Rev Chris Update 24/10

Dear all,

I had the great pleasure of conducting a wedding last Saturday in East Sussex. I get very few weddings so to be asked to preside at the wedding of the daughter of good friends was truly a blessing (this image is not them!).

The church that the ceremony took place at was in a little village and yet it had a great sense of a deep underlying spirituality. Having arrived at the church with plenty of time in hand (I like to be prepared) I had intended to take time in the building for some peace and space to pray for the couple. I did do that, but actually by engaging in a prayer trail around the church, rather than sitting in the church. Someone had put a lot of effort into creating the trail based on The Lord’s Prayer – it may be something to think about here at St Nicholas Church.

The Lord’s Prayer appears in two gospels – Matthew and Luke, and each is slightly different;

Matthew 6:9-13

“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
 your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.

 Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.’”

Luke 11:2-10
“‘Father,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
And lead us not into temptation.’”

The prayer that we use in church comes in traditional and modern versions;

Whatever version is used this prayer continues to play a significant part in the life of the church, and beyond. It still amazes me how people easily follow the lead of saying the prayer in so many different situations – I certainly pray that this will continue to be the case.

We have another cause for celebration coming up in a few weeks’ time. There will be a Maidstone Deanery Confirmation Service at St Martin’s Church on Saturday 13th November at 6pm. This is an opportunity for those wanting to take this next step on their Christian journey to make the declarations that would have been made by parents and Godparents. I am very pleased to say that we have four candidates going forward from St Nicholas who wish to take that step and I looking forward to being with them on the 13th – please do come and support them if you can, and if not then please do pray for them.

In the meantime, just to highlight a couple of forthcoming events;

  • St Nicholas Fellowship will be holding a meeting on Friday 26th November at 2.30pm to discuss the future of the group. Refreshments will be provided.
  • CAMRA Lunch Club is starting up again and will meet on the 2nd Wednesday of each month at The Pippin, at noon. Next date will be Wednesday 10th Contact Clive Bole clive_bole@hotmail.com

Bible Project that starts this coming Monday at 7pm in church – apologies, I left it off the diary last week by mistake. We will be looking at the book of Job so please read the first three chapters if you are coming along.

This Sunday has a variety of services on offer with an 8am Communion Service, 10am Morning Worship and at 6.30pm contemporary worship with ENCOUNTER.

Blessings,

Rev Chris