NEWSLETTER November 2014

NEWSLETTER
November 2014
A Note from the Minister…
This year November’s remembrance day marks starkly 100 years
since the beginning of Britain's involvement in the First World War.
The major art installa on Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red at the
Tower of London, created by ceramic ar st Paul Cummins, with
se ng by stage designer Tom Piper, marks the anniversary with
888,246 ceramic poppies which have been progressively filling the
Tower's moat over the summer, each poppy represen ng a Bri sh
and Colonial military fatality during the war.
Those who have seen the installa on say how drama c and moving
it is as a reminder of the numbers who fell - many only part of the
story because they were so determined to serve their country that
they lied about their age and were s ll only children when they fell
on the bloody ba lefield.
A er November 11th the poppies will be gradually removed over the
following two weeks and the moat at the tower will be empty again.
If only the memories, the truth, the reality of the pain and
heartaches cascading though genera ons could so easily be swept
away.
In Rushmere village we will remember the dead of all wars at St
Andrews Church at 10.45 on November 11th when I will be leading
the tributes there and prior to that on remembrance Sunday, at our
own service on November 9th.
Looking back and remembering is important; it is essen al. We must
never forget or stop giving thanks for those brave men and women
who served their country and paid the ul mate price. But looking
back without looking forward is immeasurably bleak. We look back
into darkness filled with sorrow and in faith we look forward into
light. Ahead we see a me when there will be no more wars, no more
crying, no more pain.
Psalm 46:9-11
He makes wars cease
to the ends of the earth.
He breaks the bow and sha ers the spear;
he burns the shields with fire.
He says, “Be s ll, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the na ons,
I will be exalted in the earth.”
The Lord Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
In the mean me, let us pray for peace across the world, that love may
overcome wherever hatred rears its ugly head and that we would be
agents of light in this dark world, un l He comes again.
Every blessing,
eacons’ Snippets
Welcome to November and my last Deacons Snippets!

We con nue to pray for Heather as she has now returned
to our full me Ministry. Please remember her and her
family as we start thinking about the lead-up to Christmas
and her increased workload.

Please pray for the upcoming Church Mee ng when those
who have been nominated and prayerfully considered
standing will come forward for the elec on. This an
important mee ng in the running of our Church and we
encourage all members to a end to pray and have your
say on all of the things going on in our Church at the
moment.

A large number of our Worship Band are heading south to
Eastbourne between 21st and 23rd November for this
years Mission Worship. Please pray for safe travelling and
that each one of the people a ending will learn how to
get closer to God when leading our worship at Rushmere.

Con nue to pray for our ongoing Space issues as our
Space group meet again to discuss ideas and thoughts on
ways that we can help facilitate a be er style of worship
for everyone at Rushmere.

The Shoeboxes will start making their way back to the
Church over the next couple of weeks before being
delivered to the depot for checking and being readied for the
start of their journey to put a big smile on a child’s face this
Christmas. Please support this fantas c ini a ve as we look
forward to smashing Janet’s target of completed boxes; also
pray for everybody who is involved in the whole process, and
for the children who will receive them.
Finally I would like to wish everybody a fantas c November as we
all con nue to get closer to God this month.
Yours in Christ
Neil
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gift Service
Sunday December 7th morning service will be our
Gift Service taken this year by Cat Adams from
CYM. We will again be giving gifts to FIND.
FIND provides Food Hampers, Festive Foods and
Gifts for families and individuals in need, in Ipswich
and surrounding areas.
A Christmas tree will be in the lounge from 23rd November. Hanging
on this will be gift tags with suggested gifts written on them .
Please choose a tag and buy a present (new only please) and place
with the tag in a gift bag.
Bring it to Church on December 7th in the morning for our Gift
Service.
Thank you in advance!
YOUTH @ RUSHMERE
SPACE (Youth Café)
Friday 7th November 7-9 pm at the CYM centre 6 Great Colman Street Ipswich
for 11-16s entrance £1 which includes 1st drink @ space bar.
PAUSE
Friday 21st November 7-8.30 pm at the CYM centre 6 Great Colman Street
Ipswich for 11-16s. Free entry
More informa on for both of these events on the lounge no ce board, and on
the CYM website www.c-y-m.org.uk
Valerie
EVENING REFRESHMENTS
Once a month refreshments, such as tea, coffee &, biscuits, are enjoyed
by those a ending the evening
service.
