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Bell RingersBell Ringing 

Sunday, November 17th 2024 (week 88)

 
Joel 2:28-32
 
As we move rapidly into winter there are few signs of life in our garden. What hasn’t gone into hibernation is in decay or has already died. We are now getting used to a less attractive outlook and thoughts of springtime seem far away. But as the depths of winter draw closer our thoughts turn towards Christmas.
 
It’s easy for us to become nostalgic about Christmas as we look back at childhood days which almost always look favourable through the rose-coloured spectacles of hindsight. One of my “rosy” remembrances is of church bells ringing out for all to hear. It was also an alarm clock reminding me that it was pre-service choir practice time and I needed to hotfoot it to the end of our drive where our local parish church sat just yards away.
 
We rarely hear the sound of church bells reminding people to come and worship today. But a bell simply isn`t enough to encourage people to join us in praising God. To paraphrase songwriter Matt Redman, we need to bring more than a bell! We need life!
 
The apostle Paul, writing his first letter to the church in Thessalonica said, “And now the word of the Lord is ringing out from you to people everywhere, even beyond Macedonia and Achaia, for wherever we go we find people telling us about your faith in God. We don’t need to tell them about it”. The early church was speaking out the word of God for all to hear. This only does what God wants it to do when we invite and accept the Holy Spirit into our lives and worship. Without His infectious life in us, we will fail. As Psalm 127 reminds us, “Unless the Lord builds the house, the work of the builders is wasted.” All too often we see the work of well-meaning individuals wasted because of self-reliance. I know because I`ve been guilty of it.
 
In the reading from Joel, the prophet speaks about repentance, restoration and the Day of the Lord when God will pour out his spirit on all people. As bystanders, we are observing some of God’s church be ripped apart by scandal, divisions and attempts to redefine God’s accepted word in the Bible. You can be forgiven for thinking that the Holy Spirit isn’t always evident in all of those goings-on. We all need to remember Jesus’s warning that His Father breaks off every branch that does not bear fruit and we simply can’t bear fruit without the work of the Holy Spirit.
 
Being part of a church family where the intervention and work of the Holy Spirit is clearly evident is both a privilege and an absolute need. At Gatehouse, we see the work of the Lord every day of the week as He is proclaimed at various activities, bringing blessing for those giving and receiving. But the whole of God’s church needs to remember that we are not only called to be social workers, helping the hungry, sick, and needy. We are called to be a spirit-filled army of worshipers where the word of the Lord is ringing out to everyone from our churches.
 
Prayer: Lord, thank you for sending the Holy Spirit to help us in the work you want us to do.

 

16

Neil has been a Christian for nearly thirty years and prior to joining Gatehouse Church spent all his Christian life at Christ Church with All Saints Blackpool, where amongst other things he was a leader in their Campaigner Ministries children and youth work.

Neil is an award-winning and widely published writer. Over twenty-five years he has written for a range of mainstream media including The Times, Sunday Times, Telegraph, Daily Mail, and Financial Mail on Sunday as well as Reuters and numerous magazines. How To Books published his first non-fiction title 100 Ways to Make Your Business a Success and he has recently added The Great British Property Scam.

He has also taught Creative Writing extensively for Blackpool and the Fylde College, The WEA, and Lancaster University and launched www.seasiderswrite.com a community-based creative writing project funded by Arts Council England. Writing as C.J.Neill he is also a published novelist.

You can find out more at www.neilbromage.com or drop him an email at neil@neilbromage.com

 

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Glenys
Hello and welcome to our church. If you are a new visitor, we have a page for you to get to know us and learn more about planning a visit.
Click here to see more.
Visitors click here.

Planning your Visit

A Warm Hello 

The following information is specifically for those planning a visit, so that you know, beforehand, what to expect on a Sunday morning.

Where and when

We meet at the Church Building (details here) for our Sunday Service starting at 10:30am. For your first visit, we recommend arriving 10-15 minutes early to ensure you get a parking space and find somewhere to sit before the service begins. When you arrive, you should be greeted by someone on our Welcome Team.

Accessibility: There is wheelchair access for anyone who needs it. Please let one of the Welcome Team know on your arrival and they will help you to get set up. There are disabled toilets in the main foyer.

Our service

The main service begins at 10.30am with a warm welcome from one of our team members. Then follows a time of sung worship, led by our worship team. We typically have two songs followed by a children's slot. The Limitless Kids and Limitless Youth will then normally go off to their respective groups. If you have children you will be able to spot and speak to one of the leaders - they will be wearing a bright yellow t-shirt! There will usually be a time of prayer and communion. We normally have another time of sung worship followed by a sermon that is bible based and that we can apply to our everyday life. We then finish with a final worship song. Sometimes there is an opportunity to receive prayer at the end of the service. 

When our team is available we serve tea, coffee and biscuits from 12pm, after the service. It is a great way to meet people, or simply take time to find your bearings. All refreshments are free.

New to church

 

What about my kids?

We have a great programme lined up for kids/teens:

  • Creche - from approx. 6 months to 5 years (decided on a child by child basis)
  • Limitless Kids (4/5 - 11/12 years)
  • Limitless Youth (school years 7-11)

Children stay with their parent or grown-up at the start of the service for two worship songs and the “Kids slot” and then go to creche or Limitless Kids.  The Limitless Youth group may go out at the same time as the children but sometimes stay in the service to take communion before going to their class.  Children can be picked up by parents after the service ends (but not before 12pm).

The Limitless Kids group activities vary depending on the age but usually there is a friendly welcome, bible stories, testimonies, praying, music, craft, drama, fun games and free play. Please pick your children up as soon as the service finishes.

Getting connected

 

Small groups

While Sundays are a great way to meet new people, it is often in smaller gatherings that you can really get to know someone. Being part of one of our small groups allows you to make new friends, share together and support each other. We have a couple of groups that meet every week, some afternoons and some evenings. Check Small Groups and see if there’s one that you could join, or we can put you in touch with a small group leader.

Serving and volunteering

If you want to get involved in the life of the church and help us make Sundays run smoothly, you can register your interest to Join a team.

Other ministries

We also run the following community ministries and regularly support various missionaries who are part of the Elim Missions work:

Toddlers & Co 

Food bag provision

Open Doors Team

Church in the Café

Youth Community Outreach

We hope that whoever you are, you will feel at home at the church. You can connect with us using the form below.

Best Wishes
The Gatehouse Leadership Team

 

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