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www.stivesmethodistchurch.org.uk

March 2010 Newsletter

Sunday Services

7

th

March 10:30am

Matt Finch & Simon Oliver

Holy communion

14th

March 10:30am Don Moorman

21st

March 10:30amMatt Finch

All Age Worship

28th March 10:30am Barbara Churms

4th

April

Easter Sunday

8 amMatt Finch

Holy Communion

10:30am Simon Oliver

A loop system is in use in this church. In order to

use this please put your hearing aid

to the T position

St Ives Methodist Church

27, The Waits,

St Ives,

Cambridgeshire.

PE27 5BY

Minister: Rev Matt FinchTel: 01480 462293

Mobile: 07968 692390Email: matt.finch@simc.co.uk

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A warm welcome to anyone who is visiting

St Ives Methodist Church for the first time. Please stay for

a free cup of tea or coffee in the church after the service.

Childrens cornerActivities are available at the back of church. Please

feel free to join us at any time during the service.

Church MeetingsSt Ives Methodist Church (SIMC) run various groups that meet on

different days of the week. For more details of a specific groupsevents, please pick up a leaflet from the leaflet rack in the

corridor opposite the kitchen.

Day Time Meeting

Mondays(alternate weeks)

2-4 pm House GroupFellowship and Bible

Study

Tuesdays9:30

10am

Morning Prayers /

Communion

A special time of

reflection

Tuesdays10-

11:30amToddlers Group

Meet other parents,

have a chat

Tuesdays10 -12

noonOpen Door

Drop in for a cup of

tea and a chat

Tuesdays 2 pmAfternoon

Fellowship

Hymns, prayer,

various speakers.

Thursdays(1

stand 3

rd)

7:30 pm Open CircleVarious speakers on

topics of interest

Sundays 7:30 pm Lent GroupGrapple with what

Lent may mean for us

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Church EventsLent Activities at St Ives Methodist Church

Sunday Evening Lent Group

A small group are continuing to meet throughout lent on Sunday

evenings to discuss aspects of life and responses to lent based on

the film Chocolat. If you would like to join us on Sunday evenings,

7:30pm at 19 Audley Close, please let Matt know 01480 462293.

Monday Housegroup Lent Course

The Housegroup will be meeting fortnightly during Lent. We are

currently working through Knowing God, a Lent Course being

studied throughout the District, as part of the Journey into Faith

initiative for East Anglia. Meetings take place at 3 Clare Court at

2pm. The next meeting will be on Monday 15th

March.

Churches Together in St Ives Lent Studies

Churches Together are continuing their Lent study sessions

throughout March. The theme for 2010 is different aspects of

prayer. Sessions are held on Tuesday Evenings at 7:30pm (for

approximately 1 hour) and repeated on Friday Mornings, with a

lent lunch to follow at 12noon. The remaining sessions are:

Aspects of Prayer: ConfessionTuesday 9

thMarch @ 7:30pm - Sacred Heart Church

Friday 12th

March @ 11am Sacred Heart Church

Aspects of Prayer: Intercession

Tuesday 16th March @ 7:30pm St Ives Methodist Church

Friday 19th March @ 11am - St Ives Methodist Church

Aspects of Prayer: Thanksgiving

Tuesday 23rd March @ 7:30pm The Free ChurchFriday 26th March @ 11am The Free Church

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Holy Week Reflections

Holy Week is a precious time in the church year as we reflect

upon what Jesus has done for us. We hope this year that you

would join us and benefit from some of the reflections we are

providing. Every evening we are offering the opportunity to comefor thirty minutes to take in the love of God and the sacrifice of

Jesus. The meditations will be based upon the characters and

events of Christs passion. See the Holy Week page for details.

Church Services

In the February issue of the Newsletter, Matt informed us about

having an alternative service on the third Sunday of each month.

This month, we will have an All Age Worship Service. The all age

worship is just that, it is aimed at all ages seeking to blend

elements from all traditions so that everybody, no matter what

their age, can worship God. If we get it right, which we definitely

can, it will be a celebration of our unity in diversity.

Church Family NewsWe have all been saddened and concerned at the news of Katy

Dunns recent accident. We pray for healing. Please remember

her in your prayers, and also the Circuit staff who will need to

cover much of her work during her recovery.

We are sorry to have to record the unexpected death, early in

February, of Dennis Collins, a regular member of our

congregation, and our Tuesday Afternoon Fellowship. He is sadly

missed and our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and

friends at this time.

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Please also remember in your prayers the several elderly

members of our congregation for whom life is difficult,

particularly as the bad weather continues.

We think especially of Jim Dale, Bill Gurry (now in Hunters Downresidential Home); Ted and Jenny Woolford, Doris Law (in

Primrose Hill Nursing Home), and Connie and Ray Rogers - Ray is

at present in Hinchingbrooke Hospital which leaves Connie at

home alone dependant on her carers.

