Christ Church United Reformed Church NEWSLETTER. February February

Transcription

1 Christ Church United Reformed Church NEWSLETTER February 2017 February

2 Getting in contact Minister Rev Henriette Wentink Secretary Mr Stephen Gilburt Treasurer Mr David Fisher Bookings Secretary Mrs Pamela Mansley Property Committee Mr Philip Taylor Newsletter & website Mr Tom Boorman Serving Elders Miss Sylvia Coombs Mr Stephen Gilburt Miss Rosemary Milns Mr Philip Taylor Youth organisations Boys Brigade - Anchor Boys Miss Sue Bullock Boys Brigade - Junior Section, Company Section & Seniors Mr Tom Boorman Girlguiding - Rainbows & Rangers Mrs Tracy Rainbow Girlguiding - Brownies & Guides Mrs Vicki Stratton-Stubbs Adventurers (Junior Church) Miss Rosemary Milns Other activities Friendship Club Miss Sylvia Coombs Worship Group Miss Rosemary Milns You can also us at mail@ccurc.org.uk or visit 2 Christ Church URC Newsletter

3 Minister s Letter February 2017 Simon and Billy It seemed ages away, 8th July 2017, when we first heard about J. John s vision in October-November Now the year 2017 is well and truly underway and in five months the JustOne Event is happening in the Emirates stadium. Not long before we as churches need to say how many tickets we like to buy. Not long for you to decide if you will commit to going there on the day. Not long to pray; for J.John and his team, for the people who will be coming, for ourselves and the person(s) we would like to bring. Not long until we need to speak out the invitation to our plus one and ask if they would like to come along. As we continue to hold this event before God in prayer and prepare ourselves for it, here are some thoughts; In the gospel of John we find the story of the first disciples who follow Jesus (John 1:29-46) told from a slightly different perspective, compared with the other gospels. Rather than Jesus calling the first disciples, the writer of John s gospel tells us that it was John the Baptist s testimony which pointed the way to Jesus. John told his disciples what happened at Jesus baptism. He spoke about whom Jesus is; the Son of God, the Lamb of God, the One who would baptise with the Holy Spirit. Two of his disciples left John the Baptist to follow Jesus. One of them, Andrew, came and saw for himself who Jesus is and could not wait to get his brother Simon to meet Jesus too. Simon, also known as Peter; the rock on whom Jesus was going to build his Church (Matthew 16:18). In early summer 1934, 15-year old Billy and a hired hand set February

4 Minister s Letter February 2017 continued... to work on his father s farm in North Carolina. As they heard singing coming from behind the barn, Billy made a comment about fanatics whom his father allowed to meet on the farm. Little did Billy know that he himself would be the answer to a prayer said by one of the fanatics there that day. One man, praying that God would call someone from Billy s town to preach the gospel to the ends of the earth. When the evangelist Mordecai Ham came to town later that same summer, Billy was not interested. The fact that he grew up in a Christian family and attended church faithfully did not make the slightest bit of difference. Until one of his friends, Albert McMakin invited him to Come and hear our fighting preacher. It was the idea of the fighter that finally attracted Billy. It was the personal invitation that made him go in the end. Especially as McMakin allowed Billy to drive his dairy truck to the meetings! The preacher captivated him and soon after attending the first meeting Billy gave his heart to Jesus. Life would never be the same again. And thousands of people would hear the gospel of Jesus Christ, proclaimed by Billy Graham in evangelism crusades all over the world.* Imagine if Andrew had not invited Simon... Imagine if Albert had not invited Billy... Imagine if you do not invite... Yours in Christ, Henriette *Information on Billy Graham taken from: -saves-an-ordinary-farm-boy/ 4 Christ Church URC Newsletter

