LEIGH BAPTIST CHURCH “MESSENGER” MARCH 2025
VERNON ST / CHURCH ST . LEIGH. WN7 1BH
Website : www.leighbaptistchurch.org.uk Contact: admin@leighbaptistchurch.org.uk
Pastoral Leader – Val Hulme ( Days Off Tues and Fridays)
email : pastoral.leader@leighbaptistchurch.org.uk TEL 07817142192
Check LBC website for updates and info also LBC FACEBOOK page
Dates for your Diary:
Sun Mar 2nd 10.45am worship service Val Hulme
Sun Mar 9th 10.45am OPEN SERVICE
Sun Mar 16th 10.45am Sunday Bible Study Val Hulme
Sun Mar 23rd 10.45am Communion Revd Neil Brighton
Sun Mar 30th 10.45am OPEN SERVICE
Wednesdays 12 19 26 March 10-11am Prayer meeting (drinks form 9.45am)
Thursday 13th March 1pm Strategy Group Meeting
Wednesday 19th March Deacons' Meeting
Mon 24th March 7pm -8.30pm interested? Please speak to Miriam
Other Users of Building:
Wednesdays 7.30pm All Singers Great and Small Community Choir
Thursdays 10-12 Atherton and Leigh Foodbank Charity
Lent Message Worship.
March 5th is Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent when we remember that Jesus was led by the Spirit into the Wilderness where He was tempted by the Devil. Each time He was tempted Jesus answered by quoting Scripture. When the Devil tried to get Jesus to worship him, Jesus answered, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’ ( Luke 4v8 NIV) The first Commandment is ‘You shall have no other Gods before me.’ Exodus 34:14 says, ”Do not worship any other God, for the Lord is a jealous God.” Many times the Israelites turned from worshipping their God to worshipping other gods, but Jesus came to bring all humankind back to worshipping the Lord God who had made them and everything else in all creation.
There had always been those who had been faithful to the Lord their God, such as Abraham, Jacob, David, Isaiah, to name a few. Elijah thought he was the only one left who did so, but God spoke to him and said that He had “7,000 in Israel who had not bowed the knee to Baal”.
After Jesus was born, when His parents took Him to the Temple to offer a sacrifice, an elderly man called Simeon saw Him and said those famous words, ”Lord, let now your servant depart in peace for my eyes have seen your salvation, -----a light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of your people Israel.” Then Anna who was a prophetess of a great age, never left the temple, and never stopped worshipping God day and night, came in and “gave thanks to God and spoke about the Child to all who looked for Redemption in Jerusalem.” (from Luke 2:22-39
After Jesus’ death and resurrection and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, the Disciples continued worshipping God in the temple and ‘breaking bread’ in each other’s houses. As a result the Lord ‘added to their number daily those who were being saved.’(Acts 2:46) Eventually churches were built and church services evolved in different traditions, but always for the purpose of worshipping God through our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Very often words from the Psalms are used in our worship. Despite all his problems and troubles David continued to give praise and thanksgiving to God. He gave thanks for the ways in which the Lord helped and guided him, winning his battles for him. We, too, need to remember that the Lord is with us and helps us in whatever situation we are in and has promised never to leave us or forsake us, so that we can give thanks to him and praise and worship Him in Spirit and in truth.
To help us, let us look at some verses from the Psalms. Psalm 100 suggests different ways of worshipping, such as ‘Shout for joy to the Lord’; ‘Serve the Lord with gladness’; ‘Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise’; Why? ‘For the Lord is good and His love endures for ever.’ Psalm 95 tells us to ‘Sing for joy to the Lord.’ Why? ‘For the Lord is a great God, the great King above all gods.’ It tells us to ‘bow down in worship’ and ‘kneel before the Lord our Maker.’ With the birth of my Great Granddaughter Twins as I write this, I am reminded of the miracle of our creation and that of the Earth and everything in it. ‘We are fearfully and wonderfully made.’ ‘He is our God, and we are ----- the flock under His care.’ Psalms 96 & 98 tell us to ‘Sing to the Lord a new song ---- for great is the Lord and most worthy of praise.’ (96 NIV) and, in verses 8&9 (NKJV), ‘give to the Lord the glory due to His name’ and ‘Worship the Lord in the Beauty of holiness.’ Why should we ‘praise the Lord’? Psalm 103 says that we should not forget all His benefits, ‘For He forgives all our sins; He is compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in Love.’ (v8) In Psalm 104 we read that God’s wisdom is shown in all the wonderful things that He has made and provided. Does God’s infinite greatness make us able to say with v33, ‘I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.’? Let us never forget God’s great love and all that He has done for us especially in giving His Son to die on the cross to pay the price for our sins and to defeat sin and death. Praise be to God.
When we are tempted let us remember to quote scripture as Jesus did.
“Give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name.” “Look to the Lord and His strength. Seek His face always. (Psalm 105:1&4)
Kathie. Quotes from NIV & NKJV
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This year's World Day of Prayer Service is on Friday 7th March at St Joseph's Church Mather Lane Leigh. All welcome. Choir rehearsal for this Tue 4th March 7pm at venue.
Neil and Val will be attending the NWBA Ministers' Conference 5th -7th March. Church phone will be with a Deacon.
Congratulations to Kathie on the safe delivery of twin great-granddaughters to her grand -daughter Hannah. May God richly bless them.
We were experiencing some IT problems which meant the Messenger online version plus calendar was a few days delayed. We thank Angie for her help with this