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Published 17/04/2021

MISSION PARTNERS LATEST UPDATES BLOG

This information can be found under the Mission Partners tab and will be regularly updated.

To keep up to date with what is happening with our Mission Partners
click here to read our Blog.

You can also check out the individual pages for each Mission Partner for more information:

Published 17/04/2021

WELLINGBOROUGH STREET PASTORS

Established in 2013
Work alongside the Police, Pubs and Clubs, the Council and the local Pubwatch
Help, Care & Listen to those in need and Serve the Night Time Economy
Currently 15 Commissioned Street Pastors, with three trainees about to be commissioned and seven more in training. One of our Street Pastors is a trained Response Pastor
Go out a minimum of three weekends per month – Our long term aim is to cover all weekends

What we do whilst we are out?

We work as part of the Urban Trinity – the Police, the Council and The Church
Patrol within town centre
Carry a Police radio so that we are in contact with local CCTV and door staff, and so that we can respond to situations
Work with door staff to resolve situations
Look after rough sleepers with hot drinks, food and company
Look after people on their night out who may be a bit worse for wear.

What do we need?

Street Pastors
Prayer Pastors
Financial Support
Prayer Support

For more information click here

Wellingborough Street Church

Published 15/04/2021

Milestones

September 2018, Maria Seaman and John Mulhall began a Lay Pioneer’s Course.
The final part of this course was to develop a way to reach out to people outside of the established church. Independently of each other both Maria and John had the Homeless of Wellingborough put on their hearts, and they were given the name “Street Church.”
As part of their research Maria and John contacted Street Church Northampton, only to discover that their contact at Street Meals was a key member of that team
Also, as part of their research, Maria and John went to the Redeeming our Communities (ROC) session in Wellingborough and were introduced to two people from Teen Challenge who they had heard of having tried to set up something similar to Street Church in the past.
A Meeting was set up with Teen Challenge and from this it was agreed to start what we would call Community Church on Palm Sunday 2019 and to continue once a month aimed at providing spiritual and physical refreshment to the homeless and socially excluded of Wellingborough
Over the next 10 months regular services were held with guest speakers and hot food, plus a pamper session with a barbeque and a Christmas Meal.
Community Church changed its name to Street Church as it linked in with Street Church Northampton
Covid 19 affected Street Church in that we cannot meet, but volunteers worked with other groups to work with the homeless during this time.
In early 2021, Street Church Northampton decided to close, and the name etc has been passed top Street Church Wellingborough to continue the work

What we do?

Monthly services with worship songs, readings and a talk, plus hot food and hot drinks at the Daylight Centre, on the first Sunday of each month.
Spend time with homeless and socially excluded

What do we need?

Local Churches’ Support
- To provide and serve hot food and drinks on a rota basis for the services
- Guest Speakers (so far, we have had speakers from St Mark’s, Gleneagles, Street Pastors, the Gideons and Teen Challenge)
- People to offer services at pamper sessions such as hair dressing, manicures etc.

Other Support
- Financial Support

Prayer Support
- Everything we do is underpinned by prayer.

In-person services

Published 14/04/2021

In-person services

Dear All,
Good news!!! We are returning to some in-person services at Redwell School – what a joy to finally physically gather. I don’t know about you but for me it has felt completely counter intuitive not gathering in the way we were used to.

There will inevitably be mixed feelings about this, some will be very excited while others may feel nervous. Every COVID safe measure will be taken but it is important you know that no-one is under any obligation to return to in-person services until you feel safe to do so. And if you are in the extremely vulnerable category please follow the advice given by your GP.

We are starting with 3 monthly services through to June and hope to build from there. The first service will be on the 18^th April. Sunday club team are working out what they will do regarding the children that morning but we are unable to offer separate groups for children during services at this stage. The other services will be All Age.

Below is a slightly sobering list of the guidelines we will need to follow. It will feel different and services will be shorter! But churches around the diocese who have opened at various stages have found that people got used to the difference and appreciated being able to meet and worship together.

