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Proposal for Midweek Activities – Autumn 2010n Is this the model for church life?
- Acts 2
- 42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
- * Start Wednesday Church in the early autumn, on alternate weeks (not the weeks of Communion and Friendship Lunch)
- Evening Housegroups be asked to meet on Wednesdays, if at all possible, and to meet in assigned places in church at 7:30pm on Wednesday Church weeks, and in someone’s house on alternate weeks (if meeting weekly).
- * The Leadership Team will review all proposals for housegroups (topic, study materials, etc.) and will publish a comprehensive schedule to all church members to choose from.
- * The Rhema course will run every Wednesday at 7:30pm in the hall, starting in September.
This should allow many more opportunities for real fellowship right across the church family and also allow us to serve each other and the wider community. For most people, this will not significantly increase people’s commitment in time each week; and, by allowing everyone to come and go when they are able, this will fit in with work/school/ family time constraints. It will also mean that we will be able to use the whole building in the week, but only need to heat it once a fortnight. A large number of people gathering Wednesday afternoons and evenings could be a real witness to the wider community of the life to be found at Holy Trinity Church.
As noted, Wednesday Church would have the following characteristics:
On alternate weeks, everyone would be encouraged to come to one or more sessions (all times approximate):
- 2pm-3:30pm: Daytime Fellowship Group
- 3:30pm-5pm: Children’s After-school Club
- 5pm-6:30pm: Supper
- 6:30pm-7:30pm: River of God (worship)
- 7:30pm-9:30pm: Housegroups (in church) and Rhema
- For most of the sessions, people can arrive and leave at any time.
- Activities for teenagers could happen any at any time 4pm - 8pm. For example, they could come to supper, join in the first part of River of God and then start their own housegroup at 7pm.
River of God is a time of informal, relaxed worship, sometimes with prophecy and testimonies. It has been running for over six months.
The Rhema course is a one year ‘foundation’ course which can lead onto Diocesan licensed local ministry. It comprises one term on the Old Testament, one term on the New Testament and one term on church history and doctrine. Other aspects of the Christian life (worship, prayer, ministry, etc.) are covered during the Bible studies. The course will be slightly modified to ensure all sessions are ‘stand-alone’, people will be encouraged to sign-up for the whole year, but it will be perfectly acceptable for anyone to ‘dip-in’ to the particular sessions that interest them.
Please fill in the attached slip and return it to the box in the entrance lobby by 26th July. Any comments (e.g. ‘another night of the week would be preferable’, ‘we may need to start this in stages’, ‘I’ve got an idea for something else on a Wednesday’,…)
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