S a l v a t i o n A r my W o ki n g
J a nu a r y / F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 2
T I D I N G S FROM THE C.O’S DESK In this Issue Christmas at the SA
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Teddy Toddlers
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Gardening Tips
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Comedy Hall
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Prayers
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CAMEO
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Flower List
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Future Dates
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What God is up to
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Word Search
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Sudoko
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Christmas in Pictures
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It’s Time for Carols
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What’s On
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Community Update
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Corps Anniversary
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CORE Groups
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Lent Series
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Mission Worship 2011
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Caption Competition
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Poem
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This week, one of the busiest activities at the hall will be Slimming World. During December, their numbers dropped, but many people will start the year with a resolution to get healthy. Well, as a church, we’re going to be doing just that, but not in quite the same way. On 8th January we will introduce the theme Fit4life, based on 1 Thessalonians 5:23, where each of us will be given a Spiritual Fitness Planner. Then, in the following three weeks, we’ll look together at three spiritual disciplines we can use to help us to stay spiritually fit. Some of the people who go to Slimming World this week will not be there in a few months time, not because they’ve achieved their goals, but they run out of motivation and will power. And, although the initial desire is there, maybe they just aren’t prepared to make the changes they are being asked to make. Sometimes our spiritual lives can be like that. We make promises to God that we will grow in our relationship with him, that we will spend more time with him, we will listen out for his voice, but sometimes the changes he asks us to make are just too much and so we carry on with our own way of living.
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It’s been great to see God working in people’s lives over the past year and he is giving us some exciting challenges in the year ahead. As we start the year, let us think seriously about what God wants from us. We don’t know what God has in store for us this year, but we can be sure
that if we invest in our relationship with him, and as we commit to journeying with him, that he will bless us and use us, and we’ll be able to make the most of 2012 and enjoy the adventure. Lieuts Will and Debbie
Christmas at the Salvation Army On Christmas day a group of 30 sat down to a lovely Christmas lunch cooked by Gill Gregory and Wendy Hardwick. It was lovely to share fun and fellowship with one another especially for those who would have been on their own. We had a lovely lunch and tea/coffee. After lunch we all sat down and played pass
the parcel followed by two Christmas quizzes. We also saw the Queen’s speech on the wide screen. Then it was time for tea and Christmas cake. We were each given a Christmas present to take home. I would like to say a big thank you to Gill and Wendy for organising a lovely Christmas afternoon. Janet
THANK YOU! Thank you to everyone who helped through December with all that went on – parcels, caroling, coffee shop, carol services, Christmas lunches. Yes, it was hard work, but together we were able to help so many families and meet the needs of a variety of people, some in ways we will never know. We hope you all managed to grab some time for yourselves and your families and that amidst the busyness, you found a little bit of Christmas peace and joy.
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Teddy Toddlers We have reached the end of the first term in this academic year and have welcomed lots of new mums and children. We concluded the term as usual with Christmas parties – one for each session and had a great time with food and a gift for each child. For the fourth year, we had a Christmas collection and raised money to help struggling countries through The Salvation Army International Development
Plan. This year we were able to purchase, a borehole pump (£50), a pit Latrine (£40), a goat (£18) and a seed pack (£3). Well done to all Toddler mums and many thanks for their generosity. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who help on a Monday as well as those kind folk who so willingly help to prepare the hall on a Sunday. Your efforts are so very much appreciated. Thank you. Jan
Gardening Tips Cut down ornamental grasses before new shoots appear. Keep dead-heading pansies to help new buds develop. Start sowing hardy annuals. To give your lawn a boost, spread a gritty loam-based compost. Help birds by feeding them with wild bird food from mail order company. Mow your lawns when ground is dry and no frost is forecast. It’s not an April to October job — you can do it all year round
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J a nu a r y / F e b r u a r y
Comedy Hall D.O.H. (Department of Humour)
