Category Archives: Services

Sunday 7th April 2019

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NOTICES:

A very warm welcome to you all this morning. After the service please come through to the Lounge for a cuppa and a time to talk.

All Ages Together…Next Sunday we will have an All Age Together service at 10am. There will be a choice of activities to participate in highlighting aspects of Easter.

If you notice any defects that need remedying in the building please notify the office as soon as possible

so we can communicate these to the builders.  Please do not wait for

someone else to report something as by then we may be out of our guarantee period.

New Sunday roster available – please check to see if there is a copy for you.

Wednesday Walkers: 10th April Meet 9.30am at the Fendalton Village Shopping Centre, 21 Memorial Ave. Meet out front on street. P120 parking available but limited so suggest car pooling if you can. Coffee at the popular Bakermans. All welcome. Marilyn 338 2453.

Bacon Fundraiser: Hellers Short Cut Middle Bacon. $8.00 per pack 400gm (12-14 slices). Orders close on Sunday 28th  April 2019. Delivery late May (date to be advised). Joan 337 1648.

Easter Eggs for Waltham Cottage:  please pop in an extra egg or two when you do your shopping, and bring them along to church by NEXT Sunday so they can be delivered to the Cottage. Thank you for your support.

Easter Services:

9.30am Good Friday 19th April – we remember

10am Easter Sunday 21st April – we celebrate the resurrection.

Crafty Crafters: Thursdays 10am-12 noon at 43 St Martins Rd. Bring along an unfinished craft item, or learn a new skill. Cost $3 per session. Lyndsey 388 1264.

Looking Ahead: We will host an Anzac Day Service at 9.30am on April 25th. This will be a short simple service in which there will be opportunity to remember family members who have served in the armed forces. Morning tea will follow, and offers of Anzac biscuits can be left with the Office.

Parish Office telephones are now fully operational!

Pathways Group invites you to join the group for coffee/tea and reflection on Saturday 27th  April at 10am at the church.  The topic for discussion is “How do we find comfort in our faith?”  All welcome.


A First Aid kit, and a blanket & pillow are available in the kitchen in case of emergencies. Please remember to fill in an Incident Report if they are used. Forms are available from the Parish Office.


“Sing for the World”: Bring your voice, your heart and your desire to sing led by John Bell (The Iona Community, Scotland) Tuesday 21st May 7-9pm at Knox Church Centre, Bealey Ave. Entry by koha.


Dear friends at St Martins

At our St Mark’s Parish Council meeting last week we noted that your congregation is celebrating the return to your church worship space on 31st March and we extend greetings on that occasion. We understand this has been a very long and challenging journey and send sincere congratulations on reaching this great milestone. Our prayer is that your connection with your community continues to strengthen and grow. Some in our congregation have personal links with those in yours and we cannot help but feel some of the joy and relief that this weekend will bring to you. Also our past familiarity with your minister Dugald Wilson has meant that we are interested in this step of progress across the city. May God’s love and blessings surround you all as you enjoy Sunday’s celebration and the future ahead in your home church.

Warm regards and blessings

Janne Ross

Parish Clerk, St Mark’s, Avonhead.

To our brothers and sisters in Christ,

CONGRATULATIONS on the opening of your beautiful building. We know that it marks the end of a long and exhausting journey as well as the start of an exciting new chapter in ministry. You have our prayers and our love in all you do. We hope the $200 gift voucher will help with any final touches with landscaping and gardens.

Arohanui,

Reverend Canon Ben Truman

Anglican Parish of Opawa-St Martins

On behalf of the leadership and congregation of CNL (Cashmere New Life Church), we are pleased to see that you are now able to meet and worship in your repaired church building.

The earthquakes may have shaken the ground and damaged our buildings, but we know that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And may he lead you as you continue to bring that message into the community as you have done for many years.

May God’s blessing always be upon you, and that His love is made known with the community in all that you do. 

Craig Wenmoth

Elder, CNL 

The deal – Genesis 15:1-12,17,18

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Imagine this. 

You go to sell your car on Trademe.  You take some nice pictures and enter all the details and a guy calls up to come and view it.  He seems a good guy when he knocks at your door and you wander around the car and poke around under the bonnet together.  When you suggest he takes it for a drive he agrees and you give him the keys and sit down to wait.  You can probably guess where this is going. 

