October-November23web

Oct-Nov 2023

St. Mildred’s

Church Newsletter

October-November 2023

Diocese of Southwark

Tribute on the Death of

Bishop Karowei Dorgu

Remembering and giving

thanks for Bishop Karowei.

Pages 4-5

Celebration at Cuppa

& Cake

Many Happy Returns

Jackie!

Pages 6-7

Operation Christmas

Child

Find out how you can

get involved in this

amazing Christmas

Operation.

Pages 18-19

Many Happy Returns Jackie...Pages 6-7

The call of God on our lives at St. Mildred’s is

to make and equip disciples of Jesus Christ locally

and globally in the power of the Holy Spirit.

www.stmildreds.org.uk

www.stmildreds.org 1

Tom writes...

Oct-Nov 2023

Inside this issue:

Tom writes

Diocese of Southwark Tribute

on the Death of Bishop Karowei

Dorgu

2-3

4-5

Celebrating at Cuppa and Cake 6-7

Book Review 8

A Right Attitude 9

In Christ Jesus and In the

Church

10-11

Diary - October-November 2023 12-14

Bible Reading Plan 15

Prayer Page 16

Business and Work Zone 17

Operation Christmas Child 18-19

MWCC, Homegroups, New

Wine

20-21

Volunteering at New Wine 22

Notices 22-23

Back Page 24

Newsletter Articles

Anyone who regularly attends

St Mildred’s can contribute articles to

the newsletter.

The next Newsletter will be the December

2023 – January 2024 Issue. The

deadline for contributions is 22 November.

Any queries regarding newsletter:

Email: newsletter@stmildreds.org.uk

When I was younger, I occasionally played a

light-hearted trick on my older brother Ben.

When we were young, Ben could sometimes

be a little absent-minded and wouldn’t always

pay careful attention things going on

around him. Cheekily, I would play on this

attribute—in a brotherly sort of way - from

time to time.

On a walk home from the local village I’d

have a carrier bag to hold for the journey.

Obviously, I’d rather have been free from

this encumbrance so I devised a plan. I’d say

to Ben, “would you hold this bag whilst I tie

my shoelace?” He’d oblige; I’d go down to

tie my shoelace and, standing up, would not

retake the bag. The first time I did this, we

were just approaching home when he said,

“why am I carrying this?” and gave it back to

me. Job done! Sadly, he was not so oblivious

as to let this work too many times!

Carrying things on a long journey is not always

what we want.

As a church we have carried a great responsibility

on a long journey that still has some

way to go. Our church hall building project

really is an incredible responsibility for us.

We have seen God do amazing things, and

there is so much to be thankful for. We have

been hugely encouraged along the way.

But it is a significant thing to carry and the

journey is long. Occasionally I wish I had an

older brother to tap on the shoulder and say,

“would you carry this whilst I tie my shoelace?”

Maybe you can relate.

Yet, in the Kingdom of God we do have this

older brother, because our Lord Jesus carries

us and our responsibilities. We are

yoked to him in a similar way to animals that

plough a field are yoked together (which is

one of the ways of understanding the image

Jesus gives us in Matthew 11:28-30):


Come to me, all you who are weary and

burdened, and I will give you rest. Take

my yoke upon you and learn from me, for

I am gentle and humble in heart, and you

will find rest for your souls. For my yoke

is easy and my burden is light.

But, unlike me transferring my responsibility

to my brother, Jesus does not remove

our responsibilities from us. He

invites us to be yoked to him so that we

walk together in our responsibilities.

This is more like with me having said to

Ben, “would you hold this bag with me

and share the load?” I can only guess

what Ben would have said if I’d actually

done this instead of playing the trick!

Oct-Nov 2023

As a church, we have carried this project

a long way and it has been a considerable

load. Let us come to the Lord Jesus

again, trusting in his promises and

seeking him to guide and provide for

us.

Join us after the service on the 8 th October

when we will have the opportunity

to update the church on where we are in

the project, to share ideas, and to encourage

each other before our God as

we carry this significant responsibility.

