December 2021 Readings and Prayers

''LORD, TEACH US TO PRAY''

Reading & Prayer 20th December 2021

Message from Jill Pargeter

In these days in lead up to Christmas Day, we are probably seeing a lot of Christmas cards with 'PEACE ON EARTH' on them. Jesus is the Prince of Peace, and we are encouraged each week in church to share the peace of God with each other.

But we can also play a role in building peace in places where there is little peace. We can act peacefully towards each other, forgiving each other and trying to understand those we disagree with, And we can pray for peace.

Today, our reading and prayer link is a bit different; I have shared a short video featuring Bishop Paride Taban of South Sudan, who recites a 28 word prayer for peace while doing his morning exercises every day. Perhaps we should do the same.

TO WATCH VIDEO:

Reading & Prayer 18th December 2021

Message from Marisha

The Christmas story is full of strange and wonderful events; events that ultimately changed the world. Angels feature quite a lot in the story.....angel speaking to Mary, Joseph and the Shepherds. In today's reading we hear the story of the angel speaking to Joseph in a dream. I can only imagine that this was the first encounter Joseph or any of them had with an angel. It was a transforming moment in time for him and them all as they said a resounding Yes to the words of the Angel. God still speaks to us today and wants us to be part of His plan for the world. He may speak to us through an angel, as the scriptures say we may be entertaining angels without being aware. I expect more often He speaks directly into our hearts and minds or through the scriptures. Whichever way He communicates with us it will be for a purpose. Sometimes He is wanting us to know we are loved or encourage us in our journey of faith. Maybe He has a special task that only we can fulfil. Each of us has a vital part to play in His plan for humanity. Of course, we have free will to say yes or no but God only wants the very best for us all so it makes sense to say yes. We each are just a small part of the puzzle but a vital part nevertheless.

TO READ DAILY READING AND PRAYER:

Reading & Prayer 17th December 2021

Reflections on Sunday's readings from John

This Sunday we are reminded that our world is full of ordinary people living in obscure places but who nevertheless have changed the course of history. In the story of the Church, the first person coming from such a humble background and circumstances is Mary.  By her ‘Yes’ to God, her ‘Here I am, let it be to me as you have said,’ God gave to her and to us Jesus, the Son of God, the Word of God made flesh, not so much for us to be amazed by, not so much to be an object of devotion, but most of all, as an example for us to copy.  The life and ministry of Jesus was also a ‘here I am, I come to do your will,’ and with the intention that we would respond to God in the same way.  With a heart-filled commitment to living by the will of God and the example of Jesus, and with the openness which Mary showed which enabled her by the grace of God to bring Jesus to the world, we too can participate with God in changing the course of the world today, a world that so much needs to be changed.

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Reading & Prayer 13th December 2021

Reflection by Jill Pargeter

(with thanks to Andy Campbell for the inspiration)

There are plenty of things that we think are in the Bible... wrongly.

Perhaps the best known is “money is the root of all evil” - easily corrected when we remember to put ‘the love of…’ at the start of the phrase. Others include “God helps those who help themselves”, probably from an Aesop fable, and “hate the sin, love the sinner”, a phrase Mahatma Gandhi used, drawing on the work of St. Augustine.

Easily missed in Corinthians chapter nine is a phrase that some think is not in the Bible: “God loves a cheerful giver”. Paul is encouraging the church to give as their hearts tell them – not out of obligation, but out of a desire to be a blessing. He encourages generosity and says that whatever is given will be multiplied by God – the ultimate source of everything.

God has given us so much: as we approach the celebration on the birth of our Saviour, the ultimate gift, let's give thanks to God for his indescribable gift and reflect on how we can be generous in response to His generosity.

TO READ DAILY READING AND PRAYER:

Reading & Prayer 10th December 2021

John's reflections on Sunday's readings

When the problems of the world are too large for us to cope with – the pandemic, the climate crisis, injustice, power posturing and threats, disunity among people – what is there that we, insignificant though we feel, can do?  We can only and usefully act responsibly in our own small corner, relating with love and compassion with the people around us and by doing well whatever we need to do.  This is John the Baptist’s advice to those who come to him for conversion and baptism.  This is what we have to do to hasten the deeper coming of the Saviour.  This is perhaps all we can do to bring Christ to our world today.