If you feel you could serve in this way
then please contact Hazel asap, as the
rota for 2015 is now being compiled!
Thank you.
If you're not sure what this entails then come and have a chat :-)
Hazel
News
Our world is a tough place for many millions of people, so it is good to
hear a positive story of our Christian brothers and sisters, helping to
change the lives of some of the very poorest and despairing. Here is the
story of a teenager from Tanzania whose life was transformed by the
love, support and practical help of Tearfund’s partner.
Of the hundreds of vulnerable children helped by the Tunza Watoto*
Project in Tanzania, Zamir stands out as an extreme case.
Zamir had heard the rumours – the local children had been teasing him
since he was six. But he didn’t know for sure until he was 16, when his
mother told him about his HIV status minutes before she died. His dad
had passed away years before, so Zamir was now an orphan. Shunned
by his extended family and most of his neighbours, he was in a bad way.
Zamir was terrified by the concept of HIV and devastated by the loss of
his mother, and he fell into a deep depression. His physical health
deteriorated too. ‘I was preparing to die,’ he says.
Supported by Tearfund, the Tunza team rallied. They took Zamir to the
hospital, where doctors found him to be suffering from skin cancer. They
ensured Zamir received treatment, and helped him access the healthy
foods vital for his health. As Zamir’s health improved, Tunza inspired him
to consider school, covering his fees and providing him with the books
he couldn’t afford. This was a huge turning point for Zamir. ‘I thank God
that we are still alive and we get support from the Tunza Watoto Project,’
says Zamir, now 17. He is still in school, and is even strong and
confident enough to join in with local football activities. ‘I pray for those
who support me, for God to bless them.’

Praise God that Zamir is on the road to recovery and is learning to
live a full life with HIV. Pray that this will continue.

Pray for the staff from the Tunza Watoto Project as they continue
to reach out with love and hope to some of Tanzania’s most
vulnerable children.

Pray for peace and against violent riots in the country as there is
political tension. Pray that government and opposition parties will
co-operate for the good of the people.
*Tunza Watoto (Swahili for 'Caring for Children' ) is one of Tearfund’s
partners working to support and strengthen the Christian church to help
those living with HIV, subsistence farmers, orphans and other vulnerable
children.
I praise God for this Church and other churches like it and all the
individual Christians who support Tearfund’s work regularly through
prayer and financial giving. It is so appreciated by our Christian brothers
and sisters working for Tearfund’s partners.
Prayer is vital but regular financial support means that Tearfund’s
partners are able to plan their work over the long-term enabling them to
achieve much more.
Thank you.
2 Corinthians 9:6-8
Val Dufour
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Staff and Service Users at Leading Lives (formerly The Hub)
Humber Doucy Lane, are planning a Winter Fayre later this month and
would love your attendance to help them with funds, and some cakes
made for the cake stall. Watch the Notice Board for the date.
We have also been asked to 'do' The Nativity as in previous years. If you
are willing to help please see Val Dufour. The folk at the centre really
enjoy singing and you can all manage carols! It is a wonderful opportunity
to show you care for them.
Myrna Welsh
Flower Ministry
Nov 2
Pat Prime
distributed by
Nov 9
Cicely Hitchcock distributed by
Cicely Hitchcock
Nov 16
Doreen Broom distributed by
Doreen Broom
Nov 23
Sue Roberts
Sue Roberts
Nov 30
Susanne Tripp distributed by
distributed by
Yvonne Cross
Val Dufour
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Birthday Corner
We take this opportunity to offer Birthday Greetings to the following
members of the BMS Birthday Scheme who celebrate birthdays during
the month of November …...
Doreen Broom
Georgie Wade
Robert Foster
Marg Dearsley
Shelia Stokes
Susanne Tripp
6th
10th
11th
14th
17th
22nd
Why not see Peter or Sue Laycock
and find out how you can help the BMS
by giving a thank offering gift on your birthday!
CHURCH DIARY
Where an entry is marked with an asterisk (*) it means that you should be able
to find additional information about the event on another page
in this newsletter, or on the Notice Board.
Sun 2nd
10 .45am
Mon 3
2.15pm
Morning Worship led by Rev Heather Marsden.
SHOE BOXES should be brought in today.
