Christ Church, Longridge

Next Sunday (March 14th)
10.45am: Morning Family Service led by the Worship Planning Group
 6.30pm: Evening Worship led by our Minister
This Week
Monday 8th
10am: Crafts Club
7.30pm: Ladies Guild: Janet Sommerville (Journey Round Namibia)
Tuesday 9th
7.30pm: Church Council /Meeting. All welcome, whether on the council or not.
7.30pm: Circuit meeting at Ribbleton
Wednesday 10th
7.30pm: Joint Church Lent Bible Study at Fulwood URC ( weekly until March 31st) If you would like a copy of the course booklet ‘Prayer – does it make a difference’, please see Helen
Friday 12th
7.45am: CTL prayers at St Paul’s
10am-12noon: Coffee Morning
12noon-1pm: Lenten lunch at St Wilfrids
Saturday 13th
Ramble postponed until Sat March 20th

‘Help Haiti Rise Again’ (Friday 12th, 7.30pm) Concert by the Valley Singers at Christ Church . £5 inc refreshments. Pay at the door or tickets from Jim & Janet Sommerville or Olive.

The Quiz Night originally planned for March 16th has been postponed.
Lenten Lunch at St Paul’s (Friday 19th, 12.00noon)
Christ Church Ramblers meet at 9.30am on Saturday 20th. Also at 7.30pm Blackburn Symphony Orchestra at Accrington Town Hall. Programme Includes Elgar ‘Sea Pictures’ soloist: Joyce Tindsley. See leaflet or John Dixon for more information.
Lenten Lunch at Christ Church (Friday 26th, 12.00noon)
Would duty stewards please collect their new rotas from the table at the back. Thank You, Henry.

FAIR TRADE THANKS Helen and Colin wish to express their thanks to all who helped and supported their ‘Big Brew’ event.. Don’t forget – our Fair Trade pledge at Christ Church and Traidcraft stall is all year round. Why not browse the new Spring catalogue. See Helen or Carol Rose.

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Next Sunday (March 7th)
10.45am: Morning Worship & Holy Communion led by our Minister
 6.30pm: Evening Worship led by Rev Elizabeth Hodgkiss
This Week
Monday 1st
10am: Crafts Club and ‘Big Brew’ 
Wednesday 3rd
7.30pm: Joint Church Lent Bible Study at Fulwood URC ( weekly until March 31st) If you would like a copy of the course booklet ‘Prayer – does it make a difference’, please see Helen
7.30pm: Local Preachers Meeting at Guttridge
Friday 5th World Day of Prayer
7.45am: CTL prayers at St Paul’s
10am-12noon: ‘Big Brew’ Coffee Morning
12noon-1pm: Lenten lunch at Christ Church
1.00pm: World Day of Prayer at St Paul’s

The next Church Council/Meeting will be on Tuesday March 9^th at 7.30pm. Please remember that you are welcome to these meetings, whether you are on the Church Council or not – Mel. Also on 9^th: 7.30pm Circuit Meeting at Fulwood.

Lenten Lunches 12.00 – 1.30pm, Fri 12^th St Wilfrids (for Alston Lane) and Fri 19^th Christ Church Fri 26^th St Paul’s.

FAIR TRADE THANKS Helen and Colin wish to express their thanks to all who helped and supported their ‘Big Brew’ event held at the manse yesterday. Don’t forget – our Fair Trade pledge at Christ Church with Fair Trade refreshments and Traidcraft stall is all year round. Why not browse the new Spring catalogue. For more information, please see Helen or Carol Rose.

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Next Sunday (February 28th)
10.45am: Morning Service led by Mrs Carol Rose
 6.30pm: Evening Service & Holy Communion led by Rev Helen Higgin-Botham
This Week
Monday 22nd
10am: Crafts Club
7.30pm: Ladies Guild
Wednesday 24th
7.30pm: Lent Bible Study (Fulwood) 
Friday 26th
7.45am: CTL prayers at St Paul’s
10am-12noon: Coffee Morning
12noon-1pm: Lenten lunch at Christ Church
Saturday 27th
10am-4pm: The Big Brew at The Manse

Duty Rota (March-May) Please all Council members, welcome stewards and Sunday Coffee teams fill in the availability chart on the noticeboard. If you are interested in being involved in welcoming to worship or helping with refreshments, please see me. Thank you – Henry.
Joint Church Bible Study The Lent bible study on Prayer will begin on Wednesday 24^th February at 7.30pm at Fulwood URC at Symmonds Road. All are welcome.

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Next Sunday (February 21st)
10.45am: Morning Service led by Rev Helen Higgin-Botham
 6.30pm: Combined Evening Service at Guttridge
This Week
Monday 15th
10am: Crafts Club
7.30pm: Bible Studies at 61 Chaigley Road
Friday 19th
7.45am: CTL prayers at St Paul’s
10am-12noon: Coffee Morning
12noon-1pm: Lenten lunch at St Wilfrid’s

