November 2019
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NOVEMBER 2019 Beckenham United Reformed Church www.beckenhamurc.com SUNDAY WORSHIP - NOVEMBER 2019 3rd Nov Rev. Nadene Snyman – including Holy Communion 10th Nov Mrs. Judy Davies 17th Nov Mrs. Jo Paterson 24th Nov Mrs. Marion Bayley OTHER DIARY EVENTS 6th November 2.30pm Bible Study 12th November 2.30pm Crescent Club 20th November 1.00pm Luncheon Club 26th November 3.00pm Elders Christmas Fair - 30th November OUR VISION Our vision is to glorify God and to serve God throughout our lives, always open to God working through us. We seek to share the good news of love, forgiveness and grace with all in our local community through our actions and our prayers. Donors Arrangers 3rd Nov available Marion 10th Nov available Monica 17th Nov Sheila Baldwin Jane 24th Nov The Almonds Muriel Dearest Beckenham URC, Mark 10:43-45 “This, however, is not the way it is among you. If one of you wants to be great, you must be the servant of the rest; and if one of you wants to be first, you must be the slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served; he came to serve and to give his life to redeem many people.” Two lovely verses that capture the Holy Habit of Service beautifully. Service is the Holy Habit that shows that the Christian world view is upside down to the norm. We are called to take the role of service where ever we are and in all we do. Andrew Robert’s notes that service is an evangelistic act – in that evangelism means to literally share the good news, in serving others we are offering the good news to those we meet. Therefore, with every act of love, justice and peace we have a taste of what the world is to be. Every small or large act of service is a sign of the kingdom of God. We get to live this holy habit of serving out in our daily lives, in our church life, with other churches, other faiths and in community groups. It is a holy habit that infuses every aspect of our lives. Beckenham URC offers service to the other churches in the area and the community in our monthly lunch club. We get to offer hospitality and friendship in this service of food and fellowship. The lunch club is a wonderful ministry that brings so many people together from all over the area. It is a time of friends catching up with each other; we get to check on the well-being of our members and those that come to us monthly. Thank you to everyone who serves in this ministry and quietly evangelises the good news. Blessings, Nadene FROM THE SECRETARY The morning of the 1st October was wet but by the afternoon the sun came out as we held a short service led by Nadene when we interred Henry and Iris Tilley’s ashes in our Church Garden. Also planted was a rosemary bush in memory of their daughter Rosemary. It was lovely to see Margaret, Bob and Alison again and afterwards it was nice to have some time together reviving old memories! What an excellent service we had at Harvest (taken by Nadene) and how nice it was to see the Church full with the Rainbows, Brownies and Guides and parents. It was of course followed by our Harvest Lunch which was as usual enjoyed by all who attended. It is with sadness we heard of the death of Janie Harris. Janie ran her ballet school in our hall for many years and was very well known in the area. A celebration of her life will be held in the Church on 15th November at 2.30pm. A very uplifting service was held at Synod the other Saturday when we said farewell to our current Moderator Nicola Furley- Smith. She has worked hard over the past 8 and half years and will be missed by many. Her job description certainly does not cover the hidden extras she has had to deal with! I am sure it will be reported elsewhere how entertaining our last Crescent Club was. Martin Fosten from Petts Wood Church gave an excellent talk on when he was in charge of the pupils from the Royal Ballet School for a few years. It was very much enjoyed by us all. I know I speak on everyone’s behalf saying how grateful we are to Muriel who so willingly invites us to her house every month. A very big thank you Muriel! Gill Ross PRAYER FELLOWSHIP Loving Lord God, At this time of All Saints and All Souls Days, we thank you for our church. While some think of doors and windows, we praise you for hearts and spirits. The people whose lives you have intersected in our fellowship are remarkable through your grace. We can’t praise you enough for the unique way you’ve blended the talents of individuals into beautiful masterpieces of joy. May we love one another to the fullest and be evidence of your ultimate love to advance the work of your Kingdom. We know that we are not perfect: that there are times we forget to pray; times when we question our faith; times when we lose our temper. Thank you for loving each one of us unconditionally and giving us another day to start afresh. Today, Sovereign King, we choose to step out in faith, wherever we go, for you hold the future and have plans for our lives which are good and not evil. We put complete trust in you, Loving Lord, for you are God alone who sits upon the throne. Amen When two ears are put side by side, they form the shape of the heart. The word ‘ear’ sits right in the middle of the word ‘heart’. The ear is the way to the heart so, if you want someone’s heart, learn to listen to them. If you want God’s heart, learn to listen to him. Lectionary 3rd November Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4; Psalm 119:137-144; Isaiah 1:10- 18; Psalm 32:1-7 2 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 11-12 Luke 19:1-10 10th November Haggai 1:15b-2:9; Psalm 145:1-5, 17-21 or Psalm 98 Job 19:23-27a; Psalm 17:1-9 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17 Luke 20:27-38 17th November Isaiah 65:17-25; Isaiah 12 Malachi 4:1-2a; Psalm 98 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13 Luke 21:5-19 24th November Jeremiah 23:1-6; Luke 1:68-79; Jeremiah 23:1-6 Psalm 46 Colossians 1:11-20 Luke 23:33-43 LIVING WELL BROMLEY – FOOD BANK In addition to tinned food of most kinds the Food Bank administrators tell us that in particular they need toilet rolls & toiletries – men’s shower gel & deodorants, shaving foam etc. At present they would prefer not to have any more of the following: Teabags, Pasta, Pulses Tinned Fish, Soap or Toothpaste Please leave any gifts for the Food Bank in the box at the back of the Church, from which one of the Elders will arrange for delivery to Holy Trinity Church, Lennard Road. (Delivery times – Tuesdays 3pm -4pm, Fridays 1pm-3pm or Saturdays 11am – 12noon) Thank you for your support for this worthy cause. COFFEE money for November goes to The Royal British Legion OFFERINGS The offerings during September were as follows:- September 1 £130.00 September 8 £125.00 September 15 £176.50 September 22 £123.50 September 29 £98.20 The after service coffee collections during the month were in aid of Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust and totalled £53.50 Anthony Bayley LONDON’S AIR AMBULANCE We have received the following letter from Alison McGuiness, the Community Fundraising Manager for the charity. Many thanks for the generous donation of £44.00 raised from your after service coffee collections. Please extend our thanks to the entire congregation. This donation will help us to continue to deliver an advanced trauma team to critically injured people in London. As the capital’s only helicopter emergency medical service, London’s Air Ambulance is at the forefront of attending the most critically injured Londoners. Based at the Royal London Hospital since 1989 and now in our 30th Anniversary year we serve the 10 million people who live, work and commute within the M25 Motorway. Receiving only partial funding from the NHS, our ability to continue to serve severely injured people is dependent on the generosity of members of the public and various groups and organisations and, to date, we have treated over 40,000 people. Your donation will be used to continue this service and we are extremely grateful for your support which is very much appreciated. A.M.B. HUMANITARIAN AID RELIEF TRUST (HART) The founder and CEO of HART, Caroline Baroness Cox, has written to us which includes the following:- “What a delightful surprise! I am writing immediately to thank you very warmly for the generous donation of £53.50 from after service coffee collections. Please would you also pass on my gratitude and that of my colleagues here in HART to your congregation for your generous support for our work. With renewed thanks, warmest good wishes and prayers for many blessings.” She has also sent a copy of their Impact Report for 2018. It is a very interesting read and I have placed it on the “library” mobile book-shelving so that you can all have a look.