Phil & Sylvie Good, who are CMS mission partners working in Lebanon, will be visiting the people of St Clare's on the evening of Wednesday 11th January. We will share a meal with them first, then spend time hearing from them about what they have been doing in Beirut, and how they are seeing God at work there. There will also be time to talk and pray together.If you would like more information about the evening, or to join us for the meal, the discussions afterwards, or both, please RSVP.You can also find out more about them and their work by following this link: https://churchmissionsociety.org/people-in-mission/phil-and-sylvie-good-lebanon/
2022… It's been an 'interesting' year, to say the least. Just as we thought things might be taking a turn for the better, and we might be able to rebuild something a bit more like we remember life used to be way back before COVID arrived, things have taken a new twist. Instead we've had to face the outbreak of war in Ukraine, political turmoil, the death of our Queen, and now the cost of living crisis stretching our resources to their limits. Life always seems to be full of challenge and change. It can be hard to find a way forward. Could 2023 really be any different? As Christians, we believe it can be, because we believe Jesus can bring change to any situation. And yes, we know that can sound like a ridiculous fairy-tale we should have given up believing long ago. So why do we keep on believing, even with all the challenges we've already mentioned (and more)? Because we have met Jesus, and he's changed us. Jesus hasn't made us perfect (yet) - we're still human, we still make our share of mistakes. What He has done is brought us His love, peace and joy into the middle of all our challenges. He's offered us a fresh start for each new day, in the middle of our mess. Whether your 2022 was amazing, or the most challenging year for you yet, may we encourage you to consider what place Jesus, and His church, might have for you in 2023? That same love, peace and joy, and that fresh start for every day (and for the new year), are gifts God would love to give you too. They're not just for Christmas, and they don't have to be packed away with the tinsel and fairy lights. They can be yours to enjoy every day of the year, if you'll open your heart to accept God's most precious gift to you. Why not join us this new year, and find out more? Details of our upcoming services can be found on our events page. If you're not quite brave enough to step through the doors just yet, keep an eye on our Facebook page for snippets of what we're discovering week by week, and a chance to investigate from a safer distance. Whatever your 2023 holds, if you live in Park Barn, we're praying for you! May God bless you in 2023.
It's the most wonderful time of the year, at least according to the song. For some of you, it might well be - maybe you're the sort of person who loves Christmas and all the trimmings that come along with it. But we know that's not true for everyone, every year. Christmas can be a difficult reminder of people we've lost. For others, Christmas feels like it's taking a highlighter pen to all the challenges that you're facing, and making them even bigger and harder to deal with. Whether Christmas for you is a wonderful time, or a hard one, Jesus welcomes you to come to Him. In the same way, we're inviting you to join us for either or both of our Christmas services. You can find more details on our events page, but to summarise: Midnight Communion, 11:30pm Christmas EveChristmas Day - worship for all, 10:00am Christmas morning (shh! Don't wake the baby) We'd love to see you there! p.s. if you are still wondering what we did with all those strips of cardboard, wonder no more! They became the star of the #parkbarnstarhunt that's been hiding all over the area for the past few weeks. Check our events page and social media for more info or to join in.
Have you ever been in church when someone has made a noise during a really quiet part of a service? Maybe it was a baby crying, or a loud question from a curious toddler? Perhaps you were the one trying to stifle a cough or sneeze, or even the urge to laugh out loud at a moment when you knew you really, really shouldn't?At St Clare's, we're aware things have been rather quiet from us online, but the good news is they've not been nearly so quiet in our building! Each week we've gathered to talk, listen, sing, and share our thoughts. Most of us attend fairly regularly, but some pop in now and then when they can. Everyone's welcome, whether they've never been before, or have come their whole lifeTo make it just that little bit easier to join us for the very first time, or to give us another try if you've not been for ages, we've been hard at work putting together a series of special Advent, Christmas and New Year services and events. The observant among you might have already spotted news of our Christmas concert popping up online. We'll be adding others over the coming weeks. We do hope you'll join with us for at least one of them.Whilst you're waiting to find out more about all the different things we're planning, we have a challenge for you:What do you think the pieces in this article's photo make??No prizes for guessing the right answer, just the satisfaction of knowing you were correct. Keep an eye on our social media, and our upcoming news and events, to find out if you were!