5 News of the fellowship The wedding of Vicki Stratton and David Stubbs took place on Friday 30th December. Congratulations to the new Mr and Mrs Stratton-Stubbs! We send our warmest congratulations to our friend Rev Olive Cope, who was awarded the British Empire Medal in the New Year s Honours list for services to the community in Enfield. Olive is a part of the fellowship at St Andrew s Church and has on occasions preached at Christ Church. Let us remember all our church family in our prayers and caring. The Breakfast Club The Breakfast Club is a Bible study and prayer group at Christ Church. It meets twice monthly on a Saturday morning between 9:00am and 10:30am in the Elders Vestry (enter the church through the side door on Christ Church Close). The next meetings are on 11th and 25th February (not 4th February as previously advertised). Do come and join us as we explore God s Word and enjoy some breakfast together! Lancaster Road URC Bible Study Group Everyone is invited to the Lancaster Road URC Bible Study Group, in Lancaster Road s Church Lounge on alternate Wednesdays from 9:45am to 11:30am. For dates and further details please see Lancaster Road s Contact magazine. February

6 Friendship Club Spring 2017 The next meetings of the Friendship Club will take place as follows, at 2:15pm in the Christ Church Hall. Monday 20th February Jungles of Borneo - Anne Fereday Monday 20th March Charities which we support (including short AGM) Monday 24th April Samuel Peypes - Joe Studman Monday 15th May Film London - Storm Patterson Further future dates will be announced in due course. There will also be tea, cakes and a chance for a natter! Everyone is very welcome to these friendly meetings. The Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. For more information please contact Sylvia Coombs on Christ Church URC Newsletter

7 Christ Church annual reports Leaders of organisations in the church are requested to let the Church Secretary, Stephen Gilburt, have a copy of their 2016 annual report and also to send it to Tom Boorman by Sunday 12th February so that they may be included in the March Christ Church newsletter and presented at the Christ Church Annual General Meeting on Sunday 19th March Stephen Gilburt Christmas greetings Christmas messages were received from a number of friends of Christ Church who have moved away from Enfield including Rev David Atkinson, Rev Roy and Joy Martin, Rev Chris and Rob Willis, Ron and Betty Andrews, Susan Jenkinson, Trevor and Sandra Blackmore, Norman and Jean Griggs, Geoff and Evelyn Bailey, Ron and Lily Smith, Mary Basham and John Badger. Stephen Gilburt Lancaster Road Winter Night Shelter Lancaster Road URC is hosting the Winter Night Shelter for the homeless again this year, in their church, on Tuesday nights until 4th April. They will be cooking dinners and breakfasts and providing beds for 12 guests to sleep overnight. It is still possible to be involved, even if it is for one week only, by setting up or cooking on the Tuesday evening, overnight or by helping to clear away on the Wednesday morning. If you are interested or if you would like more information, please contact Beryl Woolley on February

8 Christ Church newsletter You may have noticed that this month the newsletter has a slightly fresh look to bring us into We are always interested to hear feedback that anyone might have about the newsletter, whether it be general comments, things you would like to see more of, or even things you d rather see less of. If you have any feedback, please let Tom Boorman know or it to mail@ccurc.org.uk. We hope that the newsletter is a useful and interesting resource to people and will work to keep it that way in the future. BB News In December, the 3rd Enfield launched BB News, a new quarterly update for the Company. It will report on what they have been up to recently, tell you about upcoming events and also take a look back at their 126 year history. It will be published four times a year, will be available on the website and some printed copies will also be produced. The Winter 2016/2017 edition is now available online at or in paper form at the back of the church. If you would like to be added to the list to be notified when a new edition is published please let Tom Boorman know. Similarly, if you know anyone else who might be interested in reading it then please do tell them about it! 8 Christ Church URC Newsletter

