BH Bulletin - Wednesday 16 June 2021

Thought for the Day by Alex Forrest
​(Voluntary Staff Worker)

​5 Then I said:
“Lord, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 
6 let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s family, have committed against you. 
7 We have acted very wickedly toward you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses.
8 “Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations, 
9 but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name.’
10 “They are your servants and your people, whom you redeemed by your great strength and your mighty hand. 
11 Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man.”
I was cupbearer to the king.

I’ve been thinking a lot recently about the EXILE from their home. We’ve been looking at the entry into the land in Joshua at Explorers and Rooted and I’ve been hearing talks from Zechariah at the SGP course, all about the exile from the land and the desire to bring God’s people back together
I’ve never really dwelt much on that time for God’s people. It feels like the exile isn’t often delved into teaching plans or sermons. When I was a kid, in my head, I thought the Bible was about finding the land, getting the land, then Jesus! But exile from the land is such a huge part of the Bible, there’s so much time of exile in the OT. And it was AWFUL! It was a time of real trauma and struggle for God’s homeless, anxious and defeated people.
Nehemiah 1:7-9 talks about what’s gone on with God’s people. They fell into sin, they disobeyed, they were scattered among the nations. But verse 9, God promises his people that even if they are at the farthest horizon, he will gather them from there and bring them to the place he have chosen as a dwelling for his Name. What a message for those anxious, scared, homeless exiled people to hear. No matter how far you’re away, I’ll gather you up! You’ll come home. You’ll be together again.
Not to try and draw a slightly wobbly line, or equate our situation to that of God’s exiled people but we have been in times of separation for the last year, and we are now coming to a time to draw back fully together.
Many of us have been battered and bruised by separation. We may even have been on edge with our faith. For those who are feeling that, know that God wants to bring us back to the place where he dwells, his church. And for the rest of us, let’s be praying the way Nehemiah prays, that God’s people will be united once again, despite our brokenness, by his mighty and redemptive power.

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Church Family Picnic Update

Due to Lockdown restrictions being retained for a further month we have had to postpone the Church Family Picnic until 1st August. Please note this new date in your  diaries.
​Further details to follow.

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