Urgent call to prayer for those affected by flooding

Special prayer available online: http://tinyurl.com/yfl2jpp

The President of the Methodist Conference has called for people to pray for all those affected by last night’s severe flooding.

Revd David Gamble is asking churches to pray in their services this Sunday for people affected by the flooding and has written a special prayer for use by churches and individuals across the UK (below).

Revd Richard Teal, Chair of the Cumbria Methodist District, has asked for Christians to pray particularly for the people of Cumbria.

Loving God

We remember in your presence all those who have been affected by the recent flooding:
people whose homes and livelihoods have been devastated;
people who feel they have lost everything and don’t know what to do next;
people who fear for the safety of ones they love.
We remember, too, all those involved in bringing help and support:
those who work in the emergency services, sometimes at risk of their lives;
volunteers, wanting to do whatever they can to help;
and the churches in Cumbria, especially those in the Methodist district.
And we remember the land.
As the elements rage, we remember that you have called us to care for your creation.
In the midst of all the confusion, pain, fear, anger and loss may your Spirit brood over the face of the waters and bring hope.
And may your love be known,
through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Amen

Source: Methodist News Service 20/11/2009

Cautious welcome for Zimbabwe power-sharing deal

Zanu-PF have reached a ‘point of weakness’

The Methodist Church and the United Reformed Church have welcomed news of the power-sharing deal reached between the Zanu-PF and MDC political parties in Zimbabwe. But they have also expressed concern about the practical realities of the deal.

Roy Crowder, Methodist Partnership Coordinator for Africa, says, ‘Clearly Zanu-PF have reached a point of weakness and cannot continue to run the country alone, possibly because their funding has run out and they can no longer afford to control the security forces. Both parties are strong in different ways. Zanu-PF holds the reins of institutional power, but the international community refuses to recognise their status. While the MDC has had no institutional control, their presence in government could unlock international aid for the reconstruction of this desperate country. Much will now depend on which party influences and controls the Zimbabwean security forces.’

“Many people have taken significant risks to outline a vision for a new Zimbabwe,’ continues Frank Kantor, Secretary for Church and Society for the United Reformed Church. ‘The country desperately needs courageous leadership to make this vision a reality and to find ways to balance the requirements of justice with those of national healing and reconciliation in Zimbabwe. The people of Zimbabwe are looking for permanent long-term change. It will be difficult for this power-sharing arrangement to deliver fundamental reforms unless it addresses this need.'

The Churches are urging people to pray for the situation in Zimbabwe and have offered the following prayer for use by individuals, groups and congregations:

Lord of order in chaos,
Bring your peace where there is no peace,
Bring your sustenance where there is no bread,
Bring your wisdom where all is in disorder,
Bring your comfort where there is fear,
Bring your justice where injustice reigns.
Bless the people and politicians of Zimbabwe
and guide them to a just and stable future.

Amen.

I have a nephew in Harare who has spent his life serving the people of Zimbabwe and has made it his country, so I watch and wait with a special inerest and concern for the success of this shared government and, hopefully, an answer to this prayer.

'Before they call, I will answer'

I have just received this by e-mail and I really must share it with you all, with the request to pass it on, please. This will bring comfort and challenge to any who are in distress and should also spur our churches and young people's groups to respond to the prayers of less fortunate people overseas.


Isaiah 65:24 'Before they call, I will answer'


This story was written by a doctor who worked in South Africa

One night I had worked hard to help a mother in the labor ward; but in spite of all we could do, she died leaving us with a tiny premature baby and a crying two-year-old daughter. We would have difficulty keeping the baby alive, as we had no incubator (we had no electricity to run an incubator).

We also had no special feeding facilities. Although we lived on the equator, nights were often chilly with treacherous drafts. One student midwife went for the box we had for such babies and the cotton wool that the baby would be wrapped in.


Another went to stoke up the fire and fill a hot water bottle. She came back shortly in distress to tell me that in filling the bottle, it had burst (rubber perishes easily in tropical climates). 'And it is our last hot water bottle!' she exclaimed. As in the West, it is no good crying over spilled milk so in Central Africa it might be considered no good crying over burst water bottles They do not grow on trees, and there are no drugstores down forest pathways.

