DIY Sunday Service Kit - 12/02/2023. Esther 8 - pressing the advantage

 

Welcome to the DIY Sunday Service Kit for February 12th. 2023. It's been a week of tragic and quite disturbing news coming in from various parts of God's troubled world. It is easy to feel crushed by the sad circumstances we witness in the world. we'll have the chance to bring a few of those sad and serious things to Him in prayer shortly.

But let's start by calming and ordering our thoughts as we join Sovereign Grace in their meditation on Psalm 121.

Let's pray

Arguably two large issues today dominate the thinking of many of the people we live amongst, both of which cause considerable complications and confusion.

A huge earthquake struck an area of substantial social and economic deprivation on the outskirts of Europe on February 6th.

And a metaphorical earthquake rocked the Church of England on 9th February as its General Synod voted to bless gay civil 'marriages'.

As we pray about these two issue and the needs and consequences raised by them, we do so 

conscious of the spiritual confusion and pain that both matters raise ... 

and conscious of their impact on people that our God calls us to reach with the Gospel.

Turkey

In Turkey the death toll has been reported on Saturday (11th. Feb) as being above 19,000. 

A slow initial rescue response, damaged roads and appalling weather have worsened the situation as devastation covers a vast area, impacting ten provinces in the country. 

Hope of finding more survivors in the rubble is now fading fast.

Emergency shelters ... tent cities and prefabricated houses ... have been put up to relocate more than 75,000 people being transferred to other cities.

• We pray Lord for people who have lost loved ones and all their material possessions, people who do not know what has become of their loved ones from whom they are separated, and for those who tragically do.

• We pray for those who are now being transported to other cities and into camps for internally dispersed people in the cold of a Turkish winter.

• We pray for adequate provision for the support of the living, and for the measure to deal with the needs of those who have lost their lives as these are also in very short supply.

Lord have mercy on the people of the areas affected by this tragedy, and support the small number of your persecuted people in Turkey as they make their response to the needs of their neighbours.

Syria

Syrian and Russian teams have been working to rescue people in Government-controlled parts of Syria where more than 3,900 people are known to have been killed and 2,000 injured.

These figures are expected in reality to be much higher.

In opposition-held parts of Syria, which was totally dependent on aid even before the earthquake struck, the situation is expected to be much worse.

Lord we know so little of the situation in Syria due to the political situation and the ravages of the war that has been crippling the land and its people for so long.

We know that you have your people in Syria. We know that the humanitarian provision in Syria has historically been made in the refugee camps where it has not been safe for Christians to go.

Have mercy Lord we pray on the people of Syria and particularly on your believing people there, and meet their needs in this situation particularly we pray.

Synod

This week the Church of England Synod approved the 'blessing' of homosexual relationships that had been sealed in civil gay 'marriages'.

• Many Evangelical Christians remain as a faithful remnant of people within the Anglican Church, and are now finding this all very difficult.

Let's pray for them.

• The discussions in Synod have shown just how far the leaders and governing body of the Church of England have moved from sticking to the Bible as their authority in matters of faith and conduct ... which is of far greater consequence than the headline issue of 'gay marriage'.

Let's pray that accommodation to the spirit of the age rather than holding faithfully to God's Word will be shown up for what it is in our land ... wherever, whenever and by whomsoever that spiritual compromise gets made.

• Across the country people outside the Anglican denomination, both from other denominations and from none are finding the Gospel is getting confused for them. We meet them, they speak to us about this and it really isn't helping God's cause in this world.

Let's pray that the confusion being spread in the minds and hearts of unbelievers will be countered as the Lord raises up faithful people who speak out in the power of the Holy Spirit, whether from within Anglicanism in England, around the world or from believers in other church structures ... so that God will have clear and authentic testimony to the truth of His Word not just on this issue but on all issues, and that people will be turned from error to delight in His Word of truth.

Lord have mercy on our sin-stained world, where the effects of the Fall are seen in human suffering and in rebellion against the authority of You and Your Word.

In all the misrule and mistakes and the deep mysteries that make it hard to understand things that we observe and are disturbed by, we ask you to step in. 

Honour your Word. 

Show error, sin and confusion for what they are and place the responsibility for sin's harms where they belong.

Lord, would you please speak with a voice that wakes the spiritually dead, so that all people may hear your life-giving truth.

We ask for Jesus' sake and Glory.

AMEN.

Click on the Bible for today's reading from the Book of Esther (chapter 8)

Twenty schemes lead us to focus on the spiritual essentials as we lift our hearts to sing with them ...

The video of the sermon is here ...

Our concluding hymn comes again today from 20Schemes

Let's pray

The Apostle Paul reminds both Titus and us:

"At one time we too were 

• foolish, 
• disobedient, 
• deceived and 
• enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. 

We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 

But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 

he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. 

He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 

whom he poured out on usgenerously through Jesus Christ our Saviour, 

so that, having been justified by his grace, 

we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life"

(Titus 3:3-7)

Lord clear our thinking. 

Clarify our thoughts about ourselves and your gracious rescue of us.

Enable us to go int the coming week living our lives on the foundation of the truth you have shown us and the work you both have done and are doing in us.

And help us bring light, decisively, into our darkened world.

We ask for Jesus' sake.

AMEN.

We've come through a confusing week and we stand on the brink of another week to live for our God in His world.

If you would like us to pray about any aspect of what you expect lies before you this week, please contact us by emailing HoWChaplain@gmail.com or by texting or using WhatsApp to get in touch on 07748 644958.

If you would like to contribute to the work of y GRWP, please click the offering bag below to be taken to where you can do that.

Thanks for being with us this week.