On Sunday we shared the news that we will be moving to St James, Eccles Old Road when we begin to meet again in person as a church. We see it as an answer to prayer. If you weren’t with us, here is the clip:
There will be lots of questions. Here are some answers to questions we have asked.
Some (possible) FAQs:
1. When will we begin in-person services again?
We are planning to begin in June. This gives both churches enough time to prepare.
2. What time will we meet:
St James will continue to worship on Sunday mornings, but at an earlier time. We will begin our services at 11.30 and finish at 1.00. You might want to plan to arrive earlier so that you can catch up with people. We are not planning to offer refreshments at the end of the service, because we know you will want to get home for lunch etc. You might want to make sure you have a good brunch before you come!
3. What will happen with Junior Church?
They will meet in the church hall. We will ensure that the provision we give to the children continues to be as good as it can be.
4. Will we keep streaming the service via YouTube?
We intend to keep streaming the service for any folks who are unable to meet in person.
5. Will the building be uncomfortable?
The building is large – it will hold around 300-320 people, so it will be a very different experience than Holy Angels! No more claustrophobia! But it will be cooler than Holy Angels ever was. So be prepared for that! And there are pews not chairs, so if you know that might affect your back, then bring cushions or seat pads with you. But remember, other Christians have been worshipping there since 1861.
6. Does this mean we are leaving the Height? What about the Vine?
The work of the Vine will develop as we have explained. It will no longer be a trading café, but will become a community hub, offering space for people to meet, take part of different groups, receive the hospitality that we can offer there. We want our mission influence to extend.
7. Will we not be very close to Elmwood?
We will be close to Elmwood, but we do not see ourselves in competition with them in any way. We will let them know we are coming and when we can work in collaboration with them, we will, just as we have done with the Methodists, Catholics, Anglicans and Mount Chapel on the Height.
8. Will activities such as Play and Stay move to St James?
Yes, that is our intention.
9. Is there parking?
There will be spaces for around 40 cars behind the church in the car park. If that is not enough you can park in the pay and display in the hospital round the corner. You can’t park on the roads around the church.
10. There is a bell tower, can we ring them?
Not immediately!
If there are things that we have missed – don’t hesitate to ask!
Watch, Enjoy and Share
Each week through March we will be releasing a short film which we hope will be helpful to you in at least 2 ways. They are short prayers around common themes and we hope you will find them helpful yourself. But we also hope that you will find them cringe-free so that you will feel able to share them on your social media accounts. We hope it’s a way to help people who might not be so sure about faith to connect with us. Let us know what you think of them to help us decide whether to do them again!
This week’s is here:
Coming up
1. Easter Posters
After the success of our Christmas window display trail, the SMT wanted everyone to have the chance to participate in displaying a window display for Easter. Jonny Dolphin has kindly printed off two different Easter designs in a range of colours.
If you would like one, please contact Kate Blundell (07805 069033) to arrange collection or delivery after 15th March. Please also specify if you would prefer the three crosses or egg design. You will also be given a laminated QR code that you can put in your window or front gate, which when scanned will take people to the Easter page on our website.
2. Can you help?
Yvonne and Martin Simms run Salford Food Parcels – a way they help people who are struggling with food shortages.
They need some help, especially for these items:
UHT milk, oil, shampoo, deodorant, shower gel, toiletries, tinned food in particular.
If you can help, you could drop them at their home – 11 Lostock Road, Salford, M5 5LH and Gill Oldham has said that she would be happy to pick stuff up and drop them if you can’t get to them. Her number is 07764 851769.
3. Family Easter Escape – Good Friday (2nd April), 1.30pm
On Good Friday 2nd April, 1:30pm, there will be an Escape with a difference! Well, a few differences, actually…
Firstly it will be over Zoom and secondly, it has part of the Easter story as it’s plot. Can you crack the codes, solve the puzzles and help Barrabas go free? Aimed at families with children around 5-11, please let Morag know if you are up for it and she will send details and the Zoom link nearer the time.