TO CONTINUE READING:

Reading & Prayer 6th Dec 2021

Reflection from Jill Pargeter

Advent is a season of waiting and for some people, that’s not an easy thing to do.  As a society, we have become impatient with the possibly of everything being

instant.  We get immediate answers from the internet when we used to have to research in a library, we sit at our computers and order things with a click instead of going out and browsing the shops, we expect immediate replies to emails whereas we used to post a letter and have to wait for the reply.

Time has become a valuable commodity and anything that saves our time is worth having.  And yet, we still have 60 minutes to every hour, 24 hours to every day and 365 days in every year (apart from a leap year of course).  We have no more or less time that we had before the advances of technology.

In our reading today, Peter is quoting from Psalm 90 when he says that with the Lord a day is like a thousand years.  God is eternal. For Him, time does not exist. A thousand years are not long, for God has existed from eternity and will exist until eternity. So, as we go through this season of waiting, let’s take some time out.  With all the busyness and preparations, find a few moments each day to just wait on God and give Him thanks for our time here on earth.

TO READ DAILY READING AND PRAYER:

Reading & Prayer 4th December 2021

Message from Marisha

I know often speed through life without giving too much thought to how the Lord is working in my life. In the same way how often do we read the scriptures but don't apply them to our lives. In today's reading from Paul's letter to the Colossians I have taken the liberty of using the scripture as a prayer for myself.

I hope that you might do the same. Forget for a moment that Paul was writing to a particular group of people and think of yourself writing down your prayer to the Lord.

TO READ DAILY READING AND PRAYER:

Reading & Prayer 3rd December 2021

Reflections on Sunday's reading from John

The Second Vatican Council restored the meaning of Advent from a largely penitential season into its original purpose as a time of hope.  This has had a knock-on effect throughout the Church.  We remember the coming of Christ in the flesh, and we acknowledge how he must come more deeply in our Church and in the world so that we may truly live as transformed human beings.  We need repentance, of course, but in its true meaning of conversion, literally change of heart and mind, a turning round of our life towards God. And we need hope, especially hope that the kingdom of God will come as a living reality and experience.  To deepen this hope, we need to learn to see the signs of it already present among us, not least in our growing in love for one another and in compassion for the world, with a longing for the justice that is denied to so many people.

TO CONTINUE READING:

Reading & Prayer 1st December 2021

Reflection from Jill Pargeter

This morning I read the story of a shepherd in Bethlehem as part of my Advent reflections and I was moved to read that he sings to his sheep. As the flock moves through the scrub, he sings a beautiful plaintive melody, which echoes around the rocks. When asked if he always sings to his sheep, he said "Yes, I sing to the sheep. They know my voice and when I sing they follow me, not go into danger, find grass."

What a beautiful picture it conjures up and it reminded me of today's reading from Zephaniah, where the prophet says that God rejoices over His people with singing. Just as the shepherd loves and cares for his sheep, so God love and cares for us. And it's not just us that sing to Him, He also sings to us!

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 Reading & Prayer 18th December 2021

The birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly.  But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:

“Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,

and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.”

When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife.

Matthew 1:18-24

Father Almighty, we give thanks for Joseph and Mary who said 'Yes' to your requests and brought to fruition your plan of salvation for us all. May we, who follow in the footsteps of  those before us, who have faithfully obeyed, be given courage and Grace to continue to say a resounding 'Yes' to all that is laid before us to do. Amen

 Reading & Prayer 17th December 2021

This Sunday we are reminded that our world is full of ordinary people living in obscure places but who nevertheless have changed the course of history. In the story of the Church, the first person coming from such a humble background and circumstances is Mary.  By her ‘Yes’ to God, her ‘Here I am, let it be to me as you have said,’ God gave to her and to us Jesus, the Son of God, the Word of God made flesh, not so much for us to be amazed by, not so much to be an object of devotion, but most of all, as an example for us to copy.  The life and ministry of Jesus was also a ‘here I am, I come to do your will,’ and with the intention that we would respond to God in the same way.  With a heart-filled commitment to living by the will of God and the example of Jesus, and with the openness which Mary showed which enabled her by the grace of God to bring Jesus to the world, we too can participate with God in changing the course of the world today, a world that so much needs to be changed.

