February                                                    2004

 

Calendar for February 2004

Sunday	1st	Kingscote Horsley Nailsworth Nailsworth (C)	11.00 am   8.00 am   9.30 am   6.00 pm	Parish Communion CW Holy Communion  BCP Family Communion Evening Worship
Wednesday	4th	Nailsworth	10.00 am	Holy Communion
Sunday	8th	Kingscote Nailsworth  Horsley Shortwood Nailsworth	8.00 am   9.30 am  11.00 am   3.00 pm   6.00 pm	Holy Communion  BCP Family Communion Family  Service Evensong Informal Prayer & Praise
Wednesday	11th	Nailsworth	10.00 am	Holy Communion
Sunday	15th	Kingscote Nailsworth Nailsworth Horsley Nailsworth	11.00 am 8.00 am   9.30 am 11.00 am   6.00 pm	Family Service Holy Communion Family Service Holy Communion  CW Evensongs
Wednesday	18th	Nailsworth	10.00 am	Holy Communion
Sunday	22nd	Kingscote Shortwood Nailsworth Horsley   Nailsworth	9.30 am  8.00 am  9.30 am 11.00 am  6.00 pm	Morning Prayer  BCP Holy Communion Family Communion Village Service Informal Prayer & Praise
Wednesday	25th	Nailsworth	10.00 am	Holy Communion
Sunday	29th	Nailsworth Horsley Horsley	9.30 am  6.00 pm	Benefice Holy Communion Benefice Songs of Praise

Nailsworth (C) = Service at Christ Church

 

The PCC wish to thank Helen and Stephen for the generous donation of £100 to our church from the proceeds of the Christmas Party at the Vicarage.

 The Mums and Toddlers group meets at Nailsworth Church at 9.30 am on Fridays  6th, 13th, 20th and 27th of February.

 The next PCC meeting will be on Mon 8 March at 8.00 pm in the Village Hall.

             Diocesan Internet News Site   www.glosdioc.org.uk

            Forerunner Internet Site   www.geocities.com/forerunneruk/

The Vicar’s Letter

 Dear Friends,

 I wrote last month that I felt excited at the prospects for this year as each of the churches in this benefice were looking at new initiatives.  Well, this year has certainly begun with a crash and a bang in the Earley household !  Following high winds and heavy rain during the night of 12 January a tree came crashing down in the garden, bringing the power and telephone lines with it and demolishing our new garden shed and bench.  I certainly won’t need to buy any kindling for the fire for a long time !

 MEB came out within hours and restored the power, but BT did not reconnect our line until the morning of 23 January.  This meant that we could not open any E-mails (of which there were 30 waiting when the line was finally restored).

 Many people, once they have established no-one was hurt, can see the funny side of a tree crashing through a shed and I have had to put up with hysterical laughter as I tell the sad tale !  A number have pondered whether God had a message through all this …

 Let me say straightaway that I do not believe that Gad causes such things - and worse - to happen so that he can teach us a lesson.  But I do believe that He can use all things that occur to show us and teach us more about himself, if we are prepared to listen.  Have I learnt anything ?  I am pleased my ‘line’ to Him through prayer is always available and never suffers from faults on His side.  Of course if I wander far away from Him, as we do if we sin and do not seek His forgiveness, it can become a lot more difficult to make a connection.

 We only learn about God if we take time - if we give Him time to teach us - and this  begins with coming to church !  We do have two different services to look forward to this month.   On Sunday 22 February at 6.00 pm at Nailsworth we have Informal Praise and Worship which will be led by the musical group Criss-Cross.  On the following Sunday 29 February at 6.00 pm at Horsley we have our first benefice ‘Songs of Praise’ which replaces the Deanery Evensong.  Do listen to your church notices for more information and  keep listening to God !

 

The Reverend Stephen Earley

 Confirmations:   The next local Confirmation Service will take place at Nailsworth on Saturday 19 June 2004.  If you would like to be confirmed (and if appropriate baptised) please contact the vicar.  Please note that there is no upper age limit on either of these sacraments !

 Flower Rota

 

February 1st and 8th February 15th and 22nd February 29 to April 4th  LENT                                               April 11th and 18th            EASTER

Mrs  J Bateman Mrs W Ingram No flowers Flower team

Jo Spash

Sunday Club

In January we played animal quizzes and made animal headgear as we considered the message of the Bible story ‘Noah’s Ark’. This month we’ll be creating musical instruments which will help us make the sound of rain, as we do some dramas based on Noah’s story.   All children in the parish are welcome.  Sunday 8th February - 11.00 am in the Village Hall.

Janet, Elin and Jenny

Flower and Clean Team

Next cleaning session on Wednesday 18th February at our usual time of 2.30 pm.

Vida Sutton

House Group

Most of us found the discussion on ‘Faithfulness in Marriage and Speech’ at the last meeting very helpful.  Whilst the Christian ideal of marriage is very clear, the reality is not easy and we found ourselves questioning some of our established assumptions.

