Lisa Medina

Today’s thoughts are provided by Rev. Kofi Amissah

You can download a copy of these prayers here. 

The month of May is known as ‘Kɔtɔnimma’ (baby crabs), among the Twi speaking people of Ghana. The sunshine, dew and irregular rain in April created a conducive environment for hatching of crab eggs laid in March. Thus, by the first week of May, there are abundance of newly hatched crabs along the banks of rivers, streams, and brooks. Thus, the month of May becomes a month of new life as these baby crabs are hatched to begin their life. Also, water bodies are expected to fill up and possibly overflow their banks as the major rainy season begins. This will definitely rejuvenate the existing life in these water bodies and support new life. Again, May is the month when farmers of cash crops, such as cocoa and coffee, nurse their hope for bumper harvest as their crops begin to ripen. This also brings new life into their finances and hope for a secured economic future.

New life and hope of a secured economic, health and a flourishing social future is exactly what the world needs as we battle COVID-19. We all pray and hope for a new life, a new beginning, and a new way of doing things when COVID-19 is defeated. This is exactly what Paul assures us, that through Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross, God gave us new life, even when we were dead in sin. God’s grace has saved us (Ephesians 2:5). Indeed, God has and continues to give us new life through Jesus Christ.

So, let us pray that the new life in Christ that God has given us will manifest by ending the COVID-19 pandemic and helping us to live a new life that will reflect what we have learnt during this pandemic.

Pray for new life for all those who are ill because of COVID-19 and for total healing for them.

Pray for new life in our churches, circuits, the Wales Synod together with Synod Cymru and the Methodist Church. Pray that this new life will include spiritual and numerical growth.

Pray for new life in our homes, families, and communities. Pray that this new life will spread through Wales, the United Kingdom, and the world over. Let there be new life.

THE PROTECTION OF GOD BE WITH YOU.

Today’s thoughts are provided by Rev. Kofi Amissah

You can download a copy of these prayers here. 

Most of you are aware that I am writing these reflections for prayers from sunny Ghana where I am locked up since 30^th April 2020, after my Sabbatical and now waiting for the earliest opportunity to return to Wet Wales. So, for today 17^th, tomorrow 18^th and later on 25^th and 30^th, we reflect together on the names four Ghanaian languages and cultures give to the Month of May. These languages and cultures are: Mfantse, Twi, Eʋe and Gá.

The Mfantses of Ghana call the month of May ‘Esusow Aketseaba’, literally, ‘little rainy season’. May officially marks the beginning of the major rainy season (May to July). During this time, the farming community put in their best effort to produce most of their food and cash crops. Seeds have already been sown in anticipation of the rain and these farmers pray that God will bless them with abundant rain leading to bountiful harvest.

Every now and then, we all sow seeds in our family life, work, and faith that we wait for both spiritual and physical rain to fall so they will germinate and bear abundant fruit. Deuteronomy 28:12 reads: ‘The Lord will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none’.

So, pray that God will open the heavens and send rain on our land and seeds to bless all the work of our hands.

Rain has the capacity to create floods that washes the surface of the earth carrying every dirt and debris with it. Pray that a heavenly flood will be released to wash away COVID-19 from the face of the earth.

Pray for all those infected or affected by COVID-19, that God will heal, comfort, guide and sustain them.

Pray for God’s abundance to fill the earth that poverty, lack and scarcity will be dealt with decisively.

Pray for the Methodist Church and the Methodist Synods in Wales that God will rain revival upon us in these end times.

Bring your own needs before God and ask him to help you make good use of all that you have learnt throughout this tough time.

THE POWER OF GOD BE UPON YOU.

Today’s thoughts are provided by Rev. Nick Oborski

You can download a copy of these prayers here. 

