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In this issue:
Worship in September.
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Mornings (11 am) |
Evenings (6.30 pm) |
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September 4th. |
Rev Sior Coleman |
Rev Sior Coleman |
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September 11th. |
Rev John Evans |
Rev John Evans. |
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September 18th. |
Rev John Evans |
Rev John Evans. |
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September 25th. |
Harvest |
Youth Service. |
A recent ramble.
September dates for your diary.
5th |
Loncheon Club restarts |
9th | Toddler Group starts |
12th | Women�s Own |
12th | Deacons� business meeting |
13th | Fabric & Finance Ministry Team meeting |
14th | Pastoral Ministry Team meeting |
15th | Alpha Course starts |
19th | Administry Team meeting 11 am at HBC |
19th | Church Meeting |
25th | Harvest Service and �Bring & Share� lunch |
26th | Women�s Own |
also | Christian Music Ministry rehearsals on Monday evenings 5th, 12th, 26th Sept. |
... and other dates:
October 15th |
Silent Auction. |
November 12th | Concert at 2pm. |
Our Minister, Rev John Evans writes:
Another New Beginning?
My dear friends,
It seems that we are always celebrating new beginnings in our Christian faith and Church life.
Advent is a new beginning when we celebrate a new initiative by God in sending Jesus. Easter is a new beginning as we celebrate new life conquering death and Pentecost is the birth of the Church. In our church life we celebrate a New Year at the beginning of January, at our AGM we look back over the past year, then at Church Anniversary another year in the life of this church. All are indeed new beginnings.
I pastored a church which saw September as a new beginning as it was after the summer holidays and also coincided with a new academic year for schools, colleges and universities. We began the first week in September in a week of prayer, with different topics each day, with all the leaders sharing their concerns and hopes for the coming year and we prayed through the life of the church. Not a bad idea!
There is a sense that we are making another new beginning too as we approach September with all our activities beginning again after the summer holiday. We are still in the year of evangelism when we are making new imitative which we hope will continue every year, including the distribution of the �Jesus� video. In connection with all of this we begin another�
ALPHA COURSE on Thursday 15th September at 7 pm and will run until 8th December. The success of this will depend largely on YOU, as we need each member to think and prayer about who we should invite to join this course. Please use the invitation to invite people and personal contact is always the best method. It may be, of course, that God wants you to be part of it. God uses ALPHA in a big way, we must not miss out. Let us make the most of our new beginnings!
Your friend and minister,
John
A September start for the Alpha Course
The Alpha course is an opportunity for everyone to explore the Christian faith. It�s relaxed, non-threatening, low-key, friendly and fun.
Our next course will start on Thursday 15th September from 6.45pm to 9.45pm.
There is a meal together at the beginning of each evening, which gives the opportunity to get to know each other. The course consists of a series of talks looking at topics such as �Who is Jesus?� and �Why and how do I pray?� After each talk we divide into small groups for a time of discussion.
Listen, learn, discuss and discover. And ask anything. Alpha is a place where no question is too simple or too hostile.
Alpha is for everyone, especially:
- Those wanting to investigate Christianity
- New Christians
- Newcomers to the church
- Those who want to brush up on the basics
So if you would like to come along, or come and bring a friend, e-mail us here or telephone the church office on 0121-427 7141. Further details are available from Barbara Allen or Linda Evans.
Tots and Co.
Our brand new Mother and Toddler group will start in September. Meeting on Friday Mornings, it will be open to Toddlers and their Mothers, Fathers or Carers.
The sessions will be very informal and relaxed and there will be a variety of toys for the children to play with.
We shall have refreshments during the morning, with squash for the toddlers and a microwave or jugs to heat up baby bottles.
We hope to have some craft sessions such as colouring, sticking and painting, and also a story time.
This is an ideal opportunity for the children to socialise and to learn to play together.
Here Mums can chat together and will learn that they are not the only people having difficulties with their children and we can share ideas and advice.
So if you have a child, do come along on Fridays. We start on September 9th and meet from 9.30 until 11.30am.
If you know of parents with young children, then please invite them along also. For further information e-mail us here.
Taking Jesus to our neighbours.
Earlier this year we started on an ambitious plan to offer the JESUS Video to some 500 homes in the streets around our church.
Visiting started on July 7th and in the first five weeks over 100 homes were visited, with 12 people accepting a free copy of the video, which tells the story of Jesus.
Although it is early days, many contacts and friendships have been made. At one house, a lady came to the door and declined to take a Video, but an older lady (perhaps grandma) came down the hall and said she would like to see it. At another home, a teacher, accepted a Video but was too busy at the end of term marking exam papers, but she wanted to watch the Video during the school holidays. At one house, our visitors where walking out of the garden after the lady of the house had declined a Video, when the teenage son came and asked to see the Video. He talked about his impressions when he had recently seen the film �The Passion of the Christ�. At another home we were able to make friends with a Chinese Family who had just had a baby boy. We sent them a greetings card from the church for their new baby!
We are continuing to visit the homes in the area around our church. Our visitors go out in pairs each Thursday evening and if you would like to help as a visitor please come along to the church at 7.15pm. We also need people to join our prayer group on Thursday evenings, when we pray for the visitors and for the households. If you need more information please contact Sue Jackson or Martin Allen.
We are aware that the JESUS Video Project will not show instant results but for many people it marks the start of a journey along the road to a personal faith.
We ask for God�s guidance and help each Thursday and leave the outcome in His hands.
Betty and Joe Smith
Sundays.
There�s a green eyed yellow Idol
In the corner of the room.
