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CHRIST CHURCH - PORT SUNLIGHT

Founded 1904

Telephone: 0151 645 3870

Issue No. 89: August & September 2018

Late Summer

Issue

Our Mission is to

offer our best to God

through Worship,

Fellowship

and Care for the

Community

Sunday

Services

Family Worship

10.30am

Afternoon Worship

3pm

ccpsurc.info

Free - please take a copy!

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Cover shows:

Detail from the north

side aisle window

‘Come unto me’(1950)

by Ervin Bossanyi

WELCOME!

Welcome to the Late Summer issue of The Magazine, from

Christ Church Port Sunlight.

The Magazine is

produced six times a

year by volunteers and

is available free of

charge at the back of

church.

It is also available in

large print and in colour

on our website:

ccpsurc.info

Many thanks for all

contributions and

assistance in producing

this edition.

We hope you enjoy

reading The Magazine.

We hope you feel part

of this beautiful church.

CONTENTS

3 The First Word

4 Bible readings for worship

5 Events 2018

5 Strawberry cream tea report

5 Church open

6 Marjorie ‘Marge’ Hartland

8 Joyce McDonald

10 Quarterly church meetings 2018

10 Carers’ meeting

11 Embroiderers’ Guild – 100 Hearts

Exhibition

12 Autumn charity concert

13 Annual celebrity organ recital

13 Summer charity concert report

14 Gift Day boxes

14 Social media

15 Fabric report / BBHQ / Church Hall

15 The Magazine by post

16 Weddings

16 Baptisms

17 Funerals and interment of ashes

17 Meeting times of our organizations

18 Contacts

19 Editorial details

20 Services in August and September

20 The Last Word

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THE FIRST WORDDear Friends

Writing this for the August/September issue of

The Magazine is my final piece of work before

going off for my summer holiday. A number of

other things have also drawn to an end.

France have just won the FIFA World Cup in

Russia, Novak Djokovic has just become the

Wimbledon men’s singles champion, and the

last few days have seen rain (although not

much) after weeks of heatwave!

Taking “time out” is a very biblical thing to do. From the very beginning of the

Old Testament we are commanded to rest on the seventh day; to take a break

from the commitments, routines and activities of daily life. In the New Testament

we find Jesus saying to the disciples, “Let’s go to a place where we can be alone

and get some rest”. There are many occasions in the Gospels where Jesus

goes off by himself to reflect and refresh himself for the work ahead.

Many of us live busy and complicated lives, and carving out the time and space

for rest and refreshment can be a challenge. We all need to take time out from

the commitments and routines of daily life and re-create ourselves. Whether we

are in education, employment or retirement we need a holiday – and the summer

is the time when most of us choose to take a longer break. Enjoy your holidays,

and if you are not going away, enjoy the long summer evenings in the garden,

in the park, or walking on the prom. Be sure in the knowledge that taking “time

out” is what God commands you to do.

Our Lord God, we thank you for our holiday about to begin: we have looked

forward to it so much. We pray that our tired minds and bodies will be refreshed:

please help us to make the most of time away from regular routine; bring to mind

the many blessings we have in our day-to-day life. While we are away help us

to unwind and discover again the sounds and colours of your beautiful creation;

grant us opportunities to be quiet and still, listening for your voice. When we

return from our holiday, renewed by your love, show us how to value the gift of

life and the future you hold for us in Jesus our life-giver. Amen.

Rev Ian Smith

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Bible readings for worship during August and September

As part of your preparation for worship, you might find it helpful to read the set

Bible passages for the day. I normally use two or three of the readings in the

morning service. Some visiting worship leaders may, on occasion, choose not

to use the set readings. During August we work our way through John chapter

6, before returning to Mark for the remainder of the year.

