Monday 16 March 2015

A Prayer for Mums


Peter Barham, one of our Pastors at Woodgreen, wrote a prayer for our Mothering Sunday morning services yesterday. A number of people commented on how helpful - and all-encompassing - they found it. It's copied below. This is a prayer for mothers of all sorts, which can be prayed all year round...


Loving God, we give thanks today for mothers.

Thank you for the blessing of mother figures in our lives. For those mothers who gave birth to us, for great grandmothers and grandmothers and women who have treated us as their own children. Thank you for all our mothers mean to us and do for us. You teach us how to be good mothers, cherishing and protecting the children among us. Help us mother lovingly, fairly, wisely and with great joy. Help us raise our children to be the people they are born to be.

We need your comfort here today, Lord, because we live in a broken world. Some are missing their mothers, some are missing their children, some are parted by distance or death. Some are new mothers, coming to terms with new responsibility or expectant mothers, wondering and waiting; Some are single mothers or caring for children of others.

Especially comfort those who have longed to be biological mothers, but cannot. Those women who are single. Those who have lost a child, given up their child for adoption, or who chose not to give birth, and had an abortion. Those whose children have physical, mental or emotional disabilities.

We pray for those here whose mothers have disappointed them; we ask for grace in relationships where there is pain and bitterness, for healing in relationships where there is abuse and violence. Comfort  mothers around the world. Mothers who cannot feed their children due to poverty, mothers who are homeless or without a homeland; mothers who must teach their children about the dangers of bombs and bullets.

Help our church to be a space where people can feel mothered, a family where women's gifts and talents are appreciated and nurtured.

For each mother in our church, because of what Jesus has done, create in them a clean heart. Renew a refreshed spirit within them. Give them gospel strength to get through the day. Open their eyes so that they see your hand at work in the mess of life. Be their constant in fluctuating emotions. Keep the gospel ever before them and make it a reality in their daily life as a mother.

We pray that tomorrow you would be with them in all the muck and mire of motherhood. Help them to find their joy in you and not in my circumstances. May they remember that even when it feels otherwise, you are always with them, will never leave them, or forsake them. Tonight help them to  sleep in peace knowing that even when they lose their grip, you will never let go of them. And they will open their eyes in the morning to find mercy, fresh and new, ready for the taking.


Thank you Lord for the way you care for mothers, Amen

Saturday 7 March 2015

Money Matters: Part 5


God has given us two hands – one to receive with and the other to give with. We are not cisterns made for hoarding; we are channels made for sharing.
(Billy Graham)

In this world it is not what we take up, but what we give up that makes us rich.
(Henry Ward Beecher)


In PART 1 (Click HERE) we saw that Paul told the Corinthians God loves 'hilarious' givers.

In PART 2 (Click HERE) we saw the FIRST REASON from 2 Corinthians 8-9 why God loves cheerful givers: because joyful generosity is a mark of God's grace

In PART 3 (Click HERE) we saw the SECOND REASON God loves cheerful givers: because this sort of giving is a prelude to his blessing.

In PART 4 (Click HERE) we saw the THIRD reason God loves cheerful givers is because this sort of giving is a reflection of his heart.

In this FINAL BLOG in the series, we get the chance to apply some of this to our own giving...


Reviewing my Giving

‘For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.’
(2 Corinthians 8:9)

How we TEND to treat giving:
How much can I afford to GIVE?

How we SHOULD treat giving:
How much do I need to KEEP?


A ‘Giving Goal’

If we're honest, most of us tend to give a proportion of what we have available, after we have taken care of our lifestyle.

The 100% rule described in Part 4, calls for a radical approach to giving. Instead of considering what we can give out of what's left, we should attempt to give as much as we can, by considering what we actually need, then targeting the difference as our 'Giving Goal'.

Use the questions below to help you think through what your ‘giving goal’ could be...

  • What do I currently give to God's work per month? What percentage of my income is this?
  • What approach best characterises my giving at the moment
a) I give a percentage of my income each month (the 'principled' approach)?
b) I give out of my disposable income (the 'leftovers' approach)?
c) I give now and then when I have spare cash (the 'afterthought' approach)?
d) I give as much as I can in a way some might consider reckless (the 'Christ-like approach)?

  • How does my current giving to God compare to what I 'give' to myself? For example, how does my giving compare to my 'non-essential' regular expenditure (Sky TV, buying new clothes, eating out, going out, gym membership, lifestyle items etc etc)?
  • Do I work to a monthly 'budget'? Am I being proactive in tracking what I spend my money on so I can save in order to give more?
  • Have I ever had to go without in order to give? (If not, you're not giving sacrificially.)
  • How regularly do I re-examine my giving? Has it changed as my income has changed? Has it increased to keep track with inflation?
  • What do I do with one-off windfalls? Do I give a percentage of this to God?
  • What do my spending habits say about what is important to me and 'where my heart' is? (Matthew 6:21)



If you want to give to God's work at Woodgreen you can do so by setting up a standing order. If you are a tax payer you can also fill out a gift aid form which means the church can claim back the tax on whatever give. This will be an extra 20-40p for every £1 you give, depending what tax band you are in. 

Standing Order and Gift Aid forms can be downloaded HERE.

Finally, to round this series off, a really helpful video that challenges us  to ask three questions related to our spending:


  • What does my spending say makes me most happy?
  • Does my spending suggest I am collecting for this life?
  • Is my spending explicitly supporting the spread of the gospel?