“O God you are my God, earnestly I seek you: my soul thirsts for you”
PSALM 63:1

In its three weeks of prayer the London Institute of Contemporary Christianity reminded me of so many who serve us. I hear most days what is like to be in retail sales from my son who works for Iceland. LICC summed this industry up:
“retailers and manufacturers provide us with goods that are often essential, beautiful, and innovative. Whilst many stores have been forced to close, some manufacturers have become central to the country’s response to Covid-19.” Below some thoughts from people involved in the industry as quoted in LICC’s prayer under the headings Give Thanks and Ask for God’s help

Giving thanks …

• ‘The constructive way my leadership team and the organisation as a whole has responded to the crisis suggests God at work.’ God is at work ‘helping us to have patience and empathy for clients and employees.’

• I sense God ‘challenging managers of clothing brands about whether they will cancel orders to suppliers or not. We’re thinking about our obligations to suppliers of clothing in the developing world who employ large numbers of poor people with no safety net.’

Ask for God’s help…
Pressures: What are the pressures affecting this context?

• ‘It’s difficult to ensure that there is still enough work to go around, because business has fallen more than expected. We’re dealing with clients who are stuck in one room all day, and so more stressed and anxious, and therefore more frustrated at us when something isn’t right.’

• ‘It’s hard to ensure our staff can operate safely, and to manage ongoing and unpredictable personnel absences due to the virus. We’ve also had to furlough almost one third of our staff. Supply chain instability just adds to these issues.’

Praying God’s heart for these people and situations…

Loving God we thank you for those who are working in supermarkets and other retail outlets ensuring we get the things we need. We recognise their fears of being infected and we pray for their safety as they make deliveries, stack shelves, and process our shopping through the tills. We thank you for the work to release more online delivery slots and for those who pack and deliver our orders to our door. We remember too those whose businesses are closed and whose staff are on furlough or have been made unemployed. We think of those overseas in impoverished situations who rely on orders from British companies which are now not coming. As we look to the future, we ask that we might look at the impact of our supply chains on all who work in these industries. Amen

Praying for the Wales Synod and Our Circuit

Our Church Treasurers met on Wednesday night to talk through the impact of our Churches being closed. There were stories of increased giving, of cheques arriving through the post, of people trying to ensure their weekly envelope or cash giving is arriving now with the church rather than waiting for the next time we physically meet together. There was a recognition that many of our expenses continue and that many churches are significantly hit by a loss of letting income. The Circuit committed to playing its part in helping in this time of need. We bring this and other practical needs to our God.

A Prayer

Loving God we know that you have given us all the resources we need. We pray for wisdom for our Treasurers, Church Stewards, Ministers, and Circuit Stewards as they help to manage these during this difficult time. We ask for wisdom as they look to the future and consider how budgets should be set. Help them to know where the focus of the circuit mission should be as we move forward and give them the courage to trust in your provision. Amen

Today’s thoughts are provided by Rev. Paul Martin

You can download a copy of these prayers here. 

A friend once suggested to me that his church prayer meeting is often the setting for big competition. The basis of the competition was who could use the most flowery language. I think the notion is a bit unfair at least judging from prayer meetings I have attended. However, there is when approaching a God of wonders a powerful impulse to use the language of poetry to express ourselves. How else can we approach the One who is beyond our comprehension let alone mundane words?

But prayer can often be more raw than this. It sometimes comes more from the guts than the head. As Anne Lamott has observed the two most real prayers are “Help me, help me, help me” and “Thank you, thank you, thank you.” There is something very authentic about such prayers, particularly at this time. We all have moments when such cries are where we are at, but with the current pandemic this is, I suspect, where most of us are. The challenges of the current situation are so great that we are unable to see with any clarity the way ahead. But amidst our very real fears we are grateful for those who help us, even at great risk to themselves

There is a Biblical tradition of lament. We see it in many of the Psalms and particularly powerfully in the Book of Lamentations. Lives have caved in and with nowhere else to turn our authors, often having poured their hearts out, then look in desperation to God whose goodness they recall. After this they beg for God’s help. I believe that is our current situation. After all, in a world of change and turmoil the love of God is one thing that is constant.

As we offer thanks and cry for help, we are joining ourselves with others who have lived through tempestuous times. We seek our refuge in the unchanging love of God. As the hymn often sung in times of crisis puts it:

“O God, our help in ages past,
our hope for years to come,
our shelter from the stormy blast,
and our eternal home.”