We also uphold in our prayers, John and Mary Hindley, Nan

Duplessis Bob Ketley, and Julia Johnson, as well as others

worried about their health, or that of loved ones.

We send congratulations to all those celebrating special birthdays

this month, including Pat Wass and Val Tester.

Two members of our congregation are taking part in charityfundraising events over the next couple of months. Jill Mansfield,

one of our choir members, will be taking part in Trek Spain 2010,

which hopes to raise 70,000 for vital research projects into

Parkinson's Disease. John Finch is taking part in the gruelling 26-

mile Virgin London Marathon. He hopes to raise 2010 this year

for the charity Whizz Kidz, who provide mobility equipment and

support for disabled children and their families.

If you would like to support Jill or John through prayer or

sponsorship, please get in touch with them. Last months

newsletter has further details.

Congratulations to Ruth and Nick who will be getting married

on Saturday 3rd April. We wish them every blessing in theirmarried life together.

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I would like to offer sincere thanks to all members of the church

for their prayers, lovely cards and telephone calls for my 97th

birthday. I wish I could attend church to thank you all personally.

Jim Dale

Please Pray...

As a church we believe that prayer makes a difference because

God listens and answers.

Pray for the individuals from our church family named on the

previous page and hold them in your prayers throughout March,

and pray for those not named whose needs are known to God.

We pray for those devastated by the earthquake last month in

Chile, and those continuing to recover in Haiti.

We pray for the lives wrecked across Europe in the recent

flooding, and pray for all those in positions of responsibility who

both assist relief efforts and plan for emergencies.

We also pray for families in our area, in and around St Ives, who

are continuing to struggle with stresses and strains of everyday

life. We pray especially for those struggling to clothe and cleantheir families, and pray that the Black Bin appeal may reach out

to families in need this lent time.

If there are any items of family news, or if there is anything that

you would like to be prayed for please write it in the Prayer Book

at the back of the church, let the Leadership Team know or

contact prayer@simc.co.uk ..

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NoticesJumble Sale

The church is holding a fundraising jumble sale on Saturday 13

th

March at 2pm in the church hall. Resalable clothes, towels,

bedding etc are required. Please no bric-a-brac unless it is

suitable for a nearly new stall. Admission will be 20p. Helpers are

required on the day and between 2pm and 4:30pm on Friday 12th

March to assist with setting up. Contact Christine Mealing on

(01487) 843686

Library Van visit

The Good News Library Van will once again be visiting the church

hall on Tuesday 23rd

March from 10:30- 11:45 am. Browse

through a selection of Christian Resources whilst enjoying a cup

of tea or coffee. Resources may be borrowed free of charge.

R.E.S.T at Sawtry Methodist Church

There will be a chance to Relax, Eat, Share and Think on Thursday

25th

March at Sawtry Methodist Church at 7pm. REST is an

informal time of contemporary worship designed to feed the

heart and stimulate the mind, beginning with a simple meal.

Contact rest@sawtrymethodist.org.uk for further details.

Black Bin Appeal returns for Lent.

On Sunday 21st

February, Rev Matt Finch relaunched the Black

Bin appeal for the period of lent. You are invited to contribute

household goods, cleaning products, baby care items and

personal hygiene products. These will be distributed by social

services to families locally who are struggling to support

themselves. Please bring items to church at any time thepremises are open and leave in the black bin. Thank you.

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Bank Holiday Market Easter Monday 5th

April

The Afternoon Fellowship will once again be serving

refreshments from the front of the church from 10am. There will

also be a bric-a-brac stall. Come along and support this

fundraising effort for the church.

Open Circle

A raffle at the meeting on 4th

February raised 60 for the Haiti

emergency appeal. Open Circle will next be meeting on Thursday

18th

March 7:30pm. The speaker for the evening will be Gary

OShea Disaster Management- International Rescue Corps. The

next session after this will be the Spring Supper on Thursday 15th

April 7pm.Tickets are 5 each and are available from Evelyn

Watmore and Lilian Temple.

Church Council Meeting

The church council met on 25th

January. Full details can be found on

the draft minutes, available to read on the church noticeboard.

Church Offerings for February

Feb 7th

396.58 Feb 14th

588.58

Feb 21st

390.26 Feb 28th

398.20

Theatre Trip 2010 advance notice

The questionnaires that were completed and returned after the

theatre trip last year showed that the majority of theatre goers

would like to see Mamma Mia. The weekday matinee

performance is at 5pm on a Friday. It has also been suggested

that October might be a better month for our trip. Please watch

for the usual list at the back of church to reserve your place. For

any further information, contact Wendy Ware (01480) 370185.

