New Book  now Available

        Here is an anthology of over 1100 brief prayers and thought-starters, for each day of the year, with almost 400 original prayers by Bruce Prewer.
        Included is both a subject index and an index of authors-- an ecumenical collection of about 300 different sources.
Prayers for Busy People
        Title:  Brief Prayers for Busy People.
          Author: Bruce D Prewer
        ISBN 978-1-62880-090-6
        Available from Australian Church Resources,
web site www.acresources.com.au
email 
service@acresources.com.au
        or by order from your local book shop
        or online on amazon.

SUNDAY 18    July 31-Aug 6

 

John 6: 24-35....

Ephesians 4:1-16....                              (Sermon 2: “Grow up!”)

2 Samuel 11:26 to 12:13a....     (Sermon 1: “The Buck Stops Here”)

Psalm 51:1-12

 

ENTRY INTO WORSHIP

 

If you come because you have much to be thankful for, or because you have been torn by the world and need healing, you are in the right place.

 

If you come because your deeds and words have added to the world’s misery, or because you feel you have betrayed your true self, you are in the right place.

 

If you come with a love in your hearts for the Most High, a love which yearns to grow and spill over into your dealings with others, then you are certainly in the right place.

            The joy of Christ Jesus be with you all!

            and also with you!

 

OR

 

The grace and peace of Christ Jesus be with you all.

And also with you.

 

Eagerly maintain the unity of the Spirit,

stay linked with the chain of  peace.

Be unassuming, quietly dignified, and very patient,

lovingly making allowances for one another.

 

There is one body and one Spirit,

one Lord, one faith, one baptism.

One God and Father of us all,

who is above all, and in all, and through all.

 

O Lord, unbutton our lips,

And our mouths shall declare your praise.

 

PRAYER OF APPROACH

 

Most loving God,

            you are the holy Joy that first sent the stars spinning across space,

            the creative Joy that destined life on this earth,

            the loving Joy that created humanity to crave for your fellowship,

            the redeeming Joy that became human flesh in Jesus of Nazareth,

            and the deathless Joy that promises to complete all that you have so wonderfully             commenced.

 

Scatter our doubts and stir any dismal spirits, that we may worship you with a joy which reflects your delight in all that you have made. Through Christ Jesus our Lord.

Amen!

 

CONFESSION AND ASSURANCE

 

Let us admit our sins, and seek the saving grace of God, through our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Let us pray.

 

Have mercy on us, O God, according to your loving kindness.

According to your abundant mercy, blot out our trasngressions.

 

God our holy Friend, you are the source of saving initiatives, never forgetting your human family and never neglecting our prayers. We admit to you the spiritual ineptitude that we hide behind a proud exterior, and we confess the sins that have corrupted our words and deeds. Please intervene in our lives, that we may know your salvation.

 

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquities,

and cleanse me from all the evil I have done.

 

Merciful Friend,

come between us and our self deceit,

between us and our mental hiding places

between us and our plaintive excuses,

between us and our fears,

between us and our shame,

between us and our cheap goals.

 

Create in us a clean heart, O God,

and put a new and reliable spirit within us.

 

Intervene and save us from all that would frustrate your purposes, lead us into the experience of forgiveness, and bring us to a quiet place where your grace is all in all.

In the name of your true Son.

Amen!

 

FORGIVENSSS

 

People of God, in the name of Christ Jesus, I declare to you: God is our salvation.

Out of God’s fullness we have received grace upon grace.

 

The peace of the saving Christ be with you all.

And also with you.

 

 

PRAYER FOR CHILDREN

 

Loving God,

thank you for offering us Jesus Christ,

            like the simple gifts of bread and grape juice,

to satisfy our deepest hunger

and quench our deepest thirst.

 

Please come

            into even the darkest corner of our lives.

Please come

            into our heart, and mind and soul.

Uncurl your strength and beauty within us.

            until we become more like you

            and show it in the things we do and say.


Through Jesus our Brother and our Saviour.

Amen!

 

PSALM 51:1-12

 

               See “Australian Psalms” p 59 in 1st Ed, p 74 in 2nd Ed.

