One night, Peter and his friends were looting in the mines for copper when Peter heard the sound of a gun. Bang! While running away from the police, he felt something hit his back and dropped to the ground unconscious. Awakening in the hospital, the first thing the doctor said was: “You will never walk again.” The bullet had travelled along Peter’s spinal cord and exited under his arm, very close to the heart. The doctor didn’t think Peter would live long.

Paralysed and lying on his hospital bed, Peter believed his life was shattered. He wondered how he could carry on his life if he had a disability, especially due to the crimes he had committed. “I was full of regret and sorrow,” Peter recalled of his first few days in the hospital.

An evangelist visited the hospital and shared the love of God with Peter, though it took a while for the message to sink in. “I thought I was too bad to receive God’s love and there was no hope in my life,” said Peter. The evangelist did not give up though and constantly visited, explaining to Peter how people were all influenced by sin and that that was the reason why Jesus had come to earth. “Jesus came to save and seek the lost like me,” Peter explained, sharing how God opened his heart to the reality that Jesus loved him –– even when he was sinful and lost.

Receiving the love of God into his heart, Peter was overjoyed by the newfound hope and felt an indescribable peace for the first time in his life. His journey with Jesus started right at the hospital as he could not keep his faith to himself and began sharing the good news with other patients.

Three months in the hospital changed Peter from a man in total despair to a champion for God’s love. The doctor admitted Peter’s life was a miracle; though he could only slowly drag his legs, Peter was able to walk. Being released from the hospital was just the start of his new life. Everything had changed!

To see how Peter ended up being involved with OM & even meeting his wife through OM please visit this link for the rest of Peter’s incredible story – https://stories.om.org/story/r66554

by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a key leader in the Confessing Church in Germany during the 1930s-40s. He very quickly recognised the evils of the Nazi regime and refused to compromise with its ideology. In April 1943 he was arrested and imprisoned, and he was finally executed in April 1945, weeks before the end of the Second World War. His writings are highly valued and respected, not least the collection of his Letters and Papers from Prison which give a very personal insight into the faith and character of this remarkable man of God. The prayer below was written as part of a collection of ‘Prayers for Fellow-Prisoners’ at Christmas 1943.

O God, early in the morning I cry to you.
Help me to pray
And to concentrate my thoughts on you;
I cannot do this alone.

In me there is darkness,
But with you there is light;
I am lonely, but you do not leave me;
I am feeble in heart, but with you there is help;
I am restless, but with you there is peace.
In me there is bitterness, but with you there is patience;
I do not understand your ways,
But you know the way for me.

O heavenly Father,
I praise and thank you
For rest in the night;
I praise and thank you for this new day;
I praise and thank you for all your goodness
and faithfulness throughout my life.

You have granted me many blessings;
Now let me also accept what is hard
from your hand.
You will lay on me no more
than I can bear.
You make all things work together for good
For your children.

Lord Jesus Christ,
You were poor
and in distress, a captive and forsaken as I am.
You know all man’s troubles;
You abide with me
when all men fail me;
You remember and seek me;
It is your will that I should know you
and turn to you.
Lord, I hear your call and follow;
Help me.

O Holy Spirit,
Give me the faith that will protect me
from despair, from passions, and from vice;
Give me such love for God and men
as will blot out all hatred and bitterness;
Give me the hope that will deliver me
from fear and faint-heartedness.

O holy and merciful God,
my Creator and Redeemer,
my Judge and Saviour,
You know me and all that I do.
You hate and punish evil without respect of persons
in this world and the next;
You forgive the sins of those
who sincerely pray for forgiveness;
You love goodness, and reward it on this earth
with a clear conscience,
and, in the world to come,
with a crown of righteousness.

I remember in your presence all my loved ones,
my fellow prisoners, and all who in this house
perform their hard service;
Lord, have mercy.
Restore me to liberty,
and enable me so to live now
that I may answer before you and before men.
Lord, whatever this day may bring,
Your name be praised.

Amen.

Source: Bethge, E. (eds.) (1953) Dietrich Bonhoeffer Letters and Papers from Prison: An Abridged Edition. London: SCM Press Ltd

We meet every Sunday online at 10.30am and you are welcome . Use contact form so we can send you the link via e-mail.

Last month, the vicar and worship leader Tim Hughes was astonished to discover he had been given an award by Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The PM’s ‘Points of Light’ prize was given in recognition of The UK Blessing – a viral video sensation that featured Christians from various denominations. 

In the citation, Johnson wrote how he had found Hughes’ “sensational singing masterpiece” to be “truly uplifting”, before praising the Birmingham-based pastor for bringing Christians together through the power of music. 

“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:28) #VerseOfTheDay