Springford Baptist Church

The first time I remember encountering the words of the “Prayer of Serenity” was on a plaque that hung on the wall of our home when I was growing up. When I learned to read, I could read those words myself and wonder what they meant. Since then, I have seen that same prayer many times on bookmarks and in needlepoint wall hangings. I have talked over the meaning behind that prayer several times with people. I have prayed that prayer and found it meaningful and reassuring. Just the other day, when visiting in someone’s home I was shown that prayer in a small frame that someone had in her cabinet. It was very meaningful to her. The words of that Prayer of Serenity are significant: “GOD GRANT ME THE SERENITY TO ACCEPT THE THINGS I CANNOT CHANGE. COURAGE TO CHANGE THE THINGS I CAN. AND THE WISDOM TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE.” When we find ourselves greatly troubled about various circumstances, we can turn to our God in prayer and ask Him to help us to have an accurate picture about what we can and can’t do about what is concerning us. This can ease our swirl of emotions when we are feeling anxious about particular situations. It is a reality check to recognize that something is in the category of what we cannot change. However, our prayers need not end there. When we determine that there is something we cannot change, we can surrender it to God for what God will choose to do. The answers are not all up to us. God may engage other people or God Himself may intervene. This is where trust comes in. We can pray the Prayer of Serenity with sincerity and in doing so release into God’s hands what only God can manage. It is the choice to “LET GO AND LET GOD.” Scripture inspires us to trust God with what we can and cannot do when we read, “But I trust in Your unfailing love.” (Psalm 13:5) Please pause with us for our WEDNESDAY PRAYER TOGETHER tomorrow October 18^th at 1 pm when we will trust God in prayer with both what we can and cannot change.

Looking to God for the serenity of trusting Him with everything, Pastor Lola

Our God whose love is unfailing, we come to You again today. We find ourselves longing to be able to change various circumstances in our wider world and in our own lives. When we are confronted with the truth of what we cannot change, we would feel hopeless if it wasn’t for You. We need to release to You all the concerns that we carry. If there is something that we can do to bring about change that You intend, then we will need You to guide us in it all. Our prayer is for serenity to accept what we cannot change. May this not be us stepping away from what You want us to confront or to commit to change. May this not be us giving in to fear because the challenge seems daunting. When we have accurately determined through Your wisdom that there is nothing we can do about something, we do pray for peace over it. This will be Your gift of serenity in our hearts. Now we turn to this matter of having courage to change the things we can. Here God, we want to trust You for courage. Sometimes we cannot imagine being able to be an agent of change and so we do need Your courage. We need the wisdom You can provide for the timing and the means to bring about change. Our prayer is that we will keep our gaze fixed on you. It will only be as You enable us and give us courage that we can see things through. And God please do show us the times that You want us to work together for change. Give us attitudes of cooperation when others are also committing themselves to change. Knowing the energy and determination required to bring about change, again we declare our dependence on You. Is there something today that You want us to step forward to change. Is there something that You have been urging us to take on for some time? We trust You and Your unfailing love for us. We trust You Lord to know with clarity what we can and cannot do. When our assessment is flawed, please help us to listen to what You have to say. And God, we thank You that our ability to change something does not have the last word. For the things we have endeavoured to change and have been unable to change, we bring to You. For the things that we immediately realized they were too big for us, we bring to You. For the things and relationships we may have damaged in trying to change, we bring to You for restoration. For the ongoing need for peace in our world, we bring this to You. Thank You God that hope remains when we know our limitations because Your capacity and power is unlimited. Your unfailing love is likewise unlimited. We appeal to You to show us each day what it means to pray the Prayer of Serenity with sincerity and in doing so to let go and to let you God take complete control. This we pray in Jesus’ Name. AMEN.