 

 

I HUNGER

 

I hunger my Brother,

(please pity my plight)

            for bread more filling

            than what’s on my plate.

 

The bread from the baker

sustains me for toil,

            yet the questions of life

            take a higher toll.

 

Breadmakers at home

electronically funky,

            turn out a good loaf,

            yet leave me hungry.

 

These might keep me going

through labour and rest

            but they can’t hold off

            the moth and the rust.

 

I hunger my Brother

until you arrive.

            You feed me your bread

            and I come alive.

                                                                                   Ó B D Prewer 1993 & 2005

 

COLLECT

 

Most loving God, you have made us hungry for spiritual growth, and we remain malnourished until we receive the Bread of Life. Feed us now through your Son, that we may find boundless life possessing and strengthening us, enabling us to be your agents in this love-hungry world. Through Christ Jesus our true joy.

            Amen!

 

SERMON 1: THE BUCK STOPS HERE

 

 

2 Samuel 12:7

 

            Nathan said to David: “You are that man.”  2 Sam. 12:7

 

Nine out of ten of us are professors. Professors of an exceptional skill. Professors of the art of self-justification. We are remarkably adept at justifying ourselves, even in the face of our blatant folly or sin.

 

Recently I saw a documentary on Cambodia. There was an interview with one of the infamous cronies of the murderous Pol Pot. He conducted himself like a very ordinary man, denying responsibility, as if misunderstood by the world. It reminded me of the Nazi Eichmann, when he appeared on trial for the murder of thousands of Jews. We all try to justify ourselves. I even think it certain that Hitler died still believing that he was the perfect saviour of Germany, tragically let down by the ineffectiveness of others. Such is our human capacity for self-justification.

 

One note of caution: I said 9 of 10 of us are professors of this ancient art. What of the other 1 out of 10? These are the ones who have the reverse tendency; those who blame themselves for much that isn’t their responsibility. They take upon themselves the feeling of guilt when families foul up, or when things go wrong in neighbourhood and work situations. If you accidentally bump into them, they will apologise. Should you turn up late for an appointment, they will apologise for not making the meeting time clearer. This sermon this morning is not for them. Definitely not! They are trapped in a ritual of self denigration and need the grace to stand up for themselves.

 

This sermon is for the 9 out of 10 who are experts in self-convincing excuses. That includes me. Our defences are amazing.  In a second or two we can conjure up with cogent reasons why we did this or didn’t do that. Even if we do something obviously stupid or clearly wrong, we will justify ourselves. The world is crawling with people who blame others for the world’s problems but exempt themselves from responsibility.

 

How long since you heard a leading politician admit they made a mistake? In their own eyes, every Prime Minister has led an absolutely marvellous government, with policies that are without spot or blemish. Most political autobiographies are blatant exercise in self justification.

 

How long is it since you hear a teacher apologise to an unfairly treated student? Or a physician admit he got the diagnosis wrong, or a driver involved in traffic accident accept responsibility? With so many apparently perfect people around, it is astounding that the world has not become paradise!

 

In families, parents find it even harder to apologise for a wrong than do their children. Self justification is the order of the day. Husbands find it difficulty to admit they were wrong to their wives, and wives self justify themselves to their husbands. This goes on, not only in dysfunctional families, but even in reasonably healthy ones where a large degree of love is present.  About nine out of ten of us are professors of self-justification, even in our conversations with God.

 

KING DAVID’S SITUATION-

 

After the adultery of King David with Bathsheba, David was liberated from self-justification. Not because admitted that he needed liberation, but because God knew he did.

 

Last Sunday I spoke about that tragic incident. I spoke about the frailty of David when exposed to sudden temptation, which led to his adultery with the wife of the soldier Uriah. Then I spoke of his wilfulness which led him to try and cover up his sin, by having Uriah sent into the battle ‘hot spot’ where he was killed. It is a very dirty chapter in the king’s life.

 

Given time, David would have found grounds for completely justifying his dirty deeds. Indeed, within hours of his wicked behaviour, the rationalisation would have commenced, as he tried to whitewash the affair in his own mind and soul. The complete job would not take long. Maybe just a few weeks.

