The Anglican Parish of Mooi River

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The Anglican Parish of Mooi River Anglican based services in the heart of the KZN Midlands where all are welcomed and loved.

Every little bit counts
13/07/2026

Every little bit counts

Seafarers Sunday ❤️
12/07/2026

Seafarers Sunday ❤️

Jesus came and stood among them and said “Peace be with you!”.
12/04/2026

Jesus came and stood among them and said “Peace be with you!”.

05/04/2026

*Easter Sunday 5 April*

*Lent Devotion*

*Praying the 23rd Psalm in Lent*

*“My cup overflows… I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever”*

*Reflection*
Easter morning is not the beginning of the story, it is the turning point.
The Shepherd has already walked the valley. He has led us through shadows, through suffering, through silence. The cross was real. The tomb was sealed. The grief was heavy. But now, the same Shepherd who walked with us through death stands alive before us.

“ *My cup overflows…”*
This is the language of abundance after emptiness. The disciples came to the tomb with hearts drained of hope, but they left with lives overflowing with joy. Mary Magdalene came weeping, but she left as the first witness of resurrection.
Easter is the moment when God does more than restore what was lost. He pours out more than we could ever imagine.
“ *I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever* .”
This is not just about heaven at the end of time. It is about belonging that begins now. Through the resurrection, we are no longer wandering sheep. We are welcomed home. The risen Christ calls us by name, just as He called Mary in the garden. He gathers us into a living relationship, where death no longer separates us from God. The Shepherd who led us through the valley now leads us into life. It is full, eternal and an unshakable life.

Where is Easter meeting you today?
• In a place of grief? The risen Christ speaks your name.
• In a place of fear? The Shepherd stands before you alive.
• In a place of emptiness?

Your cup will overflow.
Easter does not erase the valley, but it transforms the destination. The path that once led to death now leads home.

*Prayer*
Risen Shepherd,
You have walked with me through the valley
and did not leave me in the darkness.
Today, I rejoice that you are alive.
Fill my empty places until my cup overflows.
Call me by name and lead me home to you.
Help me to live as one who belongs—
secure in your presence, now and forever.
*Amen* .

*Practice for Today*
Carry this simple truth with you: “I am welcomed home.” Whenever fear or doubt rises, pause and repeat it. Let the joy of the risen Christ overflow into your words and actions.

*Alleluia. Christ is risen.*
*He is risen indeed. Alleluia* .

04/04/2026

*Holy Week Devotion*
*Holy Saturday 4 April*

*Praying the 23rd Psalm in Lent*

“ *You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies* .”

*Theme: Waiting in Silence*

*Reflection*
Holy Saturday is the quietest day of the Christian story. The noise of Good Friday has faded, and the joy of Easter has not yet arrived. It is a day of waiting of silence, uncertainty, and hidden hope.
The disciples knew this silence well. Their Teacher was gone. The promises felt distant. The future seemed unclear. And yet, beneath the stillness, God was at work.
Psalm 23 reminds us: “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.” Not after the danger has passed. Not when everything is resolved. But in the presence of it all.
Holy Saturday teaches us that God’s work is not always loud or visible. The Shepherd is preparing, even when we cannot see it. In the silence of the tomb, God was defeating death itself. What looked like an ending was, in truth, the beginning of redemption.
There are seasons in our lives that feel like Holy Saturday. When prayers seem unanswered, when hope feels buried, when silence stretches long. Yet this day whispers a quiet truth: silence does not mean absence.
God is still preparing.
God is still working.
God is still present.
The table is being set, even here, even now.

*Prayer*
Faithful Shepherd,
In the silence, help me trust that You are still at work.
When I cannot see or feel Your presence, remind me that You are preparing something beyond my understanding.
Teach me to wait with hope, not fear.
Hold me in the stillness, and strengthen my faith for what is to come.
*Amen* .

*Contemplation*
Where in your life are you experiencing “Holy Saturday”—a place of waiting or silence?
Can you trust that God is preparing something there, even now?

*Practice for Today*
Spend a few moments in intentional silence.
No words, no requests—just sit with God.
Let the stillness become a place of trust, not emptiness.