Most people sit and worship it
Every Sunday afternoon.
It�s a pity that they don�t worship
In God�s house of prayer
Instead of watching telly
At home in their armchair.
- Joe Smith
Jenny Smith works for the BMS World Missions teaching theology students in Budapest. It is the seventh year that Jenny has lived in Hungary's capital after spending three years there in the 1990s, returning as a BMS volunteer in 1998 and then training as a full-term BMS mission worker over the last year.
News from Jenny Smith in Budapest.
The Church Leaders' Summer School is now over! Being the second of its kind, it was much more straightforward to organize, though felt more tiring because we were all doing more work. Ten pastors, deacons, and wives attended lessons in groups according to their English levels during the morning, then we all had lunch together. Most students stayed for the various afternoon options, which included an introduction to BMS World Mission, a talk on Christianity's arrival in Britain, videos, music and games. These were particularly challenging for the teachers, as we had abilities ranging from complete beginner to quite advanced! We are hoping next year's course will be even better attended.
Once again, one of the highlights was the opportunity to share in worship each day, and to get to know one another in Christian fellowship. Please pray for these church leaders; it is difficult for many of them to give up two weeks for this course, as they have many responsibilities in their churches, as well as summer camps and clubs to organize. �
The teaching team visited two churches during their stay, one in Budapest and another in a nearby town, where we were very warmly received. Hospitality is something Hungarian Baptists are justifiably renowned for.
My own church of Rakosszentmihaly is currently replacing its lighting system, so all services are taking place in a tent in our yard, one drawback unfortunately being that the sound of aircraft from Budapest airport makes it difficult to hear at times. Do pray for the family of Janos, our senior elder, as his father passed away last weekend. At the service on Sunday there was a sense of fellowship in suffering, but also of thanksgiving for a life of faithful service and the assurance of heaven.
I realise that during my time in England I became used to English weather again, and now am finding the central European heat difficult to bear. The worst of it is on public transport. 30 Celsius may be reasonable in the open with maybe a slight breeze, but it is always several degrees hotter and very stuffy in buses and trams. To compound matters, my local underground station is undergoing renovation for two months , and journeys almost anywhere are more complicated. I have an intense dislike for the word "potlo", which means replacement, as in bus service.
I look forward to a slightly more restful time during August, when my main tasks are to find a home and a language course for Christa, my colleague from September, and to produce a brochure for new students of English at my college. �
Thank you for your messages of support and prayers, particularly for the summer school. God bless you! �
Jenny
Received Wednesday, July 27, 2005
Pete and Lizz Maycock were members of Harborne Baptist Church, and are now working for BMS World Missions. They are in Thailand, in language study this year before starting work with the youth department of the Karen Baptist Convention.
News from Pete & Lizz in Thailand.
Subject: Bangkok No 22: The 2005-2006 Season Begins...
Did you know that... on Tuesday 9th August we will celebrate a full year since we arrived in Thailand! This means that we have now experienced the full range of the Thai seasons - although we still dispute the official seasonal divisions (cool, rainy and hot). We reckon it would be more accurate to call the three seasons hot, hot and wet, and very hot! The last year has been a fantastic time of learning and new experiences, and we want to thank all of you for your faithful support and prayers, which have helped us to keep persevering!
We have had a longer than normal gap between updates, as we've both been very busy. Lizz has been back to England to be at her best friend's wedding in Ipswich and to catch up with some family and friends. Pete had the opportunity to travel up north to Noh Bo Academy, a school for Karen refugees on the Thai - Burmese border, and to lead a workshop on studying the bible with some of the Christian students there.
Yesterday we had another pre-natal check up with our doctor, and everything seems to be progressing well. Please continue to pray for Lizz and the baby's health as we begin the exciting last trimester. Our other major project, learning to speak Thai, is also progressing well! This month's module is about Thai culture, and is by far the hardest module so far. The teacher is very enthusiastic (at times excessively so!), which means we are constantly being challenged and encouraged to work hard at our Thai. The government exam has been rescheduled back to 17th December, so Pete will have to sit it on his own!
Praise God for:
1) Safe travels
It was strange being on opposite sides of the world to each other for 10 days but we raise God that we both had safe travels and a great time. (Lizz especially revelled in eating lots of English food and the novelty of not being hot and sweaty all the time!)
2) Sathorn Church Retreat
This coming weekend we have been invited on a retreat for young graduates by friends at Sathorn Church. We are excited by the prospect of spending time with young Thais who love God and want to live for Him.
Please pray for:
1) Sua
This 18 year old Karen man has been visiting hospital in Bangkok for several months expecting treatment for the very rare and serious disease aplastic anaemia. The doctors have previously promised that treatment would begin as soon as some medicine arrived and he was infection free. This week he was told that no treatment is available for him other than continuing to have regular blood transfusions. Please pray for Sua, his mother, Hellier and for Jan, the TBMF missionary who is trying to secure the proper medical care for him.
2) Mike & Jane Fucella, Rachel & Aylie
We visited the Fucella family in Sangklaburi last February on our first visit to Thailand. They have been in the UK since March and have just returned to Thailand where they will now be working with Interserve in Bangkok. It's great that we'll be able to see them all a bit more often. Pray for the girls as they start at a new school next week and for Mike & Jane as they develop their new working roles. We�ll try and be in touch again sooner next time. Thank you, as always for your on-going prayers and support.
With love and prayers,
Pete & Lizz & bump xxx
�But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are a kingdom of priests, God's holy nation, his very own possession. This is so you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.�
1 Peter 2:9