Bringing God's grace and healing love to people with life-disrupting problems

Prayer Letter
April 2007

Dear people,

"Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.'" (Luke 24:5-7)

Easter is, for the Christian Church, the most wonderful, hopeful and inspirational time of the year. It gives us time out from our busy lives to focus specifically on the sufferings and sacrifice of Jesus, but these terrible events are inevitably followed by the amazing, triumphant resurrection. It's only because of the resurrected Jesus that we can be made alive ourselves, - it is the best news ever! We have much to thank God for here at the Crisis Centre.

Despite being without a Coffee Shop Manager for several weeks the shop has been run smoothly and efficiently by our team of duty managers and volunteers. We are very grateful for their dedication and love for the clients who come into the shop. Lynn and John have been brilliant in doing much of the cooking for the various sessions. The records we are keeping in the shop are very helpful in showing the conversations we have with clients, opportunities to hear their life stories, anxieties, concerns, talk with them about Jesus, pray with them, provide practical help in the form of food parcels etc.

The LITE course has just finished the first module. There have not been as many students as in previous courses and some were old students who had come back to study module 1 so they will not be back after Easter.

Over the past six weeks, five of the students from last year's LITE have, at their own request, been coming back each week to find out more about heaven and God. They have been going through 'Sorted' (a revised form of Alpha) with Andy and other team members. This has been a really blessed time with opportunities for prayer with the students and in depth discussions about Jesus Christ and Christianity. One of the students, at the session on the Holy Spirit, made a decision to become a Christian – please pray for him. Of the others, one has a relationship with Jesus but there are loads of uncertainties around that, one is familiar with church attendance since childhood yet seems to want to avoid making a response at present, one is really seeking – reading her Bible regularly each day and planning to go to a church over the Easter period. Please pray for this group of people and for the ongoing weekly contact with them. The 'Sorted' course has now finished but some of these 5 are saying they want to continue to come each week. Andy is thinking about what form this group will take – please pray for him as he ponders on this. Of the five students mentioned, two have recently moved into new flats, and they are both delighted with their new homes; one student has received an award for photography and another was so excited to tell us that she has been offered the opportunity to work in a shop, in an area of trade that she was really interested in. God has blessed these people so much.

Items for prayer this month:

• Appointment of the new coffee shop manager - pray for wisdom for Paul and the trustees as they interview candidates and make a final selection.
• The operation of the coffee shop in the interim until the coffee shop manager is appointed. Our duty managers and volunteers continue to offer a wonderful service to our clients. We are so grateful to them for their involvement and enthusiasm. Please continue to pray for the daytime and evening sessions, including Saturday evenings which are worship (promoted as live music!)
• LITE - please pray for the new students that they will come along with enthusiasm and a focus on learning.
• The students from the previous LITE - that they will know the Spirit of God on their lives. Also for each one as they look for voluntary or paid work and settle into new places to live.
• The volunteer training this month: Share Your Faith. This is the one which runs for a full day (10 - 5) on Saturday 14 April at Trinity Tabernacle, or for three Wednesday evenings (7:30 - 9:30) at the CCM offices on 11, 18 and 25 April. Everyone is welcome, but it's helpful to know the numbers. More details on the web site: http://www.bcan.org.uk/syf/
• Jesus in the City - please continue to pray for this, give thanks that Jim Wallis has agreed to come, pray that people would book in as early as possible (late bookings make the practical arrangements very difficult), and that a good number of people from Bristol would take part.
• Thank God for our present financial situation, and the positive response to some of the funding applications we have made. Please continue to pray for God's provision for us.

Thank you so much for praying for the work of Crisis Centre Ministries. We greatly appreciate your support.

Claire Collins

Office Manager