Dear all,

“Let the words of my mouth

and the meditation of my heart

be acceptable to you,

O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.” Psalm 19:14

We are drawing to the end of our Psalm Sermon series and we come to Psalm 19 a beautiful psalm glorifying God in the created world and in scripture. Proclaiming the power of God to speak silently in the beauty of the universe and to speak actively in the written word – the law (and personified in Jesus!).

These two dynamics display that God is both hidden and visible.

Visible in that the evidence is physically present in the world. Hidden in that it requires observation, notice and understanding on our part to enable us to listen and hear and see what God is saying.

But importantly God is constant, faithful, upright and loving in both spheres. Both creation and the law declare God to be good! Hidden or visible there is integrity within the character of God.

Human beings – not so much.

We have an ability to create a silent internal life we can try to hide from the world and an external, visible life we project out into the world. How often are you relieved that no one knows what goes on in your head – or ashamed of someone’s praise because you think “If only they knew…” We are often in conflict between our inner and outer worlds.

Yet as creatures made in God’s image I would suggest that this coherence between what is hidden and what is visible is what we should be striving for. That every aspect of our lives is honourable. It is what this prayer that concludes Psalm 19 is asking – that both the psalmist’s internal world and external world are acceptable to God. That both dimensions of who we are – are consistent with each other and right before God.

Jesus, as God incarnate, models how this looks in a fallible human being and it is charismatic! It makes Jesus stand out, it draws people to him. There is a glimpse of a whole new way of living in the way Jesus lives. And as followers we are exhorted to shape our lives around Jesus – live like Jesus, act like Jesus would act, love like Jesus would love. But if you have ever struggled and wondered how on earth to do that – this simple verse from Psalm 19 offers a good place to start. You might like to use it as a prayer to begin each day.

“May the words I speak today,

And the thoughts I think today

Be Godly and loving.

Consistent with your faithfulness and sacrificial love Jesus”

News and Upcoming Events

Thank you - to all who contributed to the Cambridge International Outreach tea. The spread was appreciated the team and it was wonderful to be able to bless them in this way.

Sunday 21^st July – 2.30-6pm – A Family Pilgrimage Afternoon at Little Gidding Described as an afternoon of fun, faith, fresh air and food this is an opportunity to explore God’s world as a family. There will be storytelling, worship, walking and prayer stations. Please bring some picnic food to share for tea. For more information contact Rev Fiona revfiona@norleigh.org.uk (children must be accompanied by a parent or carer.)

Toilet Refurbishment these are progressing – thanks for bearing with us as various toilets have been out of action.

Opportunities

We are looking to recruit a Music Missioner to join the team at St Philip’s – someone who will lead us in worship and coordinate our missional outreach using their musical gifts. You can find the advert and Role Description on our website: Home - St Philip's Cambridge (stphilipschurch.org.uk) Please do spread the word and pray God brings us the right person to join our church family.

Eco-Bite – our new green “nugget” each week:

We all know that our food choices have an impact on our delicately balanced climate. But it can be difficult to know or fully comprehend exactly how. I found this tool really helpful for raising my awareness: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-46459714

I appreciate that some would argue with these calculations but if it just helps us think and perhaps change habits then I consider it worth having a play with!

Last Week’s sermon

Last week’s sermon: sermon 14.7.24.mp3

The link to our sermon archive: St Philip's sermon archive

This Sunday 14^th July

8.30am – Reflective Holy Communion We will be looking at Psalm 19 in conjunction with Luke 4:1-13

10.30am – All Age Worship Polly Macartney will be exploring the riches of Psalm 19 with us this week.

If you can't attend church in person you can always use this Zoom link:

meeting ID: 976 3739 9129 and Passcode: 330714

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/97637399129?pwd=TGhKWWxOcWF1S242aVhrWDlJdUkxZz09

Prayers

If any of you have specific prayers you would like us to include in this newsletter do please get in touch.

Appointment of a new Bishop of Ely sadly after a long discernment process and two days of interviews the Crown Nominations Committee were not able reach the level of consensus required to nominate a new Diocesan Bishop. This is a major blow and will require another lengthy process of reflection and re-opening the process. Please pray for the committee as they frustratingly have to begin again and also for Bishop Dagmar as she continues to hold episcopal oversight for Ely on her own.

Lucy Sixsmith will be stepping down from her role as Parish Assistant at the end of July. We will be so sad to see her leave St Philip’s but please pray for her in this next season of life and please also pray for us as a church as we seek to reappoint someone to the role. If you would like to contribute to a leaving/thank you present for Lucy please get in touch with Ruth.

Please also pray for our Mission Partner this month:

Wycliffe Bible Translators – Wycliffe’s vision is for a world where everyone can know Jesus through the Bible. And their mission to achieve that vision is to serve local partners worldwide as they bring God’s word to their communities in the language which speaks to them best.

Regular Weekly Services/Prayers to join:

Wednesday 12noon Reflective Holy Communion A quiet time to help find space and peace in the middle of the week.

Monday & Friday 8.30pm – Compline on zoom

Meeting ID: 836 5965 9953
Passcode: 749968
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83659659953?pwd=btP5AjGMu1s-dE_2W9T0MMFqnnPKSS.1

Wednesdays 7.00-7.30pm - Weekly Prayers on zoom: -

Meeting ID: 852 1105 2733 Password: 397987

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85211052733?pwd=OE52bm9NS1RtQVQ0ZytTc0xBZnVsUT09

Saturdays 8.15am - Morning Bible Discussion and Prayer on zoom:

Meeting ID: 143 338 655 Password: 824271

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/143338655?pwd=L1JJTFZJNU9EaFZjaUFjQzVlalpMZz09

With love and prayers

Ruth