the next month promises to be fun. b o r i n g . or both

clmchurchormskirk.org.uk • facebook.com/clmormskirk • Cottage Lane, Ormskirk, L39 3NE

Issue 135 • April 2015

The next month promises to be f u n . Or b o r i n g . Or b o t h . After the complexity and incoherence of the recent televised debate featuring the heads of the seven major parties competing at May's general election, I guess many of the Great British voters are doubly confused. Times have changed and British politics is just not what it used to be. With the significant advances of UKIP and the growth of the Green Party, the predicted landslide of the SNP north of the border and Plaid Cymru hoping to see the same political shift in Wales, it's a whole new ballgame.

No more red, blue, or maybe yellow as the only available options; as voters we are going to have to think a lot harder about what we want and what our votes will accomplish. We may actually have to read the party manifestos, decide which party is most aligned with our values and convictions then vote for what we believe in and the candidate who will best represent our concerns.

This is no bad thing. Politics in a democracy is meant to reflect what people want. In a world where democratic values are under increasing threat, I would encourage us all to think through how we want to see our country governed and vote accordingly.

I've said this before, but it's worth repeating - it's not just in politics we get to choose. God is no tyrannical dictator who forces himself upon us, like it or not. It's totally up to us whether we give him the time of day or not - now, and for eternity. If you want to know what his “electoral programme” is like, pick up a Bible and read one of the gospels - Jesus' life and teaching will give you a good idea. (If you've not got a Bible, get in touch and we'll get one to you.) Or drop in on us one day for a chat. Then choose, one way or another.

Unlike a general election, your vote is the only one that counts. Choose well :-)

Neil Rees

clmchurchormskirk.org.uk • facebook.com/clmormskirk • Cottage Lane, Ormskirk, L39 3NE

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Page 4 • Thank You

Page 5 • Children’s Page

Page 6-7 • Beyond the Compost Bin - Ted Whitfield

Page 8-9 • Choices

Page 10-11 • Neil’s Notes

Page 12-15 • South Africa Update

Page 16-17 • 60’s & 70’s

Page 18-19 • Mission News—China

0 • More Thanks

Page 21 • Prayer & Praise

Page 22 -23 • Messy Church

Page 24-25 • A Note to British Politicians

Page 26-27 • Baby Jace’s Dedication

Page 28 • Children’s Page

Page 29 • Services @ Cottage Lane Mission

Page 30 • What’s On?

In

T h i s

Issue

clmchurchormskirk.org.uk • facebook.com/clmormskirk • Cottage Lane, Ormskirk, L39 3NE clmchurchormskirk.org.uk • facebook.com/clmormskirk • Cottage Lane, Ormskirk, L39 3NE

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Dear C.L.M. friends. Many thanks for your generous support for Malawi, after my brief appeal on their behalf, a few weeks ago. So many people gave gifts, all of which are deeply appreciated. To my surprise, the amount contributed by individual members of C.L.M., totalled £305. With the addition of a few external gifts we were able to double that amount and we sent £600. This came to about 382,061 Kwacha.

Rev Stanley Phiri has acknowledged receipt of the gift and asked me to convey his sincere thanks to all who contributed. On behalf of all those who have benefited from your giving, he sends much love in our Lord Jesus Christ. The money has all been spent on timber and waterproof sheeting to construct temporary shelters, food, clothing, basic household essentials and seeds, to replant the crops that have been lost along with everything else.

Of course, the needs are ongoing, many people will be faced with starvation for months to come and many will die. Added to this is the cost of rebuilding permanent homes and the costs of burial for those loved ones, lost in the catastrophe, etc, etc. Please continue to pray for your brothers and sisters in Malawi and if anyone wishes to give practical support, we shall be sending out more gifts, as they come in.