Ian Smith

5 August Exodus 16 v2-4, 9-15 Psalm 78 v23-29 Ephesians 4 v1-16 John 6 v24-35

12 August 1 Kings 19 v4-8 Psalm 34 v1-8 Ephesians 4 v25 – 5 v2 John 6 v35 & 41-51

19 August Proverbs 9 v1-6 Psalm 34 v9-14 Ephesians 5 v15-20 John 6 v51-58

26 August Joshua 24 v1-2a, 14-18 Psalm 34 v15-22 Ephesians 6 v10-20 John 6 v56-69

2 September Deuteronomy 4 v1-2, 6-9 Psalm 15 James 1 v17-27 Mark 7 v1-8, 14-15, 21-23

9 September Isaiah 35 v4-7a Psalm 146 James 2 v1-17 Mark 7 v24-37

16 September Isaiah 50 v4-9a Psalm 116 v1-9 James 3 v1-12 Mark 8 v27-38

23 September Jeremiah 11 v18-20 Psalm 54 James 3 v13 – 4 v3, 7-8a Mark 9 v30-37

30 September Numbers 11 v4-6, 10-16, 24-29 Psalm 19 v7-14 James 5 v13-20 Mark 9 v38-50

7 October Genesis 2 v18-24 Psalm 8 Hebrews 1 v1-4, 2 v5-12 Mark 10 v2-16

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EVENTS 2018

CORNISH CREAM TEA Bank Holiday Monday 27th August 1-4pm in Church

SAUSAGE AND BACON BAP DAY Saturday 6th October (9am to 4pm) in the Church Hall

HARVEST SUPPER WITH ENTERTAINMENT

Saturday 20th October in the Church Hall

Tickets £7.50 for adults, £6.00 for children (up to age 11)

DAY COACH TRIP – SALTAIRE Depending on number of people interested and availability of transport.

Date, time and cost to be advised.

OPEN HOUSE MINCE PIE AND COFFEE MORNING

AND CRAFT TABLE Saturday 8th December (10am to 1pm) in Church

STRAWBERRY CREAM TEA REPORT

The recent strawberry cream tea took approx £457 which added to the running total for these events gives us £4565.95 to date.

Considering that this was held on a normal Saturday as opposed to a Bank Holiday Monday, the event was a great success. Jim Tesseyman

CHURCH OPEN

Christ Church Port Sunlight will be open to visitors 11am-4pm

Monday 26th March to Friday 30th September 2018

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MARJORIE ‘MARGE’ HARTLAND

1928 - 2018 ‘A devoted wife and mother’

The funeral service for Marjorie Hartland was held in Christ Church on Monday

25th June 2018. The following is part of the tribute paid to her by the minister of

the church Revd Ian Smith.

Marjorie, or Marge as she was often known, was born in Birmingham in 1928 to

Florence and William Albert Watkins. She was the youngest of six children and

talked affectionately of her childhood days. She married Gordon Hartland in

1951 and they had four children of their own – David, Jacky, Elizabeth and Judith.

Marge was certainly of the ‘make do and

mend’ era, always being thrifty but able to

produce delicious home-cooked meals to

feed the family. She was selfless putting

her children first and was generous with

her time and her company. She had a

strong work ethic and if anyone was ill and

tried to stay off school or work it was met

with “Go and get a wash and you will feel

much better”. She also had a talent for

sewing and knitting, making the girls

dresses, knitted cardigans and jumpers.

She passed this talent on to Elizabeth

who is able to create intricate items

though sewing, knitting and crochet.

Marge often said that her happiest days were when all of her children were

younger. They remember the family camping holidays to Barmouth, they were

great holidays for the children but probably hard work for Marge who had to cook

the meat and two veg meal on the camping stove every night. Marge was

primarily a housewife but worked for many years until retirement as a dinner

lady at Church Drive School. Her memories of the past were excellent and she

could recall many of the staff and children’s names whose hands she held in the

school playground. She looked after several of her grandchildren while their

parents were at work and they all loved going to Nan’s to play in the toy drawer.

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Marge cleaned this church for many years until major heart surgery forced her

to retire. Marjorie’s family will always be grateful to Mr Rasheed of Broad Green

for operating for many hours through the night as he gave them extra precious

years with their Mum. Marge lived here in Port Sunlight for 52 years never losing

her accent and it was one of the first things that people commented on when

they met her. Gordon was well known in gardening circles for his work with

Britain in Bloom and the Port Sunlight Horticultural

Society of which he was the chairperson. Marge

joined forces with him helping in the shop behind

Greendale Road with help of daughter Jacky,

weighing up and serving customers and taking

over when Gordon died in 2003. They always had

allotments and Marge spent hours there, often to

return home with carrier bags full of runner beans

ready for freezing. Marge always believed that her

tomatoes were the best and Judith is still growing

them using the secret ‘Hartland’ method.

