“One thing I do: forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 3:13-14
So, after our lives have ended, what will come next? At one level it’s apparent that our material ‘waste’ will be reconstituted into something different. In funeral services the words of committal still echo those of Ecclesiastes 3:20… we come from dust, and to dust we shall return, which prompted one child to deduce that somebody was either coming or going under the spare room bed!!
Christians talk about heaven and being with Christ, but we struggle to visualise it. Many of us grew up with ideas of living in ‘mansions’ (John 14:2), thereby imagining some kind of continuity with this life. Will my mansion have an en-suite bathroom, a sizable garden and a good view?! Will the really good Christians get a penthouse?!
Paul has already gone to great lengths in 1 Corinthians 15 to emphasise both the reality and importance of Jesus’ resurrection. Our future hope depends on the events of Easter Sunday being historically true. But now, in verses 35-49, he moves on to reflect on what the next life might look like. Of course, it’s impossible for him to be precise, but he offers a few pointers. The implicit challenge is this – what drives the way that we live now? Is it that glorious future reality, or the passing distractions of this life?
Bruce Stokes
This Week’s Sunday Service – 11am
What Next? (1 Corinthians 15:35-49)
Join us for our regular Sunday morning worship. This week we continue exploring 1 Corinthians 15 and think about what the certainty of Jesus’ resurrection means for us – what is next and how does that impact us in the here and now. Our children’s groups will also be running
St. George’s Day Celebration and Parade, Sunday 28th April
To mark St. George’s day this year, there will be a joint service at St. George’s on Sunday 28th April at 11am, followed by a St. George’s day parade (like last year).
Parenting for Teen’s Course
Bible Reading Fellowship have produced a course to help people with parenting teens. If you are interested in taking the course or even running a course, then please check out their website, then let Paul know if this is something you want to do.
Growing Faith Hub (Helping children and Young people grow in Faith)
The next training session for the Growing Faith Hub is at St Mary Bredin on Thursday 2nd May 12-2pm (lunch provided). This training is entitled ‘Your Church and Community’ and will focus on how best to engage as a church within your local community. If you would like to attend, please email Jen, including any dietary requirements and also let Paul know you are going.
Electoral Roll and Annual Meeting
St. Luke’s electoral roll, is a kind of membership list for the church that enables you to vote at our Annual Meeting (APCM). If you are not already on the electoral roll, have been attending St. Luke’s for six months or more, are baptised and over 16, then please fill in one of the electoral roll forms, available at the back of church and return to James Patterson by Thursday 25th April. The annual meeting will be on Sunday 12th May at 12:30pm after the normal Sunday Service.
Links to Share:
How to be (Un)successful
As we reflect today on our resurrection bodies, in this short article, Pete Portal questions what it means to run after success and how people do that in our modern culture. Read 10 minute article.
Write your Will for free online
Will writing can be time-consuming and difficult – and that’s a big reason why many people put it off. To make it easier, the Church of England has partnered with Farewill, the National Will Writing Firm of the Year 2022, to offer a free online will writing service, which you can do from home in less than 30 minutes. If you have questions, Farewill’s specialist team can help you over the phone or live chat 7 days a week.
Making a will and keeping it updated is the only way to ensure a person’s wishes are carried out after their death, giving them peace of mind that they can continue supporting the family, friends and charities they love. In using Farewill, there is no obligation for anyone to leave a gift in their will to their church. However, if someone decides that they can, that gift – great or small – will help the church’s ministry and mission thrive for the benefit of future generations. You can view and share a legacy special edition of the Parish Resources newsletter by clicking here.
Finally, let’s live our lives in confidence that because of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead we too one day will be raised.
Yours in Christ
Claire Coleman
(Curate, St. Luke’s Ramsgate)
Prayer Requests
Be assured I will do my best to check that people are happy for the requests to be shared before including them. Please pray for…
- Joy Smithers, who went into hospital on Thursday.
- Greg McMillan (Andrew’s son) who is awaiting tests and a scan after a recent seizure.
- Thomas Pay for answers to his ongoing health concerns.
- The family of Collette Judge-Burrin after her funeral on Thursday.
- Brenda’s family after the funeral of her brother, Stephen.
- Alice Tyler’s new treatment for diabetes, that it works well.
- Venna Styles, now in a local nursing home.
- Mike Jones (a member of Christ Church) who is seriously ill.
- Audrey Tucker struggling with dehydration and lymphedema.
- Those in need of God’s ongoing healing: Caroline Perkins, Kelly Costello, Emily Gardiner-Harley and Lorraine (Julie’s friend).
- Those undergoing cancer treatment: Kelly (Caroline’s sister-in-law), Michelle (Terry de Vere’s wife).
Please also continue to pray for Rosa, Mitch Styles, Jean Hann, Shirley Crabb, Joy Smithers, Pauline Emptage, Karen (Gloria’s daughter in law)
Weekly Calendar
Sunday 21st April
Creative Group Singing Practice (St Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:30am
Family Service (St. Luke’s Church), 1 Cor. 15:35-49, 11:00am-12:00pm
Monday 22nd
Daily Prayer (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Study Group (Margate Road) – 7:15-9:30pm
Tuesday 23rd
Daily Prayer (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Christ Church Toddlers @ St Luke’s (St. Luke’s Church Hall) – 9:30-11:30am
Study Group (Lyndhurst Road) – 2:30-4:00pm
Wednesday 24th
Study Group (Langdale Avenue) – 10-12 noon
Study Group (South Eastern Road) – 7:30-9:30pm
Thursday 25th
Daily Prayer (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Cafe4All (St. Luke’s Church), Coffee and Chat for all – 10:00-11:30am.
Friday 26th
Play and Praise (St. Luke’s Church Hall) – 10:00-11:30am
Gather, Women’s Drop-In (St. Luke’s Church) – 12:30-2:30pm
Creative Group Singing Practice (St Luke’s Church) – 4:30-6:00pm
Saturday 27th
Daily Prayer (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Sunday 28th
Family Service (St. Luke’s Church), 1 Cor. 15:50-58, 11:00am-12:00pm
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.
St. Luke’s Website
- What’s On – a page which lets you know what is happening this week and gives information about upcoming events.
- Notices – You can read the latest notices on this page.
- Sermons – Read a transcript of a recent sermon or watch the YouTube version recorded at St. Luke’s. You can also listen to the sermon through the podcast website castbox.
Safeguarding Training
If you volunteer in anyway at church the national authorities are strongly encouraging you to take at least the Basic Module in safeguarding training once every three years.
If you have not completed the training in the last three years, then the module can be completed online and takes about ninety minutes. You can access the training by following this link. You will need to first register, to access the training. Once the training is completed, you will be sent a certificate. Please forward that certificate to James (office@stlukesramsgate.org), so that we can keep records of who has done the training.
St. Luke's Church Ramsgate 