Thank you so much. God bless you richly in His Grace. Keith and Maureen

So it seemed appropriate to honour this brave, if balmy lady, by naming my beautiful Aphrodite water feature after her. With a brass plaque on her surrounding trellised-arch, my Doris, a decorous, if not particularly modest model stands with arms pointing skywards, and water restfully cascading. She may embarrass one of my grandchildren, but ignore her one cannot. I originally thought of positioning her inside the house. The hallway would have shown her off most effectively. But it was explained by Jenny that she splashes a bit, and would therefore ruin the carpet! So she is now squirting away in her new back garden. The positioning of Queen Doris was the highlight of the garden this Easter. And these few days are often the first opportunity of the year for us to do a bit outside. This year it was warm and sunny throughout all of the country apart from here, with mist rolling over us like something from a Stephen King story. I think I saw the sun briefly on Easter Monday; there certainly was something large, round and possibly

Many of you have been kind enough to refrain from illustrating signs of extreme boredom when I incessantly repeat my progress with Queen Doris. For you I am grateful. For those who have no idea who Queen Doris was, and indeed who she now is, I shall briefly explain. (Old readers please continue exhibiting that gift of patience). The first Queen Doris was the second wife of King Herod the Great. The name intrigued me – you must admit that ‘Doris’ is not too popular a modern royal handle. The Victorian and Elizabethan eras sound impressive – the age of Doris doesn’t have the same gravitas. Mind you, this brave lady came from the people known as Dorithians, and as Dorith sounds like a speech problem, Doris it had to be. I say ‘brave’ because she was married to King Herod twice, and, as Herod is best known for not only killing as many boy babies as he could find when Jesus was born, but also exterminating many of his own family, she seems somewhat plucky.


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yellow teasing through the seamless cloud. In spite of an absence of undue warmth, we did endeavour to trim and tidy as much as possible. Such effort was rewarded with the colour of many of our spring flowers. We have a rich, pink camellia with glorious blooms shining through the mist. The daffodils, hyacinths and multi-coloured primroses looking even brighter. Soon the tulips, the clematis and then – everything! The flowers for me are the main thing. You can keep your cabbages and caulis; a riot of colour is far more appetizing and real. Sadly, Queen Doris, no matter how perfect, is not real. She’s just plastic with a façade of pretty, pretend reality on the outside. Just a façade. Like a picture of a cathedral covering the front of a small church, it isn’t what it seems. We need to look behind the frontage, and remove the impression to get to the reality. It is said that we exhibit a veneer of civilization – just as well, because when we are feeling grumpy it is often later on that we regret the mood we

were in because that is just what it was – a Monday morning mood. And when our fickleness shows us as Mr Happy – with cheerfulness to all mankind – this can be just as fleeting. Both are façades, for behind them our true self remains hidden. Perhaps confused, nervous and alone. So let’s not bother too much with what we see on the surface, for we are the opposite of Queen Doris. She is decorative on the outside, but underneath inanimate. We can appear unreal on the outside, but behind the veneer of our appearance, God thinks we are without price. Mind you, Queen Doris will always be both real and priceless to me!

‘God sees not as man

sees, for man looks at

the outward

appearance, but the Lord looks at the

heart.’

1 Samuel :16

Ted Whitfield

It’s...

Doris Day

Beyond theBeyond theBeyond the Compost BinCompost BinCompost Bin


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While walking down the street one day a Member of Parliament is tragically hit by an HGV and dies. His soul arrives in heaven and is met by St. Peter at the entrance. 'Welcome to heaven,' says St. Peter. 'Before you settle in, it seems there is a problem. We seldom see a high official

around these parts, so we're not sure what to do with you.' 'No problem, just let me in,' says the man.

'Well, I'd like to, but I have orders from higher up. What we'll do is have you spend one day in hell and one in heaven. Then you can choose where to spend eternity.'

'Really, I've made up my mind. I want to be in heaven,' says the MP.

'I'm sorry, but we have our rules.'

And with that, St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down to hell. The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a green on the golf course. In the distance is a clubhouse and standing in front of it are all his friends and other politicians he had worked with.

Everyone is very happy and in evening dress. They run to greet him, shake his hand, and reminisce about the good times they had while getting rich at the expense of the electorate. They play a friendly game of golf and then dine on lobster, caviar and champagne.

Also present is the devil, who really is a very friendly guy and he has a good time dancing and telling jokes. They are having such a good time that before he realizes it, it is time to go. Everyone gives him a hearty farewell and waves while the elevator rises....

The elevator goes up, and the door reopens at heaven where St. Peter is waiting for him.

'Now it's time to visit heaven.'

So, 24 hours pass with the MP joining a group of contented souls moving from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and singing. They have a good time and, before he realizes it, the 24 hours have gone by and St. Peter returns.

'Well, then, you've spent a day in hell and another in heaven. Now choose your eternity.'