ARISE Service led by the young people.
Refreshments follow hosted by Hazel Hun ng.
Banner Group
Tues 4
6.15pm
7.30pm
FFaf
Home Group meets in the Lounge
Wed 5
Thur 6
7.30pm
7.00pm
12.30pm
‘Space’ Commi ee in The A c
Art and Cra Club
Lunch Club
7.45pm
8.00pm
Band Prac ce
Prayer Mee ng
10.45am
Alpha Away Day- Kesgrave Community Centre.
REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY
Morning Worship led by Rev Heather Marsden and
Bob Molton
Last day for return of Shoe Boxes.
6.30pm
Fri 7
Sat 8
Sun 9
1.00pm
6.30pm
Mon 10
6.15pm
Tues 11
2.30–
4.30 pm
2.15pm
Wed 12
Home Alone Lunch
Tony Burton leads Evening Service which will
include Communion
Ffaf
Private booking in Lounge - Animal Welfare Mee ng
7.00pm
Friendship Hour: “Christmas Flower Arranging” with
Sylvia Wicks
Art and Cra Club
7.30pm
Deacons’ Mee ng
Thur 13
12.30 pm
7.00pm
7.45pm
Luncheon Club.
Alpha course Week 7.”How can I resist evil?”
Band prac ce
8.00pm
Prayer Mee ng in the A c
Sun 16
10.45.am
6.30pm
Morning Worship led by Rev Heather Marsden
Evening Worship led by Heather.
Mon 17
2.15pm
6.15pm
Banner Group
Ffaf
Tues 18
Wed 19
7.30pm
7.00pm
Home Group
Art and Cra Club.
Thurs 20
12.30pm
7.00pm
7.45pm
Lunch Club
Alpha Course Week 8 “Why and how should I tell
others?”
Band Prac ce
Fri 21
Sat 22
8.00pm
10.30am
Prayer Mee ng
MEETING POINT COFFEE MORNING
Sun 23
10.45am
Morning Worship led by Rev John Davis which will
include Communion
Mon 24
Tues 25
3.00pm
6.30pm
6.15pm
7.30pm
Wed 26
7.00pm
Service at Sidegate Lane Residen al Home
Evening Worship led by Mike Ginn
Ffaf
CHURCH MEMBERS MEETING including Elec on of
Deacons and Church Officers.
Art and Cra Club
Thurs 27
12.30pm
7.00pm
Lunch Club
Alpha Course Week 9 “Does God heal today?”
Fri 28
7.45pm
8.00pm
Band Prac ce
Prayer Mee ng in The A c.
Sat 29
All day
WORSHIP GROUP TRAINING DAY
Fri 14
Sun 30
10.45am
Morning Worship led by Rev Heather Marsden
6.30pm
Evening Worship led by Tony Burton
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Other Significant Dates
On Tuesday 11 November Gladys and Tom Barton will be celebra ng
70 years of marriage. We send our love and congratula ons to them.
On Saturday 22 November some of the Leadership Team will be
a ending a Training Seminar in Colchester on the role of being a
Church Trustee.
Other members will be a ending the Worship Leaders Conference
from 21 – 23 November at Eastbourne.
CYM Sizewell House Party will be help Friday 28 – Sunday 30
November Please remember to pray for the young people who will be
a ending.
Our next newsletter is the joint
December / January 2015 edition.
The deadline for items for inclusion is
23rd November.
(The publication date is November 30th)
Friendship Hour….
What an interes ng a ernoon we had from
Patrick Thompson last month learning some of
the tradi ons in the household management
of ‘Buck House’ as Buckingham Palace is
affec onately called.
On November 12th our friend Sylvia Wicks will
be demonstra ng Christmas Flower
Arrangements and there will be opportunity to 'have a go'. We will also have a
card stall which will give you a chance to purchase cards to support Chris an
Youth Ministries (CYM).
We congratulate one of our friends, Gladys Barton who, with Tom, celebrates
70 years of marriage this month, a marvellous achievement.
As usual the doors are open at 1.30 and our session begins at 2.30pm finishing
with a cuppa and chat. We hope to see you then and you know any of your
friends are welcome.
Myrna Welsh and Pat Wright
Home Alone Lunch….
… is planned for November 9th. This is for
anyone who is at the morning service and
has to return home to an empty house and
would like a change.
