The Good Shepherd 19th-century stained glass in the church of St Mary & St Giles in memory of John William Spark, curate of the church. James Yardley.
I’m lying awake with a migraine, which gives me an excellent opportunity to publish today’s blog:
Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us (Colossians 3:11; NLT).
Inside and outside,
Above and below,
Jesus is with us
Wherever we go.
On our left, on our right,
Up ahead, close behind,
Jesus is present,
And he is so kind.
Longing to help us
Find all that we seek,
Jesus is ready
To strengthen the weak.
Guiding us all with his light
And his crook:
Jesus is with us –
If only we look.
If you lookforme wholeheartedly, you will find me (Jeremiah 29:13; NLT).
References
Be sure of this: I am with you always (Matthew 28:20; NLT).
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12; NIV).
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me (Psalm 23:4; KJV).
Pastel representation of Turin shroud image of the face of Jesus. Reproduced with kind permission of the artist.
During a video call yesterday, a friend introduced me to some of the artwork in his study, including the beautiful picture above, which was made by someone he knows personally. I asked if I could use it, and he very kindly obtained permission from the artist for me to share it with you.
Make your way plain for me to follow (Psalm 5:8; NLT).
May I follow your way,
Offer your love,
Live in your presence,
And pray without cease;
Shine with your light,
Blaze with your fire,
Trust in your Spirit,
And rest in your peace.
The Lord is peace (Judges 6:24; NLT).
References
God is love (1 John 4:8; NLT).
God is light (1 John 1:5; NLT).
God is a consuming fire (Deuteronomy 4:24; NIV).
The Spirit is truth (1 John 5:6; NKJV).
The Rosary Hospital
I’m excited to be slowly making my first little box of rosaries for people who attend church missions. Here are two I’ve made in the the last few days. The one at the back is very chunky, intended for someone with sight difficulties, or loss of sensation in their hands or fingers. The centrepiece shows a picture of Sainte Thérèse, who is also known as the Little Flower:
After saying my night prayers yesterday at the end of an unexpectedly eventful day, I turned off my bedside light and laid down to sleep. However, God still had a little bit more to give me:
How amazing are the deeds of the LORD! (Psalm 111:2; NLT).
God: amazing!
Love a-blazing!
Christ: our light, Our strength, our way.
Spirit: help, and truth, And comfort –
Threefold God: peace,
Come what may!
The Lord is peace (Judges 6:24; NLT).
References
God is love (1 John 4:8; NLT).
The Lord your God is a consuming fire (Deuteronomy 4:24; NIV).
God is light (1 John 1:5; NLT).
Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12; NLT).
The Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength (Isaiah 26:4; KJV).
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6; NLT).
I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever – the Spirit of truth (John 14:16-17; NKJV).
The Spirit is truth (1 John 5:6; NKJV).
I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may be with you for ever – even the Spirit of truth (John 14:16-17; ASV).
Today was busy for me, with a lot of medical business to do, and no time to write. This gave me the perfect opportunity to share a short blog I received a while ago:
I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life (John 8:12; NLT).
When we walk in your light,
We grow in your truth,
Live in your love, Lord,
And rest in your peace.
Then we shine with your light, And broadcast your truth,
Offer your love, Lord,
And scatter your peace.
As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you (John 20:21; NLT).
The Rosary Hospital
Here is a very simple, stripped-down rosary I’ve just made for myself. I designed it to be comfortable to wear, comforting to touch, and helpful to use:
How quickly our lives can change! A sudden illness, accident, disaster or loss can occur at any time, but God is always with us, no matter what happens.
The Lord holds them by the hand (Psalm 37:24; NLT).
You hold our hands, And light our path,
You hold us dear,
And help us pray,
You hold us close Till our last breath:
We’re safe with you, In life and death.
Whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord (Romans 14:8; NLT).
References
Though the Lord gave you adversity for food and suffering for drink, he will still be with you to teach you (Isaiah 30:20; NLT).
Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me (Psalm 23:4; NKJV).
When praying with my circlet, I’m learning to wait in silence on each new bead. Once I can see what it holds, I pray with it until the prayer is complete. Then I let it go, and move on to the next, as described in today’s prayer:
The Spirit also helps us in our weakness; for we do not know what prayers to offer nor in what way to offer them (Romans 8:26; WNT).
Jesus,
When I ask your help, A prayer awaits me in each bead:
All I have to do is listen
For your Holy Spirit’s lead.
Some hold silence, inspiration, Intercession, thanks, or praise;
Some are full of light and warmth,
Of our shared love’s united gaze.
So I say the words you offer, See all I am meant to see:
What a joy it is to know
That every day you care for me.
May I speak the words you give,
And learn what I am meant to learn,
Living, walking in your Spirit
Here, on earth, till I return.
The dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it (Ecclesiastes 12:7; NIV).
References
I will put my Spirit in you and you will live (Ezekiel 37:14; NIV).
I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness – secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name (Isaiah 45:3; NLT).
Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion (Ephesians 6:18; NLT).
Listen to God’s voice (Deuteronomy 26:17; TIB).
The LORD is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving (Psalm 28:7; NLT).
He cares for those who trust in him (Nahum 1:7; NIV).
Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? (1 Corinthians 6:19; NLT).
God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him and he in us (1 John 4:13; NLT).
If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:25; KJV).
When I reached the first bead of the second decade on my prayer-circlet yesterday morning, I suddenly saw the word Jesus,in bold lettering. It was shining just above a dark shape I was looking towards. I don’t know what the dark shape was, because my eyes were closed and my inner space was very dimly lit.
Christ’s name was spelled out in golden light, and curved like a rainbow. The letters partially encircled the dark object, though they did not touch it. The effect was rather like a halo. Unfortunately I can’t represent their curved shape in my picture above.
Instantly, I thought how fantastic it would be to see Jesus’ name like this wherever I look, always reminding me of his constant presence in everyone and everything.
Then today’s prayer burst out so fast that I could barely keep pace with the words as I hurried to note them down:
God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name (Philippians 2:9; NIV).
Everywhere I look today:
May I see your name shine out,
Lord Jesus.
Everyone I meet today:
May I see your face in theirs,
Lord Jesus.
Every thought I have today:
May it be like one of yours,
Lord Jesus.
Every word I speak today:
May it be as if your own,
Lord Jesus.
Everything I do today: May I do it all for you,
Lord Jesus.
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’ (Matthew 25:49; NIV).
References
The lightshines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it (John 1:5; NLT).
Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the lightoftheworld. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have thelight that leads to life” (John 8:12; NLT).
I will see you facetoface and be satisfied (Psalm 17:15; NLT).
We have themindofChrist (1 Corinthians 2:16; NLT).
Speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ (Ephesians 4:15; NLT).
Whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus (Colossians 3:17; NLT).
Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31; NLT).
Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people (James 2:12; NLT).
Reading: Philippians 2:5-11; NIV.
In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death - even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
The Rosary Hospital
A very welcome influx of fresh materials today included a strong magnetic clasp, so I was able to enjoy experimenting with a shorter prayer circlet that opens and closes, to be worn around the neck. I had to make it twice, as the first time I used larger beads than usual, which made the cross hang too low on my chest. NB: I particularly like the cross on these circlets to rest as close as possible to my heart.
Whilst trying out different approaches to this task, I stumbled on the possibility of making rosaries in a completely new way. I was too tired to take this idea any further at the time, but hope to try creating a rosary with the new approach tomorrow.
Meanwhile, here is the second prayer-circlet I made yesterday, which I am already wearing. It’s very easy to put on and take off, as it doesn’t need to be pulled over the head:
