Tag: Light of the world

Thursday 25th July 2024

 “Then they reached Jericho, and as Jesus and his disciples left town, a large crowd followed him. A blind beggar named Bartimaeus (son of Timaeus) was sitting beside the road. 47 When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus of Nazareth was nearby, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 “Be quiet!” many of the people yelled at him. But he only shouted louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Mark 10:46-48 NLT

Lord God,

In the words of the hymnist, “Tell me the stories of Jesus I love to hear”. I have heard many good sermons on this passage Lord. About throwing off his coat, the symbol of his past and coming to Jesus and receiving his sight and a new life. Wonderful.

But today I just want to thank You that You have made everything so simple. We have all had our Bartimaeus moments, when we have been stuck in a situation, blind to know what to do for the best. And all we had to do is call on You for help. Our best prayer – Jesus help me.

This was not a road as we know it but regularly trodden route on a main way out of Jericho. Maybe dusty and sometimes deserted. Bartimaeus was a nobody. Dismissed as a noisy irrelevance and told to be quiet.

Sometimes we wonder how You have time to hear every cry of every person in the world and answer their prayers. And we are nobody and wonder how You can be bothered with us. Then this wonderful little story, a life changing incident, shows us that You hear, You stop and listen to us each personally. You want to You meet our need.

Thank You for the stories of Jesus so simple and yet so profound.

In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Suggestions for prayer . . .
Lord God,

For our family, extended family, friends, neighbours.
For our Ministers, lay leaders, church members. Sunday school teachers.
For our king and all those in authority (1 Timothy 2:2). Royal family.
New Prime Minister and government.
For Gaza, Middle East, solutions for peace for all. Break down hatred.
For Ukraine. Send a miracle, an end to war.
For Myanmar, the church.
For the USA political situation.
1 day to go. For Paris, the athletes, coaches and Olympian teams. Those arriving to watch.
For farmers harvesting grain and making hay.
For beggars in countries with no social services. For our homeless.
For grandparents, guardians, carers, play schemes caring for children in school holidays.
For us to remember to ask You for help when we need it even in the little things. For the answers to prayer which we can’t remember asking! To accept help from friends too.

In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Worship Thursday 25th July 2024

Light of the world
You stepped down into darkness
Opened my eyes let me see
Beauty that made this heart adore You
Hope of a life spent with You

So here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that you’re my God
You’re altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

King of all days
Oh so highly exalted
Glorious in heaven above
Humbly you came to the earth you created
All for loves sake became poor

And here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that you’re my God
You’re altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross
I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

Tuesday 2nd July 2024

Light of the world
You stepped down into darkness
Opened my eyes, Let me see
Beauty that made this heart adore you
Hope of a life spent with you

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that you’re my God
You’re altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

King of all days
So highly exalted
Glorious in heaven above
Humbly you came to the earth you created
All for love’s sake became poor

I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

Tim Hughes
CD: Small Group Worship, Kingsway

“For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be saved through him. 18 The one who believes in him is not condemned. The one who does not believe has been condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God. 19 Now this is the basis for judging: that the light has come into the world and people loved the darkness rather than the light, because their deeds were evil.” John 3:16-19 New English Translation.

God of love,

An intimate view of why, God. Your why. How it was in the beginning and the consequences. You were together in the beginning. You sent Jesus and He willingly agreed to come. To give His all and get sorrow and suffering, and give us a hope and a future..

We recognise the dangers of not sticking with You. The Bible clearly talks about the choices, not options! So today we remind ourselves to turn away from self reliance, greed and selfishness which we see all around us in society and the world. We look to You and Your everlasting, all inspiring, upholding, comforting holy love. We seek Your light, beamed into our hearts and our lives through hope. And, “hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.” Romans 5:5,6

Today is a day not be anxious about life, clothes and what to eat. (Matthew 6:26) a day to be confident in You. To worship. To Bow down. To thank you for a million blessings – and for Jesus. To thank You for being You, our generous God and wonderful Saviour.