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10 Spirit and Life Carol Service On 10th December 2016, Spirit and Life Baptist Church held their Annual Joint Carol Service at Christ Church URC. It was a splendid evening with the gathering of more than ten churches to celebrate and rejoice the birth of Jesus Christ. Each church contributed to the night with several acts of wonderful singing in Sinhala, Tamil, English and Farsi as well as cultural music, highlighting that Christ is not based on one particular race. The minister of Spirit and Life Baptist Church, Rev Sunder Manuelraj opened the service by welcoming the congregation and emphasising the need for unity among the various churches, as this is the message of Christmas. The Bible readings were done by the Pastors of the various churches, represented at the Carol Service. The Good News was delivered by Rev Dr Jacob Devadason. When the entire congregation joined to sing Lowe Semae by the famous band in Sri Lanka, The Gypsies, it was able to create a moment of reminiscing of our Sri Lankan heritage, amongst our congregation. This song also goes to illustrate unity and love among everyone regardless of class, creed or colour. This service concluded with a prayer, remembering those who are unfortunate in this world especially the refugees in the Middle East and Europe at this point in time. This service was wrapped up with delicious Sri Lankan and South Indian dishes, followed by desserts. Overall, there was great fellowship amongst everyone who was gathered. Article by Susanna Manuelraj and Sarojini Udayachandran, photography by Niranjan Moses 10 Christ Church URC Newsletter

11 Spirit and Life Carol Service continued... Sainsbury s Active Kids vouchers The 3rd Enfield Boys Brigade is once again collecting Sainsbury s Active Kids vouchers in This scheme allows us to redeem vouchers for sports, games or cooking equipment at no cost to us. Vouchers are available in store from now until May. You receive one for every 10 spent (or 5 in Sainsbury s Local stores). There is a collection box at the back of the church to place your vouchers or they can be handed to any of the Boys Brigade leaders. Thank you for your support! Tom Boorman February

12 Christmas Nativity Family Service On Sunday 11th December our Christmas Nativity Family Service took place in the church. The service was led by members of The Worship Group, with a number of members of the congregation and our youth organisations acting out the story of the birth of Jesus. Our thanks to all those who contributed to the service in any way. 12 Christ Church URC Newsletter

13 Christmas Nativity Family Service continued... At the Nativity, members of the congregation were asked to write down and share things on their hearts that they wish to take to God. Some of them are below - perhaps you have similar, or perhaps other things, that you want to take to God A peaceful time Inner peace and joy Peace in the world An end to suffering on earth Favour of God upon my life Love of my family The fellowship of Christ Church Happiness Good health and wellbeing Friends and family February

14 Service of Lessons and Carols On Sunday 18th December our Service of Lessons and Carols took place, which was led by Rev Henriette Wentink, with a number of members of the congregation also taking part in the service. Afterwards, we moved over to the hall for a Christmas lunch. A huge thank you to Gillian s Catering for providing the lovely food! Christmas and New Year worship On Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, we once again joined with our friends at Lancaster Road URC for united services as we celebrated the birth of Jesus. The Christmas Eve Service included Holy Communion and was led by Rev Henriette Wentink. It was timed to coincide with midnight in Bethlehem. On Christmas morning we again came together at Lancaster Road URC for an all age service, which was a joyful occasion led by Rev Martin Legg. The following week, on New Year s Day, Lancaster Road URC then came to us to join together in a time of worship, which was led by The Worship Group. 14 Christ Church URC Newsletter

15 Boys Brigade at the Parade of Light On Sunday 27th November, members of Enfield Battalion came together for adventure golf and to take part in the Enfield Parade of Light! 13 members of the 3rd Enfield were part of a group of over 70 young people from BB groups across Enfield who played at the Jungle Falls Adventure Golf course, a new 18 hole course in Trent Park. Following the golf, the group moved to Winchmore Hill Baptist Church (10th Enfield HQ) for some food and games. Everyone then headed to Enfield Town to take part in the Enfield Parade of Light. The parade has taken place for the last few years on Advent Sunday and features a number of youth and community organisations. The Enfield Battalion item included two giant parachutes with inflatable balls to bounce around on them, the BB sail flags and lots of glow sticks, LED lights and torches for the young people to use! We had a great time at the parade and it was a good opportunity to publicise the BB name, with many spectators watching on. After the parade had finished there was a fireworks display to close the event. February