Over a number of years Marge began to lose her sight and her mobility which

restricted her life immensely. She enjoyed watching ‘The Chase’ and ‘Tipping

Point’ on the television and her favourite time of the week was talking to her

sister ‘Our Freda’ on the phone, until Freda suddenly died in 2016. They got up

to lots of mischief together by all accounts when they were younger. For

example when Marge was a young child, in isolation in hospital, she asked for

Freda and Freda was duly smuggled in under their mother’s coat to see her.

Margery’s family will remember her, their Mum, with affection. She was a

generous, kind and selfless person who was never too busy to help out and was

always willing to do things for others. She was devoted to her family and they

are grateful that they had her nearly until her ninetieth birthday, but now it is time

for her to have her peace, for her to be in eternal rest.

Daughter Judith shared the poem ‘She is gone’ with the congregation.

Reporting by Chris Maple.

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JOYCE MCDONALD

1928 - 2018 ‘No tears, just remember I love you’

The funeral service for Joyce McDonald was held in Christ Church on Thursday

28th June 2018 taken by the minister Revd Ian Smith. The following is part of

the tribute paid to Joyce by her daughter Sue.

I want this to be a celebration of Joyce’s life, my Mum’s. My Mum was kind and

caring and had a great sense of humour. She was a very positive person, always

sought the good side of things and the funny side of things. She even called

today, the day of her funeral, her special day.

She always said that she was born with a

happiness bubble, that wonderful happy feeling

you have when something fantastic happens.

Mum said that she felt that most of her life. She

was the only child of Harry and May Timbrell.

They lived in Helmingham Road in Birkenhead

and during the 2nd World War there was lots of

bombing mainly aimed at Cammell Lairds and

many of the buildings were just demolished.

They survived the war and Mum went to work in

the offices in the railway at Birkenhead. She

loved her job and said that she had a great

career there. In 1948 she went off to a dance

held at Byrne Avenue Baths. Dad was there as

well; he must have been on leave from the Royal

Navy. He saw my Mum and he said to the friends

he was with, Bob and Glyn, that she was the girl he was going to marry. It was

love at first sight. They got married in 1950 and they had a honeymoon in a

wonderful place called Glyndyfrdwy in North Wales. It was a very dear place to

them all their lives and it still is to our family. They then had our Stan my brother

in 1952 and I came along in 1955.

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Dad left the navy and went to work for Lever

Brothers in the power station. This meant that we

got a house in this beautiful village of Port

Sunlight. I remember the day clearly. I would

have been about four and it was magical moving

here; the beauty of buildings and the village was

just tremendous. My Mum and Dad were so

happy and I remember the happiness that day.

We met a wonderful family called the Blythes who

stayed with us all our lives and Sue and I are still

friends now, all these years on, Sue was one of

my Mum’s best friends and I will always thank her

for that. Mum was quite a character. We went on

holiday every single year to Glyndyfrdwy and we

really still loved the place but Mum did feel like a

bit of a change and she saw an advert in a local paper. It was an artist’s

impression of a boat, a canal boat, and we managed to persuade Dad to give

up Glyndyfrdwy just for a year and go on the canal. We were very excited going

to Christleton to pick up this boat but amongst all the beautiful boats was a

terrible heap called the Swallow and that was our holiday boat! It sank about two

days later and we had to be rescued and we continued our holiday back in

Glyndyfrdwy for the rest of that week.

Mum worked in the Art Gallery here in Port Sunlight and she loved working on

Reception. They realised that she was really good with needlework and they

asked her to cover priceless antiques in a fine net to protect all the fibres. Lord

Leverhulme asked her to go Thornton Manor and do the same work there. They

also asked her to repair a banner here in this church which she also did. Mum’s

happiness bubble did go when we lost my brother in 1997 and then Dad in 2002

but with her faith and the love of her family and her dear friends the happiness

bubble did come back.