Visitors are welcome should it be helpful,
and it helps if you all let me know you will
be present. It is a family meal so anyone
can help with washing –up! We are self funding and the meal costs £3.
Thank you.
Myrna Welsh
Alpha @ RBC 2014
It seems hard to believe but this year’s
Alpha course is now past the half way mark
and as I write this we just have completed
week 6 – How Does God Guide Us? Where has that me gone?
The Alpha team and guests have been enjoying lovely meals prepared by
our excellent supper hosts, and good fellowship and discussions following
the Alpha TV talks, which are certainly proving s mula ng and thought
provoking.
The team have been greatly encouraged by the guests regularly coming
back each week – which is always a good sign that we are doing something
right!
We will be taking a break on Thurs 6th November .
Our Alpha Holy Spirit “Away Day” on 8th November 2014 takes place at the
KWMCC, Twelve Acre Approach, Kesgrave where we will be joined by Alpha
teams and guests from St Augus ne’s Ipswich, and St Johns Church,
Woodbridge.
The course will resume at RBC on Thurs 13th November 2014 with week 7 –
‘How Can I Resist Evil?’
Please pray for our guests that they will con nue to be encouraged and
grow in their faith and knowledge to possibly build a closer rela onship with
God to reveal his purposes for each one of them in his me.
Please con nue to pray for Heather and the Alpha team too as we prepare
and help guide the guests through the Away Day and the rest of the course
and ask for the Lord's strength and wisdom to answer challenging ques ons
raised.
Thanks everyone for your prayers and your con nued support. God is
listening to your prayers for Alpha and is answering them – Praise God!
The RBC Alpha Team 2014
Ipswich Winter Night Shelter
The shelter for the homeless of Ipswich will
be running again this year from
3rd Dec 2014 until 15th March 2015.
It will run on the same basis as previous
years with seven town centre churches
providing accommodation and food. The
host churches are:
Sunday
Monday
Hope Church, Fore Hamlet
The Salvation Army, Bramford Road (with the support of St
Augustine’s)
Tuesday
St Mary’s at Stoke, Stoke Street
Wednesday
Ipswich Community Church, Clarkson Street
Thursday Christ Church / St Pancras, Tacket Street / Orwell Place
Friday
Saturday
Burlington Baptist, London Road
St Margaret’s, Bolton Lane
Currently, they are seeking volunteers (you can volunteer to help at any
of the churches) especially for the night and morning shifts. Details of
this and of how to volunteer can be found on the web-site
www.iwns.org.uk or ring 07900 073 721.
Do consider volunteering for this vital outreach of showing Jesus’ love
and acceptance to some of the most vulnerable people in our town. Talk
to Judith & David Coley, Marg Dearsley or myself to find out what it is
like.
Training for new volunteers will take place on Sat 22nd Nov 9.00am 12.30pm at St. Peter’s, Stoke Park Drive. Those who have volunteered
before have a shorter training session (also at St. Peter’s) on Thurs 6th
Nov.
Prayer is vital for the shelter.
Once again, I will be co-ordinating prayer volunteers. Some of you
volunteered to be on the prayer list last year – and I will assume you are
willing to do it again unless you let me know otherwise - but more
prayer volunteers are needed as we want to surround the shelter with
24/7 prayer. I will put prayer points in our church newsletter but it would
be good to have more Rushmere people signed up to pray regularly
each week. Do let me know if this is something you feel called to do, so I
can let you have more regular – or urgent – prayer points. Thank you.
Please pray for the management team and the co-ordinators of the host
churches as they prepare for December – for smooth organization,
harmony, wise decisions and health and energy. Pray for the project
manager Wendy Claydon as she recovers from severe bronchitis – may
God bless her relationship with guests who will come to the shelter and
give her wisdom and discernment – may she stay well throughout the
duration of the shelter. Pray that sufficient volunteers will come forward
for each of the shifts.
Most of all, pray for God ‘s spirit to be over all of the shelter and that
lives will be changed – as they were last year.
“For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God,
mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes.
He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the
foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing.”
Deuteronomy 10:17-18
Thank you.