In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Suggestions for prayer . . .
Loving God,

For our family, friends, neighbours. Personal needs and to see You at work in their lives.
For our Ministers, lay leaders, church members. Inspiration and assurance.
We pray for kings and all those in authority (1 Timothy 2:2). Charles family. Princess Anne.
For the general election, smooth voting day and the best for the present and the future.
For the NHS, the countries finances, education and employment.
For Paris and athletes preparing for the 2024 Olympics.
For Gaza, and the Middle East. Peace and the best future for all.
For Ukraine, an end to war. Help and support for those in war zones and having to fight.
For schools, teachers as they try to fit everything in before the end of term.
For all those who will care for children during the long school holiday.
For our justice system, prisons, Christian Prison Chaplains and Christian release support agencies.
For us a day that runs smoothly, makes us smile and give our worries to you whatever faces us.

In Jesus wonderful name we pray, Amen

Worship Tuesday 2nd July 2024

You’re the Word of God the Father,
From before the world began;
Every star and every planet
Has been fashioned by Your hand.
All creation holds together
By the power of Your voice:
Let the skies declare Your glory,
Let the land and seas rejoice!

You’re the Author of creation,
You’re the Lord of every man;
And Your cry of love rings out
Across the lands.

Yet You left the gaze of angels,
Came to seek and save the lost,
And exchanged the joy of heaven
For the anguish of a cross.
With a prayer You fed the hungry,
With a word You stilled the sea.
Yet how silently You suffered
That the guilty may go free.

With a shout You rose victorious,
Wresting victory from the grave,
And ascended into heaven
Leading captives in Your wake.
Now You stand before the Father
Interceding for Your own.
From each tribe and tongue and nation
You are leading sinners home.

Lyrics: Keith Getty and Stuart Townend




Saturday 13th April 2024

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

Dear Lord and Father of Mankind,

Forgive our foolish ways. Forgive my foolish ways. Confession is sometimes the hardest thing. Owning up to something large or even small. But there is no getting round it to know You. And in the light of Easter I remember the consequences of my selfishness and sin. We sorrow over what we caused Jesus to go through but joy at knowing Your gift of forgiveness.

The water I drink may come from reservoirs but I have seen pictures of it at a macrobiotic level . . . no wonder it has to go through cleaning to be safe to drink. But it is not absolutely pure. Even bottled water has natural elements (minerals?) in it. But Your purity is crystal clear. Clearer than the purest water, more transparent than the most expensive polished diamond. And that is how You see Your Son Jesus, pure and clear. And You see me, us through His pure holiness. Sparklingly pure. Absolutely no speck of sin, guilt or shame. Help me to keep on confessing and being cleansed, to shine the light of Your love on those around me.


Dear Lord and Father,

For our family and friends. For good relationships, health and blessings.
For our church, Ministers and lay leaders, for opportunities to share the love of Jesus.
For the royal family. For peace of mind, healing and family support.
For our Parliament. Regardless of politics give a desire to be good and do their honest best.
For our local town or city. For town centres to flourish and new business to prosper.
For our hospitals, police and all those who work to keep out society functioning.
For those seeking medical breakthroughs, scientific discoveries, cures.
Those who are undergoing dialysis and blood cleansing literally. For donors and their families.
For those seeking You to make decisions, to find hope and a way forward. Send answers and help.
For our justice system, our police force in a week of capturing murderers recent and of the past.
For the families and friends of the victims.
For Ukraine, Gaza, Sudan, Myanmar, places of conflict. End war. We seek Your power to change.
For us a good week-end, freedom from worry and the blessing of good friendship, food and sleep.

In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Worship Saturday 13th April 2024

Tim Hughes wrote the song in 1999 as a response to how he felt after reading Philippians 2. About Christ’s humility willingly leaving His throne in heaven, coming to earth as a man, and sacrificing Himself on the cross – all because of His love for us. He picked up his guitar and, as he sang, the words flowed out, but he was not satisfied with the chorus. It took about six months to finish it. He was still not confident in the chorus. He played this song at his home church (Soul Survivor), and it became widely known.

Light of the world
You stepped down into darkness
Opened my eyes, let me see
Beauty that made this heart adore You
Hope of a life spent with You

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that You’re my God
You’re altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

King of all days
Oh, so highly exalted
Glorious in heaven above
Humbly You came to the earth You created
All for love’s sake became poor

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that You’re my God
You’re altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross
I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross
I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

Lyrics: Tim Hughes