Half an hour later and the guy isn’t back and you are beginning to get a little nervous.  He must be a thorough sort of fellow you reassure yourself, but an hour later you aren’t so sure.  You have a look on the street and there is no other car there.  You are nervous.  At the two hour mark you look up the number for the police and report that you think your car has been stolen.  They are very good about it and once they have all the particulars they inform you that they will immediately put out a stolen car report. 

You are in luck.  You car is spotted at Countdown at Ferrymead.  But this is where it gets interesting.  According to the police when they confronted the driver he said you gave him the keys.  According to the police the driver said, “the nice guy gave me the keys to the car and told me to take it for a drive. I thought he was giving me the car.” 

“What!”, you respond.  “But I was selling the car and he didn’t give me any money.”  When the police explained that to the driver and confronted him with the lack of payment he simply replied, “I never thought of that.  What a great idea.”  Which planet was he from?

Yes it is a strange story and there is inherently something fishy because we all know how this sort of deal works.  You examine the product, decide whether you want to buy and then agree on the purchase price.  The cash is handed over or nowadays transferred to your bank account and that’s how the deal is sealed.

You pay your $4.50 at the counter and the barista makes you a nice cup of coffee.  You pull into the petrol station and fill up the car with petrol and then pay the attendant what it says on the pump readout.  You even get a receipt to say you paid.  And if you fail to pay there are legal consequences.  It’s a fundamental part of our culture that all the time we are making contracts and deals, and just about all the time it works sweetly because we all know how it works.  Get on the bus pay the fare, get your ticket, and get to your destination.  Bigger deals may require a signature, or the affixing of a seal of some sort.  I don’t much about really big deals.  But most of the time it happens seamlessly – and if it doesn’t there are ways and means to sort things out. The police, small claims tribunal, lawyers. It can get messy.

That’s now, but what about then.  What about 5,000 years ago when Abraham was alive.  Police, bank transfers, receipts, didn’t exist.  How did people do deals, because it’s simply part of living in human community that deals are done all the time.

There’s a word that is central in this story and central to all deal making.  Covenant. 

In the world of Abraham when you entered into a deal you made a covenant. It’s actually at the heart of what we still do with deals when you think about it.  Small deals I imagine were done much as we do them.  A handshake, or just a word.  But big deals were done differently.  First you’d get an animal, like a cow or a goat or maybe just a bird.  Then you chop them in half and lay out the halves with space between them forming an alleyway.  The parties to the deal would stand side by side and recite the deal or covenant being made as they walked between the halves of the animals and then something like this might be said: “I undertake to purchase 10 bags of your wheat.”  And the other guy says, “ I undertake to provide 10 full bags of top quality grain.”  Both then say, “may I become like these animals if I fail to uphold my end of the covenant.” 

Literally they cut a deal.  Yes the phrases we use come from somewhere.  With a little ritual of cutting an animal in half a covenant is made.  Rituals like this were the glue that held their society together, and if you search the scriptures you’ll find reference to other rituals like taking off a sandal and giving it to the other party.  Sounds strange to us just as our way of doing deals might seem very strange to them.

So that’s a rather long lead in to our reading in Genesis 15.  Cutting a deal. 

Abraham had felt called by this mysterious presence to journey to this new land.  The journey had plenty of ups and downs but Abraham and his wife Sarah had faithfully hung in there.  There was the promise of descendants, but no children came.  There was the promise of new land where Abraham and Sarah would be at home.  But there were others occupying the land and life was perilous as a nomadic herdsman.

Through it all Abraham continued to trust and continued to experience connection with this mysterious presence.  There was a vision and the affirming message to not be afraid for this presence was like a shield.  Abraham had learned that he was finally to be a father, but not with Sarah, but through his slave girl Hagar.  We won’t go into detail of how that could be but Abraham was deeply questioning whether this child was to be the one.  But in the vision Abraham is led out under the clear desert night sky and and in his vision he experiences God doing a deal.  God making a covenant with him  He’s told to  count the millions of stars with the promise that his descendants would come through Sarah and number more than these.  The promise of the new land was also reaffirmed despite the pesky Amorites who already lived there.  To top it off there was a symbolic sealing of the deal and it wasn’t a handshake or a symbolic signature but you guessed it…  a heifer and a goat were cut in half and with the addition of a few birds the carcasses were laid out for this was a very special deal and covenant.

