January 2013

The Parish Magazine of Crowton, Norley and Kingsley JANUARY 2013 St. John, Kingsley St. John, Norley Christ Church, Crowton UNITED BENEFICE OF CHRIST CHURCH, CROWTON ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST, KINGSLEY & ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST, NORLEY VICAR Revd. Pete Rugen The Vicarage, Pike Lane, Kingsley 01928 787 180 email [email protected] CURATE Revd. Gill Stanning Fullwood, Blakemere Lane, Hatchmere 01928 788 623 email: [email protected] YOUTH & YOUNG FAMILIES WORKER Joe Smith e-mail: [email protected] 07702425344 READER Mrs. H. Merrington Cartref, Ball Lane, Kingsley 01928 788 087 READER IN TRAINING Dr A Davidson Lund Hollies Barn, Onston Lane, Crowton 01606 853 556 CHURCHWARDENS NORLEY Dr. G. Archer Mara. Delamere Lane, Norley 01928 788 911 Mr. D. Askwith West Winds, Fingerpost Lane, Norley 01928 787 655 VERGER Mr. A. Nield The Lilacs, Post Office Lane, Norley 01928 787 087 CROWTON Mrs, B Thorne Trevaylor, Kingsley Road, Crowton 01928 788 018 Mr. J. Barber Fieldview Cottage, Ainsworth Lane, Crowton 01928 787 409 KINGSLEY Mr. G. Merrington Cartref, Ball Lane, Kingsley 01928 788 087 Mrs. K. Duff Norley Cottage, Blakemere Lane, Norley 01928 787 344 MAGAZINE EDITOR Mr. K. Rickman Lyndale, Station Road, Mouldsworth, Chester 01928 740 861 Email: [email protected] Articles by 14th of preceding month PARISH WEBSITE www.nck.org.uk 2 Whilst Christmas is the time when we celebrate the coming of Christ as a vulnerable child, Epiphany is the time of searching and of discovery. It is the season when the Wise Men went in search of a new king, and discovered Gods Son, the Christ, who would rule in peace and with justice. Fittingly, New Year falls at the beginning of the season of Epiphany and is often associated with a fresh start, a new order, a time to begin again, wipe the slate clean and to try new things. St Paul wrote in his second letter to the Corinthians: If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! This new order which Paul talks about isn’t an external thing...it isn’t about giving things up or trying to be different on the outside; instead it is about a change within ourselves which Jesus himself gives us as a free gift. This change cannot be forced but is something Christ produces when we turn to him with the same hope and faith which the Wise Men demonstrated all those years ago. This January let us resolve to turn our faces to the future with renewed faith and hope. Let us believe that the Christ whom we worship will change our hearts and our outlook as he did for those Wise Men who sought him so long ago. Gill 3 The King is on his way! (Luke 3: 15-17, 21,22) An English clergyman and an Australian missionary were travelling through Tanzania a number of years ago when they came upon an African road- worker, busy slashing away at the thick foliage lining the dusty road. “Good morning!” the Australian missionary hailed the African. “We appreciate all this work you are doing! You are opening the way for us!” “Well,” came the shy smiling reply, “not quite. You see, the President’s on his way!” Whether it be a visit from Julius Nyerere, or the presidential inauguration of a Barack Obama, the degree of preparation for a big event is a true measure of its estimated importance. Think back to Israel’s Jordan valley in the first century AD, as a wild man from the desert arrives, with his fiery message to repent and ‘prepare the way for the Lord.’ John the Baptist was never credited with a single miracle or sign, no mighty deeds; yet this trail-blazer — who declared himself unworthy even to loosen the straps on Jesus’ sandals - stamped himself on the whole nation. In terms of the effectiveness of a single life, John the Baptist offers several secrets: One call to obey. For all of thirty years John had been preparing, in his desert existence for this single task – to fulfil the prophecy of Isaiah 40:3 – to ‘prepare the way for the Lord.’ Forget the hair, leather and locusts! Effective servants of Jesus Christ are not identified by distinctive clothing, by their head-gear or dietary requirements, by language or nationality, nor by any amount of rituals or pilgrimages. The question for any believer is, How can I please my Lord in the times ahead? 4 One message to uphold. No one around the Jordan was left in any doubt as to the repentance that John the Baptist stood for as he ‘exhorted the people and preached the good news to them.’ The challenge lies there. It was the preacher D.L. Moody of Chicago who once said, “I pity any person who lives so that people have to ask, ‘Is he a Christian?’” The call is to make sure that the Christian message is not quarantined within the congregation! One Person to promote. John baptized with water. ‘But I’m not the important one!’ he emphasized. “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). God was marching on – and the King was on his way! Question: What is the one thing that you are meant to be focusing on, in the months ahead of you? Get that right, and the rest will follow…. Canon Richard Bewes New Year Prayer Sovereign Lord, Here we are at the gateway of another year. A gateway we have to go through, leaving behind all the events and memories of the old year – all of that now known and recorded and part of our history. Here we are, with no choice but to step out into the unknown, into the uncertainty of the future. But while we may not know what lies ahead, we thank you that we can know who lies ahead, if we put our trust in Jesus. He promises to be the Way, the Truth and the Life for all time. Thank you that no matter what this New Year may bring, we do not move into it or through it alone. You are already there, as you were in the beginning. So in this and every year we say, Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as we walk forward with confidence and in faith. Amen. Daphne Kitching Parish Magazine Subscription 2013 The £5 Subscription is due in January Please give to your distributor as soon as possible 5 Kingsley, Norley & Crowton Mothers Union We had an excellent lunch at the Tigers Head on December 13th instead of our normal meeting, very smoothly as we had ordered our choice of menu beforehand. There wawhich should have been 4th December. Hilary organised the event which went s a good choice of food and special diets were catered for. The service was first class and the whole atmosphere was celebratory for Christmas, definitely something we will think about doing again next year! The Nativity Scene has been in front of the pulpit in church and it was rewarding to see our handiwork looking so good on display. The next meeting is our AGM and will be held on Tuesday 8th January 2013 at 7.30pm in the Church Room. We will be reviewing the dates and times of the meetings for the coming year and looking forward to celebrating our 70th anniversary. For more information contact Pam Lee on 787343 or Hilary Merrington on 788087 Three Parishes Ladies Fellowship We had a lovely Chrismassy after noon on December 6th. Poems and stories were shared and it was lovely to have the Rev Sue Levitt with us. It was good of her to take time out from her busy schedule to spend time with us. Thank you to all who provided such super refreshments. Our January meeting is lunch at the Tigers Head. We will meet there at 12.15.If you have any problems getting there speak to Katie 788077 or Joan 788874. We wish everyone a very happy, healthy New Year 6 A Contemporary Worship Service @Kingsley St Johns. Next Service—27th January at 6.30 p.m. 7 Steps on the Way: the Diary of a Postulant Nun Happy new year! Of course I can't tell you about Christmas yet, I'm writing this a week before. So that will have to be February... nearly Easter, in fact.. During November we had a week's silent retreat. People probably think of this in terms of pure heaven or pure hell, according to personality. I found it to be a bit of both. The main problem for me was that some of the Sisters interpret silence more strictly than others, and count even eye contact as a form of conversation. As this is not how I see it, I found it quite difficult to remember which people I couldn't smile at! and by the middle of the week had gone into an Eeyore-like gloomy shutdown. (Eeyore, of course, didn't keep his gloom to himself - I didn't even have that relief!) It was quite amazing, however, to realise the difference total silence made to the house. There were no guests in, and the quiet was almost tangible as I walked down corridors or sat in the library with a book. On the Thursday it all got to me, and I swore violently and full volume at the kitchen broom (luckily it was rest-period and there was no-one around to hear) and then went out for a walk in the grounds, flinging pine-cones and sticks around with all the force of which I'm capable.

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