We will be proceeding cautiously here in Pennington. I recognise that there are a wide variety of ways that people are viewing the risks in this season, and individually we are all making different decisions about what to do and how to approach this season.
I want to thank you for being a part of our community here at St Mark’s Church Pennington. I am amazed and excited to be a part of this community here, and delighted seeing people’s faith deepening, hearing people’s questions and exploring.
An update from St Mark’s as we look to re-opening our church building for services from Easter.
In our service this week we talked about retreats, and over coffee we talked about possibilities and places that offer retreats, especially in this season. There are a variety of things on offer – find out more here…
In recent years we have blessed chalk at church, and taken it home to create an Epiphany blessing at door.
Our small groups will return from 11th January, meeting Mondays from 10:30-12:00 and Wednesdays – the time changes to 6:30-8:00pm.
Arwen Mary Folkes shared this idea online. “Gentle January’: Gentle with ourselves, gentle with each other, gentle with the to-do lists and plans, and gentle with our creation. Gentle tones of voice to accompany gentle footsteps and gentle thoughts, all of which can be gently brought into our pauses and prayers. ‘Gentle January’ sounds quite inviting to me, better than a grey or dry January. Who’s in?”
Little did I know, when I wrote you two weeks ago, that we would now be entering Tier 4 in the New Forest. You will no doubt already be aware of many of the Tier 4 restrictions and the strong stay at home messaging.
Jesus was born into mess, confusion, and uncomfortable surroundings, so that we might know something of the truth that God is love. My prayer is that this Christmas, amongst the twinkling lights, we each might get a glimpse of light, of hope, of love. And to remember that the best gift we can give another this season is the gift of love.
Find out more about the current plans for church services and other activities at Pennington Church. As ever this season, these plans are all subject to latest government guidance, and may change at short notice if guidance or local restrictions change.
