Catalyst THE MAGAZINE OF HAYES

FREE CHURCH (U.R.C.)

April 2017

HAYES FREE CHURCH

111, Pickhurst Lane, Hayes, Kent BR2 7HU

Sunday Services. 10.30 a.m. & 6.30 p.m.

We are a member of the United Reformed Church. We believe in Justice and Peace.

Principal Contacts

Interim Moderator: Rev. Dr Peter Stevenson

Church Secretary: Mrs Mavis Righini Tel: 020 8462 1168

Treasurer: Mr. Simon Narracott Tel: 020 8462 2004

Lettings Secretary: Mrs Undine Connolly Tel: 020 8776 0108

Church Website www.hayesfreechurch.com

Catalyst

Editor: Miss Christine Rees

Contents :

Church Secretary’s Letter 1 Christmas Tree Charities 10

Sunday Services 2 Top of the Pew/ Fair Trade 11

Church Notices 3-5 Quiz/ notices 12

Ministry of Flowers 6 Christian Aid week 13

Events in April/ Lent 7 St George 13-15

URC Past Case Review 8 Stop Press/ Monthly Calendar 15-16

PreSchool HFC Organisations inside back cover

Pickhurst Lodge 9 Final Thought back cover

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Copy for May 2017 edition is needed by Sunday, 16th April (Easter Sunday).

Please submit items in good time

You can leave copy in the "R" Pigeon Hole for Christine to collect, or hand it directly to her on a Sunday morning.

You can also e-mail copy to catalysthfc@btinternet.com

Thank you.

Editor’s note: throughout this magazine, the following abbreviations are standardly used:

URC (United Reformed Church) and HFC (Hayes Free Church).

- 1 -

Letter from the Church Secretary

Dear all,

By the time you read this the Pickhurst Lodge Pre School will have closed. It is always sad when a group closes and more so after so many years. We think it has been running from about 1950 since Margaret Grist founded it. Perhaps somebody reading this will know but I have contacted Elizabeth (Grist) and may soon find out.

Things have changed so much over the years. These days mothers are going out to work and are looking for day facilities for their tiny tots, and also attending a pre-school attached to a main school hopefully ensures a place in what may be an over-subscribed school.

Things change all around us with spring and new life, a lovely time of year.

So as we move through Lent to Good Friday, we can look forward to the joy of Easter Day because we know the whole story.

Let me wish you all a happy Easter, the joy of our Risen Lord.

With Christian love to you all

Mavis

- 2 -

Services for Sundays and Holy Week

April 2017

2nd 10.30 am - Morning Service – Jim Holman

6.30 pm - Holy Communion – Judy Davies

9th 10.30 am – Tony Russell

6.30 pm – TBA

13th 8.00 pm – Revd Bill Bowman (Joint URC service for

Maundy Thursday at Hayes Free Church)

14th 10.00 am – Churches Together in Hayes service for Good

Friday at Hayes Free Church. Preceded by Walk of Witness leaving at 9.15am from the Village Hall (where Hayesford Park Baptists worship), and passing St Mary’s and the Rosary before arriving at Hayes Free Church.

16th 10.30 am – Easter Sunday - Mavis Righini

6.30 pm - Evening Service – Judy Davies

23rd 10.30 am - Holy Communion – Alan Kienlen

6.30 pm - Evening Service – Duncan Wilson

30th 10.30 am – Morning Service - David Lemmon

6.30 pm - Evening Service – Sonia Weston

All of the evening services will take place in the Elders Vestry which is accessed from the side door in Hilldown Road.

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Notes on Visiting Preachers

Judy Davies is a Synod Recognized Lay Preacher from Bromley URC, where she is also Church Secretary.

Tony Russell is a non-serving Elder of Hayes Free Church. He was Church Secretary for some years, and later was Church Treasurer.

Revd Bill Bowman is Minister of Emmanuel (West Wickham) and Elmers End Free Church (both URC).

Mavis Righini is our Church Secretary.

Alan Kienlen is a Synod Recognized Lay Preacher from Emmanuel URC, where he is also a Serving Elder.

