Showing posts with label st frideswide. Show all posts
Showing posts with label st frideswide. Show all posts
Wednesday, 28 April 2010
The Missing Cross
Sunday, 29 March 2009
Passion Sunday
The Assumption, Wavendon
I started the day with a 9:45am service at Wavendon. It's hard to believe this church is really part of Milton Keynes Deanery since Wavendon is just outside the boundaries of the city and feels like a rural parish. It would be interesting to know how many people come from the village and how many walk or drive in from the city...
It was good to meet some new people here and begin to get to know them. I was also pleased to see an old friend from Holy Cross who has moved east so there was one familiar face...
Water Eaton AGM
I managed to scoot across to Water Eaton in time to join St Frideswide for their AGM. I missed the annual meeting of parishioners but was pleased to hear that Gail and Ron have been elected as church wardens. Ron replaces Malcolm who has done such a good job steering this vibrant congregation into its current phase of growth.
I chaired (most of) the AGM which was a good experience - as it was last year. It's a good way of indicating official support and involvement while giving them space to be themselves. They're a good bunch. This LSM pilot project is going well!
All Saints AGM
I was a bit late for the All Saints' Loughton AGM but this was fine since Derek Martin was in the chair and doing a really good job. It was good to see how the AGM functioned after a year of congregational meetings supported by a servant leadership team.
I particularly enjoyed the green voting cards that members got to wave.
Although All Saints' isn't an official LSM pilot it's busy doing all the things we might expect an LSM community to do. It would be good to see them get a bit of credit for their achievements.
Memorial Service
Derek Martin was also leading a memorial service this afternoon at All Saints' and did a good job as far as I can see. Well done Derek!
Wedding Preparation
We held our second revamped Watling Valley wedding prep session at All Saints' this afternoon. It seemed to go extremely well and we had eight couples (I think).
It was good to see members of the team begin to relax and develop their presentations as they began to feel at home with the material. These sessions are improving all the time! A big win for the WVEP team!
Hospital
I finished the day with a trip into hospital to see someone who is really not well. Her grandaughter phoned me this afternoon to let me know.
Home
After a long day of work it was good to have a quick snack and watch Heston Blumenthal as a family and collapse into bed - sleep....
I started the day with a 9:45am service at Wavendon. It's hard to believe this church is really part of Milton Keynes Deanery since Wavendon is just outside the boundaries of the city and feels like a rural parish. It would be interesting to know how many people come from the village and how many walk or drive in from the city...
It was good to meet some new people here and begin to get to know them. I was also pleased to see an old friend from Holy Cross who has moved east so there was one familiar face...Water Eaton AGM
I managed to scoot across to Water Eaton in time to join St Frideswide for their AGM. I missed the annual meeting of parishioners but was pleased to hear that Gail and Ron have been elected as church wardens. Ron replaces Malcolm who has done such a good job steering this vibrant congregation into its current phase of growth.
I chaired (most of) the AGM which was a good experience - as it was last year. It's a good way of indicating official support and involvement while giving them space to be themselves. They're a good bunch. This LSM pilot project is going well!
All Saints AGM
I was a bit late for the All Saints' Loughton AGM but this was fine since Derek Martin was in the chair and doing a really good job. It was good to see how the AGM functioned after a year of congregational meetings supported by a servant leadership team.
I particularly enjoyed the green voting cards that members got to wave.
Although All Saints' isn't an official LSM pilot it's busy doing all the things we might expect an LSM community to do. It would be good to see them get a bit of credit for their achievements.
Memorial Service
Derek Martin was also leading a memorial service this afternoon at All Saints' and did a good job as far as I can see. Well done Derek!
Wedding Preparation
We held our second revamped Watling Valley wedding prep session at All Saints' this afternoon. It seemed to go extremely well and we had eight couples (I think).
It was good to see members of the team begin to relax and develop their presentations as they began to feel at home with the material. These sessions are improving all the time! A big win for the WVEP team!
Hospital
I finished the day with a trip into hospital to see someone who is really not well. Her grandaughter phoned me this afternoon to let me know.
Home
After a long day of work it was good to have a quick snack and watch Heston Blumenthal as a family and collapse into bed - sleep....