May we cry out for help from God whilst not forgetting to thank God for those people and happenings for which we have reason to be grateful.

PRAYER SUGGESTIONS

1/. Bring all the anxieties and fears you have to God asking for help.

2/. Give thanks for those who are helping us individually and as a nation to get through these times as well as for all people and resources that make life worth living even in these tempestuous times.

Today’s thoughts are provided by Rev. Paul Martin

You can download a copy of these prayers here. 

Every so often I encounter people whose approach to prayer is one of “Name it, Claim it!” All sorts of things are claimed such as parking spaces, outcome of football matches and even the results of elections. The trouble with all of this is that it seems to me to reduce prayer to the level of some sort of holy magic.

The trouble with this approach is that even earnest prayer does not always produce the undoubtedly good outcome for which we pray. I have prayed for people I have loved and troubled situations in our world to seemingly no avail. And yet it seems right to to go on praying. Why? Because scripture encourages us to do so.

Luke tells a parable about a widow and an unjust judge. He begins the episode with the following verse:

“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them they should always pray and not give up”
(Luke 18 v1)

St. Paul writing his first letter to the church in Thessolonica writes:

“Pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
(1 Thessolonians 5 v17-18)

In the Gospels we find Jesus building prayer into the rhythm of his life even on the night in which he was betrayed. As for the great interpreter and missionary that was St. Paul, we find him regularly assuring the churches he was involved with of his prayers for them. Sometimes he gives thanks for them. Other times he prays for their spiritual growth.

So, prayer is not a fancy option but an essential part of being in Christ. And it deepens our relationship with God.

Sometimes in prayer we focus on the wonder of God. As we express our adoration, we ourselves gain as we are reminded of the nature of a God who is creative, loving, faithful and merciful as well as being so much more. In prayers of adoration we find assurance of God is truly good beyond compare.

Sometimes we focus on our need of confession. If, as we believe, God is incomparably good we have to be pretty conceited to believe we match up. We need a time to confess both our individual failings and those of our community, nation or whatever. This is about being right with God. And when we reach out to God, we find that God has beaten us to it and offered us forgiveness of the past and encouragement to start again as forgiven people given the opportunity to learn from the past.

Sometimes in prayer our focus is on thanksgiving. We are always in debt to God and have much to be grateful for. If you think back to the story of the ten lepers that Jesus healed of their condition the one who found true wholeness was the Samaritan who came running back to thank Jesus (Luke 17 vs 11-19).

Finally, there are times in prayer when our focus is on other people and situations, sometimes local and sometimes global. Of course, sometimes these prayers do not lead to the outcome we desire but I believe that such prayers are never wasted. It is to be hoped that through such prayers we have in love brought concerns to God. The outcomes may sadden us or even have broken our hearts, but love is never wasted.

Prayer is not about magic. It is so much more important than that. It is about our love outpouring to God through which we come ever closer to God. And whilst there is mystery in the Divine response, we do well to persist. Never give up! Keep on praying!

Prayer Suggestions

Reflect on the wonder of God.
Gratitude for volunteers helping at this time.
Pray for those whose hearts are broken over loved ones.
Retail workers, transport workers and refuse workers.

Today’s thoughts are provided by Rev. Cathy Gale

You can download a copy of these prayers here. 

For yesterday’s prayer focus we were reminded that Wesley identified “Works of Piety” (such as Prayer, Searching the Scripture and Holy Communion) and “Works of Mercy” as means of grace – channels through which God engages us in loving relationship.  Today I invite us to focus on what Wesley called “Works of Mercy”.  Perhaps we can translate this rather dated phrase to “Works of Love” or “Acts of Kindness”.

