WHILE OUR CHURCH BUILDING IS REPAIRED WE ARE MEETING EACH SUNDAY AT THE MINERAL & LAPIDARY CLUB 11O WALTHAM RD (NEXT TO WALTHAM SCHOOL) AT 10AM.

WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WELCOME YOU.

Sunday 18^th February 2018 10am First Sunday in Lent

 Lenten Conversations…During Lent there is an opportunity to gather with others to grow in our connection with God and one another.  We have two groups meeting beginning this week on Monday night (7.30pm at Janet and Dugald’s home), and Wednesday afternoon  (1.30pm at Jeannette and David’s home).   There are still a couple of spaces available.

 Life Giving Habits in Lent: During Lent we will be highlighting life giving habits or disciplines that you may wish to experiment with.  These disciplines help us become more grounded and aware of God in our daily lives. 

Helen Keller became blind and deaf when only two years old.  She was blessed to have a teacher who realised that touch was the only way that she could connect and teach Helen.   Patiently day after day the teacher would spell the names of things they were experiencing on Helen’s hand.  For example, when she washed her hands in water the teacher would spell ‘water’ on Helen’s hand.  Helen’s world was very limited without sight and sound, and at first this strange ‘touching’ from another was meaningless.  But Helen slowly learned to recognise that the movements of touch on her hand were saying something.   They were ‘signs’ that helped explain what she was experiencing.  Finally she ‘got it’ – someone was communicating with her and teaching her, and from that day forward she never ceased to educate herself and expand her horizon.

Very few people are born with Helen’s handicap but do we really see and hear.  God may be whispering all around us and we don’t notice or make no sense of it.  We each are unique individuals who have different ways of ‘noticing’ God, so during Lent 2018 we will highlight different spiritual disciplines that might help us, like Helen, learn to hear and see the whispering of God in our lives.

Keeping a Journal… A journal can be kept in an exercise book, on your computer, or a specially purposed diary.  The main thing is that it is kept private and it is not for anyone else’s eyes, other than yourself and God.  It is somewhere where you can express yourself with uncensored honesty, and reflectively process some of what is happening in your life.

How often you write (or draw) is up to you but setting a regular committed pattern is important.  You might start weekly or if there is time more frequently.  It is helpful to find a quiet uninterrupted spot to use your journal for at least 15 minutes at a time.

What distinguishes a journal from a diary of events is that the emphasis is on exploring your own inner world.  Note the things that have somehow been significant for you.  When have you been most at peace and why do you think this so?  When have you been least at peace and why might this be?  When did you feel most alive and when did you feel least alive?  Why was this?  What delighted you and what upset you?  Start with what happened in the significant ‘event’ and what you felt or thought.  What might God be whispering to you through these happenings?  You can write about dreams, worries, failures, confusions, doubts, sadnesses and joys … anything that you think is significant in your life.

From time to time (maybe every three months, but at least yearly) read back over your journal and look for themes that come up regularly and persistently.  What is God saying to you in these things?

Notices: A very warm welcome to all who worship with us this morning. Please stay for morning tea after the service.

The Easter Story: Fact or Fable? Study Course at Iona House, Aranui

Why was the long-promised Messiah Jesus brutally executed on a crude Roman Cross? What was the early apostles’ experience of Jesus post the Crucifixion? Was Jesus physically raised from the dead? These two seminal events of the Christian tradition will be examined in the light of the latest research and biblical scholarship, especially the Jesus Seminar. The Easter events, their place in history and their relevance for today will also be noted.

Thursday afternoons for six weeks, 2pm – 4pm, commencing 8^th March 2018. Facilitated by Charles Manning, Rodney Routledge & Sheena Dickson. It will be interactive.

To enrol, email office.stgeorgesiona@gmail.com or ph 355 6601 to leave a message by 2^nd March.

Deadline for the next ‘Messenger’ is THIS Friday 23^rd February. Email contributions to anneke.howie@gmail.com please.

 Wednesday Walkers: 21^st February. Meet 9.30am in Bunyan St, west side of Waltham Park off Waltham Rd, (there is angle parking there) for a walk around the area. Coffee will be at the XCHC Café, 376 Wilsons Rd. All Welcome. Judith Mackay 332 1577.

Board of Managers’ meeting this Wednesday 21^st February 7.30pm at Merchiston.

 World Day of Prayer Ecumenical Service Friday 2^nd March 7.30pm at Beckenham Methodist Church. This year’s theme is “All God’s creation is very good!” The service has been prepared by the WDP committee, Suriname. All are welcome.