Val Dufour
Mission Avia on Fellowship in Ac on
-Stop Press
I have just heard that MAF, who do not receive any funding from government, have
been asked to go to Liberia and help with the Ebola crisis . MAF started work in Liberia
last year and wondered where God was leading them. Now we know . Praise Him
David Coley MAF Rep
CHURCH ROTAS for 2015
2015 is coming up quickly and now is the me for you all to offer your service to
the Church. Perhaps there are some du es in the list below that you would be
willing to help with during the coming year. You don’t have to do something every
week. In fact, if enough people offer then it will probably be only a few mes a
year. I am in the early stages of preparing the rotas for next year but it would be
helpful if you could come to me and offer as soon as possible.
I am looking for people to offer their service in the following ways:
1. Church Duty Rota
To unlock and lock the church before and a er the Sunday services and to
welcome people as they come in and give them the no ce sheet etc.
(You will be given a checklist to make sure you know what you have to do in order
to have everything ready.)
2. PA/Recording
To operate the PA/recording equipment for the evening services. (Training can be
provided if needed.)
3. Communion Prepara on
To prepare and wash up before and a er the morning or evening Communion
services.
4. Flower Rota
To provide the flowers for Sunday services and/or distribute them a erwards.
All these tasks are very important to the smooth running of our church so I am
taking the liberty of including all those who were on the rotas for last year on
the 2015 rotas unless you let me know differently. But extra people would be
more than welcome as last year I was unable to fill every Sunday.
If you would be willing to serve in any or all of these areas, even if you can only
offer for 2 or 3 mes a year, please see me by Sunday 23 November at the latest.
I really do need you to offer as it is always very difficult to fill all the posi ons for
the year.
To those of you who have faithfully undertaken these tasks over the past year I say
a very big THANK YOU..
Looking forward to a rush of volunteers!
IMPORTANT NOTICE
THE LIST for 2015
Each year our Church compiles a list of all church members and regular church
worshippers with their names, addresses,
telephone numbers and email addresses. A copy
is then distributed to all the people whose names
are in the List.
This List should be treated as
confiden al by all recipients.
During the year people move house, change their
telephone number and o en change their email
address. I try to make a note of these as they
come in but I’m likely to have missed some details.
If during this past year you have moved house or changed your telephone
number or email address then please will you check with me that I have your
details correct.
For those of you who have started worshipping with us during the past year we
would like to include your details in the Church List, if you are willing. Please
come and tell me your details, so that you can be included in the 2015 List
Please let me have all this informa on by the end of November, so that the
new List can be compiled and be correct ready for prin ng before the end of
this year.
Thank you
Cicely Hitchcock
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CARE FOR THE FAMILY
PARENTING EVENT for those with children up to the early teens.
Colchester Road Baptist Church Thurs 20 November 7.30 – 10.00pm.
Speaker Rob Parsons. Need to book - tel 02920 810800.
Sharing God’s love in Timor-Leste
MAF has been serving people’s needs in Timor-Leste since 2007 – enabling NGOs
to teach English, show Gospel films and help combat malnutri on
MAF Pilot and Programme Manager Jonathan
Lowe, his wife Angela, and Pilot Mike Bottrell and
his wife Jenni, MAF’s Development and Safety
Manager, share God’s love in a country where
surface transport is slow and dangerous, and 37%
of people live below the international poverty line.
Good timing. A few hours after the reopening of a
disused runway on Atauro Island, the renovated
airstrip enabled MAF to fly an 18-year-old woman
suffering from a stroke and severe anaemia to Dili,
where she received urgent medical attention.
The 14-minute flight spared the patient a lengthy
boat trip to the mainland – a two-hour journey that
only occurs once a week, weather permitting!
According to local businessman Barry Hinton who
lobbied for the strip’s reopening, not so long ago a
pregnant woman died in labour because ‘there were
no medevac capabilities at the time. She needed a
Caesarean, and you couldn’t do that here.’
Mr Hinton, who puts MAF’s life-saving medevac
down to ‘good timing’, says that having the aviation
charity carry out medical emergency airlifts for
Atauro’s isolated community is essential.
Saving sight. Following the restoration of the
Atauro airstrip, Dr Sérgio Gama da Costa Lobo,
Timor-Leste’s
Minister
of
Health,
and
representatives from the country’s ambulance
service and civil aviation personnel flew with MAF to
investigate future sites.
