230219 AOC Sunday Report

Anglican Orthodox Church Worldwide Communion

Quinquagesima Sunday Report

Today was Quinquagesima, (explanation of the origin of the word near the end of the report), which is the Sunday next before Lent. This Sunday we talk about charity or love, read this first:

http://www.learnthebible.org/charity-or-love.html

On Point

Someone asked, where do the quotes come from? The answer is from the people who uttered them. But, how did you find them? Oh, that. Some from Bishop Jerry, many from Rev Bryan Dabney, a few from other places, but overall mostly from Bryan. He always has some great ones to share. On to the On Point quotes –

Something a little different

It occurred to Pooh 🐻 and Piglet 🐷 that they hadn’t heard from Eeyore for several days, so they put on their hats 🎩 and coats 🧥 and trotted across the Hundred Acre Wood🌲 to Eeyore’s stick house. Inside the house was Eeyore.

“Hello Eeyore,” said Pooh.

“Hello Pooh. 🐻 Hello Piglet 🐷” said Eeyore, in a Glum Sounding Voice

“We just thought we’d check in on you,” said Piglet, “because we hadn’t heard from you, and so we wanted to know if you were okay.”

Eeyore was silent for a moment. “Am I okay?” he asked, eventually. “Well, I don’t know, to be honest. Are any of us really okay? That’s what I ask myself. All I can tell you, Pooh and Piglet, is that right now I feel really rather Sad, and Alone, and Not Much Fun To Be Around At All.

Which is why I haven’t bothered you. Because you wouldn’t want to waste your time hanging out with someone who is Sad, and Alone, and Not Much Fun To Be Around At All, would you now.”

Pooh looked and Piglet, and Piglet looked at Pooh, and they both sat down, one on either side of Eeyore in his stick house.

Eeyore looked at them in surprise. “What are you doing?”

“We’re sitting here with you,” said Pooh, “because we are your friends. And true friends don’t care if someone is feeling Sad, or Alone, or Not Much Fun To Be Around At All. True friends are there for you anyway. And so here we are.” 💜💚

“Oh,” said Eeyore. “Oh.” And the three of them sat there in silence, and while Pooh and Piglet said nothing at all; somehow, almost imperceptibly, Eeyore started to feel a very tiny little bit better.

Because Pooh and Piglet were There.

No more; no less.

A.A.Milne

E.H.Shepard

Charity or Love

The Greek word ‘agape’ is translated both as ‘charity’ and ‘love’ in many places in the KJV New Testament. What is the difference?

Almost all common Greek or Hebrew words will be translated into more than one English word at different places in the Bible. There is no such thing as word for word translation from one language to another. That is, the words of one language do not perfectly correspond to the words of another language. As these words are used in different contexts and with different shades of meaning, a decision has to be made on which English word is the best to use in each case.

Charity is an interesting case in the King James Bible because the 1 Corinthians 13 passage (which uses charity 9 times) had been translated using the word love in Tyndale’s New Testament of 1526 – 85 years before the King James translation. Certainly, it was not the case that the King James translators did not know that love might have fit. Rather, they purposely chose charity as the word to use there. Evidently, they saw an importance in distinguishing some of the uses of agape in a specific way. We will look at scripture to see if we can discover what specific nuances of the word are being brought out when charity is used. The use of love is the more general use and will not be discussed here in detail.

Some form of the word charity is found in the Bible 29 times. All of these references are in the New Testament. In fact, the word does not occur in any form in the Bible until the book of Romans. It is definitely a New Testament word. Charity is found 9 times in 1 Corinthians 13, which makes it the Charity Chapter in the Bible. Many people have called it the Love Chapter (in correction of the King James Bible) ; but this distinction clearly goes to 1 John 4 where love in mentioned 27 times (unless you included the 3 times “beloved” is used). Also, the fact that 1 Corinthians 13 uses charity 9 times connects it with the nine-fold fruit of the spirit. Nine often denotes a spiritual fruitfulness.

In order to define charity scripturally, we will go to the scripture. That is, we will observe how the word is used in scripture and let that be our final authority for the meaning of the word. Notice the following points about charity as it is used in scripture:

Charity is the epitome of perfection in the Christian life. It is the “greatest” of the three abiding virtues (1 Corinthians 13:13). It is the “bond of perfectness” (Colossians 3:14) and the “end of the commandment” (1 Timothy 1:5). Of the seven things Peter exhorts the saints to add to their faith, it is the seventh (2 Peter 1:5-7). Obviously, the Christian life reaches its pinnacle in the practice of charity. We certainly should know what it is. But to know what charity is, we must know what it is not. Today, people often think of charity as nothing more than a giving of money for some good cause.

The Bible strongly contrasts the charity it proposes to the misunderstood charity of giving funds. 1 Corinthians 13:3 states, “And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.” According to this verse, it is possible to give all your goods to feed the poor and yet not have charity. Therefore, the giving of funds is not biblical charity. Biblical charity can also be distinguished from other forms of love. Though most dictionaries say that charity includes the idea of the love of God for man, there is no indication that it is used in that way in the King James Bible. In fact, it is not specifically used of the love of man for God either. Although there are some passages where the word could be used in application of some of these forms of love, those passages where the word is specifically defined never refer to God’s love toward man or man’s love toward God. Charity specifically refers to the love that we have toward other men. Paul stresses that we are to walk “charitably” toward our weaker brothers (Romans 14:13-15). He praised the Thessalonians because “the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth” (2 Thessalonians 1:3). In 1 Peter 4:8-9, Peter told the believers, “And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. Use hospitality one to another without grudging.” John encouraged the saints, “Beloved, thou doest faithfully whatsoever thou doest to the brethren, and to strangers; Which have borne witness of thy charity before the church…” (3 John 1:5-6). In all of these passages, charity describes the love of the saints for others. Most of the time, it refers to other believers: toward each other, among yourselves, to the brethren. In one case (3 John 1:5-6), it includes strangers. But in them all, God is referring to the special love that believers should have for others.

There are plenty of passages that speak of the importance of love in general, but the Bible speaks of charity to point us to a specific kind of love. Charity is the love toward others that suffers long with them and is kind (1 Corinthians 13:4), that does not behave unseemly, seek to get its own way, or is easily provoked (1 Corinthians 13:5); that rejoices not in the iniquity of others (1 Corinthians 13:6); that bears, believes, hopes, and endures (1 Corinthians 13:7). It is the grace that proves the believer to be mature in his faith and practice. May the Lord give us all more charity.

David Reagan

On Lent

The best way for most of us is to fast from our sins and to eat what is good for us.

Robert E. Lee

American General and Patriot

The US increasingly looks like a banana republic, where the permanent state and not the people get to decide who’s in charge.

Ron Paul

20^th and 21^st century American statesman and author

Lent

Lent is coming up, it starts this coming Wednesday, called Ash Wednesday. So, what does the word Lent mean? It has an obscure origin, and is probably a corruption of Lencten, or a similar term in ancient Anglo, Saxon, and Germanic languages, all of which referred to spring, new life, and hope. Although it is generally considered to be a time of mourning and repentance, it is more than that, it is like death, a time of new life and hope because by means of the death of Christ, we receive new life.

Many avoid Lent and Holy Week because they think it isn’t a happy and uplifting time—but to be honest, neither is most of life. Sometimes we come to church all scrubbed up, dressed nicely, with smiles on our faces, and when people ask how we are, we reply that everything is fine and we even boast how wonderful things are—but is it?

Life is not always uplifting, or wonderful, or pleasant, or joyous. To claim it is, is to miss the whole point of the incarnation! God became flesh in Jesus Christ. Jesus faced temptation, He suffered hunger and thirst, He suffered the agony of crucifixion. Jesus our God did not face these things so that we would be exempt from them, He faced these things so that we would have dignity in them, He faced these things that in Him we might have triumph.

The forty days commemorate the significant “forty” periods in Scripture (although forty is not always significant), including the forty years the Jews wandered in the desert after they had been rescued by God from Egypt, and which did not end until they repented. Jonah preached to Nineveh that God’s judgment would come on them in forty days. During that time the people repented and thus were spared God’s judgment. Jesus was tested by the Devil in the desert for forty days before He began His public ministry, announcing salvation to the repentant and judgment to those who continued to rebel against God. Jesus prophesied that God’s judgment would come against Israel for rejecting Him as Messiah within the time of His own generation (Matt. 24; Luke 21; Mark 13). Within forty years of His death, burial, and resurrection, Jerusalem was destroyed and the temple was so ravaged that “not one stone [was] left here upon another” (Matt. 24:2). The Jewish Christians, however, escaped this judgment of God by fleeing to Pella before the final Roman siege, just as Jesus had warned them to do (Matt. 24:16-21).

Lent is a time for Christians to contemplate their sinfulness, repent, ask God’s forgiveness, and realize the infinite sacrifice God made on their behalf. It is to be a time of quiet contemplation, but not a time of despair, since it culminates in the commemoration of the resurrection. Traditionally, those who are joining the church spend this period in special instruction regarding Christian doctrine, practice, and responsibility. Historically, prospective members (“catechumens”) did not participate in the Lord’s Supper portion of the Sunday services until they were received into full membership on the Sunday of the Resurrection of Our Lord. For them, this first experience of Ash Wednesday and Lent has special significance as God’s eternal plan of salvation is applied to them personally.

When Jesus taught us how to pray, He didn’t say, “If you elect to pray, do it this way…” and when He taught about fasting, He didn’t say, “If you elect to fast, do it this way…”

He said, when you pray, don’t do it for show like the hypocrites do. It’s a conversation between you and God. And He gave us the Lord’s Prayer as an example of what we should pray about:

Address God

“Our Father, who art…”

Submit to God’s will

“Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done…”

Ask for your physical needs

“Give us this day our daily bread…”

Ask for forgiveness

“Forgive us our trespasses…”

To the degree that you yourself are willing to forgive…

“As we forgive our trespassers…”

Ask for help with temptations

“Lead us not into temptation…”

And preservation from evil

“Deliver us from evil…”

Recognizing whose world this really is

“For thine is the Kingdom, and the power and the glory, for ever and ever.”

Similarly, Jesus told us that when we fast (not if) we are not to make a show of it, like hypocrites do. A fast is different from a hunger strike: a fast is a personal act of devotion to God, while a hunger strike is a public act most often used to shine a spotlight on injustice. A fast is also different from anorexia nervosa: it is disciplined diet, not total abstention from food. During a religious fast, you still eat, you just abstain from certain foodstuffs. Traditionally, people have fasted by eliminating luxury items from their diets, such as meats. A fast can consist of eating whatever you want, but drinking only water.

More positively, you can fast in other areas beyond food, you can commit to a something that can benefit the church, such cutting back in an entertainment area, using that time for Bible study and donating the savings to the church.

On Palm Sunday, there were crowds who cheered Jesus as the King, but where were all those fair-weather friends when Jesus prayed in agony on Gethsemane, and where were they when He hung upon the cross? Let us be bold to join Him, fasting in the wilderness for forty days during Lent; let us be bold to pray with Him in the garden on Maundy Thursday, let us fearlessly stand at the foot of His cross on Good Friday, so that we may witness His Resurrection and His Ascension, and join in His triumphant reign.

Mite Boxes

If you read this report at all, you know the Anglican Orthodox Church (AOC), and this parish in particular, is not about money. Not that money is not useful, but our parish has plenty for what we need and we know the difference between need and want. Any extra we get, we send it to the AOC to use for their mission work. The AOC works on a very slim budget, they aren’t about money either. The AOC is about the Great Commission; to go forth and spread The Word of the Lord:

18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, ‘…19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” (Matthew 28:19-20)

You may not realize it, but the AOC has national church affiliates in 243 countries around the world, that does take a little money. Not great quantities of money, but some and as a church, we would be dirt poor, if we had dirt.

So, that is where the Mite Boxes come in. Ash Wednesday is 17 February 2021; Easter Sunday is 4 April 2021. That period is Lent. Often thought of as a time for fasting, it is more importantly a time to channel your attention towards God. A time to let your heart open to the Holy Ghost that you might come closer to God and perhaps do His Work more effectively.

So, to exercise this concept, we are asking you to cut back. We know the economy is not really great and you are probably cutting back already. So, cut back a bit more. Drink water instead of soda, or two entrees instead of three. Take part of your savings every day and put it in the Mite Box. If you did not cut back on a given day, dig into your wallet or purse and cut out a bit of cash for the Mite Box anyway. Every day, except Sundays. Sundays are the Lord’s Day and a day of celebration. They are not part of Lent. By Easter Sunday, you will have a full Mite Box. Bring it to church, this church, another church, which church is not really important, but on Easter Sunday, you should worship the Lord. If you cannot find a church to actually go to on Easter, you probably aren’t looking hard enough; but pull the money out and send us a check, payable to the Anglican Orthodox Church and we will send it on.

