Week: Jesus in the Old Testament
We start by pausing and taking a deep breath:
In and out.
In and out.
We remember that God is here, and so together we prepare ourselves to be with God.
Pause
God of rescue and restoration, thank You for Your beautiful mission to save the whole world. Here we are, Lord. Fill us with Your Spirit, and send us so that we can join in with Your mission.
Jackie Pullinger is a hero of mission because she took God’s love to people who were suffering and in need of help. Let’s REFLECT on what God says about this in a few verses from the book of Isaiah.
Read by Bea
Isaiah 58:6-7
I’ll tell you what it really means
to worship the Lord.
Remove the chains of prisoners
who are bound unjustly.
Free those who are abused!
Share your food with everyone
who is hungry;
share your home
with the poor and homeless.
Isaiah 58:6-7a (CEV)
Jackie Pullinger was born in England in 1944. When she was 22, she had a dream where she felt God asking her to move to Hong Kong, so she applied to some Church groups, but no-one would accept her. They said she was too young and that she didn’t have the right qualifications. But Jackie used all her money to buy a one-way ticket on a boat to Hong Kong anyway.
When she got there Jackie felt God leading her to live in an area called The Walled City. Other people wouldn’t go there because they said it was dangerous – it was controlled by violent gangs of teenage boys and lots of people there were addicted to drugs. But Jackie moved in, she started a youth club for the boys, and she started telling and showing everyone she met that Jesus loved them.
Some of the people started to believe in Jesus and follow Him. Jackie prayed for those who were addicted to drugs and many felt the power of the Holy Spirit filling them. Some were able to stop using drugs, and others came to live with Jackie so they could leave their gangs behind and follow Jesus instead. ‘One after another, more men arrived at my door,’ Jackie said. ‘They said “if my friend got off drugs through believing in Jesus – then I’ll believe in Jesus. And I’ll live in your house, too.”’* Soon Jackie was running lots of houses for drug addicts, gang members, ex-prisoners and people with other difficulties to live in and learn to follow Jesus.
Let’s pause and talk about today’s question, which is: Jackie Pullinger took a boat all the way to Hong Kong. Have any of us ever been on a long boat ride? If so, what was it like? If not, where would we like to go by boat?
In today’s Bible reading it said that worshiping God doesn’t just mean singing songs – it means caring for those who are suffering or struggling. Let’s ASK God to help us do the same.
Loving God, we ASK You to help us to show Your love to all those who are suffering or struggling. We want to be as willing as Jackie Pullinger to share what we have with those in need.
There are lots of Christian organisations around the world who work hard to help people overcome drug addictions, leave violent gangs, and find freedom by following Jesus instead.
Father God, we ASK You to be with these organisations – give them the resources that they need to continue this important, life-saving work. And we ASK You to fill every Christian who works with these organisations with Your Spirit – give them courage when they feel afraid, increase their faith when they feel overwhelmed, comfort them when they feel sad. May they see many lives saved and transformed, just like Jackie Pullinger did.
Stories like Jackie’s can leave us feeling like we have to travel a long way to serve God. But there are people living in our communities who need Jesus just as much as those in The Walled City. So, let’s say YES to serving God wherever we are!
Father God, we say YES to sharing Your love with the people who need it most, wherever we are. Fill us with Your Holy Spirit, and give us courage to follow You, just like Jackie Pullinger did.
Pause
Let’s put a hand on our heart.
Father God, fill us with Your love. Help us to love You, and everything that You’ve made.
Let’s point to our eyes.
Lord Jesus, help us to see You, and to see others the way that You see them too.
Let’s point to our ears.
Holy Spirit, help us to hear You, and give us courage to do what You say.
* Edited for clarity from https://www.ststephenssociety.com/about-us
Chris lives in Melbourne, Australia with his wife and two boys. He works for 24-7 Prayer Australia and Red Church and is also a professional musician. When he’s not working or drumming Chris enjoys going on long hikes in the mountains with his boys and playing table tennis.
Bea is 14 and she lives in Hampshire, in the UK, with her family. Her favourite football team is Manchester United, even though she lives a loooong way from Manchester. Bea likes horse riding and running, and when she’s older, she wants to become a vet, or a professional horse-rider.
