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| … thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. … If He used Peter, why not you? |
Today
was a Red Letter Day, that of the remembrance of Saint Peter, that is 29
June, which falls on the Second Sunday after Trinity. Thus, we use those propers, plus the Collect for the Second
Sunday after Trinity, next week – On with the Endless Green Season.
On
Point
Someone asked, where do the quotes come
from? The answer is from the
people who uttered them. But, how
did you find them? Oh, that. Some from Bishop Jerry, many from Rev
Bryan Dabney, a few from other places, some from Rev Geordie Menzies-Grierson,
but overall mostly from Bryan. He
always has some great ones to share.
On to the On Point quotes –
Christ and ritualism are opposed to each
other, as light is to darkness. The cross and crucifix cannot agree. Either
ritualism will banish Christ or Christ will banish ritualism.
Horatius
Bonar
The passion for ruling is the mother of
heresy.
John
Chrysostom
On
self-suffiency
They [Adam and Eve] wanted, as we say, to
“call their souls their own.” But that means to live a lie, for our souls are
not, in fact, our own. They wanted some corner in the universe of which they
could say to God, “This is our business, not yours.” But there is no such corner.
They wanted to be nouns, but they were, and eternally must be, mere adjectives.
Jack
Lewis
The Problem of Pain
Screwtape
offers more techniques for confusing the Patient:
I have been writing hitherto on the
assumption that the people in the next pew afford no rational ground for
disappointment. Of course if they do—if the patient knows that the woman with
the absurd hat is a fanatical bridge-player or the man with squeaky boots a
miser and an extortioner—then your task is so much the easier. All you then
have to do is to keep out of his mind the question ‘If I, being what I am, can
consider that I am in some sense a Christian, why should the different vices of
those people in the next pew prove that their religion is mere hypocrisy and
convention?’ You may ask whether it is possible to keep such an obvious thought
from occurring even to a human mind. It is, Wormwood, it is! Handle him
properly and it simply won’t come into his head. He has not been anything like
long enough with the Enemy to have any real humility yet. What he says, even on
his knees, about his own sinfulness is all parrot talk. At bottom, he still
believes he has run up a very favourable credit-balance in the Enemy’s ledger
by allowing himself to be converted, and thinks that he is showing great
humility and condescension in going to church with these ‘smug’, commonplace
neighbours at all. Keep him in that state of mind as long as you can.
Jack
Lewis
The Screwtape Letters
The light of the righteous
rejoiceth; but the lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
Proverbs 13:9
And why
call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
St. Luke 6:46
... I am
the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but
shall have the light of life.
St. John 8:12
For none of us liveth to himself,
and no man dieth to himself. For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and
whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are
the Lord’s.
Romans 14:7-8
This know also, that in the last
days perilous times shall come.
II St. Timothy 3:1
If we ever forget that we're one
nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under.
Ronald Wilson Reagan
20th century
American president
Sometimes violence, even murder,
isn’t the worst thing you can do to a fellow human being. Stealing his soul,
taking over the management of his conscience and his mind— those are worse...
Once the State consolidates its power to order what you think, it will know no
restraint. If someone else can decide what you believe, you aren’t human
anymore; you aren’t even you. You are at best a child, with no power, no
dignity, no autonomy. It isn’t even being done with legislation anymore. Who
needs law, when anything a bureaucrat says, or a pressure group, has all the
force of law?... Let Congress debate endlessly, to no purpose, while executive
orders, bureaucratic fiats, and threats by special interest groups
fundamentally transform America... The State’s satanic lust for power will
never be slaked until the human race isn’t human anymore— just a herd of two-
legged cattle to be driven wherever the rulers and the experts please.
Lee Duigon
20th and 21st
century American novelist
When The State Owns
Your Soul, 6-19-14
See if the law takes from some
persons what belongs to them, and gives it to other persons to whom it does not
belong. See if the law benefits one citizen at the expense of another by doing
what the citizen himself cannot do without committing a crime. Then abolish
this law without delay. If such a law is not abolished immediately it will
spread, multiply and develop into a system.
Frederic Bastiat
19th century
French economist and author
Regardless of the particular
problem facing Americans today, too often the first question asked is, “When is
the government going to save us?” At the most fundamental level, this question
is a socialist response to private concerns. Free men in a free society do not
look to government for solutions to private matters. Why? Because government is
not God; it cannot “give” to one unless it first takes away from another. The
“taking” mechanism of big government is that characteristic which tramples upon
the liberty of its citizens. We do not live in a free society when the
government can take our property in the form of taxes and give it to others.
Al Benson, Jr. and Walter Donald Kennedy
20th and 21st
century American political commentators and authors
Lincoln’s Marxists,
p. 48
The great lesson from [the
Republican Primary Runoff in] Mississippi is that Republican means, more or
less, that if elected the party will reward its major donors, who are just
different than the Democrats’ major donors. Policy differences are about
different donors, not an actual agenda to shift the country in a different
direction... [the] staffers and lobbyists [who] are so invested in keeping
their gravy train going... will, while claiming to be Republicans, flood a
Republican primary with [Democrat] voters to ensure their gravy train
continues... But this becomes a longer term problem for the [GOP]. Its core
activists hate its leadership... But its [leaders] are dependent more and more
on large check writers to keep their power... [and these] are further and
further removed from the interests of both the base of the party and Main
Street... It is a system that cannot perpetuate itself... A [tea party
conservative] win would have disrupted the flow of money and redirected a crony
capitalist agenda through which many make millions. The establishment had far
more to lose than conservatives had to gain and it showed... Unfortunately...
as grassroots activists feel further and further removed and alienated from the
party, it will become harder and harder [for the GOP] to win... I’m just not
sure what the Republican Party really stands for any more other than telling
Obama no and telling our own corporate interests yes. That’s not much of a
platform.
Erick Erickson
21st century
editor of Redstate.com
The Marionettes
Remain Uncut, 6-25-14
Propers
Saint Peter the Apostle. [June 29.]
The Collect.
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O
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ALMIGHTY God, who by thy Son Jesus Christ didst give to thy Apostle Saint
Peter many excellent gifts, and commandedst him earnestly to feed thy flock;
Make, we beseech thee, all Bishops and Pastors diligently to preach thy holy
Word, and the people obediently to follow the same, that they may receive the
crown of everlasting glory; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The
Collect for today the Second Sunday after Trinity is found on Page 191:
Second Sunday after Trinity.
The Collect.
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O
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LORD, who never failest to help and
govern those whom thou dost bring up in thy stedfast fear and love; Keep us, we
beseech thee, under the protection of thy good providence, and make us to have
a perpetual fear and love of thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Epistle for this morning comes from the Twelfth
Chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, beginning at the First Verse:
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A
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BOUT that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of
the church. And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. And because
he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were
the days of unleavened bread.) And when he had apprehended him, he put him in
prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him;
intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. Peter therefore was
kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for
him. And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was
sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before
the door kept the prison. And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and
a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him
up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands. And the
angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And
he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me. And he went out,
and followed him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel;
but thought he saw a vision. When they were past the first and the second ward,
they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them
of his own ac- cord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and
forthwith the angel departed from him. And when Peter was come to himself, he
said, Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath
delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the
people of the Jews.
The Holy Gospel for this
morning comes from the Gospel according to Saint Matthew, the Sixteenth
Chapter, beginning at the Thirteenth Verse:
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W
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HEN Jesus came into the coasts of Cæsarea Philippi, he asked his
disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said,
Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias or
one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon
Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And
Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh
and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And
I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my
church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give
unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on
earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall
be loosed in heaven.
Bishop
Ogles’ Sermon
We
are oft fortunate to get copies of Bishop Jerry’s sermon notes. Today is one of those Sundays. Today’s sermon starts off with the collect,
and like always, it will give you a lot to consider in your heart.
Second
Sunday after Trinity
29
June 2014 Anno Domini
St Andrews Anglican Orthodox Church
Second
Sunday after Trinity.
The
Collect.
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O
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LORD, who never failest to help and govern those whom thou dost bring
up in thy stedfast fear and love; Keep us, we beseech thee, under the
protection of thy good providence, and make us to have a perpetual fear and
love of thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
15 And when one of
them that sat at meat with him heard these things, he said unto him, Blessed is
he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God. 16 Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and bade many: 17 And sent his servant at supper time to say to them
that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. 18 And they all with one consent began to make excuse.
The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go
and see it: I pray thee have me excused. 19 And
another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray
thee have me excused. 20 And another
said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come. 21 So that servant came, and shewed his lord these
things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out
quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor,
and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind. 22 And
the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is
room. 23 And the lord said unto the
servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that
my house may be filled. 24 For I say
unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper.
(Luke 14:15-24)
This parable of today’s
text was given at the home of one of the chief Pharisees who had invited Christ
to supper. It is doubtless that the invitation was made out of a cordial
courtesy, but out of a contemptuous curiosity to learn more of how they might
entrap the Son of God.
The comment that precedes
the parable is noteworthy of the casual piety with which many regard the means
of salvation. Blessed is he that shall eat bread
in the kingdom of God. The one posing the comment doubtlessly
considered himself to be one of those blessed ones who would eat of that Bread
in Heaven. Many of us simply assume that we shall be among the number and
smugly look around at those whose destiny we may consider in doubt. The comment
of Balaam seems to best describe this lot: Who can count the dust of Jacob,
and the number of the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the
righteous, and let my last end be like his! (Num 23:10)
The statement, of course, is a profound truth, but the way in which
it is viewed from the personal perspective may be profoundly in error. Instead
of concerning ourselves about our PRESENT righteousness, we are too
focused on the end of the play – how we shall DIE! We must not occupy our time
with undue emphasis on End of Time matters, but rather with those issues of
life itself as it exist in the here and now. In order to walk from Jerusalem to
Damascus, we must take EVERY step in between. Every step is as important as the
last for, if one be missing, we shall not reach Damascus.
16 Then said he unto him, A certain
man made a great supper, and bade many: God
is the ‘certain man’. The Great Supper is Heaven itself. Those ‘many’ invited
are the fullness of the Will of God for those to fill His Heaven at last. We do
not know the number, but God certainly has a fixed knowledge of it. God has
invited a great many to that Supper. Though an invitation may be received, it
will benefit the recipient nothing at all if he fails to respond to the
invitation. (“many are called but few are chosen” (Matt 20:16)
Certainly, if you hear
these words and have read the Gospel, the invitation has been extended to you.