'All right,' I said, 'put the baby as near the fire as you safely can, and sleep between the baby and the door to keep it free from drafts. Your job is to keep the baby warm.'

The following noon, as I did most days, I went to have prayers with any of the orphanage children who chose to gather with me. I gave the youngsters various suggestions of things to pray about and told them about the tiny baby. I explained our problem about keeping the baby warm enough, mentioning the hot water bottle, and that the baby could so easily die if it got chills. I also told them of the two-year-old sister, crying because her mother had died.


During prayer time, one ten -year old girl, Ruth, prayed with the usual blunt conciseness of our African children. 'Please, God' she prayed, 'send us a water bottle. It'll be no good tomorrow, God, as the baby will be dead, so please send it this afternoon.'

While I gasped inwardly at the audacity of the prayer, she added, 'And while You are about it, would You please send a dolly for the little girl so she'll know You really love her?'

As often with children's prayers, I was put on the spot. Could I honestly say,'Amen'. I just did not believe that God could do this. Oh, yes, I know that He can do everything, the Bible says so; But there are limits, aren't there? The only way God could answer this particular prayer would be by sending me a parcel from homeland. I had been in Africa for almost four years at that time, and I had never, ever received a parcel from home. Anyway, if anyone did send me a parcel, who would put in a hot water bottle? I lived on the equator! Halfway through the afternoon, while I was teaching in the nurses' training school, a message was sent that there was a car at my front door.

By the time I reached home, the car had gone, but there, on the veranda, was a large twenty-two pound parcel. I felt tears pricking my eyes. I could not open the parcel alone, so I sent for the orphanage children.

Together we pulled off the string, carefully undoing each knot. We folded the paper, taking care not to tear it unduly. Excitement was mounting. Some thirty or forty pairs of eyes were focused on the large cardboard box. From the top, I lifted out brightly colored, knitted jerseys. Eyes sparkled as I gave them out. Then there were the knitted bandages for the leprosy patients, and the children looked a little bored. Then came a box of mixed raisins and sultanas - that would make a batch of buns for the weekend Then, as I put my hand in again, I felt the.....could it really be? I grasped it and pulled it out - yes, a brand-new, rubber hot water bottle. I cried. I had not asked God to send it; I had not truly believed that He could. Ruth was in the front row of the children. She rushed forward, crying out, 'If God has sent the bottle, He must have sent the dolly too!'


Rummaging down to the bottom of the box, she pulled out the small, beautifully dressed dolly. Her eyes shone! She had never doubted!

Looking up at me, she asked: 'Can I go over with you and give this dolly to that little girl, so she'll know that Jesus really loves her?'

That parcel had been on the way for five whole months. Packed up by my former Sunday school class, whose leader had heard and obeyed God's prompting to send a hot water bottle, even to the equator. And one of the girls had put in a dolly for an African child - five months before, in answer to the believing prayer of a ten-year-old to bring it 'that afternoon.'

'Before they call, I will answer' (Isaiah 65:24) This awesome prayer takes less than a minute. When you receive this, say the prayer, that's all you have to do. No strings attached. Just send it on to whomever you want - but do send it on. Prayer is one of the best free gifts we receive. There is no cost but a lot of rewards.

Let's continue praying for one another Father, I ask you to bless my friends reading this right now. I am asking You to minister to their spirit at this very moment. Where there is pain, give them Your peace and mercy. Where there is self doubting, release a renewed confidence to work through them. Where there is spiritual stagnation, I ask You to renew them by revealing Your nearness, and by drawing them into greater intimacy with You. Where there is fear, reveal Your love, and release to them Your courage. Bless their finances, give them greater vision, and raise up leaders and friends to support and encourage them. Give each of them discernment to recognize the evil forces around them, and reveal to them the power they have in You to defeat it. I ask you to do these things in Jesus' name.


I can only add, AMEN.

Gospels to be specially printed for the Olympics

I cannot wait to share with you this wonderful good news that reached me by e-mail this morning. We will all be adding our prayers to all these plans to spread the Good News at the Olympics as the eyes and ears of the world turn to Beijing in a few weeks' time. I am so delighted!