When we are sitting around our tables for our Thanksgiving gatherings and feeling grateful for the many blessings we enjoy every day, the conflict and despair in the Middle East seems far away. We feel safe and content and happy to be with family and friends. The turkey both smells and tastes so good. We eat and are satisfied and feel safe and warm and loved. News reports from the Middle East remind us that circumstances are very different for people there. At least 900 people have died in Israel and more than 680 Palestinians have been killed since the conflict broke out on Saturday when there was a devastating surprise attack on Israel. The history of this conflict is long and painful. Whether we think of nations at war or individuals and families who are committed to destroying each other, the outcomes are exceedingly tragic. Whenever people choose a path of hate instead of a path of love, there is destruction and anguish. Any political dispute is complicated. Any broken relationship has the perspectives of both sides of the severed commitment to each other. When there has been hurt and injustice, the desire for revenge is strong. How can we pray for God’s intervention in the circumstances that are humanly impossible to resolve? Our incapacity to understand and to know what in the world to do, draws us to recognize our deep and compelling need for God. Recall the words of Jesus, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives.” There have been repeated attempts at negotiating peace in the Middle East. There are those whose work is to counsel and meet with individuals in an attempt to bring some kind of reconciliation. We are reminded that what the world gives is not adequate. This week we will pray for the peace that only comes through Jesus. This is a peace we can all seek in every relationship. Please plan to pause wherever you are for our WEDNESDAY PRAYER TOGETHER tomorrow October 11^th at 1 pm.

 Praying that we will pray for the peace of Christ and live the peace of Christ in our world, Pastor Lola

 Our loving God of mercy, please have mercy on our troubled world. Attacks and retaliation perpetuate the death and despair and blinding hatred. Oh God, as human beings, we cannot see a way forward when we look at the circumstances in Israel and Palestine. We want to imagine a very different picture, but then we hear the missiles exploding and the people crying and we know that the peace that the world would attempt to broker is sadly inadequate. We come to You today praying for the peace and reconciliation that can only come through Your Son Jesus. Please enlighten minds and hearts to admit that human attempts at peace are not sufficient. Our God we wonder how in small and persistent ways peace could permeate the hearts of hatred. We pray that people in the Middle East and we ourselves will be given eyes of understanding and compassion. Allow us the grace to admit the hurts we have caused to others. Only as You God break down walls of longstanding hostility, can there be hope for glimmers of understanding. We think of those who have lost hope that there can ever be peace in the Middle East or in their own hearts. We turn to You as the only hope we have for peace. Like a gentle trickle, we pray that a stream of peace can cross the desert of despair and begin to quench the parched and hardened ground. We do not pretend to comprehend all the details of what has led to this bitter conflict in the Middle East. Please increase this gentle trickle of a stream of peace to a river that gathers momentum as it rushes forward. Our God we are asking You to counteract the hate of this situation with Your love. For those who wake up in the morning and plot further attacks and killing, we pray that You will change their whole mindset. Even as we pray with longing for peace in the Middle East, we know that temporary measures still find the hatred simmering just below the surface. This really does require a Divine work of healing. Please God bring the peace of Christ to every thought and motive. Break the weapons of war and replace them with the means to work together for peace. We are asking that the peace of our Lord Jesus will inhabit us in every way and influence those around us. And may the lasting peace of Jesus move from person to person to extend around our whole world. You are our only hope for peace and we commit ourselves to wage peace in our troubled world. In the Name of Jesus, the Giver of Peace, AMEN.

When I was going to purchase something for our daughter’s birthday at the Canadian Tire in Woodstock, I saw a young woman sleeping on the sidewalk in front of the CIBC bank. She had a sign that indicated that she was homeless and that any help given would be appreciated. The other thing written on her cardboard sign was, “God Bless.” I stopped to talk with her on my way back to the car and to offer some small assistance. She told me her name and as I turned to go, she also told me that it was her 21^st birthday. I thought to myself afterwards that her birthday will be very different than our daughter’s. Our family members can look forward to special family celebrations and feeling the love of family and friends. This young woman was all alone and doesn’t even have a place to call home. When we are thinking about Thanksgiving this year and feeling thankful for the ways that God has blessed us, will we also think of those who are struggling for their day to day needs? We know that there are an increasing number of homeless people in our communities. Their stories vary, but without exception they, like us, need to receive love and care. I am reminded of Jesus saying as recorded in Matthew 25:34-40, ³⁴ “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ³⁵ For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶ I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’³⁷ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Remember I indicated that this young woman in Woodstock had, “God Bless” written on her sign. We have been blessed and we can be thankful for all the ways that God has blessed us. We can also look for the ways that we can bless others and give them reason to believe that God is real and wants to bless and take care of them. We can thank God that He can use us to bless and care for others. This will be the focus of our prayers when we pause for our WEDNESDAY PRAYER TOGETHER tomorrow October 4^th at 1 pm. Please take time to pray with us.