We look to Jesus on the road,

That surely leads to heaven;

He is our guide, our strength, our friend,

And every load he lightens.

Our Lord Jesus invites us to walk with

him, to bring our responsibilities to him

and to learn from him. When we do this

we find the rest and lightness he speaks

of.

Tom Lake - Vicar


Oct-Nov 2023

Diocese of Southwark Tribute on the

Death of Bishop Karowei Dorgu

The Bishop of Southwark, The Rt Revd

Christopher Chessun, has announced

with great sadness the death of his colleague,

The Rt Revd Dr Karowei Dorgu,

Bishop of Woolwich. Bishop Karowei

died peacefully after a long struggle

with his health on Friday 8 September in

the presence of his family at King’s College

Hospital.

Speaking of Bishop Karowei’s death,

Bishop Christopher said: “There will be

a time for proper tributes to be paid in

due course – but for now I wish to convey

my deepest sympathy to his wife

Mosun, son Timi, twin sister Collette

and the whole family. I express my gratitude

for Bishop Karowei’s friendship and inspirational ministry - latterly as Bishop of

Woolwich - where he brought much joy in his passion for the Gospel and loving encouragement

to all whom he encountered. It was a privilege to join the family at his bedside

and anoint him in his last hours, and I am grateful that the Archbishop of Canterbury came

to pray with the family. We have lost a dear friend, brother and colleague and we will

miss him greatly. I commend Bishop Karowei and his family to your prayers. May he rest

in peace.”

The Most Revd and Rt Hon Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, said: “Bishop Karowei

was a truly holy man, full of the Spirit and of grace, who simply radiated the joy of

Christ. To be in his presence was to know a little of that joy, and so he was adored everywhere.

The Church will be much poorer for his loss. However, he leaves us with a great

legacy. May we continue to be inspired by his passionate commitment to evangelism and

his passion for nurturing and developing new leaders. We know that Christ mourns with

us, as we hold his family and all who loved him in our prayers.”

“This is a sad day for our Diocese and for the Church,” added Diocesan Secretary Nicola

Thomas, “Bishop Karowei’s love of God and his passion for social justice and for mission

were utterly irrepressible - and we have been so blessed to know and work with him.”

Bishop Chrisopher commends the following prayer, written by the Very Revd Andrew

Nunn, for use in parishes:

Loving God, who brings us to birth, holds us in life and takes us through death to new life

in you; we give thanks for our brother Karowei, your child and servant, our brother and

bishop, who has died in you and lives for your eternity. Comfort his family, especially

Mosun, Timi and Collette; hold us in our grief and give us thankful hearts that we have


Oct-Nov 2023

known and loved one who followed you with humble thankfulness and a generous spirit

and showed us the pilgrim path to heaven which he now treads with Jesus Christ, your risen

Son, Our Lord. Amen.

About Bishop Karowei

Bishop Karowei was ordained Deacon in

1995 and Priest in 1996. His curacy was at St

Mark, Tollington Park, followed by, in 1998,

building the community of faith at St John,

Upper Holloway, before being consecrated

Bishop of Woolwich in 2017.

Born and brought up in Nigeria, Bishop Karowei

worked as a medical doctor before

ordination. He studied theology (BA Hons) at

London Bible College. He trained for ordained

ministry at Oak Hill College,

Southgate, and undertook his postgraduate

theological research for MA Missiology at

All Nations College, Ware. He was always

keen to share the good news of salvation

through faith in Jesus Christ. He had a deep concern for mission and regularly led open-air

evangelism in his parish which saw his church grow remarkably.

Bishop Karowei also had a keen interest in training candidates for lay and ordained ministry,

offering his expertise as a tutor on a number of training programmes. He was for many

years Assistant Director of Post Ordination Training in the Stepney Area. Prior to his appointment

as Bishop of Woolwich, he was a Prebendary of St Paul’s Cathedral.

Bishop Karowei is survived by Mosun, a Consultant Child Psychiatrist, their adult son Timi

and his twin sister Collette.

Bishop Karowei with our candidates for Baptism and Confirmation earlier this year.