Once developed, the strips will help increase the
number of life-saving flights MAF makes on behalf
of the country’s 1.2 million people. The organisation
currently carries out 100 medevacs a year, flying
patients from poor and inaccessible rural areas to
receive treatment in Dili.
Another MAF flight, this time to Suai, enabled a
team of doctors, nurses and optometrists to restore
patients’ sight by providing vital surgery.
Team member Andrew Koch thanked Jonathan,
saying, ‘Your light aircraft is the only plane
available in the country to get humanitarian
programmes like ours to remote areas. It saved
four days in total. We helped 200 people – 46 of
them were blind in one or both eyes, and now they
can see! Thanks for being there for us.’
Another medic, Dili-based surgeon Dr Manoj
Sharma, added, ‘You are great! Non-stop serving
Timor-Leste’s needy people – reaching the
unreached through your plane!’
Thanks to MAF eye safaris, people are receiving
their sight again – the charity’s pastor-pilots
praying that, like Bartimaeus in Mark 10:46-52,
patients in impoverished Timor-Leste will also see
with spiritual eyes.
Saving lives. Another medevac, this time for a two
-week-old boy suffering from a bowel obstruction
and swollen abdomen, saved little Alberto and his
carers a difficult 12-hour ferry ride from isolated
Oecusse to Dili. Thanks to MAF, the stress-free 45minute flight enabled Alberto to receive the urgent
medical treatment he so desperately needed.
The missionary organisation also helped fourmonth-old Arni, who was suffering from
dehydration and diarrhoea on Atauro Island, to
reach hospital in time.
Serving nationals. Apart from working in
partnership with Timor-Leste’s Ministry of Health to
save time and lives in a country with the highest
level of malnutrition in south-eastern Asia, MAF
has started running a flight experience programme
for national pilots. It’s yet another way the Christian
charity serves the people of Timor-Leste.
A GOOD READ?
plus CHURCH LIBRARY UPDATE
I hadn’t heard of the author Francine Rivers un l a few weeks ago, although I now
know that she is famous as a writer of both main stream novels and also Chris an
fic on. I read a magazine ar cle about her and thought that her books might be good
for our Church library. By way of research I got a copy of her most famous book –
‘Redeeming Love’ and I’ve just finished reading it. It was a pleasure as well as a
research project!
It is a powerful story that I don’t think I’ll ever forget. Angel is le on her own a er her
mother dies when she is s ll a young child. She is trafficked and terribly abused. The
fist part of the story is very hard emo onally to read, but it is well worth persevering. I
think it is probably a glimpse into the life of girls who are s ll trafficked in many parts
of the world, even though this book is set in California in the 1850s gold rush, but
based loosely on the book of Hosea in the Old Testament. As you probably know
Hosea was asked by God to marry a pros tute who kept leaving him and going back to
her old life. Israel is likened to a pros tute who keeps leaving the one true God who
loves her, to go back to false gods.
Michael Hosea is led by God to rescue Angel from the brothel where she lives and
works, to marry her and take her home to share his life as a farmer, and above all to
love her uncondi onally for ever. Angel can’t accept that anyone would love her for
herself, rather than want to use her. Gradually she changes her mind but she also runs
away several mes. There are moments in the story which remind me of Talitha
Koum.
I hoped desperately that the book would have a happy ending. I won’t tell you any
more as it will spoil the story for you.
If you have read this novel or any other books by Francine Rivers I would love to know
what you think. Would you like the Church library to include some of her
books? Please let me know. I know it seems as though this library is taking a long me
to appear. I have received lots of good quality up to date second hand books for the
library and some very welcome money has been made available to buy some new
books for the library. I appreciate everyone who has come to either coffee morning
where a display of CLC’s best sellers has been on display for sale. The books have lead
to some really interes ng conversa ons about the books you like. I hope to buy some
new ones soon so that we can get this library set up and into use before too long.
Thank you, Judith
SUFFOLK PRAYER LETTER
NOV 2ND
IPSWICH – HOLLY LODGE
No submission received, but check out their web site at
http://hollylodge.btck.co.uk/
NOV 9TH REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY
2014 Remembrance Day has a special resonance with it being the 100th
anniversary of the First World War and the 70th anniversary of D-Day in the
Second World War. As I write this, the Invictus Games are being held in
London, reminding us that people are still making the supreme sacrifice in
service of their country and others have life-changing experiences which
affect them physically and/or mentally for the rest of their lives. Pray for
those who have had loved ones killed in conflicts around the world and for
those living with the consequences of their, or a member of their family’s,
service.