 

Reasons would not be hard to find by a professor of the art. Maybe David could cultivate the idea that Bathsheba had deliberately seduced him. Maybe he could postulate that Uriah was a spy; after all he was not a Jew but a Hittite. Perhaps Uriah’s reason for being in the army of Israel was as a double agent. Why yes, he was doing Bathsheba a favour by making her pregnant and then placing her in his harem. He had actually rescued her from a husband unworthy of her.

 

Given time David would have fabricated an elaborate mental dossier of self-justification; a convincing self deception rather than face his sins. A couple of years and history would have been re-written. The cover up would have been complete. David would not only have fooled those around him, he would have successfully fooled himself.

 

Nobody is as capable of fooling us as we are. Believe me, I know.

 

WHAT ABOUT GOD?

 

We might fool others some of the time, and ourselves most of the time, but we cannot fool God. David did not fool God. God in his patient mercy took the initiative and took steps to stop David from burying his shame under layers self-justification. He would send someone to confront and rebuke the king.

 

But who? Who would dare to do it? If God had asked for volunteers to confront David, he would have waited a long time. Remember that David’s was an absolute monarch. He was the government and high court. He held the power of life and death. Who would dare go to this warrior king and say “Sir you have done a very wrong thing and should be ashamed of yourself. Repent now and seek the mercy of God?”

 

God did a thing which would become more common in the centuries ahead. He called and sent the prophet Nathan to do the job. A prophet was a spokesman for God. A prophet was not so much a foreteller as a forth-teller. Nathan would be followed by much more well known prophets: Amos, Hosea, Micah, Jeremiah, Isaiah, John the Baptist, and during the more recent era Christian prophets such as George McLeod of Scotland, Martin Luther King of the USA,  Archbishop Romera of El Salvador,  Bishop Tutu of South Africa, and Dom Helder Camara of Brazil.

 

Prophets walk a dangerous path. To speak out for God is a risky thing to do. Truth and justice are not often welcomed by those with power and wealth. Many prophets have known the inside of prisons, torture and premature death. It is significant that out of the five more recent prophets that I have mentioned, two of them were assassinated.

 

The prophet Nathan knew the danger when he went to King David. He decided not to make a frontal attack on the king; that might only force David into more vehement self justification.

 

I guess you have experienced that. When someone makes a frontal attack on us there is a strong possibility that we will leap into defensive mode. People who make full on assaults have rarely helped me, even though I may have been in the wrong. I have been most blessed by friends who loved me enough to ask questions. Not big, aggressive questions, like some TV reporter going in for the kill, but subtle, enabling questions, leading me to explore a situation and recognise for myself where I went astray.

 

Nathan was brilliantly subtle. He told the king a story about a wealthy citizen with extensive herds and flocks. This fellow recently had a guest arrive at his house. The rich man did not provide hospitality by taking a lamb or a kid from his own large flocks. Instead he sent his servants to a very poor man whose only possession was one lamb. The children had loved that pet lamb. That lamb was like a member of the family. Yet the rich man’s servants seized that one lamb and butchered it for the rich man’s table.

 

David was furious with this rich man. By heaven! The man who has done this thing deserves to die. He shall be made to restore the lamb fourfold because he did this wicked thing without pity.”

 

This was the crunch moment. Nathan took a deep breath, looked into the king’s eyes and said: “You are that man” You David have been granted copious wealth, and power. God has blessed you richly. Yet you have used your power to steal the wife of one poor soldier and then you had the fellow slaughtered. You are the abuser. You are it! By your own words, you deserve to die.

 

I wonder how long the pause was that followed these words. I wonder did Nathan say a final prayer, expecting a guard to be summoned for his immediate execution. The suspense ended with David bowing his head.

 

Accustomed to getting his own way though he was, David allowed the truth to hit home. Self justification was at an end. He recognised the magnitude of his sin. Then David said to Nathan. “I have sinned against God”.

