He knows the way…

Pentecost 22

We have been walking through Exodus in the past 2 months, and today we read in Deuteronomy 34 of Moses’ death and the succession of Joshua. The stage is set for the entry into the promised land, but first the people of Israel must stop and mourn Moses. They sit quietly and spend 30 days in grief that their leader has now gone. Transition is like this. To move well into the next thing, we need to allow ourselves the grief of leaving behind the thing we are finishing. I have felt this over the years in moving parishes and moving house. I’m sure it’s familiar to everyone in some way. The need to stop and allow the sense of loss to sit with you, but with an eye to the future which is in front of you. For the Israelites the transition was from Moses’ leadership and the desert life to Joshua’s leadership and the promised land. They had only known the desert, the manna, the quails. This generation were born in the desert or were small children when Moses set off from Egypt. Their parents had scouted out the promised land once before and found giants there. They refused to enter then, fearful of the possibility of failure in battle. This generation has grown up hardened by having to fight and protect their camp and with the rhythm of lives led by God and his abundant supply. They have learned to believe that God is with them and have been led to become a people ready for the next step. Now they sit in Moab facing the Jordan and the city of Jericho not too far in the distance, stopping to leave the past behind so that they can take up their future with Joshua at the lead, and the God they have learned to trust going before them. Now, before anyone gets the wrong idea, I’m not going anywhere! Yet the theme of transition seems to be resonating with me at the moment. Are you in a transition? Are you grieving a past as you look towards a future? As you sit with your situation take some direction from Deuteronomy 34. Allow the grief. Let it take its time. Then look to Jesus who goes before you and trust him to lead you into the next step. He knows the way.

Janice

This Week:

Regular Worship Times

Parish Contact Details

Reminder of upcoming events:

Notices:

Praise & Worship Service

On Saturday 31st October at 7pm there will be an ‘All Hallows Eve’ Praise and Worship service here at St Mark’s. Let’s come together to praise the Lord and to pray together.

For The Harvest

Here is the link for an electronic copy of ‘For the Harvest’, Archbishop Ric’s vision for our diocese for the next 10 years.

ADM_ForTheHarvest_Strategy2026_Digital.pdf

CMS Anna visit to St Marks

Anna will be with us next Weekend on Saturday and Sunday. Please continue to pray for Anna as she travels to visit her link parishes and share her work with Creation Care in Kenya. It promises to be a great weekend. If you would like to know more about CMS (Church Missionary Society) speak to Steve Parkinson.

CMS Summer Conference

7th & 8th January at Crossway Baptist Church Early bird tickets are now available online https://my.cms.org.au/ Speak with Steve P. for more details.

Fete

A reminder that the Parish Fête will be held on Saturday 5th December and we will be looking for volunteers for setting up and pulling down as well as some donations of marquees to use over the stalls. If preparing plants, it would be helpful to have a picture of the flower if not currently in bloom and what the plant is. We have a volunteer who will help with labelling. Please see Janice.

This Week’s Prayer Focus

In our country and the world:

• For the people of Israel and Iran and Middle East countries.
• For the victims and those who are mourning after the Bondi terrorist attack.
• For all needing support following home invasions and all other violent attacks.
• For Government action to address the out-of-control protests in Melbourne.
• For the Government plans to address the rise of antisemitism in Australia.
• For families suffering as a result of violence and home invasions.
• For those facing homelessness, hardship, anguish and despair amid rising costs.
• For all in Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine and Myanmar.
• For those affected by natural disasters in around the world.
• For King Charles III, the UK and the Commonwealth.
• For peace and unity in countries around the World.
• For aid agencies such as “Save the Children”, Oxfam, CARE, UNICEF, World Vision.

In our community:

• For teachers and students.
• For doctors, nurses, paramedics, Coast Guard, the CFA & SES.
• For local community outreach groups such as the Dromana Community House and “Food for All”.

In our Diocese and beyond:

• For Melbourne Archbishop-elect Right Reverend Dr Richard (Ric) Thorpe as he prepares to move from London to Melbourne.
• For Archbishop Geoffrey Smith’s ministry as Primate of Australia.
• For the ministry of Bishop Paul Barker in the Jumbunna Region and Archdeacon Rev’d Sam Bleby, in the Frankston Archdeanery.
• In our Deanery, we pray for the parish of St George’s Red Hill and their Vicar, Rev’d Jennie Savage.
• Keiron, Vicar of Flinders/Balnarring.
• For the work of the Church Missionary Society and Wei-Han the Victorian Director.
• For Anna Radkovic our CMS Link Missionary in Watamu, Kenya.
• For Christian churches around the world to be free to worship and be witnesses
  of the love of God shown through the coming of His Son.

In our Parish:

• For our leadership and ministry teams.
• For Rev’d Janice O’Gorman.
• For the finances of our Parish.
• For the success of our building permit application.
• For our Parish, its people and those we reach out to every week.
• For the success of the new Beachside Youth program.
• For the Alpha program, the leaders and all who will attend.
• For the 9am at home prayer time for the Parish, Dromana & Mornington Peninsula.
• For all members of the Parish Council.
• That the Good News of Jesus will be known in Dromana.
• For Janice & family, William, Kevin, Anne, Doris B, Ellen, Ted & Monica, Lorna, Louise, Jen, TJ and family, Karen, Mary, Jan K, David, Belinda, Robyn, Phillip, Nikki, Jason, Rhiannon, Richard, Pat, Keith S, Harry, Mike, Chloe, Jessica, Audrey, Backy, Fred, Robert