Despite our best efforts, we were not able to continue the live broadcast using the previous link due to issues with the 4G mobile signal. We have however managed to capture the service and you can now view it this updated link:
Due to further technical issues, we had to improvise but then ultimately abandon the inclusion of the service words for you to join in. There may be the odd pause along the way – the video quality is not quite there, but the audio should be fine – please stick with it!
Apologies for the inconvenience – hopefully the phone signal issues that have been happening in and around Meltham for the past week or so will be resolved for next time!
Join us for a live broadcast of our Parish Communion for the second Sunday after Trinity – 21st June. The service will start at 10:30am though you can join a few minutes prior to check your feed is working and prepare for worship. As always, you can watch the service at any convenient time.
During COVID-19 churches up and down the UK have been supporting their communities. You can support the National Churches Trust by joining in a joyful Afternoon Tea Party in celebration of National Cream Tea Day on 26th June 2020.
Dust off the best china, buy or bake the finest scones, select your favourite jam and cream and settle down for an entertaining afternoon. • “The Holy and the Hilarious” – humorous reflections of life at a busy cathedral by re-knowned public speaker John Campbell, Verger of Lincoln Cathedral, • Is it jam or is it cream first? Take part in the online debate • Bake your own scones and take part in the “Scone-off” for a chance to win a luxury Cream Tea Hamper • Tea Party Quiz • Donations gratefully received
This event will raise funds for the charitable work helping churches and chapels across the UK. The focus during the coronavirus pandemic is to ensure churches can support their communities; your donation will allow help to be given where it is most needed. This funding keeps church buildings watertight, safe and able to re-open their doors when we are all ready to come back together.
The party will be held via Zoom. Do not worry if you do not have an account, you will be sent a personal invitation prior to the big day and help will be available if needed.
We have been on lockdown for over quarter of the year since the first shock waves of the Coronavirus Pandemic which was travelling rapidly throughout the world, hit us. A chance conversation between Liz Noble from the Methodist church and Judith Powell, Anglican, and the publication of Nick Fawcett’s book of prayers “For a time such as this” set the pathway for the daily 11 o’clock Prayer time with some sense of solidarity as we stop to pray apart at the same time as others. Members of our Meltham churches have been praying at home following a prayer sheet distributed weekly Via email through Meltham Churches Together. Our thanks to Liz & Judith and all who, although unknown, stop to Pray around 11 am or for some at a more suitable time to suit lifestyle.
Prayer doesn’t come easily. You want to bring your fears before God. You want to commit yourself and your loved ones into his keeping. You want to pray for the innumerable people facing unimaginable difficulties and hardship at this time due to the pandemic that has descended so swiftly upon us. We feel almost numbed, almost lost for words, almost as though our own little concerns (however huge they may feel to us personally) are relatively trivial in relation to the scale of the crisis now facing our world. Yet we need to pray, today, more than ever. Not that prayer will guarantee our safety or that of our loved ones, or that it will miraculously put everything right. We need simply to seek help and strength from God to get through whatever the months ahead may bring , as now we relax the disciplines we have had to exert , to keep people safe.
Listen For gods Voice Psalm 25:4—10 ……….Both Scripture & Prayer
4 Show me the right path, O Lord;point out the road for me to follow. 5 Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you.6 Remember, O Lord, your compassion and unfailing love, which you have shown from long ages past.7 Do not remember the rebellious sins of my youth. Remember me in the light of your unfailing love, for you are merciful, O Lord.8 The Lord is good and does what is right; he shows the proper path to those who go astray.9 He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way. 10 The Lord leads with unfailing love and faithfulness all who keep his covenant and obey his demands.
The concern of the Psalmist is to know God’s will, He wants to be on the right pathway. So for that reason he prays to God for guidance.
The prayer for guidancebegins with a period of waiting. You come before the Lord
In the quiet. You are trying to hear. Have you been in a place where there is just a faint sound? You even stop breathing so you can hear better. We need to get quiet before our God. We need to get quiet inside and out and this takes some doing. You are astonished to discover how much noise is in you mind, in your whole being, how full of noise you are. If you want to hear God’s voice you have to get quiet.
May these prayers calm your anxiety and strengthen your faith. Let the Holy Spirit guide you in the way of truth and glory of God.
In Scripture, we are reminded of God’s guidance in our lives.
Jesus is our good Shepherd who leads us and desires that we follow the path that leads to joy and peace. As we pray for God’s guidance and for discernment through the Holy Spirit, we can rest assured that God will bestow us with wisdom and the inspiration to live within His will!
Trusting in God to transform what seems hopeless
Hold on to us, Lord, through this troubled time. Where there is sickness, may there also be health. Where there are tears, may there also be laughter. Where there is despair, may there also be hope. Where there is fear, may there also be trust. Where there is hardship, may there also be help. Where there is doubt, may there also be faith. Where there is weakness, may there also be strength. Where there is defeat, may there also be victory. Where there is chaos, may there also be calm. Where there are problems, may there also be solutions. Where there is distancing in body, may there also be a coming together in spirit. Where there is death, may there also be life. Come, Lord, and work your miracle of love, out of darkness bringing light. Amen.