David Lemmon is a Local Preacher from Bromley Methodist Church and a retired Youth Worker.

- 3 -

Church Meetings

The next two Elders' meetings will be at 7.00 pm in the small hall on Tuesday 4th April and Tuesday 2nd May.

The next two Church meetings will be in the Church after the morning service at 12.00 noon on Sunday 23rd April and Sunday 28th May.

Saturday Fellowship

We usually meet on the first Saturday of each month. This month we will meet on 1st April at 2.30 pm at Barbara’s house. The leader is Martin Nunn and you are welcome to join us.

Men's Group

The Men's Group will be meeting this month for a meal out at Coombe Lodge, South Croydon, organised by Martin Nunn. This will take place on Thursday 20th April, at 7.30 for 8.00pm. If you would like to attend, please notify Martin by the previous weekend.

Women's Fellowship

Meetings are in the small hall at 2.00 pm, unless otherwise stated. They are held on Tuesdays and finish at about 3.30 pm.

There will be two meetings in April, and during the rest of the month we shall be enjoying an Easter break:

4th Flower arranging: Jean Murdoch 11th Easter Service: led by Judy Davies

Members who use the Mini-Ambulance service are asked to phone Sylvia Mack on 8462 1938 by 9.00 am on any Tuesday that they are unable to come to a meeting.

As always, we welcome all ladies to our meetings. Please come along for a pleasant afternoon. We do have a very varied programme with plenty to interest everyone.

Marion Swanborough

- 4 -

Women's Contact Group

We will be meeting for our monthly meal at the Warren Sports Ground, Hayes, at 12.30 pm on Monday 3rd April. The Warren is accessed by car from Croydon Road (address: Croydon Road, Hayes, BR2 7AL) or on foot from the junction of Warren Road and Holland Way. All ladies are welcome.

Sylvia Mack

Hayes Mothers' & Toddlers' Club

We welcome all babies and children under school age, accompanied by their parents, grandparents or carers, to our club on Friday afternoons between 2 and 4pm during term time. The fee is £1 per family - tea, squash and biscuits are provided. This is a time when adults can meet up, while the children in their care are busy playing with toys and activities in the company of other children. The first part of April falls during our Easter break, but we will begin our summer term on April 21st. Wendy Smith

Messy Church

This meets on the 4th Wednesday of every month in the church from 3.30 - 4.30 pm, and children from 2 to 12 years are welcome.

Book Club

We meet on the first Wednesday of every month at 2.00pm in the Small Hall. This month’s meeting will be on Wednesday 5th April.

Wealden Inter-Church Ramble for the Bank Holiday

As in past years, Martin Nunn will be leading a ramble for members of Churches Together in Hayes on Monday 17th April (Easter Monday). All ages are welcome, for a ramble of about 5 miles, with a pub lunch available en route. Please meet in the Rosary car park at 10.15am.

(Please note: Martin plans to lead two further rambles on the two May Bank holidays – details next month)

Trading Post

Do please make use of the notice board in the small hall which bears this title. The idea is to make it easier for people who are trying to dispose of things to link up with people who are in need of those same things. Even if it is not yourself, but a relative, friend or neighbour, who needs to make the link, you can still put a notice up for them and see what response there might be.

- 5 -

The Fairtrade Sunday Stall

The Fairtrade stall is held monthly on the 2nd and 4th Sunday just after the

morning service. The stall is near the refreshments trolley. Do pop by on 9th

and 23rd April to see what we have for sale. The items range from snacks and

breakfast foods through to greetings cards. We look forward to seeing you.

Richard and Barbara (see also page 11)

**********

4247 That is the number of Sainsbury’s Active Kids vouchers we need to acquire a folding aluminium table and 1 trangia. I am also also keen to get an emergency whistle = 540 vouchers and a basic first aid kit

at 432 vouchers .

