Minnesota

Election ongoing today.

Gracious God, you give light and life to your people. You guide us in pathways of renewal and transformation. Light the way before us now, as we discern and choose the ninth bishop of the Diocese of Minnesota. May we find a pastor who will lead us in hope, challenge us to ever greater faithfulness, and equip us with love for mission and ministry in the church and in the world. We pray in thanksgiving for your guiding presence and your grace, in the Name of Jesus our Savior. Amen.

Update on Fr. Nigel, Saturday 10/31/09, 9:21 a.m.

Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 09:21am
From: Elizabeth Strickland
Subject: Update on Fr. Nigel
Saturday 10/31/09, 9:21 a.m.
      Today is similar to yesterday. Fr. Nigel is still critical but he continues to be stable. He is maintaining his breathing levels, which is a positive sign in itself. He continues to battle a pesky fever which goes up and down. Although there are not huge improvements, the fact that he is stable is a welcome answer to all of your prayers. This is going to be a long road and your prayers will be needed for an extended period of time, so although he may be moving ahead at what seems like a turtle’s pace, he is moving forward. Once again, this is all on God’s schedule rather than ours.
Please continue to pray for:
*      healing of his lungs so that he may be removed from the ventilator
*      all organs that they continue to function, especially his kidneys
*      elimination of his fever and whatever is causing his fever
      Please keep the doctors and nurses in your prayers. They are a very dedicated group in the ICU.
      As always, thanks be to God for your steadfast prayers, and praise be to God for the work that is being done.

Albany Intercessor

My county

I live in Yazoo County, Mississippi, but this prayer can be spoken for any county in our nation. Jesus’s ministry was local; yet the Spirit of God transformed it into a global one. JW

Jehovah-jireh,
We trust You for the supply we need for the future.
Jesus, You hold the keys of David. What You open cannot be closed, and what You close cannot be opened. We cry out, Open doors that could not opened in Yazoo County in times past. Show us where to meet in this land. We declare that worship will arise in this land like never before. There are hidden springs waiting to be opened up. Open our eyes to the flow of Your Spirit. Lead us to new springs of life, new connections, new ways of following You. Cause this county to come alive!
Holy Spirit, flow across the land of Yazoo County. May we witness a new manifestation of Your presence in this county. Amen.

Minnesota

Today a bishop election takes place in Minnesota. I’ve been following reports on Anglicat. Her assessment of the bishop candidates can be found here.

Dear Heavenly Father,
Oh, for a bishop that knows Jesus, that yearns for Jesus, whose zeal for Jesus is unrelenting! I cry out for Jesus in the election of the bishop of Minnesota. I cry out for Jesus in the Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota. I speak the name of Jesus over the diocesan convention. May Jesus be in the atmosphere, the sound of His name in the hearts of His children. I speak the blood of Jesus around the diocesan meeting, and I implore You, Lord, for the election of a man or woman whose passion is Jesus. Amen.

Matthew 13:31-33

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We and others are convinced that God is doing a larger work among us through the illness of Fr. Nigel Mumford. Therefore, I ask you to make Monday, November 2nd a day of prayer and fasting. Please fast from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Let us see what our God will do.
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Another parable he put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.” (Matthew 13:31-32)
      Jesus, thank you for the mustard seed improvements in Fr. Nigel that you have shown us. Thank you for planting the seed of faith in our hearts. Help this faith which you have planted in us grow so that others may find shelter in it. Thank you.

Another parable he spoke to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.” (Matthew 13:33)
      Father, continue to work your leaven through us so that we are all touched and brought to new life in you. Thank you for what you are doing in our lives through your Holy Spirit.

      A word received: Ask me for my strength.

Saturday: 55; Nehemiah 4:1-23; Revelation 7:(4-8 )9-17; Matthew 13:31-35
Sunday: 24, 29; Nehemiah 5:1-19; Acts 20:7-12; Luke 12:22-31

      Notes from the Front Line

***** The Christ Church Sunday School lesson for this coming Sunday has been posted on http://christchurchsundayschool.blogspot.com/.

Albany Intercessor

Fr. Nigel update, 10/30/09, Friday afternoon, 3:27pm

Date: Fri, 30 Oct 2009 3:27pm
From: Elizabeth Strickland
Subject: Fr. Nigel update, 10/30/09, Friday afternoon, 3:27pm
      Fr. Nigel continues in critical condition, but your prayers are bringing tiny changes for the better. His breathing is a little better today and is more level, although he remains on the ventilator. His x-rays show that his lungs are starting to clear, but please persevere in praying for continued healing of them. Thanks to your prayers and God’s healing touch, his temperature has come down a little, but Lynn asks that you persevere in praying for an elimination of his fever and whatever is causing his fever. Please also persevere in praying that all of his organs, especially his kidneys, continue functioning.
      This marks the 20th day of Fr. Nigel’s time in the hospital and the 20th day of Lynn’s time in the hospital as well. Please continue to hold up Lynn in your prayers for protection and endurance, and for solid rest at night. May God bless you all for your persistent prayer.

