Worship for 6th September 2020

Sermon by Revd. Francis Itiiri

Let’s all open our bibles and start reading together Isaiah 43:18-19

 ‘verse 18’ Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.

Verse 19 ‘See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland’

Prophet Isaiah declares the following:

1. Forget the former things and don’t dwell in the Past.
2. See- I am doing a new thing! It springs up, Do you not perceive it?
3. I am making a way in the wilderness
4. And a stream in the wasteland

What is the Meaning of all these in the context of where God is leading you individually either to ministry or other form of opportunities?

In summary

a). If we hold to the past glory, we miss the future glory which is greater and misdirect our new energy into things too slow to yield!

b). What appears to you as wasted thing/time/days/months or years? Is there a hope for something else?

c). You have lived in wilderness for long, how does this text speak to your situation, what is most striking? A few weeks ago (2^nd Aug) Phil Snelson posed a question; what could have happened if Peter the disciple refused to respond to the call of Jesus Mark 6:45-52 and continued to remain in the comfort of the boat? He could have missed the opportunity of the time and the season that God had designed him to experience the miraculous!

Let’s pray.

A time of Intercession Prayers:

Loving God we hold before you today those who began their period as a Probationary Minister (s) in this connexional year. Those ministers who have moved home this summer. Those preachers, who have not led worship for many months.

We bring prayers for our District and its leaderships this week we are praying for Buckingham, Bicester and Brackley circuits and for the ministry of a soon to be appointed mission enabler. Gracious God may you guide these three sections find best way of filling the mission gap between the M40 and M1 and across the counties of Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Northamptonshire

As circuit, we seek your Guidance and direction for our Church Councils, pastoral leadership of our circuit for a sense to discern where you are leading us into the future to grow your kingdom in Northampton.

Prayer for other needs:

Loving God, we bring prayers for Circuits, churches across our Connexion struggling to know when to re-open… children, teachers as schools reopen this week, and in coming days, countries that children are still home education in private schools and the struggles these school face during Covid19.  Employers who have been forced to close down, and the impact on workers, struggles of families,
We pray peace, end of Conflict in many parts of the world, and the many refugees fleeing their home.

…in a quiet moment, let us bring before God whatever is on your heart today.

We bring the President and vice president of the Methodist connexional Revd Richard Teal and Carolyn Lawrence and the bicycles project to support mission work in Uganda
and we remember All We Can Methodist charity, and the work of many Charities across the world, and those young people in District Young leaders scheme program, as they start work in September.