She actually left Port Sunlight and went to live in a lovely bungalow at Heathcote

Gardens. She felt safe and happy there and the neighbours were absolutely

wonderful and they meant a lot to her. Mum left her wishes for her ‘special day’,

she left me a little note and it’s a scrappy piece of paper and it says at the bottom

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“No tears, just remember I love you”. So when you remember Joyce remember

with a little smile on your face and remember that she had this wonderful

happiness bubble.

Grandsons James and Bobby both read poems ‘Life goes on’ and ‘You can shed

tears’.

Reporting by Chris Maple.

QUARTERLY CHURCH MEETINGS 2018

Tuesday 18th September 7.30pm Tuesday 20th November 7.30pm

The church meetings are open to all who attend Christ Church. The meetings

are held in the church hall and last for about an hour. At these meetings we, the

congregation, have the opportunity to discuss and make decisions that affect

our church life. Please join us if you are able.

Samantha Hawkes

CARERS’ MEETING

The Carers’ Meeting is held at 12.15pm for 12.30pm every third Tuesday in the

month at Christ Church Community Centre, Kings Road, Higher Bebington. A

sandwich lunch is provided free of charge. If you are a Carer then do come and

join us – you will be made most welcome.

Carol Wright, Carers’ Contact, Christ Church Port Sunlight

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EMBROIDERERS’ GUILD – 100 HEARTS EXHIBITION

Those who fought in World War 1 are now fading memories

to the generations who came after, and soon they too will be

lost to us. In conjunction with SSAFA (the Armed Forces

charity), the Embroiderers’ Guild is curating a series of

exhibitions across England to commemorate all those who

took part in World War 1. Using cloth and thread as both a

medium and metaphor, textile artists will interpret the stories

as unique and sensitive images stitched onto hearts.

One of our regular Sunday morning congregation, Rachel

Wright, has produced a piece of work that has been selected for display at the

exhibition in Liverpool Cathedral 10 September to 7 October this year.

Rachel writes “My piece

entitled "Leaving the Tyne,

1915" is dedicated to the

memory of the men of the

merchant fleet, and in

particular the many

immigrants and naturalised

citizens who, sometimes in

the face of xenophobic

hostility, continued to serve

their adopted country

faithfully and well, and

brought up their children to

think of it as home. But in

especial memory of my great

grandfather Henry Frederick

Bloom, who was Swedish,

naturalised shortly after my

Grandmama's birth, and himself served throughout the War in the merchant

fleet.”

Reporting by Chris Maple

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Annual Celebrity Organ Recital

Saturday 8th September 2018 at 7:30 pm

PROFESSOR IAN TRACEY DL

Organist Titulaire of Liverpool Anglican Cathedral

Proceeds for the Church Organ Fund

Admission £5 on the door

SUMMER CHARITY CONCERT REPORT

The Christ Church Summer Charity Concert on Friday 15th June 2018 proved to be another wonderful evening with a variety of top quality artists. Tennessee Waltz (Jimmy Rae and Sarah-Lou Fletcher) started the evening off performing three of Jimmy’s own compositions which were excellent and are on his current CD. One of the audience who bought one on the evening told me two days later that she couldn’t stop playing it, because it was so good and I agree with her. Frank Oliver playing an Irish Selection on his harmonica was excellent. Bringing the first half to a close were the popular singing group Silver Tones singing a selection of numbers from “Panis Angelicus” to “Come Fly With Me” plus a couple of sing-a-longs which everyone thoroughly enjoyed. The second half started off with a violin solo, “Czardas” by Vittorio Monti played to perfection by Wendy Dickinson. Following four popular items by Silver Tones, the last act to perform was Tennessee Waltz. They sang four numbers and invited Frank Dennis to join them to play his harmonica in one of Jimmy’s own compositions called “Serious Fun” which was fantastic!

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After thanks had been given everyone joined in with “Happiness” as a tribute to Ken Dodd which was sung with much gusto and nearly brought the roof down, not literally speaking of course! My sincere and grateful thanks go to all the talented artists who performed so well, to all those who helped to set up and clear away and all the other jobs which needed doing, Silver Tones, Joan, Lana, Ron, Sue and Carl, who did a great job on the door. I would also like to thank everyone who supported the concert and especially to the very kind people who gave generous donations even though they were unable to attend the concert. A magnificent sum of £1010 was raised on behalf of Wirral Hospice St John’s.

