Saturday - Downe Baptist Church 155th Church Anniversary 6.30 p.m. Preacher Vernon Higham
Prayer for the church Please pray for the on going weekly activities that God may bless each.
Please pray for Mark Roperβs father. He is now very ill and been taken into a hospice. It is not expected that he will live for too much longer. Also pray for Mark and his family.
Thank God that Fridayβs youth event went smoothly. Pray that the word spoken may have an impact on the youth that attended the event.
Pray for those away on holiday; Pastor and Marilyn, Mike and Rosemary, Ineke.
Continue to pray for the work of the South East youth. Pray for Lee as he coordinates this work.
For the local area Borough Green iβPraise God for spiritual growth, baptisms and other additions during the year. Pray that the gospel may have greater impact in the congregation and community.β The church has recently begun some new initiatives to reach out into the village.
For the wider area The Grace World View - Jamaica Many Jamaicans show an interest in religion and there are many believers in Jamaica. However, there are still great spiritual needs in this tropical paradise. Jamaica is an island located in the centre of the Caribbean just south of Cuba and west of Haiti. It has a tropical climate with beautiful mountains and sunny beaches. It is a popular tourist destination. The population of Jamaica is approximately 2.7 million. Nearly all are of Afro-Caribbean origin. Jamaica has struggled economically since independence. Both inflation and unemployment have been high. The main sources of income are bauxite and sugar exports and tourism. During the 1970's, an emphasis on Marxist style economics did significant damage to the economy and drove away tourists. During the 1990's, conservative economic reforms have helped somewhat, but unemployment remains high, leading to civil unrest. Jamaica was originally a Spanish colony. Great Britain took control in 1655 and granted Jamaica independence in 1961. The Marxist leaning rulers of the 1970's were voted out of office in 1980. The government has been relatively stable, but the drug cartels are strong. The crime rate is high and there are often outbreaks of violence over economic conditions. There is freedom of religion. Many in Jamaica are religious. As many as one third of the population attends church, but there is little spiritual depth in most churches. A disproportionately low number of men attend church. While evangelicals account for more than 20% of the population, their influence on society appears to be minimal. Immorality and drug abuse are rampant. It is estimated that half of all men abuse drugs. Occult groups such as the Rastafarians are influential. Still there is much for which to praise the Lord. There are a number of fine evangelical pastors in Jamaica who have large congregations. Some must minister to several churches at once because there is a lack of trained native pastors. Pray for these men and pray that the Lord would raise up more men called to the ministry. Pray also for more Godly men who will be the spiritual leaders of their families. At one time, the Jamaican church showed a strong interest in missions, particularly to western Africa. Comparatively few go out from Jamaica today. Pray that missionaries would once again go out in large numbers.
Weekly Bible Readings
Mon 15th May Hosea 13 2 John 2
Tue 16th May Hosea 14 2 John 3
Wed 17th May Joel 1 2 John 4
Thur 18th May Joel 2 2 John 5
Fri 19th May Joel 3 2 John 6
Sat 20th May Amos 1 2 John 7
Sun 21st May Amos 2 2 John 8
Thought for the week: βThe LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.β Psalm 23:1
Notice Board
General Announcements Cleaning Rota (this week) - Marjorie
Door Rota (next Sun) β Darren
Christianity - an introductory course - If you are interested please see Pastor, Paul or Janet.
Thank you to everyone that helped on Friday at the South East youth event. It is good to serve God together.
Contact details
The church website can be viewed on: www.free-grace.org.uk
To add contributions please contact Peter or Ralph at: news@free-grace.org.uk
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