"Bibles and Scripture booklets will be available to athletes in the Olympic village in Beijing this summer, despite rumours that Bibles would be banned at the games. In a major breakthrough, Chinese authorities have given the go-ahead for the printing and distribution of:

- 50,000 booklets with the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John in Chinese and English
- 10,000 Chinese-English Bibles
- 30,000 Chinese-English New Testaments

The Beijing Olympic organising committee has even, for the first time, allowed its logo to be used free of charge on the Gospel portions. The announcement follows controversy earlier this year over whether the Chinese authorities would allow Bibles to be made available at the Olympics.

James Catford, Chief Executive of Bible Society, said, ‘This is a major and exciting opportunity. We are privileged to be able to support the Church in China in the publishing of these Bibles and Scriptures during the Beijing Olympics.’

The booklets will be available to some 16,000 athletes and officials in the Olympic villages in Beijing and five other cities that are hosting events during the summer.

In other developments:

Places of worship have been set up within the Olympic village to provide religious services to athletes.
The Church in Beijing has been asked to provide people to staff the chapel and conduct worship services and prayers.
Please share this news with your church and friends – and please pray:

Thank God for this unique opportunity to make the Bible available in a country where, only 40 years ago, the Bible was banned.
Pray that people from across the world would encounter the Bible’s life-changing message through the Scriptures available at the Olympics.
Pray for those staffing the Olympic village chapel, that they would be powerful witnesses for God’s embracing love.
Pray for the Bible Society staff who have been working hard to create this opportunity, for continued energy, creativity and passion in their work.
To join Bible Society in supporting the printing of Scriptures at the Olympics,
visit www.biblesociety.org.uk/chinaolympics

"Prayer is One of Modern Britain's Best-Kept Secrets!"

Written by Alexandra Frean

Students sitting exams who think they do not have a prayer have been given a message of hope: they do now.

Mindful of its mission to bring divine inspiration to all corners of modern life in these testing times, the Church of England has published a series of prayers online to help students and teachers to cope with exam stress.

Students may find peace in the prayer that gives thanks for “stories in the Bible that show us that being worried and afraid are common feelings”. They may take heart at the appeal for divine intervention “when things seem impossible”. They may even find the inner grace to “celebrate with all our classmates, families and friends as they fail or as they succeed”.

However, they are less likely to find reassurance in the prayer for teachers that begins: “I don’t suppose you have time for this, Lord”, which laments the tendency of pupils to forget “things that normally they know, like their names and the date” and ends with the words “at this moment they really need your help”.

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The Rev Janina Ainsworth, chief education officer for the Church of England, said that the prayers were intended for use in assemblies but could easily be adapted for personal use by students and teachers seeking peace. “Everyone involved in education knows the pressures of the exam season,” she said. “Whatever one thinks about league tables and the relevance of academic achievement, Christians are called to consider the broader picture.”

The prayers form the latest addition to a regularly updated selection on the Church of England’s website.

The page also offers a prayer for the emergency situations in China and Burma.

The Church has launched several similar ventures in recent months, including a selection of “back to work” prayers released in September 2007 that attracted 10,000 viewings. Prayers for those affected by debt have been viewed 7,500 times since they went online in January.

Surveys conducted in recent years indicate that about two thirds of adults pray, leading the Church of England’s head of research and statistics, the Rev Lynda Barley, to describe prayer as “one of the best-kept secrets in modern Britain”.

The prayers can be found at www.cofe.anglican.org/prayers.

Give us this day

Prayers for primary school pupils

“Dear Lord, even when things seem impossible, help me to trust you. Please give me friends I can rely on and help me listen to adults I can trust. Amen.”

Prayers for secondary school students

“We are in the midst of stressful times. Give us grace to see that it is the making of our success, the making of our characters, the making of our selves.”

Adapted from the collective resource produced by the Culham Institute in association with the National Society

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/article3964810.ece

Urgent call for Prayer for Kenya

This morning I received this urgent call for prayer, and once again I urge you to join me in prayer for these desperate children of God.

"We are all in-doors, roads are blocked between Eldoret and Marakwet and between Elodret and Nairobi. Whoever is travelling travels at his/her own risk. People are staying all over and at either side.

Killings are going on in Eldoret, mainly the Kikuyus because they say they stole the votes for Raila and gave to Kibaki. People are desperate. Lives and properties are lost. Towns are in disarray. Goods are double or thrice in prices if you can find them in the village.