Celebrating at Cuppa & Cake

Oct-Nov 2023

At September’s Cuppa &

Cake we were delighted to

celebrate Jackie Bormond’s

100 th Birthday.

Ash kindly accompanied

Jackie who proudly brought

along a very special

Birthday card from the King

and Queen.

Jackie and Ash

Many Happy Returns

Jackie!

Jackie has enjoyed attending

Horizon and Cuppa & Cake for

over 10 years now. During this

time we have enjoyed many of

Jackie’s entertaining and thoughtprovoking

poems.

Jenny Shirley certainly excelled in her

baking this month! We were spoilt for

choice with mini Victoria Sponges,

chocolate cake, apple cake, rock

cakes as well as a beautifullydecorated

cake especially for Jackie’s

Birthday. Mmm, delicious!


Oct-Nov 2023

Louise and Henry

Dot, Glad, Jackie, Ash and Jenny

Dot, Glad, Jackie, Ash and Tom

Paul and Ruth

If you would like to join us do come along - all ages are

welcome! - or if you know someone in the local community

who might appreciate a cuppa, cake and chat, you’ll find

invitation cards available at the back of church.

Next Cuppa & Cake is on Friday October 13 th .


Book Review

Oct-Nov 2023

I wonder if you had a summertime book to

read. This year I was recommended Mike

Starkey’s ‘Restoring the Wonder’ and lucky

for me, it was a delightfully easy read. In a

world that wants to suck the life out of us

and any hope we may have, Starkey

describes the downward ‘spiral of

unwonder’ where we live in an ‘if only’

world of indifference, fantasy and then

withdrawal aggravating each other away

from life.

In stark contrast, he introduces the upward

‘spiral of wonder’ which moves from encounter

to gratitude and commitment.

My live spiral of wonder moment came

when, on the beach at a Christian House

Party, my 13-year-old godson asked if I would like an ice-cream. This was not

just any ice cream – he would buy it with his

own money and bring it to me after my swim

in the sea. WONDERFUL!

Starkey offers simple exercises to help restore

lost wonder, as we encounter what is

around us, give thanks to God for what we

notice and then enjoy the commitment to

where we are, rather than coveting something

others may or may not have. The exercises

include Sense days, Pilgrim in my own

parish, Living in the presence of Christ and

Finding Christ in others.

I’ll be happy to lend you my copy or you can buy it on-line: Restoring the Wonder

by Mike Starkey

SPCK London 1999

Reviewed by Rev. Daphne Clifton - (Assistant Minister)


A Right Attitude

Oct-Nov 2023

There is a line in a poem called ‘Blue Remembered

Hills’ written by A.E Housman in

1896 that has always haunted me. He is describing

his country and says, “That is the

land of lost content”. The poem is one of nostalgia

for the past and as we know nostalgia

can be deceiving but it seems to apply aptly

to the modern world, to the 21st Century,

particularly in the western world. In a world

that has never been more affluent and safer

(imagine what Covid-19 would have done in

the 15th Century) there is a lot of unhappiness

about.

A Public Health England analysis shows that

in 2017 to 2018 (pre-Covid) 7.3 million people

(17% of the adult population) had been

prescribed antidepressants. This has been

slowly rising since then. And of course

Covid-19 had a deepening effect on anxiety,

depression and life satisfaction. This was to

be expected as studies by the Office for National

Statistics and University College London

show. One can also quote alarming statistics

of the increasing decline in mental health in

adults and children.

It would be churlish if not insulting to claim

that everything in the garden is rosy and that

people should get a grip and cheer up.

There are truly things to be worried about,

being human teaches us that and I would

never devalue anyone’s suffering, but I will

suggest something that perhaps might help a

little in the land of lost content. It’s something

that has been around since the dawn of

time probably and that gets neglected in

times of want and shamefully in times of

plenty. It’s also good for you.

That something is gratitude. So Henry, what

have I got to be grateful for? you may ask.

