Skip to main content

Coronavirus Recovery Step One

Hi folks

As I am writing this blog, our First Minister Arlene Foster and our Deputy First Minister Michele O'Neill are announcing that from Monday 18th May 2020 they are allowing the country to enter the first step of the recovery from the pandemic.

From that date, Recycling centres and Garden centres are allowed to open - but for us, the better news is that we can start looking at other ways to do "church".  Step One outlines that we are allowed to start a "drive-in" church.  That sounds like something that you do in the summer time - but with the proper steps and equipment, it can work for us!

Our church property is ideally suited for this type of experience, with a fantastic church carpark and ample room for everyone to get in!  You will have to remain in our cars, but at least we could still turn up and worship together!  I wonder would we be interested in starting out this way, and coming together to worship, even in this unusual manner?  If it works, we'll keep it going until we have the permission to get into the new normality!

Please pass the news around - I'm intending to start as soon as we have permission our outdoor "drive-in" church at Aghavea at 11am.  If this is successful, we will keep it going - but don't panic, it will be online as well.  I would like to start to blend our services to work in the best way that suits us all best!  We aren't all online, and we can't all travel just as safely - but with a mix of the two, it will suit more people than already!

Get the news out!  Drive-in church!  We're almost there!!

God bless you all.

Regards
Johnny 
Rector

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

AccessNI Check process

 Hi folks Please see the following pages for the process of getting our AccessNI accreditation for our Sunday School and GFS leaders and helpers. You will need to print out the pages and keep a special note of the long number provided to you by email and let me know as soon as possible. We require an Enhanced check for everyone - and use the PIN number 918066 as detailed on the first page. The second page details the forms of identification you will need to provide - one from the first group, and two from the second group. The quicker we can all get the checks completed, the sooner we can get everything back to normal and put this whole process behind us for another three years! If you can photograph yourself (by smartphone or tablet) and email (revdjohnny@gmail.com) or WhatsApp (07488371680) them to me, that'd be great. I will also be available at the Parish Hall on Monday evening from 7pm to 8pm to help you with anything you would like assistance with! If you need any help at all

Pray for Peace

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.” Matthew 5:9   The Holy Land, the place sanctified by the presence of prophets, poets, and priests, crying out for justice, urging on towards hope, and seeking after peace, has been, and continues to be a place sacred to millions of people around the world. We have watched with horror the appalling violence that has been unleashed over the last few days around this sacred place. We have seen families devastated, communities shattered, and countless lives lost.   We, as followers of Jesus are called in this time to pray.    Pray for the end of hostilities, pray for the protection of the most vulnerable on both sides in Israel and Gaza, and pray for a recommitment to a lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians. We also pray that God might grant comfort to the afflicted, healing to the broken, strength to the weak, and courage to those in authority to lay down the instruments of violence and destruction and stud

Where is forgiveness?

Hi folks I was thinking about the passages for next Sunday, and it brought me to considering the current press coverage regarding the This Morning presenters.  This might be a little controversial - but please, hear me out.  I have no great opinion on what's happening in the media regarding the "This Morning" saga. It seems mistakes have been made, and certainly people misled - but the frenzy and hounding of Phillip Schofield is both unnecessary and unwarranted. I'm very uncomfortable that some members the press and celebrities have made it their lives mission to destroy everything  Mr Schofield has ever done!  It cannot be easy to listen and read so much vitriol being used against him! There's certainly no Christian love being shown to him on the media these days. I remember the words of Jesus when he told us to love one another, and that whoever has not sinned should cast the first stone. I'm certainly not perfect in any way, and don't believe that anyon