22nd December 2024

By Justin Dyche in Sunday Service on 4 January 2025

Hello everyone,

Shamaila has had a wonderful answer to prayer. Her Appeal yesterday was accepted and she will be granted asylum and allowed to stay in the UK – Praise the Lord. The hearing lasted over 2 hours and no decision was made then, with the judge saying that he hoped she would know before Christmas, today she heard the news. Thank you for all your prayers. Shamaila will be with us in church on Sunday morning, so do come along and celebrate with her.

Please continue to pray for Madeline following her car accident last week. She is now home from hospital and being cared for by her family, but she is very sore, bruised and quite shaken by the experience, although fortunately no bones were broken.

Here are the details of the services on Sunday, over Christmas and the following Sunday:

Sunday 22nd December 10.30am – HOLY COMMUNION at St Columba’s. This will be a shorter service than usual with no ENERGIZE groups because we want to encourage people to come to the Carol Service later. However this service will be available as a livestream by going to this link:
https://youtube.com/live/h7mTg-NQgYI?feature=share
Sunday 22nd December 6pm – CANDLELIT CAROL SERVICE at St Columba’s. This traditional Christmas service includes plenty of opportunity to sing carols and to hear the Christmas story in Bible readings.
Christmas Eve 4.30pm – CHRISTINGLE SERVICE at St Columba’s. Always a favourite as we remember the Christmas story, learn about the work of The Children’s Society and sing “Away in a Manger” by the light of our Christingle candles.
Christmas Eve 11.15pm – MIDNIGHT COMMUNION at St Columba’s. A traditional celebration of Holy Communion with carols, to remember how Jesus was born in the night.
Christmas Day 10am – FAMILY COMMUNION at St Columba’s. A joyful celebration of the birth of our Lord and Saviour with carols and communion, and guaranteed not to be too long because…
Christmas Day 11am – CHRISTMAS COMMUNION at St Leonard’s. A traditional Communion service for Christmas morning with carols.
and on Sunday 29th December at 10.30am – MORNING WORSHIP at St Columba’s.
There will be no Prayer Meeting on Sunday 22nd or 29th December.

I hope to see you at one or more of these services, but if you are not able to join us I hope you are still able to celebrate the birth of our Saviour, and I wish you all a very Happy Christmas.

Ian