LEXDEN METHODIST CHURCH

Notices for Week Commencing 7th April 2024

Jesus came and stood among them. John 20 v 19

We offer you all a very warm welcome especially if you are a visitor and to those who will be watching the DVD during the week and to our own congregation who are leading our worship this morning.

PRAYER

Please pray for our Ministers – Rev Chris Preece and Rev Hannah Chun.

Continue to pray for all others who are in any way troubled, lonely, unwell or bereaved and anyone else who needs our prayers.

NOTICES

April Pastoral Letter from Rev Hannah Chun is now available. Please see below.

Ladies Event at Kingsland Church on Saturday 20th April 2pm to 4:30pm. Guest speaker Jane Sullivan from The Message Trust will be sharing her passion about the good news of Jesus. Please see the poster on the notice board for booking details.

Circuit Summer Celebration – Sunday 30th June from 4pm till 7pm.The venue, by kind invitation, is at the home of Peter Broom in Layer-de-la-Haye. The event will include crafts, games, entertainment and a closing service. Please bring a picnic, chair, umbrella etc. Further details to follow. If you are able to help, please contact Tony Trevers.

Sunday Services on DVD – If you, or anyone you know, would like a copy of our Sunday morning service on DVD please speak with Geoff or one of the stewards.

Midweek Prayer Time – every Thursday. A short service of prayer and reflection. Everyone welcome.

DIARY OF SERVICES AND EVENTS

Thursday 11th April
9:30am – Midweek Prayer Time

Thursday 18th April
9:30am – Midweek Prayer Time

Next Sunday Service 21st April
10:30am – Holy Communion led by Rev Chris Preece

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If you need prayer or help in anyway, please contact your pastoral visitor or you can call Rev Hannah Chun on 07935 612414 or Alan Beesley on 766604.

Dear Friends,

The second Sunday after Easter has often been referred to as ‘Low Sunday’ due to attendance in churches being lower and lacking in energy, particularly in comparison to the height of Easter celebrations. However, we as followers of Jesus know that Easter doesn’t end with Easter day. It is a continuous journey. In the liturgical calendar, it marks the beginning of a new season, Eastertide, which is 50 days between Easter and Pentecost. This is a time we can consciously and intentionally live out our lives as though every day were Easter, knowing and believing that Christ rises and breathes his Spirit into each of us in our every day.

Sustaining ourselves through our faith journey which has its highs and lows; hills and valleys can be a challenge.

On Easter Monday, my family and I, quite on the spur of the moment visited Saffron Walden. We had heard there was a maze there and well, it got the children excited. When we got there we found out it was more of a labyrinth than a maze and that it had some history. It is the largest turf-cut labyrinth in the world and one of surviving eight turf labyrinths in England. The original date is unknown but it is known to have first been restored in 1699. If you were to walk the whole length it would be 1.5k long.

All of us enjoyed the experience of walking through that labyrinth. It didn’t take us too long to reach the end, maybe around 15 minutes, but there were times on that winding pathway when I wondered whether I was going the right way. Had I missed a turn? Was I going backwards without realising it? Am I going back to where I was before? Will I reach the end?

Maybe that is how our journey of faith may seem at times. We feel as though we are taking one step forward and two steps back. We wonder whether we are heading in the right direction. We wonder whether we will make the finish line.

We did make it to the end of that labyrinth and all we had to do was follow the bricked path. Apparently, labyrinths are different from mazes because mazes are full of dead ends and are designed to get you lost. A labyrinth has only one path that always leads to the centre. You cannot get lost if you follow the path. Labyrinths are ancient pathways often used as a way of prayer. The winding path helps to unwind, to let go and ultimately find rest in God.

May we remember and trust that, even when our faith journey feels like a winding path with dead ends, obstacles, hills and valleys, if we follow the path and stay focused on Christ our guide, we will and can find rest in God.

May God bless you and keep you throughout Eastertide,
Hannah