Update from the Vicar 

20th April 2023

Click here for the video update
 
I wanted to give you an update as I draw close to starting my Sabbatical on the 1 May. It thought it’d be helpful to explain it again and make sure you’re aware of what’s happening. I’ll be on sabbatical for 3 months and will come back to New Wine United B which will be a brilliant way to reconnect with many of you (why not consider coming with St Mary’s to New Wine United B at the Kent event centre from 1-5 August. https://www.new-wine.org/events/united23/). I’ll be working the inside of the week after New Wine and then on annual leave. So my last Sunday is 30th April and then our next Sunday worship at church will be on 3rd September.
 
As I explained earlier in the year, I’ll have been ordained 14 years this year and I’ve been offered this opportunity for rest and prayer, for renewal and listening to God. I’d really welcome your prayer for this time, for me and my family and obviously for our church while we won’t be around and while we’ll be out of contact. I’ll be taking retreats and listening to God through study/retreat/recreation and having conversations with other leaders. I want to grow the depth of my relationship with God and to be refreshed for serving him. I’m passionate about abiding in God so that our mission flows out of deep encounter with him. So I’m hoping the Lord is going to be leading me deeper into an understanding of the love of Father God and that this is going to benefit us all at St Mary’s.
 
Practically, during this time the wardens Peter Ralph and Vanessa Cooper will be your go-to if you have any questions or concerns that you’d usually bring to me as Vicar and we’re thankful that we have so many capable leaders in our church, including ministry leaders and PCC. A huge thank you to everyone serving in the life of the church. We are also grateful to have some visiting clergy coming to help us with some of our services on Sundays in the next few months.
 
As you know we’re looking forward to welcoming a new Children and Families Leader in early September, and she’s called Jenny. We’re so thankful to God for her appointment, for God’s provision at a time when generally recruitment is proving tricky (I hear this from other churches and charities). Please be praying for her as she finishes off her degree, as she serves on Christian camps over the summer and prepares to join us.
 
Let’s also be showing our appreciation, particularly to our childrens group volunteers who are doing a fabulous job of serving. I’m thankful to Luke with Ruth for leading the Rockets mid-week small group, it’ll soon be up and running after the holiday break, bi-weekly again, and likely in a new location (a few practical things are getting sorted). Isn’t it wonderful that because we have so many people serving in childrens work we can run our groups on Sundays (except of course for the all age weeks on 1st and 5th Sunday and holiday weeks). There are only two weeks (25th June and 23rd July) over the coming months where we’re short for leaders to run the Sunday Rockets group, so although this isn’t a perfect situation it’s just a short season and I think it’s brilliant what’s been made possible. Well done, it is no mean feat while we are in a season of vacancy waiting for a Children and Families Leader and with the necessary rejigging to rotas over the coming few months. When we get back from Sabbatical Will can get back to serving in childrens work again as he has been more than once a month, and we’ll have a new staff member on board! Praise God for our 18+ volunteers on the current rota - we deeply appreciate you and your hard work. Well done good and faithful servants we are grateful for you!
 
With all-age services there’s something for people of different ages at different moments during the service. They’re great times for learning from one another across generations and listening to God together. As with any of our services we come to those to worship and to listen to God, and receive teaching from the Word of God in the Bible, sharing Words from the Spirit and we’re often responding creatively through drawing/craft, worship and dance, fun activities, with parents doing a fabulous job of helping to frame things with their children. I get so encouraged by the mid-week conversations that flow from what they’ve been discovering of God on a Sunday and I love to see the faith and gifts of all. We have enjoyed meeting in the round for all-age, so if you’d like to do that again can I remind you we need people to offer to come and move chairs please, we haven’t had any offers so far so do think again about whether you could help.
 
Our youth group has grown significantly as our older children have moved up. Please do be praying for them too. We really value our children and young people here at St Mary’s and although I said it at our recent APCM I wanted to take the opportunity to say it again now as I prepare to be away in the summer – thank you for making such a difference to the children and youth. It’s great to be in a church that involves them and invests in them and sees their faith and their gifts being used so creatively. I’m excited for the possibilities that are ahead of us, so let’s be building one another up with an attitude of gratitude. Perhaps God may be calling you to serve the children or the young people in some way?
 
Look after each other in the coming months I will miss you but it’s going to be good to have a focussed time of abiding in God, and you can be sure that I’ll be praying for you all.
 
God bless
Becky