Micah 5: 2 – 5a

‘Long ago prophets knew Christ would come, born a Jew,’ we shall sing on Sunday.’  To this traditional interpretation of the message of the prophets, we must reply, ‘Well, not exactly!’  The prophets did speak of a Messiah, a king from the line of David who would shepherd the people Israel, defend them from their enemies and bring them peace.  Micah, a contemporary of Isaiah, Amos and Hosea (from 740BC) writes of this king as being born in Bethlehem, David’s town. But no Hebrew king ever managed to reveal the identity and role of the Messiah of prophetic hope.  Then, hundreds of years after Micah, when Israel was again in dire straits, Jesus appeared.  Although he was inspired by the great prophets, his impact was unique and unexpected.  Only after his time on earth would the conviction have arisen that he was the Messiah of Jewish and prophetic hope.  The first Christians, being Jews, would naturally interpret Jesus from their own tradition and show him as its fulfilment (see Matthew 2: 6).  In fact, what he turned out to be was someone who far exceeded any figure that the ancient prophets had longed for.  As C. S. Lewis beautifully put it, ‘Once in our world there was a stable which had something in it which was larger than the whole world.’ (The Chronicles of Narnia: The Last Battle)

Psalm 80

This psalm appears to be a plea from citizens of the northern kingdom living in Jerusalem following the conquest of their homeland by Assyria (721BC).  It calls on God from his throne in Jerusalem to restore the northern tribes (Joseph, Ephraim, Benjamin, Manasseh).  The imagery of God is as a shepherd who looks after his people.

Hebrews 10: 5 – 10

This letter always needs to be read with its first readers in mind, most likely Jews who had become Christians but were missing the ritual and sacrifices of their Jewish worship tradition.   The words attributed to Christ by the author are actually from Psalm 40: 7 – 9.  That psalm declares that God prefers obedience to sacrifices.  Jesus’ obedience was expressed supremely by the willing offering up of himself to death on a cross.  His self-offering replaces once and for all the now ineffective sacrifices of the Old Testament.

Luke 1: 39 – 45

The ‘Visitation’ of Mary to her relative Elizabeth.  This is not to be read simply as a sentimental story about a meeting of two expectant mothers.  It is a theological reflection in which Luke sets out his vision for the beginning of the Christian mission.  Mary has conceived by the Holy Spirit and is to be the Christ-bearer.  She goes off in haste to share her news which is received with joy.  Elizabeth too on receiving her is filled with the Spirit and praises God that the mother of her Lord has come to her, and her own unborn child, John, also leaps for joy in her womb in recognition of the Christ who is present in Mary.  This story looks forward to Pentecost, the account of Mary and the disciples being filled with the Spirit in order to proclaim the liberating good news of Christ.  Christians, like Mary, are to be those who have responded willingly to the call of God and have been filled with the Spirit of God to enable them to be Christ-bearers to the world, those who show most of all that God is with us.

A prayer for this Sunday:

God our Father, as we eagerly await the deeper coming of your Son among us, prepare us to recognize and to welcome him when he comes in his own unique and surprising ways.  When we look for him to come with great power and glory, he comes in poverty and humility; when we look for him in rituals, shrines and beautiful cathedrals, we often find he is standing by our side; when we wait for extraordinary signs, we discover him in the simplicity of everyday life and people.  We ask you to accustom us to Jesus and his ways that he may change our lives to conform to his.  May we grow more and more to reflect his presence and love in our lives so that the world may know that they have a friend and saviour, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen 

 Reading & Prayer 13th December 2021

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.  Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.  And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times,

having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 

As it is written:

“They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor;

     their righteousness endures forever.”

Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.  You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.  Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else.  And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you.  Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

2 Corinthians 9:6-15

Loving and generous God, we praise You for the way You lavish us with Your blessings.  We thank You for all the gifts that you give us; love, salvation, Your presence and particularly the sacrifice of Your Son.  Thank you that Your life on earth was the ultimate example to us of a generous heart.  Help us to be thankful for all that you give us and to be generous to others as a result. Amen

 Readings & Prayer 10th December 2021

When the problems of the world are too large for us to cope with – the pandemic, the climate crisis, injustice, power posturing and threats, disunity among people – what is there that we, insignificant though we feel, can do?  We can only and usefully act responsibly in our own small corner, relating with love and compassion with the people around us and by doing well whatever we need to do.  This is John the Baptist’s advice to those who come to him for conversion and baptism.  This is what we have to do to hasten the deeper coming of the Saviour.  This is perhaps all we can do to bring Christ to our world today.

