Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.’ In Matthew’s gospel Jesus expresses a longing to welcome children and young people into his kingdom. Here at St Cuthbert’s, this is our desire too.
We have a few children, families and young people who are part of our family and it is our longing that these numbers will grow. With this in mind we are seeking to grow the signs of the kingdom dedicated to helping children and young people to find a spirituality of belonging and be nurtured in the Christian faith and share it with those around them.
We are having a prayer focus on Growing Younger for 11 months, from May 2025, in our church intercessions and at home. We started on May 4th. We are using the acronym P.R.A.Y. – standing for Prioritise, Resource, Adapt and You. This will help us to focus our praying and our listening out for God’s heart and God’s plans for the young people, families and children around us. Our longing is that the older generations welcome the young. The prayer topic will be given out each week together with a visual/craft reminder. These can be found in the church lounge at St Cuthbert’s if you miss a week. There is also a notebook in St Cuthbert’s prayer corner for you to write any words, thoughts or impressions you hear from God as we go on this prayer journey.
It is our prayer that everyone, but especially the under 18s, as they grow up in an
increasingly uncertain world, know how dearly they are loved by God; that they can find meaning and purpose in being followers of Jesus Christ; and know heartfelt forgiveness and a secure identity in his love for this life and all eternity and share his love with those around them.
As we go into this we also remember that God can ‘accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine’. (Ephesians 3.20)