Dear Brothers and Sisters,We will once again be welcoming Rev’d Sid to lead and preach at our joint 10 am service at St Luke’s this Sunday. This week’s gospel contains Jesus’ promise: ‘I am the good shepherd’ who lays down his life for the sheep. In the world today we seem surrounded by bad shepherds who lay down the lives of the sheep to preserve their own. But as we read the gospel in Eastertide our focus is particularly on Jesus’ words ‘I lay down my life in order to take it up again…. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again’. No matter what is going on in the world the resurrection of Christ gives us assurance that God’s loving purposes for us will not be defeated. The words of this week’s post communion prayer are worth making our own:Merciful Father,you gave your Son Jesus Christ to be the good shepherd,and in his love for us to lay down his life and rise again:keep us always under his protection,and give us grace to follow in his steps;through Jesus Christ our Lord. AmenMay we know the reality of Christ’s resurrection in our lives this Eastertide.MaggieWhile Louise is on sabbatical, the principal points of contact are as follows:Gill Yates, St. Margaret’s: gyates@uwclub.netCaryll Ingerslev, St. Luke’s: caryll_i@yahoo.co.ukPlease send all contributions for the newsletter material for A Church Near You to Tony Raven: tony@theravens.orgto Gill by the end of Thursday andServices and calendar for the week Sunday 21st April 8.00 a.m. 10.00 a.m. BCP Holy Communion Joint Holy Communion St. Margaret’s St. Luke’s Monday 22nd April 10.00 a.m. 7.00 p.m. Take 5 Compline St. Margaret’s Zoom Tuesday 23rd April 9.00 a.m. Morning Prayer St. Margaret’s Wednesday 24th April 10.00 a.m. 1.15 p.m. Morning Worship Lunchtime concert Zoom St. Margaret’s Thursday 25th April 10.00 a.m. Mini Messy Church St. Margaret’s Friday 26th April 9.00 a.m. Morning Prayer St. Margaret’s Sunday 28th April 10.00 a.m. 3.00 p.m. 6.30 p.m. Family friendly Communion Morning Worship Open The Story Evensong St. Margaret’s St. Luke’s Forest School St. Margaret’s The Zoom links and meeting IDs for all the Zoom events are on our pages on ACNY (A Church Near You)St. Luke’s church is now open on Wednesday afternoons between 2.00 and 4.00.All are welcome...To look aroundTo sit quietly for a whileTo light a prayer candleTo prayNews and NoticesElectoral Roll – The APCM for St. Margaret’s will be on Wednesday 8th May. A copy of names on the current electoral roll is available in church. There is a concern that there are some discrepancies. Please check the list and let Paul Jakeman know:1. If your name is not there and you think it should be.2. If there are names there that shouldn’t be ( e.g. people who have moved away).3. If you would like to be added to the electoral roll. There is a form to fill in.PCC If anyone would like to stand for the PCC, please let Gill or Paul know.Lunchtime Concerts Wednesdays, 1-15 – 2.00 p.m. The next one on April 24th features Stephen Tanner: “Colours of the Organ”Hustings at Matthews Hall , EcoChurch – Saturday 20th April 6.30 – 8.30St Margaret’s Church will be formally represented by Maggie Stirling Troy; others are encouraged to come along.Saturday 27th April at 7.30. Papagena, the vocal quintet, will be giving a concert in St. Margaret’s: “Love, Legends and Lullabies”. Tickets £15. Under 16s free. Refreshments!Eco event at Exeter Cathedral, Sunday 28th April 12.30 – 3.30 p.m.You are invited to our special event. Organised by our creation care team, it will celebrate the eco church system in Devon and all that has been achieved so far. Dave Bookless from A Rocha will be sharing a message and churches around the diocese will be sharing stories. Come along and be encouraged to take action!Saturday 11th May - You are invited to come along to St. Luke’s Church Rooms to enjoy a ‘Big Brekkie’ to raise money for Christian Aid. Revd. Tony Raven and his wife, Dorothy, have once again offered to be chief cook and assistant. Breakfast will be served between 9 and 10am, and 10 and 11am. It would be very helpful to know when people are coming, so please let Jill Allen know to which ‘sitting’ you will be coming. You can sign up to which sitting you would like your brekkie, on a list which will be at the back of the church, or you can contact Jill by e mail -g.m.allen@hotmail.co.uk. – or phone 01392 271458.Pentecost Celebration Exeter Cathedral, Sunday 19 May at 6pmWe're delighted that, for the first time in 5 years, there's a Thy Kingdom Come celebration service at Exeter Cathedral on Pentecost Sunday. Prayer and worship will be led by Bishop Jackie and Bishop James, with music led by Andy Flannagan and a talk from Ruth Valerio. We hope that our worship together will draw you closer to God, and inspire you to pray for God’s kingdom here in Devon. We would like to make this a Mission Community event and are joining together for a picnic on the Cathedral Green before the worship. If you would like to join us, please give your name to Reverend Maggie Stirling-Troy or Caryll IngerslevPlease let us know you are coming as Maggie and Caryll will book our free tickets on EventbriteExmouth Food BankSupplies We Are Short