St Peter's Yaxley

…reaching out in love and faith

Archives for March 2017

Rwanda is beautiful

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This February, a team of 14 of us from St. Peter’s Church, Yaxley went out to Rwanda in Central Africa. As part of our journey, we recorded our thoughts, reflections and took photographs to share the impact that this truly remarkable country and its people had on us.
Here’s Shane’s story:

I have experienced extreme lows and ultimate highs. I have been face to face with joy and jubilation, death and despair. I have laughed, I have cried, I have felt lost and alone and I have made some good friends. My faith has been tested and it has grown stronger.

This journey was more than just heading to Africa to help some people who need it; it has opened my eyes and made me appreciate the life I lead, it has shown me the real importance of friendship, in family and in forgiveness. It has made me love life and see it from a different perspective; I have learnt not to take it for granted. I have seen beauty in the darkest of places here.

For a country which has been to hell and back, a country which has seen the worst that mankind has to offer, a country that had no hope, yet has risen from the ashes and flourished. The nature of the people of Rwanda is strong, courageous, loving and forgiving.

This journey is something I will never forget; I will never forget the lives I have touched and the lives that have touched mine. The smiles, the waving, the shouts of “Muzungu”, the heartbreaking stories, the uplifting stories, stories of forgiveness, stories or triumph, stories of desperation. I will always remember the singing, the dancing, the laughing, the tears and the love.

I have had my heart ripped out and then – to the beat of the drum and singing of the children – it’s been gently put back in. I thank God for this opportunity and opening my eyes to the real world and for making me a stronger and better person.

If I could sum it up in one simple way I would simply say… Rwanda is beautiful.

Shane.

Is there more to life than this?

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Who are we? What’s our purpose? What is the point of it all?

I wonder if you’ve ever asked yourself these questions? Perhaps something has happened in your life which has caused you to ponder if there is any deeper meaning to it all. Maybe you’ve seen or read something which has challenged your perspective on life? Or it could be that you’ve simply sat with some friends over a coffee and found yourself contemplating such questions.

Most of you will know Bear Grylls from his TV shows such as Man vs. Wild and The Island in which he pushes himself, and others, to the limits of physical endurance. There are few who know more about adventure, danger, exploration and risk. Bear might be a nature and survival expert, a former reservist in the SAS who has climbed Everest and navigated his way over the Himalayas, but it’s his journey of faith which he describes as his “greatest adventure”. He recognises that it has not always been easy, that there have been ups and down, but that his Christian faith “has brought light to a dark path, warmth to a cold mountain and strength to a failing body”.

From Friday 10th March, St. Peter’s will be hosting an Alpha course running for nine Friday evenings. Alpha is a series of sessions exploring the Christian faith. Each session will start with refreshments at 7.30pm, will take a different question around faith and feature an engaging talk to inspire conversation. Alpha is open to all and will provide a safe space to consider life from a Christian perspective, to ask questions about God and to meet with other people on a similar journey in a relaxed and friendly environment.

If you’d like more information, or would like to attend Alpha, please contact us.

Watch Bear’s story:

With my prayers.

Mark Fuller (Pioneer Minister) 07766 310509; markfuller@saintpeters.co.uk

Read this article in the Yaxley Gazette.

Annual church report 2016-17

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I believe that we have much to celebrate and to be thankful for as a church family as we look back on 2016.

Inevitably, a review of this sort will miss out some things, but perhaps I might start at the end of the year with Christmas. The church was packed for our annual Carol Service; there really was no room at the inn for the Crib Service attended by around 500 people and many of our other services were well attended too. However, one highlight of Christmas for me was Beer and Carols at the Three Horseshoes. This was the first time we had held an event like it and we were overwhelmed by the numbers who attended. Again, it was standing room only in the pub. A wonderful evening of carols, reflection and fellowship enjoyed by pub regulars, others in the local community and members of St. Peter’s. I am grateful to the landlords, to Mark Fuller and to our worship band for making this evening possible. I hope it will be the first of many such occasions.

One aspect of Beer and Carols which excites me is that it is a direct response to Jesus’ command to “go and make disciples”. At no time did Jesus say that we were to sit in church and wait for people to come to us.  For sure we should welcome people when they do come in to the building for services or for any other reason, but our primary call is to take the Gospel outside of the church building and into the local community – be that the pub, the shopping centre, the doctor’s surgery, or wherever. I hope and pray that we will all be inspired by the success of Beer and Carols to do more to take the Gospel into our communities. Our faith is something we should wear on our sleeves and not hide wherever we go.

I wrote last year that one of our challenges for 2016 was to re-consider our vision as a church. As I reflected and prayed on this throughout the year and listened to your comments I concluded that there was nothing wrong with our vision. What is needed is not a new vision for St. Peter’s. Rather, what is needed is to encourage more of us to help implement our vision. Our biggest challenge in 2017 is, I believe, to embrace fully this vision and to live it out 24/7.

Read the full report.

Read the minutes from the meeting on 2nd April 2017.

Jon Randall (Vicar) 01733 240339; vicar@saintpeters.co.uk