You may. I don’t know, maybe; being alive,

having friends, having a family, having a

partner, having a garden, turning on the tap

and getting water, seeing the daffodils erupt

up in springtime, having food on the plate,

not being bombed, seeing the smile on a

child’s face, libraries being free of charge,

birds singing (even parakeets), the kindness

of strangers, Covid-19 didn’t win, and so

forth. Hope you get my drift. Harvard experts

say gratitude is not only beneficial for

individual health, but also for the wellbeing

of society.¹

And if you are a Christian gratitude should

be ingrained in your soul. Not being daily

grateful for what the Lord has done, is doing

and will be doing for us makes our faith narrow

and undernourished. One can say to non

-believers that perhaps you should try to

have more gratitude but one should never

have to say that to a Christian. At the end of

each ‘Parents and Toddlers’ session we sing

‘Our God is a Great Big God’ and if you believe

just that, gratitude should be your

abiding inclination. The singer Lauryn Hill

said, “Everything we do should be a result of

our gratitude for what God has done for us.”

When I’m waiting at the bus stop at the end

of the road and a 160 comes trundling up I

always thank God. It may seem trivial and I

have no idea at all if the Lord is involved with

London bus movements but I thank Him anyway.

It just seems the right attitude.

Henry Girling

(with thanks to Bob for the idea)

¹ https://www.harvard.edu/in-focus/

gratitude/

Photo by Ahmed Cahyo: https://www.pexels.com/photo/girlpicking-up-flowers-176741/


“In Christ Jesus” and

“In the Church”.

Oct-Nov 2023

In the last newsletter we looked at the

phrase “In Christ Jesus” (which Paul uses

more than 160 times in his letters) and some

of the implications for every believer. We

saw that Ephesians 1:13 says that each person

who truly believes is immediately included

“in Christ”, in His Life, under His

Blood, in His perfect Redemption, in His forgiveness

and acceptance, under His Authority

and under His protection. We also saw

from 2 Corinthians 5:17 that if anyone “is in

Christ they are a New Creation, the Old has

gone, the New has come.” (All in the past

tense – Jesus has died once and for all. Everything

He has ever done is perfect and

complete – no need for Him to repeat it). All

this is far more than doctrine or theology –

this is living supernatural reality – evidence

of real change in individual lives that anyone

can observe.

So how do we experience “the Old life has

gone, the New has come”? and how does being

in the Church help and what does that

mean? In Romans 6:4 Paul says that all believers

who have been baptised into Christ,

were baptised into

His death. “We were

therefore buried

with Him through

baptism into death,

(ie. the old individual

life is dead “In

Christ”) so that, just

as Christ was raised

from the dead

through the Glory of

the

Father, we too may

live a New Life”. So,

Baptism in water,

done in genuine

faith, obedience and

sincere repentance

is vital and transformative,

and total immersion illustrates all

this clearly and simply. The old must die and

be left buried! Trying to begin a New life

without allowing God to deal with the Old

one will never work! Then Paul speaks of being

raised (from baptismal water) to live a

new Resurrection Life – so how does that

happen? The answer is in and through the

Holy Spirit. At the beginning of Jesus’ public

ministry Jesus Himself was baptised into water

and into the Holy Spirit. (Luke 3:21). If he

needed all this, how much more do we?! Jesus

says (John 3:7) “You must be born

again” and (John3;6) “The Holy Spirit gives

new birth to the human spirit”.

Any Christian minister can baptise a believer

in water, but only Jesus can baptise in the

Holy Spirit – as John the Baptist says (Luke

3 :6) “One more powerful than me will

come…He will baptise you with the Holy

Spirit and with fire.” (Notice that the Spirit

comes upon unholy people as fire- to purge

out all impurity – as at Pentecost. By contrast

He comes upon Jesus uniquely as a dove, because

He was, and is, already perfect – He


had no sin to be purged, He was already

perfectly at peace with the Father!) So, baptism

in water and in the Spirit places us individually

in Christ Jesus but also it joins us

collectively to the Church.

