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PARISH MAGAZINE-
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St Matthew’s, Stretton (with And St Cross, Appleton Thorn
Sometimes there are adverts which really get under your skin. So if we hear “nuts, whole hazelnuts” we know what confectioners make them. “It looks good, tastes good and, by golly, it does you good” to do with some particular liquid refreshment, once recommended for the well being of expectant mothers and what about the brand of toothpaste that gave us “the ring of confidence”. That confidence may have been the result of fresh minty breath and a winning smile but I was reflecting on another aspect of confidence which wasn’t to do with personal appearance or a suave cockiness but a deep and reliant confidence in the Lord. Reading 1Kings 18:20-39 the other day, reminded me of the powerful image of the Lord’s triumph over Baal. Elijah was so confident in the Lord’s abilities that he challenged the 450 prophets who followed Baal to stop limping along and to choose who they were going to serve. So 450 against one, Elijah, asked for two bulls and for the followers of Baal to pick one and prepare it and then to call upon their god for it to set on fire. They called from morning to the middle of the afternoon and nothing happened. Elijah asked them to gather round and rebuilt the altar with twelve stones to represent the twelve tribes of Israel and then dug a trench round it large enough to hold fourteen litres of water and place the wood on the altar, cut the bull into pieces and laid it on the wood. Three times, he asked them to fill four jars with water and pour it over the offering and the wood until the offering was drenched and the ditch was full. Then he prayed to God and called upon Him to answer and the Lord sent down the fire and it burned the wood, the sacrifice and the stones, scorched the earth and dried up the water. When the people saw this they acknowledged that the Lord alone is God. Things might have been different and less dramatic - after all it was 450 against one – but Elijah had confidence in the Lord. We might not have the opportunity to ever prove our reliance in the Lord in the way Elijah did. We may never have to prove our faith against the odds that Elijah had to do. We may never have to stand up against hostility or be in fear of our lives but we can ask God for occasions and situations which allow us to proclaim our faith, hope, and trust in the One who created up, walked with us and saved us. With every blessing Elaine Notes to Note · Thursday 1st July. If you want to get ahead, get a hat. The Association of Church Fellowships welcomes all ladies to come to this special evening at 7.30pm at the Church Hall. The Speaker will be talking about the history of hats and there will be the opportunity to try some on. What are you waiting for?? You will be made very welcome. · Saturday, 3 July. Columba Community meeting 10:00am to 4:00pm at Newton-le-Willows Methodist Church Topic for the day: Just Sharing, including a perspective by Rev. Peter Macdonald, Leader of the Iona Community. Minimum cost: £5 per person (including tea and coffee), extra donations welcomed. ‘Bring and Share’ lunch. Sales tables including Fairtrade goods, cards and Wild Goose publications: www.iona.org.uk/media/columba_day_new_pdf.pdf. Or contact John Wotherspoon: jcwotherspoon@googlemail.com · Sunday 4th July at 10am. Emma Watson’s ordination at Chester Cathedral. An important event so please come and support Emma. · Wednesday 7th July at Mary Magdalene’s, 7pm for refreshments and then starting at 7.30pm. there will be an opportunity to meet with Martin Smith, our planned giving officer and also other colleagues from the deanery as we consider some approaches to maximise income; to look at aspects of good practice in planned giving; to hear from people who have expertise in applying for grants; to hear advice about Friends groups, to share about specific fundraising and projects and to hear stories of celebration as well as challenge - all in all to give each other encouragement and support. Treasurers, parish giving officers, churchwardens and clergy are invited. If anyone else wants to be part of this, please contact Elaine. · Thursday 8th July at 9am. Parents’ prayer meeting in St Matthew’s staffroom. · Saturday 17th July. Walking day service at St Matthew’s at 11am. Walk will follow immediately and promptly at 12 noon. Assistance needed with sidespeople and marshals. · Monday 19th July from 9.30-2.30pm. Women’s Day Retreat. Please contact Lynn McGreal 07511636886 or Elaine for more details. We are at Foxhill conference Centre just outside Frodsham. For £15, including coffee on arrival and morning coffee and a light lunch, · Tuesday 20th and Friday 23rd July at 1.30pm.Teddy Bear’s picnic for our Praise and Play children. Please note earlier time and bring some food to share for our picnic. · Sunday 25th July. Special services in a marquee on the Vicarage lawn. See inside for details Association of Church Fellowships As we did not have a speaker booked for this month’s meeting, the evening took the form of a social evening. We were delightfully entertained by Audrey Sellers with some of her popular monologues and Maude Houghton tested our “little grey cells” with an amusing quiz. The evening concluded with tea and fresh cream and strawberry scones. A very pleasant evening was enjoyed by all. At our July 1st meeting Sue Haskey from Felicity Hat Hire will be speaking to us on “The History of Hats” with an opportunity for trying on the ones she will be bringing with her. Please come and join us. All are very welcome to what promises to be a very interesting talk. MARTHA'S GROUP We shall be pleased to help you in any way we can, short term dog walking, picking up prescriptions, shopping, baking a cake, preparing a simple meal. Sometimes it's difficult to do things like changing a duvet cover. Please do give us a ring. We are also able to do emergency babysitting. Val Fryer 264015 Carol Rylett 730986 Wendy Duckworth 266555 