Collect for July 10

O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of Your people who call upon You, and grant that they may know and understand the things they ought to do, and also may have the grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

(The earliest occurrence of this collect is in the Gregorian Sacramentary for a Sunday after Christmas (786 A.D.), and in the supplement for the first Sunday after Epiphany (1096).

Prayers for a new nation

Today saw the birth of a new nation, the Republic of South Sudan. In a region ravaged by a civil war that has raged off and on since 1956 and in the deaths of millions, peace is a difficult concept to realize.

This note was posted on the General Board of Global Ministries: "Please join Global Ministries in praying for our brothers and sisters in Sudan. May there be peace and healing as South Sudan begins building a new nation. We lift up all of the people in the region and pray that God's love will lead and protect them."

Convalescent Center Fun!

Each Thursday morning Pastor Charles and other United Methodists come to the convalescent center and share some fun with the residents. Come and see for yourself what all the fuss is about!

Scripture Lesson for July 10th

(St. Paul preaching on the ruins, Giovanni Paolo Pannini, 1744)

This week's scripture reading is Romans 8:1-11:

"Complex as it is, its essential message of this passage remains clear: The Spirit gives life. Paul gave explicit detail of how this came about: God sent His Son Jesus Christ into the world as an ordinary human being. Jesus' God-given mission was to deal with human sin and the alienation from God which sin causes. He did this by living our human life and meeting every requirement of the law.

The Spirit of God which was in Jesus now dwells in us so that we may too may life as He lived in fellowship with God. The power of God that raised Jesus from the dead now gives us spiritual life. Mortal though we still are, the Spirit will ultimately deliver us from spiritual death." - David Sherman on Midrash

Joys & Concerns from July 3rd

Joys:
The freedoms we enjoy.
Visiting family members and friends.
Our church.

Concerns:
We need rain.
Healing for - Tommy Dale King B.; Edd C., Eddy C., Jonnie D., Greg H., Maxine H., Billie M., Shane M., Kathy P., Helen R., Lawrence S., Neil S., Alfred Lee T., Colton (Ronnie W.'s 6-month old grandson).
Comfort for the families of Al Alexander, Russell Morris and Diana McAnally.
Wildfires, especially the one near Los Alamos, NM.
Those involved in firefighting.
Flooding up north (folks expecting to be dealing with this for the next month).
Travelling mercies and friends... some of whom are in Alaska, Colorado, New Mexico and parts of Texas.
Our church.
The youth.
Teachers/students, athletes/coaches of Iraan High School.
Our country, its leaders, our servicemen and women (and their families).
Those countries fighting for freedom.
Unspoken prayer requests.

Praise God!

We had a wonderful time together in fellowship and worship at the First UMC in Iraan and again at the McCamey Convalescent Center. It is a blessing to have such a community of faith in which to share our journey with each week.

Collect for July 3

O God, You have taught us to keep Your commandments by loving You and our neighbor: Grant us the grace of Your Holy Spirit, that we may be devoted to You with our whole heart, and united to one another with pure affection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.