Psalm 121 I lift my eyes to the hills, where does my help come from? MY HELP COMES FROM THE LORD, the maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip. HE WHO WATCHES OVER YOU WILL NOT SLUMBER;indeed he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

THE LORD WATCHES OVER YOU.The Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep you from all harm, HE WILL WATCH OVER YOUR LIFE; the Lord will watch your going and coming, both now and forevermore.

MY HELP COMES FROM THE LORD, THE MAKER OF HEAVEN AND EARTH…..what does it make you think of? I look after one of our grandchildren for an afternoon each week. He’s the cutest two year old and we love him to bits. But, he’s going through the terrible twos and don’t we know it! A nap usually puts him to rights in the afternoon but lately he resists and gets too tired to know what to do with himself. Fiercely independent his stock saying is, “I can do it myself!”, when quite plainly he can’t and gets himself in a right old mess before finally realising he has to accept help. To his two year old mind he thinks he can manage, but without the bigger picture and the experience to know any better he tussles and struggles until eventually he has to give in and admit defeat. Occasionally he asks for help before his task begins.

Isn’t it the just the same with our Heavenly father and us? Often we tackle things without considering how He would want us to do it and without asking Him for help. We struggle on our own when all the time God is fiercely interested in all that we do, wants to be included and to help. He even encourages us by telling us to cast our burdens on him. We see the back of an untidy tapestry while he sees the finished, bigger picture and knows the polished outcome. He says to acknowledge him in all that we do and to trust him. Unlike me and my toddler grandson no matter how many times we say, “I can do it myself!”, God isn’t fazed.

He’s seen it all before, nothing surprises him. And I, for one, am really glad his patience is everlasting.

I’m sure most of us have called on God asking him to help us in times of need. – Please God make him better – Please God keep her safe – Please God let me get this job – Please God help me pass this exam – Please God let there be a parking space… Maybe you go through all your needs methodically and hold them all up to God. Or maybe you shoot up arrow prayers on the spur of the moment. Even those who don’t usually pray will utter a desperate “Please God help me” at times of need.

But having said that I think that many people, even committed Christians, aren’t entirely comfortable about the whole area of asking God for what we want or need. I know some people who say “what’s the point in asking if God knows what I want already?” Others say “I prayed and prayed for something and God just didn’t do anything – so why bother?” Some people find it hard to believe that God can possibly have the time to listen to all the small and relatively unimportant details of our everyday requests. Other people point out that in answering one prayer God will almost certainly have to ignore or refuse a prayer from someone wanting the opposite, so it’s all a bit silly really. And when we feel that a heartfelt “please” has gone unanswered we can feel disappointed, resentful, or downright angry!

It can really shake our faith if we have prayed earnestly for something, pleading for God in his mercy to hear our prayer, and there seems to be no answer. That’s when the doubts can creep in and the relentless questions rise up. When we don’t get what we want, or what we think we need, does it mean that God has ignored our “please”? When he provides for one person, and denies another, is it because he is taking sides? We might want to believe God is on our side – but he can’t be on everyone’s side can he? The problem is, we do tend to compare ourselves with others and assume that people who are better off, happier, healthier, than we are, must be favoured by God.

Why does God answer their prayers and leave ours unanswered? Does maybe God just love them more than us and so gives them all they want, sometimes without them even having to pray? Or is it because we haven’t prayed hard enough, or long enough? Is it because our faith is too weak, or our sin too great? Or are we just no good at praying? These questions are all likely to discourage us from praying for God to help us. The fact is, if we look upon God’s intervention in our lives as something that can only be earned by our own efforts, or, worse still, that God intervenes on a passing “whim”, then we are bound to falter, especially when the going gets tough. Somehow we have to let go of any idea that asking God for help is a question of pressing the right button to achieve the desired outcome. God just isn’t that random, or that unfair. He’s not an almighty car park attendant allocating much needed parking spaces to the favoured few, nor is he an unreliable fairy godmother doling out wishes when the fancy takes him as a reward for good prayer performance. But he is our all-seeing, all-knowing heavenly Father. He sees the big picture, and knows things we can’t possibly ever know.

God wants us to ask him for help, and he wants us to offer up all our anxieties, fears and deepest desires in terms of outcome. Asking God to help us is a very important part of our relationship with him. It’s more than just a hope that he will come to our aid, it’s an act of trust in God and an acknowledgement of our need. We are recognising our weakness, frailty, and inadequacy, and placing our trust in God’s love, power and strength. God knows what we want, and more importantly he knows what we really need! However, the process of asking is still necessary because in doing so we are admitting our dependence on him and opening the lines of communication to his guidance.

God is intimately involved in his creation, but we have our own part to play in the way it unfolds. Our prayers are woven into the creative process and bring us closer into alignment with God’s will. I guess you could say that the more we pray, the more likely we are to be asking God for things that are in harmony with his will! And thus our prayers are more likely to feel as if they are answered the way we want! In saying “please” to God we are admitting that we depend on him and need him, and inviting him right into the centre of what is happening in our lives. That “please” is an offering of trust which opens our hearts to his love, our minds to his guidance, and our bodies to his healing strength.

Sometimes things will turn out the way we wish, sometimes they won’t … the real difference prayer makes is that we are consciously involving God in the way we deal with our lives, and that can help us whatever the outcome of the situations we pray about! No one knows how prayer works – but millions of people will testify that somehow it does! I know so many people who have experienced the powerful and sustaining effects of being prayed for … For ourselves, and for those we pray for, that “please God” prayer can change people and bring light into the darkest situations. We don’t need to know what exactly to pray for, we just need to pray about the things that concern us. Hold these things up to God, tell him how you feel, and put them into the safety of his loving hands, trusting in his goodness and mercy.

I’ve loved you the way my father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you’ll remain intimately at home in my love. Thats what I have done – kept my fathers commandments and made myself at home in his love. I’ve told you these things for a purpose; that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I’m no longer calling you servants because servants don’t understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I’ve named you friends because I’ve let you in on everything I’ve heard from the Father.

We are asked to love as Jesus loves..Have there been times when you have found that difficult?

Today, in the USA, Canada, Australia, and many other countries around the globe, mothers are being honored. Here, in the US, in addition to biological mothers, honor is given to all of those who have in some way nurtured us, physically, intellectually, emotionally or spiritually. As we celebrate mothers, I wonder about the mothers we find in the Bible. The Bible has examples of birth mothers, but also there are examples of “mother figures,” women who bore no children, but who impacted those around them. The Bible offers examples of admirable mothers, flawed mothers, adoptive mothers, and spiritual mothers. Mothers, then as now, are made from ordinary people.

What Biblical mothers would you place in the admirable mother category? Maybe you named Mary, the mother of Jesus because she had the awesome job of nurturing the Son of God. She was a very young girl, facing a tremendous responsibility. Or maybe you thought of Hannah, Samuel’s mother. Hannah was a woman who wanted desperately to become a mother. Eventually she realized that the only way this was going to happen was for God to do a miracle in her life. But it didn’t end there. Because she was given the desire of her heart, Hannah demonstrated her gratefulness by giving her son back to God. She gave her greatest gift back to the One she loved most. As a wife, mother, and the chief cook and bottle washer at our house, I think Mrs. Noah is definitely admirable! Can you imagine what her life was like? She couldn’t go to the market without hearing the giggles about Mr. Noah’s crazy project. All the neighbors were talking about that strange husband of hers who was building a HUGE boat on dry land …and crazier still, Mr. Noah said, “God told me to build it.” Poor Mrs. Noah, she had that whole ark to keep clean, and it full of family and fauna! I can imagine the mess, can’t you?

Moving on to the category of flawed mothers, who did you think of? Did Rebekah, the mother of Esau and Jacob,come to mind? Surely she gets bad marks for her favoritism and deceit which caused strife between her two sons. Maybe you named Herodias, the mother of Salome, who brought about the death of John the Baptist because he rebuked her for her adulterous union with her husband’s brother. She’s not exactly the mother Hallmark cards has in mind. As you considered flawed mothers, did you recall Athalia, the mother of Ahaziah, king of Judah? When her son was killed, Athalia wanted the power and prestige of the throne for herself. To accomplish this, she had all of her grandchildren killed. Murder is bad enough, but to kill children, children who are you own flesh and blood, that is enough, in my mind to qualify Athalia as a flawed mother.

In the category of spiritual mother, who came to your mind? What about he widow, Anna. We don’t know much about her, but Luke tells us that she lived with her husband for seven years before she became a widow, and then she lived in the Temple until she was 84 years old. She probably did not have children of her own, but she worshippped day and night and fasted and prayed. Surely, some of her prayers were for the spiritual well-being of those around her. Anna recognized Jesus when His parents brought Him to the Temple to be dedicated. The Bible tells us that “she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.” Another woman to consider as a spiritual mother is Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. The Bible tells us that after Gabriel announced to Mary that she would be a mother, Mary went “in haste” to her cousin Elizabeth and stayed there for about three months. Why would Mary do that? Why go to Elizabeth instead of to her own mother or someone closer? I think Mary knew Elizabeth would believe her story and encourage her faith. As a mature, spiritual woman, and as a woman who had herself become pregnant as a result of a miracle, Elizabeth could reassure Mary and share her joy.