Sunday, 18 January 2009
St Frideswide's
I went to St Frideswide's in Water Eaton this morning. This was this first time that I have been able to join them on a Sunday morning.Peter Green presided and I preached.
The readings were Revelation 5:1-10 and John 1:43-end. These were great reading for thinking about the mission of Christ which was:
a) Truly local - since the incarnation implies a full immersion into the socio-economic and cultural identity of the community with whom God chooses to dwell.
b) Essential collaborative - since Jesus depends on other people both to share good news and act on his behalf.
c) Ultimately universal - since the kingdom of God stretches out through all times and places.
In other words, this was a good occasion to talk about Local Shared Ministry...
Sunday, 19 October 2008
St Frideswide's Day
After my trip to Woughton I dropped in on St Frideswide who were celebrating their patronal festival. I was there long enough to say grace for them and cook up a few new plans...I said grace but had to leave before the eating began...
Monday, 6 October 2008
LSM in Water Eaton
Andrew Gear and I met with the people of St Frideswide, Water Eaton, this morning for a six month review of their LSM project. We were delighted that around twenty people turned up and there was a great deal of excitement and buzz. We spent some time reflecting on what has gone well and on what challenges the congregation still faces. We then attempted to set some priorities for the coming year.
It was a very encouraging morning. It's clear that St Frideswide has grown in depth and in numbers during the past eighteen months as it has transitioned from a "priest led" parish to a "ministering community". There is a lot of energy and confidence in the community which is wonderful to see. Peter and Wendy, the asociate priests, are also keen to say that they feel welcomed and relaxed and free to be priests rather than burdened by heavy expectations.
This is the first review of one of our LSM pilots and it confirms what I have come to believe - that local ministry flourishes when space is created.
Well done St Frideswide's!
It was a very encouraging morning. It's clear that St Frideswide has grown in depth and in numbers during the past eighteen months as it has transitioned from a "priest led" parish to a "ministering community". There is a lot of energy and confidence in the community which is wonderful to see. Peter and Wendy, the asociate priests, are also keen to say that they feel welcomed and relaxed and free to be priests rather than burdened by heavy expectations.
This is the first review of one of our LSM pilots and it confirms what I have come to believe - that local ministry flourishes when space is created.
Well done St Frideswide's!
Saturday, 28 June 2008
Trip to the sea side
I missed a great day out today. The people of ST Frideswide's in Water Eaton have been knitting balaclavas for sailors. They've made between 70 and 80 and went on a nice day trip today to deliver them. Apparently the coach company ran out of vehicles so they were given the MK Don's coach!
I was invited to join them but unfortunately had other commitments - and am on sabbatical. They have promised to provide pictures and I'll post them as soon as I get them.
I was invited to join them but unfortunately had other commitments - and am on sabbatical. They have promised to provide pictures and I'll post them as soon as I get them.
Sunday, 9 March 2008
Passion Sunday
It was a long day today, but here are some of the highlights...
8:00am: Holy Communion at All Saints' Loughton - I preached on Lazarus with an emphasis on the place of the story in journey of Jesus towards the Cross
9:00am: Holy Communion at Holy Cross Two Mile Ash - I preached a similar sermon, but with an emphasis on resurection which I extended to the rest of the service
10:30am: Holy Communion at All Saints' Loughton - We rejigged the service so I could preach before the reading. I spoke about Rolland Allen, making links to the journey of our churches towards Local Ministry - with references to St Mary's Worship Leaders and the new experiment at St Frideswide. The link with the Lazarus story is the way Jesus chose to take the risk of "retiring" (pinching Allen's phrase) from the events in Bethany for the long term good of the Gospel... I left them listening to the reading with Tim Hadden to preside at Communion.
11:00am (actually 11:10am): AGM at Water Eaton - got to Water Eaton ten minutes late having torn down the A5 at 70 (which is legal on the dual carriageway). I was supposed to be chairing their AGM, but it was inevitably a team job since they knew how they do things better than I ever will. It was good to be with them, and the whole meeting was very positive. It was good to affirm what they've achieved during the past year. The discussion about Malcolm and Gail's proposal ("Toward a Local Shared Ministry") was positive but thoughtful. There is a general feeling that this is the right thing to do at the moment, but a concern that we have contingency plans and are open to other possibilities in the long term. The vote was nearly unanimous, with one person voting against, but it turned out he really wanted to make sure there were sensible checks and ballances included, which we agreed to require.
