CHURCH NEWS
JULY AUGUST
FROM
THE RECTOR’S STUDY
Dear
All,
Let
us have a grateful Summer. I am in the hospital on many occasions, and I
conduct many funerals – they all lead me to be so thankful for what I
have: health and strength and happiness.
I know that we all have our ups and downs and perhaps this has not
been your best year, and yet it is so important to continue to be thankful
for what you do have. Many of
us can have active, healthy lives, out walking in the sunshine these
months. Many of us can get out
to church and worship our God with our friends.
Many of us can eat lovely food, put on an array of clothes, sleep
in safe beds and engage with loving families.
None of this should be taken for granted – there are thousands in
other parts of the world homeless and hungry, and there are many in our
own city who are similarly destitute. There are bereaved people in our
church fellowship and in our neighbourhoods, and they need attention and
kindness.
So let’s
determine this Summer that although we may be busy and may be away on
holidays, there are always needs at home to be met.
Think of a neighbour, or a family member, or a colleague. There
will always be someone who appreciates a kind word, or a card or a cup of
coffee with you. So let’s be mindful of the needs of others this Summer,
and thankful for what we have. Thankfulness is next to godliness!
Pat
Storey (Rector)
Rector’s
holidays:
The
Rector will be on holidays from 27th June- 12th July
and then from 25th July- 1st August. She will also
be attending a leadership course with other clergy and the Bishop in
Chicago
from 4th-9th August.
All emergencies will be dealt with by Rev John Blair, Eglinton.
WILLOW CREEK
is
a very large church in
Chicago
USA
at which there is a leadership summit every August. The Bishop has invited
five of his clergy to accompany him this Summer. Those attending are:
William Seale, Paul Whittaker, Irene Lyttle, Stewart Wright and the
Rector. Please pray that we
will have safe travel (you all know my love of flying!), good health and
strength while we are away, and open ears and hearts to learn plenty. Many
thanks to the Bishop for his financial support which has made this trip
possible.
TOURIST
MINISTRY……thanks
to all of you who take part in this ministry at the door of the church
throughout the Summer, welcoming people in and telling them a little of
the history and the present activities of our church community. We have
installed a water cooler at the door for the use of tourists, and some
tins of chocolates in order to be hospitable!
Thanks to Ivan and all the welcome teams for a job very well done,
and again, thank you for the money that this generates for the church.
It is a very vital ministry.
LADIES’
GUILD…….thank-you
again to the hard work of the Ladies’ Guild this Summer.
The members did a huge amount of catering for various groups
touring the city. We are very appreciative
of your welcome and your work. All the groups had a great time and were
very adequately provided for! The financial help that this generates for
the church is most welcome and greatly appreciated.
ALL
THE BEST…
to Kirsty, Caroline and Luke as they set off, and jet off, to their
separate endeavours this Summer. We wish them all well, we will remember
to pray for them. We look
forward to hearing in due course how they got on .
THANK-YOU….so
much to the Vestry and congregation for your very generous gift for our 25th
wedding anniversary – we will think of you as we spend it!!
We so appreciate your generosity and are glad to have reached such
a landmark! Someone told me
that the next 25 were the worst! Oh
well, poor Earl……!!
Extract
from a book called ‘Dumbing Down Our Kids’ by a man called Charles
Sykes….
Rule 1:
Life is not fair - get used to it!
Rule 2 : The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will
expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.
Rule 3 : You will NOT make £60,000 a year right out of school. You won't
be a Company President with a car phone until you earn both.
Rule 4 : If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a
boss.
Rule 5 : Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your
Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it
opportunity.
Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so
don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.
Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as
they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your
clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So
before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's
generation, try delousing the closet in your
own room.
Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but
life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and
they'll give you as MANY CHANCES as you want to get the right answer. This
doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.
Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers
off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do
that on your own time.
Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually
have to leave the coffee shop and go to work.
Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for
one!
Looking
after the Environment ...
THE
ENVIRONMENT is a hot topic these days. Carbon credits, pollution, global
warming, floods, deforestation, recycling, fish stocks, endangered
species, nuclear power are some of the words that come to mind when we
think about the environment. Whatever your position on this subject, there
are a few views that will be held by most people:
The
environment is fragile and needs to be looked after.
We cannot assume that the environment is constant and unchanging.
The
impact of human development on the environment needs to be kept in check.
Some
activities are clearly damaging to the environment (as a result of
scientific knowledge) and should be severely limited, with alternatives
found.
Christianity
teaches that God made the world and gave responsibility to humans to rule
over the animal kingdom. God also instructed humans to subdue the earth
– essentially to control, manage and farm it. Everything started off
perfectly, but as a result of one simple act of disobedience the world
became chaotic and subject to natural disasters.
Indeed
God used one of these natural disasters (a flood) to destroy the evil that
had developed as a result of human activity. It would, however, be wrong
to think that God uses powerful natural forces to meet out justice and
punishment. We just can’t say this.
Many of
the kings of
Israel
looked to the beauty of the world as their inspiration and way to be
brought closer to God. They drew parallels between nature (its grandeur,
harshness, beauty) and the character of God.
Not
surprising, as the personality of artists and poets is often present in
their paintings and poems. The splendour of mountain views, the beauty of
tropical fish or the grace of a galloping giraffe should cause us to feel
humble and think about our place in the world and the responsibilities we
have been given.
Christianity
says nothing about whether electricity should be generated by coal, gas or
nuclear power stations. But as humans have been given the responsibility
of managing the earth, electricity generation should have minimal impact
on the atmosphere. A chimney belching smoke, as happened in the industrial
revolution and is happening now in developing countries, is not in harmony
with the overseeing role we have been given. I could provide many more
examples. But closer to home – think about whether dropping a sweet
wrapper on the pavement (for someone else to pick it up) is in keeping
with our role as a ruler within the world.
This
thought should cause us to examine the impact our lives have on the world,
whether the pollution we cause (through our rubbish bins or food choices)
or the effect our buying habits have if we use wood from non- sustainable
sources.
In
delicate environments the phrase “leave only footprints, take only
memories” is often used and is a great motto for us to apply to our own
lives. God’s kingdom is the whole world and he has entrusted us with
being rulers. Let’s not disappoint Him or spoil the world.
WEDDINGS
:
:
5th July
Mervyn Cargill and Anne Catterick
18th
August Lucy Sinclair and
Rob Oates
29th
August Maureen Brolly
and Alan Neely
We
wish all our newly married couples every blessing and hope to see them
back in church soon!
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