“You will live in joy and peace. The Mountains and hills will burst into song, and the trees of the field will clap their hands!“
(Isaiah 55:12 )
Bible Sunday
Bible Sunday is a day dedicated to celebrating the gift of God’s word in the church calendar. This Bible Sunday we will be focussing on two things that impact our understanding of the Bible; Translation and Meditation.
Bible Sunday serves as a reminder of the privilege of accessing a Bible and reading it freely with others. Despite many of us having access to many different Bible translations, there are still 51% of the world’s languages that don’t have a complete Bible in their own language. Many incredible charities such as the Bible Society and Wycliffe Global Alliance, to name a few, are rapidly bringing this number down, providing new Bible translations in hundreds of languages each year.
People need the Bible translated in their language. The Bible was first translated to English in 1382, but an English translation wasn’t published until 1535, not that long ago when you think about it. Once we have access to a Bible in our language, though, what shall we do with the passages it offers? In Psalm 1:1-3, we are shown how we should act towards God’s word, and that’s to delight in it whilst meditating on it day and night. Theologian J.I Packer said that this practice of meditating on the Bible ‘is an activity of holy thought, consciously performed in the presence of God, under the eye of God, by the help of God, as a means of communion with God’. To meditate on the word is to be constantly calling it to mind, reflecting on it as life happens around us and responding to the world around us because of it.
This Bible Sunday let’s take the call afresh to delight in God’s word, to meditate on it day and night and to enable and pray for the increasing Bible translations.
Beth Keenan
This Week’s Sunday Service – 11am
Bible Sunday <– click for the link
Our all age for Bible Sunday! This week, we look at the importance of Bible translations and meditate on the word. This service includes times for thought and/or discussion, so maybe have a notebook to hand to write down your thoughts. God be with you as you share this time with us wherever you are and whenever you are watching!
The Light Party, St. Luke’s, 4:30-6:00pm, 31st October
Our alternative to Halloween. A party event for all ages. This annual event is great fun and a good way to provide a positive alternative to the darkness that is the focus of Halloween celebrations. Do come and encourage both church and non-church friends to come.
If you would like to volunteer to help make this event possible, then please speak to Charlie or Tonya.
What have we discerned?
As we come to the end of the Year of Discernment we want to share, Vision 2030, the plan we think God has for our churches over the coming five years. We will be making a presentation on Monday 11th November at 7:30pm at St. Luke’s church, members from both churches are encouraged to come and hear the plans. There will be opportunities for feedback in the meeting and in the weeks afterwards.
Churches Together Prayer Breakfast
On the first Saturday of each month, Churches Together in Ramsgate meet for (graciously given) food, prayers, and encouragement. Everyone is welcome to join and connect with local Christians! The next prayer breakfast will be hosted by Newington Free Church on Saturday, 2 November, from 9:00 to 10:30 at St. John’s Avenue, Newington, Ramsgate, CT12 6JD. If you would like to go but would struggle to get there, please let Paul or Beth know as lifts might be able to be arranged.
St. Mark’s Pre-Christmas Fayre
St. Mark’s Pre-Christmas Fayre will be taking place on Saturday 2nd November from 10:00am-12:30pm.
Coming Up: The Big Quiz Night
Tearfund’s The Big Quiz Night is back on Saturday 16th November, 7:30-9:30pm at St. Luke’s Hall. The money this quiz raises will support Tearfund’s Transforming Communities programme, helping local churches around the world lead their communities out of extreme poverty and into a sustainable future. Invite your friends, family and neighbours for some poverty-beating, community-building fun!
Links to Share:
This week some articles on prayer.
How to read the Bible by The Bible Project
The Bible Project provides all its resources for free and they are *incredible*. If you’d like to dive deeper into learning the bible then you can either join one of their ‘classrooms’ and watch along or you can (individually or in your study groups) watch their ‘How to read the Bible’ videos and use their study guides alongside them. They have a wide range of visually striking videos and are an easy watch whether you are new to the Bible or looking to go deeper than you already are. Read more…
Article on Bible Translations
Read this article to discover more about the incredible work going on to make sure there is a Bible translation for every language. See the article
Finally, let’s give thanks for the hope of a new heaven and a new earth.
Grace and Peace,
Beth Keenan
(Curate, St. Luke’s Ramsgate)
Weekly Calendar
Sunday 27th – Bible Sunday
Creative Group Singing Practice (St Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:30am
Family Service (St. Luke’s Church), Isaiah 55:6-13, 11:00am-12:00pm
Monday 28th
Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Study Group (South Eastern Road) – 7:15-9:30pm
Tuesday 29th
Prayer Meeting (St. George’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Study Group (Lyndhurst Road) – 2:30-4:00pm
Wednesday 30th
Study Group (Langdale Avenue) – 10-12 noon
Study Group (South Eastern Road) – 7:30-9:30pm
Thursday 31st
Prayer Meeting (St. Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:00am
Cafe4All (St. Luke’s Church), Coffee and Chat for all – 10:00-11:30am
Light Party (St. Luke’s Church) – 4:30-6:00pm
Friday 1st November
Gather, Women’s Drop-In (St. Luke’s Church) – 12:30-2:30pm
Saturday 2nd
Churches Together Prayer Breakfast Newington Free Church – 9:00-10:30am
Sunday 3rd – Fourth Sunday before Advent
Creative Group Singing Practice (St Luke’s Church) – 9:30-10:30am
Family Service (St. Luke’s Church), Daniel 1:1-21, 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 