Dear All

Attached are this week’s Welcome sheet and readings as always and the flyer to act as a reminder for Wednesday Welcome on 3rd July.

This week we saw the Commissioning of our Church Wardens in a service at St Mary’s in Ware. I am thankful for all our churchwardens who have agreed to stand again this year – Sam Clarke, Janet Bellingham and Mike Shaw. Please pray for them as they work so hard to make sure all those things that need to happen to make our churches safe and welcoming places happen.

Last Saturday saw our first Scarecrow Festival Workshop where so many wonderful things were made and our community came together, enjoying each others’ company, strengthening old friendships and making new friends, all working to make High Wych village ready for the Scarecrow Festival again this year. Thank you again for all the hard work by the team in getting everything ready for this event. So much hard work goes into getting things ready behind the scenes, we have an amazing team of hard working individuals, we had lots of lovely refreshments too, thanks to our refreshment team. There are lots of ways to get involved in the Scarecrow Festival and Janet Bellingham, Sam Clarke and Kate Clarke as well as myself can give you help and advice on this. There are knitting patterns and wool at the back of St James church for anyone who would like to knit bugs and minibeasts for our exhibition that will be ‘live’ in church over the Scarecrow Festival weekend.

This Sunday at our 9.30 am service at St James, High Wych we have the Revd Derek Hinge visiting us so please make him feel welcome.

Please keep praying for our general election, our candidates and all our country’s issues; Our NHS; Social Care; Housing; Education; Overseas Aid, Defence; Business and Trade; Work; Our Prisons; the Justice System and pray for Integrity and Good Government for all our politicians.

Today we are being asked to pray for Defence. We are being asked to read Isaiah 2:1-4, especially v4…

‘Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,

Neither shall they learn war any more’.

The prayer that goes with this reading is as follows:-

We commend to your gracious keeping, O God

All who serve in the armed forces.

Keep alive in them and in us your vision of peace.

Hear us Good Lord. Amen

Every blessing

Alison