It is harvesting time for Mangos but there is nowhere to sell them, therefore it is rotting and perishing in the farms. The people of the valley will really suffer because that was the only source of income per year. It is a shame to see thousands of money being lost and the economy of the land going down hill in a high speed just because of voting to the wrong candidate. Please pray because food is going to be the main problem.

Pray for safety on our roads so that people will return back to work .
Pray for people owning Matatus to release them to the road."

PRAYER SURVEY COUNTERS CLAIM THAT FAITH IS IRRELEVANT

Tearfund believes that a survey on prayer commissioned by the Christian aid charity ‘flies in the face of the view that faith is increasingly irrelevant in today's secular society’. According to Chief Executive, Matthew Frost, the poll 'demonstrates the prevalence and potential of prayer'. While only about one in five adults goes to church at least once a year, twice as many pray. Of the twenty million who say they pray, just under half of them do so every day. Some 68 per cent pray for family and friends, 41 per cent give thanks to God and 25 per cent intercede over world issues. The highest percentage of praying Britons was found in the capital, with roughly three in four adult Londoners praying and one in five attending church at least once a month.

Source: The Observer (11/11)

For all the Saints ......

Loving God, we thank you
for all those who have listened to your call,
followed you faithfully,
served you wholeheartedly
and witnessed to your truth, justice and love.

We thank you for the prophets
who bravely declared your word
to hostile and uncaring peoples.
We thank you for the disciples
who embraced the strange adventure
of following Jesus.
We thank you for the evangelists
who risked their lives to bring the good news
of your saving love to the world.

We thank you for Christian people
in every age and in every place,
who have lived out your gospel
as shining lights in a dark world.
We remember those whom we have known,
who have shown us the way of love
and given us insights, comfort or challenge.
We thank you now for those who have died,
and rejoice that in you we are all made one
on earth and in heaven.

Last part of the Mountain to Climb!

This week I have received a further batch of sight-checking in the Igbo language from Wycliffe Associates which will occupy much of my time in the next few weeks. It was several years ago, when I was about to be housebound for 6 months with my leg in plaster after an ankle operation, that I saw a small advert asking for proof readers. Ever since then it has been a great joy to feel part of the team 'working here, helping there' to make the Scriptures available across the world.

I never know which language will be sent to me for checking and people ask me how I can possibly do the checking if I don't know the languages. Wycliffe Associates has a team of typesetters to computerise the original text and it is their work that I carefully check with a copy of the original text. Recently we have been working in this way on the Igbo Bible and I think this is probably my last batch in this language, for others will probably be given the final chapters, Jude and Revelation, to check.

Igbo (also written as Ibo) is a language spoken in Nigeria by around 18 million people (1999 WA), the Igbo, especially in the south eastern region once identified as Biafra. The language was used by John Goldsmith as an example to justify deviating from the classical linear model of phonology as laid out in The Sound Pattern of English. It is written in the Roman script. Igbo is a tonal language, like Yoruba and Chinese.

Also this week I have received a 3 months Plan for Daily Prayer for Bible Translation from Wycliffe Bible Translators because, as they tell us, "The gospel is not good news for hundreds of millions of people who don't have God's word. Wycliffe's vision is that Bible translation will start in every language that needs it by 2025 ('Vision 2025'). More Bible translation is going on now than in any time in history but there's the last part of the mountain to climb!

"Up to a billion people do not have Scripture in their heart language. Of these more than 196 million people in 2250 language groups are waiting for work to start. 2426 languages do have Scripture. Of these 429 have a complete Bible, another 1,144 have a New Testament and 853 others have at least one book of the Bible. Since
'Vision 2025' started in 1999, project starts have accelerated to 3 times the rate seen in the 1990s! Now a project starts every 5 days! Work is now going on in 1941 languages!"

Thank you WBT. What a wonderful record, with much more to come in the next few years! I have always been a keen supporter of Wycliffe Bible Translators and so I was delighted to come across the fact that John Wycliffe, Bible translator (1324-1384), came from my own home town of Barnard Castle and was educated at Egglestone Abbey (which I have only known in ruins), then at Oxford!

Please join me in prayer that 'Vision 2025' will become a reality, though it is unlikely that I will live to see it myself.

'Lost For Words'

Last night we held the first of 6 sessions of the CPAS course 'Lost For Words' at our church, with the Minister, two Local Preachers and myself as leaders. As its title suggests, this course starts where the ordinary Christian people are in their Monday to Saturday daily lives and helps them to see that whatever their personality - bold or reticent - everyone is capable of sharing their faith naturally, just as they would share any other good news with the people they meet.

Many Christians feel inadequate or even guilty about sharing their faith because they believe it involves door-to-door knocking, handing out leaflets or speaking on street corners but I am reminded of the saying that 'Christianity is caught, not taught'. So it is a very natural face-to-face evangelism, as we come across people in our daily lives, that we are looking at in depth in this course, and to do that we had to identify and examine our own hang-ups that prevent us sharing our faith.

First, we must recognise that God is the evangelist, not us. Our role is to live a life of prayer in tune with God and to make ourselves available to him, as we make the most of every opportunity to speak about Jesus. FEAR is one of the most common reasons given for not sharing the faith - fear of looking a fool, of not knowing what to say, or of damaging a friendship. The key is to be honest with ourselves and with God. Love overcomes fear, so if we have a genuine concern for people, wanting to help them, fear can be held in check. We need to remember to rely on God and his love for us. We need to equip ourselves, so that we are as informed as we can be, we need to share our fear with other Christians, and we must pray about our fears and for the people to whom we want to talk about Jesus.

WRONG IDEAS about evangelism sometimes prevent Christians from speaking of Jesus. One of these is that evangelists are all of a certain extrovert type of personality whereas God made us all different for a purpose, so that he could use each one of us just as we are. We can't emphasise too much that God wants us to be ourselves.

Others say that they are too busy and have no time to spread the Gospel outside the Church, but this course helps them to understand that we can use our normal time - the time sitting next to someone on a bus, or standing next to someone in the supermarket queue, etc. Still others say that they are struggling with their own faith and so have nothing to share, forgetting that it is often in sharing our doubts that we suddenly realise that our own faith has been strengthened. Besides, it is often those who have 'been through it', as we say, who 'ring a bell' with someone who happens to be in that same situation.

We stressed that HELP is at hand -
H Honesty: admitting our inadequacies, sharing them, being honest with God.
E Explore the issues, learn from one another.
L Learn new insights and ideas on how to share our faith, what to say, etc.
P Prayer for ourselves, others on the course and in the church, and 'outsiders'.

Then we looked at Prayer clues in Colossians 4: 2-6 and stressed again the Key Principle - Be yourself, with God, for others. We asked those doing the course to think about all the human contacts they had had this week and helped them to see that we all have many more contact people than we realise. So there is plenty of opportunity to speak about Jesus if we keep our eyes and ears open enough to be sensitive to the openings or questions that occur naturally and which give us the chance to speak. To help us select which of several often-asked common questions we will deal with in future sessions, we briefly tackled the question 'Hasn't science disproved Christianity?' before asking our friends to select, from a list of common questions, which 5 questions they would like us to discuss and in which order of preference. This gives us a chance to prepare adequately and to tackle the questions that bother local people most.

We ended by praying that we may have the courage to respond to those opportunities and the wisdom to know what to say, so that we may learn to speak about our faith with anyone, in a relaxed, natural, helpful way, so that they may discover and respond to God's love for them.

Publicity and Prayers

It always comes hard to me to have to think about and sort out all the services around Christmas time so many weeks before Christmas and this year was no exception. Yes, I know that these things need forward planning (especially for Christmas and Easter, when the Newspapers try to make a composite list of all the services in all the churches) because, as Media Publicity Director here, I always have to be working several weeks ahead or I wouldn't get the coverage like, for instance, the paragraph that appeared in the Reading Chronicle last week advertising our Autumn Fair with an African theme to be held on November 3rd.

So it was a great relief when, with 65 days still to come before Christmas, that I answered the annual (and very early) request of a local Newspaper and emailed the list of services and other celebrations to be held in the Methodist churches in the North of the Circuit. It includes an annual Christmas Carol service at one church for those who have been victims of polio and a 'Birthday Cake for Jesus' at another.