A true story – in my last appointment in Jamaica, the largest church, where the Circuit Office was located, was in a smart, uptown Kingston community surrounded by shops and restaurants.  It was often frequented by men and women who were struggling – some drug addicts, some with severe mental illness, many homeless.  They came because they could make something through begging and could get cheap food from fast food outlets.  Eric was a regular at my church office.  He was a drug addict who had a winsome personality and no matter how many times you helped him out, he always asked again the next time he saw you!  One evening, I was coming out of the church office, heading to the hall to lead a Bible Study.  I was tired and, probably, a bit short tempered.  Eric was there and begging for some help.  I answered him honestly. “Eric, I can’t help you today.  I don’t get paid till the end of the week and I’m broke.”  Eric, looking crestfallen, went away.  I did Bible Study and came out 90 minutes later to see Eric waiting.  My heart fell – I was too tired for another encounter.  But Eric approached me with his hand outstretched and a smile.  “Here, Rev.” he said, “I begged $100 and you can have $50!”  (It was the equivalent of about 50p.)

I’ve never forgotten that episode and what it taught me about helping people – it’s all about relationship.  It’s not a one-way street of me doing something for someone else.  As we help others we are ourselves helped.  It’s not always as stark as in the story I’ve just shared, but John Wesley’s point is that God uses others as a channel of grace, helping us as we help them.

Use your time in prayer today to bring to mind encounters you’ve had with others as you’ve tried to be kind.  Have you been changed by those encounters?

I offer you the image below – a gift to me some years ago – as a symbol of giving, of kindness.  Also, some words from a well-known hymn.  Think about those words – the second half of the verse as well as the first:

Brother, sister, let me serve you;
let me be as Christ to you;
pray that I may have the grace to
let you be my servant too.

Has this time in lockdown caused you to rethink how you might use your time and resources when restrictions are lifted?  Is there anything you can do to help others even now?

Today’s thoughts are provided by Rev. Cathy Gale

You can download a copy of these prayers here. 

John Wesley encouraged the early Methodists to be engaged in what he called “Acts of Piety” and “Acts of Mercy”.  Acts of Piety were disciplines which he said were “means of grace” – practices in the life of the Christian through which God could channel this loving relationship called grace.  The practices included things like Prayer, Searching the Scriptures, Holy Communion and Fasting.  Today I want to focus on Prayer.

I found this candle in my Mum’s house when my sister and I were doing some sorting back in January.  If you look closely it says on it “Pray without ceasing”, a quotation from 1 Thessalonians 5:17.  What struck me was that it was still wrapped up in plastic!  It seemed to me to be a symbol of how we often hold this wonderful gift God offers us – prayer.  It’s full of power and potential, and yet we keep it wrapped in plastic, as if keeping it for a special occasion!

          Oh what peace we often forfeit, oh what needless pain we bear
          All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.

Wesley’s idea of prayer as a means of grace is that it is first and foremost about relationship with God, a relationship that God wants with us.  So today, as you reflect (perhaps using this image of an unlit candle) I invite you to think about these things:

• How gracious is God’s offer of prayer in the place of worry and anxiety!
  At this anxiety-ridden time, we don’t have to know what words to say, we just need to trust that God is listening.

• How amazing is the truth that in prayer we meet with the living God – the One who made us and the whole universe!

• How transforming might prayer be if we would listen as well as speak?

So pause, light your candle (not necessarily literally), and relax in God’s presence.  You are praying.

Today’s thoughts are provided by Rev. Cathy Gale

You can download a copy of these prayers here. 

May is a significant month in the life of the Methodist Church as we remember the “Aldersgate Experience” of John Wesley which transformed his life and began the movement which became Methodism.  There are lots of ways in which we feel restricted during this time of lockdown, but for many of us an opportunity which has emerged has been more time for reflection and prayer.

I’ve embarked on an online course delivered by Wesley House, Cambridge entitled “Growing in Grace: Exploring the Wesleyan Way”.  On Wednesday the course leader, the Revd. Dr. Andrew Stobard, gave this really simple definition of grace:

Grace is a relationship initiated by God, a relationship that exists because God wants it to.

I invite you today to ponder that definition – in your own life and the life of our world.

I offer this image as an aid for your reflection on grace.  The dandelion head (here, amazingly captured in a paperweight) – so fragile on the one hand, and yet able to explode into new growth! Could this describe our relationship with God through grace – so much potential for growth and transformation?

Use your time in prayer today to thank God for grace in your life and bring the world and its needs before God.