16 Boys Brigade Bowling competition Members of Enfield Battalion came together at Hollywood Bowl Finchley on Saturday 3rd December for the Enfield Battalion Bowling competition. For the first time the competition was open to members of Junior Section, as well as Company Section and Seniors, with 10 members of the 3rd Enfield taking part across the three age groups. Each person played two games of bowling, with the top three combined scores from each Company being added together to form their score. The 3rd Enfield came second in the Junior Section and Company Section competitions (won by the 10th Enfield and 11th Enfield respectively), and won the Open (Seniors) competition. Marcus from the 3rd Enfield also gained the highest individual score in the Open competition. Well done to all of the boys! 16 Christ Church URC Newsletter

17 Boys Brigade Christmas Party It was party time at the 3rd Enfield on Monday 12th December as we held our final meeting of 2016! To begin with, members of the Anchor Boys and Junior Section met together for their Christmas Party and enjoyed an evening of party games including musical chairs and pass the parcel, pizza, drinks and more. Following that, the Company Section and Seniors held their party which included Xbox, table tennis, pool, pizza, drink and a Christmas selfie area! Thank you to everyone who has supported the 3rd Enfield in any way during 2016 and we look forward to the adventure continuing in 2017! February

18 Girlguiding Final Festive Friday On Friday 16th December, the 9th Enfield Rainbows, Brownies, Guides and Rangers ended 2016 by holding their Final Festive Friday in the church. There were a number of performances put on by the girls in each of the groups, including songs, performances and games, as well as the Twelve Days of Christmas - both the well known version and a special Girlguiding take on it! There were also a couple of traditional Christmas carols for everyone to sing. The evening closed with a Christmas prayer and the Lord s Prayer, after which tea, coffee, mince pies and non-alcoholic mulled wine were available for all to enjoy. A large number of families and friends were there to join in the celebration. Well done to all of the girls who took part and the leaders who organised a wonderful evening! 18 Christ Church URC Newsletter

19 Bush Hill Park URC Lent Bible Study This Lent, ahead of the JustOne event at the Emirates in July, we will look at J.John s Natural Evangelism course. The act of sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ is called evangelism. Evangelism is the cry of Jesus as he weeps over lost people. The gospel is not something we come to church to hear, it is something we go from church to tell. The Natural Evangelism Course is a six-session course, which provides a simple, yet insightful training programme for anyone wanting a more effective friendship evangelism. The course has been tried and tested through J.John s own experience of preparing hundreds of churches for mission on six continents. We will meet every Tuesday in Lent, starting on Tuesday 7th March, 8:00pm at Lisa Hamblin s house, 130 Clive Road, Enfield, EN1 1RF. The titles for each session are: The Why of Evangelism; What is the Good News of Christianity?; What is Friendship Evangelism?; This is My Story; Demonstrating the Good News; and How Can We be Empowered for Evangelism? It would be lovely to have a full house, everyone from the pastorate and beyond is welcome to join us. I hope to see you there. Lisa Hamblin If you missed out on any of the JustOne meetings at Christ Church or Lancaster Road, this is an opportunity to catch up along with friends from Bush Hill Park URC. For more information, contact their office on or office@bhpurc.org.uk. February

