Weekly Email w/b 22nd November 2021

We are now 48 hours in to our week of prayer. Thank you to those who have already joined in, whether in the prayer room at the back of church during the day or from home in the evenings and nights.

We hope that you are enjoying finding a quiet place, bringing your whole self to God, and exploring creative ways of praying. That theme of “restoring” and “refreshing” does seem particularly important given all that we have lived through this last 21 months. Do go on praying that for our nation and community, our church and one another. Go to www.trinitychurches.org/soul to find out more, as well as seeing the online record of how people have been interacting and praying together from home.

The sign-up diary is looking relatively good for the next couple of days, but – as often happens – there are quite a few spaces in the nights later in the week, and during Saturday daytime. So now’s your chance to sign up. I’ve often set my alarm with a slight ‘dread’ when praying in the night, but – after a cup of tea to wake up – have always appreciated the gift that setting an hour aside can be. Why not give it a go!

You’ll also find below details of a number of other things coming up, including Bishop Sarah being with us this coming Sunday as we celebrate Advent today. We’d love to see you.

Revd Phil Cansdale
Vicar of Trinity Churches and Area Dean of Shrewsbury

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We’re really excited that Bishop Sarah, the Bishop of Shrewsbury, will be with us on Sunday 28th November as we celebrate Advent together. She will be presiding and speaking at the 9am service, and then confirming five people at the 11am gathering. Do please be praying for those being confirmed as they take a step of faith and say “yes” to following Jesus and being part of His Church.

At the 11am service there will be the usual online presence in the usual way via Facebook Live. For those attending services which are livestreamed, if you have concerns about you or your family being ‘on camera’ then please follow the written signs about which parts of church might be visible, and where the ‘safe seating areas’ are. And if you have any questions please speak to one of the team.

 

A huge thank you to everyone who came on Saturday morning to help with the churchyard clean-up. You’ll see from the picture how “many hands / rakes / wheelbarrows / ride on tractors” etc make light work. A great job done by all, though by the looks of some of the trees there are still a few more leaves still to come!

Last orders for “CURRY BY CANDLELIGHT”, which along with carols and whatever else in December is an early Christmas offer from the group who head up “Trinity Men.” Alongside many other events open to everyone – including Christmas Trinity Tables – this is a pre-Christmas evening for Trinity men to get together on Sunday 28th November, 6pm to 8pm at the Third Place curry house in Frankwell. Tickets include eat-all-you-can buffet, and pre booking is required. The deadline is 9am on Friday 26th November.

Come along (and pay online securely) to Curry by candlelight

Our Christmas Trinity Table is so popular this year that we’re going to hold two so that we are able to accommodate people safely. Taking place on Wednesday 1st December and Tuesday 7th December, it features the usual mix of Christmas food, great company, and a carol or three. Tickets are £6, and because of limited numbers will need to be booked in advance via the Church Office on 01743 362399. We look forward to welcoming you.

Too early to start talking about Christmas? With Advent just around the corner hopefully not. We have lots of great plans for the next few weeks, including some of the “old favourites” of candlelight carols and celebrations alongside a few new ideas. We can’t wait, though there’s a lot going on!

Events coming up in early December include “Messy Christmas” on 2nd December at 4.30pm, and the BIG Christmas Quiz on 10th December. More details – and so much more – on the website over the next few days.

Some good news from Keith Moore, who along with his wife Amal is one half of the “Pioneer Community Minister” here at Trinity. Alongside that half-time role he’s recently been appointed as Deputy Business Manager at Illuminate.

C.S. Lewis said, “You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.” I agree as I love reading! So, I feel extremely blessed to have, alongside my role here at Trinity Churches, a part-time role at Illuminate, the Christian bookshop on The Wyle Cop.

Illuminate is a great resource, both for individuals looking to go deeper in their walk with Jesus, and for small groups and whole congregations seeking to learn together as a community, as they sell a wide range of books covering all sorts of topics. Not only that, but did you know that there is a whole floor with over 4000 second hand books at low prices? It is a treasure trove of Christian wisdom and well worth popping in to browse.

Perhaps what you don’t know is that Illuminate’s motto is to be ‘A light on the high street’. The desire is for the shop to become a hub in Shrewsbury town centre for mission. Over the coming months Illuminate will be creating lots of opportunities for churches and individuals to get involved in reaching out – so, watch this space. And in the meantime, why not pop in to buy your Christmas cards, Christmas presents, and that all important advent candle! I’ll look forward to seeing you there.

Illuminate Website