White Church Alternative Notices Week 44
Dear Church Friends,
How is everyone this week? It was a slight surprise to wake up to snow outside this morning, as we usually miss it on the Fylde. The subsequent hail shower soon covered those areas that the snow had missed and outside it is eerily quiet with muffled traffic noise. What a week for bad weather! We were able to get a walk on Friday morning, the first time since Monday due to the constant rain and cold and felt better for being able to venture outside. Spring sometimes seems far away. Yesterday on returning from our walk I strolled round our garden to see what had appeared since the last time I was out there. I noticed that the pots I had planted with pansies and wallflowers in the autumn and left outside, had developed and become established. What a colourful sight befell me. The little faces of the pansies seemed shining and bright and stood out against the black of the compost. The wallflowers are full of yellow buds and will join the pansies with their bright colour before too long. In our garden I also saw skimmia, winter heathers and the fluffy seed heads of last year’s tangutica clematis which I always leave on the shrub as the birds find them useful for nesting material in the spring. Even though some of the flowers have been buffeted by the wind and the rain, the sight reminded me that nature continues throughout everything and Spring will come. Most gardens now have masses of shoots growing up from the bulbs which have been dormant under the earth for many months. Spring is on its way.
Winterwatch is back on the TV and as one of the presenters said, “nature has healing powers.” Just observing it, whether through the TV or being able to go outside will lift our spirits. There has been film from the River Ness in Scotland showing the return of a salmon after four years at sea and also a cormorant taking advantage of the abundance of salmon by catching and swallowing whole a huge salmon. It almost seemed too large to swallow. Elsewhere 6 tiny wrens were photographed keeping warm tucked into a hanging pouch someone had hung in their garden and in the New Forest thermal cameras have observed field and wood mice, fallow deer and badgers. For me the programme is a joy to watch, showing God’s world in all its beauty.
Do you remember snow globes? These are the ones you had to shake and then tiny flakes of ‘snow ‘ filled the globe masking the scene inside. After you put the globe down and waited a while, all the ‘snow’ began to settle and inside the globe it became calm once again. Sometimes life gives us a shake, but it will settle and be still and you will feel calm and at peace once more. The pandemic has shaken us all but things will settle and life will return.
Last week I sent on a video from that Rev Jim shared with us last week about things that are not cancelled. I have had some further thoughts abouts things are not cancelled: Sunshine is not cancelled; nature is not cancelled; love is not cancelled; kindness is not cancelled; compassion is not cancelled; books are not cancelled; the seasons are not cancelled; devotion is not cancelled; music is not cancelled; imagination is not cancelled; conversations are not cancelled; hope is not cancelled; church friends are not cancelled; prayers are not cancelled. I’m sure you will have your own ideas to add as well. Together we can be strong and weather the storm of life.
Are you receiving the Home Service and Alternative Notices each week?
Some people have emailed me to say that they don’t always receive the Alternative Notices. I usually send them out before lunchtime on a Saturday, so if you haven’t received yours by about 3pm please let me know by email and I will resend it. I also send out the weekly Home Service from either Rev Jim or Rev Janet at some point during the week, so if you don’t receive that please let me know.
Sunday 24th January 2021 7pm Churches Together in Lancashire Service
A reminder from Daleen that there will be a Churches Together in Lancashire Service via Zoom to mark the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.
A service of reflection and thanksgiving for the life in Christ will be shared together with contributions from across the Christian Community in Lancashire.
Please remember to sign up in advance with Eventbrite as shown on the email I sent to you on 9th January about it. Please contact me if you have lost the link and I will send it again.
Weekly Sunday Worship 10:30am and 6:30pm
Jim and Janet invite you to Weekly Worship via Zoom.
The links/IDs and Passcodes are the same each week and are available from [email protected]. Join at anytime before the scheduled start (10:30am, 6:30pm). The morning service will be repeated in the evening.
John and I joined last Sunday’s Morning Worship when there were about 20 people joining together via Zoom. I don’t know how many of the partnership churches were represented, but it was good to have at least 6 people from the White Church.
More from Arthur L.
Seen on an American Church Noticeboard
“Honk if you love Jesus,
Text or phone while driving if you want to meet him.”
Excerpts from items seen in newspapers;
Police are having a problem in searching for a stolen van, because they cannot issue a description. It’s a Special Branch vehicle and they don’t want the public to know what it looks like.
A young girl who was blown out to sea on a set of inflatable teeth was rescued by a man on an inflatable lobster. A coastguard spokesman commented, “this sort of thing is all too common,”
Some years ago these thought-provoking words were seen on a church notice board in the heart of New York:
What is Charity?
It is Silence ————– when your words would hurt.
It is Patience ————– when your neighbour is curt.
It is Deafness ————– when a scandal flows.
It is Thoughtfulness ————– for other’s woes.
It is promptness ————– when duty calls.
It is courage ————– when misfortune falls.
Let us pray
Dear Lord,
We pray for all those who have suffered flooding as a result of the extremely heavy rain in parts of the country this week. We give thanks for all the helpers who have rescued people or tried to prevent the flooding happening. For many of these people it is not the first time their houses have been flooded and we ask you to give them strength to cope with this new adversity in these troubled times. Life is very difficult for many and we pray for your continued encouragement, strength, comfort, light, hope and above all everlasting love.
We pray for those known to us who are struggling at present and ask for Your peace upon them. Thank you for the strength You give to each one of us and help us to pass it on to others. Continue to be our Rock. Thank you for the all the Blessings we have and let us be grateful for the fellowship of others. In Your name. Amen
Please join me in saying the Grace together.
May the Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Love of God and the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all, now and evermore. Amen
God Bless you all
Ruth