Please can you help?? Having grown to 2 Guide units we now need to add more basic camp equipment and the Sainsburys Active Kids vouchers is an

easy and cost effective way to do it. So – please – when the person on the checkout offers you Active

Kids Vouchers - - please say yes (and even ask if they’ve got some spares!) and then give them to me so that 3

rd and 4

th Hayes Guides

can get away to camp together. Many thanks,

Teresa Editor’s note: In case you are not a camper, a trangia is a light stove.

******

Notice Sheets

If you have an item for inclusion on the Notice Sheet on a particular Sunday, please contact the relevant person below, by the date shown (the first Sunday of the month is usually in the previous month’s magazine):

By Tuesday 4th April for Sunday 9th: Joan Smith 8462 3920

By Tuesday 11th April for Sunday 16th: Pamela Collison 8658 0748

By Tuesday 18th April for Sunday 23rd: Pamela Collison 8658 0748

By Tuesday 25th April for Sunday 30th: Brenda Cordingley 8462 3867

- 6 -

Ministry of Flowers

From the time of the ancient Egyptians, people have been using flowers for display and celebration. There was some interest in flowers in mediaeval times, but they really burst onto the scene right across Europe in the 16th century. Garlands and floral decorations were used in ceremonies; flowers began to appear in paintings; explorers brought exciting new plants back from their travels, and different styles of flower arranging developed in different countries. Interests changed as the years passed; by Victorian times the fashion was for big displays and in the twentieth century there were wider influences, for

example from Japan (where the art was very old). Interestingly, flower arranging was traditionally restricted to men in Japan, though here in Britain it was often seen as a suitable accomplishment for young ladies. Flower shows and horticultural societies flourished, and of course they still do!

English churches were spending money on flowers and greenery for displays as far back as the 15th century, and the custom grew during the reign of Elizabeth I, when decoration in churches was otherwise becoming more plain. Flowers were used to mark special occasions. There were festivals – Christmas, Easter, Whitsun – as well as saints days and weddings. Flowers in season were used for appropriate days - such as St John’s Wort for St John the Baptist’s day; and particular flowers became symbolic (for example lilies were associated with the Virgin Mary; holly and ivy were used at Christmas). Nowadays we are used to having flowers in our homes frequently, and similarly in our churches every week, not just for special occasions, though we continue to mark those too.

In our congregation there are a number of gardeners, and we are fortunate to have flower-arrangers too. Every week we are grateful to Mavis and her helpers for choosing and arranging the flowers. Thanks go also to those who pay for the displays week by week. For this month, they are as follows:

2nd – Jim Pearson 9th – Mavis and Colin Righini

16th – Martin Nunn 23rd – Margaret Tannock

30th – Sylvia and Laurie Mack

And after the service on Sunday morning, our flowers are distributed in order to celebrate, or thank, or support, and in all cases to bring further enjoyment.

- 7 -

April dates

Below are some important dates in April:

Sunday 9th April: Palm Sunday; start of Holy Week

Thursday 13th April: Maundy Thursday

Friday 14th April: Good Friday

Sunday 16th April: Easter Sunday

Monday 17th April: Bank Holiday

Sunday 23rd

April: St George’s Day

LENT

First, just a reminder of two Lent courses currently running in Hayes. Both of them are open to all. The Churches Together in Hayes Lent Course Running on Wednesdays at 7.30pm in the Meetings Room of St Mary’s (Hayes Parish Church in Hayes Street, BR2 7LH). Three sessions have taken place but at the time of Catalyst’s publication two will remain on 29

th March and 5

th April (when there will be a

“Bring & Share Supper”). St Mary’s Lent Course The Parish church’s own course (“Place in the Crowd”) runs on Mondays at 9.15am in the Meetings Room. Three sessions have taken place and three remain, on 27

th March, 3

rd and 10

th April.

“When I needed a neighbour, where you there?”

This is Christian Aid’s Lenten calendar, and as mentioned last month it had been hoped that there would be copies available for us all at the beginning of Lent. Unfortunately, this has not worked out, but if you have internet access you can find it at:

https://www.christianaid.org.uk/sites/default/files/2017-01/count-your-blessings-lent-calendar-2017-adult.pdf

or see their other Lent suggestions too at:

https://www.christianaid.org.uk/lent-easter/lent-calendar#count_your_blessings

The daily reflections are very short and it is easy to slot in halfway through Lent.