Stretton Mothers’ On Thursday 27th May, our speaker was Eirlys Jessop of St Cross Church. Eirlys is studying at present but also works as a fundraiser for the Red Cross. The Red Cross was founded in the 19th century working in field hospitals. It has developed into a well-known worldwide organisation with permanent stations in most countries. For example, Red Cross was one of the first organisations to get to the scene of the earthquake in Haiti in January. On home ground, Red Cross organises First Aid training for anyone wanting to be helpful in emergencies. The next meeting will be on 22nd July when we will hear about the Jacob’s well charity, whose local representative is Margaret Ruxton. There will be no meeting in August but please come along to the “deanery Tea” at Grappenhall Parish rooms on Wednesday 14th July at 2pm. CHILDREN'S SOCIETY The House to House Envelope Collection this year raised £543.63. Thanks to everyone who distributed and collected envelopes, helped at the count up and to those who donated. This is still one of the charity's biggest fundraising activities. Some of you have already passed House Boxes to me for emptying - I have to make a return each September to the Children's Society updating details/annual donation of all boxholders, so please get in touch during July/August and I will arrange to empty and return your box to you. Gill Bruce, Tel 01925 267743 gillmbruce@btinternet.com Praise and Play Dates for July are:- at St. Cross 6th and 20th July at Themes:- 6th and 9th July – Jesus eats with his friends, Mark 14:12-25 20th and 23rd July 1.30 Teddy Bears’ Picnic on the Lawn if the weather is good or inside church if it isn’t. There are songs, a story and activities followed by refreshments. All pre-school children and their parents, grandparents or carers are welcome. Ordination We are delighted that Emma Watson will be getting ordained at Chester cathedral on Sunday 4th July at 10am. It is recommended that people get there in good time so that everyone can be seated and share lifts where possible. CONNECTIONS Saturday 10th July 2010 is International Family Day and members of Connections are going to be represented at the heart of the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod!! During Eisteddfod week the beautiful little Providing the weather is good, every street is filled with music and folk dance; Llangollen is a wonderful place to visit in the summer. Not forgetting the surrounding countryside (complete with river, canal, medieval castle, steam railway and ruined abbey) which is always worth a ramble or two. Departure will be approximately at 9:30 am Saturday 10th July from St Matthew's Church car park and there will be car sharing. Should members, their families and friends wish to join us, please contact Ian Buckley Tel: 01925 261088 for further details. Our 'rained off' June crown green bowling match with Barnton has now been rearranged for Wednesday 14th July, meeting at St Matthew's car park at 6:30pm. There will be car sharing as per usual. George will be in touch with members shortly by telephone. Ian Buckley email: ian.buckley90@ntlworld.com or phone 261088. General Synod Have you ever thoughts of being part of the Church of England’s General Synod? Below are some frequently asked questions and the closing date for nominations is Friday 3rd September. For further information contact www.generalsynodelections2010.org What does the Synod do? The Synod considers and approves legislation affecting the whole of the Church of What are the duties of Synod members? Synod members participate in debates; they vote on issues before the Synod; they What is the time commitment? Elected members serve for a five-year period (known as a quinquennium). The Synod is required to meet twice a year and usually meets in February (Monday to Friday) in London and in July (Friday to Tuesday) in York (residentially). It occasionally meets What resources are available to Synod members? At the beginning of each session an induction session is held for new (and returning) members. New members receive an information pack giving details of what they can expect. Synod members receive free mailings of Synod papers and other material relevant to their work. Other bodies often wish to send mailings (with permission) about their work to Synod members, as representatives of the Church at national level. Who covers the expenses of Synod members? Synod members volunteer their time at Synod. Travelling and accommodation expenses are customarily paid by their dioceses and loss of earnings may also be To stand for election to the House of Laity you need to be over 18 and a Up the Spiral Staircase It is that time of year when we have a number of weddings that need the bells. Ron and Pat have also been helping out at our neighbouring churches with wedding bells. You can imagine some of the conversations in the tower as we ring away in the expectation of the bride being on time…. And are they ever? Well yes occasionally… Computer technology comes to bell ringing: the Mid Cheshire Guild of Bell Ringers is considering buying a bell ringing simulator!!! They have been sparked on by the East Cheshire Guild, who has one at Dunham Massey. So what is a simulator? This is a clever bit of gear that monitors the bell positions and provides feedback on the quality of the ringing (I thought our ears did that!). The tricky bit is that the bells need to be muffled for this so that the feedback occurs in the ringing chamber. The good bit is that without the bells ringing out far and wide the restriction on practice times might be easier. We (St Matthew’s ringers) are not convinced on this technology, but it would certainly speed up the early learning process. The guild is keen to install at St Matthews. Ron, who spends hours keeping our bells in order, is not keen… muffling our clappers is a much longer and tricky process than at Dunham! We will be having a trial on the Dunham Massey system soon. If the Guild can find a more suitable tower it might be a really useful tool that we will