And so the next stage of the Water Eaton experiment begins. We will now need to make sure proper guidelines for the team and the reviews are set up. We will also need to speak to Bishop Alan. In the meantime, they can continue with a bit more stability and confidence.
Afternoon: Izzy needed some attention. Long walk. Lunch.
6:30pm: Growing Disciples part 7 - I hadn't had any time to prepare for Growing Disciples so it wasn't the smoothest of sessions. This was the session on Groups and Teams that we had issues with last year. The CPAS Growing Leaders material makes an artificial distinction between Groups and Teams which we suspect was motivated by their desire to use concepts from "Five Disfunctions of Teams". Unfortunately, we think there is a difference between groups and teams and buy into the idea that in a Team your work has an effect on the work of the whole, but a Group can meet without mutual responsibility.
On the other hand, it was a good evening.
Mike and I are beginning to think about next year and are starting to consider names of people to invite. Years one and two have been so significant as we have seen people grow, develop networks and find new confidence. This has been an important programme for us as a Partnership and is clearly a key part of our discipleship strategy.
One of our next thoughts is to do more with our "Alumni" - we will have 22 by July. One idea that we're considering is to organise a trip to the Willow Creak Leadership Conference in the UK - and to get hold of the videos. This would give us a way of continuing to build up and develop our leaders...
8:00am: Holy Communion at All Saints' Loughton - I preached on Lazarus with an emphasis on the place of the story in journey of Jesus towards the Cross
9:00am: Holy Communion at Holy Cross Two Mile Ash - I preached a similar sermon, but with an emphasis on resurection which I extended to the rest of the service
10:30am: Holy Communion at All Saints' Loughton - We rejigged the service so I could preach before the reading. I spoke about Rolland Allen, making links to the journey of our churches towards Local Ministry - with references to St Mary's Worship Leaders and the new experiment at St Frideswide. The link with the Lazarus story is the way Jesus chose to take the risk of "retiring" (pinching Allen's phrase) from the events in Bethany for the long term good of the Gospel... I left them listening to the reading with Tim Hadden to preside at Communion.
11:00am (actually 11:10am): AGM at Water Eaton - got to Water Eaton ten minutes late having torn down the A5 at 70 (which is legal on the dual carriageway). I was supposed to be chairing their AGM, but it was inevitably a team job since they knew how they do things better than I ever will. It was good to be with them, and the whole meeting was very positive. It was good to affirm what they've achieved during the past year. The discussion about Malcolm and Gail's proposal ("Toward a Local Shared Ministry") was positive but thoughtful. There is a general feeling that this is the right thing to do at the moment, but a concern that we have contingency plans and are open to other possibilities in the long term. The vote was nearly unanimous, with one person voting against, but it turned out he really wanted to make sure there were sensible checks and ballances included, which we agreed to require.
And so the next stage of the Water Eaton experiment begins. We will now need to make sure proper guidelines for the team and the reviews are set up. We will also need to speak to Bishop Alan. In the meantime, they can continue with a bit more stability and confidence.
Afternoon: Izzy needed some attention. Long walk. Lunch.
6:30pm: Growing Disciples part 7 - I hadn't had any time to prepare for Growing Disciples so it wasn't the smoothest of sessions. This was the session on Groups and Teams that we had issues with last year. The CPAS Growing Leaders material makes an artificial distinction between Groups and Teams which we suspect was motivated by their desire to use concepts from "Five Disfunctions of Teams". Unfortunately, we think there is a difference between groups and teams and buy into the idea that in a Team your work has an effect on the work of the whole, but a Group can meet without mutual responsibility.
On the other hand, it was a good evening.
Mike and I are beginning to think about next year and are starting to consider names of people to invite. Years one and two have been so significant as we have seen people grow, develop networks and find new confidence. This has been an important programme for us as a Partnership and is clearly a key part of our discipleship strategy.
One of our next thoughts is to do more with our "Alumni" - we will have 22 by July. One idea that we're considering is to organise a trip to the Willow Creak Leadership Conference in the UK - and to get hold of the videos. This would give us a way of continuing to build up and develop our leaders...
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