So the true Church is the universal community

of all believers, in all places, for all

time and all eternity. It is not a building, an

organisation or a denomination, but rather a

living organism which Jesus loves intensely

despite its obvious imperfections! “Christ

loved the Church and gave Himself up for

her in order to make her Holy” (Ephesians

5:25) Only He can know who are the genuine

believers. In any congregation there will

be some who have faith and some who do

not (yet!). In Mark 7:6 (quoting Isaiah 29:13)

Jesus says of some very religious people:

“These people honour me with their lips,

but their hearts are far from me.” Now the

word used in the New Testament for

“Church” is “Ekklesia” (as in ecclesiastical)

which means an “Assembly” which has literally

been “called out” .A town council is

“called out” to serve locally under the main

ruler with responsibilities to represent the

Kingdom, authority, right behaviour and to

honour the King in every possible way. In

the same way the Church is called “out of

the dominion of darkness into the Kingdom

Oct-Nov 2023

of the Son He loves” (Colossians1:13) to live

out God’s New Life in loving unity and humble

purity.

The pictures the Bible uses to describe the

Church – The Vine and its Branches (John15)

and The Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12)

deliberately describe a Living entity, a

Community of Faith where the old has died

and the new has arrived. Jesus did not just

take our sins to the Cross, He took us as

well! The old flesh life has been replaced

with the new Holy Spirit life.

“God has placed all things under Jesus’

feet and appointed Him to be Head over

everything for the church, which is His

Body– the fullness of Him who fills everything

in everyway!” (Ephesians 1:22-3)

“The old has gone, the new has come” (2

Corinthians 5:17)…”so that in Him we might

become The Righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians

5:21).