The apostle Paul found Lydia, the seller of purple, at prayer with a group of believers outside the city of Philippi. When Lydia became a believer, she and her household were baptized. Believers no longer had to worship outside because Lydia opened her home to become the first church in Philippi. It was to Lydia’s home that Paul and Silas came after God, through an earthquake, delivered them from prison. It is because of Lydia’s spiritual mothering that the door was opened for ministry in that region of Macedonia…and beyond. Adoptive mothers, what very special people these are! They provide for children, who for whatever reason need “new” parents. Who would you put in this category? If not the adoptive mother herself, many people think of Moses, the adopted child, floating among the reeds along the bank of the Nile River. Pharaoh’s daughter saw him and adopted him as her own son. She brought him up in the palace and provided him with the best education in the land. She gave him advantages far above the ordinary Egyptians, and certainly far better than the Hebrew slaves could imagine.

Naomi is another example of an adoptive mother. The story of Naomi and her daughter-in-law, Ruth, is fairly well known, but probably more so because of Ruth than Naomi. What was it about Naomi that Ruth felt was worth holding onto? What was it about this woman that caused Ruth to feel such affection and loyalty? What caused Ruth to cry out loud when Naomi kissed her goodbye? I believe Naomi took Ruth as a daughter, adopted her, not in a formal way, but in a heart relationship. Ruth’s acceptance of this unspoken adoption is evident in her great love for Naomi and by her desire to take on the ways of the Israelites that Naomi exemplified. Ruth said, “Your people will be my people and your God will be my God.” Through times of death and disaster, Naomi and Ruth’s relationship endured.

We also can think of adoptive parents as those who nurture whomever they see who need “mothering.” Nurturing comes in many forms… a listening ear, a shoulder to cry on, an encouraging pat on the back, but in whatever form nurture comes, it makes us better for having received it. We know the apostle Paul had this kind of mother. She was the wife of Simon of Cyrene, the man who was compelled to carry the cross for Jesus to the place of crucifixion. In Romans chapter 16, verse 13, Paul said, she “has been a mother to me.” The Good News is that we are not dependent on our earthly family relationships for our value to God, Who loves each of us unconditionally.

Confession and repentance are words that we tend to use a lot in church… probably because they’re the natural progression of any reference to sin! And that particular three letter word does seem to crop up rather frequently doesn’t it! In fact I tend to think that we use the word ‘sin’ so much that it ceases to have any real meaning, and becomes little more than a doctrinal bin bag where we toss all the difficult problems associated with being human.

I sometimes feel that it’s the easy way out . to harp on about sin is a very effective smokescreen that helps us avoid actually taking a proper look at what’s really happening in our lives. The fact is, we all mess up from time to time..sometimes with the best of intentions, sometimes maliciously .. sometimes unconsciously, and sometimes knowing all too well that we’ve gone wrong.

If we believe and trust in a loving and merciful God, then we know that he will forgive us if we confess and repent. But I think that sometimes that process becomes a little mechanical. I don’t doubt that God’s forgiveness is freely given, even when our confession and repentance is bit superficial! But I think that our relationship with him thrives and grows better when we actually invite him into the process itself. Saying sorry is important. There’s no doubt about that. Being sorry is even more important. But there needs to be more to it than that.

We need to be prepared to change in some way for the word ‘sorry’ to become any sort of meaningful repentance. I’m sure all of us have said sorry, and been given a ‘sorry’ by others, in situations where we are aware that it’s not much more than an empty apology. We can use it to mollify and appease. We can even use ‘sorry’ in such a way as to turn a situation on its head so that someone we have wronged will end up feeling sorry for us in our distress. ‘Sorry’ can end up being a very unedifying manipulative tool, a way to avoid facing the true consequences of our actions, and even a weapon that we use to control others.

We may not always be aware of what we are doing – but unless we’re prepared to think carefully about the full implications of saying and being sorry then it’s a danger that we all face. Of course there’s no possibility of hoodwinking or manipulating God! But sometimes we still seem to try! Now the last thing that I believe is that we need to beat ourselves up for getting things wrong, or that saying ‘sorry’ to God involves frenzied self-flagellation in his presence! That’s not what God wants.. that’s not what Jesus died for! Far from it – Jesus came so that we would know the truth that would set us free from sin.

That freedom has been gained not to absolve us from responsibility, but to make it always possible to redeem the things that are wrong in our lives.

