Prayer Letter

Hello everyone,

Thank you for the responses to the PL.

Farewell to Special People

This last week we said goodbye to our Force Chaplain here in Surrey. As a Chaplain myself it has been an enormous privilege to work alongside him. He has played such an important part in the lives of many people. It is impossible to quantify the impact he has had.

He is leaving as he believes the Lord is calling him to be a Vicar. He has already started on the training road and it will take two years to complete this study.

Within another week, a Christian Sergeant who started her time in Surrey on 23^rd October 1989, will be leaving us. She has been a very good friend to me, I will miss her greatly.  Impossible to imagine all the things she has done in her work during these 30 years. Until she decides to do other things, she will be able to concentrate on her husband and her two lovely daughters.

“Thank you”, doesn’t begin to touch the sides of our gratitude to you both.

 “God Bless you and Keep you. May His Face shine upon you and give you His Peace”.

A few days ago, I was aware of an Officer outside the three Forces to which this Prayer Letter travels, who had had to step in and deal with a particularly difficult sex offence.

I wrote to the Officer concerned and this was his reply.

Alice, Thank you. An incredibly tough day indeed. As I do after such days I came home & did some Bible reading. Tonight, one verse that stuck with me in particular after today was… Judges 6. 12 “When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said the Lord is with you mighty warrior”. This gave me so much strength. Praise be to God. Thank You, Jesus.

Here is the verse again.

“When the Angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said – The Lord is with you, Mighty Warrior” Judges 6.12.

Be encouraged; no matter what you face, “The Lord is with you” and perhaps you may not think it to be so, “You are a Mighty Warrior”.

A massive thank you for all you are and do.

In Him

Alice.

Hello Everyone,

I trust you are well.

Thank you, I continue to receive responses from the PL which told the story of the Dog who awaited his owner’s return. I thank God that that story spoke to many of you. It certainly did to me.

This PL is going to be very personal; I give no apology as I know The Lord wants me to share the following.

I received an email at the end of last week from one of our Surrey Officers. Here is part of it.

“All in all, as a family; we are extremely blessed. I was thinking about that this morning, I know that trials will come but we have certainly been through some wonderful times and so often overlook the day to day blessings that God gives us. The classic verse from Lamentations comes to mind and the wonderful hymn ‘Great is Thy Faithfulness’.

Every blessing to you, not sure when I will see you next but know that I am praying for you Alice and the CPA. Take care, Adoni bless you!”

The writer had no idea how important that message was for me. I had felt under the weather for a few weeks, but knew I was physically well. As I read his reference to “Great is Thy Faithfulness” the penny dropped. I was running up to the Anniversary of the death of my Husband, 11 years ago this week. Some years this period of time has come and gone and no effects felt, this year and I don’t know why; it has been lingering in the subconscious. The Hymn “Great is They faithfulness was sung at our Wedding and then at my Husband’s Thanksgiving Service.

I want to Testify here and now of the Amazing Faithfulness of My Heavenly Father, during these last 11 years before you and My Heavenly Father.

I want to repeat the verses the Officer referred to, so that to you, wherever you are right now, they will be a Blessing as they were to me.     

                                        Lamentations 3. 20-23

I will never forget this awful time,
as I grieve over my loss.
Yet I still dare to hope
when I remember this:

The faithful love of the Lord never ends!
His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness;
His mercies begin afresh each morning.

I have the great honour of reading the above verses at Surrey Police Remembrance Service this coming Monday at HQ’s.  God’s Co-incidences!

May you be aware of His Constant Faithfulness. Amen.

In Him Alice. 

Hello everyone,

I trust you are well.

I have during this last week been in touch with the ACC of Essex Police. As in all tragedies, eventually the horror of the happening slowly drops out of the News Headlines. The ACC said that they were looking after each other and their Police Chaplains were playing a big part in their care. Please join me in continuing to Pray for the large Team in Essex, continuing to identify people who lost their lives. Also, the investigations that will follow, that justice will be brought to bear.

On Sunday one of our Church Members told us of a visit to a Portrait Gallery. Paintings of very famous people were hanging there. As he studied them, the word famous played on his mind. “I will never be famous enough to have my portrait hung here”. Then God came into his thinking. “God has a Portrait Gallery and I am in that”.

As Christians we are special in His Eyes.

We sang a Hillsong Chorus later –

“I am chosen not forsaken.
I am who you say I am.
You are for me, not against me.
I am who you say I am”. Ben Fielding.

This song was written after Ben Fielding read John Chapter 8.

May you know the truth, of who you are in Jesus Christ.

God Bless you.
In Him
Alice.