One box for each member of the family, one box for the family, whatever works for you. This is not about the money, it is about growing in faith. A little bit, just a mite, every day. Every day, miss none. Every day, everybody in the family can do just a little bit. When you drop your daily contribution in, think, “Did I do what I could today for the Lord? Did I fall short or meet the standard? Can I do better tomorrow? Will I?” It should be a time of reflection. It will be if you do it.

By the way, what is a Mite Box? Named after the smallest of Roman coins, a normal wage of the time being 10 mites per hour, of which two were donated by the widow, in Mark 12:41-44 and Luke 21:1-4, it is normally a small cardboard box, say 3 inches each dimension, a cube piggy bank so to speak. If you don’t have one, call, email or write. We have a pile of them.

Don’t miss this opportunity to contribute to the Lord’s Work and make your life better at the same time.

Propers

Each Sunday there are Propers: special prayers and readings from the Bible. There is a Collect for the Day; that is a single thought prayer, most written either before the re-founding of the Church of England in the 1540s or written by Bishop Thomas Cranmer, the first Archbishop of Canterbury after the re-founding.

The Collect for the Day is to be read on Sunday and during Morning and Evening Prayer until the next Sunday. The Epistle is normally a reading from one of the various Epistles, or letters, in the New Testament. The Gospel is a reading from one of the Holy Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The Collect is said by the minister as a prayer, the Epistle can be read by either a designated reader (as we do in our church) or by one of the ministers and the Holy Gospel, which during the service in our church is read by an ordained minister.

The propers are the same each year, except if a Red Letter Feast, that is one with propers in the prayerbook, falls on a Sunday, then those propers are to be read instead, except in a White Season, where it is put off. Red Letter Feasts, so called because in the Altar Prayerbooks the titles are in red, are special days. Most of the Red Letter Feasts are dedicated to early saints instrumental in the development of the church, others to special events. Some days are particularly special and the Collect for that day is to be used for an octave (eight days) or an entire season, like Advent or Lent.

The Propers for today are found on Page 122-124, with the Collect first:

The Sunday called Quinquagesima, or the

Sunday next before before Lent.

The Collect.

LORD who hast taught us that all our doings without charity are nothing worth; Send thy Holy Ghost, and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of charity, the very bond of peace and of all virtues, without which whosoever liveth is counted dead before thee. Grant this for thine only Son Jesus Christ’s sake. Amen.

The Epistle for today came from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, the Thirteenth Chapter, beginning at the First Verse. Paul talks of charity[1], “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.” Paul goes on to say that no matter what you do, if in your heart you have not that love for others, it is all to naught. Our understanding here on earth is limited, we will never here see the fullness of God’s plan, yet the part most clear is the love we must have one for another, to do unto others as we would have them do unto us, for no reason other than we know that is right so to do. Paul uses the phraseology “through a glass, darkly”, which is very interesting inasmuch as CS Lewis uses a variation to describe earth as compared to heaven. He calls the earth The Shadowlands and says in heaven all is clear and bright, not dark and muddled as here on earth.

HOUGH I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

The Holy Gospel for today came from the Gospel of Saint Luke, the Eighteenth Chapter beginning at the Thirty-First Verse. The Gospel starts out telling of Jesus’ trying to prepare his disciples for what was to come, and they could not grasp it: “Then Jesus took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: and they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.” The Gospel goes on to tell of Jesus’ healing of a blind man near Jericho, “And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way-side begging: and hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant. And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by. And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me. And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the more, Thou son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him, saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee. And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.”

If you take nothing else from today’s Gospel, take this – Faith will save you. After you are saved, you need to act on your faith. The order is clear.

HEN Jesus took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: and they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken. And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the wayside begging: and hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant. And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by. And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me. And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the more, Thou son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him, saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee. And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.

Bishop Ogles’ Sermon

We are oft fortunate to get copies of Bishop Jerry’s sermon notes. Today is one of those Sundays. Today’s sermon starts off with the collect, and like always, it will give you a lot to consider in your heart.

Sermon Notes

Quinquagesima

The Well Dressed Wolves

The Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide

19 February 2023, Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord)

The Sunday called Quinquagesima, or the

Sunday next before before Lent.

The Collect.

The Collect

The love mentioned in this COLLECT is not just charity that gives `things’ to others, but that gives more than things – it gives self. This is divine love and it comes from God, not as a demand, but as a grant to all who love Him. It is impossible to love God and not love others – and we love Him because He first loved us. How can it be that our love comes from God?

Have you ever taken a walk on a clear summer night on the beach? Did you walk in the moon light? No, technically, you did not, even if the moon was very bright with its soft glow. You actually walked in the SUNLIGHT. The light of the moon is only the sunlight it receives from the Sun in smaller measure, and reflects that sunlight to the beach. That is how the real love that we give to others actually is God’s love. What is this divine grant of love? Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. (1 John 4:10-11) Christ commands it, and love is evidence of our faith. A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. (John 13:34-35) This is an imposing commandment of Christ’s, that we love one another as He loved us! That is a very high measure of love, for Christ loved us so greatly that He died for us. How much do we now love one another? Does your love measure up? No, it most probably does not, but it SHOULD. Our righteousness, too, falls short, but it should not. It is because of our falling short in righteousness, in love, and in faith, that Christ is our Mediator.

Today’s Collect in Quinquagesima is the last before the Lenten Season which this year will begin on Wednesday, 2 March 2022. Lent is a time for humble reflection, prayer and fasting in contemplation of that love that Christ demonstrated and proved for us in dying to redeem us from our sins. It is not a time of boasting of our piety by wearing smudges of ashes on our faces. Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. (Matt 6:16-18)

Friends, please clear your hearts and minds for the present moment of all previous prejudices you have entertained resulting from the false teachings of the Romanizing Oxford Movement adherents, and ask yourself if smearing ashes on your forehead on Ash Wednesday is consistent with the clear counsel of Christ in the above passage, and elsewhere? Is it not better to honor God with our obedience to His Word, then to honor men by their dreamt-up traditions? Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, our great English Reformer, was burned at the stake for refusing such foolish traditions of men and for honoring God’s Word. He forbade the use of ashes applied to the forehead and so do all who will honor Christ.

We read in the beautiful LOVE chapter of the Bible (1 Corinthians 13) on Quinquagesima Sunday of the three cardinal virtues of faith, hope and charity, the greatest of these three is Love (Charity). Love is patient because it is eternal. Without love, we are walking dead (zombies, if you will). And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins…. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Eph 2:1, 4-6) Have we not been told that love covereth all sins? (see Proverbs 10:12) And we see that the prayer of this Collect clearly illustrates this fact: ……all our doings without charity are nothing worth; Send thy Holy Ghost, and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of charity, the very bond of peace and of all virtues, without which whosoever liveth is counted dead before thee.

This is one Collect Prayer that did not have its source in the ancient church, but was composed by Archbishop Thomas Cranmer himself. The former Collect, which his replaces, alluded to the absolution of sins on Shrove Tuesday (our sins being shriven from us). ‘Our (English) Reformers believed that such outward observances (including application of Ashes) fall short of what we might call religion of the heart. Thus Cranmer created a new Collect (prayer) based on the Epistle which would follow, St Paul’s hymn to love in 1 Corinthians 13.’ (The Collects of Thomas Cranmer, Barbee & Zahl)

God is LOVE! He shares that love to all who respond to that call of grace which the LORD has placed in our hearts. He loved us so much that He gave His only Begotten Son a Ransom for us while we were yet enemies of God. The Lord suffered humiliation and suffering on the cross out of His Love for the Father….and for us. Love is the essence of the Christian walk. If we handle God’s Word harshly, even if we speak it truly, where is the evidence of that LOVE we are supposed to share of God? When love is abundantly present among a people, how can there be wars among them? If LOVE is abundantly present, how can we intentionally offend another, or defraud him or her? If our love of God exceeds all other considerations in our lives, how could we ever act in ways that dishonor His magnificent Name? Every other Godly virtue has its foundation in love.

Now, my friends, as we prepare for the solemnity of Lenten observance, let us subdue our fleshly passions and exalt that Godly virtue of LOVE as we contemplate that very LOVE that transcends the great space between Heaven and earth, time and Eternity, and came from the Ivory Palaces of the Father to lay down His life for you and me on a cruel cross at Calvary.

EWARE of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. ¹⁶ Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? (Matt 7:15-16)

AM the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. ² Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. ³ Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. ⁴ Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. ⁵ I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. ⁶ If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. ⁷ If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. ⁸ Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

⁹ As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. ¹⁰ If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love. ¹¹ These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. ¹² This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴ Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. ¹⁵ Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. ¹⁶ Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. ¹⁷ These things I command you, that ye love one another. (John 15:1-17)

Allegory is a figurative mode of representation conveying a meaning other than the literal. Allegory teaches a lesson through symbolism. Allegory communicates its message by means of symbolic figures, actions or symbolic representation. Allegory is generally treated as a figure of rhetoric, but an allegory does not have to be expressed in language: it may be addressed to the eye, and is often found in realistic painting, sculpture or some other form of mimetic, or representative art. Simply put, an allegory is a device that can be presented in literary form, such as a poem or novel, or in visual form, such as in painting or sculpture. As a literary device, an allegory in its most general sense is an extended metaphor.

The metaphors and allegory in these passages are similar in type to those of John 10…I am the Door… I am the Good Shepherd….

ERILY, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.

AM the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep

The sermon text today is a beautiful metaphorical narrative of who we are in Christ.

We have given us in this passage the Vine, the Husbandman (Vineyard Keeper), the branches of the Vine, and the Fruit.

Each of these are metaphorical representations of something more sublime than the physical element it describes. It has a higher and more spiritual meaning to us.

Christ uses parables, metaphors, symbols, and types to describe to us something that our unenlightened minds cannot easily conceive. He finds it efficacious to speak to us from the known to the unknown – a cardinal principle in teaching.

Let’s examine together the nature of the elements of this narrative by Christ and see how those elements relate to us:

The VINE

I am the true vine

What is it that gives life to the Vine’s branches and produces fruit?

It is the life-giving sap produced by the Vine and delivered through the

Vine to the branches.

We may have been a plant of a totally different nature until our Husbandman cut us from the old brier plant, or poisoned vine and tenderly grafted us into the Vine itself that produces fruit and Wine.

In the science of gardening, there is a cardinal principle regarding grafting: The deeper the graft, the better the branch adapts to the source of life. If it is a shallow graft, the branch will be deficient in the vine-sap provided by the Vine. As Christians, we must plant our hearts deep in the source of Living Waters which is the Word of God.

Christ is the Life-Producing Vine. We are not the natural branches, but the grafted in branches. We are not natural sons and daughters of God, but His sons and daughters through adoption.

It is amazing to realize that natural sons and daughters must be accepted by the parent without distinction, however, those who are adopted into the family of the Father are chosen in particular. You have been especially chosen to become the sons and daughters of God.

When we were yet a wilting branches, the Gardener took us up and cut our stems and grafted us into His Son.

The HUSBANDMAN

…….my Father is the husbandman.

It is God the Father who selects, separates, judges and nourishes through His only Begotten Son, Jesus.

Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.

If the bark covering our branch becomes damaged, sap may escape. But the sap from the open wound will dry into a covering for the wound and we are healed. The injured scar becomes our strongest point.

The Gardener uses trials and tribulations of life to make us stronger.

Our natures become One with the Vine itself – not because of our own merit, but because of His Life-Giving Grace.

³ Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

The BRANCHES

OMETH this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness. ¹⁰ How was it then reckoned? when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision. ¹¹ And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed unto them also: ¹² And the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised. (Romans 4)

It is by the indwelling of Christ that we are sanctified and made righteous – His righteousness!

No one can observe the life being created in the branch – it all happens in secret and through the internal workings of the sap delivering Vine.

⁴ Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. ⁵ I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. ⁶ If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. ⁷ If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. ⁸ Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

It is not the branch that produces Fruit – it is the Vine which supplies the nourishment required to produce the fruit. If the branch is a strong conveyance of the life it receives, the furit will be healthy and beautiful.

Being fed by that same Life which Christ conveys, we must become like Him in every possible respect. If we fail in this, it must not be because we did not try very hard to be like unto Him. We must bear the same fruit He has borne in us.

¹¹ These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. ¹² This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.