Of This Month - April 2024 ·Tins of baked beans & spaghetti hoops·Cereals·Stir in pasta /pasta bake sauces·Tins or packets of soup·Tinned fruit·Peanut butter·Jars of jam·Coffee·Tea bags·Packets of biscuits·Shampoo & conditionerThe Exmouth Foodbank urgently needs bags for life/large plastic bags to enable people to carry their food parcels home. Thank you.Many thanks for your support. We simply couldn’t do this without you!Thank you in advance for your generosity!For further information email: info@exmouthfoodbank.org 07787758511PrayersFor those who are ill or in need of our prayers:Lucy, Pauline, Jill and Adrian, Michael, Kirsten, Chris Whitehead, Tony Bradford, Marlene Gardner, Pam Wormald, Mary, Peter, John Heal, Gail MillerHousebound or in nursing/care homes:Alfred Wonnacott, Janet Mutter, Georgina LearPlease pray for Anne Plested supporting the work of Bethlehem Bible College, and Ben and Katy Ray in Tanzania, St. Luke’s CMS mission linkAnniversariesErnest Crabb, Mike Dee ShaplandMary Thomson, Peggy TraynorGospel Readings for the coming weekSunday 21st April John 10: 11-18Monday 22nd April John 10: 1-10Tuesday 23rd April John 15: 18-21Wednesday 24th April John 12: 44-endThursday 25th April Mark 13: 5-13Friday 26th April John 14: 1-6Saturday 27th April John 14: 7-14Sunday 28st April John 15: 1-8Collect and reading for Sunday 21st AprilAlmighty God, whose Son Jesus Christ is the resurrection and the life: raise us, who trust in him, from the death of sin to the life of righteousness, that we may seek those things which are above, where he reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God now and for ever.John 10.11-18 ‘I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.’
As we all pray for peace in Israel and Palestine, please do keep alert to the work of Bethlehem Bible college whom we have been supporting for several years now.All of us at the Bethlehem Institute of Peace and Justice have been shocked and horrified at the ongoing war in Gaza and the unimaginable suffering of the Gazan people. The magnitude of the destruction is beyond comprehension. A thriving city has been destroyed, as well as thousands of innocent lives, the most significant percentage being women and children. The murder of many Israelis was a tragedy, but Israel's response has been beyond excessive. A ceasefire must occur so that the indiscriminate attack on schools and hospitals where thousands of Gazans are sheltered is stopped. Instead of trivializing the need for peace and justice studies, the magnitude of the destruction is a statement of the fruit of the neglect of peacemaking and justice studies. Therefore, we are pressing ahead with all our programs at the BIPJ. Every semester peacemakers from an array of nations from Japan to Tanzania to Belgium and Canada are pursuing graduate-level studies with us for either credit or audit. Anthony Khair, a talented student at Bethlehem Bible College, says of his studies with the BIPJ this semester: "After living through this war in Palestine. I've realized more than ever how important it is to study peacemaking and justice. Therefore, I am eager to continue taking the BIPJ's spring semester course to have a broader knowledge of how to deal with injustices in our context and internationally." Our BIPJ course participants have established deep relationships with each other. The cohort from our two-week residential Summer Intensive last May has continued their conversations about peacemaking and met in live Zoom sessions during the war. The BIPJ is a peacemaking community. Our conviction at the BIPJ is that the more people study peace, the less conflict and war there will be. The prophet Isaiah's vision of the age of the Messiah points to the time when people will not learn about war: "He shall judge between the nations and shall decide disputes for many peoples, and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore." (Isaiah 2.4). Instead of learning about war, people must know how to make peace to heal our world. We are so grateful you are part of the Bethlehem Institute of Peace and Justice family. We pray that the Lord will multiply grace and wisdom to you during these difficult days. Let's urgently pray together for the war to end soon. One of the Bethlehem Bible College students, Rose, offers this prayer: In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, JESUS, I want you to be the sunshine of our life. We ask you to be with our people in Gaza, to protect them under their broken homes. Please be with the mothers, fathers, and their children. Our hearts are broken because so many people have died. Amen. For Christ always –
1 Corona Virus Guidance Click on this heading to go to Exeter Diocese Site and lots of information2 Love Topsham All sorts of news and events going on here only a click away3 Estuary League of Friends All sorts of help can be found here from advise about COVID-19 to having your toenails looked after.4 Coronavirus - Support for Schools, Parents and Pupils - Help is at hand.5 Difficult Conversations A resource from the NSPCC6 Childline More information for parents and children7 Information for parents - Talking about difficult topics