- 8 -

We have been asked by the URC to draw your attention to the following statement. You can also find full information about this on the noticeboard running along the side wall of the church:

Statement on the

United Reformed Church

Past Case Review

We have all made mistakes and we want to learn from those mistakes.

People have been hurt by bullying or abuse in churches in the past. Things

went wrong and people may be carrying the hurt inside them. We want to

learn from the past and do better in the future. The Past Case Review is a

way for the United Reformed Church to listen and to learn.

We truly want to hear about any behaviour which may need challenging,

or if you have been hurt in the past by anyone in the United Reformed

Church.

If anyone who has had any connection with your church wishes to share

something that has happened to them within any United Reformed Church,

we would ask them to get in touch with the Past Case Review team.

We want our churches to be safer places, where people can grow without

fear.

Telephone: 020 7916 8682

Website: www.urc.org.uk/past-case-review

Email: pastcase.review@urc.org.uk

Further resources and information are available online at

www.urc.org.uk/past-case-review

- 9 -

Pickhurst Lodge Pre School (PLPS)

It is with sadness and regret that I have to announce that PLPS will close its door for good at the end of the term on 24th March 2017. This Charitable Organisation was formed by the Church some 66 years ago and many of our children went there. At the height of its success there were 66 children attending each morning. Alas we live in a very competitive changing world. There are now many new Child Care Groups, some connected to schools, which offer parents a whole day, and not just the 3 hours we have, which Mums need if they go to work. Nowadays more Mothers work than don't which was not the case in the past. Unfortunately as a result of these factors our numbers have been dropping over the years and alas we have no more in reserves on which we can rely to balance the books. We only have 12 children on the books at the moment and we cannot function with this small number with the required staffing levels. Many of the children we have at present will be starting school in September. In addition the Government will be increasing free childcare for working parents to 30 hours a week and as we cannot have 30 hours use of the Church Premises we are not going to be a choice for parents. I'm afraid it is the end of an era and as some of us remember fondly the many ladies who, over the years, have contributed to the success of the PLPS we give thanks for the part they played in the development of our children. It will be appreciated that in order to honour our debts we need to raise some money and so we are selling off all equipment and toys.

Margaret Tannock

Chair

- 10 -

Christmas Tree Festival 2017

It may be some way off, but NOW is the time to put forward a charity that you might wish the church to support. So far there has been just one proposal (see below). It would be good to have at least one other option, so that we can know that a majority at the church meeting has actively chosen to support the charity that is selected. The decision will be made at the April church meeting, and I need final proposals at least a week earlier if people are to receive information to read in advance of the meeting. There is no lack of good causes, or of charitable commitments amongst church members, so please give this some thought.

Thank you,

Christine

BROMLEY Y Bromley Y is a long-established local charity for young people. Now hosted by Bromley Wellbeing, it provides the Bromley Community Wellbeing Service for Children and Young People. It is the single point of access for all referrals concerning the emotional and mental wellbeing of young people up to the age of 18 in Bromley (that is, living or working in Bromley or registered with a GP in the borough). Schools, GPs, and social services may make referrals, and those over 16 can self-refer. After a child or young person is referred in, their difficulties are screened and it is then decided how best to support them and their family. This could be through Bromley Y’s own range of short-term, early intervention therapies (which include counselling, mentoring and various other forms of therapy) – or if necessary through referral elsewhere. This proposal is put forward by two of our members who have seen the charity at work. They know the support that Bromley Y can provide at a difficult time, and have been impressed by the way in which the charity aims to provide a safe, friendly environment for children, young people and their families to explore the difficulties that they may be experiencing, helping them to identify new ways forward. More information at www.bromleywellbeingcyp.org.

- 11 -

Top of the Pew

A photo of our team plus scorer at the Hall of the Church of the Latter Day Saints, where we won 82/48 on 5th March. It was a most enjoyable evening with interesting questions. The event was well supported by members of HFC, and we were all made very welcome by our hosts.