But first there is our Autumn Fair for which the church and hall will be decorated with African artefacts and there will be a picture competiton with entrants' work on show. Any photos or artwork with an African theme taken or created by the entrant in any medium is eligible, and there are several age groups. There will be lunches, musical entertainment and children's games, including rides on 'the little red train', as well as the usual stalls with goods for sale. The money raised will be divided between the Racecourse Community School conected with our twin church in Mindolo, Zambia and the Groom Street Methodist Church in Koksted, Natal, where our Minister was once stationed and where they are now building a community hall. As you will gather, this is a time to have fun together as well as raising money for our friends overseas.

I have also been working on the draft of the November Prayer Guidelines for the Methodists North of the River Thames and, when it's been approved by the Minister, I will be creating a large print version before both versions are sent to be printed ready for distribution on Sunday. It is surprising how long it takes to gather all the information from all sources, so that our people can be praying for the President and Vice-President on their travels, other Connexional issues and happenings, District and Circuit affairs, local ecumenical and community events, our own immediate needs and challenges and, of course, world-wide concerns.

Prayer for those in trouble

We hold before God:
those for whom life is difficult;
those who have difficult decisions to make, and
who honestly do not know what is the right thing to do.

We hold before God:
those who have difficult tasks to do and to face,
and who fear they may fail in them;
those who have difficult temptations to face, and
who know only too well that they may fall to
them, if they try to meet them alone.

We hold before God;
those who know that they can be their worst enemies.

We hold before God;
those who have difficult people to work with;
those who have to suffer unjust treatment, unfair
criticism, unappreciated work.

We hold before God:
those who are sad because someone they loved has died;
and any who are disappointed in something for
which they hoped very much.

William Barclay

"The Silence of God Touches Our lives."

Speaking at our District Network Celebration last week, Mrs. Christine Stuckey told of her attendance at the Cenotaph in London with her husband Tom during his Presidential Year and what an experience it was to be part of the emotion and pain of that 2 minutes silence! She then added a phrase that has stuck in my mind - "The silence of God touches our lives!"



This was the experience of all those who attended a four-Circuit Quiet Day recently at the Benedictine monastery of Douai Abbey. This beautiful Abbey is so steeped in Prayer and Worship that even those who find it difficult to be silent before God are involuntarily caught up in the all-pervading atmosphere of peace and serenity - whether in the magnificent Church, the conference room or outside in the well-kept,inspirational and peaceful grounds. Silence is also requested even in the Book Room (accessed through the Church), with its extremely helpful display of books and leaflets. One leaflet I found particularly helpful was called 'How to Deal with Difficult People'. One of the monks smiled as he gently said, 'Ah, yes! The monastic life, community life, marriage........'

Our leader for this Quiet Day was the Revd Veronica Faulks who has returned to our Circuit as a Supernumerary Minister and whose theme was 'In the wilderness', based on I Kings 19. The Day was divided into three sessions - 'Into the wilderness', 'Sustained in the Wilderness' and 'An Unexpected Meeting'.

First we were told that this day was to be spent in the presence of God - just ourselves and God, as we communed with Him. We were reminded that our faith journey includes the wilderness. Elijah went there on purpose. He went there to hide, to match his mood. There were no roads, no paths, no signposts - but there were wild beasts, loneliness and thirst. We must realise that the wilderness experience is central to God's people. [Then we dispersed throughout the Abbey and its grounds for our first period of meditation.]

Veronica continued, 'Why the wilderness? Because, despite the terror, aridity and depression, the wilderness is always where God is found. We don't escape the wilderness in order to find God. He is waiting there. Abraham and Hagar had a son, but Abraham and his wife Sarah threw Hagar and her son out into the wilderness. Yet it was not to Abraham the Patriarch nor Sarah who was to carry the child of God's promise, but to Hagar and her son that God gave his promise.

"After his conversion, Paul went to Arabia for three years - to get to know Christ. Jesus followed the high of his baptism with the low of the desert. However barren the wilderness we're in, God is waiting and we are sustained. An angel ministered to Elijah. The angels we meet are one another, even when not recognised! After the angel had fed him, Elijah's fear and depression turned into a pilgrimage. people have discovered this for ages. What people always discover is that the journey is as important as the destination. [Here we were asked to make a list of the angels who had ministered to us, before dispersing again for private contemplation.]