make use of. Talking of learners, we have one new learner, Jean, but need more. Jean is our first new ringer for a couple of years. We are also getting Jane to do the “calling” sometimes now… she does it very well, except we have had to teach her to call out loudly…. Soft whispers do not work for instructions to bell ringers in the midst of ringing. Jane has quite taken to telling us what to do!! Peter Winter 300 CLUB The Club was formed in 1984 to generate funds towards the refurbishment and upkeep of the church hall, which provides facilities for church groups, and is in almost constant use for children’s activities. The Club has raised £9062 for this purpose and has distributed a similar amount in prizes. There are two draws each year (at the Harvest Supper and the Autumn Fair) and the prizes last year were £100, £50, £40, £25 – and £100, £60, £40, £25 respectively. Your financial support for the maintenance of the hall is needed if it is to continue its present use and to keep it in good condition. To assist us in this the Club needs more members. Membership for this year is now due for renewal and new members will be most welcome. Membership is retained at £5 per number per year (with a maximum of five numbers per family). The contact for further information is David Hart (263080) or any committee member. Walking Day: Saturday 17th July Please gather at St Matthew’s Church for the service which starts at 11am. During the service, the new Rose Queen, Eleanor Harrold, will be crowned. We will then move to the car park to begin the Walk of Witness going over the path on the field behind the church. Ask your friends, family and neighbours to come and watch and wave and feel free to join in with the procession. The fair starts at 1pm and will be formally opened by the mayor and mayoress, Councillor John Joyce and his wife Betty. Refreshments will be served at the Church Hall between 1 and 4 pm and we could do with some help. If you could contribute a cake and/or you might have one hour free to serve refreshments between these times then our Churchwarden, Barbara Hamilton would love to hear from you. Can you please contact her as soon as you can please by email on: bhamlton@aol.com or telephone: 01925 265558 The Return of the Big Tent Event Thanks to the generosity of Lynda and Nigel, we have been offered the use of their wedding marquee on Sunday 25th July which will have been put up in the Vicarage Garden. We propose to hold our Morning Worship there at 10.30am which will be our take on Songs of Praise and to follow it with a bring and share lunch, an afternoon of family events or an opportunity just to sit and relax. From 3.30pm we will be serving afternoon tea and the service will be slightly earlier than usual at 4.30pm and will be a celebration of Wesley hymns. Preacher John Wesley first visited Warrington on April 14th 1755 and visited on various occasions until 1790. This is a golden opportunity for us to spend some time together, to bring some friends and neighbours and to enjoy the day. bawming of the thorn I would like to thank you all for the help and support at our recent May Fayre and Bawming day stall. For going that extra mile thank you Liz (McAloon) who tidied the garden borders so they would be pristine for the Bawming day festivities, this was carried out in pouring rain, after her being ill the day before and just before leaving for Spain. Also to Sue Woolley for her help on the stall the day before her holiday. Thank you to everybody who helped make these two events successful. Judith World Cup prayers Lord of all the nations, who played the cosmos into being, guide, guard and protect all who work or play in the World Cup. May all find in this competition a source of celebration, an experience of common humanity and a growing attitude of generous sportsmanship to others. Amen. Lord, as all around are gripped with World Cup fever, bless us with understanding, strengthen us with patience and grant us the gift of sympathy if needed. Amen. Choir Over the past few months the Morning Choir accompanied by Chris Stubbs, organist & choir master, have been performing short anthems as part of the sung worship. The anthems have been sung at Parish Communion services, following the sermon. Three anthems have been performed to date, all composed by the internationally acclaimed composer, John Rutter. The fist anthem was ‘For the Beauty of the Earth’ an energetic and quick paced anthem, full of joy and celebration. The second anthem was ‘All things Bright and Beautiful’, based upon the hymn synonymous with school assemblies and weddings. The Rutter composition is a new and lively arrangement and a very complementary alternative. The third in the series was the very subtle and moving anthem ‘They Perfect Love’, again offering delightful harmonies and delivering a thoughtful message. We have had some positive feedback to the ‘anthems initiative’ and would welcome your thoughts and possible suggestions for future musical pieces. Also, if you would like to become part of the choir and have the opportunity to sing this beautiful music, please let us know? Neville Snodgrass Go Kidz Children’s Work The ‘Go Kidz’ kids have been extra busy this term conducting their own research project to establish their favourite worship songs. They have had great fun singing, dancing, drawing, watching videos and playing running games expressing their opinions and voting on which worship songs they prefer to use to dance and sing praises to worship our God. The most popular songs chosen by the children were ‘Faith, Faith, Faith’ and ‘Creator God’. The children loved the pictures and green, waving teddy bear on the ‘Faith, Faith’ Faith’ video and dancing the actions to the song ‘Creator God’. Come and join us on Walking Day in the church to sing along with us or have a look at our website for more details. ALTAR FLOWERS
News from St. Cross … JULY CALENDAR
From the Registers …
St Cross Directory
From the Registers …
St Matthew’s Directory
July Calendar
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