St Peter's Yaxley

…reaching out in love and faith

Young people taking a lead in mission

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Mission Academy Live_logoThe Talking Jesus research found that one in six of young people wanted to know more when a Christian friend talked to them about Jesus.

In response, the HOPE Revolution Mission Academy Live groups are encouraged to pray for six friends, asking God for opportunities to talk about Jesus with them.

One girl from St. Peter’s Church in the Cambridgeshire village of Yaxley, near Peterborough, is part of a Mission Academy Live group. She has been praying for six of her friends and invited them to a Neon-Glo Party, staged as part of the Mission Academy initiative.

Mission Academy Live is series of 10 innovative, video-based sessions. Each session provides teaching, with time for discussion and testimony in small groups. The focus is on peer to peer evangelism, all leading to a practical response in today’s context. As well as meeting as small groups in villages, towns and cities, they are encouraged to join a Regional Hub.

Regional Hubs are bringing Mission Academy Live groups together for large-scale evangelistic events in 2018. These events – youth fun days, Neon Glo parties, a worship outreach service, or a celebration event – offer the opportunity to celebrate all that God has been doing through the small groups, whilst also providing a large-scale evangelistic event for the young people to invite their six friends.

The Peterborough Hub held a Neon Glo Party in March with music, dancing, and crazy activities, with a guest DJ, glow bar, inflatables, football cage, performances, games, an inspirational message and more.

The girl from St Peter’s Church, Yaxley is part of a group led by Suzanne Delegate, from the church. Suzanne says, “In October we went to the Soul Survivor evening at Kingsgate Community Church in Peterborough, where I heard about Mission Academy Live.”

She signed up and downloaded the six Mission Academy Live films.

“I wanted to share them with our older group” she says. “Unfortunately, most of them were doing exams. So I prayed really hard, as I knew that these films would be so good for our kids. I approached our Vicar and suggested that I do a stand-alone, 10 week session, once a fortnight for our year 7-9s.”

Suzanne led the group with two other leaders. She was thrilled at the response: “The first session I had six young people around a kitchen table sharing hot chocolate and homemade cookies.”

“The feedback from the parents the following Sunday was amazing.”

One parent said that it wasn’t really something that would interest her daughter, but after the group she said: “I don’t know what Suzanne did, but whatever it was she has captured the attention of my daughter. She couldn’t stop talking about the evening.”

Suzanne says, “I only showed the first film and talked about it. Thanks to Mission Academy I have captured the attention of seven young people.”

Pete Skivington, the Youth and Children’s Pastor at Lighthouse Community Church in Sheringham, Norfolk, has also been using the Mission Academy Live videos. The groups of three or four watch a video each week, discuss it and pray for their friends, asking God for opportunities to share faith with them.

“The majority of them are needing confidence to talk about their faith,” Pete says. “We have found it really beneficial. You can run it with just a handful of young people. They encourage each other and they are encouraged to know they are part of something bigger up and down the country.”

Roy Crowne, HOPE’s Executive Director says, “Mission Academy Live is ideal for village churches. Three or four young people can watch the videos together and can pray for their friends. The Regional Hubs can organise larger events, which serve the local church with an event individual congregations couldn’t manage.”

To find out more about Mission Academy Live, click here.

A noble spirit ’embiggens’ the smallest man

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Many of you will know that I am a big fan of The Simpsons. Well, the other day I read that a word made up by the writers in 1996 has entered the American dictionary. The word is ‘embiggen’ and means ‘to make bigger’!

It’s used in the motto of Springfield, the town where the Simpsons live. The motto is “A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man”.

We’ve just commemorated Jesus’ death and celebrated his resurrection at the first Easter. Just before he died, Jesus told his friends that it was in their best interests that he returned to heaven. That was because when Jesus returned to heaven, God sent the Holy Spirit to the disciples and all who believe in Jesus. Why? In order to ‘embiggen’ them and us. One of the many great privileges of believing and trusting in Jesus is that we are embiggened by God’s Holy Spirit. To re-state the Springfield motto: “The Holy Spirit embiggens the smallest person”. However small we might feel, we are able to act powerfully when we are filled with God’s Holy Spirit.

