9th March 2025
By Justin Dyche in Sunday Service on 15 March 2025
Hello everyone,
I am pleased to report that we had a good ALPHA AWAY DAY last Saturday and that the two Ash Wednesday services, which shared the same content but were otherwise very different, both went well. I hope you are now looking forward to the Lent Groups that start on Wednesday, and to St Columba’s Annual Meeting with Lunch on 16th March, and, for the children, the EASTER HOLIDAY CLUB. Details about all these, and more can be found below.
SUNDAY 9th MARCH
We have two services on Sunday as follows:
10.30am HOLY COMMUNION at St Columba’s with ENERGIZE groups for children and young people. This service will be available to watch here:
https://youtube.com/live/KN3OXu4mrf8?feature=share
3pm FAMILY SERVICE in Rockingham Village Hall.
And at 6pm we have the PRAYER MEETING in St Columba’s.
LENT 2025
Thank you to all those who came to the services on Ash Wednesday. I hope you will be able to join us for our LENT GROUPS meeting at 10.30am and 7.30pm in church on Wednesdays 12th, 19th, 26th March and 2nd April. We will be watching a video by Jeff Lucas “There are no strong people” based on the story of Samson. Everyone is welcome to these groups, which we hope will lead to further Fellowship Groups gathering after Easter.
Also on the subject of Lent, the children at our All Age service last week were all given a Lent Countdown Calendar. We can all join in with one of the activities which involves counting the number of times you do certain activities during the week and then multiplying that number by a fixed amount (say 10p) and giving the total amount to charity (the church or one of the charities we support for example). This week the challenge is to…count the number of times you flush the loo! So if you flush the loo 42 times in a week and you decide to give 10p a flush that would be £4.20 to charity!
FILM AT THE SAVOY: Bonhoeffer (certificate 12A running time 132 minutes)
I am pleased to say that this film is being shown every day for the next week, at a wide variety of different times, so do try and get along to the Savoy. While the film is an historical drama it is so relevant to the world we live in today and I do encourage people to watch it. It is described as follows:
“From the tumultuous backdrop of World War II, emerges the compelling true story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a man of profound ideals caught in the crossfire of history. As the world teeters on the brink, Bonhoeffer, an advocate of love, grapples with a moral dilemma that transcends the ordinary. With stakes soaring to global proportions, ideals collide, convictions are tested, and a man’s legacy becomes a testament to the indomitable spirit of humanity.” This does not mention that Bonhoeffer’s ideals were based on his Christian faith, I hope that comes out clearly in the film.
Watch at the Savoy on the following days and times:
Friday 7th March 17.45
Saturday 8th March 12.30
Sunday 9th March 18.00
Monday 10th and Tuesday 11th March 15.00
Wednesday 12th March 20.20
Thursday 13th March 16.30
AFTERNOON TEA
The Ladies Afternoon Tea will be happening again on Friday 14th March at 3pm in the Church Hall. All ladies are most welcome to come along to share in tea or coffee, sandwiches, scones and cakes, and good conversation. Please note there will not be an Afternoon Tea in April because many people are away at Spring Harvest.
SUNDAY 16th MARCH
Next Sunday we have just one service, but lots more going on, as follows:
10.30am HOLY COMMUNION at St Columba’s with ENERGIZE groups for children and young people.
This is followed at about 12noon by the ANNUAL MEETING in the Church Hall, to which we hope everyone will be able to stay. If anyone would like to put their name forward to be on the PCC please let me know. After the meeting we hope you will be able to stay for a HOT LUNCH – please make sure you have signed the sheet at the back of church or emailed ianpullinger@btinternet.com to say that you are coming to the lunch. After lunch there will be a short PCC meeting to elect officers for the coming year, and to conduct any other necessary business.
Finally at 6pm we have the PRAYER MEETING in St Columba’s.
SPRING HARVEST 2025
There will be a meeting for those going to Spring Harvest this year on THURSDAY 20th MARCH at 7.30pm in church. Please try to be there as we prepare for our time away. If anyone is thinking of going for a day, or two and staying off site, please come along as there will be useful information for you as well.
QUIZ NIGHT
The Events Group have arranged a QUIZ NIGHT for FRIDAY 4th APRIL at 7pm in the church hall. This was the most popular choice from the survey so it would be really good it was well supported. More details will be available next week but please book the date now and plan to be there. Everyone is welcome, whether you come on your own or with a team.
CHILDREN’S EASTER HOLIDAY CLUB – Showstoppers!
We are going to have an Easter Holiday Club from Monday 14th to Friday 18th April in church from 10am to 12 noon each day. This will be for Primary School children (Reception to Year 6) so if you know any children of that age do pass this on. There will be lots of different activities including music & drama, fun & games, art & craft, Bible stories and food! Every child who attends will need to be registered in advance by completing the Permission Form and returning it either by emailing to ianpullinger@btinternet.com or at church and as there is a limited number of places please do this as soon as possible.
Please note that we will have a special launch service on Sunday 13th April so it would be great if all the children from church who are coming to the Club could be there. Then on Good Friday 18th April we are welcoming all parents, family and friends to the final hour from 11am when we will have a show and tell of all we have done during the week. And finally, on Easter Day, 20th April, there will be an opportunity for the children to conclude their week by learning that Jesus is alive!
All helpers will be invited to a special preparation meeting, date and time to be advised.
CHARITY OF THE WEEK – Tim & Carol Derbyshire working with Hope from Above
We have received the latest Prayer Letter from Tim & Carol, so please do open this up to have a read and pray about the topics mentioned. We will also be praying for Tim & Carol at the Prayer Meeting on Sunday.
DIOCESAN SAFEGUARDING AUDIT
The diocese is having a Safeguarding audit as part of a national programme, commissioned by the Archbishop’s Council in response to the recommendations of the IICSA Enquiry, to conduct an independent and comprehensive audit of all Church of England dioceses and cathedrals.
A key part of this audit is hearing the voices of all those who worship and work in the Diocese including employees, clergy, parishioners, worshippers, volunteers and supporters. Everyone is welcome to share their views and experiences through the survey, which is anonymous and confidential. Responses will be received directly by the auditors not by the Diocese. What they are told will inform the Diocese-specific recommendations of the audit, all of which aim to improve and develop safeguarding practices across the Diocese.
I have been asked to complete the survey and to share the information with people in the parish to do the same. The link to the survey is here: https://ineqe.com/churchofengland/peterborough/
AND FINALLY
I hope to see you at one of the services on Sunday, at Lent Groups on Wednesday, and at the Annual Meeting next Sunday.
God bless you all,
Ian
01536 400225
07903 644609