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Leadership Team Meeting Feedback

The church leadership team met on 18th

February to discuss a

number of church matters. We have received the access report

for the new disabled toilet and the Property and Finance

Committee will now look at progressing this. Further feedbackfrom the foyer project has been received and the leadership

team hope to visit Bluntisham Baptist Church in the near future

to see a very different but very successful refurbishment project

designed by the architect we are working with. Details for

Easter events were also finalised.

Pastoral Letter to The Methodist People

The Senior Leadership of The Methodist Church have written a

pastoral letter to Methodists, following their address to the

General Synod of The Church of England in February. This is

available from the back of the church and available to download

from our website for those interested.

Action for Children Home Collection boxes

We have raised 547.83 this year. Well done! One behalf of some

of the UKs most vulnerable children and families, thank you for

your continued support. Every penny counts and allows work to

go ahead for the future. Please visit the noticeboard in the church

hall for examples of how the money helps. Pat Wass would like to

thank all collectors for their promptness is handing boxes in. Ifyou would like a home collection box to save spare small change,

please speak to Pat.

Pastoral Care at Our Church

As one or two of our regular Pastoral Visitors are no longer able

to continue in this role, we would like to speak to anyone who

feels they could help the Church community in this way. The

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pastoral leaders are currently drawing up a job description of

what is involved and this will appear in a future newsletter.

If you feel this is something you would like to know more about,

please speak informally to one of our current Pastoral Leaders-

Ruth Judd; Ann Collingwood; Flo Craven Wilson; Margaret Downor Barbara Cooper.

Help for Haiti A Special Performance

A unique theatrical fundraising event will be taking place in our

church on Saturday 17th

April at 7:30pm. Help for Haiti will

include a number of local groups, including SIMADS and The

Centre Players, coming together for a one-night-only special

performance evening. Put this date in your diaries and keep an

eye out for details coming soon. Details will also appear at

simc.co.uk/haiti as soon as they are confirmed! Tickets will be

expected to sell quickly so dont miss out.

Thursday Afternoon Social GroupAn informal mid-week afternoon social group is being planned,

which will meet (initially) on Thursdays between 2 and 4pm in the

small meeting room at our church.

If you are someone who enjoys spending an afternoon having a

game of scrabble; Rummikub; chess; dominoes etc. or if you

would like to bring along your knitting or embroidery and enjoy

company over a cup of tea, then do come along. We will welcomeany suggestions of things you would like to do.

The group will welcome men and women, any age. If you think

you might be interested then come along one Thursday and see

what is happening. If transport is needed then ring Gladys

(01480) 355218 or Barbara (01480) 381174.

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Fairtrade Fortnight

March sees fairtrade fortnight drawing

to a close. The theme for 2010 was

The Big Swap and many of us saw

Fairtrade Fortnight launched at our CafeService on 21

stFebruary. 2010.

We have all been challenged to swap to fairtrade. If you have the

internet, you can still register any swaps you have made on the

Fairtrade Foundations website atwww.thebigswap.org.uk.

Have you made the swap to the tasty Banana or Chocolate Loaf

cakes, chocolate chip shortbread biscuits or brownies and

flapjacks all available from the Co-op? All of these were on offer

to enjoy at the Cafe service. If you enjoyed them at church, you

can enjoy them at home, too.

Have you made the swap to fairtrade Tea? Its available in a hugerange of varieties, including decaffeinated and organic.

Have you made the swap to Fairtrade Chocolate? Divine,

Cadbury, Green & Blacks and Co-op all produce a wide range.

If you regularly visit the Costa coffee shop in town for a cuppa,

please ask them why they dont serve fairtrade tea Greggs just

a few doors down serve only fairtrade tea.

If major companies including Nestle, Cadbury and Tate & Lyle are

prepared to embrace fairtrade for some of their products, isnt it

time that YOU did too?

There are farmers queuing up to join fairtrade. We need to show

that we are prepared to buy it as part of our everyday shopping- in order to make this happen.

http://www.thebigswap.org.uk/http://www.thebigswap.org.uk/http://www.thebigswap.org.uk/http://www.thebigswap.org.uk/

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Holy Week 2010Sunday 28

thMarch

6pm A Taize service at our church to begin our journey in a

moving, meditative and contemplative way.

Monday 29th

March

7pm Holy Week Reflection at our church Margaret Harris

7:30pm Holy Week Prayers at Brampton Methodist Church

Tuesday 30th

March

9:30am Morning Communion Rev Matt Finch

2:30pm Network Holy Communion at Buckden Methodist Church,followed by refreshments.

