St Jude's Mapperley Archive Blog

Greetings! Yesterday morning, we were looking at one of my favourite prayers in the Bible - Ephesians 3:14-21 . For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. One of the things that Paul asks for is that God would give us power

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! We tend to think of commandments as being the opposite of freedom, don't we? But yesterday morning, we were thinking about the Fourth Commandment, and we saw that it is precisely about freedom. For generations, the Israelites had been slaves in Egypt. Their Exodus started when Moses, prompted by God, asked Pharaoh for the people to be able to take time off so that they could worship him in the desert. 10 plagues later, Pharaoh let the people go for good (helped by God, the Red Sea, etc). Now they are at Mt Sinai, finally worshipping God together rather than labouring as slaves in Egypt. And God gives them a commandment that they are to take a day off every week! It's the first law of its kind anywhere in the world; it's also the first law I'm aware of that protects working animals from exploitation by their owners. The two editions of the 10 Commandments

Dear all, Yesterday in the morning services, we asked what people were grateful for about St Jude's, and we had loads of responses, which should appear on a notice board soon... In the meantime, Joyce has kindly collated the responses and here's a summary of them! Gratitude is a wonderful thing, and as we heard at the evening service last night, it's also an antidote to worry. Paul wrote " Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. " So let's thank God for all that is past, and trust him for all that is to come! In his love and service, John God’s Fruitfulness at St Jude’s Things we’re thankful for at St. Jude’s 2014 God’s love and grace Love for God and enthusiasm Brilliant leadership (x 2) Our vicar John and Lydia (x 2)

Dear all, It wasn't planned that way, but the 11am and 6:30pm services ended up on the same passage yesterday, and I think it's so good it's worth just repeating here, in a paraphrase version so that familiar words don't just wash over us. Most of all, friends, always rejoice in the Lord! I never tire of saying it: Rejoice! Keep your gentle nature so that all people will know what it looks like to walk in His footsteps. The Lord is ever present with us. Don’t be anxious about things; instead, pray. Pray about everything. He longs to hear your requests, so talk to God about your needs and be thankful. And know that the peace of God (a peace that is beyond any and all of our human understanding) will stand watch over your hearts and minds in Jesus, the Anointed One. Finally, brothers and sisters, fill your minds with beauty and truth. Meditate on whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is good, whatever is virtuous and