David Nicholls

Photo by Henri Guérin: https://www.pexels.com/photo/close

-up-photo-of-grape-fruit-197907/


Diary ~ October 2023

Oct-Nov 2023

Sunday 1 10am Holy Communion

10.30am Kool Kidz

6pm Sunday@six

Monday 2 9.30am Prayer Meeting

Tuesday 3 Parent and Toddlers

Wednesday 4 11am-2pm Warm Space

8pm Prayer Meeting

Friday 6 8.30am Prayer Meeting

Sunday 8 10am All Age Worship

6pm Sunday@six



8pm Home Group

Wednesday 11 10am Daytime Home Group

11am-2pm Warm Space

8pm Home Group

Thursday 12 8pm Home Group


11am-1pm Cuppa and Cake


10.30am Kool Kidz

6pm Sunday@six



8pm PCC


8pm Prayer Meeting


Sunday 22 10am Morning Worship

10.30 Kool Kidz


Oct-Nov 2023


Tuesday 24 8pm Home Group


11am-2pm Warm Space

8pm Home Group






Diary ~ November 2023


8pm Prayer Meeting



10.30am Kool Kidz

6pm Sunday@six



8pm Home Group


11am-2pm Warm Space

8pm Home Group



11am-1pm Cuppa and Cake

Sunday 12 10am All Age Worship

Remembrance Sunday

6pm Sunday@six


Oct-Nov 2023

Diary ~ November 2023




8pm Prayer Meeting



10.30am Kool Kidz

6pm Sunday@six



8pm Home Group


11am-2pm Warm Space

8pm Home Group




10.30am Kool Kidz

6pm Sunday@six

Monday 27 9.30 Prayer Meeting


8pm PCC


8pm Prayer Meeting


Week

Beginning

16/10/23

23/10/23

30/10/23

06/11/23

13/11/23

20/11/23

27/11/23

04/12/23

Bible Reading Plan

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

Ezekiel

28:11-26

Ezekiel

32:1-16

Ezekiel

35:1-15

Ezekiel

41:12-26

Ezekiel

45:1-25

Ezekiel

48:21-35

2 Corinthians

5:1-10

2 Corinthians

10:1-18

Ezekiel

29:1-12

Ezekiel

32:17-32

Ezekiel

39:1-16

Ezekiel

42:1-20

Ezekiel

46:1-12

2 Corinthians

1:1-11

2 Corinthians

5:11-21

2 Corinthians

11:1-15

Ezekiel

29:13-21

Ezekiel

33:1-20

Ezekiel

39:17-29

Ezekiel

43:1-12

Ezekiel

46:13-24

2 Corinthians

1:12-24

2 Corinthians

6:1-18

2 Corinthians

11:16-33

Ezekiel

30:1-12

Ezekiel

33:21-33

Ezekiel

40:1-23

Ezekiel

43:13-27

Ezekiel

47:1-12

2 Corinthians

2:1-17

2 Corinthians

7:1-16

2 Corinthians

12:1-21

Ezekiel

30:13-26

Ezekiel

34:1-16

Ezekiel

40:24-49

Ezekiel

44:1-16

Ezekiel

47:13-23

2 Corinthians

3:1-18

2 Corinthians

8:1-24

2 Corinthians

13:1-14

Ezekiel

31:1-18

Ezekiel

34:17-31

Ezekiel

41:1-11

Ezekiel

44:17-31

Ezekiel

48:1-20

2 Corinthians

4:1-18

2 Corinthians

9:1-15

Psalm

119:1-24

Oct-Nov 2023


Prayer

Page

We give thanks for the life

and ministry of Bishop Karowei.

We pray for his wife Mosun, their son

Timi and twin sister that Our Lord will

be especially close to them at this time.

For all those grieving a loved one

may You draw near to them, bringing

healing to their mind, body and spirit.

Pray for all who are suffering and for

those who work to relieve suffering.

We pray for those we know undergoing

treatment and for their recovery.

“Give thanks to the LORD, for he is

good; his love endures forever.”

Remind us Lord to praise you.

“Blessed are the pure in Oct-Nov heart, 2023

for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,

for they will be called children of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted

because of righteousness,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Matthew 5:8-10

We join with Marcus and Larissa

in giving thanks for the safe arrival

of their son Reuben.

We give thanks for all Your financial provision

for the building project.

We ask that you prepare our hearts and minds

to share, pray and inspire one another as we

consider the Building Project 8th October.

Thank you Lord for the blessing that MWCC

and New Wine events were to our young people.

We pray that they may continue to know

you at work in their lives.

We pray for all Homegroups that they will

be places of encouragement and growth.

“The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”

Psalm 118:6

Pray for our Christmas initiatives.

We thank you for the opportunity

to bless others. May we be inspired

and motivated to create for the Christmas

Catalogue and to gather together items for

Operation Christmas Child.

Pray for all students as they work to meet

deadlines for assignments and

revise for exams.

We pray for the NHS

We pray that wise decisions will be made to

protect the health of all.

We ask you Lord to step in to situations of

conflict in our families, work places and

wider world. That we might all be your

peacemakers.

Pray for your light to show us where we

each need to make changes and may we be

given the courage to do so.

Pray for Keiko as she visits her

parents & sister in Japan -

that the Lord set His divine work & appointment

on their path in His mercy

and grace, and bring them to Himself

and His church - very soon. May Keiko

know You beside her in her travels.

Lord we bring to You those who are displaced

by natural disaster and violent conflict.

We think particularly of Morocco and Ukraine.

We pray for their leaders, governments and all

aid agencies that You will intervene on behalf of

those who are suffering

Send prayers to: newseditor16@gmail.com


Oct-Nov 2023

Businesses to pray for

October –

November

2023

Please continue to pray for our local businesses

Classy Design

Co-op

Coopers Lane Primary

School

CPJ Field, Funeral Directors

Clifton Consulting

Daniel Mercer

Dulux Decorator Centre

Engineering Minds

Eyekon computing

Vikas Wine Merchant

Wellness Hub

Woodvale Nursery

Wine and Such (new business)

Wolseley Plumb and Parts

YESS Electrical (Rexel)

Favorable Chicken

Flower Shoppe

Great British Accountants

Gokul Chemist

Golden chicken

Hither Green Station

Howden Joinery

HPS

Hyperion Records

Hunters

Screwfix

St Winifred's infant / junior

St Winifred's Nursery

Streakers Dry Cleaner (Kay)

Soldo hair

Tom Brown Florists


Operation Christmas Child

Oct-Nov 2023

For many years the the Parent &

Toddlers group have collected

shoeboxes for Operation

Christmas Child (a project of

the charity Samaritans Purse)

and for a few years now I have

volunteered as a driver collecting

& delivering shoeboxes to

their processing centres, then

staying to help sort the shoeboxes.

