Christ Church, Longridge

…in every corner sing” – and they certainly did in this particular corner. For four hours on a hot May Sunday in Kailahun, Sierra Leone, I joined with the members of the congregation to celebrate the life of Rev Victor Nabieu. Victor was the Methodist Minister in Kailahun when I first visited Sierra Leone in 2006, and on my return in 2008 I found him a very ill man. He succumbed to his illness in March and after the traditional forty days of mourning; I was privileged to attend his Memorial Service.
I was back in Kailahun to try to make some progress in the Skills Training Centre we helped start building in 2006. The first time I went, I was part of a team of sixteen from the North Lancashire District of the Methodist Church, but this time I went on my own. With my experience working in Training Centres in this country it was becoming hard to get away from the feeling that God was telling me to use my skills, such as they are, in Sierra Leone.
After a long day’s travelling from the UK; I landed in Freetown, the capital, and was taken to a Roman Catholic Hostel for the night. Being male, travelling on my own, staying in a Roman Catholic establishment, I was addressed as ‘Father’, I was too tired to start explaining!! The following day was hectic, meeting people, changing money, buying supplies, organising transport, purchasing a new tyre for the church vehicle and eventually setting off for Kailahun – three hundred miles on very poor roads!
During the next two weeks I helped complete the building and started organising equipment, some of which we had sent out via a container from this country. The local church had gone some way to establishing a Management Committee and after a number of meetings with them and the local government Director of Education we started to arrange interviews for staff and potential students. We were looking for a Manager for the centre plus a Tutor to teach tailoring, one to teach carpentry and one to teach literacy. After many a hot day’s interviewing we eventually appointed a tailoring tutor, Victoria Gallia and a carpentry tutor, Julius Banya and Prince Kafala, the Methodist School Headmaster, to organise the literacy teaching – but no manager. I was very concerned that we had not seen anyone with the potential to run the centre. We continued to interview for students and after yet more hot days we had a manageable number of students to commence training. I was still concerned about not having a manager when the President of the Methodist Church in Sierra Leone contacted me to say he might have a solution. Someone in Freetown, who is a teacher of many years standing, is wanting to return to Kailahun, her home town, to look after her ageing father. I returned to Freetown to meet Sarah Mowio and knew at once that she was the right person for the job – why do we doubt that God will provide? By the way I returned to Freetown in an ambulance! Not that I was ill, but it was the only vehicle available. Having been mistaken for a priest on my way out, I was now being mistaken for a doctor on my return journey!
The time I spent in Sierra Leone was such a rewarding experience in many ways. To work with people who have so little but give so much is very humbling. Please remember the people who will work and learn in the skills training centre and thank you all for your support both financially and prayerfully.

John Spencer

The organization called Tuesday at Two began at Longridge Methodist Church about 25 years ago. At the time, it was felt that there was a need for a day time fellowship meeting, as most church activities took place in the evening. It was open to anyone at home during the day and to begin with attracted both men and women, retired people and young mums. The fortnightly meetings have continued ever since but are now mainly attended by women although men would always be welcome. There have been a wide variety of interesting speakers and trips out over the years and for the last twenty years the team of Mary Hughes, Margaret Mohyla and Sheila Freeman has kept things running smoothly. Not surprisingly they are looking to hand over the task of finding speakers, organizing trips and making sure that all the practicalities of running the meetings are taken care of.

On behalf of everyone at Christ Church and especially those who have attended the meetings over the years, we want to say a really big THANK YOU. If any one would like to help run Tuesday at Two in the future, please see Helen Higgin-Botham, Carol Spencer or Margaret Mohyla.

“Sylvia & Peter Thomas send Christmas Greetings to all at Longridge from Brigg and wish you a Happy & Peaceful New Year”

How do you feel about the Worship at Christ Church?

Whether you are actively involved in preparing worship or just an interested party – it is important that the worship we experience is meaningful and engaging.

At our last Church Council meeting, we discussed the possibility of setting up a Worship Consultation Group – a group of people with ideas and thoughts about preparing for the major festivals within the church year.

If you would be interested in becoming part of such a group – please speak to me, so that I can report back to the next council meeting on the 18th March. Thank you.

Yours in Christ, Helen

Christmas is a wonderful time but it can also be a very difficult time for some people. Please remember in your prayers:-

• Children in families where there are drink or drug problems who are often at greater risk of violence during the ‘festive season’.
• Those who have no family to share Christmas with.
• Those who have lost a loved one since last Christmas especially Judith Dixon and her family and Ranjan Mazumdar and his family and all others known to you.
• Those whose families are separated by great distances which mean that they cannot get together.
• Those where there has been a break down of family relationships.
• Those who are seriously ill and those who care for them.

May they know the closeness of God our Father and the love and kindness of good neighbours.