7pm Holy Week Reflection at our church Don Moorman

Wednesday 31st

March

7pm Holy Week Reflection at our church Madge Harrison

Maundy Thursday 1st

April

7pm Holy Week Reflection at our church Rev Matt Finch

7:30pm Joint Service with the Free Church at our church

Good Friday 2nd

April

11:30am Walk of Witness starts at Crossways Car Park (Ramsey

Road, St Ives) to arrive outside our church (approx 11:45am) and

continuing to the market square in St Ives Town Centre

12:00noon Good Friday Service in the Market Square, St Ives.7pm Holy Week Reflection at church Simon Oliver & Matt Finch

Easter Sunday 4th

April

8am Easter Morning Holy Communion Rev Matt Finch

Followed by Easter Day Breakfast

10:30am Easter Day Morning Worship Simon Oliver

2:30pm - The Passion 2010: Bringing the crucifixion andresurrection of Jesus to the streets of St Neots.

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March:feature

Each month the newsletter will include a special feature about one

particular part of our church or church members. For this month,

Ruth Horton, student minister from Wesley House on placement

with our circuit, shares a little about how she hopes to develop the

use of music in worship at St Ives.

Ruth Horton will soon be embarking upon her first stationing as a

minister this Autumn. She has been put to good use during her

training at Wesley House. One of her roleshas been to be involved in the forthcoming

revision to the Methodist Hymn Book.

Sung worship is something close to Ruths

heart. She is a talented musician and

wants to encourage other musicians across

the breadth of the church family tobecome involved in the worship life of our church.

On Wednesday 10th

March there will be

a meeting about the music ministry that

takes place here in St Ives. The meeting

aims to engage those interested in

offering something to the musicalworshiping experience of the church.

Ruth explains, God can work very

powerfully through the music we

experience and participate in, especially

in the context of worship, so this is an

opportunity to explore how God wants to work in and through us

here and now.

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It is Ruths hope that this meeting will allow us to talk about what

we do already that we want to keep the same or even change, and

also explore what new things could be considered for the future.

I would like to invite anyone who is interested in being part of thismusic ministry, both in terms of playing an instrument and in

singing to come along and be involved,added Ruth.

Musicians have always played a key

part in leading Gods people in

worship. If this is something you feel

called to assist with, or think that it

might be, please come along!

The Music Ministry Meeting is on

Wednesday 10th

March at 7:30pm in

the church.

Forthcoming notices:

If you would like a notice to go into the next monthly

Newsletter, please contact Stuart Wilkinson.

Email: info@simc.co.uk

Telephone: 01480 389623

Write in the purple notice book at the back of the church.

Deadline for the next issue: 11am Tuesday 30th March.Next issue available Sunday 4

thApril.

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Please see inside for full details of events for HOLY WEEK.

Sun 7th

7:30pm Lent Course 19 Audley Close (no Phos group)

Tues 9th

9:30am Communion Tony Perryman

Tues 9th 10 11:30am Parents and ToddlersTues 9

th10 12 noon Open Door

Tues 9th

2:00pm Afternoon Fellowship: Father Paul Maddison

Tues 9th

7:30-8:30pm Lent Course: Confession

Wed 10th

7:30pm Music Ministry Meeting

Fri 12th

11am-1pm Lent Course: Confession + Lunch

Sat 13

th

2pm Jumble SaleSun 14th

7:30pm Lent Course 19 Audley Close (no Phos group)

Mon 15th

2pm House Group (3 Clare Court)

Tues 16th

9:30am Communion Rev Matt Finch

Tues 16th

10 11:30am Parents and Toddlers

Tues 16th

10 12 noon Open Door

Tues 16th

12:30-3:30pm Afternoon Fellowship Celebration

Tues 16th

3:30-5pm Circle of Light

Tues 16th 7:30-8:30pm Lent Course: IntercessionThurs 18

th7:30pm Open Circle: Gary OShea

Fri 19th

11am-1pm Lent Course: Intercession + Lunch

Sun 21st

7:30pm Lent Course 19 Audley Close (no Phos group)

Tues 23rd

9:30am Communion Rev Chris Gyles

Tues 23rd

10 11:30am Parents and Toddlers

Tues 23

rd

10 12 noon Open DoorTues 23rd

10:30-11:45am Good News Library Van Visit

Tues 23rd

2:00pm Afternoon Fellowship: Madge Harrison

Tues 23rd

7:30-8:30pm Lent Course: Thanksgiving

Fri 26th

11am -1pm Lent Course: Thanksgiving + Lunch

Sun 28th

7:30pm Lent Course 19 Audley Close (no Phos group)

Mon 29th

2:00pm House Group (3 Clare Court)

Tues 30th 9:30am Communion Rev Matt Finch

Tues 30th

10 11:30am Parents and Toddlers

Tues 30th

10 12 noon Open Door