June Berry

GIFT DAY BOXES

We are pleased to say the total of all boxes and envelopes received at recent

services celebrating the 114th anniversary of Christ Church was £676.68. With

the addition of the tax refund on gift aided donations, the grand total was

£814.14. A sincere thank you to everyone who returned Gift Day boxes or

donated through Gift Day envelopes.

Gift Day boxes are always available on the table at the back of Church. We

would ask as many people as possible in our congregation to keep one of these

little boxes, somewhere to hand, ready to save any spare change you may have

throughout the year, until returning them at the Anniversary services next year.

All contributions are most welcome.

Carole Austin

SOCIAL MEDIA

Keep up-to-date with events on Facebook: Christ Church Port Sunlight URC

Twitter: @ccpsurc Please ‘like’ and ‘follow’ us!

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FABRIC REPORT / BBHQ / CHURCH HALL

Chris Maple has brought it to my attention that there are 2 lights in the passage

leading to the fire exit in the church hall which need replacing. Paul Janvier from

Raewarm has been to have a look at them and given me a quote to repair /

replace them. He also had a look at the two floodlights above the toilets in the

church which light up the corner over the north transept. These do not currently

work so he will add these to the quote. I await his quote!

I have re-laid the carpet in the church hall where the floor had been dug up to

repair the leaking pipe.

Sue is having trouble with mice in the children’s classrooms which have

devoured a whole packet of miniature chocolate eggs and have left mouse

droppings in various places which is not very nice. I have been in with the

humane mouse traps and removed two mice so i will continue to lay the traps.

There has been no further communication from the village trust regarding the matter of the BBHQ / Church Hall. Jim Tesseyman

THE MAGAZINE BY POST

If you would like to receive a copy of The Magazine regularly by post, please send:

your name, address, postcode and a contact phone number or email address

plus a cheque for £2.00 for remaining 2 issues in 2018 made payable to Christ Church Port Sunlight to:

Magazine Subscriptions

31 Boundary Road

Port Sunlight

Wirral

CH62 5ER

(Please do not send coins by post).

OR

Put the correct amount of cash (or

cheque) in a sealed envelope,

addressed to ‘Magazine

Subscriptions’ and hand in to a

Church Elder or Steward.

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WEDDINGS

Please uphold in prayer the following couples, as they begin their married lives

together:

June

Alexandra Butchard and Thomas Stephens

Linda Hanmer and Stephen Thomson

Sarah Jones and Luke Hobbs

July

Helen Welch and Terry Holvey

Amy Noonan and Andrew Fong

Lisa Jones and David Bradley

Naomi Turner and Gavin Mottram

Sam Morrow and Keith Werbisky

BAPTISMS

The following children were baptized recently at Christ Church. We remember

the parents, god-parents and the children themselves in our prayers.

June

Reuben Joseph Vaughan

Zachary Albert Alexander Forrest

Paigan Leonie Lamb

July

Theo Egerton Ellis

Amber Jade Peverley

Alice-Freya Roberts

Olivia-Rose Roberts

Joshua James Schrader

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FUNERALS AND INTERMENT OF ASHES

In our prayers we give thanks for these folk and remember their loved ones in

their grief that they may know the peace of God.

June

Ivor Christopher (Chris) Parkinson 58 yrs

Edna Eleanor McKinley 91 yrs

Donald James Thomas 82 yrs

Roy Segar 84 yrs

Marie Louise Hough 88 yrs

Marjorie Hartland 89 yrs

Joyce McDonald 90 yrs

July

Bernard Gordon Dodd 88 yrs

David (Dave) Pegram 65 yrs

Beryl Williams 86 yrs

Irene Audrey Lay 92 yrs

MEETING TIMES OF OUR ORGANIZATIONS

The Bellringers’ practice is held every Wednesday at 7.30pm in the Bell

Tower.

The Handbell Ringers’ practice is held every Tuesday at 7.15pm in Church.

The Choir practises every Thursday at 6.30pm in Church.