If you would like to find out more about the God who both loves us and embiggens us, you would be very welcome to attend the Alpha course which starts at St. Peter’s this month. Alpha is an opportunity for you to ask your questions and to explore the basics of the Christian faith. The weekly course is free and starts at 7.30pm on Thursday April 12th. If you would like more details, please contact me using the details below.

You might have read (page 5 of March’s Gazette) that Rev John Harper is running this month’s London Marathon in order to raise funds for Christian Aid. Details of how to sponsor John are in that Gazette article. We pray that God would embiggen John and everyone else running the marathon to raise funds for charities.

With my prayers,

Jon Randall (Vicar) 07939 449255; vicar@saintpeters.co.uk

Read this article in the Yaxley Gazette.

How did I come to faith?

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A week after re-affirming their baptisms in the sea at Hunstanton on a brisk, but sunny winter’s morning, Immy and Adam share their stories about how they came to faith in Jesus Christ. From very different beginnings and on very different journeys, they openly talk about their joys and sorrows, their blessings and struggles, as they try to walk each day with God.

The right way to live

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Around 30 years ago I went to San Francisco on business. I was in my early 20s, but it was the first time I had ever been on an aeroplane.

It wasn’t a happy travelling experience – on the way out I had to clear Immigration in Los Angeles and nearly missed my connecting flight. On the way back, we were accompanied by a storm half way across the US and the plane was lit up by lightning too many times for comfort. In some ways I’m surprised I ever got back in a plane.

The work I had to do was also pretty dull, but there was some sightseeing at the end of the trip. This included a free firework display on the bay overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge. It was spectacular, but I have no idea now what the people were celebrating. Of course, on and around November 5th we celebrate the failed plot to blow up Parliament and that our democracy survived.

After every one of the recent terrorist attacks, at home and abroad, leaders have rightly said that we will not give in to terrorists and their “bully boy tactics”. The right way to express disagreement is via the ballot box and through local, district and national government.

On one occasion, two of Jesus’ disciples asked him if they should call down fire from heaven to consume a village which did not receive Jesus well. Jesus rebuked them and told them that fire was no way to win people over. Rather, they were to tell people the Good News of God’s love for them.

I hope you enjoy the fireworks this year. Perhaps as we watch the fireworks we can celebrate living in a society where most people acknowledge that blowing people and buildings apart is not the right way to live. May we also celebrate that God does not send down fire from heaven, but invites us into his Kingdom through love.

As always, you are welcome at St. Peter’s for any of our services – or any of our local church services – as we celebrate God’s love for us all.

With my continuing prayers,

Jon Randall (Vicar) 07939 449255; vicar@saintpeters.co.uk

Read this article in the Yaxley Gazette.

Give thanks for the good things in life

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October is the month when the Church has traditionally given thanks for the harvest “safely gathered in”.

A farmer I knew well in Norfolk told me that it was about the only time in his year when he could pause for breath, take a very short break and reflect on the harvest and start to make his plans for the following year. Whether you’re involved in any way with the farming industry or not, I hope we will all make the opportunity to pause, reflect on the past and make plans for the future.

The author of a book I’ve been reading recently decided to find 1,000 reasons to give thanks to God. She is married to a farmer in the US and it’s fair to say that she doesn’t have an easy life. Yet, she determined that she was going to deliberately find things to thank God for throughout her year. Even in the midst of difficulties she was able to give thanks for the good things in her life. I am not in any way dismissing the difficulties that many of us face through the year, nor the pain which they bring. However, this author’s experience was that by giving thanks for the good things, she was able to put her problems into perspective and not allow them to be “all consuming”.

This also seems a good opportunity for me to thank all of you, individuals and local organisations, for your amazing generosity to the Food Bank we operate at St. Peter’s. You have donated several tonnes of food over the past year and we are very appreciative. The Food Bank was in huge demand over the summer holidays and continues to be very busy. If you know someone who is struggling, please refer them to the Food Bank. Vouchers are available from various places including Yaxley Group Practice, local schools, Luminus, Social Services and the Benefits Agency in Peterborough. Please call the number below if you need further information.

Our harvest celebration and thanksgiving at St. Peter’s will be on Sunday October 1st at 11.00am. You are all welcome to join us.

With my continuing prayers,

Jon Randall (Vicar) 07939 449255; vicar@saintpeters.co.uk

Read this article in the Yaxley Gazette.