“Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently.”
(Galatians 6:1a)
This week, the sections of the email are:
- Opening Reflection: Fruit of the Spirit: Gentleness
- Key notices: Service Team Leaders Needed
- Coming Up: Antonia – Mini-Opera, Midsummer Yard Sale and Open Day, Men’s Group Croquet, Dare to Pray Meeting, Friends of St. George’s Art Show
- Interesting Blogs: Social Media and Coming to Faith, Freya India’s Girls
- Weekly Calendar
- Online Forms: Event application, Submit a notice, maintenance report, Safeguarding
Scroll on…
Opening Reflection
At the Youth Life Group recently, we played Jenga. The game involves a tower of wooden blocks and you take it in turns to remove a block from lower down the tower and place it on top of the tower. You keep going until the tower falls over. To be successful you have to remove the blocks gently. Press or pull too hard and the whole tower falls down and, like me, you lose!
When working with fragile things you need to be gentle. Delicate items need to be handled with care, otherwise you may well end up breaking them.
People are fragile. We all have our emotional breaking points and if we are treated harshly or aggressively we may snap. We need to treat one another gently.
As Christians we want to challenge one another to become more Christ like, but if we try to push someone to change too quickly or too aggressively, then they may not be able to cope and just leave the church or give up on faith. That is why the verse above says, that when someone is caught in a sin, we need to go about restoring them gently.
Sin needs to be challenged, but in a way that enables restoration and spiritual growth, not in a way that destroys the other person. That means starting by trying to deal with issues privately and one to one rather than in a public setting that might bring shame and humiliation to the other (cf. Matthew 18:15-17). It also means approaching the issue in a gentle manner, rather than with an aggressive tone and not badgering or nagging someone to change quickly, but giving people time to grow into a Christ-like character. After all, that is the way God deals with us, gently changing us bit by bit into his likeness rather than demanding we become perfect overnight.
Paul Worledge
Key Notices:
Service Team Leaders Needed
Are you interested in taking on a key role in opening up and setting up for our Sunday Services on a once-a-month basis? We are looking to create a team of 4 or 5 people to carry out this important role. Check out the role description.
Coming Up:
Antonia – Mini-Opera
This One-Woman Mini-Opera about Marie Antoinette features Petra, the organist at St. George’s on the harpsichord. Tom Thumb Theatre, Margate, Friday 19th, 7:30pm. Find out more…
Midsummer Yard Sale and Open Day
10am-3pm, Saturday 20th June, St. George’s Church. Encourage people to come along! If you can help with a tower or crypt tour on the day, then please let Paul know asap. You can now purchase tickets for the tours on the website.
Men’s Group – Croquet
On Tuesday 23rd June, at 5:30 for 6pm, the men’s group are holding a Croquet Evening at the Croquet Club on the Ramsgate Royal Esplanade (near the boating pool). It is £10 each. Please let Bruce know asap if you would like to come (07708 682464, brucestikes@btinternet.com).
Dare to Pray, Prayer Meeting
Due to clashes on 20th June, the Dare to Pray prayer meeting this month will be on Saturday 27th June, 9:30-10:30am at St. George’s Church
Friends of St. George’s Art Show
This will run from 10th to 19th July, 2-5pm, in St. George’s Church. If you want to enter a painting, drawings, prints or mixed media contact Elaine on e_hartnell@yahoo.com or Janet on 01843 852780.
Interesting Blogs to Share:
Social media and coming to Faith
In this article, Freya India, writing from a Generation Z perspective, questions whether connecting with faith through social media alone is enough. Read more (5mins)
Freya India’s, Girls
If you are wondering who Freya India is and what she writes about, then this excellent article celebrates what Freya India does brilliantly (points out the problem for Generation Z women), but laments the lack of solutions… Read more (2 mins)
Weekly Calendar
Sunday 14th June – Second Sunday after Trinity
Eucharist (St. George’s Church) Galatians 6:1-10 – 9:30am
Monday 15th
Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Tuesday 16th
Prayer Meeting (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Community Meal (St. George’s Hall) – 5:30-7:00pm
Wednesday 17th
Community Soup (St. George’s Church) – 12:00-2:00pm
Thursday 18th
Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Saturday 20th
Prayer Meeting (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Midsummer Yard Sale (St. George’s Church) – 10:00am-3:00pm
Community Soup (St. George’s Church) – 12:00-2:00pm
Sunday 21st – Third Sunday after Trinity
Eucharist (St. George’s Church) 2 Peter 1:1-11 – 9:30am
Life Groups
Will you dare to share the Christian life with others? Life groups are a great way to meet together regularly with a small group of other Christians, for mutual support, to share in reading God’s word and to pray for one another.
Please see Paul if you are interested in joining one. There are now more groups available! They meet at the following times:
- Monday evening (two groups)
- Tuesday afternoon
- Wednesday morning
- Wednesday evening
- Thursday morning
There is also a youth life group on a Sunday afternoon.
Online Forms:
Under the ‘Contact’ tab on the website, there are now three forms that you can use to help us in managing the church:
- Events Application Form. Use this if you are organising a church event that needs a church room booked, advertising or ticketing.
- Submit a Notice. Use this if you want to ask us to include a prayer request or other notice in the church notice sheet or email.
- Maintenance Reporting Form.Use this to report any non-urgent issues with our buildings or grounds.
Safeguarding
Our website is now updated with the latest information about Safeguarding and links to the Diocesan form for reporting concerns and accessing training.
Training
If you volunteer in anyway at church the national authorities you should take at least the Basic Module in safeguarding training once every three years. If you hold a role connected with vulnerable adults or children and young people, then you will also need to take the Foundation Module. Once you have completed your training, please forward that certificate to James, our administrator, (office@churchramsgate.org) so that we can keep records of who has done the training.
Finally, let’s keep being faithful!
Yours in Christ
Paul Worledge
(Priest in Charge, St. George’s Ramsgate)
St. George's Church Ramsgate 