The MP reflects for a minute, then he answers: 'Well, I would never have said it before, I mean heaven has been delightful, but I think I would be better off in hell.'

So St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down to hell.

Now the doors of the elevator open and he's in the middle of a barren land covered with waste and garbage. He sees all his friends, dressed in rags, picking up the trash and putting it in black bags as more trash falls from above. The devil comes over to him and puts his arm around his shoulder.

' I don't understand,' stammers the MP. 'Yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and clubhouse, and we ate lobster and caviar, drank champagne, and danced and had a great time. Now there's just a wasteland full of garbage and my friends look miserable. What happened? ' The devil looks at him, smiles and says, "Yesterday we were campaigning…

Today you voted!"

As well as deciding who to vote for in the General Election, there is another choice we all need to make…where we will spend eternity. For help in making that decision, you are welcome to come

to a service at the Mission or contact us.


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Neil’sotes

eil’seil’seil’s

otesotesotes and then Thomas (not to mention the rest of the disciples) has to wait another week before getting his turn.

Imagine that, Jesus is back from the dead, pops in for the afternoon, then makes himself scarce for a week. It was worth the wait, particularly for Thomas, but still, I mean – a whole

week! Some time later Jesus turns up again when Peter had given up on this particular version of hide-and-seek in Jerusalem and gone back to fishing in Galilee. John records

the deep conversation that ensues, and that is that.

Luke adds some detail of what happened between Jesus speaking to the women at the graveside and appearing to the disciples in the upper room. A couple of his followers (and I reckon they were just that, a couple, husband and wife – but that's for another article) are on their way to Emmaus, a few hours' walk from Jerusalem, when Jesus joins them in disguise – well, they didn't recognize him, at least. They have a good long natter on the journey

Life with Jesus was unpredictable at the best of times. But after his resurrection, it went haywire. I mean, how on earth do you “get on with normal life” when the one you have followed for a couple of years, the one you had watched as he hung on a cross and died, then appears alive a few days later – not to mention walking through walls and nicking your supper!

Jesus came back to life, but not to the life he had left. It wasn't “as you were”, back to the good old days of travelling the Judean and Galilean countryside with a happy group of disciples. Yes, he certainly appeared to the apostles “from time to time” in the forty days following his death and “proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive” (Acts 1:3). But he was not about to follow anyone else's agenda, much to his friends' frustration, no doubt.

Take John's account, for example. That first Sunday he appears to the disciples – all except Thomas, that is. The short visit is over all too quickly

before Jesus accepts their invitation to stay on for supper. After a spot of Bible exposition he breaks bread and suddenly “their eyes were opened” and they recognize him – at which point of course he goes and disappears into thin air... Argh!!!

Naturally, they then rush back to Jerusalem to meet with the others and are just recounting their own merry tale when Jesus does his now-you-see-me-now-you-don't trick in reverse and appears amongst the lot of them. Luke also writes of how Jesus at some later date leads his followers to Bethany, home of Lazarus & Co., only to leave them gawping as he heads for heaven.

After telling of Jesus' appearance to the women, Mat-thew bypasses Jerusalem com-pletely and has the disciples head back to Galilee – presumably where Peter was doing his fishing the morning that Jesus cooked them breakfast on the beach. Maybe it was here that Jesus appeared to the five hundred at one time that Paul talks about (1 Corinthians 15:6), who knows.

All in all, there was more than enough for them to know that he was alive – but life could never be the same

again. You see, he had trained them and set an example for them; now it was time to leave them to it, not to put

himself back at the centre of their lives. So he popped up unexpectedly, talked with them about the Kingdom of God and made his commission to them absolutely clear. He promised

them that God's Spirit would be their new guide – God within them, not God in him. A new era had begun, and they were to lead the way.

We are the heirs of this same promise. No, life with Jesus is not predictable. He doesn't fit into our neat plans today any more than he would back then. We may prefer a less messy

world with a neatly regulated Jesus showing up regular as clockwork at our prearranged festivities. But that's not the way it's meant to be. We follow a subversive God who calls us to

learn to live according to our values and convictions as we follow the Holy Spirit to the best of our (often meagre!) ability.

Welcome to life after Easter :-)

Neil Rees

Jesus came back to life,

but not to the life he had

left.