 

Think how painful it would be for a powerful king to make that admission. He had to admit it to himself. He had to admit it to Nathan. Remember how hard it is for us to admit our fault, even to those whom we love dearly? For an absolute monarch it must have been much more difficult. Genuine repentance is a painful experience, for a king it would have felt like being skinned alive.

 

We ordinary people have far less at stake. Yet we usually put a longer fight than did David. When God confronts us through friend or neighbour, pastor or preacher, and makes us see some ugly home truths, we weave and dodge, looking for a way out. David did not. He was a truly an outstanding human being. “I have sinned against God.”

 

GOD’S RESPONSE

 

Those words are not the end of this episode. The word of God came through Nathan: “You shall not die.....you are forgiven”. What a wonderful word. What a liberating sentence spoken by the prophet to the king. God is not interested in condemnation for its own sake. The Spirit of God confronts us and judges us so that we might be reclaimed. The word was of grace. David was given a new start.

 

How much more profound when that word sounds when it comes to us. For we hear it, not from a somewhat obscure prophet like Nathan, but from the lips of Jesus, the very Son of God. His word is backed by the cross on which he died for us. To a young man he said:”Son, your sins are forgiven you.” To a repentant woman he said:” Daughter, your sins are forgiven you.” To those who nailed him to the cross this Jesus said” Father forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”

 

That is the ultimate word that liberates professors of self justification from their fear. It is the word that encourages us, no matter what we may have done, to make a new start.

 

CONCLUSION

 

An outstanding preacher of the previous generation, Walter Luthi of Berne, told how he was invited to speak at a meeting for Christian men, held in the lounge of a hotel. Before he was called to address the gathering, the chairman quietly warned Luthi that there might be a bit of trouble. One of the men present had been before court. His case had not yet been determined. some members might resent the man’s presence among them.

 

After Luthi had finished giving his address, a man at the back of the room stood up and shouted: “That fellow at the middle table must leave.” The man stayed seated. The objector then called out the man’s name and insisted that he immediately be sent out of the room. Then another man stood up and said: “We may be in an inn filled with tobacco smoke, but we are assembled as a church. That man at the middle table is in church here, in the place where forgiveness rules. The law-suit concerning our brother is in the hands of the authorities, and will be properly prosecuted. But that does not alter the fact that he is our brother in the faith. Therefore he must not leave.”

 

And that is how it is with us. Sometimes it is our enemies that criticise Christians and shout: “That person is an imposter. He should get out.” Sometimes it is friends who raise the same question. And sometimes it is our own inner voice which voices the condemnation. Nine out of ten of us are inclined to respond with some fancy footwork, some face-saving self-justification.

 

Let us have the humility to learn from King David. “I have sinned against God.” Even more, let us then clearly hear the word of God: “Your sin has been forgiven” In that word of grace there is there is liberation. This is the only justification that works. We are that guilty person, but we are also that forgiven person. Praise be to God!

 

 

SERMON 2:  GROW UP!

 

Ephesians 4: 1-16

 

For God sake, fellow Christian, grow up!

 

Two notes sound constantly in this section from the letter to the Ephesians.

These two notes belong together:

            the growth and unity of the church

            and the growth and maturity of its members.

 

All members are to be honoured, respected, and nurtured.

            No exceptions. Each is integral to the whole.

 

Unlike the society around us, where people shove and manipulate to go one up on others, the church is one body. There are no social classes fixed in layers of importance. There are no high flyers, high and middle management or the lower tiers of workers. In the church there are not first class and second class members. We are all as one in Christ Jesus. Without exception.

 

Paul realised how important this was. He also knew it was unique. We must honour and take care of each other. Treasuring each person. Respecting each gift.

            I beg you to lead a life worthy of the vocation to which you have been called by Christ.

            Be unassuming, quietly dignified, and very patient, lovingly making allowances for one             another. Stay eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit, bound together in peace.

 

Any congregation which does not honour the gifts of each and all,

            which does not seek the unity of Christ in all things,

                        has lost the plot!

Any church which sets out to maximise its worldly status by copying the class structures from the world, or by co-opting soapie stars or footballers to lift its public profile,

                        is dysfunctional!