Duty Rota (March-May) Please all Council members, welcome stewards and Sunday Coffee teams fill in the availability chart on the noticeboard. If you are interested in being involved in welcoming to worship or helping with refreshments, please see me. Thank you – Henry.
Friday Lenten Lunches begin on February 19^th at St Wilfrid’s. Christ Church Feb 26^th, St Paul’s Mar 5^th, St Wilfrid’s (for Alston Lane) Mar 12^th, Christ Church Mar 19^th, and St Paul’s Mar 26th.
The Big Brew –During Fairtrade fortnight, Colin and I will be holding a “Big Brew” at the Manse, between 10am-4pm on Saturday 27^th February. There will be Traidcraft products for refreshments and for sale – donations to the Fairtrade Foundation. Watch out also for “Big Brew’s’ during Craft Club, Friday Morning Coffee and Sunday Post Service refreshments – Helen.
District Focus Evening at Burnley and Pendle faith Centre is on Monday March 15^th at 7pm.
Quiz Night (Everyone) Tuesday March 16th.
Pilgrim’s Progress-day Conference at Bamber Bridge Methodist Church on Saturday 20^th March details are available on the website bamberbridgemethodistchurch.org.uk.
Preston Methodist Circuit Quiet Day at Rufford Centre is on 30^th April.

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It’s hard to know what to do when we hear of disasters like the earthquake in HAITI. But one thing is certain – we can’t do nothing!
Of the thirteen charities that make up the DEC (Disasters Emergency Committee), World Vision, a Christian charity, has said ‘one thing we can all do is pray, pray, pray…’ World Vision has been instrumental in setting up a daily prayer focus and for those of you who have access to the internet you can get an up to date report by clicking here or here. They are asking people to commit themselves to 40 days of prayer starting today. Please consider making this commitment.
Many members have been asking what can we do in more practical ways? This will be discussed at the Church Council meeting on Sunday 31st January. It may be we have a retiring collection, or arrange an event to raise money. Please think and pray about this and if you have any views or ideas make sure you attend the meeting or let someone know who is attending.

Thank you

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• This year Advent begins on the 29^th of November.
• The evening service on December 6^th will be led by Apples of Gold.
• The Park House service at 6.30pm on December 13^th will be a Carol Service (All welcome).
• Following the pattern of recent years, the Church Carol Service will be on SATURDAY December 19^th at 6.30pm. On the following morning (Sunday December 20^th) we will have our Family Nativity Service but there will not be an evening service on that day.
• Fulwood Methodist Church will be holding a midnight Communion on Christmas Eve at Fulwood URC beginning at 11.00pm.
• The Christmas Morning Service will be at 11.00am at Christ Church.
• Please note that the CTL Epiphany Carol Service will be held on Sunday January 10^th at 6.30pm at St. Lawrence’s Church. As this is the second Sunday of the month, the Park House Service will move to the first Sunday of the month (Jan. 6^th) just for January.

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This year the Theme for the Christmas Decorations is Circles. Church Organisations and others are already busy decorating Hoola Hoops to hang around the walls and windows but if you are part of an organisation which would like to contribute, please see Jane Turner or John Spencer as soon as possible. The church will be open on Dec. 18^th, 19^th and 20^th for viewing. Full details of times etc. will be in the weekly notices and a rota for volunteers will be in the foyer.

A large Christmas Card will be available in the foyer to send greetings to other members of the church in return for a donation. The card will be available from December 13^th.

Any donations and special Christmas Offerings will go to support Helen’s work with Operation Christmas Child.

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Date: 31^st December

Time: 8.00pm – till late!

Venue: Christ Church, Longridge

Come and enjoy an evening of fellowship, entertainment, and games, with a ‘bring ‘n’ share’ supper. The evening will conclude with our Watchnight Communion Service. Bring your family and friends. All are welcome.

A list is in the foyer for donations to the ‘Bring and Share’ Supper, plus donations for prizes for the evening’s entertainment

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After trying to explain to a member of Junior Church why we say ‘dialling a number’ when we actually press buttons to use a telephone these days, reminded me of something I read recently.

We Were Brung Up Proper!

First we were born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they carried us and lived in houses made of asbestos.  They took asprin, ate cheese that had seen better days, ate raw egg products, loads of bacon and processed meat (probably containing sawdust and other unmentionables) and nothing had a ‘best by’ date.

Once we were born our cots were covered with brightly coloured lead-based paint.  We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets. We drank water from the stream not from a bottle; we shared one soft drink from the same bottle with four friends.  We never had a whole Mars bar until 1971. We collected old drinks bottles and cashed them in at the corner shop and bought toffees that pulled your teeth out, gobstoppers and bubble gum. We ate white bread with real butter half an inch thick, but we weren’t overweight because we played outside all day.  Even though all the shops closed at 6pm and didn’t open on a Sunday, somehow we didn’t starve to death!  You could only buy Easter eggs and Hot Cross buns at Easter time.  We rode bikes without wearing helmets or even shoes.  If we had a car it didn’t have seatbelts or airbags.  We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were home before dark.  We would spend hours building go-carts out of prams and then ride them down hill, only to find out we’d forgotten the brakes.  We built tree houses and dens and played in the river. We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and nobody sued anybody!  We got catapults and toy guns for our birthdays.  We didn’t have TV, Playstations, Nintendos, X-boxes, Videos, DVDs, mobile ‘phones, text messages, internet.  We had real friends that you could go out with and talk to.  Our teacher used to hit us with gym shoes and throw the blackboard rubber at us if they thought we weren’t concentrating and our parents would side with the teacher!   How did we survive! and how different things are now.  Through all this one thing remains constant - God and His love for us all.

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