His JOY! His Life, His Holy Spirit, His Fruit-producing LOVE!

The Christian cannot abide outside Christ no more than the branch can abide outside the Vine. If we are separated from our source of Life, we begin to wilt and die immediately.

¹³ Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

There we see the Good Teacher reiterating important truths as in John 10 – I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

Did Christ lay down His Life for YOU?

¹⁴ Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. ¹⁵ Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.

How many deceived TV ministers have you heard proclaim: “I am a Slave of God!”?

God has no slaves, or even servants. Slaves and servants cannot choose to follow their Master. They follow by force.

Christ has made us better than servants and slaves – He has made us His Friends. A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.

¹⁶ Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. (Prov 18:24)

So you have believed that you have chosen Christ. I hope you have done so, but please understand that He has chosen you first and foremost. He has chosen you for a purpose, and He has ordained (empowered & authorized) you to produce fruit through His own Life-Giving Springs of Life.

that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you

Do not misinterpret this last part of the verse 16: He doesn’t assure that whatsoever things we ask for, we shall have. He assures us that whatsoever things we ask in His Name (by His authority) we shall receive.

How many misconstrue this principle of the Gospel? God’s Will will always be done in the life of a Christian, so when we pray for the things that Christ would authorize, it shall come to pass. “Thy will be done”

And here is the Crown Royal of the Gospel from the lips of Christ:

¹⁷ These things I command you, that ye love one another.

Note again the exact meaning of this new Commandment-

These things I command you

What things? The things Jesus has described in the above passages. If we abide in Him, and He in us, we SHALL love one another!

The easy Gospel lightly passes over shadows of deeper meaning. But God intents the Fullness of the Gospel to be our rule of life.

Is it for YOU?

Sermon – Reverend Jack Arnold – Time and Action

Church of the Faithful Centurion

Descanso, California

You can view Rev Jack’s sermon on video RIGHT HERE!

Today’s sermon brought the Collect, Epistle and Gospel together and is partly contained in the forewords above.

Consider these words from the Collect:

… that all our doings without charity are nothing worth; Send thy Holy Ghost, and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of charity …

In the Collect, we acknowledge to God that if we have not charity, nothing we do is worth anything; we then ask Him to send the Holy Ghost into our hearts with the precious gift of charity. Webster tells us that Charity is love; universal benevolence; good will; the word which properly denotes love. What it really means is Love in Action! Like many areas of our Christian development, we will never fully get there. But if we never try to put Love into action, we will never even get close to getting there. The key words are in action. Meaning we just can’t think about loving people, we actually have to go out and do actions showing that we really do love them, not just say it. Without the love in our hearts, nothing we do here has any meaning, our actions would be meaningless without love in our hearts for God and our fellow human beings anc creature. We must strive to incorporate love for God and others in our actions. We must allow the Holy Ghost into our hearts to allow us to have that love.

Charity is the purest form of love there is and derives from God’s love for us. Without God’s love in us, we cannot hope to have any form of charity towards our fellow humans. God has given us love to enable us to act on His behalf here on this Earth. Love is not selfish or wasteful, but kind and abundant. We are to be agents of good change, not bad; with Charity, we will act with love towards one another. With charity in our hearts we will be agents for change of good. These are qualities that are not naturally part of our sinful nature. We cannot be agents for change of good without Charity in our hearts. This is why we need to have God’s help, to have that pure and unselfish love in our hearts. If we do not have love in our hearts towards one another, how can we expect to be able to effect positive change on the world around us?

In connection with the Collect which talks about one who is brought before God without love in his heart is a dead person. And not just in eternity but in life, a person with no love is a dead person walking. Paul makes this very point in his Epistle, saying that no matter what talents we have, without the Love of God in our hearts, it is all for naught. We cannot do anything for God without that Love in our hearts. We must have the Love in us, brought to us by the Holy Spirit, in order to be effective in our ministerial efforts. He is the reason we are here in this life and He is the one we must act for. It must be clear to us our understanding here on earth is limited, while here we will never see the fullness of God’s Plan; yet the part most clear is the love we are to have one for another, to do unto others as we would have them do unto us, for no reason other than we know it is right so to do.

Having Love in our hearts is a must if we are to perform actions for Him here in this world. In order to have love in our hearts, we must be open to the Holy Spirit. Only then can we truly receive His Love to spread around. And do not fret, there is an unlimited supply of love for everyone. When Paul talks about God’s great plans, he uses the phraseology “through a glass, darkly”, which is very interesting inasmuch as CS Lewis uses a variation to describe earth as compared to heaven. He calls earth The Shadowlands and says in heaven all is clear and bright, not dark and muddled as here on earth. So, here our understanding is limited, it will not always be so. That will be fulfilled when we pass those Pearly Gates into heaven, and in order to do that, we have to have faith, and act in good works with charity.

As they were coming in to Jericho, Jesus told the disciples of what was to come, yet they could not grasp their leader would submit to such treatment on their behalf. One of the reasons they could not grasp it is that they did not yet have the Holy Spirit in their heart to help grasp the words that Jesus spoke. In their minds He was the Conqueror; in a sense they were right, He came to conquer death for us, not the Roman Empire. He had the Love of God with Him and He loved us so much that He would die a painful method of execution and go into Satan’s realm in order to free us from the terrible wages of sin, that of death. As they went along, they encountered the blind man who was, like many of us are, blind. His blindness was of eye, not heart, he knew the power of God and of love. The blind man who wanted his sight and knew Jesus had The Power. He cried unto the Lord and was rebuffed by His People. This is the key and it applies to us as well. Did he give up? No, he cried the more. We are like the blind man in that our sin blinds from seeing what we could be with the help of the Holy Ghost. We must cry out for Jesus to enter into our hearts, souls and minds and lead a transformation of our minds to serve Him.

When Jesus heard him, he turned and asked what the man wanted. MY SIGHT! No generalizations, no beating about. The blind man asked of Him what he truly wanted. Ask and it shall be given unto you. He lacked sight, not vision. Nor, it might be added, did he lack faith. We should ask God to have to sight and hearing that we might see, hear and act upon the Word. To some, the faith he had might seem a blind faith, but it was one he acted on and gained what he lacked. Will we have the faith to act?

True love is Faith, Hope, Charity[2].

There is but one way to heaven.

That easy to find, easy to follow, easy to hike path does not lead to the summit where eternal life in the real world awaits. Open your heart to the Holy Ghost, use His Power to follow our Lord to God who awaits in heaven.

The time is now, not tomorrow. The time has come, indeed. How will you ACT?

It is by our actions we are known.

Be of God – Live of God – Act of God

Roy Morales-Kuhn, Bishop and Pastor – St. Paul’s Anglican Church – Anglican Orthodox Church

Bishop Roy is pastor of the biggest AOC parish West of the Mississippi and is in charge of the Diocese of the Epiphany, as well as South America.

Quinquaagesima

Passing through

19 February 2023, Anno Domini

Psalm 19, 23 • Deuteronomy 10:12-15, 17-11:1 1 John 2:1-17

The Sunday called Quinquagesima, or the

Sunday next before before Lent.

The Collect.

This world is not my home

This world is not my home,

I’m just a passing through

My treasures are laid up

Somewhere beyond the blue

The angels beckon me

From heaven’s open door

And I can’t feel at home

In this world anymore

Oh Lord, you know

I have no friend like you

If heaven’s not my home

Then Lord, what will I do?

The angels beckon me

From heaven’s open door

And I can’t feel at home

In this world anymore…

Song by Jim Reeves

When we unpack the verses from St. John’s first epistle we discover mountains of truth.

The very strong issue of a mighty tug-of-war occurring in many believers is revealed. When we have a conflict of interest, a divided loyalty, an uncertain feeling for things of God, we will have a lot of chaos in our lives.

Let us examine the last three verses of our 1st John passage:

Don’t love the world and the things in the world. If you do the love of the Father is not in him.

These loves are manifest in “the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.”

These passions and feelings do not last: “…the world passeth away, and the lust thereof:…”

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

The only thing that lasts forever in this list is “…he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever..”

If we understand that concept then we can fully understand the Word of the Lord. The chorus “This world is not my home, I’m just a passing through” now makes so much sense. I can’t tell you if the composer was thinking about these verses in John’s first epistle, but that writer was conveying the very thoughts and concepts of this great battle. The sentiments expressed in the song are very bible centered. The most important message being that this earthly experience is only for a season. Always remember that God’s time is not our time. We are so impatient about seeing results. We want things to be done now, we want problems solved on our schedule, we want to see the future and how it will be better for us.

We need to stop thinking like the world. Remember that Jesus told his followers that he had gone to prepare a dwelling place for them. And that if he had done this then he was going to come back and take them there at the correct time. The translation can be rendered several ways. “Mansions, rooms, apartments, a place,”. All of which indicate a safe dwelling, a place of peace, a place of eternal light. No more darkness

Y little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.

Now let us look at the first part of John’s first epistle, the first four verses. You may remember them from what we call “the comfortable words” found in the service of Holy Communion. The ideas conveyed here are concerning the work of Jesus Christ in our salvation. He died in our place, his blood covers our sins, washes them away. The key concept here is understanding the universal salvation work AND the those who “keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.” In another way of expressing this: “…by their fruits you will know them…”.

One must produce fruit, showing the redemption that is manifest in us by the very word of God.

These next seven verses give us a blueprint as to why we should live our lives for Him and how to see that one is living their life for Him. Notice the emphasis on light? That is not an oversight. Again and again throughout the Word of God there is a clear distinction about light and darkness. From Creation to the present, there is a marked idea that light and darkness must not co-exist. Light will one day overcome the dark and all will be right in the Creation.

When Christ came into the world as a baby there was light to announce his coming. Remember what the shepherds experienced? Remember the light the Wise men followed? Remember when Jesus was transfigured before the three disciples? Light, light, light. It is all about the light.

Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.

Jesus is the true light. And beloved, that true light is supposed to shine through us into this world of darkness. We are to manifest the Light to the world by our lives.

Reread the following seven verses and reflect on what they mean. Always bear in mind that scripture interprets scripture.

Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.

GAIN, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth. 9 He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. 10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him. 11 But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes. 12 I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name’s sake. 13 I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father. 14 I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.

Let us pray:

GOD of unchangeable power and light eternal: Look favorably upon the body of thy whole church, and by thy eternal providence accomplish the salvation of man, that all the world may see and know that what was fallen has been lifted up, and what was grown old has been made new, and that all things are restored by him through whom they were made, even thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

IX our hearts on thee, O God, in pure devotion, that the vain pursuits of this world may have no hold upon us, that we may be changed, by the consuming fire of thy Spirit, into the image and likeness of thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with thee and the same Spirit be all honor and glory, world without end. Amen.

HE grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, be with us all evermore. Amen.

✟

Rev Bryan Dabney of Saint John’s Sunday Sermon

We are fortunate to have Bryan’s Sunday Sermon. If you want people to come to The Truth, you have to speak the truth, espouse the truth and live the truth. This is really a good piece and I commend it to your careful reading.

Quinquagesima

In today’s Epistle (I Corinthians 13:1-13) we find the word charity being set before us several times by the apostle Paul. The word was derived from the Latin word for “dear” which is “carus “ and refers to “a dear person”, a “spiritual benevolence toward another”, or simply “brotherly love”. It appears 27 times in the Authorized Version where it was translated from the Greek word “agape”. Thus benevolent, caring, good intentioned love is what we may fairly understand charity to mean. It is precisely this type of love which God has extended to us through the atoning work of his only begotten Son. It is also this same type of love which we are expected to extend toward our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Paul warned without charity, all our works are meaningless in the eyes of God as we have been commanded to, love one another, as I have loved you (John 15:12). The apostle John confirmed the same in his first epistle when he noted that, He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him (2:10). And further on in that epistle he noted that, Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren (3:16). And in the following chapter he wrote, beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love (4:7-8).

Rev Matthew Henry once noted, “Christian love must possess our souls when we go to God in prayer. To this end we must remember that God expects each of us 1) to forgive those who have offended us, and 2) to seek reconciliation with those whom we have offended. As good will toward men was proclaimed in heaven, so good will towards men— particularly to the brethren— must be carried in the hearts of those who go God.”