Any church which attempts to make itself bigger by cultivating in its own members a mistrust of other denominations or publicly ridiculing them or lambasting their peculiarities,

            has become a parody.

 

Such churches have grabbed for themselves in a position above that which Christ has given, and they have damaged the unity of the Spirit. And in doing so, they have sorely injured themselves.

 

We are not called to bulk up and to impress by our superiority to others. We are called to grow up.

 

HIGH GOALS MODEST STATUS

 

We are called to be a God’s saints, people of high goals while accepting a modest status; people who face our own sin and folly yet who revel in the grace of God which enables us to outreach our natural capacity.

 

Note that word “saints.” This letter to the church at Ephesus uses the word “saints” with its original meaning, not to describe outstanding Christians but ordinary ones like you and me.  We are “the holy ones” not because of our own goodness but because we are loved and embraced by the holiness God. Right now, we in this church are indeed ordinary, but we are ordinary saints with the highest of goals

 

What is the goal of the church?

                        Paul sees it as the healing of humanity through Jesus Christ,

                                    the gathering of people into one body,

                                    where the gifts of the highly gifted

                                    together with those of the modestly gifted,

            are equally prized and used for the building up of all.

 

Oneness is central.

 

There is one Lord,

            one faith one baptism.

One spirit,

One God and Father of all,

            above all and in all and through all.

 

Beyond the church, there is also a lofty destiny for the world. By the power of God at work in our weakness, we in the church play a valuable part in human destiny. Which is finally

            the drawing together of dispirit human beings

            into the peace and love of Christ Jesus.

 

As the apostle wrote near the beginning of this letter:

            God has revealed to us the mystery of his will, in line with the purposes he has     established in Christ.: A plan that in the fullness of time all things will be united in him,         everything in heaven and everything on earth.

 

There can be no more prodigious purpose than this. However it will not come overnight.

Paul speaks about growing and maturing. We are to “grow up in every way into him.” He insists the various gifts of different church members are for the good of all, to equip each other for our ongoing service in the cause of the Lord. He does not mention the whole range of gifts; just some of them as examples:

            Some are missionaries, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors, and some             teachers. All these gifts are given in order that the saints may be equipped for the work of             serving, for the building up of the body of Christ.

 

By using our gifts to assist one another, we are enabled to make progress. We are meant to be growing and maturing both as separate souls and as congregations. Unless we do continue to grow and mature, we will be of little use to the world.

 

 For God’s sake, my friends; grow up!

 

ASSESSING GROWTH AND MATURITY?

 

What is genuine growth and maturity? How do we measure progress?

 

We do not assess personal growth by any of the value systems prized by the world around us. In fact, from the outside, the world can pass judgment and get it badly wrong. It can notice, for example, one particular, high profile congregation or denomination and laud it a flourishing success.  They may look on other struggling congregations and rank them as a failure. Yet in the eyes of God it may be the opposite. The small battling churches may be the ones really achieving growth in God’s terms.

 

When I come up against this tough truth, I am reminded of the Society of Friends; or the Quakers as they are sometimes known. They have not been a high profile church, never a powerful denomination, never large in numbers. But they have been big in spirit as they go quietly about their mission. But set the model of Jesus beside them and marvel.  Often this relatively small network of believers have achieved far more than the more visible and self assertive denominations.

 

Jesus is the only valid test. Forget the outward trappings. Our only template for success or failure is that loving person, Jesus Christ. He is the only certified measuring instrument for congregations and for each single member. We set our sights on him. Everything else, even the rest of the Bible, is secondary.

 

Genesis may have something to tell us, and Ezekiel, Job, Exodus and Isaiah, may provide much spiritual insight,

            but very sentence in them must be measured carefully with the rule of Christ Jesus before             we aplite it to the shaping of the church.

 

Great leaders like Paul, saved from his destructive self righteousness by the grace of Christ, 

does indeed have much to share with us, as do the letters of John, Peter and James,

            but every thought in these writers must be measured by nothing less than the rule of             Jesus.

