Celebrated on the first Friday of March each year, the World Day of Prayer (WDP) is celebrated in services in over 170 countries across the world on the first Friday of March, this year on 7th March. The Cook Islands will be our focus of prayer and understanding and the theme is “I Made You Wonderful” (Psalm 139:14) The World Day of Prayer service will be held at St. Cuthbert’s Bellingham on 7th March at 7pm. Refreshments will be served afterwards. Please do come along to pray and learn together about the Cook Islands.
Our neighbouring CoE churches, as part of Upper Coquetdale Churches Together, are promoting this highly regarded & professionally delivered course. The venue will be the URC church in Rothbury, on 1st February, from 10am - 4.30pm (arrive from 9.30am).Relax and enjoy the journey as an experienced guide takes you through God's 'Big Picture' with fun and memorable sessions to learn with such clarity you'll be able to retell the whole storyline to a friend. We will also do our best to inspire and equip you to keep digging deeper. The course details are available at www.Bible.org.uk.Book online today at www.Bible.org.uk or book through Rev Ed Butlin on 01670 783452, email ed.butlin@gmail.comThe cost of £10 (subsidised by the UCCT, usual price £14) includes all materials & the handbooks you'll take away at the end (note the course is free for children aged 11- 17). Tea & coffee will be available throughout. Please bring a packed lunch.
The online Advent Calendar is at: https://www.churchofengland.org/faith-life/what-we-believe/advent-and-christmas/advent-calendarDecember can feel like chaos – lots of social events, services, Christmas presents to buy, never-ending to-do lists and the pressure to create the perfect Christmas. But in the midst of this chaos, our churches can offer an opportunity to find peace during this busy time.The Church of England's theme for Advent and Christmas 2024, Follow the Star: Calm and Bright, draws on the world-famous carol, Silent Night:“Silent Night! Holy Night!All is calm, all is bright...”One of the reasons that this carol is so universally loved is the way it invites us into the still centre of the Christmas story, to contemplate Mary holding the new-born Jesus, the Light of the World.The angelic messages we encounter in the biblical story of Jesus’ birth typically hold together the need for calm in the present (“Do not be afraid” … “Fear not”) with the hope of a bright future (“for you have found favour with God” … “for behold I bring you tidings of great joy”).Throughout Advent, we will focus primarily on how to find Calm during this busy period, with reflections offering people a chance to pause during the busy season and tips on how to prepare for a calm Christmas.Then through Christmas, we will focus particularly on Bright, with a series of daily reflections from Christmas Day to the Eve of Epiphany (5 January) by Sammi Tooze, Discipleship Adviser for the Diocese of York, both in digital form and as a booklet.