Some Christians fail to realize their true potential because they have not “agape” or charity in their hearts. Their fruitlessness is problematic for them because as the apostle warned that without charity our works are without merit. Consider the account of our Lord’s healing of a blind man as found in St. Luke’s gospel (18:31-43). Here we find this man calling out to our Lord for his mercy. Isn’t interesting that even in his state of physical blindness that the man recognized our Lord as the son of David, that is to say, the Messiah. And what was our Lord’s response? He called the blind man to him and asked him what he could do for him. The man then replied, Lord, that I may receive my sight, to which our Lord responded, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee. What a gracious act of loving kindness. This same benevolent love is requisite of each and every person who bears the name of Christ. We are to love the brethren and our neighbor; but more especially the brethren. We should be willing to do for them as we can because we can. Seeking to do good should not be a chore for us anymore than we would expect God to consider helping us a chore.

In Luke 14:16-24, our Lord communicated his expectation for all who would come to him seeking his gifts and blessings. He will not say to his elect, “Oh, you are too much trouble”, or, “I don’t have time for you”, or “Your requests are too burdensome”, or, “Ever thought about helping yourself for a change?” No, you will not hear such from our Lord and God.

Unworthy sinners who have come to Christ know their condition and are humbled by our Lord’s calling. His blood makes the unworthy sinner worthy. His blood covers a multitude of sins. His grace is all sufficient. No other name has been given to us for salvation. We must believe and accept him and then turn from our sins and be healed. Outside of a sin against the Holy Ghost, no person possesses a sin that is too big, too ugly, or too burdensome which Christ cannot lift from them and expunge from their record. But in order to receive such a pardon, one must first accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour and seek forgiveness of the Father in his name.

If we are truly born again of the Holy Ghost, we will understand that God loves us and seeks our good. And, as we have experienced his love, we are also expected to show the same to those around us. Our Lord has given each of us various gifts and talents which are to be used in his service. Still, we know as his children that his greatest gift came when he offered up his only begotten Son for the sins of the world. And in that light we memorialize the giving of that gift every time we partake of the Lord’s Supper.

And on that account the table of our Lord is set. The meal has been prepared. All we need do is come and receive of him in thanksgiving remembering that he loved us enough to die for us. Will any of you not come when bidden to so great a supper as this? Only those who have a heart for God— who are seeking to have their eyes opened upon hearing the words of our Saviour— will come rejoicing for having received such an invitation.

God has plans for each and every believer in the various avenues of service to which he has called them. But all our duties and responsibilities must be predicated on obedience to his word written. We are not take upon ourselves duties and offices to which we have not been called to carry out. Sadly, there are those whom I have witnessed within many church denominations who decided of their own accord to become ministers of the word. Just as Jeroboam took it upon himself to appoint men priests who had no business being in the service of God, so these modern-day Jeroboams have determined to replace God’s standards with their own. There are even churches that have substituted their commentary on the Scriptures in place of the Scriptures. This is what the Bible calls the way of Cain, and it is nothing more than “will worship”, or the offering to God that which he does not want in place of that which he requires If God did not call you, do you really expect the Lord to bless your life and ministry?

Every true and faithful Christian ought to love the Lord our God, who gave himself for us that we might have eternal life in his coming kingdom. And, again, loving God, means being obedient to his will and walking in his ways. If he loved us who knew him not as LORD, should we not also tell of his love to others that they too might come unto him as we were called? Indeed, we should.

Our success as witnesses for Christ will not be measured solely in mere numbers, but in our obedience. If we are following the truth of God’s word written, then we will not do or act without seeking his guidance, and we will conform to the standards set forth in his word written. Obedience is the first step in having fellowship with the Godhead. Therefore be humbly accepting of his word, and lean not on your own understanding. That you, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God (Ephesians 3:18-19).

Let us pray,

ATHER, help us daily to keep thy commandments; that those who hear our witness and see our works will give glory unto thee and love thee as their Lord and God; for this we ask in the name of thy Son and our Saviour, even Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Have a blessed week,

Bryan+

The Steadfast Warrior

James Flanagan, DD, Bishop of the Northeastern Diocese of the Anglican Orthodox Communion

ND the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. 3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. (2 Timothy 2:2-3)

During the early dawning of 28 December 2022, Bishop James Flanagan laid down his sword, shield, and war books at the foot of His Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and crossed the troubled waters of Jordan Banks. But Bishop Flanagan did not cross those waters alone for the One who had never forsaken him in all the years of his ministry was right beside as they both traversed the raging flood together.

I lack the depth of rhetorical beauty necessary to fully do justice to commemorating such a minister, friend, and brother, as Bishop Flanagan has been to me since the many years of our meeting. There are two terms that come to mind that only begin to describe this man of Godly faith and character – Courageous and Uncompromising. These would only begin to represent his depth of faith, love, and commitment to the ministry that he was called to undertake more than fifty years ago. Once having received that call, he never looked back but pressed doing his duty as he saw it with no thought of the crown of righteousness and service rightly due him now.

James was a man of refined mind and learning having been awarded degrees from both Rutgers University and Faith Theological Seminary at the doctorate level. That knowledge was reflected in his writings and his sermons, not in complexity, but in the simplicity of our Lord and Savior. His sermons were always Bible-centered and delivered with unquestioned conviction.

James drew little distinction between his Christian faith and his patriotism to country. He was well-read on the writings of our Founding Fathers and believed, without question, that the true Sovereign of our nation’s founding was the Lord God Almighty who directed the affairs of our nation at its early founding. He was a veteran soldier of the Rainbow Division (US ARMY) as well as of the service to the God who planted the Rainbow in the sky as a sign of encouragement to us. He was very active in-service organizations having served as Chaplain to AMVETS and the American Legion. He also served as National Chaplain of AMVETS in the past. He also served as Chaplain to the lower Merion Fire Dept. and the Radnor Fire Company.

James and his precious wife, Mary Lou, had recently celebrated 62 years of marriage. It was their practice to repeat the Lord’s Prayer every night – even up to the night before his call to “come up hither.” (Rev 4:1)

James loved to discover the precious gems hidden away throughout the Scriptures. He and I often shared our discoveries of the Christ in Genesis and other books of the Old Testament. In fact, he had begun a study on the subject interrupted by his passing. I have his notes, and know very well his thoughts on the subject, and will finish his book in the coming months merely as the editor thereof.

When our seminary in Pakistan was in dire need of financial support, James stepped forward and gave sacrificially. He also served as Vice-Chancellor to the seminary which earned the seminary a measure of greater respectability.

I had the distinct honor of preaching the funeral sermon for Bishop James – a decidedly easy task since any biblical text I could choose would fit perfectly in the description of the warrior saint. All Saints Church/ Wynnwood was packed with mourners who loved Bishop Flanagan. There was also a conspicuous presence of uniformed police, firefighters, and Rescue Squad personnel on hand to pay ceremonial honors and escort duties.

The Rev. Edward Rix, Rector of All Saints Church, also commended his good friend, James, for his faith, service, and perseverance in preaching the Gospel.

Bishop Flanagan was a frontline soldier in the army of the Lord and will be greatly missed by friends, family, and fellow believers. He leaves a wide gap in the line of battle which must be filled to close order by those who remain for the continued battle for Christ and His Church.

I leave you with one of Bishop Flanagan’s favorite text from Romans: “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

And, so be it!

Jerry L. Ogles, Presiding Bishop and Friend

People in our Prayers – http://faithfulcenturionprayerteam.blogspot.com/

Why? Prayer is an extremely important activity.

It is not that God knows not our needs, for He surely does. Yet, Jesus commanded us to ask God for those same needs. In addition to the obvious of asking God for help, offering thanksgiving and the like, prayer helps us focus our thoughts on how we might do God’s work.

The Prayer Team of the Anglican Orthodox Church was established to help our members and fellow Christians pray for those in need and to give thanks as well for the blessings we have been granted.

Who can be on the list? Do I have to be a member of the Anglican Orthodox Church to be prayed for?

No! The only qualification to be on the list is that you want our prayer team to pray for you. We are Christians and are happy to pray for you, no matter who you are. If you want help from God, you are our kind of people.

What is the commitment from the prayer team?

Each member of the team will pray for the desired outcome at last once per day.

How do I get myself or someone else on the prayer list?

You can email one of the prayer team leaders: Jack – jack@faithfulcenturion.org or Dru – dru@ faithfulcenturion.org, or call the office at (619) 659-3608 or fill out a prayer card at your church.

What should I ask for?

Depends on what you want. Some people merely want God to be asked to heal their ills and be mentioned by their first name, others want a specific outcome and / or have more of their personal information known to the team. Ask for what you want. It is your desire and need for prayer the team is attempting to meet. For typical examples, see the list below.

Updating the Team

If you are on our prayer list, or if you have submitted a person that you have asked us to pray for, please update one of the team members or Hap in person, by telephone or email. It helps to be able to pray specifically for these individuals including their specific needs; plus if they get better, it is our happy duty to give thanks!

Please note that on the yellow (maybe green or orange if you get an old one) cards at church, you can ask that those to be prayed for have their names disseminated to the prayer team. Those names will be said in church and appear here. Or, you can ask that their names and purpose be kept confidential, then only Hap will know to pray for them.

Prayer List Notice – If you have someone on the prayer list and their needs have changed, please let us know. We’d like to update our prayers to reflect the need and most important to give thanks!

Corona Virus

With most of the world on some form of restriction, we ask you pray for the governments be guided into appropriate reaction and scientists find cures and vaccines and that the virus pass each of us by.

Laurie, daughter of Jim and Mary Lou Flanagan has post-Covid lung damage, dizziness, falling, blacking out and loss of time relation. Please pray that they find a cure for these problems for Laurie.

Sandra (63) and her two grandchildren. Sandra and her daughter live in New York and recently got Covid requiring hospitalization and ventilators in ICU. Sandra’s daughter died in ICU and Sandra pulled through and is now home. She is coping with traumatic grief, as she did not get to see or get to be near her daughter in her time of need, confusion on how to proceed on providing for and protecting her and her grandchildren who are teenagers. Please pray for the Lord’s comfort in

Bishop David Pressey and his wife Elizabeth, from St. George’s Anglican Church of Ventura are recovering from Covid. Please pray for their complete and rapid recovery, as well as to know what treatment they need.

Bill Hall is still having difficulty breathing and with his ability to move about.

Kai Mandella – Loss of Lung Function

Donald and his family. Donald has Covid, is medically sedated, and has been on a ventilator for a number of days. He makes a little progress and then experiences a setback. This had been a rollercoaster pattern now for a while. Please pray that our Heavenly Father will restore him to health and that He will meet the emotional and financial needs of the family at this time. Donald has a wife and four children.

Travel

No known travel this week

Birthdays

Dru Arnold celebrated her 68^th birthday on 2 February 2023, for the record she did not see her shadow, so spring is here. No more winter!

Roy Morales-Kuhn celebrated his 69^th birthday on 23 December 2022.

Jack Arnold celebrated his 30^th birthday on 26 October 2022.

Departed

Michelle Hinman succumbed to an unknown abdominal cancer on 8 February 2023. A strong Christian, she was also a mother and young wife as they adjust to life without her.

James Flanagan, AOC Bishop in Pennsylvania, passed away the morning of 28 December 2022, after battling numerous aliments for many years. He wanted to make it past Christmas to be with his family. His wish was granted. Please give comfort and strength to his wife of 62 ½ years Mary Lou and to their entire family, particularly Christopher and Laurie. God’s will has been done and all are at peace with that knowledge. There are many things to be said about him, almost all good or even great, but I have zero doubt the only titles he was really concerned with were:

Follower of Our Lord Jesus Christ;
Husband
Father

Allene H. Dabney, mother of Rev Bryan Dabney, left for home on 26 December 2022. Please pray for her family as they adjust to the temporary separation and give thanks for her time here on earth.

Kay Denton (Mrs. Kay) left for home on 4 November 2022, after a long and hard fought battle against so many illnesses that it is almost unbelievable. She has always had a deep trust in the Lord and seldom waivered from an amazingly positive attitude. Please give thanks for her time here on earth and for comfort for those who remain behind.

Remembrance of those who have gone before us

Kenneth Wayne Ogles was killed in action on 16 February 1967, in the Ia Drang Valley, in the Binh Dinh Province, South Vietnam, with the First Platoon of C Company, First Battalion 8^th Cavalry, First Cavalry Division at the age of 19. Kenneth joined the National Guard at age 17 and immediately transferred to the active Army’s First Cavalry Division. He wanted to make a difference, to do his duty to God and Country and protect the innocent people of South Vietnam. He gave all that we might be free. Please join us in remembering his service and sacrifice, as well as the hurt that it cost the entire Ogles family, the sacrifice and pain is no less 56 years later. Remember Kenneth the next time someone wants you to give a little freedom for the promise of safety or comfort.