It is done…
03/04/2026

It is done…

03/04/2026

*Good Friday 3 April*

*Holy Week Devotion*

*Praying the 23rd Psalm in Lent*

“ *You are with me; Your rod and staff comfort me”*

*Comfort in the shadow of the cross*

Good Friday is the darkest day in the Christian story. It is the day of the cross. We see suffering, abandonment, and silence. It is the day when it seems, for a moment, that the Shepherd is struck and the sheep are scattered.
And yet, even here, the words remain: “ *You are with me.”*
This is the mystery of Good Friday. God is not distant from suffering. He enters it.
As Jesus hangs on the cross, He experiences the weight of human pain: betrayal, injustice, physical agony, and even the cry of feeling forsaken. He cries out, “ *My God, my God, why have You forsaken me* ?” Even in that cry, there is relationship. There is reaching. There is trust.
“ *Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me* .” The rod and staff are not symbols of ease, but they are tools of guidance, protection, and presence. They remind us that the Shepherd does not abandon His sheep in danger but stands with them, even in the valley of death.
On Good Friday, comfort does not look like escape. It looks like presence.
The cross tells us that there is no valley so deep, no suffering so heavy, no grief so overwhelming that Christ has not entered it before us. He is not only the Shepherd who leads. He is the Lamb who suffers.
So when you find yourself in places of sorrow or uncertainty, this is your hope:
You are not alone.
The Shepherd is with you. He is there in the silence,
in the pain, in the waiting.
And even when you cannot see the way forward, His presence is your comfort.

*Reflection Questions* :
• Where do you most need to be reminded that God is with you today?
• What does “comfort” mean for you in a season of struggle?
• How does the cross reshape your understanding of God’s presence in suffering?

*Prayer* :
Lord Jesus,
On this Good Friday, I stand at the foot of the cross in awe and sorrow.
You entered the deepest suffering so that I would never be alone in mine.
When I walk through dark valleys, remind me that You are with me.
Be my comfort—not by removing every pain,
but by holding me steady within it.
Guide me with Your rod,
Draw me close with Your staff,
And help me trust Your presence, even in the silence. *Amen* .

02/04/2026

*Holy Week Devotional*

*Maundy Thursday 2 April 2026*

*Praying the 23rd Psalm in Lent*

“He restores my soul… Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.” — *Psalm 23:3–4*

*Restored in the valley of surrender*

Maundy Thursday invites us into an upper room and then into a garden. It is a night of love expressed in humble service, of bread broken and shared, and of deep anguish as Jesus steps willingly into the valley before the cross.

“He restores my soul” may feel like a distant promise on a night like this. There is tension here, between love and betrayal, peace and fear, devotion and denial. Jesus washes the feet of those who will abandon Him. He offers bread to the one who will betray Him. And then He walks into the valley. A valley that we sometimes find ourselves in and trying to get out.
“Even though I walk through the valley…”, this is not a place we are spared from, but a place we are accompanied through. God is there with us in the valley waiting for us to call out to Him.
Maundy Thursday reminds us that restoration does not always come by avoiding the valley, but by walking through it with Christ. Jesus Himself enters the deepest valley of sorrow, loneliness, and impending death. Not as a victim of circumstance, but as the Shepherd who goes ahead of His sheep. A willing participant. Showing what love for another really looks like.
In the garden, His soul is “overwhelmed with sorrow,” yet He entrusts Himself to the Father: “Not my will, but yours be done.” This is the turning point of restoration. The surrender that trusts God even in the darkest place.
Where is your valley today? Is it fear, grief, uncertainty, or weariness?
The promise is not that the valley disappears, but that you are not alone in it.
The One who kneels to wash feet…is there
The One who breaks bread and offers Himself…is there
The One who walks into the night…is there
He is the same One who restores your soul.

*Reflection Questions:*
• What valley are you walking through right now?
• Where do you need to trust God’s presence rather than your own understanding?
• What might surrender look like for you today?

*Prayer* :
Lord Jesus, On this holy day, You walked into the valley for me.
You chose love when faced with betrayal, Surrender when faced with suffering.
Restore my soul where it is weary and afraid.
When I walk through dark valleys, help me trust that You are with me.
Teach me to surrender. Not in defeat, but in faith.
Hold me close in the shadow, And lead me through to life. *Amen* .

