25th. June. 2020. Daily Devotion.

Some thoughts on “Goodness.”

“The Christian does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us.” ~C S Lewis.

“Good works do not make a good man, but a good man does good works.” ~ Martin Luther,

“Take the limits off yourself. You will never rise higher than your thinking. Create a great vision for your life.” ~Joel Osteen

“Do all the good you can. By all the means you can. In all the ways you can. In all the places you can. At all the times you can. To all the people you can. As long as ever you can” ~John Wesley.

Two kinds of wisdom
13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. 14 But if you harbour bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15 Such ‘wisdom’ does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.
17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18 Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness. James 3:13-18

Charles Wesley visited Edinburgh in 1748. Here is an excerpt from a sermon dated May 14th that year:

Brothers and sisters, “who is wise and understanding among you?” (James 3:13). Let him show the wisdom from above, by walking fitting to his character. If he calls himself a steward of the many gifts of God, let him see that all his thoughts, words, and works fulfil the duty God has assigned him. It is no small thing to lay out for God all which you have received from God. It requires all your wisdom, all your determination, all your patience and faithfulness; far more than ever you had by nature but not more than you may have by grace. His grace is sufficient for you. “All things,” you know, “are possible to him that believes” (Mark 9:23). By faith, then, “put on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 13:14), “put on the whole armour of God” (Ephesians 6:11), and you will be able to glorify Him in all your words and works. Yes, to bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ!

Prayers

Lord, you have enriched me
with the strength of your word.
You have opened my mind and heart
to see the wonders you have created.
You have blessed me with the gift of communication
to share your divine message.

Holy Spirit, help me to understand
the power of these gifts,
and teach me to use them wisely.
Bless all who use their talents
to communicate the Gospel.
Guide those who work
in the field of communications
to use their power for the good of your people.
This I ask through Jesus Christ, Our Lord, Amen.

O Lord, You are my sat nav,
A voice to guide my way.
Such help on every journey,
Within my heart you reign.
You are my compass,

You lead me where to go.
Even when the path is dim,
Your truth lights all I know.
You are my lighthouse.
In the high seas and storms,
I do not fear the rocks of life,
Your love light keeps me warm,
Amen.

God of all hope we call on you today.
We pray for those who are living in fear:
Fear of illness, fear for loved ones, fear of other’s reactions to them.
May your Spirit give us a sense of calmness and peace.

We pray for your church in this time of uncertainty.
For those people who are worried about attending worship.
For those needing to make decisions in order to care for other
For those who will feel more isolated by not being able to attend.
Grant us your wisdom.
Holy God, we remember that you have promised that
Nothing will separate us from your love – demonstrated to us in Jesus Christ.
Help us turn our eyes, hearts and minds to you, Amen.

Congregational Message

As we are now in phase two of the lockdown, in Inverkeithing we are considering opening the Church for private prayer. We tried this in the weeks prior to the lockdown, but only two or three people availed themselves of the opportunity.
We will require volunteers to be present on open days, possibly for two hours on certain weekday mornings. We need to be assured that we can cover the opening hours both in terms of volunteers who can be present to supervise the distancing and cleaning requirements involved, and a worthwhile number of persons wishing to use this facility.
To help the Kirk Session make the decision, if you would be willing to use this facility regularly, say once or twice a week, or to volunteer, please indicate to me or Moira Lamont by email by Saturday this week.
calston@churchofscotland.org.uk; moiralamont@aol.com