4. Alpha Online: starts Monday 12th April, 7-8.30pm
Following the success of our previous online Alpha course, we are offering another chance for people to explore the big questions of life and faith in a friendly and non-judgemental atmosphere.
There will be 12 weeks to discuss questions such as ‘Is there more to life than this?’, ‘Who is Jesus?’ and ‘How can I have faith?’. Here’s a teaser:
If you know anyone who might be interested in trying the first session, do invite them along and share salfordelimchurch.org/alpha with them – it will give them a taster of what to expect and how to sign up if they’d like to join us.
It will be facilitated by a team of great people: Andrea Catherwood, Emmanuel Isibor, Yvonne Simms, Dave and Chris Swindells.
5. An Offer of Counselling Support
One of the ministries we have as a church is the Community Counselling Service. During this Covid crisis we have continued to offer Counselling remotely via zoom or telephone. There are however, limitations with remote sessions.
We are now offering Walk And Talk Counselling to anyone from church who would benefit from counselling or those known to church members. We would agree a time to meet at the Tea Kiosk in Lightoaks Park and would walk at a slow pace for the 50 minute session.
If you feel you would benefit from this please don’t hesitate to contact Judith Thompson, Neil, or Ian or fill in the form on the church website.
Our Regular Gatherings
1. Lunchtime in Exile
Each week on Tuesdays from 12.30-1.30, there are lunchtime sessions exploring the Book of Revelation.
The link for the series is here:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84319535601?pwd=K2s2WHhKdmJJMjF5ZnU2KzFTVW5GUT09
Meeting ID: 843 1953 5601
Passcode: 757553
We know that not everyone will be able to come along at that time, but we will record all the sessions so you can catch up later so you can watch them at whatever time works well for you. The link to them is here: salfordelimchurch.org/revelation
2. Wellbeing Course: Thursdays, 1-2.30pm
Are you living on empty? Maybe it’s time to refill.
The Wellbeing Journey is a new series exploring holistic wellness: body, mind and spirit. It is based around 6 key areas of wellbeing: physical, emotional, spiritual, relational, financial and vocational, to help you discover how to run on a full tank.
There are eight sessions to explore together, lasting between 60 and 90 minutes, which includes a video and time for discussion.
If you know someone who would benefit from discussing their wellbeing in a friendly and supporting environment, do invite them.
Here’s the link: https://zoom.us/j/92865676423?pwd=TVZSR253YWc1Wm1LQ3l4eTdDY0o3dz09
3. Coffee Morning: Wednesday at 10.30am.
A Wednesday morning is the ideal time to catch up with people, have a brew, even involve yourself with a quiz.
Meeting link: https://zoom.us/j/94930624852?pwd=dlI0SnhwY3RaNnUrUGpSMTkrWm5hZz09
4. Prayer Meeting: Thursday at 7.30pm
We are meeting on Thursday to pray for one another. If you have things you want us to pray about – please contact Ian beforehand. If you want us to pray with you personally, then please come along. Link: https://zoom.us/j/95385481887?pwd=UWxHSUIwdHBTdGRVWDlmUHRicllFUT09
5. Prayer Meeting: Friday
Contact Corinne Baines or Gill Oldham or Neil and they’ll make sure you are able to connect.
6. Sunday Service at 10.30am
ZoomLink: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/836810848
Meeting ID: 836 810 848
And on Salford Elim Church’s YouTube page.
And at 10am, led by Hannah:
If you would love the privilege of praying for our Sunday morning service, then we need you! Log on to the Sunday morning Zoom using the link above at 10am and we’ll go into a break out room for 15-20mins, to pray together for those involved in the service, as well as for the service itself.
I’d love to see you there xxx
7. Family Zoom Service, Sunday at 12.30pm
This Sunday 21st March is our Family Zoom Service, for those with children aged 3-11, at 12:30pm.
If in doubt
All the links to the meetings are in ChurchSuite and on the ‘Calendar’ section of our church website: https://www.salfordelimchurch.org/events/
You’re not alone
If you need help and don’t know where to turn, you are always welcome to contact Neil on 07771 558058.
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