But what will you do in response to the invitation? Are you presently too busy
to come? Have you properties to look after that forbids your coming? Are the
trifling concerns of the world preventing you? Compared to the salvation of
your soul, every other consideration is trifling.
17 And sent his servant at supper time to say to
them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. Jesus
is speaking to the Jewish guests who have early been invited to the Great
Supper. They have not yet, at this point in His ministry, rejected Him
officially. Those hereditary descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob – not
because of bloodline and DNA, but because of geographic affinity – have been
invited first to the Great Supper. “All things are made ready” in the great I
AM – the Gift has been presented in the coming of Christ, the life of love and
labor has been completed, the sacrifice of the Great Passover has been killed,
and the first fruits of God in the Resurrection fulfilled. All is ready at
great expense of the “Certain Man” who has extended the invitation. He is
speaking, first, to those who have already received the invitation.
18 And they all with one
consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of
ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused.
Not a few, but ALL began to make excuse with one consent. It brings the fearful
image to mind of all the Jews gathered on the paddock outside the balcony
of Pontiius Pilate screaming Crucify Him! Crucify Him! “His blood be upon us
and our children.” (Matt 27:25) …and so it has been, and is today. Of what
worth is a piece of ground which belongs to a dying world whose coming fiery
death is a stark reality of prophecy? The surgeon has scheduled you for an
appointment for surgery to remove a cancer that will certainly kill you soon if
not removed. Afterwards, he is leaving for Africa for many months. What happens
if you miss the appointment? Will an acre of ground loom more importantly to
you than the life-saving surgery?
19 And another said, I have
bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused. 20 And another said, I have married a wife, and
therefore I cannot come. Certainly, oxen may be more important to
the depraved of faith than coming to the Great Supper in Heaven. How can one
night of nuptial bliss surpass the eternal joys of heaven. Did not God give the
oxen, the land, the wife? Yet, we have no time for HIM! What is it truly that
prevents inquiring men and women from coming all the way to Christ? It is the
deceitfulness of riches: He also that received
seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world,
and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.
(Matt 13:22)
Remember the ship is like the Church. It is made for the sea just as the church
is made to be in the world. But when the sea begins to get into the ship, and
the world into the church, the resulting shipwreck will be tragic. Those who
simply do not desire to serve will always have SOME excuse to delay. The longer
the delay, the greater the thorns that choke away the remaining life until…it
is too late!
Bear in mind we do not discuss any ordinary invitation – it is
issued by the King of all Kings. Is it wise to refuse? 21 So that servant came, and shewed his lord these
things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out
quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor,
and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind. The purpose of God in bringing the full number of
His Elect into the Kingdom will not be abrogated
by the small wills and weaknesses of men. He will fill His Supper with those
who respond in earnest to His invitation. – even if He must enlarge the list of
those invited. So here, in accordance with His foreknowledge and providence
from the beginning, He sends for those who will genuinely respond, outside
those first invited: the poor, the crippled, the suffering, and the blind. We
all may easily fit into this last category. Before we knew Christ, we were
absolutely blind. Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on
him? (John 7:48)
22 And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou
hast commanded, and yet there is room. The angels have expanded
the list, yet still there remains room for others. Thank God that there does
remain room for others, for those others are those who read, and the one who
writes, these sermon notes. The maimed, the poor, the halt, and the blind have
responded to the invitation ahead of those prominent ones who were privileged
to come and have rejected the invitation. There is STILL room – even today!
23 And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into
the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be
filled. God sends His
ministers into the four quarters of the earth seeking those who will respond to
His gracious invitation. God will have His House filled with those who desire
Heaven more than the riches of this world….not half-full, but wholly full with
His predetermined number. The net is cast in the darkest depths of the sea
where hope was forlorn and depravity beyond measure. The Gospel will go out to
the heathen and the Gentiles. In fact, all of the Household of Israel – those
who are Children of the Promise in Abraham. These does not require a blood
heritage except the blood of Christ. It is doubtless that the Pharisees
gathered around Christ understood fully His parable and were enraged by it. How
could those vulgar Gentiles be placed ahead of them in gaining the privilege of
Heaven? How, indeed? By faith!
24 For I say unto you, That none of those men which
were bidden shall taste of my supper. Heaven will not be a
home-delivery proposition. IN order to taste of its delicacies, we must come to
it by way of the Householders Son. He has bought and paid for your invitation
with His own Blood. He is the “ Way, the Truth,
and the Life” and none comes to the Father but by Him. How shall you
trample His Blood underfoot by refusing the gracious invitation to come?
Jesus has sealed your
invitation with these words: Come unto me,
all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke
upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find
rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matt 11:28-30)
How have you responded?
Sermon – Reverend Jack Arnold - Time and
Action
Church of the Faithful Centurion - Descanso, California
The weekly service for the Church
of the Faithful Centurion was actually held on Saturday evening due to the
presence of the Thomas Family (plus Scott) from Okinawa and the propers used
were those for the Second Sunday after Trinity.
Today’s sermon brought the
Collect, Epistle and Gospel together and is partly contained in the forewords
above.
Consider these words from the
Collect:
… who
never failest to help and govern those whom thou dost bring up in thy stedfast
fear and love; Keep us, we beseech thee, under the protection of thy good
providence, and make us to have a perpetual fear and love of thy holy Name…
We must acknowledge God will help
and lead us if we will look to him for that help and leadership. We need His Help, in the form of the
Holy Ghost, to direct our hearts, minds and souls to look to Him for that Help
in our time of need.
Speaking of time of need; when do
we need God? Only when we are
falling short of perfection. That
would be all the time, 24/7/365, all 52 weeks of the
year. We always need God's help, sometimes we recognize the fact, and sometimes
we do not. We pray to God that we will always recognize the fact and act upon
it.
The Epistle is a great
illustration of why we need guidance from the Holy Ghost all the time. If we want God’s love, we have to love
those around us. That is pretty
easy. It is easy to love
people. The problem is that we
actually have to act on that claim of love, not just say we love them. That is
slightly harder, but still very doable, with God's help. We have to give
of our time and effort to help those around us who have problems. We have to give our 110% in our time and effort to help
those around us. John tell us “And this is his commandment, That we
should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he
gave us commandment. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and
he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he
hath given us.”
So how far do we have to go to
fulfill our obligation to love our fellow beings? We have a leader, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is not only the Propitiation for our sins[1],
but who set the standard for our performance. As John reminds us, “He laid down his life for us.” So, too much work or I don’t
have time are probably not valid excuses. We
should not go straightaway to offer excuses, but put our minds and souls and
bodies to work into actually loving our fellow beings.
Speaking of time, many times
people put off church for other “more important” things, do you? Like the certain man who made a great
supper, the Lord sets aside a time every week for us to worship with Him. Actually His time is pretty
flexible. The Lord’s worship can
be done at times other than 1000 on Sunday morning if you really do have to
work, you have weekend duty, you are on alert or something you really cannot
get out of. But, where are your
priorities? Is a football game, a
fishing trip or just plain sleeping in the “reason” for your failing to show
for the great supper? When you
fail to plan ahead, you plan to fail.
Always plan ahead, planning ahead is a plan to
success.
The Gospel is about more than
just going to church, it is about priorities. We need to put the things that are really important in the
list of things to do above the things that are not really important. We need to think about what is important
to us and to God. Sometimes they
are different. Then, we need the
Holy Ghost to get our priorities in order.
People do what is important to
them. When they feel guilty they
come up with excuses, but in reality, they please themselves. We should seek to please God and not ourselves.
So, what we need to do is ask the
Holy Ghost for help to make God’s agenda ours; thus when we please God, we
please ourselves. A win – win
situation.
If we do not make time for God,
how do we expect Him to make time for us?
If we will not diligently study the lessons He has left for us, how can
we expect to know what He wants us to do?
Do you recall the words of GK
Chesterton:
“Christianity has
not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and not tried.”
We need to come to church and
read the Bible so we can find out what God wants. But, the idea is not to find out what He wants so we can
work around it or live with it, but rather live in it. That is a
rather difficult concept for a lot of people. Think about the 613 Mosaic
laws and the Pharisees who made a good living telling people how to comply with
them to the letter and still do just what they wanted to do.
If we find out what God wants and
decide to actually do it instead of avoid it, we are still faced with an often
huge problem of where do we get the strength to accomplish this task. The answer is circular, from God, the
Holy Ghost. He never asks us to do
anything we cannot do good enough for Him if we rely on Him. Never.
Heaven is at the end of an uphill
trail. The easy downhill trail
does not lead to the summit.
The time is now, not
tomorrow. The time has come,
indeed. How will you ACT?
It is by our actions we are
known.
Be of God - Live of God - Act of God
Bishop
Dennis Campbell’s Sermon
Bishop Dennis is a brilliant
speaker. He is able to take
biblical precepts and make them perfectly understandable, even to me. Oft he provides the text of his sermons
and I take the utmost pleasure in passing them on:
Healing for Souls
Psalm 23, Acts 15:11
Feast of Saint Peter
June 29, 2014
There is sickness in our souls. Every one of us is afflicted
with this sickness. Its symptoms and effects are everywhere. We see
them in the daily crime and war reports we call “news.” We see them in
the way people talk, in the way they drive their cars, and in the way they treat
one another. Few people will dispute the idea that the world would be
infinitely better if people simply lived according to the commandments and
principles found in the Bible. Yet it seems fewer still have any
intention of even a half-hearted attempt to live by them. Such people are
not always overtly evil, according to the standards of the world. They
may even appear to be good. Yet a serious look into their psyches will
reveal that they live for themselves rather than God. From the beginning
they break the very first commandment, “Thou shalt have no other gods.”
Why do people do this? It is because of the sickness of the
soul we call sin. We are terminally ill with sin. And this illness
causes us to do evil as surely as the flue causes us to run a fever. Sin
is the disease; sins are the symptoms, death is the prognosis. “Death” as used
here means separation from God. It means to be separated from Him now in
this life, and to be separated from Him forever in eternity.