20 New Year s Resolutions Do you ever make New Year s Resolutions? At the start of a new year, it s inevitable that many people will - whether it is to get fit, take up a new hobby, drink less, give up smoking, and so on. Many people see their resolutions through but equally many people don t make it last. I m not normally one for making New Year s Resolutions but last year I decided to give it a go. A number of years ago I remember listening to a talk by a Christian youth worker - who I won t single out by name but who was a big inspiration in my faith journey - where they spoke of undertaking the challenge of reading the entire Bible. To me, this seemed practically impossible, especially to someone who doesn t read many books as it is! However, the idea stuck around in my mind, until at the start of 2016 I thought I would give it a go. Over the past few years I have been to a handful of services at Holy Trinity Brompton, a large Anglican Church spread over four sites in and around Knightsbridge. Their current vicar, Nicky Gumbel, has been involved with producing Bible in One Year, a free daily Bible reading app. This app seemed like a good way of facing the challenge, as it breaks the Bible down into manageable chunks each day - a passage from a Proverb or Psalm, an Old Testament reading and a New Testament reading, all centred around a different theme for each day. Some of the readings were confusing, some of them very challenging, some of them even containing things that we are unlikely to understand this side of heaven. Each day s readings included some excellent commentaries written by Nicky Gumbel, which provided more insight and made some of the more difficult parts a lot easier to understand. 20 Christ Church URC Newsletter

21 New Year s Resolutions continued... Although I have learnt a lot through taking on this challenge throughout the year, I don t by any stretch of the imagination now profess to be an expert in the Bible, as it is impossible to pick out every detail just by reading through things once. One thing that is clear, however, is that the whole book is filled with God s unending and unshakeable love and grace for each one of us. We as humans have messed up since the start of time but that doesn t make God love us any less. There are so many ordinary people in the Bible that God uses in extraordinary ways - just like any one of us. It all points to Jesus and the sacrifice he made on the cross - taking the punishment for our sins upon himself so we could be forgiven. God s people have faced trials and persecution throughout history, just as many do today. But there is a happy ending - that one day we can spend eternity with God in a perfect new world. Hopefully that s not a spoiler! If you are thinking of reading and getting more into the Bible, go for it. 15 minutes a day is all it took me - it s definitely worth your time! Now we re into 2017, I ve skipped from Revelation back into Genesis to start again to see what I missed first time round Tom Boorman February

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24 Prayer diary February st - Pray for your own personal faith. 2nd - Pray for those who are affected by conflicts around the world. 3rd - Pray for the Rainbows as they meet in the hall today. 4th - Pray for this morning s meeting of the Breakfast Club, our Bible study and prayer group. 5th - Pray for the work of Shanthigramam, the home for people suffering with leprosy who we are supporting with our Communion offering this morning. 6th - Pray for the Anchor Boys and Junior Section as they meet in the hall this evening. 7th - Pray for all those who are involved with the Winter Night Shelter at Lancaster Road URC. 8th - Pray for the important work that the Property Committee does in maintaining our church buildings. 9th - Pray for the local businesses in our area. 10th - Pray for the Brownies as they meet in the hall today. 11th - Pray for today s Christ Church event and for all those who attend. 12th - Pray for the Girlguiding movement as this morning s Guides Thinking Day Family Parade Service takes place. 13th - Pray for young people who are beginning half term. 14th - Valentine s Day: Pray that we may all better express God s love to others. 15th - Pray for the residents of Manor Road. 16th - Pray for the work of our Government. 17th - Pray for anyone who is mourning the loss of a loved one at this time. 18th - Pray for the Breakfast Club, which meets this morning. 19th - Pray for The Worship Group as they lead our time of worship this morning. 20th - Pray for today s Friendship Club meeting and for Anne Fereday, who is speaking to the group. 21st - Pray for the Boys Brigade bugle band as they meet to rehearse this evening. 24 Christ Church URC Newsletter

25 Prayer diary February 2017 continued... 22nd - Pray for our friends from Lancaster Road and Bush Hill Park URCs. 23rd - Pray for the staff and pupils of Enfield Grammar School. 24th - Pray for the Guides and Rangers as they meet in the hall this evening. 25th - Pray for missionaries around the world who work to spread God s word. 26th - Pray for the Adventurers and that more children may be encouraged to join the group. 27th - Pray for the Company Section and Seniors as they meet in the hall this evening. 28th - Shrove Tuesday: Pray for forgiveness for any wrongs you may have committed. March 2017 newsletter The March 2017 newsletter will be published on Sunday 26th February. Items intended for inclusion in this issue should be with the Editor, Tom Boorman, by Sunday 12th February. Any late submissions may be held over to the following issue. Please contact Tom with any items to be included in future issues. Items can be received either in paper form at Sunday worship, by to mail@ccurc.org.uk or by phone on The newsletter is published monthly (except for combined issues in July & August and December & January). Back issues dating back to 2007 can be found on our website. Please note that views expressed are not necessarily the views of the whole fellowship, nor are they representative of church policy. February