The next meeting will be on Tuesday 10 February, 7.45 for 8.00 pm, at the home of Sue Bradley-Jones, when we will be discussing the theme  How to Really Love Your Enemies.  The texts used are Matthew 5 v 38 to 48:

You have learned that they were told “An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.”  But what I tell you is this:  Do not set yourself against the man who wrongs you.  If someone slaps you on the right cheek, turn and offer him your left.  If a man wants to sue you for your shirt, let him have your coat as well. If a man in authority makes you go one mile, go with him two.  Give what  you are asked to give; and do not turn your back on a man who wants to borrow.

You have learned that they were told, “Love your neighbour, hate your enemy.”  But what I tell you is this: Love your enemies and pray for your persecutors; only so can you be children of your heavenly Father, who makes his sun rise on the good and bad alike, and sends rain on the honest and the dishonest.If you love only those who love you, what reward can you expect ?  Surely the tax-gatherers do as much as that.  And if you greet only your brothers, what is there extraordinary about that? Even the heathen do as much.You must therefore be all goodness, just as your heavenly Father is all good.

 All are most welcome to join us at what promises to be another lively discussion.

 

The House Group

Grumbolds Ash Group

 We all enjoyed our ‘taster computer session’ and the two hours passed very quickly.  Our next meeting will be held at the home of Jane Bateman on Monday  9th February at 7.30 pm.  This will be a social evening when we will have a poetry reading session and make plans for the rest of the year.  We will also indulge in an American Supper, which means that we all take along something to eat.  So dig out your favourite poem and your favourite food !   See you there.

Vida Sutton

 MBE for Kingscote Soldier

 Career soldier Major Mark Spandler, whose family home is Kingscote Lodge, has been awarded the MBE in the New Year’s Honours.  Mark is with the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment, and believes he was honoured for his last army job which was a two year posting with the 16th Air Assault Brigade, deployed in Macedonia and Afghanistan (where he conducted peace support) and in Iraq (where he was in combat).

 The Spandler family moved to Kingscote in 1978 from Gerrards X, and Mark attended Stouts Hill School and Wycliffe College before going to university and  Sandhurst.  He joined the Gloucestershire Regiment in 1993 as 2nd Lieutenant after graduating from Sandhurst.  He and his wife Isobel were married in our church in 1998 and now have an 8 months old son Jasper.  They await the date of the presentation of his MBE by Her Majesty the Queen.

 We congratulate Major Spandler and his family on this fine achievement.

The Editor

 

Road Transport

 Local Bus Service:  Kingscote is connected locally by the BEAUMONT mini-bus service which is embedded in a larger network run by  STAGECOACH.  Route 40 runs between Wotton and Stroud, calling at Kingscote, Horsley and Nailsworth.  Circumstances can cause revision of these services, so it is always wise if you are not a regular user to check times in advance.  Information on all services can be obtained on Tel. 0870 66082 608, and for BEAUMONT on 01452 309 770.  The latter number is recommended for the local service as the former number can be vague about where in Kingscote the bus actually stops.

 Roads and Traffic:  If you need to report a matter likely to cause serious disruption to traffic (e.g. traffic light malfunction, tree on road etc.) ring  0845 667 788.  Only call the police if a serious accident has already happened.  If you are planning a local journey and suspect that road works may cause delay, ring  01452 425 500.  This information was supplied in two booklets from the Gloucestershire County Council.

The Editor

Mobile Police Station

The Mobile Police Station will visit Kingscote between 4.30 and 5.00 pm on Wednesday 4th, and between 1.30 and 2.00 pm Monday 16th February.  Please give them your support.

 

Post Office

The Post Office is open on every normal working Tuesday and Thursday :

           from  9.00 am to 1.00 pm  and  from  2.30 pm to 5.30 pm.

 Mobile Library                                                                          

The mobile library will be by The Walled Garden from 9.40 am to 9.55 am on Thursday  5th and 19th of February.

 Waste Recycling

The boxes will be emptied as follows:

                   Newington and Bagpath  -  Mon. 2nd and 16th February.

                   Kingscote  -  Tues. 3rd and 17th February.

 Magazine

Any material which may be of interest for the next issue of the Forerunner should be sent by 20th February to H. Tubbs,  3 The Walled Garden,  Tel. 860 194, e-mail: 

 Don’t mention God

 We tend to find God an awkward subject, best put off until later: It looks like something which could get in the way of living our lives as we wish to live them and might start introducing constraints.  It is easy to find excuses to do so.

 The trouble is that with growing life expectancy we are likely to be pretty senile by the time we die, so that we may meet our maker without having ‘done our homework’ as well as we would have wished.

 We are in a shameful position where the creator of the universe came into the world to show us how to live and how much he cares for us, and we either ignore him or just go through  the motions with a token response.

 Eternity is a long time to spend  reflecting on a life wasted, with the most important opportunity missed.

The Editor

 

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