Separation from Him here is often recognized by a general feeling of
dread, meaninglessness, and a deep, deep sense of discontentment in the
soul. It is also expressed in the self-destructive ideas, and habits that
harden into a life-style which increases our discontent and dread. The
philosophers called this “existential angst.” The Bible calls it being
without God in the world. It calls it “darkenss” and it calls those in
that.darkness, “lost.” This is what I mean by the sickness of sin.
Separation from God in eternity is called, “hell.” It is a
place of suffering, where the fire never stops and the worm never dies.
Terrible as that is, it is as nothing compared to the knowledge that, “I could
have had Heaven. I could have had God. I could have gone to that
place of eternal joy instead of this place of eternal sorrow. All I had
to do was trust Jesus.” According to the Bible, those in Hell are
eternally “lost.” So, today, at the very start of this emphasis on
healing, I want to strongly emphasise the very single most important and
absolutely necessary foundation of all healing. That foundation is the
atoning life and death of the Lord, Jesus Christ.
There are millions of people who are willing to trust Jesus for this
life but unwilling to trust Him with eternity. By that I mean they trust
God to provide for their physical needs, but think they are going to get into
Heaven by the merit of their own goodness. This is folly. Imagine
yourself standing in front of God trying to convince Him to let you into Heaven
by telling Him how good you were in life. Take your time. Time is
meaningless there. You can take a decade or a century, though I doubt you
will need it. Do your best to show yourself in the best light
possible. After you are finished, imagine an angel coming before God with
a Bible in his hand. Imagine him opening that Bible to Exodus 20 and
reading the Ten Commandments. Now imagine another angel coming to stand
before God. This angel opens another book and begins to read a list of all the
times and all the ways you have neglected to keep, or flagrantly broken each
one of these commandments. These angels are like witnesses in a
courtroom, and every time the second angel speaks, the fantasy of your own
goodness is crushed by the reality of your sins. When he is finished,
there can only be one conclusion; you will never enter Heaven on the merit of
your own goodness.
The only way to enter Heaven is to let Jesus get you in. Jesus
said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” He is the way to
Heaven because He gave Himself for your sins. You have heard much about
how Jesus took your sins on Himself and suffered your sentence on the
cross. But that’s only half of the Gospel. The other half is that
He put His righteousness on you. So God spiritually speaking, no longer
“sees” you sins. When He looks at you He sees only the righteousness of
Christ, and you are welcomed into Heaven just as you would be if you had never
sinned at all.
So the first part of spiritual healing is the healing of your soul
from the penalty of your sins. You receive this healing by trusting what
Jesus did on the cross to get you into Heaven. It is simply a matter of
believing He is God in the flesh; that He died in your place for your sins, and
you are forgiven and regarded by God as completely righteous and holy. We
call this “faith,” and I have just described the Biblical doctrine of
justification by faith alone. It means we can’t earn it by our good
works. We simply trust God to give it to us through Christ. The
Apostle Paul described it better than I. He wrote, “not by works of
righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us.”
Those who trust Christ to heal them of the disease of sin have a
different prognosis. We are going to live. There is still much
therapy to endure. There is still medication and surgery to be done on
our souls. But we are on the way to wellness. We are healed in our
souls. It is that medication and therapy and surgery that I want to talk
about next Sunday, for these are the means by which God works healing in your
soul.
I hope you have let Jesus heal the disease of your sin. I hope
you have asked Him to take your sins, and to give His righteousness to
you. I hope you have consciously decided to stop trusting your own works,
and to let His sacrifice on the cross make you acceptable to God. There
will never be any further healing of your soul until you trust Jesus for
eternity. You may drug away some of the pain of life. You may mask it
through drugs like material wealth, worldly pleasures, self-indulgence, and
other things that make you temporarily forget you are sick. But those
things merely hide the symptoms. They don’t cure the disease. In
the end, you die in your soul, that eternal death I spoke of a few minutes
ago. But there is no reason to allow this to happen to you. Trust
Jesus. He will heal your soul.
Rev Bryan Dabney
of Saint John’s Sunday Sermon
We are fortunate to
have Bryan’s Sunday Sermon. If you
want people to come to The Truth, you have to speak the truth, expouse the
truth and live the truth. This is really a good piece and I
commend it to your careful reading.
Second Sunday after Trinity
The gospel was the parable of the great supper (St. Luke 14:16-24). The Rev. Matthew Henry noted that this
parable illustrated our Lord’s presentation of the gospel message to the Jews
of his generation. He bade them come to his supper that they might enjoy the
benefits of the gospel and become what God had intended for them to be: the
sons and daughters of God and co-heirs with Christ in glory.
We also learned from this parable that most would not accept, so our
Lord then sent his servants to call those who were poor, the maimed, and the
halt and the blind. Now these characteristics were not meant to be understood
only in their literal sense, though our Lord does extend his calling to persons
who are so afflicted.
Those whom he referred to as being poor match the description of those
identified as such in the Beatitudes: Blessed are the poor in spirit: for
theirs is the kingdom of heaven (St. Matthew 5:3). To be made fit for the
kingdom of heaven, we must rid ourselves of those earthly desires and passions
that conflict with the Christian life. Our Lord said, No man can serve two
masters... (6:24a) which clarifies the point being made. Before we can truly
know the love of God, we must first establish a relationship with him in Christ
Jesus. To be poor with regard to the spiritual aspects of this world opens the
way for us to be filled with the Holy Ghost. How many people who bear the name
of our Lord are so poor in their spiritual life precisely because they are
filled with the spirit of this world?
A maimed person is one who has been rendered unable to walk and must
crawl to get around, or else have others assist him. The maimed are those who
realize that their lives have been crippled by sin and are seeking to be
relieved of their handicap by the Great Physician and Healer of men’s souls.
Jesus Christ offers us spiritual healing which we cannot get anywhere else. He
also can heal us of our physical ailments as well, if it is within his
purposeful will so to do. How many so-to-speak Christians are crawling through
this life because they will not heed the Master’s call and thus finding rest
and healing for their souls?
The halt, or limping, are those who, though technically crippled, are
able to get around. While having some capacity, they nevertheless see the need
for a Saviour to assist them. How many Christians-in-name-only are so crippled
in their faith that they simply hobble along through this life as they refuse
to accept our Lord’s calling to follow his path and keep his commandments and
be healed?
The blind are those who have not the ability to see their way to
spiritual happiness but desire to have a guide to God. They will come to our
Lord’s supper only if the true servants of God will lead them. How many who
claim to know Christ are blind to him because they have placed their trust in
false teachers and ministers: who have convinced them that God’s word is
flawed, or some how too vague for them to understand?
Those initially called might well be classed as spiritually poor,
maimed, halt and blind much as the members of the current Laodicean church are,
wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind and naked (Revelation 3:14-19) .
One’s spiritual condition is therefore determined by whether or not one truly
has a heart for God and desires to do his will as expressed in his word
written. Is the Lord inside your heart, or is he outside knocking to come in?
Now let us consider the excuses of those who did not come the great
supper. The first person called responded with, I have bought a piece of
ground, and I must needs go and see it. As the Rev. Matthew Henry noted
concerning this man, “His heart was so much on enlarging of his estate. Those
that have their hearts full of the world and [are] fond of laying house to
house and field to field, have their ears deaf to the gospel invitation.” St.
Paul once admonished, For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise
men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called, but God hath
chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath
chosen the weak things of the world to confound the mighty, and the base things
of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things
which are not, to bring to nought things that are: that no flesh should glory
in his presence (I
Corinthians 1:26-29). While
there is nothing unbiblical in a person acquiring property; the real message
here is: if you are putting the acquisition of earthly things ahead of
communing with God, then you have no heart for him.
Many souls who bear the name of Christ know who he was, but not who he
is. They go through this life bowing before the gods which hold their interest
and their hearts. They have so compartmentalized their lives with everything
they have to do to advance themselves during the week on one side, and a
smidgen of time on Sunday (and maybe on Wednesday evenings) which is reserved
for God on the other. God is not considered apart from the appointed time on
their schedule and they rarely apply godly principles in their commercial
interests much less their private moments. They do not understand that all of
life is subject to God. What a rude awakening they will have on Judgment Day
when they hear the words of our Lord, I never knew you, depart from me ye that
work iniquity (St.
Matthew 7:23b).
But before you take the position that such a view is too harsh,
consider Article XIII of our Articles of Religion which states in part that,
“Works done before the grace of Christ, and the inspiration of his Spirit, are
not pleasant to God, forasmuch as they spring not of faith in Jesus Christ... “
Just because one did a good work in the name of Jesus Christ does not mean that
such a person is in fact a born-again believer in Jesus Christ. The
unregenerated person’s works possess no salvific qualities for no man can be
saved by the works of the flesh apart from a lively faith in Jesus Christ, and
a heart to do his will. Our Lord said, If ye love me, keep my commandments (St. John 14:15).
The second excuse given was that of a man who had purchased a yoke of
oxen and had not tried them out. What could be more important for our spiritual
health and well-being than our fellowship with the Lord? When other things are
more important than spending time with the very person who suffered in our
place— who made it possible for us to have eternal life— one would have to
question that person’s relationship with the Godhead. We should follow the
example of David who said, I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into
the house of the LORD (Psalm 122:1). What
greater joy is there? Who better than the King of kings and Lord of lords
should we desire to break bread with? How can anyone who claims to love God,
refuse such a wonderful offer? And yet, many who bear the name of Christ do so
every day by rejecting God’s word written because they want to live life on
their terms and not on God’s. They will miss heaven because they refused the
calling of God’s Son to come and feast with him.
At every administration of the Holy Communion, we obey the Lord’s
commandment to break the bread and drink from the cup of his table until he
comes. We do so in remembrance of his sacrifice for us. And we rejoice in his
offering of grace to us, for it is by means of his grace that have that blessed
hope of eternal life in his kingdom. But in order to gain admission to his
place of rest and reward, we must respond in the affirmative to his calling
because his all sufficient grace is made available to whosoever will not
“whosoever won’t.”
