Parish of Westborough – Guildford

My dear brothers and sisters,

After speaking with several of you this week, it is for some, still a time of great worry and struggle.

I would like to start by telling you that you continue to be in my prayers.

I also realise for many it is difficult to catch up with you all on Sundays so I would like to suggest that I will be starting to block times in my diary in Wednesday afternoons, if any of you would like to come for coffee and a chat.

if you would like to please let me know,

In the meantime let us remember that we have a loving God who is always there for us, to uphold us through even the most challenging of times.

As well as having the blessing of each other.  Remember that wonderful saying, “we may not have it all together but together we have it all”.

Which promise do you need to hear the most? Which verse did you choose to help you remember that promise?

1) God is always by your side and listening to your prayers

• 1 John 5:14-15
• Psalm 145:18-19
• Deuteronomy 31:8

2) God will answer your prayers

• Matthew 21:22
• Psalm 86:5-7
• Mark 11:24

3) God’s power to change lives surpasses all human power and understanding

• Proverbs 3:5-6
• James 5:14-16
• Philippians 4:6-7

4) Through prayer, God will be your shelter and strength through life’s storms

• Psalm 46:1-3
• John 14:27
• Psalm 107:28-30

“Don’t pray when you feel like it. Have an appointment with the Lord and keep it. A man is powerful on his knees.” ​ ​~ Corrie Ten Boom

​

Stefanie

March 27th at 8.00pm.

It is £5.00 a head (£10 a household) – for Water Aid and the replacement sound system at St Francis.

It is great fun and everyone will be in a team, so don’t worry , you will not be on your own, even if you are by yourself!

Please let either Dawn or myself know you are joining us at email curate@stfrancisstclareguildford.org.uk

I really hope you can join us – the more the merrier! Please tell friends and family – all are welcome.

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87022375613?pwd=QXRNYjV2aGhJTndDSjh3MzJVWU5aZz09

Meeting ID: 870 2237 5613

Passcode: 116959

Easter Services at St Francis

March 14^th   Mothering Sunday – 10.30 am in church and on zoom. You may like to have a photo of someone who has cared for you with you.

March 21^st   Palm Sunday and distribution of crosses in church and on zoom. 10.30 am

2^nd April        Good Friday service in church and on zoom 2.00- 2.40pm. Please let us know if you would like to join this interactive service so we can get your bag to you. 2.40 – 3.15 – a time of quiet mediation and music.

                        Hot Cross buns outside the church

                        Labyrinth – Please feel free to use the labyrinth for prayer and reflection.

April 4^th        Easter Sunday service of celebration in church and on zoom- 10.30am.

Do come and see the Easter garden at the church and

Can you find all 10 Easter crosses and Easter Eggs in the windows of houses near to the church?

St Francis is a church in the heart of an area of Guildford which is high on need but low on resources. The Church is a central hub for the community yet has recently suffered from a number of incidents of vandalism and most recently a burglary in which the entire sound system was stolen. This diminishes the Church’s ability to provide vital community services and support to local people during this particularly difficult time. These services include a daily Food Share, providing a safe environment for lonely elderly folk to meet, a mother and toddlers group and a community shop to name a few. Being committed to its community, the church wants to remain open for those in need.

The first priority and where any funds will go towards, will be to buy and install modern CCTV cameras to help improve security and deter would be thieves.

Thanks in advance for any donations you can give.

We are also updating our facility’s so we can continue with zoom meetings, so people at home can join in with our congregation when we open and hopefully stream live events .

Please click on the link below to help has on our way to a new future way of services and joining in together.

https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/brad-day

PLEASE JOIN US FOR OUR CRIB SERVICE ON ZOOM

Virtual Services via Zoom link

You are welcome to participate in our weekly live Zoom services.

Click on this zoom link

Enter passcode number 116959

Sundays 10.30 am (time may change keep a lookout)

Please contact Rev Diane Peters on curate@stfrancisstclareguildford.org.uk

Or

Rev S Hodges on rector@stfrancisstclareguildford.org.uk  or 01483 504228

Hi everyone,
Just in case you have missed the information re harvest this year-

This year we will be having a harvest festival on zoom (hopefully including non zoom friends). This year we are asking for donations for water aid. I know some of you have taken up Stefanie’s suggestion to put 5p into a pot every time you use water or boil the kettle or use the loo – but all donations to this very important cause are welcome.

Bring your own food or snacks and drinks to the evening. Eating will be interspersed with a fun quiz. Through the magic of zoom we can put people into groups for the quiz so please do join us, you will not be on your own.

The church can welcome 6 people who do not have access to zoom to join the harvest festival – please let Stefanie or Diane know if you would like to join the group in person – don’t forget to bring your own lunch box and drink.
It would be great if you could include something to eat or drink from another country, could be something little or a complete dish – do I hear a rush to the kebab shop??

Really hope you are able to join the evening, it’s a lovely chance to be together, give thanks for our food and drink and support a very important cause.

With every blessing,

Diane

St Francis Homily for Trinity 13-20, Using Psalm 119.33-40 and Rom 13.8-14

Several months ago, when lockdown started, we learned what was important and what was perhaps less so; trivial even. Toilet rolls were important, Flour amongst other basic food items became the focus of our need to grab what we could. Unfortunately a percentage of the population were so greedy that these essentials were in short supply; sometimes unavailable. We also discovered that we could easily live without those other things that simply enhanced the pleasure of living. Lockdown focused us in a way we perhaps had never been focused.

