St Michael & All Angels

Following the guidelines laid out by the government on Monday 16th March and the advice given out by the Church of England on Tuesday 17th March, churches in the Church of England will be closed. The three churches in Sutton St Helens (St Michaels and All Angels , St Nicholas and All Saints) will not have services of public worship for the foreseeable future.

On Sunday 22nd they will be open for private prayer and reflection as follows:
St Michaels and All Angels Gartons Lane 9 am-11 am & 3 pm-4 pm

• Share

All Age 1st Sunday
Communion 2nd Sunday
Morning Worship 3rd and 4th Sunday

Following the guidelines laid out by the government on Monday 16th March and the advice given out by the Church of England on Tuesday 17th March, churches in the Church of England will be closed. The three churches in Sutton St Helens (St Michaels and All Angels , St Nicholas and All Saints) will not have services of public worship for the foreseeable future.

On Sunday 22nd they will be open for private prayer and reflection as follows:
St Michaels and All Angels Gartons Lane 9 am-11 am & 3 pm-4 pm

• Share

Following the guidelines laid out by the government on Monday 16th March and the advice given out by the Church of England on Tuesday 17th March, churches in the Church of England will be closed. The three churches in Sutton St Helens (St Michaels and All Angels , St Nicholas and All Saints) will not have services of public worship for the foreseeable future.

On Sunday 22nd they will be open for private prayer and reflection as follows:
St Michaels and All Angels Gartons Lane 9 am-11 am & 3 pm-4 pm

• Share

Thursday 2nd July
brought to us today by Revd Graham Milford

IF LIFE IS LEAVING YOU A LITTLE LOST AT THE MOMENT; WHO SHOULD YOU FOLLOW?
LUKE 24: 31: Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him, and He disappeared from their sight.
When I wrote my reflection on the Secret Garden my mind was taken back to the Chronicles of Narnia and the Story of Prince Caspian. Lucy, Edmund, Peter and Susan are back in Narnia to find Prince Caspian. They will find him at Aslan’s How.
Narnia has changed so it is not easy to follow the route which would take them there. They reach The Rush, a river that flows north and eventually into the Great River. They believe that if they follow the flow of the river it will lead them to Aslan’s How.
As they are about to follow the flow of the river, Lucy, the youngest cries out! “The Lion.” But she is the only one who sees Aslan. He appears ‘upstream,’ different to the direction the children are to take. The older children and companions who are with them, question what Lucy has seen. It could be any Lion. She gets annoyed because they are questioning her like adults would.
“Where did you think you saw him;” “I didn’t think I saw him. I saw him.” Not only is she convinced, she is sure that by the look on his face he was asking them to follow him in the other direction.
The way we live and the world have changed since Bible times. Also the way people experience God has changed; or has it.
We don’t hear of communities of people following the leading of God in a cloud as the Israelites did in the Wilderness. Neither do we experience meeting God in a Burning Bush or the Holy Spirit in the form of a Dove.
Lucy saw Aslan’s face, the group decide not to go in the direction Lucy saw Aslan but eventually they do and as they allow Lucy to lead them, eventually one by one they all recognize his face as Lucy encourages them to look.
Where might you see God’s face? In Matthew’s Gospel in the parable of the Sheep and Goats, Mt 25: 37, 40:Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink?’ The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for the least of these brothers of mine, you did for Me.’
I believe that I experienced God’s directing to Liverpool through seeing the brown signs by the Humber in Hull directing me to Liverpool across the Pennine Way. It was only through that directing working itself out through the invite to apply for a job in the Liverpool Diocese that it all became clear.
Remember the two disciples on the Emmaus Road when a stranger came and walked alongside them. Luke 24: 13 – 35: They told him all that had happened in Jerusalem that day, then the stranger explained the Scriptures as they applied to those events. The disciples invited Him to stay and eat with them that night. As the stranger broke bread they recognized it was Jesus. Their story, His explanation of Scripture drew out recognition of His face as Jesus broke the bread.
As the influence of Coronavirus grows in small communities, cities, countries and continents, in the stories we hear, do we detect the face or presence of God.
As we have experienced the apparent decline in church attendance, the apparent influence of God in society, our experience of that personally in Sutton and our search of a way forward for our churches, do we still see God in our worship, prayers, teaching. Do we see Jesus face in the person who comes to the vicarage door because he/she is struggling with life’s events; the face of Jesus as HEstruggles to find meaning in that person’s life just like the disciples on the Emmaus Road.
When my Dad was in a nursing home suffering the effects of a brain haemorrhage, my Mum took one of his friends to see him. She let the friend walk into the room first but Dad did not recognize her. It was only when after a pause my Mum walked in after her that he recognized his friend.
I’ve since compared that to the work of the Holy Spirit bringing Jesus alive in people’s lives. Pray that people will walk with us on our journey of faith until we get to that place where they will see Jesus face.
REFLECTION: Have you ever spotted a face in a cloud or painting, why not try to sketch a face; maybe your reflection in a mirror.
What facial expressions describe different emotions for you?
What do you see in a face that is full of the peace that Jesus gives?
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I often wonder what your face looks like, if one day I might see You face to face and live. I pray that when people look at my face they will see Jesus in its expression. Amen.

• Share

During this time of lock down, where we are unable to meet in our churches. We are posting prayer video's and reflections on Youtube. We hope these bring you comfort and hope at this difficult time. To access these video's, log on to Youtube and search Sutton Ministry Team.

• Share

Today is our monthly day of prayer.

At our 7 am prayer 'meeting' this morning we were using

we will be having our regular day of prayer and fasting as we seek to keep close to God as we find our way together. Please do pray with us through the day if you are able to . The passages of scripture we'll be looking at are:

7 am ( and on through the morning..) Psalm 50: 7-14
1 pm ( and on through the afternoon...) Amos 5:14-15, 21-24
7 pm ( and on through the evening...) Matt 8:28-end

The evening prayer time will be a meeting on zoom with others to pray together.
If you'd like to join us for that, we'll send you the link to the meeting.

Everyone welcome.
If you would like to join us, please contact Revd Louise or Revd Simon Moore for zoom code.

• Share

CHURCHES OPEN FOR PRIVATE PRAYER

All Saints Ellamsbridge Road, Wednesday 1st July   10.30am-12 noon

St Nicholas New Street Thursday  2nd July  10.30am-12 noon

All Saints Ellamsbridge Road Sunday 21st June    10.30am-12 noon

St Michaels, Gartons Lane, 5th July 10.30 a.m. - 12.00

In light of the Government guidance, the Church of England has said that all churches can open for private prayer, times and dates as above.  For those who are self isolating or having to shield, we are still continuing with our online and social media worship.  The church continues to be alive and active. Our worship of God and our care for each other continue.

• Share

Alpha on the 7th July 7.30 p.m.
A message to young people (& the young at heart)
Do you ever question life? Seek answers to the BiG questions life throws up?
You can join in with others asking questions, seeking answers, sharing opinions in ZOOM ALPHA

Zoom Alpha is being led by Mikey & Bren
Let us know you're interested and we'll send you a zoom link each week so you can connect:
Text or phone Bren: 07591457221
email Bren & Mikey: [email protected]
Want a taster of what it's all about? Check out the link promo below.

• Share

The Bible Book Club will be meeting tonight Wednesday date to be confirmed
All Welcome. If you wish to join, contact either Revd Louise or Revd Simon Moore for the code.

• Share