Dear readers, I hope you all had a good Christmas and I wish you all a Happy New Year. A senior citizen was driving down the M1 when his wife called him on his mobile. She warned him that she had just heard the news that a car was going the wrong way down the M1 and begged him to be careful. “Darling,” he replied, “it’s not just one, it’s hundreds of them!” A dying Granny tells her grandson that she wants to leave him her farm including the farmhouse, tractor, equipment animals and £89, 468 in cash. The amazed grandson thanked his granny for her amazing generosity saying, “I didn’t even know you had a farm, where is it?” With her last breath, she whispered, “Facebook”. Adam was walking outside the Garden of Eden with Cain and Abel when they were young. They looked into the garden with its beautiful flowers, birds, waterfalls and trees laden with fruit. Then they looked where they lived – dry and dusty with weeds and sickly trees. “Daddy, why don’t we live there instead of out here?” “Well, Eve and I used to live there but your mother ate us out of house and home.” Here are the top five politically correct Christmas songs:Chestnuts roasting on an environmentally-friendly fuel source Rudolph, the endangered and exploited species All I want for Christmas is a dental plan Frosty the snowperson I saw mummy suing Santa Claus for sexual harassment I just heard that YouTube, Twitter and Facebook are merging. It is to be called, You-Twit-Face. Yesterday my friend texted me to ask, “What does IDK mean?” I replied, “I don’t know”. He texted back OMG nobody knows. The optimist says the glass is half full. The pessimist says it is half empty. The engineer says the glass is twice as big as it needs to be. Remember, he who has no Christmas in his heart will never find it under a tree. Happy New Year to you all,
Keep smiling — Major Laugh
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Please pray for these members of our church family Miriam Weaver Alice Stiehler and family (Heinz passed away on Christmas Eve) Richard Goff Margaret, Matthew, and Samuel Cook Dorothy and Jim Henley Christine Hadfield whose mother passed away over Christmas
. . . and also these past members Chris and Sandra Hall Jenny Dibsdall
Other subjects for prayer Children's and Youth Ministry Teddy Toddlers Group Drop-in CafĂŠ Messy Church
PRAYER MEETING Everyone is invited to join with us on Sunday mornings for prayers at 10.30 am. We meet in one of the general purpose rooms and would be pleased to see as many of you as possible. God Bless Audrey
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J a nu a r y / F e b r u a r y
CAMEO DATES (Come And Meet Each Other) 10.30am for coffee/tea. 11am – 12 noon meeting, followed by lunch if required. Ladies and Gentlemen always welcome. January 4
Let’s Celebrate
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Helping Hand Scheme
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Fellowship Week
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While the Kettle Boils
February 1 8
What’s so Funny Let it Snow
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“Love Is”
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Wisdom of the Wise
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Honey for Tea
In December we made Christmas cards and planted bulbs, we had a biscuit collection for Community Care, and a Happy time sorting Autumn leaves for pictures for members to take home, With a Christmas lunch to share. Happy 2012 for us all.
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FLOWER LIST January 8 15 22 29
Jan Reed Ruth and Gordon Barker Pam Elliot Christine Hadfield
February 5 12 19 26
Dorothy and Jim Henley Claire Brooks Ruth and Wendy Richard Goff
Apr il/May
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FUTURE DATES January Sunday 1st
11.00am
Morning Worship New Year Reflections
Friday 6th
4.00pm
Messy Church
Sunday 8th
11.00am
Morning Worship Fit4Life: Commitment Sunday
Sunday 15th
11.00am
Morning Worship Fit4Life: Prayer: Jeremiah 29:11-13
Monday 16th
8.00pm
Sunday 22nd
11.00am
Morning Worship Fit4Life: Worship: Romans 12:1-2
Sunday 29th
11.00am
Morning Worship Fit4Life: Silence: 1 Kings 19:12 Songs of Praise Shouts of Joy
6.00pm
Corps Council Meeting
February Friday 3rd
4.00pm
Sunday 5th
11.00am
Monday 6th
8.00pm
Messy Church Morning Worship Sacraments: Communion PCC Meeting
Saturday 11th
Divisional Youth Social Action Day at Woking
Sunday 12th
11.00pm
Morning Worship Sacraments: Baptism
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Sunday 19th
11.00am
Morning Worship
Sunday 26th
11.00am
Morning Worship
Future Date: 3rd March — Divisional Celebration at Staines
What God is up to: We’ve all seen God working in many ways in our church over the recent months. However, recently I’ve met some people whose stories you might not have heard and so I thought I’d share them with you. Firstly, at the beginning of December a young mum came in to see how she could help The Salvation Army at Christmas. Five years ago, she herself received a food parcel and present from The Salvation Army and she was so grateful. Since then her life has turned around and together with her friends, they donated 8 bin bags full of toys and baby clothes and gifts for our parcels and shop. Another lady who has been coming to our Community/Civic carol service for a few years now came in and donated some coats to us. She came the day we were wrapping the parcels and asked a few questions. As a result she has offered to bring us some food once a month to give out to somebody. God is at work and people want to join in ☺ Debbie
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January/February
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Artichoke, Asparagus, Beetroot, Calabrese, Cabbage, Carrot, Cauliflower, Chicory, Grape, Lettuce, Leek, Melon, Parsnip, Pepper, Radish, Rhubarb
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TIDINGS
Sudoko Each vertical and horizontal line and each block of 9 squares will each have the letters ‘CHRIsTMAS’ in them. The principle is exactly the same as Sudoko, but letters instead of numbers. Contributed by Dave Cox
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Christmas at the SA Woking
ristma e at Ch d a r a p Dress Fancy
fro children Sue with
u n d ay S m the S
es show Zebede
ills their sk
s Fai r
chool
Bright Sparks and their Nativity
Above: Zebedees at the Family Carol Servic
Below: Sythwood School at the Civic Carol
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Our children at the Family Carol Service
Nobody fancied the ‘Jam Sandwiches!’