"Pilgrims are always in search of holy places. You can do this at home in your armchair - an outer journey that turns inward - a journey in search of God. As if drawn by a magnet, Elijah found himself going to the holy mountain. Mountains are holy places where God is found, but the high point of this story wasn't the holy mountain, it was the drought! When God said, 'What are you doing here, Elijah?', Elijah was hurt and cried, 'Look what I have done for you and they're trying to kill me.' He was angry, he needed to say how angry he was and he wasn't afraid to say it. So we shouldn't be afraid to be angry with God. Why don't you say angry things to God? Pauline Webb once said, 'Until you can be angry with God you cannot claim your salvation is complete.' God is always passing by. He never sticks around. Jesus does the same after the resurrection! You have to keep your eyes and ears open to catch the moment. [We broke here for lunch.]

On our return, there was a challenge! "Be ready! Ready to hear the still small voice, the soft whisper of a voice in the sheer volume of silence. We expect God to speak in spectacular ways and we lose sight of God in the silence. For Elijah, It was in the wind, storm, rain and cloud that God came to Elijah's people, but Elijah himself had the wisdom to wait for the unexpected. What would the unexpected be for you? The negative things could sometimes be how God speaks. A Sri Lankan Methodist Minister wrote about the time when he was a boy and his Hindu friend took him to a Temple, where he was overwhelmed by the sensory effect it had on him. Later, his Hindu friend said, 'Can I come with you to a church?' His heart sank. What would his friend find in a church after what he regularly experienced in the Temple? Yet it turned out to be an amazing experience! His friend exclaimed in amazement, 'You did everything together!'

"It was not just the food, drink and rest that revitalised Elijah. It was being noticed! It was the unexpected meeting with God. First the cake, water and rest, and then 'Take care of yourself, otherwise the journey will be too much for you.' That message should be written on the fly-leaf of every Bible and given to every Methodist member, Local Preacher, Minister, etc. In the story of the Exodus, in those 40 days in the wilderness, there was only enough manna for one day at a time. If they gathered more, it went rotten. We have to trust that we have enough for each day, one day at a time. So many haven't enough for today. You are to trust that the spiritual food you are given is for today. You can't store up spirituality or faith for the future. It's for NOW - the next step of the journey. Elijah had just enough to get to the mountain of God."

Our Quiet Day ended in an intimate sharing of what we had learned and experienced in our day in the silence of God.

URGENT NEED FOR MISSION PIONEERS

Britain is facing a desperate shortage of mission-minded ministers willing to ‘get their hands dirty’ in the country’s most deprived areas. The Baptist Union of Great Britain (BUGB) Mission Network says churches in pioneer settings are closing because of a lack of ‘risk takers’ willing to ‘break new ground’. BUGB mission department head Revd Ian Bunce said the lack of ministers willing to consider community-based work rather than traditional preaching and pastoral roles is a ‘hugely significant’ issue. Revd John Bayes, a minister and mission enabler in the East Midlands, said that in some situations a community outreach worker rather than a pastorally trained minister might be more fitted to the need.

Source: Baptist Times (27/9)

I am not in a position to speak authoritatively about the Methodist Church in this respect though I have a feeling that this may also apply to many of our itinerant Ministers. However, I have known a few who have specifically asked to be stationed in mission situations and our Deacons always put themselves wholly in the hands of the Church to be sent wherever the need is greatest.

This Baptist report comes in the same week that the President of the Methodist Conference, the Revd Dr. Martyn Atkins, writes an article in the Methodist Recorder with the title 'Doting on Deacons'. He writes, "Deacons also challenge me in relation to their continuing deep commitment to itinerancy. (I haven't moved house in 11 years now!) Of course, most ministers are itinerant , but my personal experience is that deacons I know place 'going wherever the Church sends me' at the very centre of their ministry, regarding it as a signal aspect of obedience to God, through the decision of the Church. I admire them greatly for that.

"This means that deacons are being increasingly used by the Church not simply as 'stop-gap' measures when ministers can't be found, but more properly as those who go where they are needed most: planting churches, supporting projects, ministering to marginalised and disadvantaged groupings in our societies and churches. In this sense they are hugely important in missional terms.