The third excuse was made by one who had just taken a wife. The Law
said that such would serve as an excuse for a man going to war (see Deuteronomy 20:7). But the issue at hand in our parable is
incongruent with this excuse as one is being called to attend a feast and the
Law did not excuse a man from his religious duties if he had recently taken a
wife. As the Rev. Matthew Henry noted, “[The man] pretends that he cannot
[come] when the truth is, he will not.” Our Lord said, If any man come to me,
and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and
sisters, yea and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple (St. Luke 14:26).
What he meant is clear: he that would not love the Lord more than all else is
not worthy to be called his disciple. We have to put the Lord first in all
things.
When our Lord communicated this parable, he revealed the true spiritual
states of those who were listening. Not many were willing to accept him as the
Messiah much less follow his teachings because they had other plans in mind.
The Devil loves to insinuate in our minds “other plans” that we would forget
our true purpose which is to have fellowship with our Saviour. For it is only
through such that we are freed from the tyranny of Satan’s grasp. We are thus
enabled to join the feast and fellowship with the very person who came into the
world to save us because he first loved us, and laid down his life for us—
taking the punishment that we rightly deserve— so that we could have a place in
his kingdom forever.
We Christians have been redeemed from sin, death, Hell and the grave by
the blood of Jesus Christ. So when he bids us come, we ought to, out of pure
gratitude, drop what we are doing and come to him with praise and thanksgiving
in our hearts for that is what a true child of God will do. May God touch your
heart today to do his will and walk in his paths always.
Let us pray:
|
H
|
oly Father, you have given to us the gift of
eternal life by means of the shed blood of thine only begotten Son, Jesus
Christ ; may it please thee to inspire us to grow daily into his likeness; that
being so transformed, we might be made more effective witnesses for thee in
this sin-darkened world; and this we ask in his most precious name. Amen.
Have a blessed week, Bryan+
After Church Hospitality
We need snack pictures! Come on, help us out!
People in our Prayers - http://faithfulcenturionprayerteam.blogspot.com/
Why? Prayer is an extremely
important activity.
It
is not that God knows not our needs, for He surely does. Yet, Jesus commanded
us to ask God for those same needs. In addition to the obvious of asking God
for help, offering thanksgiving and the like, prayer helps us focus our
thoughts on how we might do God's work.
The
Prayer Team of the Church of the Faithful Centurion was established to help our
members and fellow Christians pray for those in need and to give thanks as well
for the blessings we have been granted.
Who can be on the list? Do I have to be a member of the Church of the Faithful
Centurion to be prayed for?
No!
The only qualification to be on the list is that you want our prayer team to
pray for you. We are Christians and are happy to pray for you, no matter who
you are. If you want help from God, you are our kind of people.
What is the commitment from the prayer team?
Each
member of the team will pray for the desired outcome at last once per day.
How do I get myself or someone else on the prayer list?
You
can email one of the prayer team leaders: Jack - jack@faithfulcenturion.org or
Dru - dru@ faithfulcenturion.org, or call the church office at (619) 659-3608
or fill out a prayer card at church.
What should I ask for?
Depends
on what you want. Some people merely want God to be asked to heal their ills
and be mentioned by their first name, others want a specific outcome and / or
have more of their personal information known to the team. Ask for what you
want. It is your desire and need for prayer the team is attempting to meet. For
typical examples, see the list below.
Updating the Team
If
you are on our prayer list, or if you have submitted a person that you have
asked us to pray for, please update one of the team members or Hap in person,
by telephone or email. It helps to be able to pray specifically for these
individuals including their specific needs; plus if they get better, it is nice
to give thanks!
Please
note that on the yellow (maybe green or orange if you get an old one) cards at
church, you can ask that those to be prayed for have their names disseminated
to the prayer team. Those names will be said in church and appear here. Or, you
can ask that their names and purpose be kept confidential, then only Hap will
know to pray for them.
Prayer List Notice –
If you have someone on the prayer list and their needs have changed, please let
us know. We’d like to update our
prayers to reflect the need and most important to give thanks!
Travel
The Thomas Family and Scott Potter are on travel from Okinawa, to San Diego, Phoenix and
then around the Western United States for almost all of July. Please pray for their safe travels.
Birthday
Terri Jennings celebrated her 58th
Birthday on 26 April 2014.
Anniversary
Rev Rick and Virginia Reid celebrated
their 35th Anniversary on 7 April 2014.
Move
The Thomas Family is now in
Okinawa for a second short tour.
Please pray for this new assignment to go well for Kurt and for Mary and
the kids to make new friends. In
particular pray that Kristyna and Mitchell will develop good friends and schoolmates
there so as to further their development as both Christians and citizens. Give thanks the safe move and ask for
continued good developments.
Departed
Sasha left for home Friday, 20 June
2014. A very very special young
lady with a husband and two children who had cancer for which all treatment had
been tried unsuccessfully. Give
thanks for Sasha’s time here on earth and please pray for comfort, strength and
understanding for her husband and their family. Please pray the family can let God carry their worry, fear
and sorrow so that they can do their best.
Dennis left to be with our Lord
and Savior on 30 May 2014, after a relatively brief struggle with cancer. Please give thanks for His time
here on earth and pray for comfort, strength and understanding for Linda his
wife and their family. Please pray
the family can let God carry their worry, fear and sorrow so that they can do
their best.
Sherry Tester, mother in law of
Stephen Cord (Rev Jack’s mentor during his almost four years at WGU) passed
away after a heart attack on 16 May 2014.
Please give thanks for her time here on earth and pray for comfort,
strength and understanding for Charles, her husband of 56 years, as well as her
daughter Jennifer, Stephen and their family. Please pray the family can let God carry their worry, fear
and sorrow so that they can do their best.
Danahurt passed away unexpectedly on or
about 16 May 2014. Please pray for his Family and Friends as they adjust to
this unexpected situation.
George Knoop, age 78, a
Missionary Aviation Fellowship member was murdered by a Haitian with a knife on
13 May 2014 while trying to help the people of Haiti. Give thanks for his time here on earth and pray for comfort
for his family who remain behind.
Neither freedom nor faith are free, please remember that before you turn
from either.
Brian Smith left for home on 21
April 2014, after a long battle with lung cancer; it cannot be said the cancer
won, he is with the Lord in victory.
He was able to do what he wanted and needed to do until two days before
his death, for that we are all grateful.
His only concern about leaving was for his wonderful wife Melany who of
necessity remains behind. Please
give thanks for his safe passage and pray that Mel will keep her trust in the
Lord and let Him carry her worry.
As a side note, today is Brian’s birthday and we remember him the more.
Three
hundred Korean high school students perished in the sinking of Korean passenger vessel, SEWOL, on 16 April
2014. Please pray for peace of
mind, soul and heart for the families of those who perished. Please give thanks for the bravery and
compassion of PARK Ji Young, aged 22 years, who remained on board to help
rescue as many souls as possible. She even gave a student her own life vest.
Her body was later found floating in the frigid waters of the sea. Ask God to help the families deal with
their grief.
Nearing the end of their time here on earth
Jere Wolf (Melanie Zimmer’s dad) is
nearing the end of his time here in the Shadowlands; Congestive Heart Failure
and a blocked aortic valve are causing all kinds of problems and resulting in
kidney shutdown. Treatment has
failed. Jere has decided to go
home and be with his family for his last bit here on earth. Please pray for Jere and his
family, in particular his wife Doreen and daughters Cindy and Molly (or
Melanie) to keep their faith strong in the Lord as he prepares for the trip
home.
Alan is a victim of metastasized
colon cancer already destroying his liver. His youngest sister has put aside
her hard-earned career to care for her brother in these days on earth. Please
pray for him as he prepares to go home to be with his family who have gone
before him. Please pray for comfort, understanding, strength and guidance for
Alan and his family who will of necessity remain behind.
Paul has dementia but seems do
be doing well in the Nursing Home today.
Pray he will eat and that his family will be together in one accord as
they take care of him
Saundra is in ICU with
congestive heart failure after a heart operation. She is aged and frail.
Saundra is near the end of her time here on earth. Please pray for comfort, understanding,
strength and guidance for Saundra and her family who will of necessity remain
behind. Pray for the love of God
to stay foremost in their hearts.
Polly is in hospice care with
dementia and spinal stenosis.
Please pray for her as she prepares to go home to be with her family who
have gone before her. Pray for the
faith of her family to build and the transition to be good.
Homebound or Infirm
Lily is the caregiver of her
elderly husband Harold; she fell down
the stairs and has a break that will take six weeks before she can be on her feet again. Please pray for
rapid healing for Lily and for a plan to form that will make things tolerable
for both of them.
Paul has dementia but seems do
be doing well in the Nursing Home today.
Pray he will eat and that his family will be together in one accord as
they take care of him
Martha and Irene both have Alzheimer's
Disease. Pray that their hearts will stay close to Jesus.
Walter has many health issues and is
growing weaker and weaker. Pray Walter will learn to be able to swallow
correctly.
Joan has had serious medical problems
that have kept her confined. On 26
September 2013, she took a fall. Please pray that in the weeks ahead her health
will remain stable.
Lou has aspiration pneumonia. Please pray for the infection to be
knocked down and for her continued recovery.
Norma, Sara’s mother is in a
state of deteriorating health, both physically and mentally, with both dementia
and Alzheimer’s. She is slowly
drifting away, though she still recognizes Sara and prayer gives her a sense of
peace. Please pray for both Sara
and her mother to put their cares and worries on God’s shoulders so they can
deal with the many problems involved.
In need
of a miracle or understanding of God’s Plan
Dennis, nephew in law of Rev Rick Reid,
had a seizure at work on 28 April 2014, and was hospitalized at the Erlanger
Hospital in Chattanooga, TN; he went home; he is back in Emory Hospital,
Atlanta, Georgia after complaining of what he thought were migraine
headaches. An evaluation found
a mass of veins enlarged on right side of brain called arteriovenous
malformation (AVM). This is an
abnormal connection between arteries and veins. An AVM is usually dates to
birth. It can develop anywhere in
the body but occurs most often in the brain or spine. A brain AVM, which appears as a tangle of abnormal arteries
and veins, can occur in any part of your brain. Blood vessels an rupture, causing bleeding in the
brain. It is possible for a brain
AVM to be treated successfully.
Please pray for guidance for the medical team treating Dennis and for
them to pay attention and do their best.