We also learned about who was essential and discovered that some people (or their skills) were less so; trivial even.

Health care workers became the most essential as too were delivery drivers, shelf stockers, rubbish collectors (the list could stretch far longer). Those whose skills became less essential were beauticians, massage therapists, barbers (this list too could be far longer). We can easily survive without the less essential while sometimes our very lives depended on those essential things and people.

In our psalm set for today King David is asking God to help him focus on what is essential and not on the trivial. In traditional translations we read “Make me walk along the path of your commands, for that is where my happiness is found. Give me an eagerness for your laws rather than a love for money! Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through your word.” (Psalm 119.35-37 NLT) As I have so often said, The Message Bible seems to put it more pointedly “Guide me down the road of your commandments; I love travelling this freeway! Give me a bent for your words of wisdom, and not for piling up loot. Divert my eyes from toys and trinkets, invigorate me on the pilgrim way.” Toys and trinkets are something we can all equate with I suspect – I can. And while our toys and trinkets can make life more enjoyable they are far from essential. I’m not against having things but when what we have defines who we are then perhaps we are in trouble and have lost focus on what really matters.

St. Paul in that reading from his letter to Rome is also urging people to focus. And the thing Paul wants us to focus on is love for others. He rightly says “Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfils the requirements of God’s law.” (Rom 13.10 NLT) Those lockdown hoarders weren’t showing love.

Paul has good reason for urging us to focus because he honestly thought that Jesus would return pretty soon, probably within his own lifetime. Paul writes “This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.” (Rom 13.11 NLT) Paul got it wrong about the timing of Christ’s return but he was right about one thing – it’s nearer now then when we first believed.

How near? God only knows, we can only speculate. We read in the Bible that things will start to go wrong as the end approaches. Is this pandemic a prelude to Christ’s return? It’s happening before his return, so that makes it a prelude, but is it specifically related?

Some speculate that is the case, but that has been the speculation about every major disaster and war; speculation is a waste of time.

What is not a waste of time is focusing on what’s important so that when the time comes, we are ready.

That verse I quoted above (v13) is perhaps clearer in The Message which puts it like this: “make sure that you don’t get so absorbed and exhausted in taking care of all your day-by-day obligations that you lose track of the time and doze off, oblivious to God. The night is about over, dawn is about to break.”

During lockdown many of our day-to-day things stopped. We had more time and we were forced to focus on the essentials. Hopefully many of us also focused more on matters of faith. But lockdown is starting to diminish and many of us are starting up our (old but changed) day-to-day routines. My prayer is that we won’t lose focus on essentials as we resume ‘normal’ life.

That warning about not being so absorbed that we lose track of God includes things of the Church too. As churches start to reopen there is so much to do! Everything and anything has to be cleaned and sanitized. Pews/rows need to be roped off. Hand sanitizer needs to be readily available, face masks needs to be worn and obvious (this list too could be far longer). But we need to focus on why we are doing all these things, not just on the things themselves.

This danger of being too absorbed isn’t new. Previously we had to arrange the flowers, change the altar cloth, bake cakes, clean the toilets, pick the hymns etc. All of which were needed, but could make the church the focus rather than focusing on God. Even the church has its toys and trinkets which should be avoided.

Unfortunately life seems to be returning to normal. The news is full of stabbings, robbery, abuse, rape. Have we learned nothing over the past few months? The shops are open and the toys and trinkets sparkle even more brightly. My prayer for each of us combines the two Bible versions “Divert [our] eyes from toys and trinkets, and give [us] life through your word.” Because time really may be short.

AMEN

Good evening everyone

I have been asked for more prayers to encourage you through this time and I am delighted that so many of you have found the previous materials useful.

Please find below prayers put together by the church of England for such a time like this. I have put it in large print and it can either be printed off in booklet form or double sided. which ever print size you find most helpful. there are two sets of prayers and also a section for children.

of course these are just some to help those who find it easier but of course your own free prayer is as important. I have left a couple of blank pages if you wish to write your own.

May God draw ever closer to us and us to him as we dedicate ourselves to prayer. whether it 5 mins a day or 5 hours…..and why not try just sitting still, using no words but jut asking the Lord to speak to us. (you) you might find some very blessed moments as you do.

Paper copies can be available if you have no facilities to print them out,. just let me know.

with love in Christ

Stefanie xx

Click Here to get the prayers booklet

Here is the link for tonight’s quiz night. Doors open 7.15 for a 7.30 start.

So far there are 14 quizzers but you are very welcome to invite friends or neighbours to join on zoom or ( but only if safe and socially distanced) to be with you. I have included the phone numbers in case anyone would like to join by phone,

Sorry – but you will need to have your own snacks and drinks at the ready!!

Thank you Jon and Laura for organising the quiz – see you later.

Diane

Diane Peters is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89277642608?pwd=bFNWM2E1ZEZiR2xvVURTVWUvM05YUT09 Meeting ID: 892 7764 2608 Passcode: 972839 One tap mobile +442034815237,,89277642608#,,,,,,0#,,972839# United Kingdom +442034815240,,89277642608#,,,,,,0#,,972839# United Kingdom Dial by your location         +44 203 481 5237 United Kingdom         +44 203 481 5240 United Kingdom         +44 203 901 7895 United Kingdom         +44 131 460 1196 United Kingdom         +44 203 051 2874 United Kingdom Meeting ID: 892 7764 2608 Passcode: 972839