Praying thank you

I guess harvest time is a time which makes me aware of the need to be grateful. And how much there is to be grateful for!
The many daily provisions and encounters and blessings - many of which I simply take for granted.

So I have decided to make October my month of gratitude and thanks-giving. Making myself aware of the things which give me joy and which I am grateful for will be my main form of prayer this month.

“If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, ‘thank you,’ that would suffice.” 

– Meister Eckhart

Easter Saturday

Today is Easter Saturday, also referred to as Holy Saturday, Easter Eve, Black Saturday, Bright Saturday or Joyous Saturday.

Interesting to read some of those positive attributes, because it must have been anything but a joyous day for Jesus' followers.
I can only begin to imagine the loss, despair and hopelessness they must have felt with their leader and master, the one they had trusted in and who had given them hope and comfort, gone!

Knowing how the story panned out, it seems easy for us today to sit out today to make it to Easter Sunday. For his disciples and followers it must have been heart-breaking. How could they know that only in a short while they would receive new hope and joy? How could they know that with the Holy Spirit they would rise to new heights and abilities?

I am thinking about the things which lead me to feeling held back and hopeless. The things I feel I cannot

overcome and conquer. 

I pray that I will rise above them and be empowered to be much more than I ever imagined to be. That with God's Spirit I will rise to new heights. That I will not allow fear and hopelessness to imprison me any longer. I pray for a new freedom, a new peace, a new power.

Here I am Lord. Fill me with your spirit and lead me.

Amen.

"Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed, for the Lord God, even my God, is with you. He will not leave you or forsake you, until all the work for the service of the house of the Lord is finished."

(1 Chronicles 28:20)

Home with parents

After 22 months on various hospital wards and nursing homes, my stepfather has come home to be cared for by my mum.
I have gone to stay with them for the first week to help them settle in.

It is a joy to see how they enjoy each other company and savour the time they have together.

I am profoundly aware of the blessings thex have given me during my childhood and growing up years. More often than not have I taken their love, care and support for granted.
I am glad that it is not too late to say Thank You and to show my appreciation.

Easter Sunday

This morning I got up early to put some brightly coloured primroses in the flower bed outside our church.

There is a very practical reason for me doing it at this time. Unfortunately we have had flowers and plants stolen from the churchyard in the past - so the best way to ensure that the flowers are there for people to enjoy on Easter Sunday, is to plant them very early on the same day!

But on a different note, getting up and preparing to go to the churchyard so early in the morning reminded me of another journey, which other women took 2000 years ago:

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!"

(Luke 24:1-6)

I am reminded how quickly mourning can turn into joy.

Just as on Good Friday the hopes and dreams of so many seemed to be dashed - leaving them feeling hopeless and helpless; so now the sadness is turned into new hope, new life and a new promise!

May we never lose trust in God's promises.

May we never cease to hope and strive towards his kingdom!