Grant unto us, O Lord, the gift of modesty. When we speak, teach us to give our opinion quietly and sincerely. When we do well in work or play, give us a sense of proportion, that we be neither unduly elated nor foolishly self-deprecatory. Help us in success to realize what we owe to thee and to the efforts of others: in failure, to avoid dejection; and in all ways to be simple and natural, quiet in manner and lowly in thought: through Christ.

Joseph L. Bernardin

A Prayer for General Synod

Holy God,
the navigator of our souls,
hear us as we hold up before you
the General Synod of our Church.
Be with us in our yearning
to chart a new course together,
inspired by the presence of your Spirit.
Give courage to our Bishops,
all of our leaders, and each of us,
as we move forward
with your blessing.
For all we do, we do to your glory,
in Jesus' name.
AMEN

For a Church Alive to God
Lord,
make the Anglican Church of Canada
a community
who beholds
your marvellous works.
AMEN

For our Bishops
Heavenly Father,
give to our bishops,
a daily renewal in your presence,
uphold them with your peace,
a peace that passes all understanding,
enlighten them with your word,
and strengthen them with your grace.
AMEN

For a Renewed Church
Almighty God
give us a new vision
of you,
of your love,
of your grace and power;
and then,
give us a new vision
of what you would have us do
as your church in this nation
at this time,
and an awareness
that in the strength of your Spirit
we can do it
to your glory.
In Jesus' Name we pray.
AMEN

For A Church In God’s Will
Lord,
Remind us
when we forget
that you talked of our being
in the world
not of the world.
Remind us
when we conform to this world
that you want us to be transformed
by the renewing of our minds
so that we will be the witnesses
You asked us to be.
AMEN

For the Mission of the Church
God of all,
Draw your church together
into one great company of disciples,
together following
our Lord Jesus Christ
into every walk of life,
together serving Him
in His mission to the world, and
together witnessing to His love
on every continent and island,
particularly in our country of Canada.
AMEN
(BAS Pg. 676)

1 Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.
2 The fear of a king is as the roaring of a lion: whoso provoketh him to anger sinneth against his own soul.
3 It is an honour for a man to cease from strife: but every fool will be meddling.
4 The sluggard will not plow by reason of the cold; therefore shall he beg in harvest, and have nothing.
5 Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water; but a man of understanding will draw it out.
6 Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?
7 The just man walketh in his integrity: his children are blessed after him.
8 A king that sitteth in the throne of judgment scattereth away all evil with his eyes.
9 Who can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?
10 Divers weights, and divers measures, both of them are alike abomination to the LORD.
11 Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work be pure, and whether it be right.
12 The hearing ear, and the seeing eye, the LORD hath made even both of them.
13 Love not sleep, lest thou come to poverty; open thine eyes, and thou shalt be satisfied with bread.
14 It is naught, it is naught, saith the buyer: but when he is gone his way, then he boasteth.
15 There is gold, and a multitude of rubies: but the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel.

Proverbs Ch20 KJV

Protection

Blessed are all thy Saints, O God and King, who have travelled over the tempestuous sea of this mortal life, and have made the harbour of peace and felicity. Watch over us who are still in our dangerous voyage; and remember such as lie exposed to the rough storms of trouble and temptations. Frail is our vessel, and the ocean is wide; but as in thy mercy thou hast set our course, so steer the vessel of our life toward the everlasting shore of peace, and bring us at length to the quiet haven of our heart's desire, where thou, O our God, are blessed, and livest and reignest for ever and ever.

St Augusfine, 354 _ 430

1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat;
4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
5 But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.
6 Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.
7 Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
8 Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.
9 Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.
10 Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.
11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
12 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.
13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Luke Ch9 KJV

... but stand thou still a while, that I may make known to thee the word of God. I Samuel 9:27

GOD'S LOVE FOR THE JEWS
But because the Lord loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, bath the Lord brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.
And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live.
Only the Lord had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and he chose their seed after them, even you above all people, as at this day.
And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.
For he said, Surely they are my people, children that will not lie: so he was their saviour.
In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bore them, and carried them all the days of old.
O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.
I have loved thee with an everlasting love.'

GOD'S PROMISES FOR THE JEWS
And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing.
And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine."
Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee wither-soever thou goest.
The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until he come to Shiloh; and unto him shall the gathering of the peoples be."
The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken.
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government is upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor of the Mighty God, of the Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
But thou, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall one come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting.

GOD'S SALVATION FOR THE JEWS
All the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.
And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will shew to you today.
Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.
Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.
He shall see the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my servant justify the righteous before many, and he shall bear their iniquities.
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath caused the iniquity of us all to fall upon him.
But he was wounded through our transgressions, bruised through out iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his wounds we were healed.

God and the Jews
F. Russell Esty
Hebrew Publishing Company, New York

This is so neat.  I had never heard this before.  This is beautiful - and it is surely worth making the 5 finger prayer a part of our lives.

1. Your thumb is nearest you.  So begin your prayers by praying for those closest to you.  They are the easiest to remember.  To pray for our loved ones is, as C. S. Lewis once said, a 'sweet duty.'

2. The next finger is the pointing finger.  Pray for those who teach, instruct and heal.  This includes teachers, doctors, and ministers.  They need support and wisdom in pointing others in the right direction.  Keep them in your prayers.

3. The next finger is the tallest finger.  It reminds us of our leaders.  Pray for the president, leaders in business and industry, and administrators.  These people shape our nation and guide public opinion.  They need God's guidance.

4. The fourth finger is our ring finger.  Surprising to many is the fact that this is our weakest finger, as any piano teacher will testify.  It should remind us to pray for those who are weak, in trouble or in pain.  They need your prayers day and night.  You cannot pray too much for them.

5. And lastly comes our little finger - the smallest finger of all which is where we should place ourselves in relation to God and others.  As the Bible says, 'The least shall be the greatest among you.'  Your pinkie should remind you to pray for yourself.  By the time you have prayed for the other four groups, your own needs will be put into proper perspective and you will be able to pray for yourself more effectively.

If you decide to send this to a friend, you might brighten someone's day!  Pass this on to someone special... I did.

Bernadette Njegovan
Children's Ministry Coordinator