Albany Intercessor

Fr. Nigel update 8:32 AM

Fr Nigel update 8:32 AM

10/30/09 Friday morning
Fr. Nigel continues to be in critical condition. He had a good night and is stable. He continues to battle a fever which goes up and down, so prayers for the fever will continue. He continues to have improvements on the scale of a mustard seed, so your prayers are so, so important.
Please pray for:
healing of his lungs so that he may be removed from the ventilator
all organs that they continue to function, especially his kidneys
elimination of his fever and whatever is causing his fever.
Come Holy Spirit, come now with more power.
Blessings to all of you for your prayers.

From: Elizabeth Strickland

Also “continue prayers for protection from sickness for Lynn. You can imagine how exhausted she is.” From Fr. Haskell last night.

Nehemiah 2

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We and others are convinced that God is doing a larger work among us through the illness of Fr. Nigel Mumford. Therefore, I ask you to make Monday, November 2nd a day of prayer and fasting. Please fast from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Let us see what our God will do.
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      And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, that I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence before. Therefore the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart.”
      So I became dreadfully afraid, and said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire?”
      Then the king said to me, “What do you request?”
      So I prayed to the God of heaven. And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it.”
      Then the king said to me (the queen also sitting beside him), “How long will your journey be? And when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time.
      Furthermore I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given to me for the governors of the region beyond the River, that they must permit me to pass through till I come to Judah, and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he must give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel which pertains to the temple, for the city wall, and for the house that I will occupy.” And the king granted them to me according to the good hand of my God upon me.
      Then I went to the governors in the region beyond the River, and gave them the king’s letters. Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me. When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard of it, they were deeply disturbed that a man had come to seek the well-being of the children of Israel.
      So I came to Jerusalem and was there three days. Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me; I told no one what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem; nor was there any animal with me, except the one on which I rode. And I went out by night through the Valley Gate to the Serpent Well and the Refuse Gate, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem which were broken down and its gates which were burned with fire. Then I went on to the Fountain Gate and to the King’s Pool, but there was no room for the animal under me to pass. So I went up in the night by the valley, and viewed the wall; then I turned back and entered by the Valley Gate, and so returned. And the officials did not know where I had gone or what I had done; I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, or the others who did the work. (Nehemiah 2:1-16)
      Holy Spirit, please give us a heart to survey the damage done to the Episcopal Church; help us recognize the damage for what it is.

Then I said to them, “You see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire. Come and let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer be a reproach.” (Nehemiah 2:17)
      Jesus, give us a heart to rebuild the Episcopal Church as we see the distress it is in. Help us rebuild its walls and gates so that every strange doctrine does not come in to it.

And I told them of the hand of my God which had been good upon me, and also of the king’s words that he had spoken to me. So they said, “Let us rise up and build.” Then they set their hands to this good work. (Nehemiah 2:18 )
      Father, help us share with one another all that you have done for us so that we may encourage each other in the good work you have set before us.

But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they laughed at us and despised us, and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Will you rebel against the king?” (Nehemiah 2:19)
      Jesus, you endured the laughter and contempt of those who despised you as you carried out the great commission your father had given you. Help us persevere to the end in the great work you have given us. Guide Bishop Bill as he leads us in this diocese.

So I answered them, and said to them, “The God of heaven himself will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build, but you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem.” (Nehemiah 2:20)
      Holy Spirit, help us resist every effort or call to compromise the gospel; help us endure through to the end. Thank you.

      A word received: Look to me.

Friday: 40, 54; Nehemiah 2:1-20; Revelation 6:12-7:4; Matthew 13:24-30
Saturday: 55; Nehemiah 4:1-23; Revelation 7:(4-8 )9-17; Matthew 13:31-35

      Notes from the Front Line

***** I strongly recommend Repentance: The Joy Filled Life by M. Basilea Schlink. It is a classic of its kind and can be purchased as a used book from Amazon for under $5.

Albany Intercessor

Rev. Nigel Mumford

Luke 13:18-20 (Young’s Literal Translation)
And he said, `To what is the reign of God like? and to what shall I liken it?
It is like to a grain of mustard, which a man having taken, did cast into his garden, and it increased, and came to a great tree, and the fowls of the heavens did rest in its branches.’
And again he said, `To what shall I liken the reign of God?

There is a story of a child’s artwork prepared in the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd. The drawing was that of a crucifix. The teacher asked what the black dots were in the shed blood of Jesus. The child answered, ‘Mustard seeds.’

Dear Father,
We thank You for the shed blood of Jesus and for the “mustard seeds” of improvement in Nigel’s condition. We continue to claim the shed blood of Jesus over Nigel and his family. Amen.