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J a nu a r y / F e b r u a r y
Graham Pearcy led our Candle Light Service with readings and carols.
Mums, Dads and Grand Parents joined us for the Family Carol Service led by Sue in the Morning. It was a lovely service, with Bright Sparks and Zebedees (both use our Church during the week) taking part. There was an
air of expectancy as the children taking part were very excited. Sue had two mums with some of the children taking part in a ‘Jam Sandwich’ making competition. Pictures on pages 12 and 13 tell their own story!
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IT’S TIME FOR CAROLS th
On the 29 November the Band and Songsters visited Homebeach a building with many Flats, the residents are invited to come down into the lounge which is in two parts and so made it difficult for Jo who was the leader for the evening, she brought lots of jokes to tell the residents but had quite a job to deliver the punch line because she was laughing so much before she got to it. The Band were seated behind the songsters so they had hardly any room at all but they still did very Well. The evening proved to be very enjoyable for all. Moving on to the 6th December the Band and songsters visited Woking Homes which is a care home. The residents enjoyed singing the carols and the staff who are very kind to us gave us more room, Ken was our leader for this event and he gave us little readings between the items
which were interesting. Tea and coffee was served at the end and this went down very well. Our last visit was on the 13th December to Bourne Court which is near to Aldershot, Pearl is one of the residents and she very much enjoyed having us there. Peter was our leader and he read a poem which was a new version of the Twelve Days of Christmas, I must say how funny it was, Songsters, Band and residents really saw the funny side of it. The Songsters were on top form and the band seemed to be extra good maybe this was because Andrew was allowed to sit in an armchair to play (what on earth next). Over the three events all of us taking part received much blessing and it was good to be able to convey the Christmas message in this way. Audrey
Christmas Family Support 2011 Thank you Margi and all your team, for your kind and generous gifts this Christmas time for some of our needy families. I do hope you enjoyed your Christmas holiday. As usual, as I delivered the parcels, to the families we were supporting they have asked me to thank you for your kind gifts and vouchers. They have again made a real difference to them and added to the enjoyment of their Christmas and at the same time also helped ease their financial difficulties. The message is of care for them, especially when many are quite isolated. Kind regards Tim Benson Scheme Organiser Home Start
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Community Services Managers update I would like to take you back to the Christmas Fair… are you there yet! Seems so long ago, but only a matter of weeks, how time flies when your having fun. What a wonderful day, full of all things Christmassy from the fabulous visit from Santa to all the beautiful crafty things that people had spent so much time making. It was a good community day with lots of familiar faces and many new ones. Thank you to everyone who helped in any way to make this day such a success. We took just over £1000 before expenses which is super. Food glorious food, has been everywhere, I think the Slimming World club kicked off with the first buffet of the season and I’m sure all those mince pies were counted as part of a calorie controlled diet! Ann Wardill’s friendship group brought in a vast array of Asian delights and as the community manager I was invited to join in (I didn’t want you to think I just barged in) and it was delicious. It’s not all been food. The Bright Sparks and Zebedees have been rehearsing to
take part in the family Christmas service and I think Pam (Bright Sparks leader) has aged about a year in the process. Not only is it excellent that they were able to take part but that the Christmas Story has been the focus of so many days during December. Today the ‘Surrey Young Carers’ are having a Christmas party and GP2 has been turned into Santa’s grotto, by converting a huge gazebo with decorations and lights it looks amazing. It is great to see these children who have way too much responsibility for their young age being able to relax and have fun for a few hours. This year has been packed full of much busyness for our Church, more people than ever coming through the doors. I pray that every person who has come in has seen, felt and been shown God’s love. I would like to take this opportunity to thank every volunteer, helper, member of this Church who works so tirelessly in every thing they do. With much love and thanks, Jan Howlin
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Corps Anniversary Celebrations – Saturday 22 October 2011 The hall was laid out in tables and chairs for an update on what the Corps had achieved over the preceding 12 months and to share some good food and good company. As corps folk arrived they chose a table upon which was a ‘Menu’ for the evening’s proceedings and a Corps History Quiz. Will introduced the evening asking for those present to just shout out what they could recall of the previous 12 months. Some of those things were: 2 soldiers and 4 adherents in the last year, Messy Church starting, 2 dedications, 1st Craft Day, successful toddler group (around 70 children each Monday), new members on the visiting team, hitting our target for annual appeal. The evening would continue with talks on changes in the charity shop, core groups, quiz results and the finding from the 2nd NCD survey. First up were Dorothy and Pauline talking about joining a smaller Bible class and expressing how the group allowed them to be at ease in a smaller number and making it easy to contribute where sometimes it is not possible in larger numbers. They encouraged others to join a small group if they could. Alison then gave an update on the neighbourhood conversations. Alison showed a map coloured in to represent