 

Christ is the focus. Christ is both the goal and the rule, the way, the truth and the light.

 

He only has the valid profile, both for the maturity of congregations and for their individual members.

He is what it means to be an authentic human being. His example is what it means to be a

successful congregation.

 

Paul encourages each of us within the church to build each other up, Until all attain to mature humanity, measured by the fullness of the character of Christ.

 

Jesus is the soul representative of true humanity. Humanity as God our Creator planned it to become. Humanity as God our Redeemer has chosen us to one day fully become.  Like Jesus.

 

For God’s sake, grow up.

 

 

DON’T SETTLE FOR FLAWED “SECONDS”

 

It is okay to have our Christian heroines and heroes; choice souls whom we admire. But admiration must never tilt over into worship.

 

We dare take our cue from any other church member. Only from Jesus, the head of the church. All the rest of us are like fractured images, or like “seconds” from the kiln of the potter. Never settle for ‘seconds.”

 

Paul is a mighty apostle with a brilliant mind, but he is a blurred reflection of the true Son of Man.

Mary and John, Barnabas and Lydia, Timothy and his devout mother Eunice- so admired by Paul, Peter and James the brother of the Lord,

            all of them are inadequate role models, flawed guides for the authentic character of the church. and the lifestyle of its individual members.

 

St Monica of Africa, and Mother Theresa of Calcutta, may be our inspiration. Julianne of Norwich and John Flynn of Australia, John Huss of Bohemia and Elizabeth Fry of London, Claire of Assisi and Billy Graham, Brigid of Ireland and ......... and......maybe even your own favourite pastor or preacher, whose memory and influence you treasure over the years;

            yet these are but fractured images, the imperfect “seconds,” flawed to a major or minor             degree, falling short of the fullness of the character of Jesus Christ.

 

Jesus is the sole specimen of true humanity. He is also the door to the treasury of grace where the resources of God’s Spirit are stored; stored and ready to be applied to our need within the church.

 

We dare not trust anything or anyone less if we really hope to attain our true destiny as children of God.

 

TOGETHER WE CAN GROW

 

But we need to stay close together, not just with our Lord but with one another. There is no such thing as a solo Christian.

 

If we want to make it to the goal, we must support each other; we must have the challenge and encouragement of our fellow believers.

            Speaking the truth lovingly, we are to grow up in every way, into that head, Christ.

            The whole body, linked and knit together by every given joint, whenever  each works             properly then it grows and builds itself up in love.,

 

Growth is not always easy. It can be hard work. It can be painful. But that is the way the Master went. Should not the follower walk the same path?

 

O fellow members of the body of Christ, for God’s sake, grow up!

 

 

THANKSGIVING FOR LIFE

 

Wonderful God, Creator and Friend, we thank you for this remarkable experience of life in its entirety. For all of its highs and lows, its sweet and sour, pleasure and pain.

 

When the sun shines on our days and rain refreshes the land overnight, when there is a bounce in our step and a song on our lips: we will thank you, God of all life.

 

When the clouds are low and a chill wind blows, when the day’s tasks seem onerous and it becomes an effort to smile: we will thank you God of all life.

 

When a full moon shines and the night seems like a dear friend, when we go to bed content and sleep is deep and satisfying: we will thank you God of all life.

 

When the night is pitch black and our fears leave their hiding places, when we go to bed very weary yet toss and turn all night: we will thank you, God of all life.

 

When blossom covers the fruit trees and rainbows are in the skies, when our world seems full of promise, and our bodies glow with good health: we will thank you, God of all life.

 

When hail destroys the harvest and floods sweep a bridge away, when ills afflict our bodies and each day is struggle against pain: we will thank you, God of all life.

 

When the ocean waves are gentle and bays are like a mirror, when it’s easy to have faith, and our love flows without effort or cost: we will thank you, God of all life.

 

When the seas are mountainous and ships are in distress, when our faith seems a flimsy vessel and loving takes a determined commitment: we thank you, God of all life.

 

When new creatures are being born and fresh growth seems everywhere, when children’s laugher rings and young people fall in love: we will thank you, God of all life.