Thanking God for all the ways that He has blessed us and thanking Him that He can also use us to show His blessing to others, Pastor Lola

Our loving and generous God there are many ways that You bless us every day and we thank You. Beyond this Thanksgiving time, we want to be aware and thanking You every day for Your loving care for us. We do pray for eyes to see each person around us. Sometimes it is troubling to recognize the extent of the needs in our communities. We know that the number of those requiring assistance keeps increasing. Please show us practical ways that we can help and express Your blessing for them. Guard us against being grateful for our own blessings and not taking notice of how others also crave blessing. We pray that we will not enter into a place of blaming people for their circumstances. We know that there are various reasons behind where people find themselves when they are sleeping on the sidewalk and posting a sign asking for help. We pray today for those facing issues of substance abuse. We pray for those being affected by mental illness. Today we think of those who have become so discouraged by the adversity that they have faced that they see little hope for the future. Please use us to bless those who struggle just to get by day to day. Jesus we pray that our compassion will mirror yours. Thank You that You always regard us with love when we come to You with our pressing needs. Thank You that we do have more than we need and can share with others. Please do guide us in this whole matter of sharing. Even when we can only give a little, thank You that this makes a positive difference. This thought of extending ourselves for others as if we were doing it for You is transformative. You Jesus have known what it was to be despised and rejected. You have known what it was to be misunderstood. You have known what it was like to suffer because people were not willing to see You for Who You are. As You urge us to do for others as if we are doing for You, we do pray that we will see You in the homeless person. We pray that we will see You in the person in mental distress walking along repeating the same phrase over and over. We pray that in our preparations for and gatherings around our tables this Thanksgiving that we will consider how You invite us and urge us to give those who are hungry something to eat; to give those who are thirsty something to drink; to welcome the stranger; to clothe those who need clothes; to look after those who are sick; and to visit those in prison. Our God expand our vision to recognize all the ways that people are imprisoned, held captive by the injustices of our society and the harsh judgments of others. How will You God use us to see people set free? Yes, we are deeply thankful for our many blessings. We know that You want others to be blessed too and so we pray that our lives will help this expanded blessing to occur. Thank You that You are a God Who longs to bless and care for our troubled world where there are those who have no home. May we all discover our home with You! In the Name of Jesus Who calls us to love as if loving Him, AMEN

This coming Sunday, we will celebrate the 191st Anniversary of Springford Baptist Church. It is remarkable to think of all the people over the years who have trusted God and gathered together to have their faith nurtured. Our faith journey was never meant to be a solitary one. Through the really good times and the really hard times, we keep turning to God together. There is reassurance when we can support each other in what it means to trust God. There is urging in Scripture to meet together to bring each other encouragement. We can read in Hebrews 10:24,25 “And let us consider how we may spue one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” When we gather, we like people in the past, affirm our belief that God loves us and is available to help us. There have been countless ways that God has answered prayers over the years. In a time when some people no longer know what it is to trust God and to turn to Him in prayer, we still believe. We still believe that God is for us not against us. We still believe that God hears and answers our prayers. We still believe that God loves us and cares about every detail of our lives. We can declare this when we pause tomorrow September 27th at  1 pm for our WEDNESDAY PRAYER TOGETHER. 

Praying that we will not give up in trusting God and turning to Him in prayer, Lola

Our Loving God, thank You that we still have reason to believe in You and to trust You. We consider all the ways that You have moved to answer prayers in our lifetimes and before us in the lives of those who have walked by faith in the past. Thank You for churches where people have gathered together to be encouraged in their faith. Thank You for individuals being there for each other and lifting each other up in prayer. We know this has happened in the past and we are so grateful that it continues to happen today. We ask that whenever we come to You in prayer that our perspective will be to look not only to our own needs, but also to the needs of others. Thank You God that we can make it our goal to spur each other on toward love and good deeds. Thank You for the gift of encouragement. We want to use this gift when we pray. We think about the encouragement that others can experience when they know that we are praying for them. We think about how encouraged we are knowing that others are praying for us. Thank You for this mutual blessing. We also pray that as well as praying for each other that we will want to meet together to grow in our faith. Please prevent our faith from becoming unconsidered and stagnant. We pray that our shared faith will bring us encouragement and also challenge. Where are the places that You God want to stretch our faith? We pray that together we will see that happen. Where there are uncharted paths for us to explore, we want to be ready for this. We draw inspiration knowing that people over the years have held tightly to their faith. They have encouraged each other and we want to do the same. Help us to encourage each other through our prayers together, through our seeking You together and through humble lives of faith. In the Name of Jesus. AMEN