News & Updates (Page 2)
Giving out easter blessings
On Holy Saturday members of the church spent the morning giving out over 130 hot cross buns to passers-by as a sign of easter joy. This was accompanied by a small card with an easter greeting attached. People were involved in all sorts of different ways including giving out the buns, wrapping them, designing the cards and through prayers.
Revd. Emma’s last Communion Breakfast
Last week Revd. Emma presided over her last communion breakfast with us as Minister. The breakfast took place at the start of lent and also coincided with St. Valentine’s Day. We will certainly miss Emma’s expert porridge making skills and enthusiasm first thing in the morning!
Connect, Challenge, Commit – Homeless Sunday
Connect During the service, we heard a number of statistics about homelessness in England. In 2014-15: 840 families and individuals were assessed as homeless 54,430 moved into Temporary Accommodation 1,368,312 families and individuals on council waiting lists 384,854 tenancies allocated last year 2,744 individuals were included in the Nov 2014 rough sleeper count. 7,581 people were found sleeping on London’s streets Challenge Nicola told us the story of Billy, a fictional character but one which is based on many…
Rebuild Nepal – Leprosy Mission Sunday
This Sunday we heard the story of Krishna. When the earthquake of 25 April 2015 hit Nepal, Khrishna’s home was destroyed and his life changed forever by the death of his wife, who was inside the house when it collapsed. Already disabled by leprosy and now a lone parent to his two sons, life is desperately hard for Khrishna. The family is now living in a temporary shelter, which cannot protect them from the worst of the winter weather. You…
Kam’s diary on the Shelter Project as a first time volunteer
Kam visited the Shelter project for the first time last Thursday. She sent us a copy of her diary entry for the day. It shows brilliantly how the project benefits both the guests and volunteers and gives an overview of how the project works. Diary entry for the Shelter Project Hounslow, evening of Thursday 7 January 2016. Having volunteered to provide support in any way in the kitchen area, I undertook the role of General Kitchen Hand. I found the…
The Shelter Project has started
The Shelters opened yesterday (2nd) with Bell Road being used each Thursday. We, together with St Mary’s Osterley, are committed to running the Thursday shelter for the next 13 weeks. This involves welcoming the guests (up to 14 men each night), providing, cooking and serving a hot evening meal and cooked breakfast as well as setting up the beds etc. A volunteer sheet was given out before Christmas with all the information about the project on – if you didn’t get…
JMA Collectors
Our JMA collectors have been hard at work over the last year, well done to all collectors who raised a total of £1053.14 last year. A fantastic achievement that was celebrated in a service last month. The young people involved are grateful two all the people within the church and without who have agreed to give to JMA. You can find out more about JMA on the Methodist Church website.
Christmas Is Coming – First Weekend in Advent
We kicked of advent in traditional Bell Road style with plenty going on! On Friday night we decorated the church and stuffed envelopes for SPEAR. People of all ages turned up and had a great time complete with pizza. We also put up the banners that were made during Café Worship the week before. Saturday saw Gareth Davies-Jones at Café Arts who entertained us all with Carols, Songs and Stories. It was a great evening and a fantastic way to…
Enough
“Poverty is not being able to do things that are necessities. Things that are important like gas and electric, showers, bus fares, and having to worry that your daughter has a hole in her shoes. She needs new shoes and I don’t have the money. What do I do? Do I get gas or do I get shoes?” – Poverty in Scotland 2015, a Scottish Government & Poverty Truth Commission publication. In the UK, children raised in families without enough…
Creating a Buzz….
As part of our Bee theme for this years harvest festival, based on All We Can’s appeal, we created a display at the front of church and on many of the windowsills. The display incorporated products produced from honey, a beehive and lots of flowers, all capped off with a bee buzzing across a screen during the service! Below are a series of photos of the displays for those who missed it or would like a reminder. Its not too…
Shelter Project – Good News!
Recently there has been, and still is to a certain extent, a concern about the future of The Shelter Project Hounslow for this coming season. The Steering Group of the whole project met this last week to make important decisions about this winter and the level of service, if any, that could be offered. This was also Margaret’s first meeting as a member of the Steering Group, coordinating fund raising in the future. The good news is that the project…
Christian Aid Walk 2015
Celia and myself were determined to go again and walk all 6 miles. We got there nice and early to get signed in and have a cuppa. Gradually about 30 people turned up so a good crowd. A display about the history of Christian Aid had been set up – I learnt they had helped to form Voluntary Service Overseas amongst other organisations so not just involved with development work and supporting people to get out of poverty. This year…
All We Can Harvest Appeal
God said, “See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. (Genesis 1:29) On sunday we heard all about All We Can’s (Formally Methodist Relief and Development) Harvest appeal Which focuses on Bee Keeping in Uganda. In addition to providing honey which can be sold, bee keeping increases the bee population which helps increase pollination and therefore the…
Computers to Ghana – Update
While in Ghana Emma delivered the computers and toys we refurbished as a church in May. She presented them to both the school and the sunday school and we are told there was plenty of excitement. She also took a lot of photos to share with us which you can see below.
Summer Seaside Celebration
Sunday July 26th was a special Sunday at Bell Road as we were holding a ‘Seaside Celebration’. Taking as a starting point the stories of Jesus that had a seaside association, John and Ali led us through many thoughts and activities. Worship all together was a time of praise and thanksgiving – and a challenge based on the call of the fishermen disciples. We were challenged about being ‘fishers of people’ as we were encourage to pray for people to find Jesus in their…
Computers for Ghana
On her trip to Ghana, Revd. Emma will be taking with her a suite of 15 computers provided by St. Mary’s and St. Peter’s Primary School and refurbished by members of the church to equip two schools; Sudbury Preparatory Junior Secondary School and Montessori Nursery and Primary School. In May a team of people of all ages from church refurbished the laptops which involved a thorough clean, securely wiping the hard drives and installing a new operating system so they…
God’s Love – A Poem by Janet Wilson
This is a poem written and read by Janet for our recent International Service – “Everything in Colour”. Jamaica, land of the golden sunGod, created the peaceful blue skiesHe filled the land with many peopleFrom all races, cultures and coloursGod gave them a heart to share His love. He sent His Son, so caring and kindWho promised a home, high up above!His Father’s house has many roomsWe just need – TO BELIEVE Jamaica, pearl in the azure seaMajestic Blue Mountains!…
Rachel & Rob take on Oxfam Trailwalker!
Shelter project volunteers (from St. Mary’s) Rachel and Rob, along with two others, will be attempting (and succeeding!) the Oxfam Trailwalker challenge. Below is what they say about it: If you’ve never heard of Oxfam’s Trailwalker before – It’s a 100km hike, day and night, across the south downs in under 30 hours. We’ll be setting off around 7am on the 25th July, and hopefully returning (bedraggled but triumphant) on the morning of the 26th. As a team we have to…
We are now a Fairtrade church!
As part of our continuing campaigning against injustices we have joined over 7400 other places of worship in becoming a fair trade church. We hope with this additional commitment we can continue to promote fairtrade in the future. In becoming a Fairtrade church we have committed to: Use Fairtrade tea and coffee after services and in all other events we run. Move forward on using other Fairtrade products such as sugar, biscuits and fruit. Promote Fairtrade during Fairtrade Fortnight and…
Sunday Morning Worship from Conference
Follow the link below to watch Sunday Worship from Methodist Conference. It’s well worth a watch! http://video.silverstream.tv/view/PeEF18u3
“For the love of…” – Report from the Services
Katrina Recently went to a service “For the love of…” at the beginning of the mass lobby of Parliament on Climate Change. It took place across two churches, St. Margaret’s and Emmanuel Church both in Westminster. These are her thoughts. Those of us at St Margaret’s heard the Bishop of Salisbury Right Rev Holtam speak of God having created the earth and it was very good. We were given earth to live in and to care for it. Are we…
Kumon Annual Awards
Last week our minister, Emma Aikins, was invited to take part in an awards day with Kumon (one of our regular lettings) as a special guest. She had the following to say: It was such an honour to share with parents and children; the ways in which as a church we serve the community by providing the space not only for worship but also for them (Kumon). The highlight of the ceremony was when I had to present their certificates…
JMA Annual Report
Currently there are twenty five JMA Collectors. The children’s ages range from three years to thirteen years. They collect gifts of money monthly from their Sponsors. The Sponsors include their family members, friends and members from the church family. In October 2014, 20 happy JMA Collectors attended the special award service and they were presented with their badges and certificates by Rev Barbara McIntivey. Five new collectors have joined the group following the service. During the last Church year, the…
Stewards Annual Report
Presently there are 10 Church Stewards and 4 Holy Communion Stewards. Church Stewards share the responsibility in cooperation with our Minister; caring and supporting each other, and together we for and serve the Church Community. Church Stewards can be seen therefore as extra eyes and ears to the Minister. We share with our Minister confidentially and compassionately any concerns in regards to the Church Community and ministry. We meet with our Minister 3 to 4 times a year, or can…
Campaigning Group Report
He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8) At last year’s General Church Meeting, Andrew reported on Bell Road’s ‘Year of Campaigning’ – including work on the campaign for justice for Bangladeshi garment workers, the ‘Flesh and Blood’ campaign (encouraging church members to see blood and organ donation as part of their Christian giving)…
The Shelter Project Annual Report
This was the second year of us coordinating the project here at Hounslow Methodist Bell Road. Again Margaret and I were the co-coordinators from Bell Rd. Steve with the help of Susan were the co- coordinators form St Mary’s. We had a full house straight away and most Thursday nights there were between 10-15 men staying over. We also for the first time people joining us just for a meal. On some Thursdays it felt like we were feeding the…
Technical Annual Report
Over this year we have started forming a Technical Team, it is still early days but in addition to myself both Charles and Kadeem have volunteered and are beginning to man the PA system and Projection during services. Like most roles in the church we are always looking for more people to get involved, ideally you need to be technically minded or willing to learn. It is also a perfect job for anyone who does not already have a regular…
Cafe Arts Annual Report
Café Arts is now nearing the end of its 8th year, and is still going strong. This season has seen the variety and quality that is now expected from the project. We kicked off the years programme with a favourite and regular at Café Arts, Rob Halligan, followed by Gershon Ward and friends providing us with an evening of Christmas themed gospel. In February we had a new artist, Sandra Godley, who provided us with an uplifting and encouraging evening…
Coffee Stop Annual Report
Each week we are continuing to offer bacon rolls, cakes (often homemade) and a range of hot drinks. The Traidcraft and Christian Bookstall are also open each week. The mornings are run by a team of volunteers and we are really pleased to see new faces on the team this year. With 30 or so different people involved over the past year nobody has to be there more than once a month and many just help out once a quarter…
Coffee Stop Annual Report
Each week we are continuing to offer bacon rolls, cakes (often homemade) and a range of hot drinks. The Traidcraft and Christian Bookstall are also open each week. The mornings are run by a team of volunteers and we are really pleased to see new faces on the team this year. With 30 or so different people involved over the past year nobody has to be there more than once a month and many just help out once a quarter…
Bookstall Annual Report
We are pleased to be able to continue to offer a regular range of Christian books, CDs, cards and gifts and are pleased by the interest shown in the stall. It is open each Sunday, on Saturday mornings and at Café Arts. All the books etc are supplied by Canaan Christian Bookshop in Staines on a ‘sale or return’ basis and they give us 10% commission on all sales. This is given to our fund for The Shelter Project Hounslow.…
Traidcraft Annual Report
A big ‘Thankyou’ to all who buy regularly from the Traidcraft Stall. The importance of considering how we can use our influence as consumers and being aware of ethical issues surrounding trade remains as important as it ever was. Considering adding more Fairtrade goods to our shopping lists is one way we can do this. Everything on the Traidcraft stall is Fairtrade, meaning that it has been produced and bought directly from producers at better, fairer prices that reflect the…
Junior Church Annual Report
I will start off with saying how blessed we are with our junior church. We have over 45 children and young people on our registers, God is Good! This last year has been exciting as usual. We had our annual fireworks night which had a good turnout of children, young people and their families. During the Christmas and Advent period we did our usual children and young people’s service where the children and young people made gift boxes and gave…
Worship Annual Report
The worship life of the church continues to be the high spot of our church life. Our attendance figures have shown continual growth in Sunday morning attendance over a four year period with an average of 62 in 2011 growing up to an average of 89 in last October’s figures. This is a good news story and we thank God for the growth. During the year we have looked at ways to encourage continuity and this has included our themes…
Ministers Annual Report
Dear Friends, As for us, we have this large crowd of witnesses around us. So then, let us rid ourselves of everything that gets in the way, and of the sin which holds on to us so tightly, and let us run with determination the race that lies before us. 2 Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end. He did not give up because of the cross! On the contrary,…
Tearfund: Ordinary Heroes
The latest campaign from Tearfund is ‘Ordinary Heroes’. Over the past 50 years Tearfund, Its partners and other Charities have made big strides in reducing poverty. The Ordinary Heroes campaign challenges us to help resolve two of the biggest challenges facing the world today, climate change and global inequality. Watch the video below to find out more about the campaign. Tearfund is encouraging you to look at where you get your fuel from, are you using 100% green energy? How…
Nepal Update
Dev tells me that they have only had one aftershock today – which is good news. You may be interested to know that the number of aftershocks has now passed the 1000 mark!! If you would like to see some idea of what the initial earthquake was like, Dev has supplied two links to videos which you can see below – note how easily the building collapses on the right of the second example. David Prasain from the Himalayan Hope Church…
An Interview with Paul Kerensa
Below is an interview with Paul Kerensa, talking about his work as a comedian among other topics. The interview was done recently by the Church of England. If you like what you hear why not come to Café Arts on 6th June?
Tearfund: No Child Taken
At our first Supper Talks evening a few weeks ago we heard fromTearfund about their work. They arecurrently running a number of Campaigns, we will feature a number of them over the coming weeks on this website. No Child Taken is an effort to stop the devastating impact of child trafficking on many of the poorest community’s in the world. Trafficking is the fastest growing crime in the world. It shatters the lives of 1.2 million children every year, along with their…
UNCLE – Uplifting Nepal’s Children with Love and Education
In light of the recent events in Nepal the church is proud to be supporting the UNCLE, a small charity supporting two orphanages and communities in Nepal. The charity, UNCLE, (standing for Uplifting Nepal’s Children with Love and Education) was set up a few years ago by the then minister, Rev Ian Smart and a few people from the church in Royston after Ian met up with someone who came from a small church in a small village near Kathmandu. Initially it started…
Praying for our country: ‘Truth, Justice, Peace, Well-being’
After the election this week, whatever your thoughts on its outcome, you may wish to share in this reflection and prayer as we look to the future. For those who are now taking political office, that in serving our communities and national life – truth, justice, peace and wellbeing might become priorities for all. For those for whom these results mean significant change – that they might find grace and wisdom for the way ahead. That those with leadership and influence will act…
Report: The Unlock London Walk 2015
This is what Unlock London say about the event: “The aims are to raise money for work in deprived urban areas around the UK/ to raise awareness of the issues of exclusion that Unlock exists to address/ to show what God is doing in the city/ to encourage churches in more affluent parts to support the Christians in the inner city/ to give people an opportunity for an unusual and enlightening day out in London” Celia, Diane, Beate and myself…
Wellbeing: Think, Pray, Vote
With less than a week to go, this weeks theme is wellbeing. We live in a culture that places much emphasis on the individual. We are bombarded by messages that tell ‘me’ to focus on what ‘I’ want, on what give comfort and security, on what is in ‘my’ best interest. ‘It’s all about me’ is one of today’s most influential mantras. the Bible strongly affirms our importance as individuals: each person has value in God’s eyes. Jesus spoke of people…
Peace – Think, Pray, Vote
God’s rebuke to his people as recorded by the prophet Jeremiah – ‘they have treated the wound of my people carelessly, saying, peace, pace, when there is no peace’- seems very appropriate for today. While political leaders are keen to emphasise their commitment to peace and peacemaking, how often do we see war as a last, rather than a first resort? Despite unspeakable human loss and suffering caused by war throughout history – and especially over the last century – we are no more inclined…
Thomas’ Lament – A Easter Reflection
If only – If only we had all died with him. If only we hadn’t run away had we fought and died with him If only Peter had not pretended not to know him. (He said, “I didn’t know I didn’t know him until I swore ‘I do not know the man you are talking about.’ Then I wept for my ignorance, my loss, My shame of finally knowing myself.”) If only Jesus hadn’t chosen death – Been so naive,…
Love Rules – Report from a Circuit Messy Church Service
On 1st February, people from across the circuit gathered for ‘Love Rules’, a ‘Messy Church’ style event. It was great to see families attending a circuit service and much fun was had by all. People had the opportunity to complete a number of different activities such as marbling polystyrene hearts, making an exploding volcano and dropping hearts into water whilst considering questions such as “What difference would God’s love make to the people and places in the news today?” and…
Justice – Think, Pray, Vote
In the weeks leading up to the election on May 7th we are using some of the resources produced by the Joint Public Issues Team (JPIT) to help us prayerfully and responsibly consider our voting responsibilities. Over four weeks we are showing a short video in church each week on the different themes of Truth, Justice, Peace and Well-being. Thankyou to the Campaigning Group for organising this. To take home: You will also be given a postcard each week with…
Letters to Persecuted Christians
I am happy to know that people are praying for us… Now I do not feel alone. – Martha Geleta, widow of Yadeta Dinsa During our Easter Sunday service we sent letters of greeting and encouragement to persecuted Christians around the world via Open Doors, a charity serving those who are persecuted or even killed for their faith. It is such a simple thing to write a letter but it is also an enormous help to those suffering for their…
The Gospel of John – BBC2
A dramatized account of the life of Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus’s radical preaching and his teaching about the Kingdom of God has attracted enemies and is undermining the Jewish authorities, who want rid of this troublemaker. Jesus must finish his teaching and preaching so keeps a low profile, while he focuses on spending time with his disciples. He knows his end his near so he prepares his disciples for their future work without him, spreading his message to love one…
Final Shelter Update
This season is now over and we bade our guests farewell this week. Having got to know some of them quite well we hope some will call in to see us at Coffee Stop sometimes. Several more of the men had good news to share with keys to pick up to rooms or flats in the next few days and some with some work. Many thanks go to the Project Caseworker, Raj, and to Beverley, the Project Coordinator, who have…
Shelter Update
This week is the last of this season’s Shelter. Several of the men are hoping to be in position to move into their own accommodation, some have managed to pick up some work, and support where possible is being arranged. It is a very unsettling time for our guests as the stability of the shelters come to an end and many are showing signs of anxiety. Please keep them in your prayers.