“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”
(Ephesians 1:3)
As I hope you have picked up, 2024 is a ‘Year of Discernment’ for St. Luke’s and St. George’s. We have been praying for God’s guidance as we consider together where he might want to lead our two churches in Ramsgate in the coming years. We have had joint PCC away days and evenings, discussed big questions in our small study groups, prayed together and more recently carried out a congregational questionnaire. It has been important to give time, space and prayer to our reflections.
Now comes the pointy end of the Year of Discernment. We need to discern! As we pull together all the discussions, questions and thoughts we will be asking God to show us his vision actually for us over the next five years. We’ve planned another PCC day for later in September and we hope we can discern together the broad outline of ‘Vision 2030,’ a plan to achieve what God wants for us by the end of the decade.
As we approach this key moment in the discernment process, I am going to be preaching a series of sermons, called, ‘Biblical Visions’. In it I want to look at some key vision statements that God gives through the Biblical story. Each of the visions was for a particular moment in the life of God’s people, but the underlying values and purposes they reveal will help point us to the kind of vision God has for us. They are also helpful signposts for understanding the whole Biblical story.
We begin this week, with the vision that God had for Abraham. It is a vision that is all about blessing.
Paul Worledge
This Week’s Sunday Service – 11am
Biblical Vision 1: Blessing (Genesis 12:1-3)
Join us as we look at we begin our series on Biblical Visions, looking at the vision God had for Abraham and his descendants. This week Sparklers, Sunday Club and Pathfinders are all starting again.
Prayer Breakfast – Salvation Army – Tomorrow, Saturday 7th September
Do join us as we gather with members of other churches in Ramsgate, for breakfast, friendship and prayer.
Year of Discernment Questionnaire – Deadline Sunday
This Sunday is the deadline for completing the Year of Discernment Questionnaire, if you haven’t already done so, please do so today. Paper copies are available at the back of church. Answer as many questions as you can! Complete Questionnaire.
Harvest Appeal – Gaza
After nearly a year of terrible war in Gaza our Harvest appeal this year is to support the people of Gaza, through Tear Fund’s appeal.
With over 2 million people displaced and experiencing severe levels of food insecurity, Tearfund has been working with local churches across the region to provide urgently needed care and assistance.
We will take a collection on Harvest Sunday, 29th September.
Showers for Rough Sleepers in Ramsgate
Hardres Street United Church are looking to open the hall showers for rough sleepers, once a week (on a Wednesday between 09h00 and 10h30) and looking for volunteers who would be interested in helping.
Helping being mostly in the hall while people utilise the showers. Starting on 2nd October, but meeting on Wednesday 25th September to discuss.
Please contact Ruth on 0777 8689872 or ruthlucy@live.com if you are interested in helping.
Year of Discernment Questionnaire – Last Day
Today is the deadline for completing the Year of Discernment Questionnaire, if you haven’t already done so, please do so today. Paper copies are available at the back of church. Answer as many questions as you can!
Ride and Stride – Saturday 14th September
As is traditional, we would like to open the church to welcome those taking part in this year’s Friends of Kent Churches’, Ride and Stride event. If you can sit in the church for an hour or more on Saturday 14th, then please sign the list at the back of church.
Synagogue Open Day
The Thanet and District Reform Synagogue (on the Margate Road near St. Mark’s) is open from 9:30am to 5pm this Sunday. All welcome.
Concert of Czech Romantic Music, this Sunday evening!
Sunday 8th September, 5pm, St. Luke’s £10 online or on door.
Featuring:
- Tomas Visek (CZ) – piano
- Tetras String Quartet (Mark and Iva Butler, Stelios Chatziiosifidis, Julia Vohralik)
Programme:
- Antonin Dvorak: Humoresques for piano
- Josef Suk: String Quartet no.1, op.11, B-flat Major
- Antonin Dvorak: Piano Quintet no.2, op.81, A Major
This is a 90mins concert including a little introduction.
Links to Share:
This week, two posts about finding faith.
Low Tide Evangelism
In this hour long talk, Glen Scrivener, shows how the fact that the tide seems to have gone out on Christianity in our Western culture provides new ways to reach people with the gospel. Watch video…
AI and church
This interesting article explores the relationship between the growing use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the ministry of the church. It raises lots of interesting questions! Just to be clear I do not use AI to write sermons, but some of the tools I use for researching for sermons or for putting together the way the slides in church are displayed probably do use AI. Read more…
Finally, let’s keep celebrating God’s blessing.
Yours in Christ
Paul Worledge
(Vicar, St. Luke’s Ramsgate)
Weekly Calendar
Sunday 8th September – The Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity
Creative Group Singing Practice (St Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:30am
Family Service (St. Luke’s Church), Genesis 12:1-3, 11:00am-12:00pm
Czech Romantic Music – Tomas Visek (St. Luke’s Church), 5:00-6:30pm
Monday 9th
Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Study Group (South Eastern Road) – 7:15-9:30pm
Tuesday 10th
Prayer Meeting (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 11th
Study Group (Langdale Avenue) – 10-12 noon
Study Group (South Eastern Road) – 7:30-9:30pm
Thursday 12th
Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Cafe4All (St. Luke’s Church), Coffee and Chat for all – 10:00-11:30am
Friday 13th
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
Saturday 14th
Prayer Meeting (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Sunday 15th – The Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity
Creative Group Singing Practice (St Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:30am
Family Service (St. Luke’s Church), Exodus 6:1-9, 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.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 