There are many written prayers that can help us to express our need to confess and repent. Or some people prefer to approach God in personal penitence in some way. However, I take the view that confession and repentance are not things that can be dealt with in isolation. To say a meaningful ‘sorry’ we need to understand ourselves, and be aware of where God is working in our lives.

Ignatian spirituality uses a technique known as the ‘Examen of Consciousness’ .. which might sound a bit daunting, but basically it’s a conscious invitation for God to help us reflect on how our life is going. Briefly, it involves setting aside a time of prayer to look over your day, giving thanks for all that you have received, and asking God to help you look honestly at your actions and attitudes. The idea is that the Holy Spirit will shine a light onto things you have thought, said, and done, revealing which things have been influenced by God, and which things indicate that you may have strayed from his will. It’s not a time for self-condemnation, it’s a time to increase self awareness. And that’s what I believe makes the difference. As we become more aware, we become more able to discern what prompts us. Which things are prompted by selfish motives, and which are the promptings of the Holy Spirit? In other words it can help us see if there is really something to say ‘sorry’ for, and help us see what needs to change as a result,

That’s what confession and repentance are all about. It’s an honest acknowledgement of things as they are and a willingness to let God guide us in response. Not all of us find prayer easy, or even possible! A discipline such as the Examen of Consciousness will probably seem totally alien to most people! However, most of us do at some time look back over our day and think about things that have happened. Turning that into prayer might not be quite as hard as we think!

Prayer at its simplest is a conversation with God. We can’t hide what’s going on from him, so we’d just as well accept that he knows us, warts and all, and talk to him about it! That conversation can form the basis of confession. Once we acknowledge the way things are, it’s a whole lot easier to accept that some things may need to change …. even if we’re not sure how to do it! We don’t need to have all the answers – a willingness to try is all God requires. If we acknowledge honestly the things that are wrong then our ‘sorry’ will be sufficient to wipe the slate clean. Saying ‘sorry’ to God doesn’t mean we avoid facing the consequences of our actions, it means that we will be better equipped to turn around so that we can in some way redeem the things that have gone wrong. That redemption can turn the negativity of guilt into hope. It can shine light into the darkest parts of our personality so that we stop hiding from the reality and face the truth about ourselves constructively.

Many Christians find some form of self-examination a very valuable form of prayer, so I’d urge you to at least give it a try. I expect some of you already do! I’m not going to dictate when you should do it or for how long .. That’s up to you! It’s better to be realistic in your expectations and not set yourself a goal that’s unachievable. And don’t be discouraged if it doesn’t suit you – God understands the way you are! Some people find that reflecting on their day works best for them while they have a bath before bed so they are undisturbed. Others find that it’s easier to do it while they are driving, or sitting on a bus, on their way home after work. Some people find it easier to pray in this way while they’re doing something, like cooking their evening meal, or doing the washing up. Or maybe sitting in their favourite armchair sipping a cup of tea. Others like to pray about their day last thing at night as they lie in bed before sleep, so that the whole day is behind them. If you prefer to do this then don’t worry if you fall asleep .. What could be better than going to sleep in an state of honest reflection about where God is in our lives!

Whatever you decide, just spend a few minutes looking at what’s happened during your day, and ask God to be with you while you do it. Say thanks for all the good things, and ask him to help you see things as they really are. There’s no need to look for trouble! Remember this isn’t a penance, it’s all about becoming more aware! Then offer it up in prayer, asking God to show you anything that might need your attention. If something crops up then respond in the way that feels appropriate – it may be something that you want help with, something that needs healing, someone you need to pray for, or maybe just a need to praise God. You don’t have to embark on a witch hunt looking for sin! You just need to be ready to respond if you find something that needs God’s forgiveness. Look at it, acknowledge it, say sorry, and ask God to help you. If you cultivate a routine of inviting God into your life in this way then there’s less risk of saying ‘sorry’ as a mindless habit. And as a result you may find that you are more aware of the healing power of God’s forgiveness.

I am the true vine, and my father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit while every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in me, and I in you, you will bear much fruit. Apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers, such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me, and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you, This is to my fathers glory that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

How would you explain what this passage means, to someone who has never heard it before?

