The Welland-Fosse Benefice: Prayers and Notices.  Sunday 6th September 2020

The Welland-Fosse Benefice: Prayers and Notices.  Sunday 6th September 2020

The Welland-Fosse Benefice: Prayers and Notices.

 Sunday 6th September 2020:  Trinity XIII

 

  • Please remember in your prayers those who are sick: Janette Saunders, Barry Broughton, Betty Tyler, Graham Robinson, and Derek Barker.
  • Zoom services continue throughout the week, including today, 10am (via sialey@aol.com). The following Sunday (13th) Zoom will move to the later time of 11am to allow for greater flexibility in returning to church.
  • Today we continue our gradual return to church with worship at South Luffenham, 11am and next week at Barrowden, 11am., incorporating the Zoom congregation.

SOUTH LUFFENHAM:

Our Church is open every day from 10am-4pm for private prayer or quiet time. 

 

OUR SHOPPING LIST:

 

 

·         Coffee

·         Dried potato (smash type)

·         Jam

·         Small bags of sugar (Due to the weight of items people have to carry)

·         Tinned potatoes

·         Small sponge puddings

·         UHT Juice

·         Tins of Custard

·         Shaving gel

·         washing up liquid

·         Non- Bio washing capsules (For families with young children)

·         Toilet rolls

This Week’s Meditation:

St. Matthew wrote his gospel towards the end of the first century AD.  Church life was already becoming established and the congregations would be quite small, rather like our own small rural church congregations.  They would meet in a private house or somewhere secretive, like the catacombs in Rome for fear of both Romans and Jews.

 

In our gospel for today (Matthew 18.15 – 20) the issue of church discipline is raised so clearly the Christian community was quite well established and there had been some issues with behaviour.  Nothing changes!  Well, quite a lot changes actually – especially in the area of human behaviour.  We ourselves get quite upset when church members appear to behave badly for we are supposed to be setting a godly example. It is said that we choose our friends but we don’t choose our family.  That goes for church life too.  We are Christ’s family and we don’t choose one another so there are bound to be some irritations if not serious moral or legal issues.  It is perhaps easier among families for someone to have a quiet word with another member of the family if things appear to be going wrong.  That after all is the way we bring up our children.  How much more difficult is it to have a frank word with someone who is not a family member!  And if they are a church member?  Are we too polite to say something?

 

Yes, behaviour, values, expectations do change and our attitudes are very different to those expected by St. Matthew’s congregations but there are certain issues which are still clearly counter to expected Christian behaviour.  How do we deal with them in our village or even in ourselves?  Do we have enough courage to speak out? And if we do, how do we say it?  That is the critical point which could issue in lasting peace or growing irritation. We need the wisdom of the Holy Spirit. Let us pray for that.

 

See wellandfosse.org for much more information, including contact details for The Very Rev Christopher Armstrong and the churchwardens

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