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I once was lost…

“Today, if you are reading this and you have been marginalised, belittled, ostracised, or left out in the cold; if you have made mistakes, hurt others, or hurt yourself; if you have walked away from relationships, said harsh words, or behaved badly; if you are continually hijacked by inappropriate or disturbing thoughts, desires, or feelings; if you feel undeserving, a lack of self-worth, or that you are unlovable; then hear the message of Jesus — that God loves you, has come to you, and wants you to find your home in them.” Rev Gav, 2022

Daily Prayers

Morning Prayer

Your love, O Lord, is never ending
and your mercies endure forever.
They are new every morning.
Great is your faithfulness!

The night has passed, and the day lies open before me,
and so, at the dawn of this new day, I come before you
with an open heart and ready to be filled with your love.

As I rejoice in the gift of this new day,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set my heart on fire with love for you.
Fill me with your life-giving Spirit
that I might be Jesus to all I meet
and a vessel for your unending love.

Loving God, who abides in heaven,
you are the Father and Mother of us all.
May your holiness be declared,
your justice be observed,
your will be embraced,
and your sovereignty be established
on earth as in heaven.
With the bread we need for today, feed us.
In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us.
In times of temptation and testing, strengthen us.
From trials too great to endure, spare us.
And from the grip of all that is evil, free us.
For the kin-dom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.


Prayed 70 times.

Afternoon Prayer

Where can I go from your spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I ascend into heaven, you are there.
If I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I ride the wings of the morning
and dwell by the farthest oceans,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me fast.

Holy God,
kindle in me the fire of your love
that I may bring warmth to the world.
May I be led from death to life,
from falsehood to truth;
from despair to hope,
from fear to trust;
from hate to love,
from war to peace.
And may I be so anointed with your Spirit
that I may be filled with both your peace and joy,
and live and work to your praise and glory.

For all that has past I thank you
and for all that lies ahead I give you praise.
May my eyes be open to see you
in all whom I serve and encounter.

Help me be Jesus to the world.
Help me be your hands and your feet.
Help me have your heart for the broken-hearted.
Help me be Jesus to a world
that needs you more than words can tell.
Help me be Jesus to the world.

And may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
be with me and all those I hold dear,
Now and for evermore.


Prayed 28 times.

Evening Prayer

Be still and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations.
I will be honoured in the earth.

Loving God,
As this day draws to a close
may I know your grace, mercy, and peace.
Cleanse my heart and mind
of all anxiety, weariness, and pain,
and in the stillness,
may I know your loving presence.

As I reflect on my day,
I give you thanks for all that has been done
And let go of all that has not been done,
handing it over to you
to make good that which I am unable.

For the love I have shared, I am grateful.
For provision and nurture, I am grateful.
For kindness given, I am grateful.
For the sorrow I have caused, I pray for forgiveness.
For injustices ignored, I ask for mercy.

As I look forward to this night
I cast my fears upon you –
fears of the world’s darkness
and fears in my inner being.
May I find my rest in you.

May the peace of your Spirit
that transcends all understanding
fill me and all those I love and hold dear.

Tomorrow is a new day
with new joys and new possibilities.
May I wake tomorrow
feeling refreshed, expectant, joyful,
and with a heart full of your love.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour.

For you are with me,
now and always.


Prayed 19 times.

Night Prayer

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

Holy God,
Into your hands I commend my spirit.
Keep me as the apple of your eye.
and hide me under the shadow of your wings.
Protect my conscious and my unconscious,
and guard me as I sleep this night
that my dreams will be filled with hope
and my rest be in your loving arms.

Spirit, in whom I live and move and have my being,
from you, nothing is hidden.
Breathe into me your cleansing wind
that I may be filled with your unending love.

Before the ending of the day,
Creator of the world, we pray
That you, with steadfast love, would keep
Your watch around us while we sleep.

From evil dreams defend our sight,
From fears and terrors of the night;
Tread underfoot our deadly foe
That we no sinful thought may know.

O Father, that we ask be done
Through Jesus Christ, your only Son;
And Holy Spirit, by whose breath
Our souls are raised to life from death.

Jesus Christ,
I cast my burdens unto you,
and ask that my soul might be refreshed as I sleep.
For I am yours and you are mine.
Now and forever.


Prayed 37 times.

Daily Bread

Our weekday devotion.

Rev Gav | Oct 27

Radical

Our mandate is to allow love to be fully expressed in the confines of time and space ‘on earth as it is in heaven’.

Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And just then there appeared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said, ‘Woman, you are set free from your ailment.’ When he laid his hands on her, immediately she stood up straight and began praising God.

But the leader of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had cured on the sabbath, kept saying to the crowd, ‘There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be cured, and not on the sabbath day.’ But the Lord answered him and said, ‘You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger, and lead it away to give it water? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen long years, be set free from this bondage on the sabbath day?’ When he said this, all his opponents were put to shame; and the entire crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things that he was doing.

The theme of liberation has been on my heart and mind for the past few days and weeks, and if I’m honest, I find it difficult not to write daily devotions based on the life I am experiencing in the moment, therefore, forgive me if I project my own ‘stuff’ when writing! Despite my self-centred projections, I hope that you will find today’s reflection helpful.

