Psalms of Comfort

Psalms of Comfort

Good morning, Church. As the chairman of our Discernment Committee, I want you to know how much the committee appreciates your prayers and your patience as we continue to move closer to an attempt to attract an additional minister or two to join the work here at Manchester. Our committee has been meeting almost every single week since June. We read the daily scripture from our Prayer Guide together, then we take three minutes of silent reflection and contemplation before each taking a turn to pray for God’s guidance through our discernment process.  We then spend the rest of the hour working through all sorts of things as we do our best to figure out our most significant unmet ministry needs.  Your participation in last summer’s Ministry Chats and Survey was an enormous help in this process, so please know that your time was not wasted. I’ve been waiting to share updates with you, because it’s taken us a long time to think through a variety of options and develop a multi-pronged proposal for the elders to consider.

The Discernment Committee delivered that proposal to the elders just a few weeks ago, and the committee is meeting together with the elders this coming Wednesday night to talk through the possibilities and plot a path forward. We are continuing to ask for God to give us wisdom and guidance through His Holy Spirit, so please keep this in your prayers as well.  I also invite you to join me in a day of prayer and fasting on Wednesday so that our focus can be heightened and we can be reminded of the significance of this process in the life of the church here at Manchester. 

Once the elders and the committee have a defined plan for moving forward in our search process, I’ll give you all another more detailed update. Until then, just keep praying, because God is at work for the good of his mission in this place.

— Patrick Barber

Psalms of Comfort Digging Deeper Discussion Questions

1. Do you have a favorite Psalm?  What is it, and why is it your favorite?
2. Do you believe that it’s okay to share all your thoughts and feelings with God?  Why or why not?
3. What scriptures do you turn to for comfort and peace?  Let’s read some of these together.
4. Do you have a special time and/or place that you use to spend time with God when you’re weary?  Can you describe it?  What about that time or place makes it special for you?
5. When can you prioritize some private time with God in your schedule this week?