“their eyes were opened”

and they recognize him

He promised them that

God's Spirit would be their

new guide

Life after Easter


12 13

Sweetwaters is the township where

Tabitha's ministry began. We've had

the opportunity to go into the

township community more over the

last month. It has been very eye

opening so I will try my best to do the

impossible and put my experience into

words. I can't express how

unexplainably frustrating it is the short

distance you have to travel to go from

rich to the starving poor. On Tuesdays we have the chance to go to a Bible study Paige

and Thomas run for a few teenage Christians in the community. (Paige and

Thomas work long-term here at Tabitha.)

On Thursdays three of us get to accompany Paige – who is a doctor – on her house

visits. She carries out her medical checks and gives them anything that she can to help or

ease the pain – although most of the time they are terminally ill with aids or TB (on their

death bed) and there is not much she can do. We then give out a bucket full of essentials

(soap, sponges, cleaning products, tooth brushes and toothpaste, waterproof mattress

protectors, sheets, Vaseline, lip balm, towels, plasters, nail clippers, socks, gloves,

straws, body lotion), a bag full of stovela (bags of dry rice and lentils) and if they agree

to it we share Scripture with them, pray for them and just spend as much time as they

want with them. It's truly heartbreaking how lonely some people are spending the last

days of their lives. Lastly, on Fridays we get to do food distribution where we hand out

bags of stovela to 130 child-headed households. The joy that comes in making 130 kids

lives happier, not to mention the little ones they care for, but the helplessness of not

being able to reach the rest of a majority in need was overwhelming.

The children's schooling is so much more of an urgent priority than we ever expected it

to be. It's mostly the older children that are very behind in Maths and

English, so that is what 90% of their time in school is spent on. They've

benefited hugely from reading groups and it's so rewarding to see the

immense improvement some of them have made already since I started reading with

them. We invest a lot of time in doing homework with them after school as well,

aiming for them to start to understand their work for themselves.

Tabitha did not start

with an orphanage –

it began as a ministry

to HIV/AIDS

affected

households. But the

need for a minority of kids to be taken into care soon

became obvious. So the residential care centre was born.

This means that all the kids here come from abusive, traumatic, or severely neglected

backgrounds. I would like to share with you the story of one of my favourite kids here.

This little guy came to the orphanage when he was three years old. He and his younger

brother were both badly mistreated by his mother until she tried to kill them. She had

buried the youngest alive and was doing the same with him, however he managed to

save their lives by screaming and screaming until the neighbours came. His younger

brother nearly died, he had holes in his lungs and is now both mentally and physically

disabled. Despite this massively traumatic experience, he is now one of the happiest,

politest, most content, well-behaved children here at Tabitha. At seven years old, it is

incredible how little he is influenced by the immense majority of rest of the kids here

that are sadly generally very misbehaved, rude, selfish, unappreciative and all round

naughty. He's relatively quiet but always happy, smiling, nice to others and in fact one

of the brightest kids here. In times of frustration when trying to help, love and

discipline some of the most dysfunctional kids I have encountered, he's one of the ones

that makes it worth it. I can honestly say I love this kid.

Laura in South Africa At Tabitha Ministries, Pietermaritzburg

March 2015

Sawubona everyone – another month has

passed (how time flies!) so it's time for me to

bring you up-to-date again with what's

happening over here at Tabitha :-)

One boy's story...

School

Sweetwaters

Swimming lessons have been put in place

for twenty of the older children. None of

them knew how to swim when we first

came here. Having learnt how to swim at

the age of two, seeing twelve year olds

who have no idea how to keep themselves

above the water is quite something! They

absolutely love swimming lessons and me

and the girls get to actually get in the

water too and help the swimming instructor – it's a lot of fun!

Various kids – Timtim (11), Lulu (11), Bunny (9), Mandy, Ingi and Nzuzo (7) – also get

the chance to do gymnastics as an

extracurricular activity, outside of

Tabitha. They thoroughly enjoy it and

are all exceptionally good at it. They

recently had a competition where they

all competed against everyone else in

their category and our kids came out

with four gold medals and one silver. I

don't think I've ever felt so much like a

proud mummy before!

Other after-school activities include

baking class, a lot of sport involving

activities like volleyball, capture the flag

or four-square, watching films, drawing, painting and other crafts, bracelet

making, reading stories, plaiting hair… our lives are never boring here!

Luckily we've also had the chance to get out and about and do

fun things outside of Tabitha too, both with and without the kids.

