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ST. MARY'S MATTERS
"He made them every one!"
Dear Friends
It's been great to have Martha back on the team and to hear her unpack the Bible passages for us on Sundays, with her usual warmth and insight. This week she sets out more of how her new role is going to work, and explains what that means for our small groups, and for our church in general.

Rachel, one of our longstanding Remix volunteers, shares with us how Remix is continuing to shine light into the lives of teenagers in our community and Gina reports on some really exciting fundraising news.

Praying God's blessings for you this week, wherever you are.

And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

2 Corinthians 9:8

Setting a Watch

continues daily at 6am and 6pm
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88489690256?pwd=RG85M1pPbGRnbkhEaFVlKytCZmhTdz09

Meeting ID: 884 8969 0256
Passcode: SetAWatch

A MESSAGE FROM MARTHA
Now that I've got my feet back under my desk I thought it might be good to share a bit about what a Teaching Pastor is and what I’ll be doing in this new role.

At its core, the job is to teach the church, and enable others teaching. It’s a huge privilege to do that - to help strengthen the body and build our church through passionate, excellent, faithful teaching from the most exciting and life-changing book in the history of the world. As we (literally) branch out in our community facing ministries we know that we also need to be investing in our church community, so that we as a worshipping body are getting our roots down deep and growing as a place that others can come into and meet the God of the ages. 

So, I’ll be leading the preaching team, developing our teaching series’, producing study notes for our Small Groups, looking for creative ways to engage with scripture and culture and supporting existing and new preachers to find and use the voice God has given them. I’ll also be looking for opportunities to respond to the particular needs of our church - so if there’s a topic or subject that you’d really value some teaching on, I’d love to know. Please feel free to contact me at any point. I won’t always get it right, and I’m not an expert, but I do believe that God is quick to speak, so I hope you’ll join me on this journey with fresh eyes and open ears. 
-Martha

GOOD NEWS FOR THE BRANCH
Less than £1 million to go for The Branch!
 
Earlier this month, after almost a year of delays and cancellations due to the Covid 19 pandemic, we finally held a fundraising party to promote The Branch, very generously hosted by Charlie Brooks and combined with the launch of his new children's book (See Mary's Matters 10/09/21).  Following the party we have received, to date, donations of over £800,000!!!  This brings our total fundraising for the Building to Serve project to £3.75 million!!  Of this £2.5million is designated for the redevelopment of The Branch, leaving us with less than a million to go before hitting our target of £3.46million to start the building work on 16 Market Place. 
 
It is so exciting to be able to share this news two years, almost to the day, after we launched the Building to Serve project.  God has opened doors for us in an extraordinary way, taking us on a journey where even the crisis of the Covid 19 pandemic has helped highlight the need for The Branch and given strength to the fundraising campaign.  We are extremely thankful for the dedication and support of the Church Family through this time, drawing alongside us and committing your personal gifts of finance, time and prayer as you are able. 
 
Our prayer now is that the remaining funds will come in time for building work to begin early in the new year so that The Branch can be opened to serve the community in Spring 2023.  We have many grant applications in the pipeline, as well as the possibility of gifts from other philanthropists who have visited The Branch this month.  Thank you for joining us as we pray for God's final provision.
 
-Gina

VOLUNTEERING ON THE REMIX TEAM
Remix volunteer, Rachel, shares with us her passion for helping to support the young people in our community...

Remix was set up in 2016 as a drop-in youth club for the youth of Chipping Norton, at the request of the town councillors! It was located in a building that was purpose built, using a government grant with a remit to provide facilities for the young people of the town and local area. Having asked all around, the new youth group ended up being managed and led by a team of people all out of St Mary’s, Chipping Norton!

I volunteered right at the beginning, because as a West Oxfordshire parent I was horrified by the local suicide statistics - there had been 3 teenagers right under our noses, who had taken their own lives in as many years. These were young people who needed to be seen and heard. They desperately needed to know that they mattered and that they could lay hold of a hope and a future. More prosaically, many of these kids just need a kind, safe place to spend some down time.

The need has by no means reduced. The last 2 years have done nothing to improve anxiety and alienation. We actually need to run more groups for older youth; currently it is largely just the lower years of Chipping Norton School who attend. Arguably, there is an even greater need among the older pupils.
 
This summer we had one girl from Remix come to an event to hear how Jesus had made the difference that we need and she responded with humility, trust and absolute clarity, to lay hold of him.

Can you give 3 hours just once a term / month / fortnight / week to join the team to build a recognised presence of connection, compassion and hope for these young people? Literally everyone has something to offer: you can definitely sell sweets or make milkshakes, you can probably play football, or at least referee it! You can easily do craft activities or play pool… Without a shadow of a doubt, you can chat!...

Wouldn’t it be amazing if we became known as the people to come to with the big questions and issues that matter? And the place to come to where you know you can belong and matter.

If you would be interested in volunteering at Remix, please get in touch with Joel:

joel.reed@stmaryscnorton.com or 07534 439472
Email Joel

MOONRAKERS CONCERT

RESOURCE OF THE WEEK

Enjoying God by Tim Chester - recommended by James, Emma & Joel

We believe in God, we serve God, we love God – but do we ENJOY God as much as we can? Does our head knowledge translate into affection of the heart? Do we have a meaningful relationship with someone we can’t see? Do we feel excited about God everyday, in every context?

Tim Chester shows us how to relate to each of the three persons of the Trinity, and what this looks like in practice. Readers will discover that as we engage more with God, and understand how awesome he is, we can enjoy him more.

This isn’t a book about the Trinity. It’s a “how to” book exploring how we relate to God (for which we need a true understanding of the Trinity). In day-to-day life, how do the three persons of the Trinity relate to us, and how do we respond?

(Go in through our St. Mary's Bookshop to earn rewards for St. Mary's.)
Enjoying God
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What's happening soon?

BCP Holy Communion Sun 21st Apr St Mary's Church, Chipping Norton More info
Sunday Service in Church Sun 21st Apr St Mary's Church, Chipping Norton More info
Welcome Lunch Sun 21st Apr The Parish Rooms More info
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