From:                              Wolverhampton & Shrewsbury District Office [admin@wsmethodist.org.uk]

Sent:                               29 November 2023 17:20

To:                                   beckminster@talktalk.net

Subject:                          29/11/2023

 

New this week:
Wonderful Christmas Gift - update
Doing something for Holy Land
Visit of President and Vice-President
In case you missed it:
Warm Coats and Warmed Hearts
Ablewell Nativity Event - update
Amplify Youth Weekend
Prayer Guide Training Course
New District Grants Officer needed
District Warm Spaces Grants
District Advent and Christmas Small Grants
Safeguarding and Admin Vacancy
NPNP Conference


Dial-a-prayer free phone line to hear prayers : 0808 281 2514 Methodist News : 0808 281 2478

View this email in your browser

 

Wonderful Christmas Gift! Who can you invite?


The Springs Dance company will be performing “The Journey of the Magi” on Saturday 2nd December at 5.30pm at Walsall Central Hall.  Here’s one review:
 
Forget The Nutcracker, Springs Dance Company’s Journey of the Magi is the best Christmas show I have ever seen! I went along to see it one dark, wet and dismal night in Birmingham and I came out having been touched, amused and moved to tears. Journey of the Magi looks beyond the tinsel and trappings and reveals the real meaning of Christmas.  Sir David Bintley CBE
 
The performance is suitable for children and adults alike.  The District has agreed to fund all costs associated with this performance so that churches can offer this as a free gift to people who may be blessed by it.  We particularly hope that this might be enjoyed by people who may not otherwise be able to access a Christmas treat like this, though everyone is welcome.  (Unfortunately, whilst making it accessible cost-wise, please be aware that nearly all the tiered seating can only be accessed by steps…we will only have around 20 spaces accessible for those with mobility needs which will need to be booked by contacting Richard Lockley on admin@wsmethodist.org.uk).
 
Booking is via TicketSource: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/null/t-avdekdr and bookings are now open!
 

  • Think of who you might be blessed by this - perhaps from groups associated with your church.  What might you need to do to encourage them to come?  Perhaps you can offer to accompany them?

 
You can find a taster of the show here: https://youtu.be/qIQmZj6hDoE?si=m3T2MvXXIMxo86iY
 

 

Doing something Out of the Ordinary to show support to Christians in Holy Land

The Methodist Liaison Officer in Jerusalem (Rev David Hardman) is currently in this country and has been speaking about the situation in Israel/Gaza.  He has heard from Christian colleagues in Bethlehem, who tell us that this Advent and Christmas the lights that normally adorn the birth place of Jesus in Bethlehem will remain unlit in memory of those who have been killed in the current conflict.  The Patriarchs and Heads of Churches in Jerusalem have noted that the traditional festive services in the Holy Land will be sombre in nature due to the war.

Therefore, Methodist Churches across the United Kingdom are being invited to do something ‘out of the ordinary’ and not to light the Advent Candle on the second Sunday in Advent (Dec 10th) and on subsequent Sundays.  This will serve as a reminder that we stand in solidarity with all those who are suffering in the Holy Land.  The second Sunday in Advent has been chosen because in some traditions the second candle is known as the Bethlehem candle and represents peace.   

On Christmas Day we are invited to take a photo of our Advent Ring with the second candle unlit and send it to office@mlojerusalem.org, and the staff at the Methodist Liaison Office will forward your pictures to local Church communities in the Holy Land so our sisters and brothers in Christ can see that we have stood in solidarity with them over the festive season.
 
 

 

Visit of President and Vice-President

We’re delighted to welcome Rev’d Gill Newton and Deacon Kerry Scarlett to the District this weekend.
On Friday we’ll be joined by Novette Headley, Chair of Birmingham District, and other invited guests on a visit to the Black Country Living Museum where we’ll hear of the work of the Methodist volunteer team who introduce thousands of visitors to the Gospel Cart and the Providence Chapel.  We’ll spend an informal evening at Kingswinford in the Vale of Stour Circuit, sharing music and food with the worship group.
On Saturday we’ll cross the District to Whixall Marina where the Shropshire and Marches Circuit’s MeMO trailer will be set up to tell the Christmas story and to offer Forest Church.  In the late afternoon Gill and Kerry will be on the volunteer team assisting guests at “Journey of the Magi”
On Sunday morning Kerry will be joining Deacon Sue Culver in the Cannock Chase Circuit as she leads worship in a local prison, whilst Gill will lead a Circuit service in the Stafford Circuit having first shared in a Berkswich Breakfast.
It’s an opportunity for the wider Connexion to sample some of our hidden treasures and for us to discover more of our own.  Please pray the weekend will be a blessing to many.
 

