​Are you up for a challenge?  Our very own Christopher Cookson has created an informative website about Marlborough with some great local tips (such as some lesser known walks and playgrounds) and some of his own beautiful photography. 

He has recently added a Marlborough Quiz to give us all a challenge during lockdown. 

How much do you know about the area you live in?  How much do you have to learn? 

​Have a go at ​Marlborough Quiz (marlboroughonline.co.nz)

If you don’t have any paint that is great because that is another project!  Just make some.  Here is a simple recipe:
https://tinkerlab.com/salt-and-flour-paint/
 
Alternatively, you could just draw around the shapes. 

This week’s snack is a family favourite:
AFGHANS
INGREDIENTS

• 200g butter, softened
  
• ½ cup Sugar
• 1 and a ¼ cups standard flour
• ¼ cup cocoa
• 2 cups cornflakes
• Icing Sugar
• Toppings (walnuts/hundreds and thousands)

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 180ºC. Grease or line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Sift flour and cocoa. Stir into creamed mixture. Fold in cornflakes.
3. Spoon mounds of mixture onto the tray, gently pressing together.
4. Bake for 15 minutes or until set. When cold ice with chocolate icing and decorate.  We put hundreds and thousands on ours and a couple even had marshmallows on top.
   

Ka kite
First Steps

Philippians 4:6,7:     In everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Every Wednesday the Intercessors Prayer Group met in Barnies at 4pm.  Our aim was to seek God's purpose, wisdom, knowledge etc for the way to pray and ask within His will not only for Nativity and the various situation, people and things required but the community, nation, world, current events i.e. the Covid-19 situation.  I would encourage anyone who would like to learn with us, or enjoys this type of prayer to come on by and join us when we are free from the lock-down.

However, this does not suit everyone and even the time can be a deterrent.  There are so many different  ways we can pray, corporately as a large group or smaller ones, twos, threes and so on.  (These days with messenger, Skype, zoom and FaceTime we can keep in touch face to face.) Why not start your own prayer group with friends at a time that suits you all.  There may be people with similar interest or ways of praying you can meet with.  Having groups of people praying in houses all around the town would be awesome.  I heard of one group of 3 people who meet every three months at the change of the season to pray for their street and surrounding area which includes a school. Not an onerous task but awesome to think that it is happening.  God loves faithfulness. You may like to meet and pray more regularly for your school, workplace, church, current events or families.  The list is endless.

As individuals the list is also endless.  You may take a quiet time, and pray daily, this is great for our spiritual feeding. Other ideas are:

• When ironing, pray for the individual whose garment is being ironed
• When cooking, pray for members of the family you are cooking for. Give thanks for God's provision.
• When gardening pray for the people who will enjoy your harvest or enjoy seeing your beautiful flower garden.
• When making beds, pray for God's Holy Spirit to speak to the people in dreams and visions, pray salvation, healing deliverance, whatever is needed.
  
• When driving pray safety for yourself and passengers, for others on the road, for alertness at all times.
• When passing schools, churches, businesses, pray God's blessing on all the people there, for learning, for faith, for godly practices.
• When out walking pray for the people in the houses you pass, pray to be able to share your faith with someone, even if it is only a genuine smile and hello.  Let people see the joy of the Lord in your face.
• When at work pray blessing on your fellow workmates or for the things that are a concern for the business.  Pray for the employer and employees to work together for the common good.
• Pray for the people who come to your house to know the saving power of Jesus.
• As you hear sirens of fire and ambulance or the rescue helicopter overhead, pray that Jesus would be in that instance for safety of life and limb. 
• At sports events, with children and friends pray blessing on all present for safety and enjoyment. Pray off the shock and trauma of accidents for those on the field of play.
• Pray and ask the Lord of the Harvest to send more labourers into the field....               
  We are all called to be those labourers.

A Prayer:
Dear Lord, I rejoice in you.  I will be joyful in God my saviour. Thank you for this gift of prayer, for listening to my heart, for speaking to me of your grace.
In Jesus name. Amen.