Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I’m found, was blind but now I see. Dear All.We all know the hymn ‘Amazing Grace.’ Those words could easily apply to St Paul, our patron saint. Because by his own admission he was a wretch, the chief among sinners. He was lost in his hatred towards Jesus and his Church, until the Lord found him. And, although he was blinded on the Damascus Road, the Lord restored his sight. But those words could equally apply to every sinner saved by the Amazing Grace of Jesus down the ages, and they certainly apply to John Newton, the person who wrote the hymn in the first place. John Newton was not a nice person. He was a slave trader who worked along the coast of West Africa. You know you’ve come to no good when you’re able to sell your fellow human beings to line your own pockets, and eventually his shipmates got sick of him too. They abandoned him in a slave colony and sailed off without him. Probably John Newton was too debauched at this point to care. But if John Newton didn’t care, God did, and he set his Amazing Grace in motion to save him. We can see this in two instances. First, God’s grace was at work in John Newton’s father who’d never forgotten him, despite what he’d become. He dispatched a sea captain to see if he could find and rescue his son. Through God’s grace the sea captain was successful and brought him back on the ship Greyhound. But this was when God revealed more of his goodness. The Greyhound was struck by a severe storm and began to sink. John Newton threw himself on the mercy of God and prayed that he might be saved. Against all hope the storm abated and the ship sailed on in safety. Nothing could stop Grace from leading John Newton home. This was a decisive moment in the life of John Newton. He turned his back on his former life, repented of his sins and turned to Jesus. In time he would become an ardent campaigner against the slave trade and work for its abolition. The message of John Newton and St Paul is that no one is exempt from the Grace of God, and that there is hope for us all. Sometimes we think that we are unworthy of his Grace because of the things that we have done. We think that we are cast out of his kingdom because of our mistakes. But that’s to diminish God’s grace which is amazing in its capacity to save us. If he can save people like John Newton and St Paul, he can certainly save us. Let us hold on to his promise, which is good for us, and his word, which secures us. Your friend and vicar, David.
Please note there will not be a service this Wednesday morning, 1st January. Normal services will resume from Sunday 5th and 8am and 10:15am, then Wednesday 8th at 9:30am.Thank you to all who have supported our church, shop and community throughout the year. May you all have a blessed 2025!From all at St Paul's Church.
Faith in the face of Persecution. Rumana, a nine-year-old girl from Bangladesh has breakfast, prays and packs her school bag and sets off for school. When she arrives, no one says hello or sits near her. In fact, the teachers tell the others not to go anywhere near her, as she is a Christian and will defile them. She is mocked and attacked while walking to church. Neighbours verbally abused her and shout death threats. There are hundreds of young Christian converts in Bangladesh who face similar issues. Despite all she faces, Rumana's faith is amazingly strong. " Jesus loves me" she says it is only because of Jesus love that l have survived until now. Please pray for Rumana to know she is not alone this Christmas time. But part of a loving global body of Christ. For they are the future of the church of Bangladesh Will you please pray for Christians in Sudan? The country is almost on the brink of extinction. Through government factions that are at war with each other. They also face drought and famine. Help is very limited and difficult to come by. Sudan Relief Fund is a charitable organisation established for the purpose of bringing food, clothing, shelter and medical attention to Sudan. The Christians there have asked that we pray for them. St Mungo s Help the Homeless. Teams search the streets every night for those sleeping rough. They carry foil blankets, a first aid kit. A torch hat s and gloves everything that may help those living on the streets. They also carry Naloxene to administer in case of overdose. Some homeless people have dogs and they provide for them too. This work requires compassion, empathy and a listening ear. Together they are responding to the homeless crisis. God bless them on all that they do. By June Davis
On 17th November I went on the Interfaith walk of friendship here in Sunderland. We met at Sunderland Minster and we walked into a joyous service with singing and dancing. Over a hundred people joined in the walk to places of worship around Sunderland. We set off first to the Gurdwara in Ashbrooke. Our hosts had put on an incredibly tasty two course meal which we thoroughly enjoyed. There were lots of colourful decorations on the ceiling and fairy lights around the walls. Drumming and singing welcomed us as we arrived. It was a complete sensory experience. We walked through the streets to the convent and were welcomed by the nuns. We sang “He’s got the whole world in his hands” and had a look around the beautiful building and artworks. The nuns gave us sweets and chocolates as we left. Our final stop was at the Madrasah in Burn Park. We were given a PowerPoint presentation about the history of the Madrasah and a talk by the Imam. The afternoon rounded off with another spread of food with bhajis, a delicious Turkish pudding called Noah’s pudding and Indian tea. We all had a wonderful time but underlying the social aspect was the knowledge that these kinds of events are so important at this time, after the terrible violence and civil unrest in the summer targeting minority groups and immigrants. By experiencing our differences, we can also recognise how similar we are and how we are all striving for peace. Let us pray that we can all live in peace together and treat each other with love and respect. By Elaine Shanks
