God is good all the time – All the time, God is good HAVE UNLIMITED TRUST IN THE ALMIGHTY GOD Dear All, This is my goodbye letter with thanks to the members and leadership of the United Benefice of St Stephen with St James, Blackburn. The beautiful words from one of my favourite hymns, continue to affirm that ‘We are pilgrims on a journey, fellow travellers on the road.’ I thank God for my journey with you for the last five years. I am moving on to my new assignment with a sense of fulfilment at the parish level as well at Diocesan level. I will continue to keep you in my daily prayers at Leicester Cathedral, where I will work as a Canon Missioner. I will be licensed as a Canon Missioner on 22nd September at 3.30 pm. My last Sunday with you as your Vicar will be Sunday, the 1st of September. My work with you and in the Diocese has helped to equip me for this new assignment. Thank you for your love, support, encouragement and understanding. Please continue to keep me in your prayers. I am aware that you will soon be undergoing an interregnum, which could be quite challenging. However, interregnum may also help you to build a future vision for the Benefice. We may have many questions, plans or points of view and sometimes, it may cause anxiety to continue your Presence and Engagement in Blackburn. I will reassure you all to look at this beautiful text from Proverbs 3:5-6 encouraging every believer to, ‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.’ As a Benefice, Psalm 23 is our go-to psalm for this year. It reminds us of God’s goodness, mercy, protection, and guidance in every situation we face as the Body of Christ. It is so important for us to acknowledge God’s plans, which are not human plans, and God’s wisdom, which is beyond human wisdom and understanding; we need to have unlimited trust in the Almighty God. It is my prayer that, may, Risen Christ, faithful shepherd of your Father’s sheep: teach us to hear your voice and to follow your command, that all your people may be gathered into one flock, to the glory of God the Father. Amen Once again, thank you for your prayers, support and encouragement. I am forever grateful. Your loving Vicar Sarah Gill
“Dear Friends, I say friends as a reflection of the generosity of your welcome and support to me as Curate for which I’m so grateful and humbled. To be part of the rich history of both churches, seeing how the Gospel is being lived out and looking to the future is a privilege and a pleasure. I’m sat reflecting on this in the chapel at Whalley Abbey as I prepare for my ordination as Priest, a place where for centuries people have gathered in worship and prayer, then stepping out into the wider world to tell people about the good news of the Gospel. Over the centuries this sacred place has seen many changes and challenges yet in the ruins of the Abbey, God’s living presence is felt, a God who is alive, whose son Jesus calls us to be the church. In Peter’s first letter he calls us all to be “living stones”. As followers of Christ we are each called to be the stones on which the church is founded with Jesus as the cornerstone that holds us together. Now, I really like Peter, he’s got a remarkable gift for getting things right and at the same time a remarkable gift for getting things wrong - but always striving to serve Jesus. I can see a bit of myself in him to be honest though I’ll let you be the judges of the ratio of “getting things right to getting things wrong”! As I approach ordination as priest perhaps I’m at last “coming home” to that place where I am called to be. What I do know is that serving in our parishes continues to be a great joy and pleasure and I look forward in prayerful anticipation to the years ahead. Yours with love and every blessing, Peter”
WEDDINGS , BAPTISMS/CHRISTENINGSAND CONFIRMATION We are delighted to offer our services to conduct Marriage and Baptism. Please do get in touch with our Vicar’s administrator, Mrs Sue Grime, for booking and enquiries on 01254 580986 or email Sue.Grime@blackburn.anglican.org WEDDINGS: Please note the following guidelines: You can get married at St Stephen’s, if you can show that one of you: • has at any time lived in the parish for a period of at least 6 months or • was baptised in the parish or • was prepared for confirmation in the parish or • has at any time regularly gone to normal church services in the parish church for a period of at least 6 months or that one of your parents, at any time after you were born: • has lived in the parish for a period of at least 6 months or • has regularly gone to normal church services in the parish church for a period of at least 6 months or that one of your parents or grandparents: • was married in the parish If this is you then please get in contact with Mrs Sue Grime Please note in order to book a wedding we will need to see proof of identity e.g. passport, and proof of address e.g. a recent bank statement or utility bill, for each partner. A deposit of £100 is also required to be later subtracted from the total cost of the wedding. How much does it cost? A wedding currently costs £716. Please contact the vicar on 01254 580986 if you would like a church wedding but are working to a very tight budget. I’ve been married before. Can I get married at St James? We will conduct weddings where one or both partners have been married once before. We will need to see an original copy of your decree absolute. If you have been married more than once then we may be able to marry you. Please contact the vicar. If one or both of you are foreign nationals, including EU passport holders, please contact the vicar. You may also like to visit yourchurchwedding.org (https://www.yourchurchwedding.org/ ) for more information. Changes in the Marriage Registration From 4th May 2021 the system for registering marriages have changes. The changes include · Marriage registration online · No longer a requirement to complete a paper-based formal register for marriage, · The legal marriage certificate will not be issued at the time of marriage. The marriage certificates will be issues by the registry. BANNS OF MARRIAGE WHEN YOU ARE MARRYING IN ANOTHER CHURCH If you are getting married in another church, but one or both of you live in this parish, we will need to call your Banns of Marriage. The vicar marrying you will advise you of this. To have your Banns called at St James please contact the parish administrator. We will need to see proof of identity e.g. passport, and proof of address: e.g. recent bank statement or utility bill, for each partner. Both people need to come and sign the form. A fee of £34 for reading the banns and £17 for the certificate is payable once the Banns have been called and we issue you with a certificate. BAPTISMS/CHRISTENINGS We will baptise any children who live in the parish, or whose parent(s) fulfil the wedding criteria above to do with family links with this church. Please contact the Vicar’s administrator on 01254 580986 phone or email Sue.Grime@blackburn.anglican.org For more information visit www.churchofenglandchristenings.org (https://churchofenglandchristenings.org/) for: • Parents guide • A guide for Godparents • A welcome for guests CONFIRMATION Confirmation is an important part of our faith journey. We do arrange Confirmation preparation sessions for young people and adults who are interested in being confirmed. Please speak to the vicar on 01254 580986 For more information, please visit https://www.churchofengland.org/life-events/confirmation