Putting our trust in God rather than ourselves
We thought we were in charge of our destiny, Lord; that we had all the answers, all the solutions to our problems, nothing being beyond our wit to solve. And no doubt in time we will beat this virus, as we have beaten many others, human ingenuity triumphing again over adversity. But this crisis of recent months has reminded us that we’re not quite so much in control as we like to imagine; that life is less secure, less certain than we sometimes think, and that much of what we take for granted can be swept away in an instant. Help us to recognise our limitations as well as our achievements, our vulnerability as well as our strengths, and may we find in you one whose promises endure beyond the changes and chances of this fleeting world, enfolding us, and all things, in your eternal, unchanging love. Amen.
A plea for God to reach out and help us
Show us that you’re listening, prove to us you care, come and bring us healing. Father hear our prayer. Show us that you’re with us, help us know you’re there. Offer strength and comfort. Father hear our prayer. Show us that we matter; in these trials we bear, give us help and wisdom. Father hear our prayer. Show us there’s a future, save us from despair. Grant us hope and courage. Father hear our prayer.
Keep Safe, keep praying, and keep listening for the voice of God and His guidance for you!
Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you
about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.” Now Sarah was
listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. Abraham and Sarah
were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. So Sarah
laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old,
will I now have this pleasure?”
Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh
and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard
for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah
will have a son.” Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.”
Genesis18:10-15
No matter how old or tired we may be or feel, our
God has the power, will, and love to breath new life into his people. Even if
there are times when we struggle to see how he might be able to do this, we can
trust that he can, and I believe we can trust that he will.
Reverend John (Vicar)
Social distancing, services and buildings. Last weekend the government announced that we would soon be allowed to begin opening our buildings for private prayer. Since then this has been clarified to, private prayer. We have been considering for some weeks, how we might facilitate various possibilities for opening our buildings. Unfortunately these plans cannot become concrete decisions until after we have received the governments full guidance. This was not made available until Friday. The diocese has made it clear that this decision must be agreed between the Vicar and the PCC.
As a result no decision has yet been made. I’m sure you will all agree that it would be inappropriate for us to rush a decision with so many possible implications as this, and that any opening up must be done with the greatest of care. We will however try to make a decision this week.
I
fully understand the frustration and desire to return to Church, but please try
to be patient, and please pray for all those involved in making these decisions
over the coming weeks and months.
Reverend John (Vicar)
Weekly Service Online Our parish communion will be posted on our website www.melthamparish.co.uk this will be streamed live at 10:30am though can be viewed at any time to suit.
Zoom! There is a weekly service available at 11:15 via Zoom. The link is available on our website. Help can be given if you haven’t used Zoom before.
#melthamprays Many people are looking for a simple way to pray. I hope that this will offer an opportunity to do so. Please look at the magazine, facebook, or our website for more details.
Join Rev’d John Dracup for our first attempt at a live broadcast of our Parish Communion for the first Sunday of Ordinary Time – 14th June. The service will be broadcast on a live YouTube stream at 10:30am. Despite lots of preparation and testing there’s a possibility that it may not completely work, due to current issues with the mobile network around Meltham, so please forgive us if it doesn’t happen as planned or the quality is not the best – there’s bound to be some technical issues!
If it does work, the video will also be available for viewing at any time convenient to yourself afterwards 🙂
4 Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! 5 Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.
6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
I was to experience a life changing encounter in 1969. Dennis Bennett’s Book was one of the first Books on our bookshelves tackling the reality of “Baptism in the Spirit “and” Speaking in Tongues.” There after followed a plethora of books from the US which were soon followed by our own authors from the UK. We were well served by the “Fountain Trust “and the Rev Michael Harper who edited “Renewal Magazine” and organised Conferences around Great Britain.
These were exciting times when there was a real sense of God’s Holy spirit working in his church. But the Holy Spirit hasn’t changed, and we need to continue to pray that He will bring about a new change in His church in these changing days, equipping his people to go into the world to demonstrate the love and power of God.
As we pray today spend a few minutes taking in the above passage from the Apostle Paul to the Philippians-
And as we pray let us seek God’s guidance through the Holy Spirit
A Prayer in times of Crisis
I can’t believe it, Lord.
The world turned on its head so quickly, so unexpectedly.
One moment, everything normal, proceeding much as it has always done before,
and the next, chaos and confusion, everything overturned in an instant, institutions teetering on the brink, certainties crumbling into dust, lives descending into mayhem. I’d thought I could plan ahead, fashion what the future held in store, but now I realise how wrong I was:
that though we can control much, we cannot control everything, our ultimate destiny lying not in our hands but in yours. Grant your guidance, show us the path to take, and lead us through this crisis. Amen
Pray for those you know locally who have needs, hold them in your minds eye alongside Jesus who is listening to them and meeting their needs.
Give thanks for those who are selflessly serving others currently.
Give thanks for those supporting the Crossroads project and its food bank….
Pray for people’s concerns about the safety of children and staff as they start to return to their schools.
Pray for scientists seeking to develop a vaccine against coronavirus.
Pray for the families, friends and neighbours of the 40,000 deaths due to Covid 19
Pray for the troubles in America regarding racial justice
PRAY AS THE HOLY SPIRIT LEADS YOU – USE THE THOUGHTS THAT COME INTO YOUR MIND
Sunday 7th June – 10:30am Join Rev’d John Dracup for a special service of Holy Communion for Trinity Sunday. This can be viewed at any time but he will conduct the service from the vicarage at 10:30am so that the worship may be considered spiritually live. This week, the service features lots of ‘Holy Holy Holy’s’ in the hymns (30 to be exact!) led by our Virtual Parish Choir who have kindly recorded 2 well known hymns that we normally sing on Trinity Sunday as we didn’t have any previous recordings of these.