Congratulations to the team. We look forward to their next contest.

Margaret Tannock

(NOTE: The next round is due to be played sometime between Easter and June, and will probably be a home match. There is not always enough advance warning to include the information in Catalyst, so please watch out for other notices if you wish to attend).

* * * * * * *

And more on Fairtrade....

As can be seen below, Barbara ran a very successful coffee morning on

Saturday 11th March to round off Fairtrade Fortnight. This event, along with

an opportunity to donate at church the next day, raised £200.00 for the cause.

- 12 -

A seasonal quiz of Old Testament figures:

Take the first letters of each answer and see what word emerges:

- Jacob’s twin brother

- David’s rebellious son

- The first king of Israel

- Elijah was known as “the .......”

- Xerxes’ queen

- Wife of Boaz, mother of Obed, great-grandmother of David, but best known as a daughter-in-law

And I do not hold any official answer to the secular but seasonal puzzle below, but I think we can guess:

“The simple bird that thinks two notes a song”

(from April’s Charms by W H Davies)

Bromley Food Bank – I am afraid I have no updated information about the needs of Bromley Food Bank as Catalyst goes to press – but the items listed last month will I am sure still be very welcome. They were:

Ladies Sanitary Items; Pasta Sauce; Squash (small bottles); Rice (500g); UHT milk (1 litre); Deodorants; Long life fruit juice; Size 5/6 nappies; Washing up liquid; Washing powder

Remember you can also donate direct at Sainsbury’s West Wickham (Station Road) and some other supermarkets, which will usually list items needed.

Quiz Night for Nash College There will be a quiz night on Friday 12th May 2017 starting at 7.30pm, until 22.30pm. Please come and support 'The Friends of Nash' who raise funds for our friends at Nash. The evening will be held in Nash College Coney Hall. Tickets at £10 will include Ploughman's; please bring your own drinks. If you can raise a table of 8 that would be great but if not we can find you a place, for you to join someone nice I'm sure. Hope to see you there. Please contact me for more information or to book a place. Margaret Tannock

- 13 -

Christian Aid Week

In a few weeks, Christian Aid week will be upon us, and now that the church has given up house-to-house collections, we will mark it in other ways. This is, of course, the time of year when many of us know someone or other who is running for charity in the London Marathon, but people are already getting themselves organised for another (much smaller-scale!) trek across the capital, or part of it –Christian Aid’s “Circle the City 2017”.

This will be the 20th time that the walk has been run and if you haven’t come across it before, you might like to think of trying it, or encouraging others that you know to try it. It is always a festive occasion with balloons and tee-shirts and wheelchairs and babies in buggies and dogs, plus the occasional cyclist – friends and families often walk together in groups. And usually it doesn’t rain! If you don’t fancy walking, they are always on the lookout for extra stewards and help behind the scenes – there is a special appeal for expert face-painters this year.

The object, of course, is to raise money for Christian Aid, so you would need to try and accumulate sponsors beforehand – or you can usually join the walk on the day if you make a contribution then and there. How about it?

ST GEORGE is probably the most elusive of the four patron saints of the British Isles. It seems that the first accounts of him emerge long after he actually lived, and some people doubt whether he existed at all. However his story (or at least the most historical part of it) does recall the genuine suffering and bravery of real Christian martyrs under the Roman emperor Diocletian. We can remember them whilst reading the story of George, even though all the apparently factual details must be handled with caution.

For us today, the aspect of George’s story which jumps out at us most starkly is that, far from being English, George was Syrian (there was nothing strange in this - he served in the Roman army, which included soldiers from all parts of the Roman empire). The story is that George was born in Cappadocia (now in Turkey), the son of Christian Syrian parents. He was given the name of George which means “farmer” in Greek (that little bit I can confirm as true!) and indeed he is the patron saint of farmers. After his father’s early death his mother took him back to her home town of Lydda (a small town near present day Tel Aviv), and George is often associated with this place. He followed his father into the army, where he was well regarded by the top brass, until Diocletian began to persecute the Christians in its ranks. George refused to join in this, and when he was told his life would be spared if he sacrificed to the gods of Rome, he refused that also. He was tortured and eventually beheaded, possibly again in Lydda. This perhaps happened on 23rd April, and perhaps in 303AD.

