Skip to main content

Prayer Column - December 2020

Image
By
That they may be with me where I am

When Moses asked God (at the burning bush – Ex 3:13-14) for his name, God said “I am”, the essence of life and being. And Jesus spelled out what that meant in his “I am” metaphors: the bread of life; the light of the world; the door of the sheep; the good shepherd; the resurrection and the life; the way, the truth and the life; and the true vine; and there may be more. (These are all in John’s Gospel, see: 6:35; 8:12; 10:7; 10:11; 11:25; 14:6; 15:1)

So when he prayed for his disciples, that “they may be with me where I am”, he might have been referring to our eventual heavenly destination, but he might also have been praying that we would follow him in the here and now in his “I am” roles on earth. So we can pray for gifting and guiding that, in his name and by his Spirit, we may, for instance:
  • Feed and sustain others in their need, spiritually and materially
  • Shine the light of his truth and goodness, wherever we are
  • Lead others to faith in Jesus, as Saviour and as Lord
  • Be compassionately caring shepherds of those in our care
  • Trust him as sufficient in all things, in this life and the next
  • Follow him obediently as Lord of our lives, wherever he leads
  • Allow God to prune our fruitful branches, to bear even more fruit
As we find ways to be and to do any of these things, we shall be living out God’s answers to the high priestly prayer of the Lord Jesus himself.

Roy Lorrain-Smith

A prayer for each week

Lord of all life, please lead us into your fullness, as you choose, and with the gifts your Holy Spirit bestows, for the common good and your glory. Amen.

Lord of the abundant life, please guide us away from all limiting harm, and liberate us towards all the good you intend, that we may serve well. Amen.

Lord of all being, please help us serve the needs of others, easing their problems and enriching their lives, perhaps in ways we can’t see or grasp. Amen.

Lord of all hope in darkness promise in despair, please so fill us that we may radiate your being, and place us where we may serve you faithfully. Amen.

Amen.

Your own prayers

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

News from Allerton Methodist Church

By
Allerton’s Community Play & Learn Hub In October we were approached by the Bradford Community Play Partnership to ask if they could use the church premises for their Allerton & Lower Grange Community Learning Hub. They had been running this from Ladyhill Park since 1st April but needed somewhere more suitable for the winter months. Supporting local families and linking with 5 local primary schools, 7 volunteers, including 3 of our own congregation, are working together to provide ‘Bags of Creativity’ during the pandemic. The group have provided over 5,000 packs to children, signed up over 700 children to a Summer Reading Challenge, engaged with 1,500 children in the Light Project with a physical literacy music lesson in the car park, with pallet Christmas trees, a grotto, forest school activities including making Bird Cake and incorporating: Exercise Counting, Measuring, Weighing Investigating natural materials Growing Sunflowers Reading Music The Hub will continue until Februa...
Post a Comment
Read more

Message from the Link

By
D ISSUE 16 OCTOBER 2012 ear Friends How many times have you heard people say in your church ‘Well, I didn’t know about that!’  Quickly followed by, ‘Well, if you read the notices …’ Communication within churches can be wonderful, it can be a little frustrating and it can be never quite what we had hoped.  The same is true across the Circuit, and very soon we will be reviewing methods and means of communication.  Part of this review may include looking at ‘The Link’ and ‘Outlook’ in the light of our focus upon Mission.  For example, it may be that we move more towards what has happened and how it worked to encourage churches to think about the stories that they have to share, rather than being a notice sheet of things to come. Which leads me to ask, have we ever wondered about who it is we are trying to communicate to, and about what?  For example, there have been many adverts in ‘ The Link’ about coffee mornings and cake....
Post a Comment
Read more

Fairtrade Summer Fair - 31 May 2014

By
Did you know that it is Fairtrade ’s 20th birthday this year? Yes, 2014 marks 20 years since the first Fairtrade product was sold in the UK. In that time, Fairtrade supporters have helped make huge progress, so that millions of farmers, workers and their families now have a brighter future. To celebrate this milestone, we will be having a: Fairtrade Summer Fair at Calverley Methodist Church on Saturday 31st May from 10 a.m. to 12 noon.  Please come along and give your support. There will be refreshments, Fairtrade tasting, a quiz with prize and lots of lovely Fairtrade products for sale.
Post a Comment
Read more