Southern Sudan

Matthew 12:18-21 Young’s Literal Translation
Lo, My servant, whom I did choose, My beloved, in whom My soul did delight, I will put My Spirit upon him . . . a bruised reed he shall not break, and smoking flax he shall not quench, till he may put forth judgment to victory, and in his name shall nations hope.’

Dear Father,
We thank You for Your servant Jesus, full of Spirit, full of love. You delighted in Him. We delight in Him too. We hope in His name for Southern Sudan. Amen.

A menu of Sudan prayers can be found here.

David Booth Beers

Matthew 5:44
But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.

Dear Jesus,
You are the power of God and the wisdom of God. I lean on You and not on my own understanding. Bless David Booth Beers as he recuperates from knee surgery. Amen.
1 Corinthians 1:24, Proverbs 3:5

JW

Fr. Nigel update, Thu, 29 Oct 2009 5:10 pm

Date: Thu, 29 Oct 2009 5:10 pm
From: Elizabeth Strickland
Subject: Fr. Nigel update
10/29/09 Thursday evening
Fr. Nigel continues to be critical, but there are miniscule improvements. Your constant prayers are having an impact. Please keep praying to our Lord for Fr. Nigel’s healing! These prayers may seem repetitious but this is what his needs are and as we all know, our healing is on God’s time — not our time.
Fr. Nigel continues to need prayer for:
+ all organs that they continue to function, especially his kidneys
+ elimination of his fever and whatever is causing his fever
+ healing of his lungs so that he may be removed from the ventilator
Please pray for protection from sickness for Lynn. You can imagine how exhausted she is. Prayer for a restful evening for both of them.
Thank you for your faithfulness.

Fr Nigel update 8:45 AM

Fr Nigel update 8:45 AM

10/29/09 Thursday AM
Through your prayers, Fr. Nigel has taken another “mustard seed” step. He continues to be critical so your prayers are as necessary as ever but the doctors are cautiously hopeful. Lynne is encouraged by your prayers, so keep them coming.
Please continue to pray for:
 all organs that they continue to function, especially his kidneys
 elimination of his fever and whatever is causing his fever
 healing of his lungs so that he may be removed from the ventilator
Our Lord hears all our prayers. May God heartily bless all you prayer warriors.

Beth Strickland
Deployment Officer
Diocese of Albany
518-692-3350 x504
aa

Matthew 13:18-23 and Psalm 30

“Therefore hear the parable of the sower:” (Matthew 13:18 )
      Holy Spirit, give us ears to hear.

“When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside.” (Matthew 13:19)
      Holy Spirit, give us understanding so that we may endure.

“But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.” (Matthew 13:20-21)
      Holy Spirit, give us endurance and deep roots in Jesus and the Scriptures.

“Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.” (Matthew 13:22)
      Holy Spirit, give us your peace that passes all understanding.

“But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” (Matthew 13:23)
      Father, help us bear the fruit of your Holy Spirit and lead productive, fruitful lives for your kingdom. Thank you.

Date: Wed, 28 Oct 2009 10:47
From: Rev. Ginny Ogden
Subject: A Word
Hi Torre,
      I was on retreat with my vestry this past Friday and Sat. The Lord gave us Psalm 30 to pray/cry out on Nigel’s behalf. I have a deep sense that this word needs to be sent far and wide.
With Love in Christ, Ginny+

      Psalm 30
I will extol You, O Lord, for You have lifted me up,
      And have not let my foes rejoice over me.
O Lord my God, I cried out to You,
      And You healed me.
O Lord, You brought my soul up from the grave;
      You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
Sing praise to the Lord, you saints of His,
      And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.
For His anger is but for a moment,
      His favor is for life;
      Weeping may endure for a night,
      But joy comes in the morning.
Now in my prosperity I said,
      ”I shall never be moved.”
Lord, by Your favor You have made my mountain stand strong;
      You hid Your face, and I was troubled.
I cried out to You, O Lord;
      And to the Lord I made supplication:
“What profit is there in my blood,
      When I go down to the pit?
      Will the dust praise You?
      Will it declare Your truth?
Hear, O Lord, and have mercy on me;
      Lord, be my helper!”
You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
      You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,
To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent.
      O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

      A word received: I AM with you — you look to me for help.

Thursday: 50; Ezra 6:1-22; Revelation 5:11-6:11; Matthew 13:18-23
Friday: 40, 54; Nehemiah 2:1-20; Revelation 6:12-7:4; Matthew 13:24-30

      Notes from the Front Line

***** I strongly recommend Repentance: The Joy Filled Life by M. Basilea Schlink. It is a classic of its kind and can be purchased as a used book from Amazon for under $5.

Albany Intercessor

Nigel

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Dear Heavenly Father,
Nigel is weak. He is in a coma and not even breathing for himself. Your grace is sufficient for him and for us. You are Jehovah jireh, the source of all provision. We ask that Your perfect power be displayed in his perfect healing. Amen.