The Weekly Catch
Third Sunday After Trinity
28th June 2020
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Dear Friends,
Welcome to this week's Catch. Make sure to check the notices section of this email so that you don't miss anything.
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Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer
Romans 12:12
These words written by Paul around 2000 years ago still hold relevance and meaning for us in this present time. I have had a few conversations this week that have brought home to me how timely Paul’s exhortation is.
In current circumstances where we have had to live within our own virtual bubble with no outside physical contact it has been easy to despair. Paul tells us to be joyful in hope. Being joyful as a Christian is a conscious choice. And we can make this choice because of the hope we have in Jesus.
In the words of a hymn, “We have this hope that burns within our hearts, Hope in the coming of the Lord.”
Psalm 43.5 says, “Why, my soul, are you downcast, … put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Saviour and my God.”
Paul along with James and Peter in the New Testament encourages the believers in their sufferings. When things get hard, and we struggle to cope with physical difficulties and our own mental health is affected, we are reminded by Paul to be patient. In Romans 5, Paul reminds us that the end result of the process of our sufferings is hope. A Hope based on the person of Jesus Christ and not the circumstances around us.
Thirdly, Paul calls us to faithfulness sin our prayer life. We don’t only pray when we face a hardship we are trying to avoid. But we persevere in prayer even when we there seems to be no answer. Many times we pray with great fervor when first hit by the calamity, but then this fervor begins to fade, until one day we find we have stopped praying. But God’s faithfulness never ends. And as we pray we connect with His faithfulness and we find the strength to carry on, not beaten down, but standing tall and strong. The current epidemic has given us the opportunity to exercise our prayer life and grow in it. Let us continue with the same faithfulness even when lockdown eases and then is lifted.
Blessings,
Canon Garth Nathaniel
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Our live Sunday service
starts at 10:30am.
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Click on the links below to find out more!
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Thank you to everyone who donated plants or made donations to Christian Aid for plants they’ve received. Despite the unusual circumstances we’ve managed to re-home all the available plants and in the process raised much needed funds for Christian Aid.
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Please consider giving to the Diocese of Worcester Ministry Fund:
As many churches see a reduction in regular giving due to the ongoing pandemic, the Diocese are asking for donations to help fund clergy stipends. Please see the Ministry Fund page on the Diocese website for more details.
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Thank you one and all for continuing to give to the work of the church during these unprecedented times.
To everyone who currently give to the work of the church through either weekly cash donations and weekly giving envelopes please note the following options:
- By sending a cheque, made payable to St Peter’s Church, Ipsley. Please post it to:
St Peter’s Church, Ipsley
c/o 53 Edgmond Close,
Winyates West,
Redditch,
B98 0JQ.
Please put a note in to say how many weeks are covered by the amount you have sent.
- Please prayerfully consider joining the Parish Giving Scheme, the details for joining the scheme follow this notice.
- By BACS transfer:
Lloyds Bank
Account name: St Peter’s Church, Ipsley
Sort Code: 30-96-97
Account No.: 30971660.
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For those who have not yet joined the Parish Giving Scheme there are a number of ways to sign up.
Online:
https://www.parishgivingscheme.org.uk
Once submitted you will receive a phone call from a member of the PGS team to help arrange a paperless regular donation.
By Post:
If you decide to send off the gift form you have already received then please note that the address has changed from the one on the bottom of the form.
The new address is:
Parish Giving Scheme
76 Kingsholm Road
Gloucester
GL1 3BD
By Phone:
You can now register your interest by phone.
Please call: 0333 002 1271
When contacting, or being contacted by, the members of the PGS team, you may be asked for the following information:
PGS Parish Code: 420642159
Parish Ref: Ipsley St Peter
Diocese: Worcester
If you currently give to the church through a standing order, please ensure that you wait for confirmation from the Parish Giving Scheme before cancelling.
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Almighty God,
you have broken the tyranny of sin
and have sent the Spirit of your Son into our hearts
whereby we call you Father:
give us grace to dedicate our freedom to your service,
that we and all creation may be brought
to the glorious liberty of the children of God;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen
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Please pray for those who are ill:
Pastor Robin Baker, Pat Hale, Jenny Latham, Graham Twist, Betty Wood, Tia, Kate Bainbridge, Chris Tilley, Andrew Johnson, Alex Street, Peter Barcham, Erica Dilger, Michael Hawkins, Mark Brunner, Glynis Horton, Linda Grummet, Steve Thomas, Jane Gray, Iyra Dutton, Karen Lumley, Malcolm Gilks, June Gillett, Elsie, Delia Davies, Laraine Ellis, David Spencer, Irene Spencer
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And for those who are grieving:
Please be praying for the families of David Hargreaves and Bill Parish.
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