Already the jumble is piling up in the Parish Office increasing anticipation for the productive chaos that is the Jumble Sale in a week’s time.
In other news, the church heating system has had a few glitches in the last few days. A couple of times it has failed to start up when the timer says it should, and I have had to restart it. I will be asking Cowley’s our longtime service engineers to come and have a look. After another shaky start today for the start of the Saturday Café the church has warmed up and hopefully it will be good tomorrow. The 8am service will be fine because of the separate underfloor heating in the chapel.
We’ve reported before that the cost of heating the church will be a lot higher this winter because of moving onto a new gas contract. It turns out we are in the top 10% churches in Southwark Diocese for energy use. (Those of you who came to The Wisdom of God church for the joint service last month will know what an unheated church feels like!) As a result we were selected for an energy audit to give us advice on projects to save energy and to help us plan ahead to move towards net zero carbon over the next ten years. We have already thought about this with an ambition for changing to low energy lighting in the church, and are all too aware of the very old gas boilers which heat the church hall. The visit was a couple of weeks ago and I’m looking forward to the report to see what a professional expert has to say.
Tim
Services for 16th February: 3rd Sunday before Lent
8am: Holy Communion
10am: Family Communion Service: Jesus Teaches
Junior Choir will sing at this service.
Services & Events for Next Week
Wednesday 19th February at 10am: Mid-week Communion Service with coffee served afterwards
Sunday 23rd February
8am: Holy Communion
10am: Parish Communion Service: Jesus Calms a Storm
Church Explorers gather in the Meeting Room before the service.
Mothers' Union Meeting: This Thursday (20th February) 2:30pm
This is the branch Annual Meeting and Social (Church/Meeting Room).
The Jumble Sale: Saturday 22nd February 11am to 1pm
There are sign-up sheets at the back of church for you to help at the Jumble Sale, both setting up on the Friday evening and at the event on the Saturday. There are also some posters and flyers to share.
Please bring Jumble to the Hall on Friday 21st 7pm-8.30pm; or Saturday 22nd 8.30am-10.30am. Contact the Vicar (01737 813152) for help with collection or earlier delivery.
New Activities for Lent 2025
This Lent (starts Wednesday 5th March) we have a couple of new activities planned.
Lent Lunches: Wednesdays 12th March—9th April (Meeting Room) 10.45 onward for coffee; 11.15 Seasonal Reflection; followed by a light lunch. Donations for lunch go to the Bishop’s Lent Appeal.
Explore the Core Beliefs of the Christian Faith over 5 weeks; helping us to understand and live out faith as followers of Jesus Christ.
Mondays 7.30 pm (online) from 10th March to 7th April
Thursdays 8.30 pm (Meeting Room) from 13th March to 10th April
Please sign up at the back of church to show your interest in these activities.
Confirmation in 2025
We will be hosting a Confirmation Service for Reigate Deanery on Sunday 15th June at 5 pm. Confirmation preparation sessions for older children and for adults and will take place over six weeks on Sunday afternoons starting on May 4th. Please let Tim the Vicar know if you would like to prepare for Confirmation or if you have questions about what is involved.
Adults can also prepare by taking part in this year’s Lent Group.
Calendar
Don't forget to check the Church Calendar for all our upcoming events!