This year, with the approval

of PCC, I’ve volunteered

the church as a collection centre

& will be heading this up as

project leader.

So what’s it all about?

The mission of Operation Christmas Child (OCC) is to provide God’s love in a tangible way

to children in need around the world, and together with the local church worldwide, to

share the Good News of Jesus Christ. Since 1990, when it started, more than 178 million children

in more than 150 countries have received an Operation Christmas Child shoebox. The

project delivers not only the joy of what, for many kids, is their first gift ever, but also gives

them a tangible expression of God’s love.

Tens of thousands of volunteers from local churches around the world partner with them to

present the Gospel of Jesus Christ at festive outreach events where children are surprised

with these shoebox gifts.

In addition, they have trained over 1.1 million volunteers from these congregations to teach

The Greatest Journey, their dynamic follow-up discipleship course for shoebox recipients.

Since 2009, 23.3 million children have enrolled in this 12-lesson program to learn how to follow

Christ and share Him with others. More than 11.2 million of these boys and girls have

made a decision to accept Jesus as their Saviour during the course. Many are now praying

for and sharing their faith with family and friends. As a result of this ever-expanding witness,

new churches are starting and communities are being transformed!

So to you it may seem like just a toy box but to a child & their family it can be the beginning

of their relationship with Jesus Christ.

Our very own Inna Liubota received a shoebox as a child in Ukraine which helped set her

on her own journey of faith that would eventually lead her to London, first to us at St Mildred’s

& now, as she has moved, on to All Saints Church at Woodford Wells. In her own

words: “One of the most vivid memories from my childhood is when I received a shoebox.

I was 6 and I definitely know it had a huge impact on my life and since that, I think it was beginning

of my journey of faith and my relationship with God as well.”


So how can you help?

Oct-Nov 2023

For starters please pray; for the volunteers, the shoebox packers, & for the children & families

whose lives will be touched by receiving a shoebox.

Secondly, if you’re likely to have a few hours available any day during the week of the

Mon 13th - Mon 20th November to come sit in church either with me or another volunteer &

receive the boxes from members of the public, then please speak to me or email me by

the 15th October. The more there are of us the better!

Thirdly, if you’d like to pack a shoebox or two please do. It such a joy to do, my daughters

love the opportunity to choose & fill a shoebox & we pick bits up year round to fill multiple

shoeboxes!

If you’ve not packed one before there will be leaflets in church which tell you how, scan

the QR code on this page or follow the link. There will also be pre-printed shoeboxes in

church or you can decorate your own shoebox. These resources will be in church as soon

as I receive them.

Two of the major DON’TS are no liquids & nothing edible so the shoeboxes don’t get ruined

by leaking, melting or pests! Please also don’t put obviously second hand items in,

this may be the only present this child receives so let’s make it wonderful. We have lots of

crafty people in church so do put it in beautiful handmade items! OCC also ask, if you can,

to make a £5 donation towards the cost of box shipping, logistics & providing the gospel

program to the community.

If you want anymore information or to volunteer please speak to me in person or email me!

Kelly Shimwell

Kellyshimwell@gmail.com

Extracts taken from https://www.samaritans-purse.org.uk/what-we-do/operationchristmas-child/operation-christmas-childs-mission-and-history/


Homegroups

Oct-Nov 2023

Marion’s Home

Group had a lovely

lunch in July in our

garden in Sidcup.

Julia Nicolson

Ronver Rovers

Home Group

summer social.

Bring & Share

& Laughter.