Immediate Prayer Please

Alicia, her husband, Andrew, and their two young daughters. Alicia has Susac’s Disease and narcolepsy. She has not been able to work and is having a difficult time even functioning. Please pray for her, her family, and those that attend her. May heavenly wisdom fill the doctors that they may treat Alicia and serve as God’s instruments to restore her to health.

Harry Brooks, Major USMC – GA ANG Retired – just finished a round of chemotherapy, which he barely survived and is set for removal of a cancerous bladder in March 2023. Please pray for guidance for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating him and for peace of mind for Harry and his family and for a good result.

David Lane has a growth behind his eye that must come out, surgery is set for 3 March 2023; while they were evaluating that, they found another growth which was thought to be malignant. That surgery was done on 23 January 2023, it turns out both that growth and the eye growth were just hereditary cysts and of minor consequences. Please pray for guidance for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating him and for peace of mind for David and his family and for a good result.

Major Tom Connell, a good friend of Hap Arnold, had surgery on 25 February 2022, for abdominal cancer to remove a tumor. Spots have now appeared on his liver and he is restarting chemotherapy in January 2023. Tom asks you join him in praying for him to tolerate the treatment. Tom is a good guy and a faithful Christian; he is grateful for weathering this storm to date and the comfort God provided to him and his family.

Bob Apple just found out he has cancer and is beginning treatment. Please pray for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating him that they might pay attention, do their very best and be open to God’s guidance; pray also for peace of mind for Bob.

Deanna Sampson went in Thursday for cataract surgery and found she had an irregular heartbeat with precluded the operation. Please pray for resolution of the heartbeat problems so she can get her cataract operation.

Henry Johnson (age 3) suffers from a rare form of epilepsy. Please join his parents in praying a treatment regimen can be found to treat his condition.

Tricia Marie gives thanks for an apparently successful coil surgery to seal off an aneurysm at the base of her skull on 12 January 2023. She has seemingly recovered from the stroke of December 2021. She still headaches which had been bothering her for months since she got the Moderna vaccine. She has had almost no real sleep or rest for months. She fell on stairs and while apparently broke nothing, is very sore and scared herself. She has gotten some relief from the headache from a Botox injection series, may that continue. Please give thanks for the successful surgery and pray for relief from the headache, nausea and pain and rest for her, for guidance for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating her and a full and rapid recovery, for peace of mind for her and her family.

Shamu is totally exhausted, but in relatively good spirits. Shamu has a terrible headache, is in a lot of pain; feels like she has been stabbed, totally exhausted and weak, but her faith is incredibly strong. They have found a mass in her upper abdomen which must be investigated. She asks you pray for guidance for the medical people helping her. After 36 surgeries, she is quite very weak, but strong in her trust in our Lord as she goes through this difficult time. She needs your prayer. Please.

Tommy Cook is beset by Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Congestive Heart failure. It seems there is little that can be done except fight a delaying action against the aggressive pair. At present it seems like the only avenue open is a heart lung transplant and little chance of that. He asks you pray for guidance for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating him and the miracle of a full and rapid recovery, for peace of mind for him and his family. He is a very strong Christian and has no concern for himself, but for his wife, children and mother.

Johnie Ratcliff is having breathing issues.

Brady on the way to enter the armed forces in Virginia Beach, got in a horrible tragic car accident that required surgery to restructure his foot, and back surgery to relieve pressure on his spine and repair the breaks. Please pray for his parents, and that he, unsure of what his future will hold, will understand the Lord Jesus Christ holds his future and He will not fail nor forsake him.

David Connis has Stage Four colon cancer, he can no longer do chemotherapy and has switched to immunotherapy in the hope of surviving to participate in an experimental program in December. Please pray for strength and guidance for him and his nine year old daughter, as well as what we consider a good outcome.

John Crawford, of Tennessee, is in ICU for treatment of pancreatitis. Please pray for guidance for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating him and for peace of mind for John and his family and for a good result.

Lori Barnett had a large mass in her abdomen surgically removed which turned out to be cancerous. She has begun chemotherapy. Please pray for the cessation of pain and discomfort for her and for her to tolerate the chemotherapy.

George Gunn, a dear friend of Bishop Jerry, is in hospital with several afflictions, most serious is MRSA. He and wife Becky ask your prayers for healing.

George Johnson, MD, was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. From Dr. George Hardin Johnson, I need all my friends and prayer warriors to pray for me, that the new chemo pill (meds) that the doctor ordered will be use mightily by the Lord Jesus to heal my body. Pray that there will be no side effects and my body can handle the meds. Thanks and God bless you all for your prayers in the mighty name of our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ. We know God is in full control and we are trusting in Him to give George a complete healing!

Multiple myeloma is a cancer that forms in a type of white blood cell called a plasma cell. Healthy plasma cells help you fight infections by making antibodies that recognize and attack germs. In multiple myeloma, cancerous plasma cells accumulate in the bone marrow and crowd out healthy blood cells

While there is no cure for multiple myeloma, the cancer can be managed successfully in many patients for years; the average life expectancy is 4 years. However, some people beat the odds and live 10 to 20 years or more.

The most common cause of death related to multiple myeloma is infection, with pneumonia being the most common fatal infection. Other common causes of death are bleeding (from low platelet counts), complications of bone fractures, kidney failure, and blood clots in the lungs.

Hank Mook recently had surgery on a five inch rare pleomorphic non-small cell lung carcinoma which was removed along with a lung lobe, it had not spread. He will need chemotherapy which will begin 5 April 2021. The family is asking for prayers for complete healing. Praising God for successful surgery. Please pray for trust in God, comfort and strength for Hank, his wife Patti and family as they go through the time ahead.

Rev Jack Andrews, his family and all those living in Fiji Islands just went through a Category Five Cyclone with another one coming their way. They were a month without electric, however, they did have solar power so they were able to make it through the month without incident and are preparing for the next event. Please pray for them to make it through the next storm safely.

Greg was in an explosive work accident leading to burns over 65% of his body. He is in the hospital and will be for months. Also pray for his mother, who recently lost her husband and now is overseeing her son’s care; she is disabled and in a wheel chair.

Lauralee Meade has tested positive for Covid 19; she is only moderately concerned as she has no symptoms. She asks you pray she stay that way and test negative so she can visit her mother. Please pray also for a complete remission of her cancer. Pray also Lauralee will maintain her great attitude and trust in God.

Inga, the wife of Tore, requests prayer for her husband in Norway. He is awaiting surgery for a heart valve and kidney transplants. He is nearing surgery. Please pray for trust in the Lord for her, her husband and family and friends who are so very worried about him. Pray also for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating him that they might be open to God’s guidance for treatment, pay attention and do their very best to help him. Pray for a good outcome.

Angela Walker has Covid and has been hospitalized and currently is in the ICU doing poorly. Please pray for trust in the Lord for her, her husband, two young children and family and friends who are so very worried about her. Pray also for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating her that they might be open to God’s guidance for treatment, pay attention and do their very best to help her. Pray for a good outcome.

Rhonda, a close friend of Angie Colgrove, has Invasive Ductal Breast Cancer[3]. Please pray for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating her that they might be open to God’s guidance, pay attention and do their very be Please pray for peace of mind and trust in God for Rhonda and her family.

Elizabeth Pressey, wife of AOC Bishop Dave Pressey, is seriously ill. Please pray for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating her that they might be open to God’s guidance, pay attention and do their very be Please pray for peace of mind and trust in God for Elisabeth, Dave, their son Eddie and family.

Zephaniah Leguman – the Iron Bishop of the Pacific – has been diagnosed with a serious eye affliction that could lead to blindness. It presently stop deteriorating and seems to be improving. Please give thanks for this positive movement and pray the condition will continue to abate.

Gary Anderson of Enterprise has been hospitalized with unknown illness. He requests prayer for diagnosis and healing.

Corrie Marsh, daughter of Ida Benson, is facing serious medical procedures in coming days. Please pray for trust in God for Corrie and her family and for the doctors, nurses and technicians to pay attention and do their very best, as well as to be open to God’s guidance.

Cyrus has blood cancer and is very very ill. Please pray the doctors treating him will pay attention and do their very best. Pray also for comfort and peace for Cyrus and his family; pray that if it not be that he will recover that he past restfully to home.

Jill was on life support; her family members traveled a great distance to see her and returned home safely. Jill’s condition improved to critical, but needs your prayers to continue her recovery.

Samson Hendrik has prostate cancer and his kidneys are not working. Pray our Lord Jesus Christ will be close to him and his family of friends during this illness.

In need of a miracle or understanding of God’s Plan

John Thomas, of Malaysia, a long time friend of Bishop Jerry, a persevering servant of the Lord for many years. His health has begun to fade in his present age of 79. Please pray the Lord will extend a merciful hand to John, and his devoted wife Gina, in working out His perfect will for both.

Joey Angelica is a recovering addict with liver cancer and diabetes, he lost his job during the plandemic, then found out he has liver cancer. He is a very strong Christian, he and his friend Vicki ask that you pray for his recovery and continued trust in God.

Michael Baran – End stage congestive heart failure. 20 March 20 at 10:56 AM To all my friends and family I had to go to the hospital in Rochester NY where I had my implant mechanical heart assist pump placed in my abdomen. I have end stage heart failure. On Wednesday I had to go to the hospital I was in need of a wheelchair I was very weak and I needed to have someone push me because I got short of breath, and I was so weak, I needed assistance to get up out of the wheelchair. I had to do a walk test and I had to have help to stand up my blood pressure was so low. I fell back In to the wheel chair. I tried to walk after they got me up and was able to use the hand rail and walk about a hundred feet there were two aids behind me I had to stop and nearly collapsed. They kept me from going down. After all the tests were done the Nurse practitioner reviewed over the results. I had one valve replaced about 6 months ago. But now the other 3 are leaking, there is not much they can do for me.

Yesterday I prayed that if God didn’t need me here. to take me home. I long to be free of this old body and to see my Lord, my family and friends that have gone on to their rewards, to be with them evermore. I told the Lord if he needs me here then he needs to renew my strength so that I can walk.

I woke up this morning and felt good. I got up to go to the bathroom and to my surprise I did not struggle to stand up!!! I actually walked to the bathroom without a walker. I am back in bed crying as I write this to you as the Holy Spirit brought to my mind Isaiah 40:31 ..Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength and shall soar on wings like eagles they will run and not grow weary they shall walk and not faint.

I have been unable to walk more than 100 ft or so, for the last six months in the last two weeks my oxygen saturation was as low as 74 and unable to walk without a walker. have a lift chair-recliner in the TV room. I am now able to get up without it.!!!

My God is an awesome God he has heard my prayers and has indeed strengthened me.!!!

Janine Alvarado’s daughter has what appears to be terminal cancer, she is in much pain, in and out of the hospital. She asks that you pray for a miraculous recovery for her daughter and if that not be God’s will, a safe passing home. She asks you pray also for peace of mind and strength for both of them.

Neal has heart problems and is very weak, he also has COPD, kidney problems, his potassium is too high, he came back from the point of death. He is now home and permanently on oxygen. He is doing well, for that he and his family are grateful and ask your thanksgiving prayers. More importantly, please pray Neal will accept salvation through our Lord and Savior.

Paul is in hospice and ready to meet His Lord. Please pray for Paul as he prepares to go home to be with his family who have gone before him. Pray for the faith of his family to build and the transition to be good.

Dot is an elderly woman with liver cancer. Please pray for Dot as she prepares to go home to be with her family who have gone before her. Pray for the faith of her family to build and the transition to be good.

Mrs. Tiffany (90) has chosen to refuse extraordinary care as it will not gain much earthly time. The Tiffanys have been together for a long, long, long time. Pray for Mrs. Tiffany and her husband as together they begin this Journey to be with their Lord.

Saundra is in ICU with congestive heart failure after a heart operation. She is aged and frail. Saundra is near the end of her time here on earth. Please pray for comfort, understanding, strength and guidance for Saundra and her family who will of necessity remain behind. Pray for the love of God to stay foremost in their hearts.

Polly is in hospice care with dementia and spinal stenosis. Please pray for her as she prepares to go home to be with her family who have gone before her. Pray for the faith of her family to build and the transition to be good.

Ron had a Heart Attack, at the hospital he found out he also has Kidney Cancer. He is a man of faith and is in need of prayer for his health and that the Lord will provide strength for his family.

Krysti is off life support and able to talk, please give thanks for the good news. She is still unable to feel her legs. When that comes back she will go to a rehabilitation facility. Krysti has used drugs, has high blood pressure, is diabetic and has organ failure. Her families are with her and will appreciate your prayers.