Please read these guidelines carefully:

-At this time restrictions mean we cannot have a creche area. If you have very young children you are welcome to bring some of their toys or we can provide this but they cannot be shared with another household.
-You will need to book in for a service with Dawn Airey between the Monday and Friday in the week leading up to the service. Block bookings will not be taken in order to allow for others to attend services.
-If you have booked in for a service but develop COVID-19 symptoms please do not come to the service but let Dawn Airey know so that someone on the waiting list could be offered the opportunity to attend the service.
-When you arrive for the service, please observe socially distancing at all times, including outside. You will be met by a welcomer who will ask you to sanitise your hands.
-You will need to wear a face mask when you enter the building. You can take your mask off if you are supporting the service in some way (ie a reader, service leader, etc), or if you are exempt.
-As you enter the building there will be a list of who is booked in and a seating plan of where you will be seated. You can only sit with members of your own household and/or bubble.
-When ushered in please go straight to your seat and remain seated. Please do not wander around the building talking to others. Every seating area is at least 2m x 2m, and some are considerably bigger to allow for more than one or two per household.
-At this time, while the band can sing (the band will be made up of a single household), the congregation is not allowed to sing during the service. But we can stand, jump and wave our arms around!!
-We are asked to leave the building via the fire exit as soon as the service has ended. Please don’t stay behind in the building unless you are on the rota to clear/clean.
– Unfortunately we cannot offer tea/coffee and biscuits/cake after services at this time.
-Similarly we will not have a flowers rota for now.
-Please adhere to Government guidelines once you are outside the building.
-The disabled toilet will be available for use during the service. Please do not use the other toilets.
-Please try to avoid touching anything that is not necessary to touch.

Let’s pray that the guidelines are able to change as quickly as the Prime Minister is hoping!!!!

Every Blessing
Revd Dawn Airey

Published 24/03/2021

Published 20/03/2021

Update from Mark and Arlene 20th March 2021

Dear Friends

It is almost a year since we last updated our news on the church website. As for all of us, the past year has been nothing like we had expected and nothing like we have ever experienced.

Despite being mission partners with Gleneagles church to work with the Church Mission Society in Moldova we have both been living in Antrim, Northern Ireland since March 2020. From December 2019 and through the pandemic Arleen has been the main carer for her mother who was diagnosed with Myeloma. After excellent treatment for this condition, she has made good progress and since September Arleen has been able to work part time for the health trust in Belfast. Mark has continued to teach a full timetable of English classes on zoom, as part of the Baptist church English project in Cahul, Moldova. It has been a real privilege for us both to be able to find ways to serve and to develop relationships with the people of Moldova and Northern Ireland despite the restrictions and challenges of Covid. As our stay in Antrim was becoming longer term than we anticipated, we have let out our house in Wellingborough and accepted that we are to be here for the time being.

So, we have found the Lord to be faithful to us through all the ups and downs. Have we made the right decisions at each step? His peace has reassured us that we are where we are meant to be and he has given us strength for each day. We’ve been greatly encouraged by His word to us, by our faithful prayerful friends, many of you at Gleneagles, and by resources such as the ‘Choose life’ book and Lectio 365, a daily devotional. This has helped us face the next challenge of Arleen’s diagnosis of breast cancer in January. Once confirmed, the treatment started quickly and she is now well into her course of chemotherapy, before surgery and radiotherapy early in the summer. We are so thankful to have excellent care here and for the kindness shown in so many ways. What a compassionate and loving heavenly Father we have, he doesn’t leave us but walks with us through these times.

Like many, we look forward to that day when we can see our children and Mark’s family again. Meantime zoom has been great fun, even having an online birthday party, murder mystery and lots of chats. We always look forward to the Gleneagles Sunday zoom too and to seeing many of you there. You may not be aware what a great encouragement that has been. For the future then there are questions of course, but this song from our childhood has been our prayer,

‘I know who holds the future, and he’ll guide me with his hand:

with God things don’t just happen, everything by him is planned.

So, as I face tomorrow, with its problems large and small,

I’ll trust the God of miracles, give to him my all.’

With our love and prayers,

Mark and Arleen

Latest from The Rocks in Brazil

Published 03/03/2021

Hi All,

Hope you are well. I have attached the link to our latest link letter.

Please keep us in your prayers. COVID cases have gone up here and we are having weekend lockdowns, with things operating at 25% capacity Monday to Friday. It’s uncertain as to whether the weekend lockdowns will continue beyond this first weekend of March. We are starting our discipleship school this month also.

Blessings,

Jimmy

Here Comes Lent!

Published 20/02/2021

Many thanks to all those who helped prepare and deliver the Lent Bags the week before Ash Wednesday. Remember the Ice? The Snow? Those Freezing Temperatures? Fear not! Nothing was going to stop the bags getting there on time!