Our Vision

Is to Aspire … to Inspire… a Desire… in JESUS!

The Newsletter of the Bolsover and Staveley Circuit

May 2006 No 57

As many of us are concerned on how we are ‘church’, Gillian has passed the following article from ‘Together’, the Churches Together in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire newsletter.

CUP OF TEA, VICAR?
Inham Nook is a Methodist church on a Nottingham estate, part of the Trent Valley Circuit and associated with the Clarke’s Lane Methodist Church. For some time Deacon Barbara Crockett had felt God speaking to her about starting a new style of church based at the Inham Nook Methodist Centre. For many elderly people, Sunday is one of the loneliest days of the week and to be able to drop into the centre for a cuppa and a chat would be a welcome break. It is this target audience comprising people who wouldn’t normally come to church, which they are seeking to attract. The emphasis is based around the 3 Bs – befriend, belong, believe.

The idea of the venture is to provide around an hour of fellowship with café-style worship using multimedia, drama, mediation and other forms of presentation. As people arrive they are greeted by the aroma of coffee brewing and cakes baking in the oven. Each table has a Christian leader to act as a befriender and to assist with discussions. The sessions are loosely based around cell-church principles.

The project has attracted a number of eager volunteers along with welcomed partnership from local Anglican friends at
St. Barnabas. The Café church began on January 22nd 2006 and runs on through the summer on a weekly basis. During the week before the official start of the venture, a band of volunteers went around the locality, knocking on doors and inviting people to the Café Church, handing out coasters as invitations. They are beer-mat style in glossy card. Overall, the reception received on the doorstep was most encouraging. Most people knew where the Methodist Centre was and were well disposed to the idea of joining in. This says a lot about the way in which the church has engaged with the community in the past and built up good relationships through its midweek activities.

Remarkably a couple of dozen visitors have become regulars at this new event in the first two months, including a number of people who would normally be quite outside the church’s normal ambit as well as others who had once had a link with it. These have included small children and teenagers as well as the middle-aged and pensioners.

Roger Johnson, Methodist District Evangelism Enabler, has given major support to this project in its early stages, and he and Barbara even got their picture into the Nottingham Evening Post! He says, “like all new ventures, this one will take time and perseverance to become fully established, but the early signs are very positive. I was particularly pleased to see the cross section of ages and an insistence by the younger people on mixing with the older folk, remaining part of the full session rather than sitting on separate tables and “doing their own thing”. This is now serving as primary outreach to the people of Inham Nook, and as one person said, “I can see so much of God in it!”

The new Inham Nook Café Church is undoubtedly a challenge and an encouragement to us all, whatever our own tradition.

MAKE POVERTY HISTORY WITH FAIRTRADE
Roy Jennings pointed this article out within the District News.

Most people wish for fullness of life for all-safe water, accessible health, quality education and an income that makes these basic things of life possible. Buying fair-trade good is an effective and simple way of reducing poverty by paying the cost of the production of the goods as well as a small premium which is invested in the community to improve services.

Today, there are 370 certified producer organisations, representing almost 500 first level producer structures, and over 800,000 families of farmers and workers (which we estimate as being 5 million people), coming from over 45 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

There are now more than 850 products available from retail and catering suppliers in the UK. The annual sales in 1998 was £16.7m, in 2004 it was £140m!!

50% of the adult population can now identify the certification mark, up from 25% in 2003 and 39% in 2004, and know that it “guarantees a better deal for third world producers”.

We are hoping to make Sheffield District a Fairtrade District. This means that over 50% of individual churches need to be Fairtrade churches.

If you are not a fair-trade church but wish to be, it is very simple. There are three obligations to fulfil:

·        Use Fairtrade tea and coffee for all meetings for which you have responsibility.
·        Move forward on using other Fairtrade products (such as sugar, biscuits and fruit)
·        Promote Fairtrade during Fairtrade Fortnight – and through other activities wherever possible.

If anymore information is required please contact Karen Drayton on 01709 382306 or Pedalpower28@aol.com.

CIRCUIT SERVICE (EASTER OFFERING)
This will be held at Clowne on Sunday 14th May at 3:00pm. The preacher will be the District Network President Mrs Judith Simms.

THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS
There will be an evening to learn about the Dead Sea Scrolls, which were discovered some 60 years ago that have revealed important insights into the life of religious communities. This meeting is open to all who are interested, especially preachers, teachers and group leaders. This evening will be held on Wednesday 17th May at 7:30pm at Brimington Common. There will be refreshments afterwards.

FAITH AND WORSHIP
Calling anyone who wants to explore the Christian faith at a deeper level!

Kevin Laming (Circuit Local Preachers’ Tutor) is leading the course entitled ‘Faith & Worship’. This course is intended for Local Preachers in training, but can be undertaken by anyone. If there is sufficient interest, we will meet about once every three weeks with longer breaks at holiday times. The course will demand reading and essays and other written work to be submitted to examiners at Connexional level. For the moment the course will be run on the basis that members are exploring their faith and do not at this stage have any commitment to becoming a Local Preacher. Should anyone subsequently feel the call, that would be great and can be accommodated.

Initial dates: Fridays, May 19, June 9, June 30 and July 21 all at 7:30pm at 59, Cotterhill Lane, Brimington.

If you are interested or just want to find out more, please ring Kevin on 271608 or

e-mail him at laming.cotterhill@tiscali.co.uk as soon as possible.

RECOGNITION SERVICE
There will be a Recognition Service for Dave Wilson and Mark North as they have completed their training to become Local Preachers. This will be held at Bolsover on Thursday 25th May at 7:30pm. Please come and support both of them on this important occasion.

SCARBOROUGH OUTING
Staveley’s Men’s Fellowship has an outing to Scarborough on Saturday 24th June with tea at Queen Street Methodist Central Hall. There are a few vacant seats left at a cost of £14 inclusive. If interested, please contact Geoff Thompson, 471227 or 07773 682566.

YOUTH THEATRE WEEK
We have received information by post about a Youth Theatre Week form 30th July - 6th August 2006 at High Leigh Conference Centre. It is being run by Faith, Hope and Gaffertape, working in partnership with the URC and Trust Greenbelt, and they are planning to put on a performance of Singing in the Rain after one week's rehearsal. It is open to anyone aged 15-25 and the cost is £150 Full Board. If you know of anyone who may be interested, more information and a booking form can be obtained from www.gaffertape.biz

Circuit DIARY

Meetings and Other Church Events for the forthcoming months.

May 2006

14      Easter Offering Circuit Service      3:00 pm                           Clowne
17      Dead Sea Scrolls Evening            7:30 pm         Brimington Common
21      Men’s Fellowship Breakfast          8:30 am                          Staveley
23      Deadline for June’s issue of Vision
25      Recognition Service for                7:30 pm                         Bolsover
          Dave Wilson & Mark North

June 2006

2       Circuit Prayer Meeting                  7:30pm         Brimington Common
17      Men’s Fellowship Breakfast           8:30am                          Staveley
24&25 Flower Festival (more information next month)               Duckmanton