1st October 2020

Weekly Update – 1st October 2020

Dear Church Family,

This weekend we would probably have been celebrating our Harvest Festival, so Happy Harvest to you all!  Harvest is traditionally a time for us to be thankful and to appreciate the world around us. It is amazing how much we take things for granted, especially things like our senses of smell and taste.  I am certainly thankful this week that I am feeling much better and that I can actually begin to appreciate these senses again.  They are not senses which I have ever spent much time thinking about, but you certainly miss them when they are gone. The world seems sparser, less colourful and somehow colder and more detached.

Harvest is also about appreciating the food that we eat.  Some of the amazing food facts I have learnt over the years, are about honey.  Honey is such an impressive substance and apparently one of the very few foods that contain everything we need to sustain life.  It has healing properties and is incredibly good for us (providing you are not diabetic.) For me, the most amazing fact is that it takes 12 bees their entire life’s work to produce one teaspoon of honey.  This is a stark reminder to me that we shouldn’t waste food.  Even an apple can take up to ten and a half years from planting a seed, to having fruit on a tree.  God’s creation is marvellous, but it is not a factory churning out millions of identical products in a few hours. Things take time and effort to grow.

So may we be thankful this weekend, may we really appreciate the food that we eat and how it smells and tastes, and how it has slowly grown or been made. Whatever we eat this weekend, let us say a thank you to all who work to provide us with that food, but especially to God for the miracle of creation.

Sunday’s services

Our on-line circuit service will be celebrating harvest this week, while looking at the parable of the tenants in the vineyard.  Through this parable we will be continuing with our series of Living the Jesus Way.  If you would like to take part in one of our services (e.g. doing the bible reading or leading some prayers) please contact Kathryn Townson on office.chorleyandleyland@gmail.com

Just a reminder that on Sunday evenings at 7pm there is a District Live Zoom Worship which is now led by different circuits across the district each week.

On 11th October, our new President of Conference: Rev Richard Teal will be preaching and
On 18th October Rev Phil is leading the service with various members of our circuit

If you would like to join in this worship you need to contact the District Office for the login details:  lancashiredistrictzoom@aol.com before 1pm on the Friday before the Sunday.

Attached is the usual service from the Methodist Church for worship at home.

Worship bubbles

Just a reminder that the worship bubbles will not be meeting in October, but we are very hopeful that they will start in November (unless stricter regulations are imposed) I will let you have the dates as soon as possible.

Connexional Prayers

Every Tuesday lunchtime from 12.45-1pm there is a weekly online prayer session where you can gather with people from across the Methodist Connexion. More information and how to sign up can be found on the Methodist Church Website.  On the home page, in the drop down menu, find “Our Faith” and then under the title “Prayer” click on “Year of Prayer” and all the information is available.  This prayer session is also available on the Methodist Church’s Facebook page.

Church Council

This is advanced notice that the church council will meet on zoom on Thursday 22nd October at 7pm.  More details have been sent out to individual church council members earlier on today.  If you are on the church council and haven’t receive these details, please get in touch with myself or Sarah Allchurch.  If you are not a church council member, but would like to attend the meeting (all are welcome) then just let me know.

Meal Deliveries

Anne Baker has been making meals for many of our church family, every Wednesday since the beginning of April and a team of volunteers has been taking these out and delivering them. This service has been really appreciated, especially during the lock-down months.  However, it is felt that we have now seen people through the worst (hopefully) and so for various reasons this has now come to an end and so there will be no more meals with immediate effect.  Can I therefore say, on behalf of LMC, a huge thank you to Anne for all the work she has done over the past 6 months and also thanks to her helpers and delivery drivers.  It was an ambitious undertaking and has been really well done and appreciated by so many.

Church Family News

I’m sorry to have to tell you that Pat E was taken into hospital a few days ago, having had a serious stroke and she sadly died yesterday.  We have no funeral details just yet but I am sure you will be thinking of her family at this difficult time.

Please keep in your prayers:

– Pat E’s family
– Alan and Ann D and their family as it was their daughter Lynda’s funeral this afternoon (Thursday)
– Anne B who has been in hospital last week.  She is at home now but needs to take it easy
– Mark B who had an accident on his bike and is in pain with cracked ribs
– Mel P and all those we know who are struggling with their health at this time

I am pretty much fit and healthy again now and so everything is back to normal with me working full time.  So, if there is anything you need then do get in touch.

I thank God this harvest weekend for you all and for being part of this amazing church family.

God Bless you All,

Gill