And a smoking firepot and blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces.

These are symbols for God, so where was Abraham in the cutting of this deal.  Both parties should be there to promise their part, to keep the deal.  Is God saying that it’s not conditional, it’s not dependent on the human keeping their end of the covenant….being faithful always.  Even if Abraham fails to do his part, God will not give up.  The deal it turns out is remarkably like the deal I started this little sermon with which isn’t so strange in God’s eyes.

Unconditional love.  We don’t have to be good enough, we don’t have to measure up for the deal to be operative.  God promises to lead to a future, God is for us, God is unrelentingly faithful, even if we make a mess of things God will not give up.

And it’s not just literally about having children, I know that.  It’s about an enduring future and a sense that our lives matter.  We, none of us,  will  disappear into timeless sands of nothingness.  I also know for Jewish folk it’s about a homeland, a piece of dirt called Palestine, but actually the new land is about something much more… new relationships, justice, and a whole new way of being community.  A community where we all belong and there are no insiders and outsiders, members of the club and those who don’t fit.  A community of listening and forgiveness, affirmation and belonging.  A community for everyone.    We’ve been affirming that here in Christchurch but our words and outpouring of love now needs to find roots. 

A community that includes Jews and Muslims, and Sikhs, and Buddhists, and ….the deal is that God wants to shape a new community that encapsulates us all, and maybe our little backwater can show the way.  Too often this deal has been interpreted by those who claim Abraham as their forefather as giving privilege and power.  Some are intrinsically better than others.  Jews, Christians, and Muslims make exclusive claims about their particular faiths.  The better way is to live out our faith with passion but also to respect the journey of others.  Our rivers in this part of the world are braided, but they all travel to the great wide encompassing ocean. 

This was not an exclusive deal.

Abraham forefather of the Jewish, Muslim, and Christian faiths has something to teach us all.  He believed God made a sacred promise, a deal, a covenant.  God promised to keep leading he and Sarah to find life.  This deal, this covenant applies to us.  Trust, know we are held in a love that does not let go.  Trust that God is leading us to find new life:  that forgiveness is important, that honesty and grace and kindness matters, that sorting our relationship issues is important, that justice and caring for creation isn’t a nice afterthought.  God is committed to leading us to a new land, and a new future where the fences are no longer high but where our common humanity is taking down the palings of separation one by one.    

I pray this community and this place of worship will live out this invitation.

Dugald Wilson  24 March 2019

Sunday 24th March 2019

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Welcome Home to 43 St Martins Rd at 10am for our first service back in the church. Please be patient as we may have some teething issues!

Coping in the aftermath of the shooting

 We live in world where we assume safety and order.  We expect people to be mostly kind and to treat one another with basic respect.  We work with assumption that people are inherently good and God has things in hand.  These assumptions have been severely challenged by the actions of the shooter in our midst and to varying amounts we may feel like we are now standing on shaky ground.   It is natural to feel the world has suddenly become unsafe and an insecure place, and we may sleep poorly and feel anxiety.  We may feel other emotions.  Some feel guilt thinking there was something we could have done or that we have let down another group in our midst.  Many cards left with flowers at the scene say ‘sorry’.  Some may feel anger or helplessness.  Tears and sadness are very common.  Some may just feel chaos or intense weariness and have difficulty focusing. 

Trauma ‘experts’ tell us to acknowledge what we feel.  Connect with your body and feelings and know that God is in them.  They are coming from deep places within.  I notice when invited to share what is happening within, many people talk about others.  It is important we acknowledge and talk about ourselves.

It’s also OK to focus on you in other ways.  It is perfectly normal to feel we want to do something to help, but connecting with self and immediate friends and colleagues is  helping.  Read a Psalm like Psalm 121 and anchor your life in God’s presence.   Pray as you are able and know you are valued by God.  Pray and share your deep desires for healing of our community with God.  Be careful how much sensational news you feed yourself.  Remind yourself that one lone gunman hasn’t changed the relationships that surround you each day.  Do not let him take away your trust in others and the power of good alive in our world. 

