A psalm a day – Psalm 21

Psalm 21 New International Version (NIV)

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For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1 The king rejoices in your strength, Lord.
    How great is his joy in the victories you give!

2 You have granted him his heart’s desire
    and have not withheld the request of his lips.
3 You came to greet him with rich blessings
    and placed a crown of pure gold on his head.
4 He asked you for life, and you gave it to him—
    length of days, for ever and ever.
5 Through the victories you gave, his glory is great;
    you have bestowed on him splendor and majesty.
6 Surely you have granted him unending blessings
    and made him glad with the joy of your presence.
7 For the king trusts in the Lord;
    through the unfailing love of the Most High
    he will not be shaken.

8 Your hand will lay hold on all your enemies;
    your right hand will seize your foes.
9 When you appear for battle,
    you will burn them up as in a blazing furnace.
The Lord will swallow them up in his wrath,
    and his fire will consume them.
10 You will destroy their descendants from the earth,
    their posterity from mankind.
11 Though they plot evil against you
    and devise wicked schemes, they cannot succeed.
12 You will make them turn their backs
    when you aim at them with drawn bow.

13 Be exalted in your strength, Lord;
    we will sing and praise your might.

This Week’s E-NEWS from BCPC

We look forward each week sharing some news, some prayers and information with our members, friends and wider community. Important news this week is our new “Dial-in” option to hear Kevin’s weekly message. Please share this wonderful news as widely as possible.

This week we are looking for images of nature to share before, during and after our online Sunday Worship.

These images can be of your garden, animals, landscapes etc. Anything that shows God’s Almighty hand at work with the the beauty that He created all around us.

You can also download the PDF version of E-NEWS by clicking here

Help us to brighten up Main Street by decorating the church railings with colourful symbols of hope and love, perhaps with things like this….

May Life & Work free and available online

Dear Church member

We trust you are safe and well wherever this reaches you. During this challenging period, Life and Work is committed to helping keep our Christian community connected and so we have made the May 2020 issue available on our website.

This can be accessed by visiting https://www.lifeandwork.org/resources/free-download-may-2020

We are sending this to everyone so that you may consider sharing with members of your wider faith family that do not receive the magazine.

Suggestions would be arranging to share by email, printing copies or hosting on your Church’s website or social media channels if available. Of course, we understand for several reasons this may not be possible.

The action to share is unique and in response to the exceptional time period in which we are operating. We have deliberately not provided the full digital experience as enjoyed by our loyal online subscribers and equally to protect our subscribers of the print edition.

It has been a challenge for my editorial colleagues to shift direction of their content at the last minute in response to the speed of which the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted daily life. This also includes a change to what would have been coverage of the timetable and fringe diary of the General Assembly, it of course reads rather differently this year. What they have created will become an important historical record for the magazine of the Church of Scotland.

Highlights from this issue includes:

▪ FEEDING THE HUNGRY: Reflection on foodbanks and impact of Covid-19

▪ ‘GOD HAS NOT FINISHED WITH SCOTLAND’: The Moderator-Designate, the Rev Dr Martin Fair

▪ ASSEMBLY CANCELLATION: Church’s business meeting cancelled for first time in over 300 years

▪ WAR’S END: The role of churches in peacebuilding across Europe on the 75th anniversary of VE Day

We trust you and your congregation will enjoy reading this issue. We are even more grateful at this time for your generous support and continued loyalty of Life and Work.

Best wishes

Life and Work Team

This week’s worship activities

This Sunday we are going to hear the 23rd Psalm being read and sung during our online Worship service. We want everyone to think about the 23rd Psalm this week and here is a modern contemporary version of the familiar words.

Some ideas for activities might be a nice colourful drawing, a crafty sheep made from cardboard, straws and cottonwool, or a word search or a word cloud. Some examples are below and you might want to use them too! Send us pictures or videos of your crafts and activities, we will share them online after our morning online service. Send them to Alan via WhatsApp or to the church email address bellshillcentral@gmail.com

Our weekly ENEWS has a lovely reflection, meditation and prayer this week all based on the 23rd Psalm why not read this whil you are doing this week’s activity, either read by yourself or read together. Reading your Bible together is such an important way of learning about God and the Bible as a family.