those areas that have been visited. There are 8 regulars visiting the area twice a month plus a Sunday afternoon once every 3 months. Alison commented on how great it is to make contact with those around the hall and how we are building excellent relationships with many of the residents. Next up was Pete, talking about Small groups. Pete described how ‘his’ Bible study started and how it has grown. It is known as a Bible fellowship (rather than a Bible study). Pete also explained how he ending up being the leader of the group without him really knowing. After the bible part fellowship is enjoyed with everyone along with prayer. There are others that lead the Bible fellowship when he is not able to and this is really good. He went on to mention how the Bible Fellowships fits within the new criterion for our Core Group (previously known as Small Holistic Groups)
•
Spiritual growth – Evident in how the group has grown • Meaningful relationship – trust through building relationships • Real life relevance – application to our daily lives • Effective leadership – this does not mean knowing all the answers but joining in together. There are those within the group that have also led session • Growth through multiplication .Over time the group grew to such an
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extent that some of the members swapped groups to one run on a Thursday Lunchtime. Pete then asked the question ‘should people join these Core Groups’? Pete recommended that yes it is a good idea as you will get a huge amount of support and it does allow you to grow. Will then mentioned that NCD suggest you should concentrate on your lowest factor – this was holistic small groups for us last time we carried out the survey. We have now put together features that make us what a HSM should be about (as per Pete’s summary). At a CC meeting we have now renamed these to Core Groups. Will suggested people can start their own. Gwen Cox then spoke about the Charity Shop. How during the 1st weekend in March the charity shop had a make over. So on 4th March the shop was stripped out, then cleaned, painted and re-stocked. It reopened on the Monday 7th March. Gwen commented on how nice it was to have a great manager and a great team of volunteers who sort and sell and lend a listening ear if one is needed. It was good news to hear too that takings have gone up since the refit. If you pop in then you will get a warm welcome a friendly smile and a hug if necessary. Sue had the task of reporting on how it went when Messy Church started on 7 October. Sue commented that she came along late but when she arrived the hall was full of noise, loads of children and lots of parents. She then
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asked Katie and Matt to come up to tell everyone what they had done. Katie said that they made biscuits with icing and sweets –the theme was sheep and Jesus the shepherd. Matt recalled how he made mess with hand printing with white paint on a card. Gill cooked Shepherd’s pie to keep in with the theme. Sue mentioned that lots of contacts were made and how they are now preparing for the next one. If anyone wants to come along and help at the next one then they are more than welcome but you may want to bring some earplugs! Andy gave a brief summary of our results from the second NCD survey. This covered the 8 characteristics that make up NCD. He highlighted some of the key questions from each characteristic and showed that our responses were up on the previous survey which is really good news. Debbie summarized the second survey and highlighted some key points. We can not deny that this church has grown, new people coming in, attending worship, asking God questions. Starting of Messy Church. NCD has allowed us to focus on God with a desire to grow this church for him. Passionate spirituality is now our minimum factor so that is what the CC will be working on over the coming year. What do our spiritual lives look like, what is getting in the way of our relationship with God. Look forward to growing Gods church and working together over the coming year. Andrew Cox
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Core Groups Lunchtime Light Meets at the Church 12.00pm January February
Thursday Thursday
5th 2nd
12th 16th
Denvale Group Meets at Margi’s 8.00pm January February
Thursday Thursday
5th 2nd
12th 16th
The Nomads Meet at various venues 7.30pm January February
Thursday Thursday
5th 2nd
12th 16th
The Full Monty Meets for breakfast at various venues 9.00am January February
Saturday Saturday
4th
21st 25th
Hearts and Crafts Meets at the Church 8.00pm January February
Thursday Monday
12th 9th
26th 23rd
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Lent Series: Purpose Driven Life This year we invite you all to join with us on a journey of discovery as we read together Rick Warren’s book “Purpose Driven Life”. Rick Warren says, “Today the average life span is 25,550 days. That’s how long you will live if you are typical. Don’t you think it would be a wise use of time to set aside 40 of those days to figure out what God wants you to do with the rest of them? This book will help you understand why you are alive and God’s amazing plan for you – both here and now, and for eternity. Rick Warren will guide you through a personal 40-day spiritual journey that will transform your answer to life’s most important question: What on earth am I here for?” Over the period of Lent we invite you to read a short daily reading every day for 40 days and when we meet together for Sunday worship we’ll pick up the themes. This will start on Monday 20th
February and will see us through to Sunday 1st April, which leads into Holy Week. Lots of churches and Corps have found this to be a really positive experience, helping people to grow in their relationship with God and with others. So we invite you to purchase a copy and join in the journey together. To make things a little easier, we have a stock of copies and so you can buy your book from the comfort of your own church at a reduced price. More details coming soon.