26 Church diary February 2017 Sunday 5th February 11:00am Mrs Laura Marlow Holy Communion (offering for Shanthigramam) Duty Elder - Philip Taylor Monday 6th February Elders Meeting 8:00pm Saturday 11th February 9:00am - 10:30am Breakfast Club (Bible study and prayer group) Saturday 11th February Christ Church 11:00am - 2:00pm Sunday 12th February 11:00am Rev Henriette Wentink Family Parade Service (Guides Thinking Day) Duty Elder - Rosemary Milns Sunday 19th February The Worship Group Duty Elder - Stephen Gilburt Monday 20th February Friendship Club Jungles of Borneo - Anne Fereday 11:00am 2:15pm Saturday 25th February 9:00am - 10:30am Breakfast Club (Bible study and prayer group) Sunday 26th February Mr Martin Wells Duty Elder - Sylvia Coombs 11:00am 26 Christ Church URC Newsletter

27 Church diary March 2017 Sunday 5th March 11:00am Mr Tom Boorman Holy Communion (offering for the Communion Fund) Duty Elder - TBC Change to January diary Please note that the service on Sunday 29th January will now take place at 11:00am at Palmers Green URC (Burford Gardens, Palmers Green, N13 4AL) rather than Bush Hill Park URC as previously advertised. It will be led by Rev Ray Adams. This is Ray s last Sunday morning service as minister of Ponders End, Palmers Green and Winchmore Hill URCs before his retirement. The service will be followed by lunch at 1:00pm at Palmers Green URC. There will be no service at Christ Church URC on this day. Key future dates Church Meetings Sunday 19th March (AGM), Sunday 4th June (both 12:30pm) Elders Meetings Monday 6th February (8:00pm in the Elders Vestry) Christ Church Saturday 11th February (11:00am to 2:00pm) February

28 Regular activities at Christ Church SUNDAY 11:00am 11:00am Morning worship (Holy Communion - first Sunday) (Family Parade Service - third Sunday) (regular service - other Sundays) Adventurers (children aged 3 upwards) MONDAY 2:15pm Friendship Club (once monthly - see diary) 6:00pm - 7:30pm Boys Brigade Anchor Boys (boys aged 5 to 8) 6:00pm - 7:30pm Boys Brigade Junior Section (boys aged 8 to 11) 7:30pm - 9:00pm Boys Brigade Company Section (boys aged 11 to 15) 7:30pm - 9:00pm Boys Brigade Seniors (boys aged 15 to 18) FRIDAY 5:00pm - 6:15pm Rainbows (girls aged 5 to 7) 6:00pm - 7:30pm Brownies (girls aged 7 to 10) 7:30pm - 9:00pm Guides (girls aged 10 to 14) 7:30pm - 9:00pm Rangers (girls aged 14 to 20) SATURDAY 9:00am - 10:30am Breakfast Club (twice monthly - see diary) For details of other special events and activities please see the diary. Christ Church URC is a part of the North Enfield Group of URCs and the North West Enfield Group of Churches. Motto: Enter to worship, depart to serve. Mission statement: Christ Church URC aims to provide through its worship, work, witness and mission an effective contribution to the spiritual and social welfare of the Church family and the wider community. Address: Christ Church URC, Chase Side, Enfield, EN2 6NJ 28 Christ Church URC Newsletter Cover image istock.com/freedom007