Regulars will know that our family has been on holidays for the last two Sundays in New Zealand, a place which is full of the natural beauty of God’s creation. We saw many gorgeous sights. Another interesting thing was attending church in NZ, which yielded two contrasting Sundays. On our first Sunday, the church was notable for its association with Baron Bledisloe (GG of NZ and namesake of the Bledisloe Cup), but we were the only people in the church – no minister showed up – so we had a short service and went home. The second week, at a very “touristy” church, we met a number of interesting people from around the world, including some Christians from Sydney, which was great. It was a reminder to me that we come to church not just for the service itself, but also for the sake of the others who will be there. There is such encouragement in the sheer fact that others have considered it worthwhile to gather in Jesus’ name. I hope you know how much you encourage others by being here.
This Sunday we return to our series in John’s gospel. We actually began this sermon series very briefly at Christmas time, with the famous prologue (“The Word became flesh”). Now, for the next several months we are going to study John in earnest. It is one of my favourite books of the Bible, as it highlights the Lord Jesus, both his divine majesty and his tender love.
In brief:
- There is a Working Bee next Saturday, 6thMay at 8.30 am. Come along and help in the garden or with cleaning and tidying inside.
- You’ve no doubt observed that the roof restoration is underway on the rectory. The “borough chambers” (office building) will follow soon. There will be a chance to give toward this work in our 2023 Restoration Appeal which will be launching soon.
- Finally, the coronation of King Charles III is taking place next Saturday. We will be marking this important event mainly through our prayers both this Sunday and, especially, next Sunday.
Yours,
Andrew Schmidt
Rector