Looking forward to Ann’s party, Morton Village Hall, 5pm, Boxing Day  🙂  🙂

A great time was had by local families gathering round Dyke Christmas tree, and decorating it through the service, this Sunday.

We learnt about ‘gifts’ at Christmas, and one gift in particular who never leaves us or lets us down (Hebrews 13!)

Thank you all…

Hi Readers.

Last month’s blog was about ‘change’. Our church interior has been refurbished and this change has been very well received. We were visited last week by our new Regional Minister, Mark Clay, who was very impressed. We thanked East Mids. Baptist Assn for donating £5000 towards this. Can I take this opportunity to thank YOU, the church, for your generosity at our Gift Day, weekly donations, monthly subscriptions, and your time and effort. There is still a bit of ‘fine-tuning’ to be done, but the main bits are done. Thank you all.

Daphne Cox has done an amazing job again this season arranging and leading our Christmas Carols in the Care Homes. As I type this through Christmas week, we have been blessed at Dyke and MND with beautiful Christmas services, with powerful words both said and sung. It was also a blessing to be joined by some new faces at both churches.

As we look forward to 2017 we have a visit at MND on January 8^th from Carol & Ginny, our missionary friends who live and work in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Starting Tuesday 31^st Jan, 7pm, our Manse, and then following every Tuesday same time & place, we are running another ALPHA.org course. Please check out the ALPHA website for content. These are free, involve a good meal, short video, and open discussion about the ‘big’ questions in all of our lives. If you, and friends, are free Tuesdays, please come. You will be amazed at how much is evidentially known about Jesus, why He came, and what that means right now today. I went along, (very reluctantly!), and was literally changed forever.

Have a blessed 2017, and remember Christ is not just at CHRISTmas, He is forever!

Pastor Andy.

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Usual times & ages. Still 50p!

Hi Readers.

I type this from a very interesting conference being run by our previous Minister, David Hughes.

He helps lead a national organisation called Rural Ministries, helping smaller village churches to healthily grow. And growing means changing.

This is all about the thorny subject of ‘change.’ I like the phrase “Change is constant; it is the rate of change that changes.” Apart from God and His Scripture, (Heb 13:8  ‘Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever’) somebody once said, “if it isn’t changing, it is already dead.)

This has got me thinking about all of us at Morton New Day. If we reflect over the year, when is the last time we did anything that might be described as ‘new, risky, edgy, or radical?’ Moreover, do the good people in our community know about it/them?

If David and Rosie popped back in, and they are very welcome, what change would they notice?

Well, we now run activities pretty much every day (and evenings!) of the week. New faces in the flock. And maybe the big piece of wall missing between the Chapel and Back room! Hopefully the folding glass doors will be fitted next week.

But the real change comes within each of us. As I have been constantly preaching recently, ‘It starts with our hearts.’

The last speaker, Fred, told a story of a single mum who dressed in heavy black garb & makeup style, often called ‘Goth.’ Lots of facial body piercings and tattoos. Fred met her over several coffees, and eventually the young Mum and child came to Fred’s church Sunday morning. Afterwards she said to Fred, “I’m sorry, I don’t want to be rude but I just don’t fit in here,” and didn’t explain further. Fred lost touch. A month later her Mum asked Fred to do the funeral service. She had committed suicide.

Our church values, like Christ, never change. But we need to remember WHY we come to church. Ask yourself this. I have. Lets talk with each other, change together, and help change the good people ‘outside’ our church by us changing. Together.

Be richly blessed, Pastor Andy.