VICAR In the heart of our rural villages, where winding lanes converge and community life flourishes, the work of village shopkeepers and publicans shines as a beacon of connection and service. These steadfast individuals provide more than just goods—they offer a lifeline to their neighbours, a friendly face, and a vital thread in the fabric of countryside life. Yet, their work is not without trials—long … Continue reading A Prayer for Village Workers
VICAR This Sunday I am publishing a prayer found in a hotel across the pond. It’s a simple and beautiful prayer which I am sure many guests read and appreciated. I particularly like the line, “We are all travellers”. I wish you and your loved ones a Blessed Sunday. Continue reading A Short Sunday Prayer
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I hope You are well this Sunday in our green and pleasant land, as the rain falls, again. This week I want to focus on those who are adventurous, without whom our world would be a far less civilised place. We as humans must explore. We must see and discover new things or we degenerate. God made us … Continue reading A Prayer for the Adventurous
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well. This week ahead will see many of Your children or grandchildren return to school, so today I would like to focus on the children. What does the New Testament say about children? 3 John 1:4 “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” Ephesians … Continue reading A Prayer for Our Children
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well and enjoying the cooler days after the heatwave. This week I would like You to consider Your honesty. Are you a truthful person or a liar? Are You true to Yourself or are You someone who never quite faces up to their weaknesses and dishonesty? The Bible is clear about honesty: ‘Whoever … Continue reading A Prayer for Honesty
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well and healthy. I hope that Your families are likewise well and that You are enjoying a peaceful Sunday. Alas, the same cannot be said for Ukraine. It comes as little shock that Vladimir Putin has taken up the role of Hitler of our age. The widespread international condemnation will hopefully morph into … Continue reading A Prayer for Ukraine
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well and that You have a had a good week. This week We should focus our minds on the children. The children who have been locked away from their friends and schools during multiple lockdowns, who have missed the social interactions We adults took for granted when We were children. Also for those … Continue reading Prayer for the Children
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well and healthy and enjoying these summer days even if they are producing weather as changeable as England’s form in the football. To those readers who are fathers, I wish You a very Happy Father’s Day. The task of fathering can sometimes seem like the easier of the two tasks! At other times … Continue reading A Prayer for Fathers
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well. As these hot summer days continue, I pray that You are getting some downtime and that work is going well. This week I would like to focus on a prayer that You can learn off by heart to add to your daily prayers. Prayer isn’t a ritual that depends on closing our … Continue reading A Prayer for Every Need & Situation
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well and have been able to get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. You likely did not notice but last Thursday was Corpus Christi. I have been asked to explain what the day represents and why some European countries have a bank holiday for it. Corpus Christi is mainly celebrated in the Roman … Continue reading A Prayer for Corpus Christi
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well and healthy. I hope Your families are enjoying the emergence from lockdown and looking forward to the rest of the decade with relish and hope. This week I would like to focus on rural communities, many who have suffered terribly over the last few years. In particular I would like You to … Continue reading A Prayer for Rural Communities
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well. I welcome You to a one-hour abbreviated Palm Sunday as Holy Week gets going across the globe. Today is the first day. What is Palm Sunday and why is it considered important? On Palm Sunday Jesus arrived in Jerusalem to crowds and cheers. His triumphant entry into Jerusalem has been celebrated on … Continue reading A Prayer for Palm Sunday
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well. I know how hard these months have been for many of You and now hope for an end to lockdown and vaccine success. There is nothing wrong with praying for national prosperity. For example, a wealthy Britain affords her citizens vaccines and hospitals. What can be wrong with that? Proverbs 23:5 says: “Cast … Continue reading A Prayer for Prosperity
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You and Your loved ones are well. As we approach the second month of the third lockdown I can understand why You may not be feeling one hundred percent and I send You my heartfelt empathy. It is at times like this that We must remember that without light there is no darkness and without … Continue reading A Prayer for Hope
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well. I hope that You are not too frustrated by confusing tier messages and have a pleasant Christmas prepared. I trust that You are not flooded either – there has been a lot of rain this last week or so, so it would seem. I notice at this time of year the look on … Continue reading A Prayer for the Overwhelmed
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You and Your family are well and ready for Christmas. Today is Gaudete Sunday—a day of rejoicing and gladness in the heart of the Advent journey. Today we light the third, rose-coloured candle on the Advent wreath. Today I’d like to draw your thoughts away from the Sunday newspapers and Brexit, away from the Christmas To … Continue reading Gaudete Sunday
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well and healthy this Advent Sunday, the first Sunday in Advent as we build up to Christmas. What is Advent? The word “Advent” comes from the Latin word for “coming”, and the season marks the countdown to Christmas. Churches observe this period by remembering the anticipation for the birth of Jesus, and preparing to … Continue reading A Prayer for Advent Sunday
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You and Your family are well. I hope You are not too full of Halloween candy. This week I would like us to pray for the United States, which you may have noticed is on the point of conducting another set of elections. The US is of course a close ally of our country and … Continue reading A Prayer for America
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine I trust that You are well this Sunday. If You are depressed and frustrated about Covid or just fed up with the grey autumnal skies then You can always watch Lord Botham versus the Aussies from 1981. This week I would like You to think of the lonely people near You. These could be family members or former work colleagues. … Continue reading A Prayer for the Lonely
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You and Your loved ones are well and healthy. As the nights draw in and the temperatures drop, We are warned that We face an uncertain winter. This week I’d like to pray for an avoidance of the worst predictions coming true. A time of calm and progress would be a far more preferable substitute. … Continue reading A Prayer for a Good Winter