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Mission Worship 2011 Friday After a restful journey down to Eastbourne and having high expectations of what Mission Worship was about, I was so excited to know what this weekend would have in store for me. Mission Worship is aimed at worship leaders but it is also a great weekend for people wanting to praise God. The weekend is held in the Congress Theatre. Thousands of people attend this conference each year so it’s always an idea to get your seat early in the theatre. It was very strange to be sitting next to someone who knew Graham Pearcey!! In the evening we had worship led by Tim Hughes, Ben Cantelon and Nikki Fletcher who had us jumping up and down!!! (Who needs zumba when you can do all your exercise in worship!!!!) The speaker for the evening was Pete Greig who was one of the founders of 24/7 prayer. He spoke about his work and how he is setting up a missional community in Guildford. Saturday I started the day by thinking how Jesus felt by feeding 5,000 people after doing Bread rolls alongside my Nan for the stewards (we only did around 90!) After having a leisurely breakfast we went to the theatre where we had fantastic worship led by Matt Redman and Godfrey Birtill. Our morning speaker was Andrew Wilson who spoke about his life and compared it to Johns Gospel. In the afternoon there were seminars to attend but I chose a more leisurely afternoon!! In the evening we went back to the theatre for more worship and this time Darlene Zschech was leading it. Darlene comes from Australia so the
audience was asked where they came from. It was amazing to hear how many countries were represented at this conference. We had a presentation from Ray Of Hope which is a charity supporting villages in the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil. Sunday On the Sunday morning we decided that we would go to a seminar. So we went along to a vocal master class. It was very interesting to learn more about singing techniques. When this seminar was finished we went back into the theatre for our last service of celebration. Our worship leaders were Stuart Townsend and Jenn and Brian Johnston. Roy Godwin is the Director of the Ffald-yBrenin Trust, (let you decide which part of the UK that’s in!!), which is a major Retreat Centre and House of Prayer. He spoke to us about the work being done there. Before I knew it I was back on the train going home. I felt so privileged to be invited to this great conference, and to have the opportunity to worship God. It was great to be able to spend time with God and praise his name through singing and prayer. It was so exciting to feel God’s love for me and to feel His presence. A week on and I am still singing the songs we sang, but the one that is coming into my head on a daily basis is Our God by Chris Towlin. Our God is greater, our God is stronger God You are higher than any other Our God is Healer, awesome in power Our God, Our God... So who’s coming to Mission Worship 2012? Claire
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Caption Competition
Debbie and Will were caught on camera during the lunch break on the day of the Civic Carol Concert. Take part in writing a caption for this picture, it can be serious or funny, if you wish to remain anonymous that’s fine but we would prefer to know who you are! Hand in your ‘Caption’ to the Church Office, who knows there might be a prize for the winning entry.
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J a nu a r y / F e b r u a r y
Life Life gives us special days of laughter and of cheer Especially when we look around at Autumnal beauty sphere. The leaves of brown come tumbling down as winds are keen and strong. Our journey’s take us here and there as we hear the Christmas song. Many days in Salvation Army ways, we share faith and worship praise. Accepting many point of view that our going can erase. 500 gifts and bags of food with vouchers some families could spend, Young and old in families lists gave a challenge for wrappers to send. A token of Christmas love and care was wrapped up in a Christmas prayer. All the writing of labels and cards will travel through Woking everywhere. Boys and girls and parents sent tins for harvest time Requests for pick-ups came SA bound Our CO’s and Jan did find. Lifting crates towards the sky to the loft of Community Church to store. Hoisting down the steps they came nobody wonders more, Than Margi and all the team the work will be done for sure. Margi