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So, you want to follow Jesus, and need some inspiration.
If you find reading The Bible a bit daunting , maybe this can help …
Have you ever watched any videos from The Bible Project?
Check them out on Youtube or their own website where you can register to get your own portal
and keep tally of the videos you watch.
https://thebibleproject.com
These short helpful videos will help you get an overview of the stories and themes in the Bible ..
all leading to Jesus
Here are a few tasters.
We watched these over a couple of Sundays during our gathering.
One on Wisdom itself and one on the book of Proverbs… if you missed them, here they are.
Need some thinking time? Need to connect with and have more of a sense of God?
Try some of these resources to help you
A suggested tool for daily Reading and thinking is the Bible in One Year App or email subscription. This comes from Nicky Gumbel who is the pioneering vicar from “Alpha” at Holy Trinity Brompton Church in Britain. Alpha is a course designed to help people find answers when they are looking into having faith in God. I think it is one of the many inspiring daily readers you can get, so I mention it here. (Cindy)
Book Recommendation
NT Wright has written some excellent devotional comments on the books of the New Testament, such as Matthew for everyone, Mark for Everyone, Luke for Everyone, John for Everyone; you’ll be seeing a pattern here! Google the books if you want to buy them or down load the kindle versions, here are a couple of places to start
Matthew for Everyone and N.T Wright for Everyone
What is prayer? Simply talking with our amazing God! So many ways to do this, alone or with others. If you are not confident to pray, drop us a line on our contact page and we can get someone to call you and see how we can help.
Jesus taught his disciples to pray and there are plenty of prayers in the Bible to read and see what others did, but the best way may just be to start telling God our Father what is on your heart and listening or watching for his response.
Many people begin their relationship with God by simple prayers such as “God help me!” or “ If you are real, please show me” or “ I now believe in you, and I commit all of my life into your hands, please forgive all the things I have done that were wrong and give me the power to live with your ways first. Please come and make me alive to you, and I will follow you for the rest of my days” or many other variations, but once you are his , you will want to have an ongoing relationship with your creator.
This is where more prayer comes in. You could come to our Sunday Gathering and meet people who are walking this faith in Christ, and maybe get someone to pray with you or join one of our PODS (Places of Discipleship) and find out what others are doing.
Praying is usually just an honest conversation with God that may include; honouring him, thanking him, asking for help for yourself or someone else, saying you are sorry for something you have been doing that you know is not right or good and asking for forgiveness and strength, looking for guidance, asking questions, or expressing pain; you might sing it, shout it, whisper it, or breathe it. But it is connection to God through Jesus, and it will help you live your life more fully and securely knowing that you are connected to the Creator and living in his love and purposes for you and the world you live in. Usually people seem to pray as they think it, and this is a good thing, but here are a couple of ancient prayers for you to maybe look over if you feel stuck for words.
These were prayed by people from other times and places than us, but they are both longstanding prayers that people have prayed for centuries. If you have any more written prayers you would like to see added here, drop us a line through our contact page
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born
to eternal life.
Amen.
You probably have heard of St Patrick’s Day, but the story about the man who changed Ireland from Paganism to Christianity is mind-blowingly awesome, and his famous prayer covers a lot. Some of it is a bit strange to us, and about things we have no experience of, but we can relate to his passion and total surrender to God.
I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the threeness,
Through confession of the oneness
Of the Creator of Creation.
I arise today
Through the strength of Christ’s birth with his baptism,
Through the strength of his crucifixion with his burial,
Through the strength of his resurrection with his ascension,
Through the strength of his descent for the judgement of Doom.
I arise today
Through the strength of the love of Cherubim,
In obedience of angels,
In the service of archangels,
In hope of resurrection to meet with reward,
In prayers of patriarchs,
In prediction of prophets,
In preaching of apostles,
In faith of confessors,
In innocence of holy virgins,
In deeds of righteous men.
I arise today
Through the strength of heaven:
Light of sun,
Radiance of moon,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of wind,
Depth of sea,
Stability of earth,
Firmness of rock.
I arise today
Through God’s strength to pilot me:
God’s might to uphold me,
God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me,
God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me,
God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me,
God’s shield to protect me.
God’s host to save me
From snares of devils,
From temptations of vices,
From everyone who shall wish me ill,
Afar and anear,
Alone and in multitude.
I summon today all these powers between me and those evils,
Against every cruel merciless power that may oppose my body and souls,
Against incantations of false prophets,
Against black laws of pagandom
Against false laws of heretics,
Against craft of idolatry,
Against spells of witches and smiths and wizards,
Against every knowledge that corrupts man’s body and soul.
Christ to shield me today
Against poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against wounding,
so that there may come to me abundance of reward.
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.
I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the threeness,
Through confession of the oneness,
Of the Creator of Creation
If you want more, check out one of our instagram pages:
the_prayers_we_pray
