General Chat

Cynthia. I so enjoy your postings. Feel like a turf fire now myself.

Have come on briefly just to thank a special person for sending me Proverbs 17 v 6

"Children's children are a crown to the aged,
and parents are the pride of their children. "

Good morning :-)



This Blessing Is For You

May the blessing of light be upon you,
Light on the outside ... light on the inside.
With God's sunlight shining on you,
May your heart glow with warmth
Like a turf fire that welcomes friends
And strangers alike.

May the light of the Lord shine from your eyes
like a candle in the window,
Welcoming the weary traveler.

May the blessing of God's soft rain be on you,
Falling gently on your head,
Refreshing your soul with the sweetness
of little flowers newly blooming.

May the strength of the winds of Heaven bless you,
Carrying the rain to wash your spirit clean,
Sparkling after ... in the sunlight.

May the blessing of God's earth be on you
And as you walk the roads,
May you always have a kind word for those you meet.

May you understand the strength and power of God
in a thunderstorm in winter,
And the quiet beauty of creation
and the calm Of a summer sunset.

And may you come to realize that
insignificant as you may seem
in this great universe,
YOU ARE an important part of God's plan.

May He watch over you
And keep you safe from harm.


- Roma Downey.


Enjoy your day everyone.......Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


Over the last few weeks, as with many others, a I have been researching the names on the 1914-1918 war memorial of a local church. Many of the young men were coal miners, spending their working lives in the darkness of the coal pit, digging out and hauling the coal to the surface. To think that their lives ended in the horror which was a foreign battle field, fills me with despair. Each time I travel into town, I pass the homes where some of them lived and I think of what the families must have gone through. Very, very sad.


On a cheerier note, I hope everyone is keeping well and we continue to remember kandj in our thoughts and prayers.


Our prayer for today:

Let me prefer your presence, O God, to all other company. Let me exalt your name above all others names, and let me love your will beyond all other desires; for the sake of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Thérèse of Lisieux (1873-1897)


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


Some thoughts for today :


Helen Steiner Rice's 10 Commandments

1. Thou shalt be happy

2. Thou shalt use thy talents to make others glad.

3. Thou shalt rise above defeat and trouble.

4. Thou shalt look upon each day as a new day.

5. Thou shalt always do thy best and leave the rest to God.

6. Thou shalt not waste thy time and energy in useless worry.

7. Thou shalt look only on the bright side of life.

8. Thou shalt not be afraid of tomorrow.

9. Thou shalt have a kind word and a kind deed for everyone.

10. Thou shalt say each morning -- I am a child of God



Thinking of kandj and her husband and all those who need our prayers.


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


Lovely news indeed Sylvia......and many congratulations to John and his family.

As this thread was initiated by John, I hope I he finds this helpful.



Heavenly Father,

I know that every period of our lives has its responsibilities as well as its joys. Today, it seems that grandparents have either too little use or too much
---either we are shunted aside
to do nothing or we are called upon to do everything.

Help me to know just where my duties lie in my particular situation
and to carry them out as best I can.
Take care of my family---my children and their children.
Inspire them all to follow your Son and lead truly Christian lives.

Keep all of us in your loving care, never let us turn away from You,
and help us in the end to receive the joy of entering
into your glorious presence forever.
Amen.


Welcome to the world little Amelie May. <3


Cx. :-)

lovely to see that John's granddaughter has arrived safely ............... and what a lovely name his daughter and s-i-l have chosen ............... Amelie May


See Hayley's thread for the news ........................


http://www.genesreunited.co.uk/boards/board/general_chat/thread/1340651


Congratulations to John and his family.

That will be with me all day Cynthia :-)

Good morning :-)


kandj has been so grateful for all the prayers, love and support she has received from her friends on here. I am sure she knows that we will continue to pray that God will give her and her OH strength to face each day.


Some words from a lively hymn - just to get folk humming through the day - written by Sydney Carter who said:

"I see Christ as the incarnation of the piper who is calling us. He dances that shape and pattern which is at the heart of our reality. "


Lord of the Dance

I danced in the morning
When the world was begun,
And I danced in the moon
And the stars and the sun,
And I came down from heaven
And I danced on the earth,
At Bethlehem
I had my birth.

Dance, then, wherever you may be,
I am the Lord of the Dance, said he,
And I'll lead you all, wherever you may be,
And I'll lead you all in the Dance, said he.

I danced for the scribe
And the pharisee,
But they would not dance
And they wouldn't follow me.
I danced for the fishermen,
For James and John -
They came with me
And the Dance went on.


There are a couple more verses of this hymn and it is easily available on YouTube.


Happy singing.....Cx :-)

Thank you Cynthia, that brought a smile to my face <3

Sending thoughts and good wishes to kandj.

Emma :-)

Good morning :-)

Well spotted Sylvia.......John sent me a message to say that he was altering the OP to keep it more seasonal. :-)


At the start of the working week, how about some more smiles from the things that children pray?



"Our father who are in heaven, Harold be thy name"


“Jesus, please bless daddy so his t-shirt won’t get wet on his way home. Love you. Goodnight.“


“Dear God, please take away the pimples from my mama’s face.”


“Papa God, please buy me a tricycle, okay? Amen.”


“Dear God, Thank you for this wonderful day. Please help me sleep well tonight and have a good day at school tomorrow. And please, if sickness is coming our way or is already on us, make it go away. Oh and can you make mommy get some more sleep so she ís not cranky? In Jesus name I pray, Amen.”


