Newsletter

What do you do on a Wednesday morning?

If you are free at that time, could I recommend that you try the Wednesday  service at 10 a.m. in church?
It is completely different in tone from what we do on a Sunday, and if you have never been it might surprise you.  

Firstly, unlike midweek services in many churches, it is not small in number; normally, about 15-20 people turn up (it is almost uncanny how often the number is 17; nobody knows why!)

We sit in chairs fitted tightly around the communion rail, and this seems to increase the feeling of fellowship
( I sometimes wonder what difference it would make on a Sunday morning if we all sat together…..)

We have a full communion service (using Prayer H, if you know your way around the book of Common Worship), usually finishing at about 10.45 a.m.

There is  silence before the Confession, giving us time to sober our thoughts before God.

There is at least one reading, and a short talk.

We sing a hymn (surprisingly well; I do wonder whether St. Stephen’s sings better without accompaniment!
Or is it, again, the fact that we all sit together?)

The Peace is shared so that everyone shares it with
everyone else.  Is it disruptive and noisy? 
Oh, yes, definitely.

I always look forward to Wednesday mornings because, whether I am leading the service or sitting in the
congregation, I know that I will benefit spiritually
from it. Being able to be there on a Wednesday morning is one of the perks of not having a proper job!

If you’re able to be there, if only occasionally, do drop in.

Thought for the month—from Pam
Albert and I were out in the garden this evening
having our tea, and it was very windy. I’d just brought out the gooseberry fool when the wind caught the tablecloth and it landed right in the bowl, making a proper mess of the cloth which had been freshly washed and ironed that very day.

In our Wednesday house group we are looking at the Holy Spirit, and we have recognised its wind-like qualities—as in “rushing mighty wind” at Pentecost, causing things and people to change.

Our tablecloth had needed washing today. Now it needs washing again, thanks to the wind. We also need constant cleansing by the Holy Spirit to make us in a fit state to be useful to God.

Come, Holy Spirit, come.

Is YOUR friend or relative on the PRAYER LIST?

The list we publish in the weekly bulletin may sometimes seem like just a chore for the person leading our intercessions, but if you study it regularly, it is quite heartening how many times prayers are answered in the way we would like.

In other words,
some of the people we pray for get better.

Does someone you know need the power of  healing prayer?   Let Albert, Pam, Brian or Tony know about them, and get the strength of God around them!.

Hello, Hello, hello….

Would you like to meet, and put questions to, senior police officers and our own Neighbourhood Policing Team?  The chance to do this comes on
WEDNESDAY JULY 2nd
Great Parndon Community Centre, Abercrombie Way at 7.30 p.m.when the Harlow Police and Community Consultative Group, which says it wants to get feedback from the public.
If you’re concerned about crime of any kind in the community, it should be an interesting evening.

O worship the King, all-glorious above…..
…...and we do, every Sunday and Wednesday (at least). 
But what do you think about the changes we have made recently to the
Sunday service?
****the offertory made in silence
****the moving of the Peace to the beginning (or end) of the service
****the different positioning of the hymns.

Hear Here!

The new sound system is now installed, and you should be able to hear the difference.

It is time now to say a heartfelt  “thank you” to everyone who contributed towards the cost of the system, with sacrificial generosity.  The new system is an idea which seemed to catch the imagination of our congregation.

We must also thank those who worked hard on the system we had before; we are wondering whether the equipment can be adapted  for use in the hall on social occasions.

Now that  the system is up and running, it is up to the ministers, the readers and the intercessors to ensure (with God’s help) that what we say is worth hearing!