Jesus healed people, that’s a given. When heaven and earth collide, divinity and matter encounter each other, and love is fully expressed in the confines of time and space, how could restoration not take place? God was present in the person of Jesus Christ and God’s holiness radiated to those around him. If you fell within Christ’s circle of influence then you could expect a transformation in your body or your mind, however, the healings recorded by the four evangelists (the gospel writers) were also signs or symbols that pointed, not only to a future where all creation would come under the sovereignty of God’s healing love, but to how we should live in the present, especially when we are ‘crippled’ by religion, society, or oppressive regimes.

In today’s Bible Reading, through healing the woman from her debilitating condition, Jesus directly confronted, and flagrantly disregarded, the crippling purity codes that were being enforced by the religious authorities. The church leaders were those who represented God, and here, God called them out on their exclusivity and literally called them ‘actors’!

As you may know, I was an Anglican Priest (serving within various provinces) for over 20 years, and the purity codes of the church are called Canon Law. As a licensed minister, I had to obey church law and it was called ‘canonical obedience to the bishop’. When it comes to the rainbow community, canon law (in many provinces) is exclusive in that it excludes, for example, gay married priests from serving, or priests blessing same gender relationships. As a serving priest I found myself embodying a system that excluded people from God’s mercy and grace, and Jesus’ words rang loud and clear. “You hypocrite!”

The struggle, for people like me, was whether to remain within an exclusive system or leave. For sure, sometimes it is better to be ‘in it to win it’ and ‘be the change you seek’ but after fighting for justice for so long, sometimes you just have to step to one side. If I remained then I had to choose between being obedient to canon law, or confronting and flagrantly disregarding the purity codes of the Anglican Church. If I chose the latter I would have been ‘de-frocked’ and this would have been disruptive to the local congregations whom I still very much love and honour, therefore, Helen and I chose to step outside the fold and trust in God’s provision.

God’s radically inclusive love is at the heart of the gospel message, and as an evangelist and teacher of God’s word, my heart breaks when the Church presents barriers to someone coming to know Jesus. Our job as church leaders is not to uphold purity codes but to introduce them to the One who can set them free and liberate them by welcoming them into God’s circle of influence — to allow love to be fully expressed in the confines of time and space ‘on earth as it is in heaven’.

What does a church with the strap-line, “sharing God’s radically inclusive love” look like? I hope it looks like you and like me, therefore, today, wherever you are, whether at home or at work, at school or at play, offline or online, your mandate is to be God’s agent or representative, and to be Jesus to the world — to radiate God’s holiness to those around you. Who will you embrace?

Holy God
When I encounter injustice
and systems of oppression
that exclude people
from encountering
your divine love,
give me wisdom,
patience and understanding.
May I know whether to
collude, stay and fight,
or step aside,
not for my own sake
but for the sake of
those you seek to
welcome and embrace.
This day and forever.


Prayed 13 times.

Insights

Published every Sunday.

Rev Gav | Oct 26

How do we break free from oppressive systems?

Brightly coloured graffiti on the walls of a subway.
The path to redemption — for us and for all creation — starts with the admission of our own guilt and the role we play within a corrupt, broken, and unjust system.
We are sorry but this image does not have ALT text.
Oct 19

How do we remain resilient?

Each day, we must do our best to find time to connect with God.
A white heron stalks its pray in the margins of a pond with reeds and lily pads.
Oct 12

What does it mean to fish in the margins?

Today’s Bible Reading speaks right to the heart of Fab Church and who we are, whether we are visitors, guests, or members!
A glass jar is tipped over and mustard seeds spill out onto a counter.
Oct 5

What does it mean to have faith?

It is not the size of our faith that is important but what kind of faith we possess.

Devotions

Rev Gav | Oct 27

Radical

A man holding a loaf of bread.
Our mandate is to allow love to be fully expressed in the confines of time and space ‘on earth as it is in heaven’.
A man holding a loaf of bread.
Oct 25

Needle

The good news of the gospel is not only that we are no longer condemned, but that we are being formed into the people God created us to be.
A man holding a loaf of bread.
Oct 24

Arms

A Christian is someone who recognises their own shortcomings, confesses them, and turns to God for help.
A man holding a loaf of bread.
Oct 23

Rooted

Because we live the growth, sometimes the change is only noticeable by others.

Resources

Oct 23

Rowena

A close-up of an upright piano keyboard.
A gentle lullaby written and recorded by Rev Gav.
A Venn Digram of four concentric and intersecting circles creating 13 distinct sections with 'The Kingdom of God' in the centre.
Oct 15

A God-centred Philosophy

Rev Gav
I created this Venn Diagram based on one from a self-centred philosophy and applied it in a God-centred, context.
The sun rising over the mountains of Harris.
Sep 29

Sunrise over Harris

Rev Gav
Taken from the Tarbert to Uig ferry.
A man looking up towards the sun with his hands held in prayer.
Sep 28

Prayers for this week.

Helz
Prayers for this week.
Sep 28

The Greatest Gift

Rev Gav
The Greatest Gift is a fun Christmas song for all the family, listing lots of things for which we can…
A loaf of bread and goblet of wine sit on a wooden table.
Sep 26

Worship with Thanksgiving

Rev Gav
The words we use in our Sunday Worship.
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