 

Warm Coats and Warmed Hearts

 - A story from the Black Country Circuit
There are so many stories worth sharing from around the District, and sometimes some of them are picked up by the wider Connexion.  This story from New Road in the Black Country Circuit is one of them.  It’s worth reading not only to remind ourselves of the many ways in which we still fulfil Our Calling as Methodist Christians, but also to note the “strategy behind the story”.  New Mill first spent a long time praying and discerning.  Then they gathered people together.  They asked questions and listened to the answers.  They found partners beyond the church.  And then, together, the outcome was delivered.  
https://www.methodist.org.uk/about-us/news/the-methodist-blog/warm-coats-and-warmed-hearts/?fbclid=IwAR39gVSsVGptwykTRDwfnb02ROFy4BZ1h_a9kuATAmknW0BQHlM65i7UCV0
 

 

Ablewell Nativity Event - update


 

Amplify Youth Weekend


Amplify 2024 will be taking place between 15th and 17th March 2024!
Amplify is a weekend away for 8-18s and their leaders from the Birmingham and Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury Districts. The weekend is packed full of outdoor activities as well as our own programme of worship and activities.
 
So where do you come in?
 
Are there children and young people in your church who would enjoy a weekend away?
Are you a leader that could enable your young people to be a part of the weekend?
Do you have some spare time across the weekend to come and help in our small but mighty stewarding team?
 
Tickets for the weekend are on sale now, and steward applications are open.
A deposit of £10 for leaders and £20 for young people is needed to secure a place, and this can be done up until Sunday 7th January. This is then put towards the total cost of £20 and £80 respectively.
 
For more information and to book tickets, please visit www.birminghammethodist.org.uk/amplify
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to email me at youth@birminghammethodist.org.uk
 
Please consider how you might be involved in Amplify, and keep the event, the planning team and those who will attend in your prayers.
 
Many thanks,
Charlotte 🙂
 

 

Prayer Guide Training Course

This course is designed to enable you to begin guiding/accompanying others as they take part in Ignatian based retreats.

It has been continuously evolving since the first such training in Birmingham that was introduced by Fr Gerry HughesSJ and associates in the late 1980s.

It is a starter-course which will equip you to begin accompanying pilgrims on retreats. If you do that as part of Manresa Link there is always supervision, and encouragement to take part in ongoing training/development over time.

The course will consist initially of 10 Saturday mornings, commencing on January 13th 2024, but with a break on February 24th. These will all take place at St Mary’s Convent, 98 Hunters Rd, Lozells, Birmingham B19 1EB

The Saturdays will then be followed by two Retreats In Daily Life (4 weeks duration). In the first retreat, half of the course participants will be prayer-guides and the other half will be retreatants. Then roles reverse for the second retreat.

On the Saturdays there will be prayer, input on various aspects of Ignatian Spirituality and on skills needed, and then the “real” work of the course – the triads! This is small groups of 3 course participants, one person sharing, one listening and one observing.

Each week course participants will be given a piece of Scripture to pray on daily.

Then, on all but the first Saturday, participants will be assigned to groups of three (the triads). In the triads, one person will share what they have been experiencing in their prayer over the past week. Another of the three will have been appointed to be a “prayerguide” to listen to them, and to help them to explore and deepen. The third person acts as an observer of the listener.

Each of the three then feedback to the others.

Roles swap around and repeat the process, so that on each Saturday, everyone has had a turn at sharing, prayer-guiding and observing.

One of the training team members will also have been sitting in and will give overall feedback.

Because the triads are the heart of the course, it is important that you attend all sessions – your absence in any one week will disrupt that process. We do try to have contingency plans for emergencies but ask that you set attendance as a priority.

