Open Church
Until 9th April | 12:00pm-2:00pm every day | Church
You will be aware that lots of churches are left unlocked all day, every day. We don’t feel confident that we can do that here, but until the 9th of April, the church will be open from 12-2pm every day for people to drop by.
We have heard of great conversations that have happened with people at St Johns. People who come in to pray, to be still or come looking for help.
We have taken responsibility for Mon, Tues, Friday each week. There will be two people here each day. If you are passing and want to pop in, it will be lovely to see you. And if you are free to help, that would be great.
Bring And Share Lunch
Sunday 8th March | 1:30pm | Church
On Sunday the 8th March, we will have lunch together in the church hall after the service. Please bring food that can be shared between us all. If everyone brings either savoury or desserts, there will be loads for us to share. Remember that we don’t have facilities to warm things up easily. If you are not sure what to bring, chat to people who have been in the church for longer than you, and they will help explain how it all works!
Lent Lunches
Thursdays during Lent | 12:30pm – 2:00pm | Various locations
The Height churches are running Lent lunches. On Thursdays from 12:30pm-2pm, people from different churches will gather to share a simple lunch and then be led in a Bible group discussion.
We are taking responsibility for this on Thursday, the 26th March. We will be using St Johns Church Hall. If you would like to come along, it will be great to see you. If you can help with the lunch, that would be very helpful. Please let Neil know.
St James Spring Barn Dance
Saturday 28th March | 6:30pm | Church
Dancing for everyone and anyone: the less capable you are the more fun you’ll have!!!
With Hotpot + peas
Adults £10
For tickets, contact Kate Blundell 07805 069033 (Elim), Shiela 07845 492109 (St J), or Sylvia 07729 839 483 (St. J).
Looking Ahead
Baptisms!
Sunday 3rd May | 11:30am | Church
Are you ready to be baptised? On Sunday the 3rd of May, we will be having another baptismal service. If this is the next step for you please talk with Neil, Ian or Sarah.
SAVE THE DATE: Church Away Day
Saturday 20th June | Barnstondale Centre, CH61 1BX
Our Annual Church Day Away is on Saturday, the 20th of June. It will be at the activity centre in Ellesmere Port again – please put the date in your calendar so you can be with us.
Emerging Food Ministry
In the late autumn last year one of our young adults, Joe Northall, came to us with an idea to help people in our local area who are struggling. When asked if he was happy to take this on, he didn’t shy away. Here is how he describes his idea:
“I had it on my heart for a while to share love to strangers who need food/warmth/love through hot meals and a conversation if they wanted one. I also wanted to have an opportunity for anyone helping with the food ministry to have a way to open up conversations about Jesus to people. He is the reason that we should be sharing the love he’s given us. It’s also a great way to meet different people in the church and get to know each other and pray together while preparing the food. The general idea came from just wanting to spread love and to feed those who are really in need, while being able to hopefully spread the name of Jesus to people through this.”
We were able to take our first step out in this ministry in January when around ten of us met to cook curry at the vine. We prayed together and thought through how we would safely and respectfully engage with people in the area. We then portioned up the curry and took it out to Salford Precinct and were able to hand out all but one of the meals. While heading back with the last meal Sam Allen really had on his heart that it was meant for someone. He followed God’s leading and found an amazing man ‘L’, who received the gospel openly and is considering his response. He was also able to give us some great advice about how to reach more people and take this further. Here is Sam Allen’s reflection on the evening:
“First, I would say this ministry provides a great time to laugh and enjoy company with friends and new people within the church, while making a meaningful impact in the community. Secondly, the ministry allows those involved to experience the power of prayer, whether that be for humbling our hearts to be cheerful givers or seeing Jesus through interactions with those less fortunate than us.
Finally, being a part of this experience has allowed me to be alert to God’s leading trusting in the Holy Spirit’s presence in unfamiliar situations. These unfamiliar situations can lead to great learning opportunities like meeting with ‘L’ was greatly impactful to me because | felt touched and related to his story.”
We are in the process of reflecting on this first attempt and how we can make this a regular pattern of compassion for our city. If you are interested in getting involved, please speak to Joe or Sarah for more information.