We've been giraffe spotting, visited the Saturday's farmers'

market, been to Durban to watch the rugby and been to pet cheetahs – the cheetahs were

pretty cool I guess. With the kids we have organised an Easter egg hunt, Easter crafts

and games, a muddy slip 'n' slide, we have been hiking and had a little trip to the mall's

fun fair. It's truly amazing how fascinated they are each time they get to leave the

orphanage, even just while they are in the car looking out the window. For a little while

they are actually quiet and well behaved!


14 15

Amongst all this fun and craziness I did have a

little bump on the road. For those that don't

know I was very ill a couple of weeks ago and

was taken into hospital urgently to have my

appendix removed. Thankfully they got it just

before it burst and everything went very

smoothly. I was treated wonderfully by all the

hospital staff and felt very loved by my

amazing team of girls and all the kids' cards

and drawings. I came back to Tabitha last

Tuesday after a week out of action and I'm recovering very well, love being back – I was

going insane having to lie down and not

do anything.

Health and protection for the team.

We will be doing a trip down to Cape

Town this month so safety for that.

That I may be able to recover quickly.

Been told I can’t pick kids up or play

volleyball or do any kind of running for 4-6 weeks, so prayers for speedy recovery.

Discipline. Going through a rough time at Tabitha lately particularly with the older boys

trying to discipline them. Some of the things some of the boys have done are really very

shocking and so we’re going through a time of implementing discipline and seeing what

actually works with them.

The kids in general. Basically, they need Jesus, prayers for them to

see some truth in what has always been drilled into their minds and

that they may actually come to

know Jesus. Thanks so much for your

prayer and support, with

much love, Laura xx

[email protected] | facebook.com/sendlauratosouthafrica

Outings

Please pray for...

After school activities

60’s and 70’s Night


18 19

From abandonment to abundance - your part in their journey

it.”

Your gift is bringing love, hope and opportunity to China’s abandoned and disabled children.

For I have come that may have life and have it to the full John 10 v 10. Thank you again for your generosity and heart for the abandoned and disabled children in China. Your gifts and support are transforming the lives of 160 children in Hengyang today. As you know, the new building in Hengyang has 20 family style apartments. The 160 children have all now moved into their new home, and each one has its own name and front door sign. On November 21st, our ICC children, as well as 26 additional children from the Welfare Centre, joined together as a new family with their brothers and sisters into their new home, a “Centre of Transformation”.

Your investment has brought these children into a place of safety and security. Into a home where they belong and where they can blossom and flourish. They now have a home for life. And you helped to make that happen. Each apartment has been designed to accommodate the needs of each group of children. They all chose the name of their apartments too. We even have a ‘Hungry Caterpillar Home”! I wanted to update

you on just one of the ‘family groups’ named the Magnolia room. The “Magnolia” room is now home to 7 beautiful girls. Yang Heng Chan was one of the first children who came into ICC’s care after being abandoned at I year old. She is visually impaired with some development delay. Chan Chang is quite shy and loves to feel the safety of her carer’s arms Yang Heng Mei was abandoned at 1 year old. She has a bright and infectious smile despite being born with a heart defect and development delay. Following heart surgery in 2012 she is continuing to get stronger. Therapy and educa-tion are dreams for Mei Mei.

Yang Heng Da joined ICC in 2008. She is full of giggles and smiles despite suffering from Cerebral Palsy that affects her whole body. Her goals are to independently sit and stand. Yang Heng Cong was abandoned at 1 year old. She has Cerebral Palsy, which affects her development and control over her head and arms. Cong Cong is a beautiful girl who loves to be held. She can’t speak but her eyes say a thousand words. Yang Heng Cui came to ICC when she was 4 years old. She was quite withdrawn, lying in her cot, not interacting with anyone. Within 4 months she was sitting up, making noises and smiling. Our hope is she will continue to receive and give love as she learns to trust her nannies. Yang Heng Qi was abandoned at 3 years old. She also has Cerebral Palsy, which makes for difficult head control and body movement. Her nickname is the “Toy Queen” because she just loves to handle and play with her toys. Her smile brightens the day of everyone around her.

Yang Fu Mai suffers from autism that makes her shy away from being involved in her outside world. She has a loving nature and enjoys going for walks around the centre.

