Genesis 18:1-5 – Abraham hosts the angels at the Oak of Mamre
Mark 6:30-44 – Jesus’ compassion for the crowds
go and do
Global: Take time to engage with global news stories today. Take action in response to the story that most moves you with compassion.
Local: Contribute in any way that you can to a foodbank, food growing scheme or community meal initiative in your area. https://crowthorne.foodbank.org.uk/
Personal: Reflect on and identify who ‘the other’ is for you. How might you connect with and offer a welcome to them in your next encounter?
Deuteronomy 30:11-20 – The word of God is very close to you
Matthew 5:1-12 – Blessed are you
prayer
Blessed are you, God our Father, for the gift of your word in Holy Scripture.
Blessed are you for its transforming power.
Help us choose life and guide us by your Spirit,
so that we can experience the happiness which you want so much to share with us.
go and do
Global: Find out more about the Just Scripture initiative and help organise a session connecting the churches in your area with a community across the world.
Local: What one act of kindness could the churches in your area take together to be a unified blessing in your wider community?
Personal: Read the Beatitudes through slowly (Matthew 5: 3-11). Which of the actions described in the passage are you encouraged to take today?
Nurse Judith Lassie holds prayers with her children Isata Skengo (13), Augusta Mkengo (12) and Prince Mkengo (7), before going to work at the health clinic in Sawula village, Pujehun district. Nurse Judith says: ‘I love my community. I love God and I want to help humanity.’ Photo: Christian Aid/Tom Pilston
“I do not call you servants any longer.. have called you friends” (John 15:15)
read
Romans 8:26-27 – The Spirit helps us in our weakness
Luke 11:1-4 – Lord, teach us to pray
prayer
Lord Jesus, your entire life was prayer, perfect harmony with the Father.
Through your Spirit, teach us to pray according to your will of love.
May the faithful of the whole world unite in intercession and praise, and may your kingdom of love come.
questions
Jesus lived as an example of what it means to “live in prayer’! If prayer is the foundation of our relationship with God how much time and attention could you give to your personal prayer life?
What have you learned from praying with other Christians? What might God want you to learn from the practices and traditions of others?
What specific need in your community can you commit to pray for over the coming year?
Ranjita started tailoring four years ago as part of a Christian Aid initiative in India to help her find a way out of the extreme poverty and indignity of manual scavenging. Photo: Christian Aid/Emily
“Love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12b)
Read
Colossians 3:12-17 – Clothe yourself with compassion
John 13:1-15; 34-35 – Love one another
prayer
God our Father, you reveal to us your love through Christ and through our brothers and sisters.
Open our hearts so that we can welcome each other with our differences and live in forgiveness.
Grant us to live united in one body, so that the gift that is each person comes to light.
May all of us together be a reflection of the living Christ.
Ephesians 3:14-21 – May Christ dwell in our hearts
Luke 2:41-52 – Mary treasured all these things
questions
• The Bible tells us very little about Jesus’ youth and early adulthood, when he seems to have lived an ordinary life in Nazareth. How are you conscious of God’s presence with you in the everyday things of life?
• In your church or group of churches how do you nurture your children and young people to walk with God in their everyday lives, and how could you do this better?
• What does the churches having a ‘presence’ together in the community look like in your area?
The start of the journey is an encounter between a human being and God, between the created and the Creator, between time and eternity.
Abraham heard the call: “Go to the land I will show you”. Like Abraham we are called to leave that which is familiar and go to the place that God has prepared in the depths of our hearts. Along the way, we become more and more ourselves, the people God has wanted us to be from the beginning. And by following the call that is addressed to us, we become a blessing for our loved ones, our neighbours, and the world.
The love of God seeks us. God became human in Jesus, in whom we encounter the gaze of God. In our lives, as in the Gospel of John, God’s call is heard in different ways. Touched by his love, we set out. In this encounter, we walk a path of transformation – the bright beginning of a relationship of love that is always started anew.
“One day you understood that, without your being aware of it, a yes had already been inscribed in your innermost depths. And so you chose to go forward in the footsteps of Christ….
In silence in the presence of Christ, you heard him say, ‘Come, follow me; I will give you a place to rest your heart.’”
[The Sources of Taizé (2000) p. 52]
prayer
Jesus Christ, you seek us, you wish to offer us your friendship and lead us to a life that is ever more complete.
Grant us the confidence to answer your call so that we may be transformed and become witnesses of your tenderness for the world.
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is traditionally observed from the 18th to the 25th January – the octave (=8!) of St. Peter and St. Paul.
On the eve of the week, (Sunday 17th 6:30pm) we shall meet together (online – see below) and each day share a short reflection. Stay tuned!
For 2021, prayer, worship and reflection materials have been prepared by the Monastic Community of Grandchamp in Switzerland. The theme that was chosen, “Abide in my love and you shall bear much fruit”, is based on John 15:1-17 and expresses Grandchamp Community’s vocation to prayer, reconciliation and unity in the Church and the human family.
The service, hosted by St Michael’s Sandhurst, will have the theme of the unity of the person, of the church, and of all creation, based on Churches Together in England (CTE) material. It will start at 6.30 pm and last about 45 minutes.
You can access the service via the public Facebook page, www.facebook.com/StMichaelsSandhurst/live . It is not necessary to log in to Facebook or sign up for an account in order to watch. Those with Facebook accounts will be able to participate by leaving comments during the service.
Following the service, there will be an opportunity to chat via Zoom, please contact your church or [email protected] for details.
We were overwhelmed by the positive response to our debut video in September. So with updated footage and photography, we offer a Blessing for Christmas…
All is calm….All is BRIGHT…in Crowthorne High Street – our tribute and MASSIVE thanks to Caroline Silvester (Newman’s Shoes) and Nick Abbott (Abbott’s Health Food) for their 40 year legacy to Crowthorne (we promise to look after it…).
