Piety Hill Musings

The ramblings of the Rector of St. John's Episcopal Church of Detroit. Piety Hill refers to the old name for our neighborhood. The neighborhood has changed a great deal in the over 160 years we have been on this corner (but not our traditional biblical theology) and it is now known for the neighboring theatres, the professional baseball and football stadiums and new hockey/basketball arena.

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Location: Detroit, Michigan, United States

Monday, May 13, 2019

Coming soon - Thy Kingdom Come! - Rector's Rambling for May 12, 2019


Now that we are deeply into our Easter Season, we are beginning our preparation for our important participation in what is known as Thy Kingdom Come.
The Archbishop of Canterbury has called for Christians to spend an intentional time praying for the conversion of the world to Jesus Christ.  Although this is a part of the mission of the Church year round, we set aside the days between the Ascension of our Lord into heaven (the 40th Day after Easter) until the celebration of the coming of the Holy Ghost, known as Whitsunday or Pentecost.
From Thursday, May 30 (Ascension Day), until Saturday, June 8 (eve of Pentecost), we will gather every day at the Prayer Wall next to St. John’s at 6:00 PM.  We will pray Evening Prayer, with an opening and closing hymn, and will have a chance for someone to give a five-minute testimonial to their faith in Jesus Christ.  Of course, the primary focus of our prayer will be for the world to come to know Jesus Christ as Lord, and we will be praying with special intention for conversion of our friends, family, and neighbors, both here in the city, and where we live.
And doing this out at the Prayer Wall gives those in the neighborhood the chance to see The Church (the people of God) at work!  And occasionally folks even join us for a portion of the worship.
The primary work of the Church is to glorify God through worship, and to lead people to Christ.  All the rest of what we do must support and encourage that primary work; whether it be through education to equip us for ministry (to know Christ), or service work to others to extend to them the love of Jesus Christ that we have freely received (to make Him known).
In the ministry center there will be a board to sign up to promise to be present at least one of the days during Thy Kingdom Come.  At a minimum, we need 10 people to sign up to be there every day.  I promise you this will be worth the effort!
And the time to begin praying that God will bless Thy Kingdom Come is now!

posted by StJohnsPriest | 3:38 PM