Have a great week-end!

A prayer tonight. The Lord bless you with peace and joy this week-end and pour his love onto your families. May He strenghtens you through his Word and may you be a light for others who don't know our Lord Jesus-Christ. Let's praise the Lord for he is holy, good and just. He watches over us, his sheep, for He is a caring shepherd. You are his children and He loves you dearly. We ask this in the name of our saviour Jesus-Christ. Amen.

Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty. (John 6:35)

Then Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”(John 8:12)

I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. (John 10:9)

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”(John 10:11)

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.”(John 11:25-26)

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)

Be joyful!

Romans 12:12. 

Be joyful

Because you have hope.

Be patient

When trouble comes

and

Pray at all times

The apostle Paul reminds us that the one reason to be joyful is because we have hope as through Jesus-Christ we have peace with God (being justified by faith Romans 5:1). Somehow, life brings trials and tribulations of all sort whether they affect us personally or our beloved ones, including our dearest friends. How can we be joyful then! Well, trials refine us for the better. Comes to mind theses verses in Zecharia 13: This third I will put into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, 'They are my people,' and they will say, 'The LORD is our God.'" 

What should we do when we are tested ? 
Grumble? certainly not (I fail the test miserably then).
Be patient! Waiting on the Lord who knows what's best for us is advisable. This is hard enough to do! It takes time to accept a situation that you don't like and/or you don't understand. If this situation is self-inflicted, you may feel even worse. 

The prophet Isaiah 40:31 reminds us of a distinct advantage if we follow this advice!
But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Ultimately, talking to our Father in heaven (praying) who listens to our cries is the answer!Notice the phrase 'at all times' not just we are hit by unfortunate circumstances or various troubles, but when we sail by fair weather! Knowing that God loves us and is watching us, we experience complete peace and we rely on Him fully. 

Mission dedication service

Monday's speaker was Revd Philip Swan, Director of World Mission in the Diocese of Lichfield.
I will just share the key points of his message!
We are so preoccupied with our little corner that we forget our brothers and sisters in Christ in the rest of the world.  

The Christ we share.










Be surprised to what God has installed for us! God is so much bigger than we can imagine. 
•The Son is…the firstborn over all creation…..

• He is before all things, and in him all things hold together……

•Through him to reconcile to himself all things…..

‘It takes a whole world to know the whole Christ’. Max Warren, former leader of the Church Mission Society.

We need each other’s vision to correct, enlarge and focus our own; only together are we complete in Christ.
Andrew Walls

One question:  what is the average age of a typical Anglican worldwide? 
Answer 31

Posted 28 November                               The Average Anglican  ...is black, female, under 30, has 3 children, lives  on 2 dollars a day, walks 3km for water, is related  to someone with HIV/AIDS, and is evangelical... As an Anglican in England I found this a  fascinating comment on the development  of Anglicanism. Has anyone any comments? Thank you, Audrey  We have dicocesan links throughout the world, first our link with Mecklenburg within the new context of the Northern Church of Germany, then other links further away, Matlosane, South Africa, West Malaysia, Kuching and Singapore in South East Asia and Qu’Appelle, Canada. These partnerships can help us to engage in fresh ways with: •Discipleship •Mission •Worship •Prayer •Justice

 

Mosul is empty;
Basrah is empty;
Baghdad is empty…

We are now facing the extinction of Christianity as a religion and as a culture from Mesopotamia.
The Chaldean Archbishop  of Erbil,
The Rt Revd Bashar Warda
10th February 2015

The Prayer of Thanksgiving

 Is the Father with us?
 He is.
 Is Christ among us?
 He is.
 Is the Spirit here?
 He is.
 This is our God.
 Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

One of my favourite songs!

At last, it's the week-end! I have had a bit of a busy week as on top of the normal load of marking and planning, i had the honor to do the assembly. Though I am used to talk in public and in front of a assembly of students and their parents, I never did an assembly. First I asked my form if they liked singing and they all panicked. You should have seen their face! No way, we can't sing. Questions were coming fast ! Miss, do you mean, we have to stand up and sing. Well you'll sing along with everybody else.

Finally the IT technician said I could not have a cable as his last two were not returned to him ..so this was not good news! Then I thought i'd better talk to one music teacher at least. He said: our students are very competent at singing. However it depends on their mood.. I wouldn't say it's a safe option for a first assembly.

So in the end, I jotted a few notes, got some inspiration. You would have guessed that I prayed a lot for inspiration. Two of my tutees accepted to meet me at break to read their parts. One did not turn up! Never mind Emily was still happy to do it all. Finally she found Rachelle, another tutee who first had said, no way, I am not talking in front of everybody. Both read their parts beautifully.

I have posted the song I wanted us to sing. It was in You tube and I hope this is legal. If anybody knows it is not, please let me know!

Praise the Lord!