Emmanuel- God with Us
How we have needed to be reminded of this throughout the past nine months! The first National Lockdown introduced us to a whole new vocabulary, not to mention a whole new way of living our lives. Praise be, that we also know that God is unchanging. He is the same yesterday, today and for ever, no matter what we are going through. This is our last edition of ‘From the Church Wardens’. We are signing out with some reflections from this extraordinarily difficult period in our lives.
We are now very much looking forward to handing over to Mark Brown, our new Priest-in Charge. Happily, despite an impending lockdown, both he and Allie moved into the Vicarage on 5th January. They will have been greeted by all the signs of welcome prepared by the church family, including a big array of wonderful welcome cards. Thank you.
Looking Forward with Prayer and Hope
Our prayers are now with both Mark and Allie as they ‘settle in’ and especially for Mark, who will be Licensed on Thursday 21st January! Sadly, this service will have to be held on-line. Happily, however, it will mean that many more of you will be able to join in and ‘be there’ too!
So, we say goodbye from the Wardens, remembering also with thanks, Sarah Leighton and Julia Newton who travelled with us on this Lockdown-Vacancy journey.
To everyone, thank you! All your kind words of support and encouragement have meant so much and helped us to ‘keep going’ trusting that God is With Us! Emmanuel!
Ruth Watkin
Warden Reflections: Dave Coleshill
As a church warden, the last 12 months have certainly come with their challenges. Throughout the year the changes we had to make to ensure safety during the pandemic such as moving all meetings on to zoom, closing the church and then organising the cautious reopening of the church for services were important and the situation was closely monitored to make sure we put nobody at risk. Additionally, we had the problem of being without a vicar. Family life was also challenging as I began to work from home in March like many others. The pandemic disrupted work on our house extension and subsequently we were left with only two rooms for our family of four to live in; one to sleep in and one as our makeshift kitchen. It was a bit of a squeeze! By the summer, work was able to resume and so we finished the house and welcomed our long planned addition to the family, Doris, a sprocker puppy. We can now see the light at the end of the tunnel, the vaccine programme is being rolled out and hopefully soon we will be able to welcome larger congregations into the church to worship with the full church family.
Doris
Perspectives
Alison Fletcher Deputy Churchwarden
“From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.” Psalms 113:3 NIV
This time last year Michael Gordon and I as your parish representatives were finalising our update to the church family to say that sadly the Diocese would not allow us to go ahead and advertise at that time for a new priest in charge. At the same time in the UK we had only vaguely heard of Covid, and were yet to become familiar with social distancing, lockdowns, tiers or bubbles. Roll on 12 months ....as we look back there are many things we simply can’t understand, there is loss, pain, heartache, concern, all in large quantities and whilst we can all give thanks for the vaccination roll out programme, we know many aspects of our lives are still ‘ on hold'. However as the verse above reminds us...the name of the Lord is to be praised, and at the start of this new year it is right to stop , be still and reflect on all we have to thank God for. The list is endless and different for each one of us but here are a few things:
• This week Mark and Allie Brown have moved into the vicarage and Mark will soon start his ministry with us as our new priest in charge
• God is never socially distant and wants us to get to know Him more • God’s creation surrounds us giving us plenty to smile about - the new shoots on trees and bulbs emerging, the changing skies, the birds singing, the frost on the grass
• Technology of all kinds allowing us to meet, hear our favourite music , order shopping , watch films, play Scrabble, read the news ......
Amen.
Richard Blyth Deputy Churchwarden
I feel very privileged and blessed to be a Church Warden and a member of the Churchyard Team during this time of Covid 19 because it keeps me busy and I feel useful and has given me a purpose by supporting our church. I have also felt inspired by the faith and guidance of the church family, and especially that shown by the older members of the congregation. All Saints churchyard is a very tranquil place and I work with a lovely group of mostly retired volunteers. With being outside we can easily socially distance, so the only time that it’s not possible to work is when there is a lockdown or the weather’s bad.
The effects of the pandemic in church have been much more significant and as a new Church Warden there has been much to learn and adapt to. Fortunately the Senior Wardens, the Clergy and the administrative staff are inspirational and a great support to me during this challenging time. I gain great comfort from being able to be part of our Church Family.
Rachel McLafferty- Staff Team reflections
With the arrival of our new Priest in Charge we approach a new season for All Saints, and this is so exciting. It’s also important to reflect on the past 18 months and the hard work and determination of the staff team. A vacancy is a difficult time for any church, but add a global pandemic into the mix and the challenges just get a lot harder!
The Ministry and Operations team have successfully juggled working at home, childcare, gaining new technological skills, supporting the church family, connecting with families remotely, social distancing and developing worship and festivals, all during this time. It has been an incredibly hard period, and I think I speak on behalf of all my colleagues when I say that. We look forward to a time when we can see our church family again. and we are grateful for the support that so many have given.
With God’s help we have kept going and been encouraged by your words of kindness and support. We are now very much looking forward to working with our new boss!