Fundraiser for St Martins: Handmade greeting cards for sale. $3 each.  All proceeds to St Martins Building fund.

 Crafty Crafters Craft Crawl to Hanmer Springs Thursday 29^th March leaving at 9.30am from Beckenham Methodist. Cost for the bus is $25 pp. We will visit craft shops in Culverden & Hanmer. Bring your togs if you want a swim! Please let Lyndsey McKay 388 1264 know if you would like to come along.

Also being planned is joining a cruise to a Pacific island in winter – see Lyndsey if you are interested.

WANTED: Photographs of Parish events – please email photos to the Office so we can keep a record of what’s happening around the parish.

 Court Theatre Group Booking: Thursday 5^th April 6.30pm “Easy Money” by Roger Hall. Cost $49 per person or $40 with a Community Services Card (photocopy of card details required). The seats selected are easily accessible for those with mobility issues. Numbers attending and money in NAMED envelope to Sue Saunders, or dropped in to the Parish Office, by Sunday 4^th March at the latest please. Sign up today!

CWS Cyclone Gita Appeal: Support Tongans to repair and replace water and food supplies lost in Cyclone Gita. Here’s how you can donate:

• Go to cws.org.nz/donate
• Direct Deposit – Christian World Service Account: 06 0817 0318646 00, ref: Tonga
• Phone 0800 74 73 72 with your credit card

WHILE OUR CHURCH BUILDING IS REPAIRED WE ARE MEETING EACH SUNDAY AT THE MINERAL & LAPIDARY CLUB 11O WALTHAM RD (NEXT TO WALTHAM SCHOOL) AT 10AM.

WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WELCOME YOU.

Sunday 11^th February 2018 10am

Notices: A very warm welcome to all who worship with us this morning. Please stay for morning tea. Many thanks to Rev Lyndsey McKay for leading today’s worship.

Articles are now due for the next ‘Messenger’. Email contributions to anneke.howie@gmail.com please. Deadline is Friday 23^rd  February.

 Wednesday Walkers: 14^th February. Meet 9.30am by footbridge near old Info Centre, Botanic Gardens to walk around Nth Hayley Park. Coffee at Museum Café and maybe afterwards folk might like to have a look at the National Geographic photographs. Rosalie 021 239 5005

ASH WEDNESDAY Service      14^th February 7.30pm at St Anne’s Anglican Church, 7 Wilsons Rd. All are welcome.

Crafty Crafters: Thursdays 10am – 12 noon at Beckenham Methodist. Bring along an unfinished craft, or come and learn a new one! $3 per session. All are welcome. Contact Beverley Hudson 384 7814 for further details.

Crafty Crafters Craft Crawl to Hanmer Springs Thursday 29^th March leaving at 9.30am from Beckenham Methodist. Cost for the bus is $25 pp. Bring your togs if you want a swim! Please let Lyndsey McKay know if you would like to come along.

Also being planned is joining a cruise around the islands in winter – see Lyndsey if you are interested.

WANTED: Photographs of Parish events – please email photos to the Office so we can keep a record of what’s happening around the parish.

 Court Theatre Group Booking: Thursday 5^th April 6.30pm “Easy Money” by Roger Hall. Cost $49 per person or $40 with a Community Services Card (photocopy of card details required). The seats selected are easily accessible for those with mobility issues. Numbers attending and money in NAMED envelope to Sue Saunders, or dropped in to the Parish Office, by Sunday 4^th March at the latest please. Sign up today!

Homemade jams, chutneys, sauces etc…Please let Sue Saunders know what you would like and she will make them on request.

Fundraiser for St Martins: Handmade greeting cards for sale. $3 each.  All proceeds to St Martins Building fund.

Moderator’s Waitangi Day Message
Ko taku reo taku ohooho, ko taku reo taku mapihi mauria
My language is my awakening, my language is the window to my soul

The whole point of the Treaty, as I see it, was to form a partnership between two peoples – a partnership which valued the culture of each fully and equally. What formed the basis of this agreement was a deep understanding that each culture had significant taonga (treasures) to offer a combined people.

One of the fundamental treasures of each culture was, without doubt, the language. Yet today – despite the fact that it is an official language of this country and despite the fact that the government has supported spending on the development of Te reo within a Maori context – the language remains unknown by the majority of New Zealanders. This is a huge loss, both to the personal development of all New Zealanders and, indeed, to our nation.
The one thing that will forever be unique about this country is Te reo Maori. No other nation can ever lay claim to that. Furthermore Te reo remains the very best pathway to the treasures of Maori, and therefore to true partnership.

