Dear All,
It’s good to be back after a lovely week off. We didn’t go far last week, but had various picnics and longer walks, and even camped out in the garden for a night. I’m glad we had last week’s weather rather than this week’s!
This Sunday is Trinity Sunday and one Sunday which many preachers up and down the country, when looking at the spring plan, hope not to be planned to preach! It’s not that our preachers don’t appreciate the Trinity or believe in it, but that it is just a little difficult to explain. I’m not going to attempt to explain it today, I just want us to appreciate the depths of our God. Not only is he the Creator, the parent figure, the almighty and all powerful God, but he is Jesus: a man, like us in many ways and yet still God, contained in human form. If that were not enough, then God is also experienced by us as the Holy Spirit: the feeling, the nudging, the power and guidance, the giver of gifts and talents, the inspiration to use them and the one connecting us and moving within us. One of these images alone points to an amazing God, and yet we have all three to hold together – to give us different insights into the power, the guidance and the love of the one we call God.
Each of us will probably naturally focus on one of the three elements of the Trinity more than the others. Most of us pray to one of the three, rather than interchanging and that is often as a result of the Christian tradition we have been brought up in or joined in later life. That is fine, whichever aspects of God we feel comfortable with, then let us celebrate that, but may we not forget the other two and this more complete picture of God. Otherwise, we only see a fraction of who God can be in our hearts, our minds and in our lives.
Why not spend some time this weekend thinking about which part of the Trinity (Creator, Saviour or Spirit) you relate best to and why? Maybe we could also then contemplate the other two and see what God has to say to us through each.
Bible Month
- Each Monday there will be a video produced by one of the staff team introducing a chapter of Ruth. Phil did Chapter one on Monday this week, and this is available on our circuit Youtube Page and Facebook page.
- Then each day this week, Phil has taken a few verses of chapter one and done a short reflection which is live streamed on Facebook at 8am every morning, but can be watched later in the day on Youtube. Phil is hoping to continue this throughout the month of June.
- On four occasions during the week there is the opportunity to join a zoom group discussing the week’s chapter. These are held each week on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, Thursday morning and Thursday afternoon. If you want to join one of these groups, then please email Kathryn Townson at the circuit office: office.chorleyandleyland@
gmail.com and she will give you the joining details which you need. Don’t worry if you have missed the first week or can’t make every week, the groups will be delighted to welcome you when you can be there. - Then on a Sunday, for the next four weeks, our Sunday circuit on-line worship will take the theme of each of the four chapters of Ruth, so even if you can’t be part of the rest of the week, you will still receive the teaching on Ruth on a Sunday.
- The service I have attached this week has been written by Phil – based on Ruth Chapter 1, so those of you who are unable to access the on-line worship, won’t miss out on learning more about Ruth too, and it is obviously available for those of us who like to follow a written service too.
Ruth is a fantastic book of the Bible with so much to teach us, so I hope you can engage with at least one of the above “events”
Bible Study
You can never get too much of the Bible and so if you would like a little break from all of this reflecting on Ruth, I am still going to be producing the Bible Study on Acts each week. Chapters 1 & 2 are already posted on our Leyland Church Facebook page and our circuit YouTube channel, and Chapter 3 will be added on Tuesday.
(If you need any help finding any of our on-line videos, please get in touch and I will give you more details)
Mission
At our church leadership team meeting this week, we were discussing how a lot of what we are providing during this lock-down period is for our church family and although individuals are doing good work in the community, we are not really engaging much as a church, with our community’s needs. We are working on rectifying this and we are in the process of contacting several organisations and leaders in the area to see where we might be able to help.
So far, we have news of two:
Our Food Bank appears to be doing OK for contributions at the moment as they are getting lots of food directly from supermarkets and other companies. David is going to contact them again this week and check if this is still the case and if they have any specific needs and I will let you know next week.
Several of our members have been in touch with the Wade Hall Community Centre. They are still in need of help in terms of donations of food, but more specifically: Nappies, Toiletries, Cleaning products, Feminine Hygiene Products and Washing Powder.
Many of you will know that there was a really bad fire in Queensway last week and three houses have been severely damaged and families left homeless. There was a great response from the community instantly and lots of goods were collected. The families are still in need of household goods, but we are awaiting a list of exactly what is needed so things aren’t duplicated and a family end up with 20 sets of pans!! Once we get that list, I will let you know. In the meanwhile, if you are having a spring clean, please don’t throw out any old (but still useful) household goods, they could be greatly appreciated by those who have been left with nothing. If you are able to give a donation to the Wade Hall Community, then donations of food and the above items can be taken to their base, next to the little Morrisons, by St. Mary’s High School on Royal Avenue but it is worth ringing first, so that someone can be there to receive the items. Please ring Joan Musker on 01772 465006 or 01772 455979
Water Aid Jars:
If you took a Water Aid jam jar to collect money over lent, then please keep a hold of them for now and David Marston will collect them when we begin to meet together again.
Good News:
Can I finish this week’s update by congratulating, on behalf of us all: Dan and Naomi Parkinson on the birth of their son Ezekiel Anthony. He was born on 29th May weighing 6lb 14 and both mother and baby (and dad too) are doing well. We appreciate that it must have been especially difficult being pregnant during this time and so we are so pleased for them all. Dan and Naomi, our love and prayers are with you. I can’t wait to meet our youngest church family member.
I hope you all have a good week and I will be back next week with another update.
God Bless you all,
Gill