Evaluation – during the course there will be a process of joint evaluation. Participants will be invited to use a self-evaluation tool to help them to assess for themselves where their strengths and weaknesses lie, and how these develop throughout the course as learning takes place. This will be explored with members of the training team as we go along, but it is a positive oriented process – discovering your gifts and helping you to discern God’s call to you.

 

Cost

The total cost for this course is £200. We ask for a £50 deposit once your application is accepted, and that the remaining £150 be paid at commencement of the course. However, we can consider requests for bursaries of for more time to pay.

 

New District Grants Officer needed


We will be sorry to say farewell to the Rev’d Helen Croft, currently serving in the Vale of Stour Circuit, who has received permission from the Stationing Advisory Committee to explore opportunities to serve in ministry in the United States.  Helen will obviously go with our prayers, and we will look forward to seeing what God has in store for her.
This leaves the District looking for a new District Grants Officer, a voluntary role open to both lay and ordained people.  This is an important role in the life of the District with clearly outlined responsibilities.  You can find an outline of the role here.  If you are interested in exploring this, please contact the District Chair.
 

 

District Warm Spaces Grant Scheme

Warm Spaces 2023
Last year many churches in the District opened a Warm Space for the Winter.  In some places it worked very well and in others there was little demand.  Most often people welcomed the company as much as the warmth.
The Methodist Church does not want to see Warm Spaces “normalised” in the same way as Food Banks.  We want a just society where neither are necessary.  But with direct government support for fuel bills withdrawn and prices still high, many predict that this winter will be at least as hard for households as last year.  And whilst people are cold and hungry, we want to help churches to meet this need (Matt 25 v.31-46).  Therefore the District Policy Committee has agreed to extend our Winter grant scheme, with £500 available to churches opening a warm space.
Please apply here after reading the safeguarding considerations here and the examples here
 

 

District Advent and Christmas Small Grant Scheme


This Advent and Christmas, the District is supporting the Connexional campaign “Out of the Ordinary” by making small grants available to churches wanting to reach out beyond their Sunday congregation with the message of God’s love in Jesus.  In a change this year, the top limit you can apply for has been raised to £200 and the cap on the number of applications that can be made in a Circuit has been removed. These grants are easy to apply for but they are carefully scrutinised, so please make sure you’ve thought through how you can meet the criteria!
Click here to apply.
 

 

Safeguarding and Administrative Worker Vacancy

The Stafford Methodist Circuit is seeking a Safeguarding & Administrative Worker to support and oversee the Circuit’s Safeguarding Practices and to provide day to day administrative support to the Superintendent Minister, in collaboration with the Circuit Administrator.
 
Working closely with the Superintendent Minister, we seek someone with the ability to lead and instruct on all aspects around Safeguarding at
Circuit Level.  Applicants should have experience in Safeguarding within a volunteer or employed environment with a working knowledge of
workplace IT systems.
 
20 hours per week
Salary: £25,967 per annum (pro-rata)
Fixed term – until September 2025
Closing date for applications: 1st December 2023
 
For Job Description & Person Specification, please contact admin@staffmc.org.uk
 

 

'Wholehearted' Conference for those interested in NPNP 

An invitation for anyone thinking about, or leading a New People New Places to join the Evangelism & Growth team at ‘Wholehearted’ conference:
 
12 to 14 January 2024 at Yarnfield Park, near Stone, Staffordshire.
 
We will spend time seeking God, discerning vision, engaging in strategic planning and workshopping knotty problems. It would be great to have your voice and wisdom inspiring those in more established contexts. Places, include accommodation and food, are fully funded but a deposit of £50 is required when booking (returned in full after the weekend to all who attend). If you need help paying the deposit please contact Julian Bond bondj@methodistchurch.org.uk or contact Jo Yair ministryandmission@wsmethodist.org.uk
 
Book here www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/whole-hearted-tickets-594498249267 <http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/whole-hearted-tickets-594498249267
 

 

 

 

 

Copyright © 2023 Wolverhampton & Shrewsbury District - The Methodist Church, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you are a part of the Wolverhampton & Shrewsbury District.

Our mailing address is:

Wolverhampton & Shrewsbury District - The Methodist Church

Beckminster Methodist Church

Birches Barn Road

Wolverhampton, West Midlands WV3 7BQ

United Kingdom


Add us to your address book



unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences 

Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp