Durham Cathedral. The Lumiere festival

#MorningPrayer
Fill us, Lord,
with such desire
for your kingdom,
for its ways, for its culture,
for its laws of love,
for its justice and its peace,
that we seek diligently
for its revelation to us,
and live our lives in a way
that reveals it to others
and shows your love to all.

#MorningPrayer
#RemembranceSunday
Lord, as we remember today
all those who gave their lives
in the service of others,
grant us courage
to honour their memory,
by giving our lives
in our building of
peace and harmony,
in striving for justice for all,
in shining your light of hope.

Away to the woods....

#MorningPrayer
Lord Jesus,
you share your bread with us,
yet we betray your love
in so many of our attitudes,
actions and aspirations.
In your love, you offer us
forgiveness, mercy,
healing and peace,
and welcome us back
to your table.
Draw us close;
mould us to be
more faithful.

#MorningPrayer
Lord, you choose
to invite us into your fellowship,
and welcome us as your disciples,
placing your call upon our lives
that we might join in your loving work.
Inspire our prayer
that we may listen to and follow
your wisdom and guidance,
rather than selfish desires.

#MorningPrayer
Like your apostles, Lord,
you send us out into the world,
to walk and work in its streets
and the dirt and dust of the world
clings to our feet.
Give us faith to let you
wash us, heal us, and inspire us
to keep living your love
for people and places
that need you.

#MorningPrayer
Lord, save us from being so wedded
to the laws we distil and devise,
that we become divorced
from the law of your love.
Keep us from being so constrained
by the rules we follow,
that we are diverted from following
your wisdom and grace.
Open our hearts to your way.

#MorningPrayer
In the face of all
that stands in the way
of your love, Lord,
all that tries to frustrate
your gift of peace,
you seek to draw all people
close to your heart
and to the new life you offer.
Give us courage and confidence,
faith and fortitude,
to stand in your grace.

#MorningPrayer
Keep us close to you, Lord,
gathered in fellowship and faith
around the table of your grace,
of your self-offering,
of the new covenant of your love.
Keep us focused on,
and responsive to
your agenda rather than our own;
help us ever to follow
your call, your will.

#MorningPrayer
Lord,
help us to recognise
where true worth lies,
and to focus our attention
on the things that we can do
to reveal your kingdom.
Guide us away
from blaming others
for their failings;
help us to know
the places in us
where the temptation
to betray you
lies in wait.

#MorningPrayer
Lord, on this
World Mental Health Day,
and every other day,
keep us mindful
of the need to care for
and consider the wellbeing of
all who carry a burden
of long term or transient
mental ill health,
and to work to create
healthy environments
in which all may thrive.

#MorningPrayer
Keep our focus on you, Lord,
that we may place our trust
in your faithful love,
rather than in things that are
passing and temporal,
however solid and secure
they may seem to us.
Guide us to those things
which help us to encounter,
reveal, and embrace
your kingdom.

#MorningPrayer
Lord, give us your grace
that we may respond
in faithfulness
to all that you entrust
to our keeping.
Inspire us to exercise
faithful stewardship
of your good earth.
Inspire us to offer
faithful care and compassion
to all those you call us to know
as our neighbours.

#MorningPrayer
Bless us, Lord,
as your disciples,
and as your church,
that we may bear
the harvest of your love.
Take from us all desire
to serve ourselves
at the expense of others;
give us your heart
for the wellbeing of all,
that we may bear your fruit
of forgiveness and peace.

#MorningPrayer
Let us hear anew, Lord,
the message of your angels:
“do not be afraid”.
May we know that we are held
in your love and in your arms,
defended from all that would
assail or hurt our souls.
Keep us true to your calling,
that we may, like your angels,
follow your will.

Photos are such a blessing.

#MorningPrayer
Lord, give us vision
to know your presence,
your working in us and among us.
Give us courage and confidence
to call out to you and call upon you
for your peace and healing,
for your forgiveness and love,
for your call upon our lives,
that we may live in your grace.

#MorningPrayer
Lord, as we seek your way,
let us never be so hidebound
by the letter of your commandments,
or held fast by the rigidity of our rules,
that we lose sight of the spirit
of your law of grace.
Grant that our lives
may be led by your love,
and our words by your wisdom.

#MorningPrayer
Help us to seek greatness, Lord;
not the greatness of individuality,
but rather the greatness
that comes with serving you.
Lead us to the greatness
of service, of forgiveness,
of justice, and of peace.
Grant at our legacy in the world,
may be the gift of your love.

#MorningPrayer
Grant to us, Lord,
such a dedication
and devotion
to your mission
in this world,
that we may
give ourselves
to one another
and to you,
in all that we do,
all that we say,
and all that we are,
that all whom we encounter,
and all who encounter us,
may know your love.

#MorningPrayer
Release us, Lord,
from our attachment
to the fleeting wealth
of status, power, possessions,
and all that anaesthetises us
to the call of your kingdom,
to the cherishing of one another,
to the pursuit of
mutual justice and peace;
that we may live your love,
for all.

Seascape changed forever

A scenic photo of clouds under snow capped hills 📷 Mark Hamblin

Over the weekend, the National Park got its first dusting of snow of the season.

This came just in time for the autumn equinox today, marking the shift into the colder months.

Here's one of our favourite autumnal snow photos to celebrate.

What are you most excited about as the temperatures drop?

#MorningPrayer
Grow in us, Lord, an integrity
to the way of your love;
bring to fruition in us
a faithfulness and commitment
in our relationships,
that echoes your fidelity to us.
As we share our love
in families, friendships
and with neighbours near and far,
keep us true to you.

Very true, I look forward to it

I look to the hills, from wence cometh my help...

#MorningPrayer
Help us, Lord,
to experience the generosity
of your love for us;
not only in what you do for us
day by day,
and the peace you bring us
as we walk with you,
but in the glory of your cross,
as you open your arms wide,
as if saying
“How much do I love you?
This much.”

The Red Arrows fly past for the Great North Run

Remind us Lord Jesus,
that your love extends
across difference and divides,
to the stranger, the foreigner,
the one to whom we would
not normally look.
Remind us of your call
to live not by our fears,
but by your love
for neighbour
and for the world,
that all may know
your peace.