July 2012

 July started with a trip into Derbyshire.  After the morning service on July 1st a number of us went along the snake Pass to a farm.  At this farm there is a long tradition of holding a love feast annually.

 The barn is transformed into a chapel for these events with a small, table, flower displays,cross and benches.

 The congregation gathers and once assembled the minister asks people to choose hymns and testimonies.  Volunteers brought their items and a token meal of spring water in a traditional loving cup, and fruit cake was distributed
 On the 9th of the month the mean's breakfast was held, and the bible fellowship met on the 3rd and 17th.  The Ladies' fellowship met on the 18th when our Pastor Susannah led the meeting.
On Saturday 21st, the Ladies fellowship held their annual coffee morning is support of Martin house Hospice.

Sunday 22nd was our annual pet and animal service, and a number of visitors brought their pets to church.  this event was held outside.
The monthly supper club was held on the 26th when we enjoyed a menu of:  dips and Tortilla chips, Sausage in Cumberland Sauce, Vegetarian Sausage in Cumberland Sauce, Roasted tomato & mushroom, Moroccan Couscous, Boiled New Potatoes, Peas, Sweetcorn; Yorkshire Curd Tart and Nectarine Slices.  The speaker spoke about  his lifetime of music.
The month ended with a needlework day on July 28th.

The bog garden continues to produce a variety of blooms.

June 2012

June was a busy month.  It started with a Coffee morning on the Saturday 2nd, and then a Teddy Bears' Picnic on the Jubilee Weekend bank holiday

The event was well attended and all entered into the spirit of the occasion.

There were prizes for various categories, including oldest, largest and others.  The variety was huge!

As well as the teddy bears, there were jubilee themed arts and crafts inside

 Over 80 visitors attended the event, and over 30 New Testaments were given out, along with over 20copies of "No Ordinary Man", all inscribed as mementoes of the Jubilee
Because it was a Bank holiday, there was no Bible Fellowship on Tuesday 5th, but on Tuesday 19th we concluded our study of the book of Acts.
The men's breakfast met as usual on the 11th.
The weekend of the 23rd and 24th was our flower festival.  The theme was the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.  For the photographs of the displays, please follow the link to the church website and then go the the "Flower Festival 2012" page.  The event was well attended with nearly £200 being donated in support of our church project to improve sanitation in Africa.

During the festival we distributed more new testaments and "No ordinary man", bringing the totals given away to 50 and 40 respectively.

 The supper club met on June 28th, with a menu of Cheese and apple cocktail, boiled bacon, duchesse potatoes, beans and ratatouille, followed by strawberry gateau, coffee and mints.  The speaker told us about the work of a charity called CLEM.  A South American group of women who manufacture items and sell them in order to improve their conditions.

May 2012

The cross placed outside for Easter lasted well.  

The bog garden is now well established, and the weather seems to have suited it this year.  The Guelder roses have flowered for the first time this year.

May started with a coffee morning on Saturday May 5th.  This was well attended.
Unusually, the Needlework day was on a Thursday (the 10th) in order to allow for people's other commitments.
May 13th was a "Fellowship Service" where members of the congregation bring along items for the service.
The men's breakfast met on the 14th and had a good discussion (not to mention breakfast!)
On Wednesday 16th, the Ladies' meeting was addressed by Steve Drinkall, who gave an illustrated talk about wildlife.  The evening was our church meeting.
The supper club on the 24th was a smaller group than normal, due to a number of people being on holiday, but still a success.  The menu was: Brown Windsor Soup, Regal chicken pie, with broccoli, potatoes and rich butter sauce, followed by Queen's pudding, coffee and mints.
During the month, the Tuesday Bible Fellowship met twice and continued to study the book of Acts. 

April 2012

April started with Easter which is recorded in the previous post.  April 9th should have been our monthly mens' breakfast, but because it was a bank holiday it was decided to delay by one week until the 16th. 
On the 17th, (Tuesday) we hosted a visit from representatives of the Union Home Missions Committee.  We met at chapel where Susannah had prepared a tea for our members and the visitors.  After tea, we spent a time in prayer and discussion about out current events and future plans.  It was interesting to hear from members of other churches, and wehope that this will be the start of an ongoing relationship with these congregations. 
Thursday April 26th was the first supper club.  The menu was:  Onion and leek soup, Haddock Mornay with potatoes, glazed carrots and steamed asparagus, followed by table cream and tropical fruit.  The speaker was from the Edale Mountain Rescue Team.  In spite of a failure of his I.T.equipment, the talk was enjoyable and informative.  A collection in support of their work raised over £80-00.

Easter 2012

Our Easter celebrations really started on the Tuesday before when we held our Lent meal, whilst we concluded our study course "The way to Freedom". This thought provoking course, produced by Churches Together in Britain and Ireland, concluded with a discussion about death. The meal was an opportunity to remember the way in which Jesus broke bread and shared a cup over a meal.

Our Good Friday service was held at 7-30p.m. when Simon Cheatle from our Philadelphia church led our thoughts.

Saturday was the first of our regular coffee mornings which was well attended. Jamie served his bacon butties, hot cross buns were available, and Nathan organised a car wash in aid of Don District Explorer scouts' camp in Wales later this year.

Sunday morning started at 8-30a.m. with early morning communion led by our pastor Susannah. This was followed by breakfast organised by David and Elaine. During breakfast we were visited by a passing group from "Contemplative Fire" We had a good conversation and look forward to this relationship developing.

The morning service was led by pastor Jonathan, and during this service, Jamie and Nathan were received as full members by Brian, our church secretary, and Dave, our Young People's Department officer.

March 2012

The grass has already to grow, so the mower had to be got out of the shed, the battery charged, the fuel line unblocked (!) and then it needed to be started. All this effort to stop the grass from growing under our feet!!

During March we continued to follow our Lent Studies "The way to Freedom" based on a poem by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, every Tuesday.

On 11th March, Dave Tuckett led our morning service on Tear Fund Sunday, followed by a simple lunch. People were invited to contribute the cost of their normal lunch to Tear Fund.

17th March was a Needlework Day.

The Ladies' meeting was a craft session where the ladies made an Easter card.

On Saturday 24th March, we celebrated the 50th wedding anniversary of Brian, our church secretary and Margaret. Their daughter, Alison, had catered for the assembled group of family and friends.

The month ended with a clear up day where we threw away some of the accumulated debris which had out lived its usefulness. Since then, we have already had "Have you seen!??" moments.

February 2012

February started with some seasonal weather! This meant that many of our congregation could not get to the chapel, although a few of us went to make sure that any visitors could be welcomed and advised of the circumstances.
The weather did not adversely affect our plans for the month, which included having our toilets re-modelled in order to make them more accessible. This was scheduled to take place over two weeks, starting on Feb. 6th. Accordingly we decided not to worship at Mayfield on !2th and 19th Feb. We arranged to meet with our friends at Philadelphia chapel in the city, where we were made very welcome.
The toilets were completed on schedule, and on budget! so we were able to return "home" for Sunday 26th.
Our Tuesday fellowship group also did not meet, but our Lent course started on Feb. 28th, and will continue to meet every week during Lent. This year we are following "The Way to Freedom", a course produced by Churches Together in Britain and Ireland.