During Lent we are called to give things up that may harm us, like alcohol, smoking, maybe to fast from chocolate or too much social media, or TV – the idea being that the time this frees up you can give more attention to God, in prayer and reading the Bible. We are also called during Lent to remember those worse off than ourselves and there are so many ways we can do this. We can give our money to charity, maybe sending help to children in Gaza who are struggling without food and basic necessities:- Donate to Gaza Appeal for Children in Crisis - UNICEF UK – (follow this link to financially give). Or maybe you would like to organise a Lent Lunch or Lent Brekkie and invite people to join you, eat yummy food and donate to Christian Aid and their action against Poverty. Lent Lunches | Christian Aid – (follow this link to find out how to go about it and see all the resources they provide to help you with this). Or you may want to look closer to home and take up the Lent Challenge for our own area. We are committing to give generously to the Pop-Up shop during Lent, focussing on a particular area of food/household products each week as follows:- Week 1 - we focus on bringing soft drinks for that week. Week 2 – cans of food. Week 3 – dried goods Week 4 - Household cleaning products. Week 5 – chocolate (small Easter eggs) Week 6 – Special Easter food This will call us to sacrifice some of our wealth but it will benefit others who are struggling. The church at St James, High Wych is open every day from 9.30 am to 4.00 pm for you to bring food and place in the green box provided, and we will make sure this food gets to the Pop-Up Shop.
Dear AllAs I sit here, although it was a frosty morning the sun is shining. Snowdrops and crocus can be seen in St James churchyard, and it is hard not to feel hopeful when we see those signs of spring around us. We have a little way to go yet but I am encouraged by the signs of Spring and also for the signs of growth in all our services and activities across the Benefice.Wednesday Welcome was a treat this week as we were able to welcome Keith and Paul (The Racketeers) to play for us. Doreen loved it as she loves a bit of rock ‘n’ roll – lots of us were dancing in our seats and singing away to all the tunes we recognised. A great deal of fun was had by all. Please do tell your friends and neighbours about Wednesday Welcome – the next one will be Wednesday 5th March.The Ministry team have been thinking already about Easter and prior that to Lent. We have chosen the Lent study of Holy Habits. The information is attached to this e-mail. We hope to see many of you taking the Lent Bible study with us, if you would like the prayer reflections for the 40 days of Lent please sign up at the back of church and I will order them for you. They are currently costing £3.99 each.This Sunday our service of Holy Communion will be at 9.30 am at St James, High WychOur second Holy Communion service of the day will take place at St Mary’s, Gilston at 11.15 am.I hope to see you at one of our services.Every blessing Alison
Dear AllIt has definitely been a Wedding week. It looks like we will now have 3 weddings booked so far for next year and 4 weddings and a wedding blessing this year. Word is obviously spreading that our beautiful village churches would be the perfect setting for a deeply meaningful ceremony and celebration, I am so happy to be asked to officiate and be part of one of the most special days in a couple’s life. Big smiles from me.This weekends we have our 8.00 am BCP (Book of Common Prayer 1662 said service, this is a quiet service with no music but with space to reflect) at St James followed by a very different family service starting at 9.30 am with bacon sandwiches and other yummy breakfast food. This is a time for families to come together and worship in a way that works for the whole family. We have a very relaxed service that lasts 45 mins with music and drama and hopefully, lots of fun.Following on from this service we will go straight into our next Messy Church meeting from 10.45 am for coffee where we will be discussing the last Messy Church and the theme etc for our Messy Church on 16th February 2025. We are really looking forward to you being able to make this meeting and hear your views on what we have achieved so far.I hope I see you at one of these services or meeting tomorrow and my prayer is that your week has been a good one with a weekend with moments of joy. At the bottom of this e-mail is a reminder of our bible reading for the year – you can still find fridge magnets at the back of St James or St Mary’s church should you want one.Every blessingAlisonIsaiah 43:1-343 But now says the Lord,Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.3 For I am the Lord your God.
Dear AllSince I last wrote to you we have had our first monthly Messy Church. It went really well, God was good and sent us the right number of people so that we had room for everyone to do the crafts, we had enough food to feed everyone and a good time was had by all. I am hopeful this will continue to be a really great opportunity for us as a church to get to know new families and many more children. Thank you to all who got involved this January session and please let us know if you want to be involved in the February session. This will again take place in the High Wych Memorial Hall and there will be a meeting to discuss all things ‘Messy Church’ on Sunday 2nd February after the Family service if you would like to join us.Also, if you have not replied to our party invite can you please let us know so that I can sort out the catering. Many thanks.As you may have picked up I have two baptisms this Sunday. For one of the talks I am planning to do I need a Paddington Bear toy. Can anyone lead me one for this Sunday please? I am happy to collect if you are not going to be in church on Sunday. Thank you.I pray that this week is going well for you and here is a quick reminder of the services we have on Sunday for you.At 9.30 am we have our service of Holy Communion at 9.30 amAt 11.15 am we have our Family Service at St Botolph’s.Looking forward to seeing you soon.Every blessingAlison
Dear AllThis weekend we have our normal Communion service at St James, High Wych at 9.30 am and in the afternoon we have the first of our monthly Messy Church sessions taking place from 4.00 pm to 6.00 pm in the High Wych Memorial Hall (because it’s warmer at the moment with the unpredictable weather we are experiencing). We do not really know how many children will come (and bring their parents) and so all the planning and catering is being given to God, in the hope that all will be well and we will have enough craft activities and food. Please will you pray for us that God will provide, that people will have real fun when they come, and maybe learn something about Jesus that they did not previously know, and that they will wish to return. We have an amazing team so thank you to all who have agreed to get involved.May you know you are a blessing to me as your Priest.Alison
Dear FriendsHappy New Year to you all.As I write this we have just had our first Wednesday Welcome back at the start of the New Year.Our first Jimmy’s baby and toddler group this morning saw us welcome 16 children with many returning for another term and a couple of new families. Jim’s café will start back next Monday and our first Messy Church of the year will be on 19th January – its all go with so many lovely ways to connect with our community with faith and service at the heart of all that we do.I attach all the information about Messy Church for you to get involved, even if you can’t come along to the sessions it would be great to know that we are being prayed for as we meet at the sessions. The forms are at the back of church if you want to sign up for any of the teams or just ring or e-mail me or Janet if you want more information and there will be a meeting at the Rectory on Monday 13th January at 7.30 pm for all those who want to be involved.This Sunday we have our communion service at St James at 9.30 am and also a Communion service at St Mary’s, Gilston at 11.15 am.I am really looking forward to seeing you all again as our New Year gets underway.Every blessingAlison