Zephaniah 3: 14 – 20

The first verse of the book gives us the dates of the prophet Zephaniah’s ministry.  It was during the reign of king Josiah of Judah (640 – 609BC).  Josiah is noted for his great religious reform following the discovery in the Temple of the book of the Law, which in its entirety or core constitutes the book we know as Deuteronomy.  It was traditionally thought to date back to Moses but it was almost certainly produced nearer to the time of Josiah himself.  Our passage today is probably a later addition to the prophecies of Zephaniah and appears to be from the time of the exile (c597 – 538BC).  It is essentially a psalm or canticle rejoicing that the Lord is enthroned in Jerusalem, that God is with his people, that he will honour the poor and the dispossessed, that the dispersed will be restored and their hopes realized.

For the Psalm - Isaiah 12: 2 – 6

This hymn of thanksgiving serves as our psalm on Sunday.  It rounds off the section of Isaiah beginning with chapter 6 and known as the book of Immanuel (‘God-with-us’).  It is appropriate for Advent as we prepare to celebrate the most decisive expression of God’s presence with his people in the person of Jesus Christ.

Philippians 4: 4 – 7

‘Rejoice!’ says Paul to his readers, twice in the first verse.  This gives us the subtitle for this Third Sunday of Advent – Gaudete or Rejoice Sunday.  Why rejoice?  Because the Lord is near.  Whatever we are going through now, we can still rejoice.  In Christ, God wants to be with us where we are and to share all that takes our joy away.  God wants to give us shalom, a peace that means far more than simply the absence of hostility.  It is in fact the life of God in our hearts, our homes, our communities.  It is no less to experience a foretaste of the life of the world to come. 

Luke 3: 7 – 18

‘On Jordan’s bank the Baptist’s cry announces that the Lord is nigh!’  In so doing so he calls those who came to him a ‘brood of vipers,’ who fall back on their religious heritage as being sufficient for their salvation.  But commendably they come to him asking what they need to do.  His response is ‘change your ways.’ Live the faith that you have inherited rather than boast about it.   By sharing food, by fair taxes, by an ethical administration of justice, this would indeed be good news in a conquered and humiliated province.  

John says that the one coming after him will baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire.  This looks forward to Pentecost when one of the signs of the coming of the Spirit is tongues of fire.  There is both a purifying and destructive element to fire.  There is both a renewing process, and for those who resist, who refuse to change, there is the news that in the coming kingdom of God, lives based on selfishness, lack of love, exclusiveness, the neglect and marginalisation of others, simply cannot survive. 

The Advent prayer of hope is ‘Come, Lord Jesus!’  Are we aware of what is ours to do to prepare for his  coming?

A prayer for this Sunday:

Father God, you are the source of all happiness.  Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ brought to us and to everyone glad tidings of your love and life, but our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.  May your joy be our joy, your love be our love, your acceptance of us be our welcome to all with whom we share life in your world.  With Jesus among us, may our communities and each one of us be happy, and may our happiness be a foretaste, even in our troubles, of the lasting joy you have prepared for us. We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord. Amen 

 Reading & Prayer 6th December 2021

But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.  The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.  But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.  Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God.  So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.  Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him.

2 Peter 3:8-12a,14-15

Eternal God, God of the past, the present and the future, we praise You that You are

the same yesterday, today and forever.  We thank You that our lives are in Your hands.  We thank You for Your patience with us, when we are so impatient.  Forgive us when we try to hurry You or pre-empt Your will.  Help us to make ‘every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with You’. Amen

 Reading & Prayer 4th December 2021

We have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God. May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Colossians 1:9b-14

I have not ceased praying and asking that I may be filled with the knowledge of your will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that I may lead a life  worthy of you Lord, fully pleasing to you, as I bear fruit in every good work and as I grow in the knowledge of you. May I be made strong with all the strength that comes from your glorious power, and may I be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to you Father, who has enabled me to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. You have rescued me from the power of darkness and transferred me into the kingdom of your beloved Son, in whom I have redemption, the forgiveness of my sins. Amen 