Pat has metastatic osteosarcoma; there is little that can be done. Please pray for a miraculous remission; that Pat’s remaining time here on earth might be good. Help Pat and family put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their sadness, fear, worry and terror.

Amy has been diagnosed with metastatic melanoma and has cancer all over her body, and in one of her kidneys which are no longer functioning. Amy and her family have asked for prayer to stop the growth and to aid the family financially with the medical bills. At present she has to have surgery every two months to place stents. Pray Jesus will be close to all.

Gemma Dillinger has been treating for breast cancer for over a year now, after surgeries, radiation and chemotherapy, she is reaching the limit of her tolerance with no end in sight. Please pray for her to gain strength and ground on the cancer. Help her to continue with her faith in our Lord, she is not afraid to go home, but wants to make sure it is time. Pray she will be encouraged to not give up until it is her time to go and that her time here on earth with her family will be good.

Janet has had a blood borne cancer for several years. Her faith in the Lord is great and she is ready to be with Him. Pray she will be encouraged to not give up until it is her time to go.

Holly has had Colon Cancer, Breast Cancer and now it is in her spine. Please pray for guidance for the medical personnel treating Holly, for a miraculous remission; that Holly’s remaining time here on earth might be good. Help Holly and her family put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their sadness, fear, worry and terror. Pray for strength and courage for Holly.

Tim was on a kidney transplant list and started dialysis and was taken off the transplant list for a heart problem that required stents, while putting in stents a leaking valve was found. A port was put in and something happened and it has to be redone. In several days he will have a valve replaced, after heart surgery and recover he will go back on the transplant li Please remember him in prayer in the days and weeks ahead. Pray he will put his worry on God’s shoulders so he might be at peace and re Pray for those treating him that they might pay attention and do their best.

Marilyn has been diagnosed with non-operable pancreatic cancer. Please pray for a miraculous remission; that Marilyn’s remaining time here on earth might be good. Help Marilyn and her family put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their sadness, fear, worry and terror.

June found she has a recurrence of colon cancer, which is now Stage Four, that is it has spread. Please pray for a miraculous remission; that June’s remaining time here hon earth might be good. Help June and her family put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their sadness, fear, worry and terror.

Leon McKay suffered a stroke a few weeks back that has left him unable to speak and while undergoing evaluation the doctors also found he has a very aggressive cancer. Please pray for a miraculous remission; that Leon’s remaining time here on earth might be good. Help Leon and his family put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their worry.

Rev. Thomas Brooks is not improving and being kept alive by artificial machines. Please pray for a miraculous recovery and if that not be God’s Will, a rapid passing to home. Help Thomas’ family put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their worry.

Ronnie has kidney cancer that has spread and the surgeons are very concerned. Please pray the medical team to formulate a successful treatment plan and for a miraculous remission; that Ronnie’s remaining time here on earth might be good. Help Ronnie and family put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their worry.

Levi was cancer free for 4 years and just discovered he has kidney cancer. Levi has a great deal of faith and said whether he is healed or God takes him home he will be fine. Please pray for the medical team to pay attention and to their best and for a good outcome. Pray also that Levi and family will be able to put their worry on God’s shoulders. In particular, please pray for pain relief; Levi is 22 years old.

Ray Daley is a member of the Royal Canadian Legion and served his country during the Korean War era. Ray is taking chemotherapy treatments for cancer. Meanwhile his son Trevor is in the hospital in a coma and seems to have lost the will to live.

Pat has been under treatment for colon cancer for some time. He has had major complications the last few days and your prayers will be appreciated by family and friends.

Dorothy had pneumonia, on checking her lungs they found tumors which permeated the lung area. Further investigation found a primary site in the colon, with the lung being secondary. It would appear there is no viable treatment at this time. Please pray for a miraculous remission; that her remaining time here on earth might be good. Help Dorothy and her family put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their worry.

Becky has fourth stage metastasized lung cancer and is not doing well with chemotherapy treatments. Please pray for Becky and her husband as they are together during this difficult time in their lives.

Colleen has been battling pancreatic cancer over the last year and it has now spread to one of her lungs. Please keep her and her family in your prayers.

Christine has cancer of the colon, which spread to her liver; she is receiving chemotherapy and is having difficulty eating. Please pray for the medical team treating her to pay attention and do their very best; pray also for confidence in our Lord for Christine and her family.

Homebound or Infirm

Jim and Pam Lanno – After Jim was recovering from a heart attack, he noticed something was off. Soon came the diagnosis of ALS along with dementia. He is in his early 60s. Pam is learning the role of care taker and overwhelmed and fearful at times. Both are good Christians and love the Lord with all their hearts. Pray for God’s Comfort and Guidance for both and all caretakers who assist.

Babe in her late 80s is experiencing an inability to move at times throughout her day and fear of anyone helping her. Please pray for her family who are caretakers that they may be able to provide the care she needs.

John has Alzheimer’s pray he will call on God to help him as he deals with this.

Steve, brother in law of Paul Martin, appears to have early onset dementia. Steve had teenage children and is very concerned for them. Please pray for the disease to stall or abate and for peace of mind for Steve and his family.

Joan has had serious medical problems that have kept her confined. Please pray her health will remain stable.

Surgery

Hap Arnold is set to undergo surgery on Monday 7 November 2022, for his right elbow as the result of a fall due to his own inattention. Please pray for the doctors, nurses and technicians involved to pay attention, to be open to God’s guidance and to their very best, as well as for a full and rapid recovery and patience for him.

Edware is having his fourth back surgery (in the last four years) Please pray for the medical team to pay attention and to their best and for a good outcome. Pray also that Edware and his family will be able to put their worry on God’s shoulders.

Jeff has been undergoing surgery, chemo and radiation since October for pancreatitis and Pancreatic cancer. Please pray for the medical team to pay attention and to their best and for a good outcome. Pray also that Jeff, his wife and family will be able to put their worry on God’s shoulders.

Albert had a pacemaker installed recently. He will require surgery soon for a leaking heart valve and has just been told he has esophageal cancer. Pray he will turn to God and come to know Him on a more personal basis as the days go by.

Mario has early-diagnosed prostate cancer and had surgery. Pray for complete remission and that Mario and his family will be able to put their worry on God’s shoulders.

Testing and Treatment

Melissa Morgan, a young woman in her thirties just found out she has ovarian cancer. Pray with Melissa, her family and friends the physicians treating her will be guided in their assessment and treatment plan, for a full and speedy recovery to good health and for continued trust in the Lord for Melissa, her family and friends in this worrisome time.

April and her husband ask you prayers for the Lord to guide them and lead them both to the correct medical care; and that the family may receive comfort in the process.

Josh has two little children and just discovered he has a rare form of Cancer. Please keep him and his family in your prayers in the days ahead.

Ross an elderly gentleman has been diagnosed with Leukemia. Ross has had good health until now, your prayers at this time will be appreciated by his family and friends.

Carman was just diagnosed with breast cancer. Pray for her family as they continue to help her get the proper care. Pray with Carman, her family and friends that the physicians treating her will be guided in their assessment and treatment plan, for a full and speedy recovery to good health and for continued trust in the Lord for Carman, her family and friends in this worrisome time.

Tina just found out she has cancer on her left kidney. Please pray for guidance for the people treating her and for trust in our Lord for Tina and her family.

Martha is now home after testing and she does not have cancer, but she does have bad kidneys and is adjusting and getting ideas to work with that. Please pray for guidance for the people treating her and for trust in our Lord for her.

Spencer has been diagnosed with Autism. Please pray for guidance for the people treating him and for trust in our Lord for him and his mother Lorna.

Michael has cancer of the blood and is starting chemotherapy. Please pray for the physicians treating him to be guided in their assessment and treatment plan, for a full and speedy recovery to good health and for trust in the Lord for Michael.

Jim Sevier has been in the hospital for heart related troubles. Please pray with Jim and his family the physicians treating him will be guided in their assessment and treatment plan, for a full and speedy recovery to good health and for trust in the Lord for Jim and his family in this worrisome time.

Claude has been falling and he does not know why. Pray doctors will discover what the problem is and he can continue without any more difficulties.

Gretchen has been diagnosed with severe osteoporosis and is now being treated with exercise, nutrition and vitamins. Please pray with Gretchen and her family the physicians treating her will be guided in their assessment and treatment plan, for a full and speedy recovery to good health and for trust in the Lord for Gretchen and her family in this worrisome time.

Pete has not been well and is back in the hospital with another stroke. Please pray for the physicians treating him to be guided in their assessment and treatment plan, for a full and speedy recovery to good health and for trust in the Lord for Pete and his family in this worrisome time.

Mary Lee has bleeding into her stomach and they cannot find the sources. Mary Lee is in CCU and her husband Maurice is not eating until she returns home for is so upset. Please pray for the physicians treating her to be guided in their assessment and treatment plan, for a full and speedy recovery to good health and for trust in the Lord for her, Maurice, as well as the rest of the family in this worrisome time.

Glenn Porter, MAJ USMC Retired, has Interstitial Pulmonary Fibrosis, which causes him to be unable to get enough oxygen into his system without supplemental oxygen all the time. The only real treatment is a lung transplant, without a transplant he has between two to five years here on earth. Please pray for him to continue in his faith and for a set of lungs to become available.

Pat has an aneurism of the brain, pray she will make the right decision on how to treat this problem and it will be healed.

Dan is very sick with cancer and is starting an experimental treatment. This treatment will take Dan away from their family business and put even more stress on him and his family. Please pray for Dan’s wife who is meeting with Steve who plans to keep the family business going while Dan is ill. Pray for Steve as he has many new responsibilities.

Timothy has brain cancer. He had surgery and is waiting for the pathology report to find out what kind of chemo he will need. Please pray for continued guidance for the medical team treating Timothy and patience and trust in God for Timothy and his family. Pray also for a full recovery for Timothy.

Elma has been suffering with headaches for a long time. Doctors have not been able to discover the reason for them. Pray for strength, courage and understanding for Elma and her family; as well as for God’s guidance for the medical people caring for her that they might find the best treatment method to banish the headaches completely.

Deborah has had a stroke, she is doing much better and out of the hospital. She has a problem with anemia and is taking supplements for that. Pray our Lord will be close to her and her family. Pray for strength, courage and understanding for Deborah and her family; as well as for God’s guidance for the medical people caring for her that they might find the best treatment method to allow her to heal completely.

Rev. Steve Boardman has been diagnosed with stage 3 cancer. Pray that Jesus will be close and comfort his family and members of his congregation.

Hang So Ryu has cancer. Please pray for medical team contemplating and evaluating the treatment that they might be guided to the correct choice and do their very be Pray also for peace of mind and trust in God for him and his family, as well as physical strength.

Olivia, age 7, has been diagnosed with Stage 3 Lymphoma. The prognosis is good at this time, please pray for medical team contemplating and evaluating the treatment that they might be guided to the correct choice and do their very be Pray also for peace of mind and trust in God for Olivia and her family, as well as physical strength.

Paul has been hospitalized recently several times because of persistent high fevers. He is being tested and checked by physicians and seems to have a slight scoliosis, a node and Schuermann’s disease. Please pray it will be discovered how to treat these problems and healing will begin so he will be inspired to continue his education.

Rick has heart problems. Please pray for guidance for the medical people treating him that they might pay attention, do their very best and make the right recommendations regarding treatment. Pray for help for Rick and his wife Wanda to keep their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their worry.

Stacy has Multiple Sclerosis and was hospitalized for what turned out to be food poisoning. Pray for trust in God for Stacy and Chris as they deal with Stacy’s illness.

Faye is in the hospital because she is weak has been receiving blood transfusions. Pray for strength, courage and understanding for Faye and her family; as well as for God’s guidance for the medical people treating her that they might find the best course of treatment and allow Faye to heal completely.

Tom has heart and kidney problems. Pray for strength, courage and understanding for Tom and his family; as well as for God’s guidance for the medical people treating him that they might find the best course of treatment and allow Tom to heal completely.

Joe has had a preliminary ALS diagnosis. Pray the final diagnosis will something that will allow him to continue taking care of his devoted young family. Pray for strength, courage and understanding for Joe and his family; as well as for God’s guidance for the medical people treating him that they might find the best course of treatment.

Preston is reacting poorly to recent neck surgery and now has problems with his liver count; Physicians feel that dialysis will help. There may be a blockage in the bowel and an operation might be necessary. Please pray for the medical team to pay attention and to their best to determine how to help Preston and for a good outcome. Pray also that Preston and family will be able to put their worry on God’s shoulders while Preston does his best to facilitate a return to good health.