Know that issues behind this attack are not going to be solved overnight, but that the light always overcomes the darkness.  One of the key messages of the resurrection is that evil will not win.  Notice that many of the Muslim victims have a deep trust in God that things will work out.  In the days ahead there will be plenty of time to address other issues like building better relationships with others in our community, addressing racism in our hearts and midst, and limiting the freedom of social media to disseminate propaganda of hate.  Individually we can not stop all the bad things in the world, but we can live with integrity and hold fast to our values and beliefs about living a good and meaningful life with Jesus as our guide. 

Dugald

Session Report:

  • Our immediate financial crisis has been resolved with the assistance of the Presbytery, with grants from the capital of the St David’s Trust and the Dick Estate. Presbytery has also forwarded money that was allocated for the ongoing pastoral care of people from St James.
  • The church piano has been repaired and tuned and the electric piano connected into the new sound system. Warren is attempting to repair the organ (this may not be possible).
  • We are looking for ideas of social events that will help build up our community. Ideas/offers to run an event are most welcome. Dugald is planning some movie evenings with tea in the winter months.

Thank you to those who helped at the working bee yesterday. In the coming weeks we have a priority to lay concrete paths outside. There is also shelving required in internal store-rooms.

NOTICES:

After the service please come through to the Lounge for a cuppa and a time to talk. Please take time to ask one another ‘how you are’, and listen to what is going on for each other in the aftermath of our shootings.

Official Opening next Sunday: The official opening of the strengthened church will be on Sunday 31st March at 2.30pm. We plan a short simple time to reflect on the journey, celebrate the new look building, and offer a prayer of blessing. Afternoon tea will follow, and we trust there will be a good representation from the wider community.

Inviting friends and neighbours to our opening next Sunday… please do so! You can also assist by delivering invitation fliers either in the immediate neighbourhood of the church (check on map to see which streets need doing, or simply deliver some in your street /neighbourhood.

Parking on St Martins Rd – the Council have advised that you can park on the street outside the church. The bus stops are no longer operational.

Foot Clinic TOMORROW at the church 1-4pm.

Fireside meets this Tuesday 26th March 7.30pm at the church for supper and a catch-up. All women welcome. Allison 332 0554.

Wednesday Walkers: 27th March  

Meet 9.30am in Botanic Gardens by Armagh Street bridge. Coffee at Ilex. All welcome. Sonya 0272533397.

Crafty Crafters: Thursdays 10am-12 noon at 43 St Martins Rd. New faces are always welcome. Bring along an unfinished craft item, or learn a new skill. Cost $3 per session. Contact Lyndsey McKay 388 1264 for more information.

Piano to give away…we have a second piano in the church which needs a new home. It needs tuning and some attention. Please contact

the Office if you know of someone who would like it.

Garage Sale at St Anne’s Anglican Church, NEXT Saturday   30th March 8.30am – 12.30pm.

Sunday 17th March 2019

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NOTICES:

A very warm welcome to all who worship with us today. Please stay for a cuppa.

Next Sunday 24th March we meet at 43 St Martins Rd at 10am for our first service back in the church. Please be patient as we may have some teething issues!

Working Bee next Saturday 23rd March 8.30 – 11.00am to prepare front garden beds at 43 St Martins Rd. Bring gardening tools.

Official Opening: The official opening of the strengthened church will be on Sunday 31st March at 2.30pm. We plan a short simple time to reflect on the journey, celebrate the new look building, and offer a prayer of blessing. Afternoon tea will follow, and we trust there will be a good representation from the wider community. Invite a friend.

Session meets this Wednesday 20th March 7.30pm at the church.

Wednesday Walkers: 20th March  

Meet 9.30am at our church 43   St Martins Rd and wander around, led by Fern, finishing possibly for coffee at the church but we have a plan B! Ring 332 4725 for additional information. All welcome.

Anna will not be in the Office this Thursday 21st March.

Building Access: Anyone needing

access to the church will need to obtain the keypad number from the

office, and sign the confidentiality statement.  This enables us to keep an accurate list of those who know the number. Please return all old keys to the Office.