This Waitangi Day, as Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand, I call for this language to be placed on the same footing as English in our education system and to become the true possession of everyone who is a citizen of this country. It is not just those who identify as Maori who should have to work to preserve this treasure. This is the birth-right of everyone who calls themselves a New Zealander – a citizen of Aotearoa, and it should be treated as such, I believe.

Many countries teach multiple languages from the start of school. Many teach more than two. It is not a hard thing, but it is the right thing to do, so I call upon the new government of this land to honour the Treaty in this way and to give Te Reo Maori the same resources we give to teaching English. In doing so, this will make the language what it truly is: the legacy of a Treaty between two peoples who desired to become stronger not through conflict, but by sharing their treasures.

We are weaker than we should be because we do not truly hold this treasure. Let us correct this today and more fully resource every educational institute in this country to teach and to speak this wonderful language.
In the name and for the glory of Christ

Richard Dawson

Lenten Conversations…

During Lent 2018 there is an opportunity to gather with others to grow in our connection with God and one another.  We will gather every week for 4 weeks (4 sessions of approx. 90 mins, beginning from Monday Feb19th) for tea/coffee and a time to converse and learn with a focus theme.  Groups of up to 8 people will run on Monday evenings, Tuesday mornings, and Wednesday afternoons. (Some people find they can’t make every session). Our focus theme this year is Nurturing Spiritual Practices.  We are going to have some fun experimenting with different ways of connecting with God and discerning God’s voice in our lives.  Sign the sheet on the back table or send Dugald a message.   You are encouraged to invite a friend.

WHILE OUR CHURCH BUILDING IS REPAIRED WE ARE MEETING EACH SUNDAY AT THE MINERAL & LAPIDARY CLUB 11O WALTHAM RD (NEXT TO WALTHAM SCHOOL) AT 10AM.

WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WELCOME YOU.

Sunday 4^th February 2018 10am

Notices:

A very warm welcome to all who worship with us this morning. Please stay for morning tea. Many thanks to Rev Alan Webster for leading today’s worship.

Minister away….Dugald is on leave until Sunday 11^th February.

Lenten Conversations…

During Lent 2018 there is an opportunity to gather with others to grow in our connection with God and one another.  We will gather every week for 4 weeks (4 sessions of approx. 90 mins, beginning from Monday Feb19th) for tea/coffee and a time to converse and learn with a focus theme.  Groups of up to 8 people will run on Monday evenings, Tuesday mornings, and Wednesday afternoons. (Some people find they can’t make every session). Our focus theme this year is Nurturing Spiritual Practices.  We are going to have some fun experimenting with different ways of connecting with God and discerning God’s voice in our lives.  Sign the sheet on the back table or send Dugald a message.   You are encouraged to invite a friend.

Wednesday Walkers: 7^th February Meet 9.30am on the corner of Bower Avenue and New Brighton Road for a walk along the river with an excursion into the red zone before returning to the Urban Corner Café for coffee.  Alan and Barbara.

ASH WEDNESDAY Service      14^th February 7.30pm at St Anne’s Anglican Church, 7 Wilsons Rd. All are welcome.

Articles are now due for the next ‘Messenger’. Email contributions to anneke.howie@gmail.com please. Deadline is Friday 23^rd  February.

Crafty Crafters: Thursdays 10am – 12 noon at Beckenham Methodist. Bring along an unfinished craft, or come and learn a new one! $3 per session. All are welcome. Contact Beverley Hudson 384 7814 for further details.

WANTED: Photographs of Parish events – please email photos to the Office so we can keep a record of what’s happening around the parish.

Court Theatre Group Booking: Thursday 5^th April 6.30pm “Easy Money” by Roger Hall. Cost $49 per person or $40 with a Community Services Card (photocopy of card details required). The seats selected are easily accessible for those with mobility issues. Numbers attending and money in NAMED envelope to Sue Saunders, or dropped in to the Parish Office, by Sunday 4^th March at the latest please. Sign up today!

Homemade jams, chutneys, sauces etc…

Please let Sue Saunders know what you would like and she will make them on request.

Fundraiser for St Martins:

Handmade greeting cards for sale. $3 each.  All proceeds to St Martins Building fund.

14^th CHCH Boys’ Brigade

Boys’ Brigade is a fun filled Christian based programme for boys aged 5-19 years old.  We operate in three sections: Anchor 5-7 years, Team Adventure 8-10 years and Company Xtreme 11-19 years old on Friday nights at Beckenham Methodist Church Hall, 52 Martin Ave. Contact Stephen Gregory 337 2296 for more details or email him admin@14thbb.org.nz

WHILE OUR CHURCH BUILDING IS REPAIRED WE ARE MEETING EACH SUNDAY AT THE MINERAL & LAPIDARY CLUB 11O WALTHAM RD (NEXT TO WALTHAM SCHOOL) AT 10AM.

WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WELCOME YOU.

Sunday 28^th January 2018 10am

Notices:

A very warm welcome to all who worship with us this morning. Please stay for morning tea after the service. Many thanks to David Beaumont for leading today’s worship.

Foot Clinic TOMORROW 1-4pm at Beckenham Methodist. See Lyndsey McKay if you would like to join the volunteers who provide this service.

Wednesday Walkers: 31^st January. Meet 9.30am in Bishopdale Mall carpark in front of New World. Coffee at Café Vivo. All welcome. Please ensure you have adequate sun protection! Sue 960 7657.

Lenten Conversations…

During Lent 2018 there is an opportunity to gather with others to grow in our connection with God and one another.  We will gather every week for 4 weeks (4 sessions of approx. 90 mins, beginning from Monday Feb19th) for tea/coffee and a time to converse and learn with a focus theme.  Groups of up to 8 people will run on Monday evenings, Tuesday mornings, and Wednesday afternoons. (Some people find they can’t make every session). Our focus theme this year is Nurturing Spiritual Practices.  We are going to have some fun experimenting with different ways of connecting with God and discerning God’s voice in our lives.  Sign the sheet on the back table or send Dugald a message.   You are encouraged to invite a friend.

Court Theatre Group Booking: Thursday 5^th April 6.30pm “Easy Money” by Roger Hall. Cost $49 per person or $40 with a Community Services Card (photocopy of card details required). The seats selected are easily accessible for those with mobility issues. Numbers attending and money in NAMED envelope to Sue Saunders, or dropped in to the Parish Office, by Sunday 4^th March at the latest please. Sign up today!

Do you have an excess in your garden…. Bring the extra produce to church and share it with folk….  As God has been generous with you be generous with others.

Homemade jams, chutneys, sauces etc…

Please let Sue Saunders know what you would like and she will make them on request.

Crafty Crafters: Thursdays 10am – 12 noon at Beckenham Methodist. Bring along an unfinished craft, or come and learn a new one! $3 per session. All are welcome. Contact Beverley Hudson 384 7814 for further details.

Fundraiser for St Martins:

Handmade greeting cards for sale. $3 each.  All proceeds to St Martins Building fund.

Session Report…

Mission Discernment Group….(Elizabeth Penwell, Hilary Moore, Jill Grierson, Rob Meier, Warren Pettigrew, Carol Mechaelis, Irene Gray, Gillian Cree, Dugald Wilson) reported on their discussions so far as they work with Helen Clyde-Smith from the Presbytery.  They have been looking at three questions:

1. What is church?
2. What is our mission?
3. What is our context?

These questions do not have easy answers.  For example many see church primarily in terms of what happens on Sunday morning, but this is a very narrow point of view.  Church is about an encounter with Jesus and a commitment to making that encounter a source of life for all.  We notice that most of us struggle to define the mission of the church.  Often we refer to the pastoral mission and the good fellowship we find in church.  We easily forget the very foundation of mission is Jesus and his invitation to discover life in all its fullness.  We neglect the need to nurture the stories of Jesus in people’s hearts and the need to be active in reshaping the values and td ideals of the community we live in to reflect the teaching of Jesus.  We also note that we now live in a very different context to that when many of our church structures and practices were established.  We are working towards making some calls on naming some signposts that might guide us as we move forward into the very fluid world of 2018.

Repair and Rebuild of Church…. Further questions have been asked of the architect by the council consenting team.

Property….thank you to David Hodder for attending to the painting of the church office

Health and safety…. We reaffirmed the importance of the paper trail with any matter of health and safety that is noticed.  We keep a hazard register in the office.

Minister away….Dugald will be on leave from Sunday 28^th January until Sunday 11^th February.

WANTED: Photographs of Parish events – please email photos to the Office so we can keep a record of what’s happening around the parish.

14^th CHCH Boys’ Brigade

Boys’ Brigade is a fun filled Christian based programme for boys aged 5-19 years old.  We operate in three sections: Anchor 5-7 years, Team Adventure 8-10 years and Company Xtreme 11-19 years old.  Activities include crafts, games, camps, outdoor pursuits, leadership training, life skills and lots more. We meet on a Friday night at Beckenham Methodist Church Hall, 52 Martin Ave. New members welcome for 2018. Contact Stephen Gregory 337 2296 for more details or email him admin@14thbb.org.nz

WHILE OUR CHURCH BUILDING IS REPAIRED WE ARE MEETING EACH SUNDAY AT THE MINERAL & LAPIDARY CLUB 11O WALTHAM RD (NEXT TO WALTHAM SCHOOL) AT 10AM.

WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WELCOME YOU.

Sunday 21^st January 2018 10am

 Notices:

Lenten Conversations…During Lent 2018 there is an opportunity to gather with others to grow in our connection with God and one another.  We will gather every week for 4 weeks (4 sessions of approx. 90 mins, beginning from Monday Feb19th) for tea/coffee and a time to converse and learn with a focus theme.  Groups of up to 8 people will run on Monday evenings, Tuesday mornings, and Wednesday afternoons. (Some people find they can’t make every session). Our focus theme this year is Nurturing Spiritual Practices.  We are going to have some fun experimenting with different ways of connecting with God and discerning God’s voice in our lives.  Sign the sheet on the back table or send Dugald a message.   You are encouraged to invite a friend.

 Do you have an excess in your garden…. Bring the extra produce to church and share it with folk….  As God has been generous with you be generous with others.

Wednesday Walkers: 24^th January. Meet at South Library 9.30am for an informal stroll.

Court Theatre Group Booking: Thursday 5^th April 6.30pm “Easy Money” by Roger Hall. Cost $49 per person or $40 with a Community Services Card (photocopy of card details required). The seats selected are easily accessible for those with mobility issues. Numbers attending and money in NAMED envelope to Sue Saunders, or dropped in to the Parish Office, by Sunday 4^th March at the latest please. Look out for the sign up sheet next week!

Crafty Crafters: Thursdays 10am – 12 noon at Beckenham Methodist. Bring along an unfinished craft, or come and learn a new one! $3 per session. All are welcome. Contact Beverley Hudson 384 7814 for further details.

Waltham Cottage re-opens Monday 22^nd January.

Shopping bags made by Rohingya Refugees in Malaysia…. When Dugald and Janet were visiting family recently they met Selina, a Muslim woman who has initiated with others a small project to help some of the thousands of Rohingya refugees that have flooded into Malaysia.  These refugees are stateless so they are people who officially don’t exist.  They cannot use health and educational facilities in Malaysia, and to survive must work illegally.  Selina has started a small business with a borrowed sewing machine to help some of the refugees make shopping bags.  These are available for sale at $10.00 each.

Citizens Advice Bureau Needs Volunteers: Training course starts in March. Volunteers answer queries on any matters from consumer rights, to family issues, tenancy and flatting problems, and more. To join the knowledgeable and caring team contact Christchurch Citizens Advice Bureau 0800 367 222 or manager@cabchch@gmail.com

 Assisted Suicide in New Zealand: Come and hear Dr Amanda Landers, a local palliative care doctor who works with people and their families/whanau facing life-limiting illness. She will give a short presentation about palliative care in New Zealand, the End of Life Choice Bill (as it stands now) and some of the implications for our society. Following the presentation, there will be time to write a submission to the Parliamentary Justice Committee.

Opawa Baptist Church 285 Wilsons Rd on Thursday 25^th January or Thursday 1^st February 7.30-8.30pm. For more information please email amandalanders1974@gmail.com

Fairfax Media/Stuff is rallying the community to get behind the Wasp Wipeout – an initiative to significantly reduce the wasp population in New Zealand at the country’s favourite recreational and tourism spots. Wasps are having a devastating impact on our native birds, bats, lizards and insects, exploiting the most valuable food sources of the forest and entirely altering New Zealand’s natural biodiversity.

These wasps are also a serious threat to people, delivering painful stings that can cause life-threatening allergic reactions and — in extreme cases — death.

The Campaign: We’ll be using Vespex, an extremely effective protein-based wasp bait (developed in New Zealand), and placing bait stations across the region. To do this, we’re leading a crowdfunding campaign – the more we can raise, the more bait stations we can put out and the greater chance we have of solving the wasp problem for good.

How to contribute:

See http://popshop.stuff.co.nz/campaigns/wasps  for details

World Day of Prayer: Observed on the first Friday in March each year, this is a worldwide movement of informed prayer involving people of many denominations and languages in more than 170 countries. Each year the service is written by women in a different country who share the hopes and fears, joys and sorrows, opportunities and needs, of their country. It affirms that informed prayer and prayerful action are inseparable.

This year’s service has been prepared by the women of Suriname. Our local service is at Beckenham Methodist Church on Friday 2 March at 7.30pm