Alpha Courses

St John’s will be hosting their next Alpha Course at SJ’s in the New Year. However, if you are unable to commit to evening meetings, there is an opportunity coming up to attend a course that will be running over lunchtime.

 Starting on 4 October, St Francis Church will be giving people the chance to explore the Christian faith through Alpha. The sessions will start at 12:30pm and be done by 2:30pm, to allow for the school pick up. There will be also be facilities for accompanying children. The meetings will run on a Friday with the following dates currently planned:

 4, 18, 25 October                            8, 22, 29 November

6, 13 December

 To register your interest, speak to Jon or get in direct contact with Hazel at St Francis on hazelos58@gmail.com or 020 8777 5034.

The Turning Final Update

The Turning is only a week away, and here are the final details for the programme:

7 Evenings of Worship, Prayer & Testimony

Sunday 22 September, 6:30pm @ Coney Hill Baptist

Monday 23 – Friday 27 September, 7:30pm @ Coney Hill Baptist

6 Mornings of Training & Outreach

Monday 23 – Saturday 28 September, 10am – 1pm

Monday & Tuesday @ Coney Hill Baptist

Wednesday & Thursday @ St Mary’s, Hayes

Friday & Saturday @ St Francis, West Wickham

We are looking for people to pray, be involved in the outreach on the streets, and engage in follow-up conversations with anyone who expresses a desire for that (any or all of those). There will be a sign-up sheet in church on Sunday, or if you’re not around then, send Jon an email.

"Link to Hope" Autumn Fair 2019

St Francis Church Hall

Saturday 19th October, 11am-3pm

 Alongside shopping and refreshments, the Fair will be raising funds for and awareness of Link to Hope's Shoebox Appeal and this year we are hoping there will be a "Shoebox Station" where a box can be filled with gifts for £10. There are many ways you can help, including the following:

• donations of new, unopened and unwanted gifts (for the popular re-gifting fundraising stall)

• donations of any items for shoebox filling (more specific needs will be advertised nearer the time)

• donations of cakes, traybakes, etc

• distributing leaflets in advance of the event and on the day

• help setting up/packing away, serving refreshments and running the "Shoebox Station" and fundraising stall.

More details to follow over the coming weeks, but if you're interested in being involved in the meantime, please let Milly (camilla@highamsfarm.com) or Angela (angela.walters@yahoo.co.uk) know.

New Term Looming

I don’t want to prematurely draw a curtain on the Summer season, especially not on a Bank Holiday when we’ve actually got some sunshine! But as we approach the start of a new academic year as a church, there are a few new ventures and updates in the pipeline for the Autumn:

• Going online with ‘Church Suite’ - the new tool for some of our Communications and Publicity;

• Refreshing/ Development of our Teams;

• An experimental initiative called ‘Learning Leadership’;

• Our Church Weekend Away.

I’m deliberately not giving details as yet, but keep your eyes open for information on all these things in the coming weeks. In the meantime, enjoy whatever is left of the sunny days.

Book Recommendation

If you view the Summer as a chance to catch up on some non-work-related reading, then can I add a ‘God book’ to your list of must reads. It’s ‘Dirty Glory’ by the author Pete Greig, champion of the 24-7 Prayer Movement.

 It’s a very accessible follow up to ‘Red Moon Rising’ and continues to chart the 24-7 story, as it has gained momentum across the globe. Full of personal and honest stories, it’s not only a testimony to God’s faithfulness, but an inspiring call to any Jesus follower not to settle for less and coast it in our Christian walk. It’s a big claim, but I am pretty sure that if everyone in the church read this and responded, it would change us dramatically – what we do, and how we do it.  As one of the chapter closes:

 May I have the courage today

To live the life that I would love

And waste my heart on fear no more.

(John O’Donohue)

Summer Hols

We’re rapidly heading towards the close of another Academic year, and the start of those Summer weeks, where people head off in lots of different directions.

 It can feel like a slightly fragmented time in terms of ‘church life’, but whether you are stepping foot onto foreign shores, or staying at home, we hope there is some genuine space for rest and refreshment. With that in mind, we’ll be spending the next 6 weeks exploring some of Jesus’ ‘I am…’ sayings – many of which speak into the nourishment of our souls.

 These will be ‘All Together’ services. Amber has been doing a lot of thinking and research around our worship life across the generations, so we are continuing to tinker with these times together to be a rich occasion for people of any age.  

Open Church

With our church building situated on the route of a couple of walking trails, there is a fair amount of footfall passing our doors. Over the Summer, we are going to give people treading those paths an opportunity to grab a rest, and if they want, to find out a little bit more about St John’s story.

 We’ll be opening the church on certain Sunday afternoons to visitors, offering refreshments and history tours of the church/churchyard. The plan is to open up between 2-5pm on the 18 and 25 August. If you feel that you would like to be involved – could offer an hour or so on the day to assist visitors, want to help prepare the church, or generally contribute, then we would love to have you come along to a meeting at the church on Sunday 21st July at 2:30pm. We will take you through the history tours and sign people up to help. If you have any questions then please contact Dawn Tickner on 0208 462 1573 or speak with Jackie Barter.

SPRUNG 2019

Hopefully, it hasn’t passed you by that next weekend is our annual camp for 8-14 year olds. A big thank you to everyone who has been involved in the planning and all those who will be helping run the weekend.

 The fun and games will be taking place at Downe Scout Activity Centre. We are inviting families to join us on Sunday 14th July for our meeting at 10-11:30am. There will be no Creche, Sunday Club or Explore Together available at St. John’s on this day. After the meeting the WHOLE church family are invited to come to a church barbeque at 12noon, followed by a kids and adults rounders match at 1pm-2pm.

 If you are able to come and help set down and pack up tents from 9am on the Sunday it would also be hugely appreciated - especially by our Tent Man Jonathan Tickner who will have just done a whole weekend with 40 children and young people! We look forward to seeing you there.  

Happy Father's Day

If I asked you what makes for a good Dad, what would you say?

 Some of us might point to qualities we saw in our own fathers, some think of what we are aiming for as a Dad ourselves, others might struggle to find a helpful frame of reference. Whatever our response, it’s deeply personal.

 Father’s Day might cause us to pause and ponder these matters – perhaps to reshape a distorted view of fatherhood, or press further into the ‘goodness’ we know is there. That’s an invitation God extends to us way beyond one day of the year. Today, we start a new series about ‘finding freedom’, looking at the book of Galatians, thinking about who we really are before God. He says it might look something like those Father’s Day reflections:

 “And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.” Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir.” Galatians 4:5