 

When age and decay seem all around and dear friends suffer and die, we when grow frail and simple tasks take much time and effort: we will thank you God of all life.

 

DOXOLOGY

 

PRAYERS FOR OTHERS

 

The world’s needs will always be innumerable, our resources will be small, and God’s abundance will always be infinite.

 

Let us pray.

 

Great lover of humanity, we seek your blessing on the people of this world. Tear us away from all that evades the truth and thereby adds to misery. Gather us in towards your light and love and peace.

            Let your Spirit challenge and transform Christian congregations that are self satisfied. Discomfort those that are so entrenched in practices that they treat anyone who does not exactly share their dogma or life style as a sinner and enemy.

            Let your Spirit challenge and transform communities where racism and injustice are accepted as normal, or even lauded a good thing. Break through closed minds and soften hard hearts, that the inclusive love of Christ may be embraced and practised.

            Let your Spirit challenge and transform our parliaments and politicians, The U.N. Assembly and its commissions and committees and agencies. Overcome our human pride, greed and humbug, and hasten the day when humanity shall treasure all its members.

            Let your Spirit challenge and transform cities that are prosperous but lack a soul, and rural towns that are clannish and divided by old quarrels, or dominated by a selfish few who have the clout of inherited family prestige or the power of new wealth.

            Let your Spirit challenge and transform families that foster arrogance and disrespect of others. Bring to account those who cultivate indifference towards their needy neighbours and esteem the plundering of the weak and vulnerable.

            Let your Spirit challenge and transform each of us. That free of self justification, and relying totally on your grace, we may be Christians who give our best without counting the cost, and accept our limitations without self-disparagement.

            Great lover of humanity, we seek your blessing also on those whose lives are in disarray: Those who have lost their jobs, endured marriage break up, been diagnosed with serious illness, suffered road accidents, watched their loved ones die, and any who are despairing or are contemplating suicide.

 

 Loving God, you alone fully know both our need and its best remedy. Please save those who cry for your help, and those who feel unable even to do that. Through Christ Jesus our Saviour.

Amen!

 

SENDING OUT

 

You are justified by faith in the God of absolute grace, mercy and peace.

Therefore go out into the world as people of freedom.

Give liberally, receive gratefully, serve humbly, and be served graciously,

forgive generously, receive forgiveness humbly.

We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.

 

The grace of the Redeemer, the love of the Creator, the friendship of the Counsellor will be with you this week and always.

Amen!

 

 

 

THREE BOOKS BY BRUCE PREWER
    THAT ARE CURRENTLY AVAILABLE
              BY ORDERING ONLINE
    OR FROM YOUR LOCAL CHRISTIAN BOOKSHOP

My Best Mate,  (first edition 2013)

ISBN 978-1-937763-78-7: AUSTRALIA:

ISBN :  978-1-937763-79- 4: USA

Australian Prayers

Third edition May 2014

ISBN   978-1-62880-033-3 Australia

Jesus Our Future

Prayers for the Twenty First Century

 Second Edition May 2014

ISBN 978-1-62880-032-6

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Although this book was written with young people in mind, it has proved to be popular with Christians or seekers of all ages. Through the eyes and ears of a youth named Chip, big questions are raised and wrestled with; faith and doubt,  unanswered  prayers, refugees,  death and grief, racism and bullying, are just a few of the varied topics confronted in these pages. Suitable as a gift to the young, and proven to be helpful when it has been used as a study book for adults.

Australian Prayers has been a valuable prayer resource for over thirty years.  These prayers are suitable for both private and public use and continue to be as fresh and relevant today as ever.  Also, the author encourages users to adapt geographical or historical images to suit local, current situations.

This collection of original, contemporary prayers is anchored firmly in the belief that no matter what the immediate future may hold for us, ultimately Jesus is himself both the goal and the shape of our future.  He is the key certainty towards which the Spirit of God is inexorably leading us in this scientific and high-tech era. Although the first pages of this book were created for the turn of the millennium, the resources in this volume reflect the interests, concerns and needs of our post-modern world.