31/03/2026

*Holy Tuesday - 31 March 2026*

*Lent Devotion*

*Praying the 23rd Psalm in Lent*

*“He makes me lie down in green pastures”*

*Reflection*
Rest does not come naturally to us. We live in a restless world. We are always moving, always striving, always doing. Even in Lent, when we are invited to slow down, we often fill the silence with more noise, more plans, more effort.
Yet the Psalmist reminds us of something striking: He makes me lie down.
Not invites. Not suggests. Makes.
Why? Because left to ourselves, we would keep going. We would push past our limits, wear our souls thin, and mistake busyness for faithfulness. So the Good Shepherd intervenes. Not to burden us, but to restore us. To refresh us that we can begin again and again, knowing that God is in control.
To lie down in green pastures is not laziness; it is trust. It is the quiet confession that God is in control, and we are not. It is the courage to stop striving long enough to remember that we are held, provided for, and deeply loved. We are not alone. There is a greater purpose for our lives in Jesus. It begins with Trust and lives in the hope we have for all our tomorrows.
On Holy Tuesday, as we journey closer to the cross, we see Jesus moving steadily toward suffering, yet never in frantic haste. He walks with purpose, pauses for prayer, withdraws for silence. Even in the shadow of the cross, He lives a rhythm of trust. We too need this rhythm in our lives. Allowing us to have time for life and for God. The two go together. Life without God is empty.
Lent calls us into that same rhythm. To rest. To listen. To be still.
Sometimes God makes us lie down because our souls need what our schedules resist. We need to reflect and be still to see what the Lord has done.

*Prayer*
Gentle Shepherd, You know how easily I become restless and consumed by doing.
Teach me to trust You enough to stop. Lead me into Your green pastures. Into places of quiet, renewal, and peace. Help me to see rest not as weakness, but as faith. In this holy season, slow my heart, quiet my mind, and draw me closer to You.
*Amen* .

*Contemplation*
Where might God be inviting or even making you slow down today?
Will you trust Him enough to rest?

*Practice*
Set aside intentional quiet time each day this Holy week.

*Prayer*
Good Shepherd, teach me to rest in You.

30/03/2026

*Holy Week*

*Monday 30 March 2026*

“ *…forever.”*

*Love that endures beyond suffering and death* .

*Reflection*

Monday of Holy Week draws us deeper into the shadow of the cross. The tension is rising. The path Jesus walks is becoming heavier, more deliberate and more costly. We know where this week leads. It leads to suffering, to death, to silence in the tomb.
And yet, Psalm 23 dares to end with a word that refuses to be overshadowed: *forever* .
This is not a denial of suffering. Holy Week does not skip over pain. Rather it walks straight through it. Jesus enters fully into human anguish: betrayal, abandonment, injustice, and death. But even here, the promise of “ *forever* ” stands unshaken.

“ *Forever* ” tells us that what looks like an ending is not the end.
“ *Forever* ” tells us that love is not defeated by suffering.
“ *Forever* ” tells us that death itself cannot separate us from the presence of God.

As Jesus moves toward the cross, He carries this eternal reality within Him. The unbreakable union with the Father and the enduring love that will not be extinguished. What seems like loss will become victory. What appears final will be transformed into eternity.

For us, Monday of Holy Week is an invitation to trust this deeper truth: that even in our darkest moments, we are held by a love that does not expire. The pain we experience is real, but it is not ultimate. God’s love stretches beyond it, through it, and beyond even death itself. God’s love is infinite. There is no end as we seek Him out in this Holy Week. Loving us even if we have fallen during this Lent season. He welcomes us back. With open arms and eyes filled with love and compassion.

To dwell in the house of the Lord forever is not just a future promise, but it is a present assurance. Even now, in the middle of life’s struggles, we are already being held in that eternal love. No struggle is too hard or big for God. He enables us to become overcomers. He does this through allowing us to choose Him to guide us and to allow Him to be in control of the situation. Even the pain on the cross. All to have us to change our hearts and habits.

*Prayer*
Lord Jesus, as You walk the road toward the cross, help me to trust in the love that endures forever. When I face suffering or uncertainty, remind me that Your presence holds me beyond every ending. Anchor my heart in the hope of Your eternal love. *Amen* .

*Contemplation*
Where in your life do things feel like they are ending?
How might God be inviting you to trust in His “forever” beyond this moment?

*Action*
Take a moment of quiet today and place before God something that feels heavy or uncertain. Surrender it to Him, trusting that His love is already at work beyond what you can see.

*Prayer* : Thank You for the Cross and eternal life.

Address

Cnr Stirling & Lawrence Road

3300

Telephone

+27676396363

Website

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