Dear Friends,
As we enter this new time of national lockdown, I am aware that it is full of different emotions and messages. Our approach as a church, is one of calmness in the storm, hopeful and secure in our God. As the situation moves forward, we are always endeavouring to adapt and change, to the needs and guidance that there is. We are a living, praying community. So with lots of different information flying around, let me just clarify how we are moving forward at this time. While we are grateful that the government has allowed places of worship to open, after careful consideration and prayer, with the increase in the ‘R’ rate being significant in the areas around us, and pressure on our NHS, in line with the guidance from our Bishop, and other guidance, the PCC have decided to hold a live stream service only at this time and not ‘in person’. We feel that this is the safest thing to do for our community and to play our part at this time. Sundays at 10.30, there will be our live stream service and we encourage you to join in with us from home. I am excited about our new series from the book of Philippians, and I encourage you to take a chance to have a read through it.
While not everything is the same as March, we are aware that some may be finding themselves in need or just need a friendly voice on the phone to pray with them. We are here and please do contact us via the church office (e-mail or phone). It is great to hear stories of where you are reaching out to each other at this time, and can I encourage you to keep continuing to do so. Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 13: these three remain, faith, hope and love. Let us continue to love each other, our neighbour and to be rooted and steadfast in prayer, sharing the hope that we have. Please continue to check out our website, e-mail and Facebook for the latest updates and subscribe to our YouTube Channel ‘Christ Church Ware’ to receive all the latest videos. With my prayers for you all, John. Dear Friends, We hope that you enjoyed the Carol Service last night, a huge thank you to all who have taken part and put it together, it was an amazing team effort. Thank you also for the words of encouragement that we have been receiving in the office. if you missed it or want to watch it again it can be found HERE. Our anytime Nativity Trail around Ware can be found HERE. Why not try and find all the characters on a daily walk and enjoy the story of Christmas? Thanks to the hard work of our creative team and many members of Christ Church, over this year we are able to have our Children’s Christmas Eve Service online only this year: this can be watched via our Live Stream page, Facebook or YouTube Channel at 4.00pm on Christmas Eve, or on catch up afterwards. Following the government’s announcement placing Ware into tier 4, we are following all the relevant guidance and will be holding a reduced capacity in person, Christmas Eve Communion at 11.00pm and a Christmas Morning Communion at 10.00am. Entry is via ticket only and you can book a place HERE. Please note you must remain in your household or support bubble in Tier 4 while attending and not mingle. There will also be a reduced capacity ‘in person service’ at 10.30 on Sunday the 27th of December. All services need to be pre booked. If you have already booked tickets to any of our services and are now no longer able to attend, please do contact the office. [email protected]. A Christmas Day Service on line at 10.00 am will be available HERE as well as the 27th of December 10.30am. The direct links for on-line Christmas Day and Sunday 27th December are: 25th December 10 am: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baPil6cZfpw 27th December 10:30 am: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjvTGPugNMU Please do continue to check out our website, email and Facebook pages for all the latest updates, as we continue to review, as all the latest guidance is updated. Please do also subscribe to our YouTube channel HERE and enjoy catching up with many of the services and extra videos. Opportunities to explore Faith: Alpha On-line A new course will run on-line on zoom on a Monday evening, 7.45 pm start, ending at 9.30 pm. The planned start date is Monday 25th January and the course will run for 6 weeks. If you are interested and would like want more information please contact Alpha via: [email protected] To register go to https://www.christchurchware.co.uk/alpha.html Highly recommended - The Bible Course Would you like to appreciate how the books of the Bible fit together to tell a unique story, forming the basis of our faith? Whether you are starting out with the Bible or have known it a long time, The Bible Course is a great resource to deepen our appreciation of how it can speak to us afresh. Each session of just over an hour has a combination of on-line teaching, a clear graphical course booklet, and group discussion. In the New Year many of our Life Groups will follow this journey by Zoom. We invite you, if you are not in one of our small groups, to join The Bible Course by participating in an existing group or a dedicated new group. This could be an eight-week commitment or a new chance to be encouraged by continuing to be a part of a group. If you would like to participate or need further information please contact Richard Jarvest ([email protected]) or phone 01920 487267 or email the church office [email protected] The Bereavement Journey We are hosting the Bereavement Journey for all those who have suffered loss this year starting on 2nd February 2021, further details in the New Year.
Prayer meetings: We have a church prayer meeting each Friday at 10.00 am via Zoom, for our church and community. Grab a coffee and join in. The link will be in the following email or contact the office (please don’t share the link on social media). Please note these will resume on 8 January. Children’s and Youth Ministry Please look out for our email updates. If you know of someone who know needs support at this time, please do contact the office. Please continue to be praying for us and each other. And may God himself continue to bring His light of hope and comfort to each of us this Christmas season. With my prayers for you all. God bless, John. Dear Friends,
I am sure that you are aware of the latest announcements from our prime minister today, about our area going into Tier 4. This will impact us all in many and different ways, including how we connect with Family and loved ones at Christmas. As a team, we have been planning and preparing to be able to deliver a celebration of Christmas. For God's Light of Hope, is always with us. Having met with the Wardens earlier this evening, and not knowing the full implications/ guidance of what Tier 4 will mean in practice, we have made the decision for tomorrows services (Sunday 20th December) to be livestream only. These services 10.30am Morning Service and 6.30pm Carol services can be found: www.christchurchware.co.uk/live-stream This means that there will be no ‘in person services at church’ at 9am, 10.30am or Carol service at 2pm, 4pm, or 6.30pm. We are really excited about what God is going to do as we gather virtually tomorrow and look forward to you joining us on line. At our 10.30am live stream service we are delighted to welcome back some of our students who will lead our worship and prayers. www.christchurchware.co.uk/live-stream We have some amazing items put together for the Carol Service, and you will see many members of our church and community taking part 6.30pm on our live stream. Carol service: https://www.christchurchware.co.uk/live-stream.html As we receive additional guidance we will keep you updated about our other services this Christmas season, so please do keep checking out our website, e mail, social media or contact the office on 01920 487267 for all the latest information. Please continue to be praying for us and each other. And may God himself continue to bring His light of hope and comfort to each of us. I look forward to joining with you on line tomorrow. With my prayers, John. |
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