Pray also for trust in the Lord for Dennis and his family that they
might find peace and strength in Him.
Sarah, wife of Rev Geordie (AOC
– UK), has been treating for ovarian cancer. The treatment has not worked and she has been advised her
time here on earth is short.
Please pray for a miraculous remission; that Sarah’s remaining time here
on earth might be good. Help Sarah,
Geordie and their family put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their
worry.
Leon McKay suffered a stroke a few weeks
back that has left him unable to speak and while undergoing evaluation the
doctors also found he has a very aggressive cancer. Please pray for a
miraculous remission; that Leon’s remaining time here on earth might be good. Help Leon and his family put their
trust in the Lord and let Him carry their worry.
Rev. Thomas Brooks is not
improving and being kept alive by artificial machines. Please pray for a
miraculous recovery and if that not be God’s Will, a rapid passing to home.
Help Thomas’ family put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their worry
Ronnie has kidney cancer that
has spread and the surgeons are very concerned. Please pray the medical team to
formulate a successful treatment plan and for a miraculous remission; that
Ronnie’s remaining time here on earth might be good. Help Ronnie and family put their trust in the Lord and let
Him carry their worry.
Levi was cancer free for 4 years and
just discovered he has kidney cancer. Levi has a great deal of faith and said
whether he is healed or God takes him home he will be fine. Please pray for the
medical team to pay attention and to their best and for a good outcome. Pray also that Levi and family will be
able to put their worry on God’s shoulders. In particular, please pray for pain relief; Levi is 22 years
old.
Ray Daley is a member of the Royal
Canadian Legion and served his country during the Korean War era. Ray is taking
chemotherapy treatments for cancer. Meanwhile his son Trevor is in the hospital
in a coma and seems to have lost the will to live.
Pat has been under treatment
for colon cancer for sometime. He
has had major complications the last few days and your prayers will be
appreciated by family and friends.
Dorothy had pneumonia, on
checking her lungs they found tumors which permeated the lung area. Further investigation found a primary
site in the colon, with the lung being secondary. It would appear there is no viable treatment at this
time. Please pray for a miraculous
remission; that her remaining time here on earth might be good. Help Dorothy and her family put their
trust in the Lord and let Him carry their worry.
Scott, one of our Lord's
ministers who collapsed a week ago and is in the ICU of a Medical Center since
he had a pulmonary embolism, with a concurrent infection of several bacterial
agents. He has stopped breathing on several occasions, and may have undergone
brain damage. He currently is on DNR. Please pray for recovery so that he will
continue to do his Lord’s calling.
Becky has fourth stage
metastasized lung cancer and is not doing well with chemotherapy
treatments. Please pray for Becky
and her husband as they are together during this difficult time in their lives.
Jane has fourth stage cancer
and is not doing well. Please pray
for Jane and her family as they are together during this difficult time in
their lives.
Larry Howes suffered a fairly
severe stroke. 4 December 2012, doctors replaced a valve in a shunt that had
been put in about two weeks before, and Larry responded very well. He was able to go home.
Pray
also for confidence in our Lord for Larry and his family. Larry needs a miracle, pray for
one. Please.
Colleen has been battling pancreatic
cancer over the last year and it has now spread to one of her lungs. Please keep her and her family in your
prayers.
Christine has cancer of the colon,
which spread to her liver; she is receiving chemotherapy and is having
difficulty eating. Please pray for
the medical team treating her to pay attention and do their very best; pray
also for confidence in our Lord for Christine and her family.
Todd and Kenny have both been fighting osteocarcinoma for over five years
and have been told their time here on earth is nearing its end, absent a miracle
from God. Both are ready to go
home and leave the pain, but would like to stay. Please pray for them and their families.
Surgery
Weir is a survivor of two malignancies
(prostrate and colon). Recently Weir underwent further tests and he will have
to have almost all of his large intestine removed. His surgery was Friday 28
March 2014. All will appreciate
your prayer.
Timothy Howes, age 90, is expected to
undergo resection surgery for a twisted bowel on 16 March 2014, due to his age
and other complications this is an extremely tense surgery. Please pray for the surgical team
to pay attention and to their best and for a good outcome. Pray also Timothy and his family, in
particular his son Rev Ken, to put their worry on God’s shoulders.
Melody Summers of Gold Creek, Montana
has been diagnosed with a brain tumor. She is a very special person in the Gregr family’s lives.
Please pray for the surgical team to pay attention and to their best and for a
good outcome. Pray also Melody and
her family will be able to put their worry on God’s shoulders. Pray for a special miracle for her and
her family.
Mario has early-diagnosed prostate
cancer and had surgery. Pray for complete remission and that Mario and his
family will be able to put their worry on God’s shoulders.
Dustin who was injured in a work
accident when stainless steel sheet metal fell on his right hand. His thumb was severely injured as some
of the bones were crushed. Dustin will have surgery on Thursday 22 August 2013,
to reconstruct and reset his thumb. They do not expect him to lose his thumb.
Please pray for the surgical team to pay attention and to their best and for a
good outcome. Pray also that
Dustin and family will be able to put their worry on God’s shoulders.
Eddie has upcoming bladder surgery. Please pray for the surgical team to
pay attention and to their best and for a good outcome. Pray also that Eddie and family will be
able to put their worry on God’s shoulders.
Testing and Treatment
Paul has been in and out of the hospital
for several weeks. Pray that the Doctors will find out what is wrong with him
and he will be healed.
Dennis had a stroke on 30 May 2014. Pray
for his wife and family during this time of recovery Pray for strength, courage
and understanding for Dennis and his family, most particularly his wife; as
well as for God's guidance for the neurologists and other medical people
treating him they might find the best course of treatment and allow Dennis to
heal completely.
Liz Strauch had a pineal cyst, which in
the end responded well to a surgical draining last year. Since November 2013, similar symptoms
have returned. A CT Scan turned up
what is thought to be either a new cyst or an enlarged pineal gland. More testing, including an EEG is in
the works. She can no longer work.
Pray for strength, courage and understanding for Liz and her family, in
particular her husband Ken and sons Caleb and Nathan; as well as for God's
guidance for the medical people treating her that they might find the best
course of treatment and allow Liz to heal completely.
Steve fell from a roof Saturday, 5 April
2014. His injuries were multiple, extensive, severe, and life threatening. He is slowly making improvements. He still
has a long road to travel and is still in great need of prayers. Yours are very
much appreciated. Pray for
strength, courage and understanding for Steve and his family; as well as for
God's guidance for the medical people treating him that they might find the
best course of treatment and allow Steve to heal completely.
Faye is in the hospital because she is
weak has been receiving blood transfusions. Pray for strength, courage and
understanding for Faye and her family; as well as for God's guidance for the
medical people treating her that they might find the best course of treatment
and allow Faye to heal completely.
Tom has heart and kidney problems. Pray
for strength, courage and understanding for Tom and his family; as well as for
God's guidance for the medical people treating him that they might find the
best course of treatment and allow Tom to heal completely.
Harold has had a severe stroke. He is now home, but his family is
looking for a rehabilitation facility to help him recuperate. Pray for strength, courage and
understanding for Harold and his family; as well as for God's guidance for the
medical people caring for him that they might find the best treatment facility
to allow Harold to heal completely.
Nathan has a tumor near his heart and had
unsuccessful surgery. Please pray for strength, courage and understanding for
Nathan and his family; as well as for God's guidance for the medical people
treating him that they might find the best course of treatment.
Joe has had a preliminary ALS diagnosis.
Pray the final diagnosis will something that will allow him to continue taking
care of his devoted young family.
Pray for strength, courage and understanding for Joe and his family; as
well as for God's guidance for the medical people treating him that they might
find the best course of treatment.
Mark had swelling and fluid buildup in his lungs. It appears things may be getting under
control. He needs to use a Bi-Pap
mask to breathe until his lungs clear and he hates it. Pray that he will be able to adapt so
his lungs can clear. Please pray
for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for Mark, as well as for his family,
and for God's guidance for the medical people treating him that they might find
the best course of treatment.
Preston is reacting poorly to recent
neck surgery and now has problems with his liver count; Physicians feel that
dialysis will help. There may be a blockage in the bowel and an operation might
be necessary. Please pray for the
medical team to pay attention and to their best to determine how to help
Preston and for a good outcome.
Pray also that Preston and family will be able to put their worry on
God’s shoulders while Preston does his best to facilitate a return to good
health.
Marianne is hospitalized with a perforated
colon. Please pray for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for Marianne, as
well as for her family, and for God's guidance for the medical people treating
her that they might find the best course of treatment.
Erica has a non-malignant Brain Tumor
which cannot be surgically removed due to the size and location. They are going to attempt chemotherapy.
Please pray for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for Erica, as well as for
her family, and for God's guidance for the medical people treating her that
they might find the best course of treatment.
Brenda is in the hospital because of
bleeding on her brain. Please pray for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for
Brenda, as well as for her family, and for God's guidance for the medical
people treating her that they might find the best course of treatment.
Mackenzie is a young girl with leukemia.
Please pray for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for Mackenzie, as well as
for her family, and for God's guidance for the medical people treating her that
they might find the best course of treatment.
Mack has had diabetes most of his adult
life. Circulation in his legs is very bad and doctors are considering
amputation. Please pray his medication will help and he will not face
amputation. Please pray for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for Mack and
for God's guidance for the medical people treating him that they might find the
best course of treatment.
Michael has been diagnosed with lung
cancer recently after making it through gastro intestinal cancer last year.
Please pray for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for Michael and his wife
Gayle; as well as for God's guidance for the medical people treating him that
they might find the best course of treatment.
Ken Strauch has been tired and is
anemic, he had a colonoscopy which found a pair of polyps which were removed
and are being tested. Just for
good measure they found he has a hiatal hernia with ulcers, basically part of his
stomach is pushed up into his esophagus and is bleeding from there. Sounds there may be surgery involved.
Please pray for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for Ken and for God's
guidance for the medical people treating him that they might find the best
course of treatment.
Adriano is in the hospital due to high
sugar and high blood pressure. He is very weak and will appreciate your
prayers.
Heather recently found out she has
cancer. Please pray for peace of
mind for her and for the medical team treating her will be guided to the right
solution.
Jim has had an aneurism and blood clots.
Pray that healing will come.
Georgia has liver and pancreatic cancer.
The doctors are evaluating whether to do surgery and how to tackle the disease.
Georgia is a faithful Christian and she will appreciate your prayers. Pray for
God's guidance for the medical people treating her that they might find out the
source of the problem and best course of treatment. Pray also for peace of mind and trust in God for Georgia and
her family.
Lana’s doctor found something on her
lymph nodes and ovaries. Pray for God's guidance for the medical people
treating her that they might find out the source of the problem and best course
of treatment. Pray also for peace
of mind and trust in God for Lana and her family.
Healing
Casey has strep throat along with her
mother Deanna and Grandmother Virginia. Please pray that the other members of
the family may stay healthy while those with strep throat recover quickly and
rapidly.
Meg recently found out she had heart
problems causing low blood oxygen levels, loss of focus resulting in an
emergency room crisis. As a result of the symptoms she made errors on the job
that caused her to lose her job. She is grateful for the excellent medical care
she has received and optimistic, feeling with God's intervention in her life
her health may be reversed and a new job will become available.
Barbara has serious problems with her
Sciatic Nerve. Please pray for
guidance for those treating her, for relief of the severe pain, for trust in
our Lord for Barbara and her family, for healing.
Donald is in the hospital and had his
leg amputated on 14 April 2014. Pray he will adjust and healing will begin.
Dallmus has lost 40 to 50 percent of his
sight. Pray he will learn to cope with the situation and that he will trust in
God to heal as He will.
Lucius Dabney (father of Rev Bryan
Dabney) is now at home recovering from an infection. Please pray for a complete healing of the infection and
return to health.
David has many concussions and unable to
go to school, read books, watch TV and has headaches and migraines. He has
trouble sleeping and his family will appreciate your prayers for this 10 year
old young man.
Barbara Apple fell the week of 11
January 2014, in her home, breaking her right humerus (the large upper arm
bone) in a spiral fracture, which cannot be set. Movement is very painful and due to a total lack of energy,
she is more or less bedridden. Healing does not seem to be going well at this point. Pray for inspiration for those caring
for her that they might find the appropriate treatment. Please pray for Barbara to put her
trust in the Lord, look to Him for strength and for her to gain energy so she
does not lose the mobility she has; pray for a full and rapid recovery. Please pray also for her husband Bob
who is taking care of her that he might be comforted and strengthened in this
time of stress.
Gladys has breast cancer and has had a
lumpectomy. She needs to take a year off of her work to have chemo treatments.
Alwin Jack has had a stroke and recently
has had a relapse. Please pray for
those who treat Alwin that they might chose the best possible treatment and
pray for peace of mind for Alwin during the recovery phase.
Sylvia Lee, Sandra Lee’s mother, had
been suffering from undiagnosed kidney failure; doctors finally figured out
what the problem was and offered her “hospice care”, a second opinion suggested
dialysis. She is now on
dialysis. Please pray for strength
and vitality to return to her and for peace of mind for Sylvia and her family,
as well as their continued faith and in God as the Great Physician. They pray
for help to listen to God's voice and guidance through this journey together.
Carolyn has Multiple Sclerosis with
complications. Pray Carolyn and her children will be close to our Lord Jesus
Christ as they and family members help to ease the problems.
Jeong was in an auto accident and
sustained a serious back injury.
Please pray for a full and rapid recovery.
Dale was hospitalized Sunday 25 August
2013, after a heart attack. Please pray for guidance for the medical team
treating him and for peace of mind for Dale and his family.
Gil Garcia developed a bed sore which
precludes sitting and is now confined to his bed. Gil has very smooth and delicate skin, please pray for a
rapid healing of the sore so he can get out of bed and move around in his
chair. Gil spent almost a year in
the hospital the last time this happened.
His faith and his attitude are almost beyond belief, he is an example to
us all. But, we pray this time he
will heal quickly. Pray also for
his lovely wife Mary who takes care of him. Pray for both of them also for strength to deal with the
loss of their son Bernie.
Bill had malignant growth removed from a
lip last month and seems to be experiencing a re-growth of the cancer. He asks your prayer for the medical
team treating him and for peace of mind for himself.
Hank has osteoporosis, which has caused
him a great deal of pain and inconvenience in the past few years. Pray for his
healing and that his medical bills will be met.
Evelyn is an elderly woman who has had
problems with her eyes and is now blind. It appears some sight will return
shortly, pray for that to happen!
Joanne has begun kidney dialysis as a
result of kidney failure due to extensive chemotherapy. Additionally she cares
for an adopted drug addicted baby who is now nine years old. Please pray for her to keep her faith,
to let the Lord carry her worry and concern and to give her strength. Pray also for those treating her that
they might pay attention and do their best.
Mr. N. Anand is in the hospital and is
seriously ill. He is being encouraged to pray for repentance of his sins and to
depend upon our dependable God for a cure and recovery of his health. Pray that
he will be a strong witness for Christ.
Jacob has been going through some dental
procedures and has some pain and aggravation with the numbness. Please pray for
comfort and strength for him, as well as for guidance for the medical team
treating him that they might pay attention and do their best.
Jean fell and broke her ankle in three
places. She will be in the
hospital for rehabilitation for the next 6 weeks. Please pray for comfort and strength for her, as well as for
guidance for the medical team treating her that they might pay attention and do
their best.
Bud and his wife for their continued
welfare and enthusiasm. Bud has
been advised of an aneurism in his heart of a size not mandating immediate
surgery. This comes at a time when
he has sole care of his wife who recently broke two vertebrae and thereafter
sustained pneumonia.
Virginia has Sinus and Allergy problems
giving her severe problems. Pray
that the Doctor will discover why it continues and find a cure.
Steve Thornell had a brain aneurysm,
which was found before it burst.
He is home from the hospital and working hard on recovery. He lacks
energy from seven days in the hospital.
His doctor told him he has to make serious life changes. One of the two
main arteries in the back of the head is now completely closed. He must take blood thinners, he has
thick blood and recent chemotherapy made it worse. Steve has always operated at 110 percent, he needs help to
slow down. Please pray for
trust in the Lord and a full and rapid recovery. Pray for peace of mind for Steve and his family.
Arlen is receiving treatment for lung
cancer and recently experienced a ruptured colon during treatment. She is alone
in Oregon but does have a friend who has traveled a great distance to be at her
side. Please pray for guidance for the medical team treating her and for
strength and trust for Arlen.
Oscar discovered some time ago he had
blood clots in his leg and lung.
He has been treated for them and has not been cured. He now will be
facing surgery. Please keep him in
your prayers.
Angela had an ischemic stroke (clot). Please pray for guidance for the
medical team treating her and for strength and trust for Angela. Please pray
also that she and her family might put their worries on our Lord’s back so she
can work hard towards recovery.
Nora had a stroke mid February 2013.
Please pray for guidance for the medical team treating her and for strength and
trust for Nora. Please pray also that she and her family might put their
worries on our Lord’s back so she can work hard towards recovery.
Linda has been hospitalized for several
days with a gastrointestinal problem.
Please pray for guidance for the medical team treating her and for
strength and trust for Linda.
Dester is suffering from unknown skin
and diseases. Please guide the
medical team treating him to find out what the problem is and cure it. Pray also for Dester to trust in the
Lord.
Lee has Arterial Fibrillation; the
medical people are not sure how to help her. Please pray for guidance for the team treating her and for
Lee and her family to make the right decisions regarding treatment..
Nell recently adopted two children and
has just been diagnosed with multiple myeloma.
Mary Lou has been suffering with
seizures. She was in the hospital with a 24 hour monitor and is being sent home
from the hospital with two medications and orders to return in 2 months for
another MRI to review whatever is going on in her brain. Please pray for guidance for the
medical people treating her, as well as peace of mind and trust in God for her
and her family.
Kathleen has spent the last two weeks in
the hospital. She has been
diagnosed with colitis, shingles and possibly colon cancer. Pray she will be
comfortable and begin to heal.
Rachel has Mitochondrial Myopathy. This is a hereditary disease of the
muscles and they do not have a cure for it. Part of her pain is her family does
not believe she is indeed ill, as she appears to be just fine. Please pray her
family will learn the truth and be supportive of her; pray also the medical
people treating her will find the right measures to minimize the disease. Most particularly pray for Rachel’s
trust in God.
Nicolas is in the hospital with serious
symptoms of a heart disorder. Please pray for peace of mind for him and
guidance for the medical team looking for the cause and cure.
Mrs. Baek an elderly women fell and
injured her spine. Doctors cannot
repair the spinal injury due to her age. She fell again the morning of 12
December 2012, breaking her collar bone which is also untreatable. Mrs. Baek is
in severe pain and will appreciate your prayers.
Juanita is a young girl who was in a
coma because of a blood disease.
She has not come out and is gaining strength. They are awaiting results
from blood samples. Her family
thanks you for your prayers and asks that you continue.
Barbara had an accident while cooking
and the pressure cooker blew up in her face, causing second and third degree
burns over her face and upper body. Because of this she has incurred kidney
problems and may need a transplant.
George had foot surgery. Please give thanks for the surgery and
pray for a full and rapid recovery.
Nellie is in the emergency room of a
hospital in a great deal of pain.
Please pray for peace of mind for her and guidance for the medical team
looking for the cause and cure.
Lauralee Meade underwent a lumpectomy on
Friday after Thanksgiving. A
further anomaly has been discovered and she had additional preventative
radiation treatment. Please pray
for a complete remission of the cancer.
Pray also Lauralee will maintain her great attitude and trust in God.
Kevin Gerhart discovered cancer on his
neck. He underwent radiation and
chemotherapy. Please pray for the
medical team treating Kevin that they might pay attention, do their very best
and find the source; that the treatment might be successful and he might live a
long and healthy life to His honor and glory. Pray also for trust in God and peace of mind for Kevin, his
wife and family.
Bill, Sara’s husband, had a third
abdominal surgery on 22 November 2011, to remove a tumor. Bill is doing better keeping the
doctor’s instructions, for which we are all grateful, including taking chemotherapy
once a day for one more year. He has
decreased the consumption of alcohol and eating at least mostly properly. Please pray for help for him to continue
do all this. Please pray also that
Bill might turn his heart outward to help those around him, as well as live a
long and healthy life to the honor and glory of God. Pray also for peace of mind for Bill and his wife Sara.
Kay Denton (Mrs. Kay) has had a chest
infection, perhaps viral, but seems to be getting better. She actually sent an iMessage last
week, but did not hang around for a response a minute later! Please pray for continued peace of mind
for Mrs. Kay and her family. Give
thanks for her trust in the Lord and her positive attitude.
Matt Alcantara, age 16, came back with
ZERO SCANS again in December 2013!
Matt has Osteosarcoma (bone cancer), a very rare and often lethal form
of cancer with limited treatment options.
This is a disease that is about 90 percent fatal in a couple of years. He has no hip joint on one side, but he
walks and swims! Courage? Guts? You bet! Please also give thanks
for the great faith of Matt and his entire family. Their faith and trust is a wonderful example for each and
every one of us. But, now is not
the time to stop praying.
Actually, it never is the time to stop praying!
Judith Clingwall, is afflicted with
Multiple Sclerosis (MS). She is
currently in Laurel Place, an extended care facility in Surrey, British
Columbia. Judith's condition has
worsened recently. Please pray for her to take an active part in her own life,
for her strength, peace of mind, trust in God and remission of the disease so
she might return home to her family.
Pray also for strength for her husband Martin as he deals with all the
problems and stress of Judith’s situation.
Vince (age 15), reoccurrence of Osteosarcoma,
recent testing found a nickel sized tumor in his lungs. The doctors are consulting with a
specialist in Houston. Please pray
for guidance for the medical team and for peace of mind for Vince and his
family.
Thanksgiving and Continued Healing
Mary Thornell had surgery on 30 October
2013, at the Riverside Community Hospital to remove a huge mass along with
about ½ her colon and part of her lower bowel. Mary finishes chemotherapy 17 June 2014. Tests the week of 2 June 2014 showed
totally clear scans. For now,
treatment is done after the last chemotherapy session. Please give thanks for the great result
and also for the strength, guidance and peace of mind our Lord gave Mary and
her husband Jim, as well as daughter Janice and son Jimmy, she underwent
treatment. Please pray she will
stay free of the cancer in the future.
Eli a two month baby is back home after
going to the ER the night of 28 May 2014, not able to breathe. Please give thanks for her recovery and
pray for strength, courage and understanding for Eli’s family; as well as for
God's guidance for the neurologists and other medical people treating Eli they
might find the best course of treatment and allow Eli to heal completely, as
well as for strength and understanding for the parents.
Jim has been hospitalized and had
several operations for cancer the last few years. The physicians discovered a number of spots; but his exam
was better than expected-prayer changes things and he thanks you for your
prayers. Please continue him in prayer for he will have another scan in April.
Al had an abscess found on his liver for
which he was hospitalized, it turned out to be benign and will not require
surgery, he has been released from the hospital. Please give thanks for this good result and pray for
continued healing.
Elma is suffering from
cancer. She was taken home from
the hospital on the advice of her Doctor.
We were asked to pray that Elma’s remaining time here on earth might be good
and that Elma and family might put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry
their worry. Since then,
Elma's Bishop told us a great Miracle of the Lord is working over Elma. Doctors sent her home to die, but now
she seems to be doing all right.
On behalf of her, thank you for all of your prayers. Please continue
praying for her complete healing.
Ian Allen had back surgery on 5 February
2014, which went very very well.
He is home and pain free.
There is a recovery process head, but he has his daughter with him for
the next week to help with that. Please give thanks for the surgical team
paying close attention, doing their very best and for a good outcome. Pray for peace of mind for Ian and his
family as healing continues.
Erica had surgery on 7 January 2014, for
a non-malignant brain tumor. They
got most, but not all of the tumor, things seem good for now. Please give thanks for the surgical
team doing their very best and for a good outcome. Pray for peace of mind for Erica’s family as healing and
treatment continues.
Jim Curl had a stroke November 2013; he
has recovered pretty well, but still has memory issues. Jim asks that you give thanks for his
great recovery and pray that his memory will continue to improve.
Please
join together in thanking the Lord for strengthening Christopher, a young man with psychological problems who departed
meds to a bad effect, for his maintaining healthy discipline the last six
months, and join together in praying that he continue to be infused with
strength and rationality.
Dennis has heart problems; now the
medical people treating him discovered a large mass on his liver which turned
out to be a cyst! Please give
thanks for this great development and pray for peace of mind and trust in the
Lord for Dennis and for God's guidance for the medical people treating him that
the contemplated surgery might go well.
Dwight had major oral surgery, for which
he gives thanks. He is recovering
slowly and asks your prayers to speed the process.
Mike was very ill in hospital. He is doing much better now and his
family asks you to give thanks for the miraculous recovery. Mike is a veteran who has served his
country when she called. Please pray he will open his heart to God so He can
make Mike’s crooked road straight and pull him towards the summit rather than
to the pit.
Dick’s left arm was amputated after
treating for Merkel Cell carcinoma over a year ago. He is now believed to be cancer free and is waiting to be
fitted with an artificial arm. Please join Dick and his family in giving thanks
to Our Lord Jesus Christ for his recovery as well as for their trust in God.
Traci had surgery colon cancer on 27
December 2012. The surgery went
very well and she appears to be cancer free. But, she had a pulmonary embolism and another clot in the artery
to the spleen which will keep her in the hospital for at least several days.
Traci is beginning to be weary of her medical situation. Please pray that she
will not become despondent. Pray
that she will open her heart to God’s Grace that He might enter in to her heart
and strengthen her.
Bob Smouse had shoulder surgery
on 28 November 2012. While the surgery went well, he is still in pain and would
also appreciate prayers for continued healing and the pain to subside. He promises to work very hard on
recovery therapy.
Carol Stone, the sweet wife of Mike
Stone, recovered far better than expected from a severe brain bleed, but fell
recently and broke her hip. She
still requires 24 hour care, which Mike provides with little help
Please pray for peace of mind and trust in God
for Mike, guidance for the medical team treating Carol and strength for Carol
as well as faith and trust. No one
can ever understand the why of these things here on earth. Sara who passed this request on asks
that you pray in both faith and hope.
Business
Mark’s business is in difficulty. He works in a shrinking field, of which
he is one of the country’s true masters, but there is little work
available. He asks that you pray
that he can find a way to survive in his industry, which he loves and needs his
talents. Pray he can find new
sources of business and new ways of doing things, perhaps someone to partner
with to better use his talents.
Pray also for those who work for and with him that they might do their
best to help.
Financial
Guidance and Employment
Charlie is coming along in his need of
both spiritual and financial. Charlie
feels that he has no skills, which is clearly incorrect, but nonetheless he
feels that way. While on the one
hand, he knows that is not right, on the other hand, he is having a problem
shaking that belief. Ask that God
send the Holy Ghost into his heart for guidance. In addition, Charlie needs God’s guidance as to how to
handle his life from this point forward. After many years in the aerospace industry, he is looking for
a place to employ his talents to the mutual benefit of a company. He asks that you pray for God to guide
him to a new place to allow him to gain an even financial keel.
Tracey is out of employment and has not
received her unemployment compensation or found a new position; please pray
these problems will be resolved.
Carmine is looking for employment. Pray
God will guide her and she will accept his guidance; something she has not
always done, so your prayers will be especially appreciated.
Chris and several others at his firm
were let go after many years of faithful service. Please pray that they might find a company that can use
their considerable skills and dedication to their mutual benefit. Pray also for those who remain behind
that they might find peace in the confusion caused by the departures.
Doug recently became unemployed from his
job of 18 years. He has been applying for jobs, but unable to get one at this
time. His wife is working; this is
not enough for the family. Please pray he will find employment with a firm that
will be able to use his considerable skill and hard work to benefit both the
firm and the family.
Catherine and Lewis are at a low ebb due
to a struggle for employment. Your fervent prayers will be appreciated.
Lori is considering a potential change
in her employment. Please pray for
God’s guidance in considering all aspect of her potential work.
Rodriguez Family are looking for work.
It seems many obstacles have been put in their way of finding employment. Please pray they will find employment
with a firm that will be able to use their considerable skill and hard work to
benefit both the firm and the family.
Sarah is concerned about the
future with her company. She would
appreciate prayers for her continued employment and that her firm might find
more and better ways to use her considerable skills.
Financial
Guidance and Healing
Timothy and Sharon had their
home foreclosed the morning of 15 April 2014. They are experiencing spiritual, emotional and financial
crisis at the current time. Please pray for God’s guidance as to how they might
handle the financial difficulties in which they have found themselves and more
importantly have them draw closer to God and each other.
Linda, Rick, Christian and Sawyer
are a family experiencing spiritual, emotional and financial crisis at the current
time. Please pray for God’s guidance as to how they might handle the financial
difficulties in which they have found themselves and more importantly have them
draw closer to God and each other.
David and Lorna are having
financial problems. They are
trying to find a smaller home which may be more affordable. Lorna
has had an ongoing battle with brain cancer, her trips back and forth to the
hospital have drained their finances to the point they sometimes struggle to
have enough food in the house. Pleaser pray for Lorna’s healing and guidance on how they
might handle the financial difficulties in which they have found themselves.
Guidance
Marie has suffered the loss of her
husband, her job and her pet all in a short period of time. Please pray for
peace of mind for Marie, as well as for trust in the Lord for her and those
around her that she might adjust to the changes in her life and move forward to
the honor and glory of our Lord with His Help. (140607)
Mitten has a Christian talking to him about
Christ. Mitten does not believe and does not seem to care. Please pray Mitten will see the light.
Luis Martinez had a heart attack on 1
November 2013, and seems to have recovered fairly well. His wife Selma passed away on 12 April
2014. Please pray for peace of
mind for Luis, as well as for trust in the Lord for him and the rest of the
family.
Kristen, Rickey and their two children
ask you to pray for grace, wisdom and understanding as they attempt to cope
with infidelity, separation and possibly divorce as a result of backsliding
from the Lord into the World.
Erica is having school exams for the
next several weeks. Please pray her mind will be open to what she has learned
and her heart opened more and more as the years go by to Jesus.
Aaron has a problem seeing is where his
life should be leading him. Please
pray that he can listen to his father Paul and those around him who want him to
work hard and obtain a real education now rather than just coast towards
oblivion.
Danielle has accepted Christ as her
Saviour. Pray she will read the Bible and meditate on His Word so she can grow
in him.
Helene and her family ask your prayers
for them as they deal with the loss of Alan, husband and father.
Stephanie seems to be very deeply into
post partum depression after her baby was born prematurely. Please pray for her Mother in Law who
is going a great distance to help Stephanie and her new Grandson. Pray that Stephanie will be able to
direct her attention outward, rather than inward.
William is an elderly man living with
his Son and Daughter in-law. William is causing trouble in the family because
of his demanding ways and continually using bad language. The family is at
wit’s end to know how to handle him and will appreciate your guidance and
prayers.
Caitlin is in the grip of the Prince of
Darkness; she thinks there is escape from reality in drugs. The saddest part is that reality is not
as she sees it. Her family is despairing
as they can do nothing to help her and ask that you pray for the Holy Ghost to
enter into heart and show her the need for change before it is too late.
Nathaniel is in spiritual turmoil. His family and friends will appreciate
it if you will keep him in your prayers for him to find the root of his trouble
and accept God’s help to heal his heart.
Sam and her two children that have been living in a shelter and are to lose
their place there. Please pray a
place will be found they can stay in and recover.
Please
pray Darlene will surrender her life
to Christ.
Norrie is facing daily exams in the
weeks ahead. Pray for calmness and
concentration and to do the best possible.
Jonathan is addicted to drugs. He is now in jail awaiting trial. His
parents and friends will appreciate it if you will keep him in your prayers for
him to find the root of his trouble and accept God’s help to heal addiction.
Beth is suffering from ungodly treatment
in her marriage. Please pray God
will guide her in her behavior, actions and thoughts that she might be able to
lead her husband to God so her marriage might prosper to the benefit of them.
Brandon a young man from a Christian
family who married a year ago and almost immediately became estranged from him
family. As a result he has had a serious problem with keeping the civil law.
Please pray for Brandon that he will return to the Lord and the many problems
will be eventually settled. Pray the hurt he has caused so many will be helped
with our Lord’s care and love.
Dennis has some
decisions to make and will appreciate our Lord's guidance.
Earl to read and
understand Scriptures he has been given.
Jeanette has had many members of her
family die from diabetes and several are near death now. Jeanette does not know
the Lord and is despondent and perplexed about her family and herself. Please pray she can open her heart to
allow the Holy Ghost in to bring her knowledge and understanding.
Dr. Elizabeth Raj is teaching a biblical
approach to the psychological problems facing many in our society today. She is
battling against the growing influence of worldly psychology adopted by the
churches themselves. Elizabeth constantly stresses answers are found between
the covers of that precious Book, the Holy Bible. Please pray for encouragement, strength, fortitude and
courage for her.
Daniel and Danielle are experiencing
family strife as a result of custodial issues with a daughter. Please pray they and those they strive
with might look to the child’s best interests in their time of difficulty and
disagreement; to work for her best interests and not use her as a weapon
amongst themselves.
Abigail is a teenager who has behavior
problems. She feels she is in an
area of mental darkness. Please
pray that she might look to God for help and not within herself.
Sara asks that you pray for guidance for
her as she deals with the stresses of her family and life. Pray that she can separate those things
which she can affect from those things which she cannot and give her grace to
accept that she cannot do everything and can only change those things within
her control. She asks for God’s
help for her business so that she might remain gainfully employed while keeping
up with the needs of her mother and husband and healing her own problems.
Jacquie to open her heart to God and
accept His Love and Grace.
Hap asks you to pray he might be able to
trust God will help him make the right decisions at the right time and not to
worry uselessly, to change those things he can change, accept those things he
cannot change, sleep well to be able to do the correct things with a clear head
and that he will open his heart to the Holy Ghost.
Anglican Orthodox Church
From Bishop John Nakka of our Church Family
in South India. We must know, but by the grace of God, we could, and may,
experience the same in our own land:
Dear ALL,
I am so painfully writing
this mail as we are very very suffering a lot politically and also due to separation of our State. No
power for around 10 to 12 hours in the cities and more than 12 hours in the villages. No enough drinking
water, very hot summer.... Politically we are now really afraid as the
sectarian hindu religious background parties took over the Union and State
Governments. We are a religious minority in India and now our hearts started
beating fast and do not know what happened for us in the near future. WE ARE REALLY UNFORTUNATE. We may
live like a second grade citizens and we need to face a very hard persecution
as was the Hebrews in Egypt. The persecution was already started and around 05
issues were reported for abuse, warnings and stopping the conventions etc.,
during this week alone i.e., just within a week after Mr.Modi took over the
charge.
PLEASE PRAY
FOR CHRISTIANS IN INDIA.
yours
fraternally in Christ,
+John.
Christians in the Central African Republic
are experiencing the ravages of a war between the Muslim and Christians. We
have both ministers and members of the Anglican Orthodox Church in Central
African Republic. Please pray for God’s guidance and protection for all
persecuted Christians and those around them.
On
21 March 2014, Faith Theological Seminary
in Gujranwala, Pakistan graduated a class. Please pray the Holy Ghost will fill
the hearts of the graduates as they go forth to spread The Word of Jesus Christ
our Saviour
Rev Paul Thompson, pastor of Christ
Anglican Church (AOC) in Oakland, Iowa, asks you pray for the Holy Ghost to
enter the hearts of their congregation that they might find better ways to
serve our Lord and bring the Word to those around them.
Rev Rick Reid asks that you
pray for Saint Andrews Anglican Church in Newton, North Carolina. They would like to see their
congregation grow to the point is it self-sustaining and vibrant. The congregation asks that you pray for
the Holy Ghost to enter into their hearts and inspire them to do their best to
further His Will.
Saint Joseph of Arimathea Anglican Orthodox
Church is under a lot of stress.
We all are, but they need even more prayer. Rev Roger Jessup, their wonderful minister, is pressed by
the duties of a primary care giver, in addition to all the worries of this
world. They have one of their
family’s primary breadwinners who will be soon unemployed, absent His
intervention. As Rev Roger said so
eloquently, "We must pray for those who mean us harm and deprive us of our
property are our enemies: Our LORD has so commanded us." We must pray they will see light and
cleave to it while turning their backs on the Prince of this World. Equally important, we must pray that
the Lord will raise up a political leader from among us as He has done in the
past. Pray also for trust in God
for each member of the parish and for them to find economic relief.
Armed Forces & Contractors
Airman Donny Patton (Hulbert
Field, Florida), Jordan (USMC – Fleet Marine Force - Pacific), Trevor (USAF -
KC-10 Boom Operator – New Jersey), Trevor (USN – Whidbey Island, EF-18 Pilot),
Kurt Thomas (USN – Camp Foster, Okinawa)
Persecuted
Around the
world, Christians are under attack, not only in the Muslim world, but from
Hindus and others in India. Also,
they are under continual attack in the name of “Separation of Church and State”
in the western world, as it becomes actively atheist or pro-devil buddy. Please pray for God’s guidance and
protection for all persecuted Christians and those around them.
Thanksgiving
Bishop Jerry Ogles, Executive
Secretary Betty Hoffman and Rev Jack Arnold give thanks for safe travel to
Kenya last week to welcome the church there into the Anglican Orthodox Church
Worldwide Communion.
Roy and Janet Morales-Kuhn and
their daughter Liz give thanks for travel to visit Liz and Southern
California.
Various
Special Requests
Nathalie is teaching English in a small
western Ukrainian town where they are having so many problems. Pray for Nathalie
and others around the world who are standing up for Christian principles in
their countries.
This
is a horrible time for the people of
India, Christians in particular; they are having problems with Hunger, Bank
Closings, Transportation and Schools not functioning. Pray for the Leaders and Members of our Church in Eluru
Andhra Pradesh. Pray their basic needs will be met and God will be close to
them in this time of need.
Lisa discovered her 9 year old daughter Mariah had been raped. This is in the
court system now and we know that prayers are needed for this family. "The
effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much" James 5:16 Lisa says she feels the power of your
prayer in God’s hand on her heart.
Please
pray for all the people of Egypt;
Bishop Mouneer Anis of Egypt is asking your prayer as the supporters of the
deposed Mursi government, with the support of the United States government,
have been attacking Christian churches--Anglican, Catholic and Orthodox. They destroyed the car of Anglican
priest Rev. Ehab Ayoub. The people
of Egypt, the people of the United States need our prayers, even more so the
people of the Muslim Brotherhood that they might repent of their evil and know
God so the rest of the people may live in peace.
We ask that
you pray, please ask God that the Holy Ghost might give you insight into how
you might make the lives of your friends and family better. Remember helping others is not just
those who you don’t know!
Please join
us in praying that the Free Teen Guitar
Class will be continue to be an opportunity for God to work in the lives of
the kids and their families.
Please ask God to guide the class to new opportunities to make Him known
to others. Help us to let the love
of our Lord shine through us into their lives, putting Him first, so that He
might enter in to their hearts and lives.
The
near future, as well as Next Sunday
4 July 2013 – Independence Day– Morning
Prayer - Service start time 1000 (10:00 am); welcome or gathering songs before
the service at 0945 (9:45 am); Time 1000
(10:00 am); Location – 10603 Burrell Way, Descanso, CA
6 July 2013 – Third Sunday after Trinity– Morning
Prayer - Service start time 1000 (10:00 am); welcome or gathering songs before
the service at 0945 (9:45 am); Time 1000
(10:00 am); Location – 10603 Burrell Way, Descanso, CA
13 July 2013 – Fourth Sunday after Trinity–
Morning Prayer - Service start time 1000 (10:00 am); welcome or gathering songs
before the service at 0945 (9:45 am); Time
1000 (10:00 am); Location – 10603 Burrell Way, Descanso, CA
20 July 2013 – Fifth Sunday after Trinity– Holy
Communion - Service start time 1000 (10:00 am); welcome or gathering songs
before the service at 0945 (9:45 am); Time
1000 (10:00 am); Location – 10603 Burrell Way, Descanso, CA
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