- 14 -

And the dragon? Well, the story of the brave rescuer of a fair damsel is very old, probably much older than the time when George is thought to have lived. In late mediaeval times there was a notion of an idealised knightly figure (a miles Christi, or soldier of Christ), for example in the myths of King Arthur and his knights. George was already viewed as a military saint from his army connections, and in a Europe awash with romantic tales, all these aspects merged to create the George and Dragon myth. William Caxton, who brought printing to England, printed a book called The Golden Legend in 1483. It contained various myths about saintly figures, including this one.

George had been known in England for a long while before this. He is mentioned by the Venerable Bede, and it seems likely that the church of Fordington in Dorset was dedicated to him at a very early date. But he was not at that time England’s patron saint. In or about 870AD, the Christian King Edmund of East Anglia, who had fought alongside King Alfred to repel Viking invasions, was captured by the invaders and martyred for his refusal to join in a pagan power-sharing arrangement with them. His shrine in Bury St Edmunds became a place of pilgrimage, patronised by kings in the early part of the Middle Ages. And Edward the Confessor, the king of England whose death in 1066 led to the Norman invasion, was also regarded as a special saint for England.

The cross of St George is now well known as a red cross on a white ground, but this does not seem to have been associated with him until centuries after his death. It is thought that the city of Genoa, which adopted both George as its patron saint and these colours as its symbol, may be the origin of the link. This cross was used in England before becoming associated with George, but it was certainly officially recognised as the symbol of England’s patron saint by 1552, when all other saints’ banners were banned.

- 15 -

It was only in later mediaeval times that royalty led the way in showing a preference for St George. One of the turning points was the founding of the Order of the Garter (by Edward III in 1348), which was dedicated to St George, as is the chapel built for the Order at Windsor Castle. By Tudor times George’s position was well-established, with the king in Shakespeare’s Henry V invoking his name, and the Elizabethan poet Edmund Spenser giving him a significant role in his long poem The Faerie Queene. Even the Pilgrim Fathers, keen though they were to leave England, are said to have flown his flag on the mast of the Mayflower. In recent years many attempts have been made to boost the celebration of St George’s Day, which now has a higher profile than in the recent past, though there are some who argue that St Edmund, an Englishman, an undoubted historical figure, and a martyr no less than George, should be restored to his role as patron saint.

George is patron of many countries, professions and organisations, and revered in the Orthodox church as well as in the West. A problem often arises if his feast day of 23rd April falls too close to Easter and different churches have various ways of dealing with this. In the Greek Orthodox church, his celebration takes place on Easter Monday if Easter Sunday falls on 23rd. In the Church of England, if it falls any time between Palm Sunday and the second Sunday of Easter, it is moved to the Monday immediately following this period.

*****

STOP PRESS!!! Sainsbury’s Active Kids vouchers (see page 5) are only available until 2nd May! So please shop as much as possible before then!

Calendar for April 2017

Sat 1 2.30pm Saturday Fellowship (p3)

Sun 2 10.30am

6.30pm

Morning Service - Jim Holman (p2)

Holy Communion - Judy Davies (p2)

Mon 3 12.30pm Women’s Contact Group – lunch at the Warren (p4)

Tue 4 2.00pm

7.00pm

Women’s Fellowship – Flower arranging (p3)

Elders’ Meeting (p3)

Wed 5 2.00pm Book Club (p4)

- 16 -

Sun 9

Palm Sunday

10.30am

6.30pm

Morning Service - Tony Russell (p2)

Followed by the Fair Trade Stall (p5)

Evening Service - TBA

Tue 11 2.00pm Women’s Fellowship – Easter Service (p3)