Brenda is in the hospital because of bleeding on her brain. Please pray for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for Brenda, as well as for her family, and for God’s guidance for the medical people treating her that they might find the best course of treatment.

Mackenzie is a young girl with leukemia. Please pray for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for Mackenzie, as well as for her family, and for God’s guidance for the medical people treating her that they might find the best course of treatment.

Mack has had diabetes most of his adult life. Circulation in his legs is very bad and doctors are considering amputation. Please pray his medication will help and he will not face amputation. Please pray for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for Mack and for God’s guidance for the medical people treating him that they might find the best course of treatment.

Michael has been diagnosed with lung cancer recently after making it through gastro intestinal cancer last year. Please pray for peace of mind and trust in the Lord for Michael and his wife Gayle; as well as for God’s guidance for the medical people treating him that they might find the best course of treatment.

Adriano is in the hospital due to high sugar and high blood pressure. He is very weak and will appreciate your prayers.

Heather recently found out she has cancer. Please pray for peace of mind for her and for the medical team treating her will be guided to the right solution.

Jim has had an aneurism and blood clots. Pray that healing will come.

Georgia has liver and pancreatic cancer. The doctors are evaluating whether to do surgery and how to tackle the disease. Georgia is a faithful Christian and appreciates your prayers. Pray for God’s guidance for the medical people treating her that they might find out the source of the problem and best course of treatment. Pray also for peace of mind and trust in God for Georgia and her family.

Lana’s doctor found something on her lymph nodes and ovaries. Pray for God’s guidance for the medical people treating her that they might find out the source of the problem and best course of treatment. Pray also for peace of mind and trust in God for Lana and her family.

Healing

Madisun Hanks (19) has Tourette’s Syndrome and suffers from horrible migraine headaches. There are various very high risk treatments which provide some relief. None of them are close and none are easy. Madisun is truly one of the most inspiring young ladies we have ever come across, her attitude and actions are almost unbelievable. No one should have to go through what she does, but she makes it through and performs incredibly when others just get by. Please pray for Madisun, her mom Hilda who guides her through all this and those treating her.

Hilda Hanks has developed diabetes, which resulted in the need for eye surgery and has difficulty with the added stress in her life. Pray for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating her to pay attention, to be open to God’s guidance and do their very best. Pray for trust in our Lord and peace of mind for Hilda and Madisun.

Linda recently had a basal cell carcinoma removed and she is doing well, 15 years with Multiple Myeloma is doing great. She is continuing bimonthly chemo and this keeps her going strong, she is grateful for all prayers.

Chris Hill (close friend of Jon Weston) suffered a brain aneurysm and needs your prayers. He came out of a coma he had been in since the week before Christmas 2016. He is now in a stepdown facility. Every day is a new day to him; his memory seems to have been damaged to a point where it is not recovering so far. Pray for the doctors, nurses and technicians treating him to pay attention, to be open to God’s guidance and do their very be Pray for trust in our Lord and peace of mind for Chris and his family.

Rev Bill had a stroke. Pray he will stay comfortable and Jesus will be close by, please pray for a full and rapid recovery.

Vickie has been bothered with Migraines and all that go with the headaches. Please pray for relief from the pain for Vickie.

Jon has Stage 4 mantle cell lymphoma. There is good news in that he is in remission; however the chemotherapy is producing neuropathy in his legs so it is a challenge for him to get around. Please pray that he will be as comfortable as possible; he has been a Marathon runner so this is especially difficult.

Amy has melanoma in her lungs, liver and kidneys; they have found a treatment for her that has a high success rate however the side effects are debilitating. Please pray she will be able to tolerate the side effects and the treatment is successful. Amy has full trust in the Lord, but would still appreciate your prayers.

Liz had a massive stroke at age thirty-seven. The prognosis is good but she has a long road ahead. Please pray for guidance for those treating her, for trust in our Lord for Liz and her family, for healing.

Ebick is suffering from a severe ulcer but the Doctors cannot give her the proper dosage of the medicine due to her six month pregnancy. Please pray doctors will find an alternative avenue for treatment or that God will provide.

Stan is going through chemotherapy and radiation treatments for cancer. He is elderly and the treatments are tiring him. Please pray for his wife Marvelene as they do this together.

David has many concussions and unable to go to school, read books, watch TV and has headaches and migraines. He has trouble sleeping and his family will appreciate your prayers for this 10 year old young man.

Gladys has breast cancer and has had a lumpectomy. She needs to take a year off of her work to have chemo treatments.

Alwin Jack has had a stroke and recently has had a relapse. Please pray for those who treat Alwin that they might choose the best possible treatment and pray for peace of mind for Alwin during the recovery phase.

Carolyn has Multiple Sclerosis with complications. Pray Carolyn and her children will be close to our Lord Jesus Christ as they and family members help to ease the problems.

Bill had malignant growth removed from a lip last month and seems to be experiencing a re-growth of the cancer. He asks your prayer for the medical team treating him and for peace of mind for himself.

Hank has osteoporosis, which has caused him a great deal of pain and inconvenience in the past few years. Pray for his healing and that his medical bills will be met.

Evelyn is an elderly woman who has had problems with her eyes and is now blind. It appears some sight will return shortly, pray for that to happen!

Joanne has begun kidney dialysis as a result of kidney failure due to extensive chemotherapy. Additionally she cares for an adopted drug addicted baby who is now nine years old. Please pray for her to keep her faith, to let the Lord carry her worry and concern and to give her strength. Pray also for those treating her that they might pay attention and do their best.

Bud and his wife for their continued welfare and enthusiasm. Bud has been advised of an aneurism in his heart of a size not mandating immediate surgery. This comes at a time when he has sole care of his wife who recently broke two vertebrae and thereafter sustained pneumonia.

Dester is suffering from unknown skin and diseases. Please guide the medical team treating him to find out what the problem is and cure it. Pray also for Dester to trust in the Lord.

Lee has Arterial Fibrillation, she is doing much better and she and her family thank you for your prayers. Her pain level is high and some medications have bad side effects. Please continue her in Prayer in the weeks ahead as she heals.

Nell recently adopted two children and has just been diagnosed with multiple myeloma.

Mary Lou has been suffering with seizures. She was in the hospital with a 24 hour monitor and is being sent home from the hospital with two medications and orders to return in 2 months for another MRI to review whatever is going on in her brain. Please pray for guidance for the medical people treating her, as well as peace of mind and trust in God for her and her family.

Kathleen has spent the last two weeks in the hospital. She has been diagnosed with colitis, shingles and possibly colon cancer. Pray she will be comfortable and begin to heal.

Rachel has Mitochondrial Myopathy. This is a hereditary disease of the muscles and they do not have a cure for it. Part of her pain is her family does not believe she is indeed ill, as she appears to be just fine. Please pray her family will learn the truth and be supportive of her; pray also the medical people treating her will find the right measures to minimize the disease. Most particularly pray for Rachel’s trust in God.

Nicolas is in the hospital with serious symptoms of a heart disorder. Please pray for peace of mind for him and guidance for the medical team looking for the cause and cure.

Juanita is a young girl who was in a coma because of a blood disease. She has not come out and is gaining strength. They are awaiting results from blood samples. Her family thanks you for your prayers and asks that you continue.

Healing and Patience

Angie Colgrove has various problems and challenges, physical, mental, and spiritual. She asks you pray for guidance for her and those treating her, as well as for her family.

Kym (43) has various hip problems which seems to be related to osteoarthritis. And, her mother Ruth is in the early stages of dementia. Pray for guidance for those treating both of them, as well as patience and trust in the Lord for both of them.

Christopher has had problems with his leg for some time. Now he has to have it casted and it will stay that way for what to him seems an interminable time. Pray for patience and peace of mind for this young man who has much he wants to do.

James for the Lord’s healing of health issues and give a remedy for many personal challenges at the moment.

Thanksgiving and Continued Healing

Barbara (Paulette Ratcliff’s) sister, has battled stomach cancer through removal of tumor and chemotherapy but the tumor returned at 7 centimeters. She had apparently successful surgery on Friday 24 June 2022. Please give thanks for the successful surgery and for a full and rapid recovery and for full remission of the cancer. Pray also for peace of mind for Barbara, her children, her sisters and brothers.

Deborah Drucilla, sister of Bishop Jerry, was hospitalized with a number of issues including blood clot in her liver. She is now home. Please give thanks for a good result so far and a full and rapid recovery, for peace of mind for her and her family.

Wendy Hinman, one of Hap Arnold’s backseaters from the Air Force and a great Christian of much faith, had successful double bypass surgery on 14 March 2022 to replace two stents which failed. He ended up with a lung blood clot and back in the hospital. He is back home again. Please give thanks for the successful surgery and for continued healing and for peace of mind. He is depressed and beset by thoughts he does not want to confront.

Ken Harris underwent apparently very successful quadruple bypass surgery on 8 April 2021, please give thanks for that and continued healing and recovery.

Bill had surgery November 2016 for a kidney tumor; he is one kidney short, but recovering very well for the present. It appears the cancer has spread to another spot. Please pray for Bill as he undergoes chemotherapy and perhaps other treatment. Pray Bill and his family will stay strong in their faith and draw the strength they need from our Lord.

Cindy (81) had an operation to remove a cancerous growth in her stomach which was successful. She is now home, but in a bit of pain. Please give thanks for the good result, pray for full and complete healing and remission of the cancer, as well as cessation of the pain; pray also for continued faith for Cindy and her husband Les (91).

Ruby broke her hip on 10 December 2015, surgery was successful. Please give thanks for the successful surgery and pray for her full and rapid recovery.

Terry was undergoing radiation treatment for cancer, which he had to stop to amputate his leg below the knee due to diabetes. The surgery was successful, he has been fitted with a prosthetic leg and foot. He is in good spirits and positive about the remainder of his treatment. Please join Terry and his family in giving thanks for the successful surgery and continue to pray for his return to radiation treatment and then to chemotherapy, ask God to give Terry, his wife and seven year old son trust in him for peace of mind and heart, as well.

Janet Jessup had a stroke and heart problems were causing huge issues for her. They seem to have gotten her stabilized and she is home. Please pray for those treating her to find the appropriate treatment and for trust in God and peace of mind for Janet and her family, in particular her husband of 45 years, Rev Roger Jessup, retired minister of Saint Joseph of Arimathea Anglican Orthodox Church.

Sam had surgery on his entire large intestine that had become infected. At the time of the operation he was just hours away from a complete organ shutdown. He had had turmoil in his life over the years. Sam is now in the ICU and his Minister visited him and explained to him God had given him another chance for him to make things right with his Lord. Pray for his good health and his spiritual life with Jesus.

Ian had surgery to remove excess skin rendered a nuisance by controlled lost of 200 pounds. Please give thanks for the successful result and for those treating him to have paid attention and done their very best on the lengthy surgery, taking the best possible care of him. Please pray for his continued recovery and strength for his Mother who will be in charge of his after care.

Jenniffer had surgery for breast cancer on 15 October 2014. She continues to have other complications which preclude her from making a full recovery in particular, the reconstructive surgery seems to have gravely affected her back muscles and nerves, resulting in both very limited mobility and extreme pain, the drugs are making her terribly sick; please pray those will be overcome. Pray for help for Jenniffer to keep her trust in the Lord and let Him carry her worry and concern as she recovers. Please pray also for strength and courage for her family as they try their best to help her.

Elma is suffering from cancer. She was taken home from the hospital on the advice of her Doctor. We were asked to pray Elma’s remaining time here on earth might be good and Elma and family might put their trust in the Lord and let Him carry their worry. Since then, Elma’s Bishop told us a great Miracle of the Lord is working over Elma. Doctors sent her home to die, but now she seems to be doing all right. On behalf of her, thank you for all of your prayers. Please continue praying for her complete healing.

Mike is a veteran who has served his country when she called. Please pray he will open his heart to God so He can make Mike’s crooked road straight and pull him towards the summit rather than to the pit.

Financial Guidance and Employment

Kona is applying for a job in the hospital. Pray our Lord will find the right position for her and she will glorify Him in the work.

Doug recently became unemployed from his job of 18 years. He has been applying for jobs, but unable to get one at this time. His wife is working; this is not enough for the family. Please pray he will find employment with a firm that will be able to use his considerable skill and hard work to benefit both the firm and the family.

Lori is considering a potential change in her employment. Please pray for God’s guidance in considering all aspects of her potential work.

Financial Guidance and Healing

Clark is in need of salvation; for God’s Will to be done in his life. Pray his family will be blessed with the financial miracles that come from doing His Will.