"Lastly, I find their focus on servant ministry very moving and highly attractive. In our cultural context when hierarchies are increasingly suspect and even despised by some, when superiority and elitism are so often so unattractive, real live servants of the servant - Jesus Christ - are vital to healthy Christian witness and service."

Locally, at our recent Circuit Meeting we rejoiced that we have as many as four young men candidating for the Methodist Ministry - one on Foundation Training, two on EDEV (Extending Discipleship and Exploring Vocation) Training, and one Candidating this connexional year, having finished Foundation Training several years ago. In the years since completing Foundation Training, this young man has devoted his life as a Lay Worker and Evangelist to the reclamation of young people who have fallen foul of the Law, giving himself wholly to them and their needs (often at great cost to himself). He has struggled over these years with a call to the Ministry and the conflicting need of the young men he serves to have a firm and continuing friend to whom they can turn and on whom they can rely. This would not be possible if he became an itinerant minister, so he has resolved this dilemma by candidating as a Non-Stipendiary Minister. Many of us are praying that in this way his valuable, costly ministry may continue, changing lives in the process.

World Milk Shortage

Today I want to link two things that have been part of my week this week. I have been working on the October Prayer Guidelines to be issued today for the 300 Methodists in the churches in the Northern Section of the Circuit, and I included a prayer for farmers and all in agriculture affected by floods and the foot and mouth and blue tongue outbreaks. I have also posted about the assistance being given to farmers by a Christian Network.

Then I received the following letter from my milkman, which takes effect from today -

Dear Customer,

In order to ensure a continued supply of fresh British milk to your
doorstep and secure supplies of milk for our milkman, Dairy Crest has had
to increase the price it pays to its farmers by a total of 3.85 pence per
pint. This has been unavoidable and as a consequence the price of your
milk will increase by 4 pence per pint from Sunday 30th September.

The main reason for this increase is a world shortage of milk, which is
affecting the price of all milk and dairy products. This comes at a time
when the British dairy industry is also experiencing significant changes.
The soaring cost of animal feed and poor weather over the summer has led
to lower amounts of milk being produced and some real difficulties for many
of our farmers.

Many of our customers appreciate the role of our milkmen in the local
communities in which they serve and how hard they work to provide you with
the best possible service. At this time of a world shortage of milk we
hope that you will understand our reasons for this price increase and
continue to support your milkman.

With two large supermarkets and a small Tesco (at the local petrol station) just ten minutes walk down the road, where milk is sold much cheaper, there is the temptation to stop the doorstep service and use the supermarkets, as many have already done. Yet the doorstep service is vital for some people, despite the price, and it would appear that the supermarkets do not pay the farmers a fair price for their milk. Add to that the prayers that we will be offering for our farmers, and Christians feel that loyalty to the milkmen and the dairy industry is essential if we are to be sincere in our prayers. So this means a tightening will have to be made somewhere else in the household budget .

CHRISTIAN AGENCY SUPPORTS FOOT AND MOUTH FARMERS

A network of Christians from the UK farming community are offering emergency advice and help to farmers plunged into crisis following foot and mouth culling. Farm Crisis Network (FCN) is working with local churches and clergy to support Surrey farmers affected by restrictions on movement and livestock losses. FCN is running a national phone line staffed by volunteers. It has also helped some farmers obtain licences to move their animals and found financial support for some through the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution. Deputy coordinator Helen Bagwell is also writing to supporters, asking churches to pray for farmers as harvest approaches.
Source: Baptist Times (20/9)

With this morning's news that an animal on a farm (near Ipswich, I think) has been found to have 'blue tongue' disease - which would require similar restrictions to those required for foot-and-mouth disease - the help of Farm Crisi Network and the prayers of the churches will be needed all the more. The 'blue tongue' outbreak is caused by mosquitoes and this would seem to link it with the recent report of a huge increase in midges and mosquitoes here due to the unusual weather this summer.

PRAYERS TO BANISH THE BLUES

A new collection of prayers has been added to www.cofe.anglican.org, designed to lift the spirits of people returning to work after the summer holidays. They include writings from Charles Wesley and the thoughts of a curate from Catford on the stresses of finding a seat on the train or getting stuck in a tunnel.

Source: The Daily Telegraph (4/9)