or post on a website, the one-off use of certain items is allowed, as for a Sunday service sheet.
|
|
If you catch an error, let us know so we can rectify it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Contact us by email and visit (and join) Salisbury United Reformed Church on Facebook and our website.
|
|
 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