The Elders meet every 1st Tuesday of the month at 7.30pm in the BB HQ

Men’s Fellowship meets every Wednesday at 2pm in the Church Hall

Open House Group meets every Wednesday at 1pm in the Church Hall

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CONTACTS * = Serving Elder

Christ Church URC

Church Drive, Port Sunlight, Wirral, CH62 5EF

Minister

Rev Ian Smith

minister@ccpsurc.info

Baptismal Secretary *Sue Frowe baptisms@ccpsurc.info

Bereavement Pastoral Care Assistant and Funeral Coordinator

*Maureen Jones

Boys’ Brigade Rev Ian Smith

Carers’ contact Carol Wright

Choirmaster Jonathan Bowden choir@ccpsurc.info

Church Secretary *Samantha Hawkes sec@ccpsurc.info

Church Treasurer *John Lindsay treasurer@ccpsurc.info

Fabric Committee Convenor Vacant

Flowers / Church Bookings *June Berry

Housekeeper *Val Young

Magazine editor Jan Burrell / Rosie Potter magazine@ccpsurc.info

Men’s Fellowship Leader David Peacock

Organist Jonathan Bowden organist@ccpsurc.info

Prayer Chain Joyce Howell

Pulpit Supply / Elders’ Rota *Lisa Scott

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Readers’ Rota Barrie Bradburn

Serving Elder *Shelly Hayes

Serving Elder *Chris Maple

Social and Fundraising Convenor *Jim Tesseyman

Stewards’ Coordinator *Val Young

Sunday Worship Club Leader / Messy Church

*Samantha Hawkes

swc@ccpsurc.info

Synod Representative *Lisa Scott

Tower Captain (Bellringers) David Hocker bells@ccpsurc.info

Webmaster

Peter Humphreys web@ccpsurc.info

Weddings and Funerals Administrator Rachael Hardcastle weddings@ccpsurc.info

Weekly Bulletin Editor *Mark Williams bulletin@ccpsurc.info

Editorial Team: Jan Burrell and Rosie Potter

Items for the next issue should be handed in as soon as possible, and

NO LATER THAN Sunday 9th September 2018

Articles, letters, requests etc. may be emailed to magazine@ccpsurc.info

or handed in to a church elder.

The Magazine is also available, in colour, on our website at http://www.ccpsurc.info/

We regret that we cannot include adverts or any promotional material for

events not associated with Christ Church Port Sunlight.

Hymns reproduced under CCLI Licence Number 214840

Opinions do not necessarily reflect the official policy of Christ Church URC

Port Sunlight or the United Reformed Church

Copyright for all photographs in The Magazine belongs to Christ Church

Port Sunlight URC, unless otherwise stated

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August Services

Friday 3 10:00 am Revd Ian Smith Communion Service

Sunday 5 10:30 am Revd Ian Smith Communion Service

5 3:00 pm Revd Ian Smith Afternoon Service

Sunday 12 10:30 am Olive Burns Morning Service

12 3:00 pm Revd Ian Smith Afternoon Service

Sunday 19 10:30 am Revd Ian Smith Morning Service

19 2:00 pm Revd Ian Smith Baptisms

19 3:00 pm Revd Ian Smith Communion Service

Sunday 26 10:30 am Revd Ian Smith Morning Service

26 3:00 pm John Lindsay Afternoon Service

September Services

Sunday 2 10:30 am Revd Ian Smith Communion Service

2 3:00 pm Revd Ian Smith Afternoon Service

Friday 7 10:00 am Revd Richard Hambly Communion Service

Saturday 8 10:00 am Messy Church

Sunday 9 10:30 am Revd Barbara Exley Morning Service

9 3:00 pm Revd Ian Smith Afternoon Service

Sunday 16 10:30 am Revd Ian Smith

Morning Service - FOUNDER'S DAY

16 2:00 pm Revd Ian Smith Baptisms

16 3:00 pm Revd Ian Smith Communion Service

Sunday 23 10:30 am Revd Ian Smith Morning Service

23 3:00 pm John Lindsay Afternoon Service

Sunday 30 10:30 am Revd Ian Smith Morning Service

30 3:00 pm Revd Ian Smith Afternoon Service

THE LAST WORD – Philippians 4:7

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,

will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.