"God, I read the bible. What does begat mean? Nobody will tell me".


"Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from E-mail. Amen."


"“Dear God, my favorite food is rice and chicken. Do you have rice and chicken in heaven? Because if you don’t I don’t want to come to heaven….”


" Dear God, I didn’t think orange went with purple until I saw the sunset
you made on Tuesday night.That was really cool."



Enjoy your day Cx :-)

I am so pleased to read the good news that kandj's husband should be home soon. (((xxx)))



Also nice to see that John has apparently visited the site ....................... the OP is very different today :-)

Good morning :-)

We are now on the 5th Sunday of Easter and working our way through the church's year.

Today, we hear about the first Christian martyr - Stephen - whose death, ultimately, led to the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. St. Stephen's Day is actually celebrated on 26th December but tends to be overlooked by the Christmas festivities.



The Collect
Almighty God,
who through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ
have overcome death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life:
grant that, as by your grace going before us
you put into our minds good desires,
so by your continual help we may bring them to good effect;
through Jesus Christ our risen Lord.

Amen.


The Gospel reading for today contains these precious words :

Jesus said:

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me.
In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you.
I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going."

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me."


Remembering kandj and all those in need of any sort.

Cx :-)

Amen to that Cynthia xx

Good morning :-)


As we hear that there is yet more unrest in this world of ours, I offer these thoughts for today:


PRAYER FOR PEACE


Our Father, up in heaven,
Hear this fervent prayer--
May the people of All Nations,
Be United in Thy Care,

For earth's peace and man's salvation
Can come only by Thy grace
And not through bombs and missiles
And our quest for outer space.

For until all men recognize
That "The Battle Is The Lord's"
And peace on earth cannot be won
With strategy and swords,

We will go on vainly fighting,
As we have in ages past,
Finding only empty victories
And a peace that cannot last.

But we've grown so rich and mighty
And so arrogantly strong,
We no longer ask in humbleness -
"God, show us where we're wrong".

We have come to trust completely
In the power of man-made things,
Unmindful of God's mighty power
And that He is "King Of Kings".

We have turned our eyes away from Him
To go our selfish way,
And money, power and pleasure
Are the gods we serve today.

And the good green earth God gave us
To peacefully enjoy,
Through greed and fear and hatred
We are seeking to destroy.

Oh, Father, up in heaven,
Stir and wake our sleeping souls,
Renew our faith and lift us up
And give us higher goals,

And grant us heavenly guidance
As war threatens us again.
For, more than Guided Missiles,
All the world needs Guided Men.

- Helen Steiner Rice




Cx :-)

So pleased to hear kandj good news <3

Pleased to hear the good news from Kandj. Will keep them in my thoughts as her OH continues his recovery at home.

Good morning :-)


It is lovely to be able to share some good new with our friends on here. I have received a message from kandj to tell me that, hopefully, her husband will be discharged from hospital at the weekend.

New adaptations and routines will have to be put in place, and much care will have to be taken but, as you can imagine, kandj is delighted that things have progressed so well.

As a family, they have shared some very dark times together over the last few weeks and have been so grateful for the many prayers which have surrounded them. They have been well cared for by the chaplains at the hospital, and this has meant much to them.


I thought that, today, it would be good to read again, the words which many of the older church folk grew up with.....and which they learned by heart.

The General Thanksgiving.


Almighty God, Father of all mercies,
we your unworthy servants do give you most humble
and hearty thanks for all your goodness and loving-kindness
to us and to all people;

We bless you for our creation, preservation,
and all the blessings of this life; but above all
for your inestimable love in the redemption
of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ,
for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory.

And we beseech you,
give us that due sense of all your mercies,
that our hearts may be unfeignedly thankful,
and that we show forth your praise,
not only with our lips, but in our lives;
by giving up ourselves to your service,
and by walking before you in holiness
and righteousness all our days;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
to whom with you and the Holy Ghost
be all honour and glory, world without end.
Amen


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


There is much discussion re Creation and suchlike on another thread on here. Sometimes I am frustrated because 'philosophising' is not my forte. However, I take comfort in those simple words from Philippians:


" Rejoice* in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."


There may be some things in this life which puzzle and perplex us - but we are not to worry. We are to trust in God. :-)


Our prayer for today:

Father, we thank you for your Spirit which surrounds us,
in the air we breathe,
the glory that transports us in wonder,
the light by which we see all that you have created,
the fruitfulness of the earth and the joy of its creatures.
Thank-you for making us part of the web of life,
depending on the rhythms and fruits of the earth for our existence.
As you have granted us our daily bread, teach us how to receive it, and grant us one thing more, O Lord,
and that is grateful hearts.

Amen.


Cx :-)

Another beautiful prayer Cynthia, thank you :-)

Kandj and all in need of comfort my thoughts are
with you. x

Good morning :-)


Within our faith, there are so many beautiful prayers to choose from - prayers of gratefulness : prayers of comfort : prayers which are hundreds of years old : prayers which are modern.

There are prayers which rhyme and prayers which just flow : prayers from saints and prayers from pilgrims.

I think I have used this prayer before, but make no apology for doing so. The words are wise and inspiring.


People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered.
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives.
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies.
Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you.
Be honest and sincere anyway.

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight.
Create anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous.
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, will often be forgotten.
Do good anyway.

Give the best you have, and it will never be enough.
Give your best anyway.

In the final analysis, it is between you and God.
It was never between you and them anyway.

- Mother Teresa


Remembering kandj and all whom we know who would appreciate our prayers today. Cx :-)