Unless the Lord builds the house
It's builders labour in vain.
Psalm 127:1
As we have met to discuss our hopes and dreams for the future at the Away Day and in the follow up meetings and at P.C.C. I have realised how much we need to pray.
We cannot achieve anything which will last under our own strength so everything we do must be undergirded with prayer.
If we want the church to grow and flourish we need to pray.
As we turn to God and ask for his priorities, his way forward for St Paul's, he will put his hopes and dreams on our hearts and bring unity to our deliberations.
We are the family of God and we have a loving Father who cares about us and longs for us to talk to him. God is our Father. He is your Father, and my Father. Imagine, those of you who are parents, how would you feel if your children never talked to you? We want them to tell us about everything and so how much more God wants us to share with him everything we do.
God doesn't put any expectations on us but look at all that he gives us, and he longs for us to talk to him.
We don't like to ask for things but imagine if your child was wandering around needing help but not wanting to ask you for it, how would you feel. I am sure you would want them to ask you to help.
God cares about every part of our lives and we need to pray to him. We need to ask his for his help as we move forward with a new 5 year plan and vision. We need to make changes that will enable us to lift our hearts in worship to God and reach out to others with the good news of Jesus' love.
We have the prayer that Jesus himself taught us, The Lord's Prayer, and I am sure that you are all very familiar with it either in the traditional words or the modern version.
I am sure many of us use this well loved prayer every day.
Have you ever thought of praying it on behalf of someone else? Why not use it on behalf of St Paul's.
Pray it daily...... when you wake up........... at lunchtime.......before you go to sleep at night or in the sleepless hours of your night.
The words we pray in the Lord's prayer are relevant to us personally but also very relevant to us as a church family.
Use the Lord's prayer as a basis for further thoughts and prayers pausing between each of the sections, there are some examples to follow, I hope they are helpful, if not ignore them. Add your own thoughts or words between the phrases.
Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name.
(Praise God for who he is, thank him for all the things that you appreciate as a member of St Paul's)
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
(ask God to be at the centre of all that goes on in church and for him to show us his vision for the future.)
Give us today our daily bread.
(ask God to provide all that we need, financially and resourcefully)
And forgive us our trespasses
(say sorry for things that the church has done over the years that have hurt or wounded others)
As we forgive those who trespass against us
(let go of any feelings of hurt we have and forgive those who have hurt us)
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil
(ask God to help us to keep our eyes fixed on him and ask for his protection on St Paul's)
For Thine is the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory for ever and ever Amen.
I would like to ask you to join with me in praying this prayer every day for St Paul's, use it as I have suggested or if you are not comfortable with that just pray it through as you normally do.
And remember we do need to listen to God as well, prayer is like a phone conversation it is two way. If silence is difficult for you, just start by spending a few seconds quietly in prayer and a few more the next time and so on until you are comfortable with the silence, who knows God may speak to you today in those silent times. I do know that if we turn to God in prayer it makes a difference and God will show us that prayer changes things.
Mary Evans