Thurs 13

Maundy Thursday

8.00pm Revd Bill Bowman (p2)

Fri 14

Good Friday

9.15am

10.00am

Walk of Witness (p2)

Churches Together in Hayes service (p2)

Sun 16

Easter Sunday

10.30am

6.30pm

Morning Service – Mavis Righini (p2)

Evening Service – Judy Davies (p2)

Mon 17

10.15am

Bank Holiday

A Wealden ramble (p4)

Thurs 20 7.30 for 8.00pm

Men’s Group – meal out (p3)

Fri 21 2.00pm Mothers and Toddlers (p4)

Sun 23 10.30am

12.00noon

6.30pm

Holy Communion – Alan Kienlen (p2)

Followed by the Fair Trade Stall (p5)

Church Meeting (p3)

Evening Service – Duncan Wilson (p2)

St George’s Day (p13)

Wed 26 3.30pm Messy Church (p4)

Fri 28 Mothers and Toddlers (p4)

Sun 30 10.30am

6.30pm

Morning Service – David Lemmon (p2)

Evening Service – Sonia Weston (p2)

May 2017 (key dates for your diary)

Mon 1 Bank Holiday

Tues 2 7.00pm Elders’ Meeting (p3)

Sun 14 – Sat 20

Christian Aid Week (p13)

Sun 28 12.00noon Church Meeting after Morning Service (p3)

Mon 29 Bank Holiday

CHURCH ORGANISATIONS – please advise the Editor of updates as they arise

Day Organisation Contact Phone Sunday

Monday

5.45pm Brownies Sarah Humphrey 020 3539 8113

6.30pm Cubs Brenda Petts 020 8325 3956

12.30pm - 1st Mon only

Women's Contact Group Sylvia Mack 020 8462 1938

Tuesday

2.00pm Women's Fellowship Marion Swanborough 020 8462 3981

7.15pm Scouts - 1st troop Paul Hasling 020 3236 0083

Wednesday

2.00pm - 1st Weds only

HFC Book Club Wendy Smith 020 8462 1779

3.30pm - 4th Weds only

Messy Church Mavis Righini 020 8462 1168

5.30pm Rainbows Jenny Longman 07730 574962

6.00pm Beavers Brenda Petts 020 8325 3956

6.30pm Guides – 4th Hayes Teresa Cheyne 020 8777 6042

8.00pm Explorers Tom Strachan 07745 813 295

Thursday

5.30pm Brownies Stevie Blair. 020 8325 3469

7.15 - 8.45pm Rangers TBA

7.15pm Scouts - 2nd troop Paul Hasling 020 3236 0083

8.00pm - 3rd Thurs only

Men's Group Bruce Tannock 020 8325 6264

Friday

2.00pm Mothers & Toddlers Wendy Smith 020 8462 1779

6.30pm Guides – 3rd Hayes Teresa Cheyne 020 8777 6042

Saturday

2.30pm - 1st Sat only

Saturday Fellowship Martin Nunn 020 8462 5918

Final Thought

Prayer for Easter

As the chill of winter gives way to the warmth of Spring;

and the buds burst into new life;

so the darkness of Good Friday gives way to the joy of the Resurrection morning.

God of all grace, we give thanks for the gift that was, and is, Jesus;

Who came to earth shunning the trappings of all might and power,

taking the form of a humble servant.

He taught people; he healed people;

he laughed with people; he wept.

Finally, he gave himself for us, walking the paths that led to Calvary.

Yet even there he yielded not to humankind; but solely to his Father in heaven.

Sorrowing for the things that are wrong with our pasts;

for the times we have failed to grasp the opportunity to share his love;

for the times we have ignored the call to deeper and quieter faith,

We rejoice in the Good News of his resurrection,

through which we are absolved of the guilt we bear,

and given freedom to be truly sons and daughters of faith.

Lead us into greater freedom.

Lead us into new ways of sharing his love.

Lead us into the light of his presence;

to walk as his disciples every step of our daily lives;

for this we dare to ask in His Name.

Amen

Cathie and Derek Corner, the Windermere Centre