NOV 16TH IPSWICH – NANSEN ROAD
We are now a year into the ministry of our Pastor Rev’d Peterson Anand
and we have seen new faces come and worship with us. At the beginning
of this year we prayed for five new families to come and join us, two of
them to be Christian families. We haven’t yet seen Christian families come
to join us but we have had individuals come in who are able to help with
the work. We are still praying for families to come and join us.
In March we held a day of prayer for the church and community and we
have another day planned for October. We go out on visitation around the
church on a regular basis with help and guidance from our previous
Moderator Rev Gordon Tubbs. We thank Gordon for his continued help in
this work.
We have few workers able to do the physical outreach at the church, so we
are grateful for the continued support from The Noisy Group. Through
them we have used the hall at Nansen Road for children’s sessions during
the summer holidays and taken two coaches full of people to Yarmouth in
August. Again through the NG, we have an alternative Halloween party
and a Onesie Party on 5th November planned. Our annual carol singing at
the local shops will be on Saturday 20th Dec at lunchtime, followed by a
Christmas Party for the local children from 5 to 6pm, followed by carol
singing in the Church grounds for the community followed by soup and hot
dogs! We are also starting a lunch club with a launch in September, and
starting fully in October
Please pray as we go forward with the Lord to reach out even more into
the community around Nansen Road.
NOV 23RD IPSWICH – STOKE GREEN
1. Open The Book : We have a team of 12 church members who go into
three local primary schools every other Monday. That means that we are
reaching almost 900 children and staff regularly with stories from the Bible.
2. Five times per year we put on Messy Church for the families on the
Maidenhall Estate. Our average attendance from those outside of the
church is 60 children and 40 adults. We are about to introduce a MiniMessy Church to cover the months that we don’t do a full Messy church.
3. During the Christmas period we hold a ‘Christmas Experience’ for a
whole week. Children from the local schools where we do Open the Book
come to the church to learn, through various activities, the meaning of
Christmas. Please pray that God will bless these outreach activities.
NOVEMBER 30TH IPSWICH – WHITEHOUSE
We thank God for encouragements that come out of the blue, e.g. the
youngster who has recently joined us for “prayer in the vestry” prior to the
morning service – and who prays! We thank God for the encouragement
that comes from dedicated people who make up the core of leadership
across the different church activities and who demonstrate commitment to
the Lord, a passion for His people and who bring love, hard work,
openness and prayer to all they do. Please pray for this group as they
often go beyond the extra mile. Please pray for our on-going alternative
Tuesday mornings Open the Book in the school next door – what a unique
privilege to tell Bible stories to upwards of 300 children regularly! As
Christmas approaches please pray for wisdom that we might not only
celebrate joyfully but will use well the mission opportunity that Christmas
brings. Please pray for us as we seek to make community mission roads
through programmes such as Messy Church. We do need discernment in
what we can and cannot do.
Thanks for your prayers – we really do appreciate them!
REGULAR ACTIVITIES
Sunday at 10.45 am:
Morning Service.
Wednesday of each month.
Art & Craft Club at 7.00pm
Crèche for the very young.
FoG: aged 3 to school year 2.
Mustard Seeds: school years 3 - 6.
Thursday:
Luncheon Club at 12.30pm.
The Tribe: school years 7 and
above.
Friday:
Prayer Meeting at 8pm.
Sunday at 6.30 pm:
Evening Service.
Saturday:
Meeting Point Coffee Morning
on the fourth Saturday of each
month, from 10.30 ‘til noon.
Monday:
Banner Group at 2.15 on the first
and third Monday in each month.
FFaF Children’s Club for school
years 2-6 from 6.15 ‘til 7.30pm.
Wednesday:
Senior Citizens’ Friendship
Hour at 2.30pm on the second
In addition…..
There are regular home-groups
at different times on Mondays,
Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays at a number of venues! You
are sure to find one that fits your
personal schedule!
Contacts
Minister: Rev Heather Marsden
Church telephone: (01473) 721455
Secretary: Jean Cutting, E-mail: secretary@rushmerebaptist.org.uk
Editor: Peter Dearsley,
Church web site: www.rushmerebaptist.org.uk/