September 2018 Magazine article

1 Sep 2018 • Articles

Dear friends,

I had the privilege of beginning the one hundred days of prayer at St Mary’s on Sunday. That simple act of describing what was to happen over the months leading up to remembrance day and reading Archbishop Justin’s introduction made me realize what a powerful position we as Christians are in, namely our power of prayer. All too often many people cannot or do not recognise the effect of prayer can have on anything, simple or complicated. We seem to think that our wants are answered but God is working on our needs.

As I have progressed to past my twenty third birthday for the third time I have begun to appreciate the benefits of tranquillity and security that peace can bring. That certainty that where ever we wander in our daily lives we will arrive home safely. Unfortunately that is not so in several parts of our world today and until we can bring peace to those areas as well our task as Christians to care for God’s people is not complete.

I have often wondered if people who are not “churchy” are frightened of the power of prayer or even mystified by it. When I was working I would say to my work colleagues that I would pray for them when they were in a particular dark moment in their lives. The answer was invariably, “don’t go bothering God about me” or “I am not important enough for God to bother about me”. A fallacy on both accounts, we are all God’s children, and are all assured of his support and love whatever our beliefs or standing in society. The thing that really struck me was that after the time of prayer, whether they knew I had prayed for them or not, the darkness seemed to lift from their shoulders, sometimes as we were even having the conversation about prayer.

These one hundred days of prayer give us the chance to make a difference in many people’s lives even though we cannot physically see them or be near them our prayers are doing their work. In the words of the hymn by Arthur Campbell Ainger declare “God is working his purpose out as year succeeds to year” we never know just what God is planning. And we can never understand or comprehend the power and strength that He can provide for us simple children to answer our prayers.

If you would like to keep up to speed with the one hundred days of prayer there is a website where the daily reflections and prayers can be found. It is:- One Hundred Days of Peace and Hope.

Wishing you all, my dear friends, God’s blessings and encouragement in your days of prayer as we look at the last verse of the hymn above

Yet even nearer draws the time,

The time that shall surely be,

When the earth shall be filled

With glory of God

As the waters cover the sea.

Go and pray and be amazed at the difference you can make in the world.

Peace and Joy,

Chris.