Bus Trip this Thursday 21st: please be at the church by 9.15am at the latest. Our estimated arrival in Geraldine is 11.15am. We will stop at Lushington’s on the way back for afternoon tea.

Crafty Crafters: Thursdays 10am-12 noon at 43 St Martins Rd. New faces are always welcome. Bring along an unfinished craft item, or learn a new skill. Cost $3 per session. Contact Lyndsey McKay 388 1264 for more information.

Garage Sale at St Anne’s Anglican Church, Saturday   30th March 8.30am – 12.30pm.

News from the Presbytery…

Esther Sabey is being ordained and inducted as Assistant Minister at Hope Church this morning. This afternoon Charissa Nicol is being ordained and inducted as part time minister at St Luke’s Redwood at 4.30pm to serve in the Prestons New Mission Project.

Piano to give away…we have a second piano in the church which needs a new home. It needs tuning and some attention. Please contact

the Office if you know of someone who would like it.

Te Raranga invites Greater Christchurch churches to join together in prayer and celebration in the newly opened Town Hall on Saturday 11th May 2019 at 7pm.

Celebration ’19 is a Church Wide Event – a rare opportunity to come together to:


Reaffirm our unity as followers of Jesus


Celebrate our diverse expressions of faith


Acknowledge the journey of regeneration in Christchurch

Highlight various contributions to the city


Take up an offering to go towards a pioneering project in the city


Join together to pray for our city


Enjoy corporate worship

Encourage and inspire one another


Contributions from a wide range of groups promises to make this night a celebration of colour and flavour; a chance to give glory to God for the different ways He is working among and through us. We are really hoping you and your church members will join us for an evening of worship, prayer, celebration and challenge.


Tickets are now on sale through Ticketek at $19 per person (plus booking fee). Note: it is cheaper to book multiple tickets. We are encouraging churches to buy a block of tickets and sell on directly to their congregations.

Sunday 10 March 2019

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A very warm welcome to all who worship with us today. Please stay for a cuppa. Many thanks to Rev Hugh Perry for leading today’s service.

Sue has jams, chutneys & relishes for sale today (most $4).

Foot Clinic TOMORROW 1-4pm at Beckenham Methodist Lounge. Lyndsey McKay 388 1264.

Wednesday Walkers: 13th March  – will car pool at 9.30am to drive to West Belt, near Community Centre, Lincoln to complete the historic walk we weren’t able to do in December and go back to the Flaming Rabbitfor $8 Coffee and muffin deal or early lunch if you wish.  Sonya 027 253 3397.

Building Access: Anyone needing access to the church will need to obtain the keypad number from the office, and sign the confidentiality statement.  This enables us to keep an accurate list of those who know the number. Please return all old keys to the Office.

The Urgent Pharmacy in Bealey Ave has now closed. For a pharmacy that’s open weekends and public holidays, go to Unichem or Life in the malls.

Crafty Crafters’ Bus Trip to Geraldine 21st  March: There are 4 more seats available. Please pay $30to Lyndsey before Thursday 14th at the latest. We will leave from the church at 9am. Lyndsey McKay 388 1264.

Crafty Crafters: Thursdays 10am-12 noon at 43 St Martins Rd. New faces are always welcome. Bring along an unfinished craft item, or learn a new skill. Cost $3 per session. Contact Lyndsey McKay 388 1264 for more information.

Garage Sale at St Anne’s Anglican Church, Saturday   30th March 8.30am – 12.30pm.

East Side Multicultural Games Avebury House Sat 23 March 1-3pm

Crossway Community Church, North Avon Baptist and Delta Community Support trust are working together to present this community event.

The games range from relaxing yet stimulating board games such as Mahjong where you can sit, chat and learn to the more physically challenging Kana Mutti. Not only are there fun games for families but there are also games suitable for a wider range of ages. There will be all of this and more with a taste of ethnic food.


With a vibrant multicultural community we want to connect different ethnicities together to bring fun games for the whole community. Nationalities involved in running the East Side Multicultural Games are Sri Lankan, Filipino, Korean, Dutch, Tongan, the Shetlands, and Taiwan with more ethnicities to come.