Where were you last Saturday night? Were you tucked up in bed or making last minute plans for Sunday morning? it seems to me that there is quite a chasm between those who see Sunday as a special day and others who think only of Sunday as a chance to recover from the excesses of previous nights out, where they see drinking and going to clubs as one of the few ways of enjoying themselves. Tonight I am going to try and talk a bit about one of the ways the church is trying to bridge that chasm, the Street Pastors movement. The Street Pastors movement was only begun in 2003, so it is really exciting to see how the number of groups of Street Pastors is growing rapidly – both all over the UK and internationally as well. At the moment, there are Street Pastor groups in Europe, Australia and the West Indies, although someone here may feel able to develop this in other places. More people and church groups than ever are seeing the need to re-claim centres for Christ. Some people in the church are a bit nervous about getting involved because they think it’s too danegrous. I think that may just be an excuse as we always go out in groups and have radios to connect us to all the emergency services. Before we go out, we have all received plenty of training in First Aid, Drug and Alcohol Awareness and loads of other useful areas. There is usually a very obvious police presence and nowadays CCTV cameras covering large areas, so we are never far from sight. The vast majority of the people we meet are friendly and helpful. The most common thing others in the church ask is, How is the street preaching going? “Preaching” is not always the appropriate word – many people imagine this as standing on a soap box on a street corner, or giving out tracts outside a nightclub. You can preach without ever having to give a sermon, as St Francis of Assisi said: Preach the gospel and when necessary, use words. People we meet that have very little to do with the church have lots of questions, but it usually boils down to one word; why? This question is asked in quite a few ways; Why are you doing this; Why is God bothered about me; and (the crunch one for us) why didn’t I know before that the church was bothered? I don’t have all the answers (but I know a man who does!), and these are some thoughts. Why are you doing this? There are two answers, first of all the simple answer; We are here to look after you and make sure you get home safely: then the other, harder one;Because we want to show you that God loves you and we care. Why is God bothered about me? God made us all and we’re all important to him, because God does not make junk. Why didn’t I know that the church cares? is asked because most non-Christians think the church is full of killjoys, who do nothing but moralise and criticise their behaviour and seem determined to stop others from enjoying themselves. The church needs to ask itself what message it’s giving.

Colossians 1:3-13 Thanksgiving and prayer. We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people – - the faith and love that spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven and about which you have already heard in the true message of the gospel that has come to you.

In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world – just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God’s grace. You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a fruitful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit.

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. I wonder what the weather has been like where you are? Here in this part of the world we have experienced the wettest April for over 100 years. April here is renowned for being a month of changeable weather, but this year it has been stuck in a rut, a rainy rut at that! Hopefully May will bring better weather and refreshed by the rain everything will be even more beautiful!

This passage from the beginning of Colossians is full of beautiful words of encouragement, contrasting markedly with the extracts from Psalms 64 and 12 we looked at earlier! Paul is sending a message to the Colossian church, a place he hasn’t visited, but he has heard good things about them. He is also aware of the things that they will have heard about him! — “because we have heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and for the love you have for all God’s people” (V4) The members of the church have been growing in faith, bearing fruit and participating in mission.

I wonder if Paul was writing to the church at St Pixels how he would describe us? Like the Colossian church we are part of the universal fellowship of believers in Christ. We too are saints. Our move to Facebook was out of a desire to move outside our safety zone of a chatroom, behind a buffer of registration, where moderators kept order. We are now accessible by all of our Facebook friends. Please do share the events announcements, so that the wider world is aware that we exist. The good news of the gospel and St Pixels should not be kept to ourselves!

In this passage Epaphras, the founder member of the church is mentioned, and not for outstanding leadership, eloquent preaching or for hospitality, but because as we see in v7 he is described as ‘a fellow servant’. A man of humility. Followers of Christ are called to work to establish God’s kingdom here on earth, not to build empires and power bases! The most effective leaders I have known have been servant-hearted – equally comfortable in the pulpit and cleaning drains. Lets face it both tasks involve dealing with the muck in our lives!

I like the story of the small boy, on a beach, throwing stranded starfish back into the sea. When someone says “There are too many of them, it won’t make a difference so why bother?” He picks up another one and resolutely throws it back into the sea and says “Well it made a difference for that one!”

I can only do what I can do. I don’t have to reach the whole world by myself. After all we can’t all be Billy Graham can we? But if we don’t try we’re keeping the good news to ourselves and that’s not why Jesus came?

John 10:11-18 ___ Jesus said,’I am the Good Shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep. The worker who is paid to keep the sheep is different from the shepherd who owns them. When the worker sees a wolf coming, he runs away and leaves the sheep alone. Then the wolf attacks the sheep and scatters them. The man runs away because he is only a paid worker and does not really care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep and my sheep know me, just as the father knows me, and I know the father. I give my life for the sheep.

I have other sheep that are not in this flock, and I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock and one shepherd. The Father loves me because I give my life so that I can take it back again. No one takes it away from me; I give my own life freely. I have the right to give my life, and I have the right to take it back. This is what the father commanded me to do.

‘I have other sheep that are not in this flock, and I must bring them also.’ How can we help with this?