Guidance

Jackie and her son Tommy, Jackie 10 years free of substance use, returned to substance use while pregnant with Tommy who was born free of substances. Tommy has been removed from her and placed with Grandparents. Pray for the Grandparents strength and courage to raise Tommy in a Godly way and for Jackie to return to the Lord and give up substance use and become a responsible Mother.

Zachary is still having huge problems growing up. He has backed away from much of the evil, but seemingly has adopted the sloth as his ‘spirit animal’ and does not want to move forward in life. Pray his parents Lee and Shamu will come to see what course of action they can take to help Zachary and safeguard his brother and sister. Please pray for God’s guidance for all of them and in particular for Zachary to open his heart to God and his parents help.

Linda is slowly converting her children through her great loving attitude and Love of the Lord.

Judy seemingly does not want to allow the Holy Ghost into her heart so she might come to know our Lord and Savior, despite the efforts of her family. Please pray for her to open her heart and for her family to be at peace with their efforts.

Barbara has been recovering from cancer for the last three years. Pray for her husband Bill who has come down with a mental illness that may have been caused by much stress the last few years. Barbara and Bill will appreciate your prayers.

Larry is very weak and has periods of confusion and depression. Larry has been in the hospital and recently moved to a rehab. Please keep him in prayer as he begins to gain strength in the days ahead.

Thomas recently learned as the result of a parole violation he will not be allowed to return to society for the remainder of his life. He is despairing and fearful of his inability to cope with this new news and God’s plan for his life. Please pray he will be able to work with God to live with the choices he has made and go forward.

Cam has gotten into some of the issues being with the wrong crowds, too much dinking and making the wrong decisions. Pray he will ask God to send the Holy Ghost in to straighten things out and he will listen when He speaks to him.

Paul recently had his large toe amputated due to diabetes and is having a difficult recovery filled with fear about dying. He recently accepted Jesus as his savior and his family Rosie and Brenda are very grateful. Pray for strength for both Rosie and Brenda who are staying by his side through it all encouraging him on.

Steve is addicted to alcohol, pain pills and gambling. Pray for wisdom, courage and strength to stick with treatment and follow God’s plan for his life.

Eli has some mental issues and has lost his way. He has yet to come to grips with the demons chasing him. He has returned to his family living in a cottage on his parents’ property in Hawaii so that they can keep him on his meds. He is doing much better, but he still needs prayer to follow his medication schedule. His parents are so thankful for all of the prayers as they have felt the Holy Spirit’s power in handling Eli during his dark periods.

Michael and his Family ask your prayers for wisdom as they are under trial and affliction to follow the law of the land and yet honor God in so doing.

Flora is in remission with cancer, but has high blood pressure and fatigue. Flora’s Mother recently died and this has caused added stress. Please pray she will be able to let God carry her worry and sorrow so she can do the things she must do.

Mitten has a Christian talking to him about Christ. Mitten does not believe and does not seem to care. Please pray Mitten will see the light.

Kristen, Rickey and their two children ask you to pray for grace, wisdom and understanding as they attempt to cope with infidelity, separation and possibly divorce as a result of backsliding from the Lord into the World.

Helene and her family ask your prayers for them as they deal with the loss of Alan, husband and father.

Caitlin is in the grip of the Prince of Darkness; she thinks there is escape from reality in drugs. The saddest part is that reality is not as she sees it. Her family is despairing as they can do nothing to help her and ask that you pray for the Holy Ghost to enter into heart and show her the need for change before it is too late.

Nathaniel is in spiritual turmoil. His family and friends will appreciate it if you will keep him in your prayers for him to find the root of his trouble and accept God’s help.

Sam and her two children have been living in a shelter and are to lose their place there. Please pray a place will be found they can stay in and recover.

Norrie is facing daily exams in the weeks ahead. Pray for calmness and concentration and to do the best possible.

Jonathan is addicted to drugs. He is now in jail awaiting trial. His parents and friends will appreciate it if you will keep him in your prayers for him to find the root of his trouble and accept God’s help to heal addiction.

Beth is suffering from ungodly treatment in her marriage. Please pray God will guide her in her behavior, actions and thoughts that she might be able to lead her husband to God so her marriage might prosper to the benefit of them.

Jeanette has had many members of her family die from diabetes and several are near death now. Jeanette does not know the Lord and is despondent and perplexed about her family and herself. Please pray she can open her heart to allow the Holy Ghost in to bring her knowledge and understanding.

Sara asks that you pray for guidance for her as she deals with the stresses of life. Pray she can separate those things which she can affect from those things which she cannot and give her grace to accept that she cannot do everything and can only change those things within her control. She asks for God’s help to keep up with the needs of her husband and healing her own problems.

Jacquie to open her heart to God and accept His Love and Grace.

School Challenges

Destiny, Blake and Janet

Anglican Orthodox Church

Solomon Islands

Please pray for Bishop Zephaniah, the AOC and all the peoples of the Solomon Islands who are experiencing civil unrest as a result of the government switching their alliance from Taiwan to Communist China.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/solomon-islands-leader-blames-foreign-powers-unrest-australian-forces-arrive-n1284619

Diocese of Central and South America

Rev Miguel Madera was received into the Anglican Orthodox Church on 13 August 2018, with the AOC mission of San Augustin de Canterbury, La Plata, Argentina.

Indonesia

Please pray for the Lord’s will regarding the establishment of an AOC church in Indonesia.

Pakistan

General and Ongoing – The forces of evil are strong in Pakistan. The force of God stronger. Pray for our Christian family there.

Ernest Jacob

Presiding Bishop Pakistan

Congo

Jimmy is a missionary in the Congo. There has been violent unrest in this country and also a water shortage. Please pray people will find water to drink and Jimmy will be a means of helping others to find the Lord.

Philippines

We are generally doing good, except that all boundary checkpoint out were tightened again due to the DELTA VARIANT entered the city. On the other side, our members in Tulodan are now experiencing famine due to the effect of the recent continues heavy rains during the month of July to early August which completely destroyed their vegetable plantation.

Bishop Anthony Pangsiw

Diocese of the Epiphany

Saint Paul’s Moberly, Missouri would like your prayers that the Holy Ghost might enter more fully into their hearts so that they might be more effective in spreading the Word of God.

Diocese of Virginia

Saint Joseph of Arimathea Anglican Orthodox Church is under a lot of stress. We all are, but they need even more prayer. Rev Roger Jessup, their wonderful minister, had to retire as he was so pressed by the duties of a primary care giver, in addition to all the worries of this world. Pray for trust in God for each member of the parish and for them to find economic relief.

Columbiq

I am writing to request your prayers for Colombia, my country. At this moment frightful things are happening, a great diabolical shadow is cast over this nation.

The Constitutional Court in a tyrannical way has decriminalized the crime of abortion in Colombia, even up to six months. This is an illegitimate process, the court is legislating, something that is not within the competence of the judges, on the other hand the issue of abortion was a cause judged in 2006, which is why it should not be judged again in 2022. But socialist groups, international elites, social engineers and feminist groups have not given up on the issue. They want to traffic in death.

The candidate of the extreme left Gustavo Petro is close to become the president of Colombia, this is a man who in his youth was a guerrilla criminal, a vile and despicable man who has always served the interests of drug trafficking, he was an advisor to Chavez who implanted Communism in Venezuela, his second home is Communist Cuba.

The same court approved the movement of Gustavo Petro called: la Colombia Humana, it gave him the status of a political party, with this, he has the possibility of getting to introduce at least 15 congressmen, basically he is close to kidnapping all the powers, he already has the judicial power in his pocket, he only lacks the executive and the legislative. We are close to the precipice, we trust in a miracle of God.

We hope you support us with your prayers, I will ask the brothers to pray unceasingly so that in his mercy we will be saved from these perverse men. God bless you and keep you in all things.

Your servant in Christ,

Bishop José Antonio Rios

Armed Forces & Contractors

Dustin (USAF – Stateside), SGT Donny Patton (USAF – Hulbert Field, Florida), Jordan Brown (USMC – Recruiter – Iowa City, Iowa), Trevor Jennings (USAF – KC-10 Boom Operator – McGuire AFB, NJ), Trevor Di Marco (USN – Whidbey Island, EF-18 Pilot), Kurt Thomas (USN – Headquarters, Virginia), Ethan (US Army Airborne – Southwest Asia) Sarah Schumacher (US Army Kuwait), Lourie DeBoer (NTPS Patuxent River, Maryland)

Employment

Sharon Derrington is in need of full time employment. Please pray she might find a suitable position.

For Our Country

Our country has lost its way. Over half the people that vote, voted for a government that promises them things it cannot deliver in return for their souls which it can, will and does take. Our foreign policy backs the rise of Islam, we turn our backs on those who would follow God and arm those who murder them. Pray God will raise up a leader from among the people who can turn the country’s course 180° and attempt to come back to God. Pray the people will recognize that they are headed down a smooth wide road into the pit, a road that will get smoother and smoother, steeper and steeper until the only possible way is down. Down, into the depths of the pit. Pray people will recognize there is:

One True and Triune God who is goodness in and of Himself;
All religions are not equal;
All ways of life are not equal;
The Bible holds the Key to Life;
All rights come from God, not the State;
Good;
Bad;
Evil;
Right;
Wrong;
Allah is the Devil;
Abortion is no more than sacrifice of children to Baal.

Pray this recognition will not come too late. Pray we will, each of us, do our duty to God, Country and Family, putting His Honor above all.

Persecuted

Around the world, Christians are under attack, not only in the Muslim world, but from Hindus and others in India. Also, they are under continual attack in the name of Separation of Church and State in the western world, as it becomes actively atheist or pro-devil buddy. Please pray for God’s guidance and protection for all persecuted Christians and those around them.

Thanksgiving

Tricia gives thanks for her recovery from Covid.

Shamu gives thanks for recovery from Covid.

Rev Yves Mera and his wife give thanks for recovery from Covid.

Eddie Pressey from St. George’s Anglican Church of Ventura gives thanks for recovery from Covid.

Lynn and Katie Hall give thanks for recovery from Covid.

Amy Jamieson gives thanks for recovery from Covid.

Hope and Ralph DeLong give thanks for recovery from Covid.

What is Quinquagesima?

Quinquagesima, or, in full, Quinquagesima Sunday, is the name for the Sunday next before Ash Wednesday in the Catholic (Universal or Whole) Church Calendar.

The name Quinquagesima originates from Latin quinquagesimus (fiftieth), referring to the fifty days before Easter Sunday using inclusive counting, which counts both Sundays (normal counting would count only one of these).

Since the forty days of the Lenten fast included only weekdays, the first day of Lent, Ash Wednesday, succeeds Quinquagesima Sunday by only three days. The earliest Quinquagesima Sunday can occur is February 1 and the latest is March 7. The Roman Church no longer observes much of the Christian Year, including Quinquagesima and the two immediately before it — Sexagesima and Septuagesima Sundays.

The contemporary service books of many claiming to be Anglican provinces do not use the term but it remains in the Book of Common Prayer.

The 17-day period beginning on Septuagesima Sunday spanning Sexuagesima and Quinquagesima Sundays was intended to be observed as a preparation for the season of Lent, which is itself a period of spiritual preparation for Easter. In many countries, however, Septuagesima Sunday marks the start of the carnival season, culminating on Shrove Tuesday, more commonly known as Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday.

Coming Up – The near future, as well as Next Sunday

22 February 2023 – Ash Wednesday – Evening Prayer – Service start time 1800 (6:00 pm); welcome or gathering songs before the service at 1745 (5:45 pm); Time 1800 (6:00 pm); Location – 10603 Burrell Way, Descanso, CA

26 February 2023 – First Sunday in Lent– Morning Prayer – Service start time 1000 (10:00 am); welcome or gathering songs before the service at 0945 (9:45 am); Time 1000 (10:00 am); Location – 10603 Burrell Way, Descanso, CA

[1] Charity – Love; universal benevolence; good will; the word which properly denotes love. Properly understood the Love of God, that perfect love, to which man should aspire. [1913 Webster]

[2] The three Gloster Gladiator fighters Faith, Hope and Charity defended Malta against the Italian Air Force during the early part of the siege of Malta in World War II. Legend has it all three persisted and of the three, Charity never failed.

[3] The average 5-year survival rate for women with non-metastatic invasive breast cancer is 91%. The average 10-year survival rate for women with invasive breast cancer is 84%. If the invasive cancer is located only in the breast, the 5-year survival rate of women with breast cancer is 99%

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