These girls and the other 153 children you are supporting know that they are loved, not just by their caregivers but also by a worldwide family that includes you. I hope that this update will encourage you that your giving is making a difference.

Thank you for being hope bearers and home makers to the abandoned and disabled children we serve together.

Judy Elliott National Development Manager ICC UK


20 21

A big thank you to everyone who donated items for the Table Top Sale and to all those who were ‘conned’ into the auction.

The total raised for the Tearfund Appeal Vanuatu Disaster was £250.00

Thanks to all who were able to assist with the sorting, labelling, pricing, transporting and helping on the day of the sale.

Any further donations please contact Linda Turner

◙ Helen Murphy will be going to Kenya on 16 April and will be visiting our friends in Bukoyani. If you want her to take any letters, please pass them to her in good time.

◙ Lynn Rees ran in the Liverpool Half Marathon last weekend. She came1st in the fe-male 50+ group. She was the 63rd female out of 1,858 and overall 899th out of over 5,000. She did 13.1 miles in1 hour 39 minutes and was really pleased with that. On 26 April she will be taking part in the Madrid marathon, twice the distance and more hills. Lynn says, "To help keep me motivated as I run, I am raising money for Hope for Justice to help free victims from human trafficking. If you’d like to sponsor me, visit my ‘Just Giving’ page or speak to me. Thanks,

everyone.”

https://www.justgiving.com/LYNN-REES2/

◙ Laura Rees had an unexpected and unwelcome interruption to her work in South Africa with Tabitha Ministries when she had to go into hospital for an emergency operation to remove her very inflamed appendix. Thankfully she is making a good recovery. See pages 12-15.

◙ David Rees is also in the news with the release of his first single. ‘Live on Top’ . Check it out on youtube www.youtube.com/watch?v=a03KgiQuFG0 Well done, David!

◙ Michelle Campbell-Scott, Anna, her daughter and dogs Teddy and Finlay are on their journey in a motor home across America, at present in Georgia.

◙ Jace Hall was dedicated at CLM on 29 March. See photos on page 26-27

◙ Many congratulations to Tom Loker who has passed his driving test.

◙ A baby boy was born to Lyn Bolton’s daughter, Jo and Gary on 2 April in New Zealand. Jason Victor weighed in at 8lbs 3 ozs. A brother for Zoe.

◙ Bobby Flannery is waiting the result of his latest scan. Has finished chemo infusions, now on tablets.

◙ Iain Mackenzie is also waiting for a scan result. Still on chemotherapy.

◙ Joyce Hunter fell and dislocated her shoulder. Pray for full healing.

◙ Barbara Bampton has moved from Queens Court to Silver Birch Rest Home.

A few weeks ago Neil & Alan spent a day helping a homeless Latvian guy who turned up at church without any money and nowhere to live.

Below is a reply Alan received a couple of days later:

Hi Alan my name is Raitis you maybee not remeber me but you help me last week now i m in Liverpool saturday i go to Wolverhampton in hear is byutiful peoples i not sleep in street and this people give me food ewrithing is ok thenks for a helping you and yor partner sory i not remeber hi name thanks thenks and thenks




22 23


24 25

Firstly, you need to realise that I am not stupid and I will not thank you for treating me as such. I am able to handle complex information and I don’t need everything reduced to simple sound bites. I know that some problems don’t have easy answers and I also realise that there may be more than one solution to a particular problem. So, please don’t insult my intelligence by trying to pretend there is only one possible answer to every situation and that you are right and the other parties are wrong. I know that there are shades of grey, not just black and white.

While we are on this subject, please remember that I am able to read and understand things for myself. I don’t need you to tell me what the other parties’ policies are. Tell me your vision for the country and leave me to work out what this means for me. If all you have to offer me is a series of

reasons why I shouldn’t vote for the other guys, then I’m really not interested in voting for you.

Talking of ‘the other guys’, I am far more likely to vote for politicians who show themselves

generous to their opponents. If the other side has a good idea, admit it. Don’t set out to create division and discord where there is none. Listening to grown-ups squabble is not my idea of entertainment and I will simply turn off the Today programme or the TV rather than listening to you bicker.

Be honest and truthful. Please don’t tell me about your values and your honesty; just be honest and demonstrate your values. I am not one of those people who believe that all politicians are greedy and out for what they can get. I actually believe that most of you are motivated by public service and the belief that your particular view of politics and economics is best for the country. However, I also believe that too many of you will be economical with the truth in order to be elected or re-elected. If I find that I can’t trust you to tell the truth to me, I am unlikely to trust you to govern the country.