 Reading & Prayer 3rd December 2021

The Second Vatican Council restored the meaning of Advent from a largely penitential season into its original purpose as a time of hope.  This has had a knock-on effect throughout the Church.  We remember the coming of Christ in the flesh, and we acknowledge how he must come more deeply in our Church and in the world so that we may truly live as transformed human beings.  We need repentance, of course, but in its true meaning of conversion, literally change of heart and mind, a turning round of our life towards God. And we need hope, especially hope that the kingdom of God will come as a living reality and experience.  To deepen this hope, we need to learn to see the signs of it already present among us, not least in our growing in love for one another and in compassion for the world, with a longing for the justice that is denied to so many people.

Malachi 3: 1 – 4

‘Malachi’ may not be this prophet’s actual name.  It simply means ‘my messenger’ as in the first verse of this passage.  The book consists of six dialogues between the prophet and the people in the century following exile in Babylonia and restoration to the Jewish homeland.  The prophet chastises them over several corrupt ways they have fallen into.  The message turns to one of hope in this chapter, that the Lord is coming to purify his people, preceded by his messenger who at the end of the book is identified with Elijah, the prophet who did not die but was ‘taken up to heaven in a whirlwind’ (2 Kings 2: 11).  In the New Testament, Elijah is identified with John the Baptist (Mark 1: 2, Matthew 11: 10) who prepares a way for the Lord, but in a person and a way unexpected, even by him.

Psalm 126

This is one of the short ‘ascent psalms’ (as Psalms 120 – 134 are called).  They were probably known by heart and sung by Jewish pilgrims journeying up to Jerusalem.  This psalm delights in the return of the exiles from Babylon (from 538BC) but also prays for the return of other Jewish exiles scattered around the near eastern world.  The impossibility of streams in the Negev desert is symbolic of hope that nothing will be impossible for God in bringing joyful life to his faithful people.

Philippians 1: 3 – 11

Philippi (named after Philip of Macedonia, the father of Alexander the Great) was the first city in Europe to be visited by Paul according to Acts 16.  Paul had a special affection for this new Christian community which seemed to have a wonderful sense of fellowship inspired by ‘sharing in the gospel’ (v.5).  He strikes a real note of joy in this letter in spite of the imprisonment he is undergoing as he writes.  This is undoubtedly an earlier incarceration than his final one in Rome and is likely to have been at Ephesus.  Paul is confident that the Philippian Christians will grow in faith, love, and transformed lives which will make them most effective workers in the cause of Christ and his gospel.  A letter of inspiration to us all that we too may grow in our Christian identity and vocation.

Luke 3: 1 – 6

In these few verses Luke introduces the subversive nature of the gospel in marginalising the political establishment of the day.  The coming of Christ means a new world order is being created.  Those who choose him now will undergo inner transformation (salvation).  When the Lord comes in his fullness, not only will people be transformed or saved, but all creation will be renewed.  Only a few recognised Christ when he appeared on the earth.  Only a minority follow him now.  But the day will come when he will be universally seen and acknowledged.  Such is the Christian hope, but our calling is to work in partnership with him so that he becomes more visible through us who have been baptized into his life.

A prayer for this Sunday:

God our Father, we know today how to pierce mountains and level hills to build highways.  But we have lost the way to each other’s hearts and to you.  May Jesus come among us to make us inventive and daring enough to build roads of justice, peace and love enabling him to be seen and active in our own time and place. We ask this in the name of him whom we expect and who is waiting for us, Jesus Christ out Lord. Amen

 Reading & Prayer 1st December 2021

Sing, Daughter Zion;

    shout aloud, Israel!

Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,

    Daughter Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away your punishment,

    he has turned back your enemy.

The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you;

    never again will you fear any harm.

On that day

    they will say to Jerusalem,

“Do not fear, Zion;

    do not let your hands hang limp.

The Lord your God is with you,

    the Mighty Warrior who saves.

He will take great delight in you;

    in his love he will no longer rebuke you,

    but will rejoice over you with singing.”

Zephaniah 3:14-17

Heavenly Father, we are amazed that the God of the whole universe would delight over

us.  We praise You for Your promises and for Your loving care.  We thank You that You

are our Shepherd and Your hand is over us, protecting us.  Help us to hear and recognise Your voice and to follow You more closely.  Amen