MWCC 2023

Mid-Wessex Christian Camping is quite the phenomenon to

try to explain. From 3-piece suit bungee cording to singing

grace to the testimonial campfire, and everything in between,

it is easy to see how quickly the week passes. From

a faith viewpoint, the week is full of opportunities to go

deeper and search wider, whilst expressing this with a tent

group made up of Christians from other backgrounds. The

expressions of creativity and connection were a joy and fitting

of kingdom focused young people. There were deep

chats, loud laughs and new experiences to treasure. Our

young people love the freedom to express themselves at

camp and look forward to this yearly.


Oct-Nov 2023

“How good and how pleasant it is for

brethren to dwell together in unity!

It is like the precious oil upon the head

running down on the beard of Aaron,

running down on the edge of his

garments. It is like the dew of Hermon,

descending upon the mountains of

Zion, for there the Lord

commanded the blessing-”

Keiko

New Wine

Psalm 133:1-3

New Wine was a great way to step

aside from the usual London routine

and be able to reflect on where I am

now in my life and faith, how I got

there, and where I might be led to

next.

Robert

I thoroughly enjoyed new wine. It was a warm and

welcoming space to share with our church family

and fellow Christians. The worship tent was great.

All in all, I enjoyed the experience and the atmosphere.

Sheila

New Wine was really great. I loved

seeing so many people my own

age also trying to navigate being a

Christian today. There were loads

of guest speakers and I learned

more about my faith.

Sophia

With the challenges of wind and rain and chilly

nights, camping is for those who don’t mind or even

enjoy the challenge of surviving under canvas. A

choice of seminars, activities and services to attend

for all ages, an exhibition Hall and café areas with a

variety of foods. To end the day, we gathered together

at base camp to chat, laugh and then retire to

our luxury blow up mattresses to hopefully sleep

contentedly until sunrise.

A chance to experience a taste of community and return home to prayerfully consider

God’s leading in my everyday.

Elisabeth


Volunteering at New Wine

Oct-Nov 2023

This year was my first time volunteering with the arts team area.

This area is so valuable to all who work and create there as the various

testimonials bore witness. There were many beautiful art works. We

served refreshments to participants and each day a huge ticket queue

formed for booking the next days’ art sessions.

It was a fun team to be part of, everyone mucked in to set up or pack

down at the end of the day. I recommend the art classes: metal work,

Bible verse journaling, collage, painting, and my favourites; willow

weaving and mosaic tiles. During my break I made a hanging basket,

bumble bee, heart and a clematis tile for my Mum.

The camp was well organised and accommodating. There was a large

book shop area to browse and purchase gifts.

It was an enjoyable few days. As one of several new team members,

we appreciated the organisation and dedication to running this camp.

NWU provided meals during the day to accommodate dietary requirements,

before and after shifts.

This was my first Christian event experience and health was mentioned

at least twice during the leader’s opening speech, which I

hope indicates healthy living is important to New Wine United.

In 2024 New Wine will be at Shepton Mallet. This year’s location made

it possible for us to attend and I stayed offsite at my parents’ who live nearby. Next year we

will need to travel further.

Theresa Webb

Christmas Catalogue

If you are nifty with a needle, good at woodwork or

you enjoy making jam or marmalade, could you consider

creating items to sell at Christmas? Our 2022 Christmas catalogue

enabled church members to benefit the building project while

doing their Christmas shopping. Almost everything offered for sale was

snapped up quickly.

We are planning another “Christmas catalogue” for 2023. This will

work really well if things are ready well in advance of Christmas.

Anything tasty/arty/crafty would potentially be suitable.

If you would like to contribute items, please email :

Thank you

office@stmildreds.org.uk


Oct-Nov 2023

Used with Permission. Article can be found at: https://cartoonchurch.com/content/cc/

category/what-could-possibly-go-wrong/

From 11am to 1pm (in church)

Tea & coffee. Chat. Homemade cakes.

Scrabble & Dominoes available.

Everyone is welcome.


The Back Page

Oct-Nov 2023

Dear Shimona,

It was really lovely to meet you,

thank you for taking the time to

come. We cannot express how

grateful we are to the church for

all your support, it's been absolute

lifeline, you have helped so

many young people over the last

18 months.

Best wishes

Hannah


October-November23web

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