‘lie’) will take the place of truth and complex issues will be reduced to banal superficialities.

At the end of the campaign, someone will win and they campaign teams will pop their champagne corks with a feeling of a job well done. But remember, there is another important factor in play here; the future of our democratic system itself. Survey after survey shows that the British people are becoming disillusioned with politics and effectively disenfranchised. Turn out in this election is likely to be one of the lowest ever. If your party wins the election, but, in the process, alienates more voters you will have done us a huge disservice.

http://www.kouya.net/?p=6963

copied from www.kouya.net with permission.

Give me a vision of the future and not stories about the past. I don’t need you to tell me what life was like in Britain under the Tories in the eighties or Labour in the seventies. I remember both, and neither decade resembles this one very much. Give me a simple, realistic, believable picture of why the country will be better off with you at the helm and then trust me to make the comparisons.

Of course, I realise that you will, in all likelihood, ignore everything I have said. The election campaigns will have been planned to the last detail. Rather than looking at common ground and consensus, you will seek to show clear differences between the parties. You will exaggerate the little differences and seek to belittle your opponents at every turn. Spin (which is just a polite way of saying

A Note To British Politicians By Eddie Arthur

Had to take a snap of the local bins!

Michelle - Georgia America

http://www.kouya.net/?p=6963

http://www.kouya.net


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The dedication of Jace Hall 29 March 2015


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Services in April & May

19 April

10.45 am

Family Service Suzy Walker

Neil Rees

John 13

The Lord washes his servants’ feet

26 April

10.45 am

Family Service Liz Wynne

Mark Hudson

John 17

The Lord’s Prayer

26 April

7.00 pm

Praise & Worship Music Group

3 May

10.45 am

Family Service Elaine Maitland

Neil Rees

John 13

Love one another

10 May

10.45 am

Family

Anniversary

Service

Paul Mackenzie

David Robinson from Searchlight Theatre Co.

127th Church Anniversary

10 May

7.00 pm

Evening Prayer

Fellowship

Carolyn Hastings

17 May

10.45 am

Family Service Roy Wynne

Stuart Pascall

John 14

The way, the truth and the life

24 May

10.45 am

Family Service Marion Walker

Tony McGillicuddy

John 14,16

Receive the Holy Spirit

31 May

10.45 am

Family Service

& Communion

Martin Conway

Neil Rees

Ross Moughtin

John 15

Life in the vine

31 May

7.00 pm

Evening Praise &

Worship

Music Group

Date Service Leader Topic

Time Speaker


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Principal Church Leader: Neil Rees 0744 934 0677

Administrator: Beryl Mackenzie 01772 813334

or 0776 746 1087

Christ Church Clergy

Vicar: Rev Ross Moughtin 01695 422175

What’s on @ CLM

For more information on any of the above, please ring Beryl on 01772 813334 or visit the website - clmchurchormskirk.org.uk

Children’s Birthday Parties

The Mission is available for hire for birthday parties of pre-school

or Primary aged children.

Please contact Beryl for further details.

01772 813334 or 0776 746 1087

Need Prayer?

Contact us and we will be willing to pray for you or with you.

Doreen Williams 01704 897422

or Alan Mapstone 01695 421628

Sunday 10.45am Family Service 7.00pm Evening Fellowship (2nd Sunday monthly) 7.00pm Praise & Worship with Music Group (Last Sunday monthly)

Monday 5.30pm Children’s Club (ages 4 - 11)

Tuesday 1.30pm - 3.30pm The Open Door - CLM’s Adult Community Support Group - drop in for a drink, a chat and a listening ear

Wednesday 12.30pm Luncheon Club 2.15pm Band of Cheer Ladies’ Meeting

Thursday 4pm - 6pm 4 O’Clock Club (11 - 16)

Friday 10.00am Parent & Toddler Group 7.30pm Ladies’ Craft Evening (2nd Friday monthly) 7pm - 9pm Youth Group - 1st & 3rd Friday

Saturday 9.00am Missions Prayer Meeting (1st Saturday monthly)

Men’s Meetings as announced Home Groups meet at different times and in different homes throughout the week.

the next month promises to be fun. b o r i n g . or both

Documents