The United Reformed Church Chesham

Dear Friends,

A very Happy New Year to each and every one of you. As I sit down to write this page for the February/March newsletter Bridget and Martin are away in Malta for their much needed holiday after a very busy end to her eleven years of ministry here. It was wonderful to see the Church packed with her friends and family and our own folk for the service on December 4th. A big thank you again to everyone who worked so hard over that long weekend to make the lunch a success.

But 2016 is now long behind us. Many will say it was a year best forgotten but whatever your views on world and European events in recent months, life everywhere goes on.

Here in the Church most of our organisations have resumed again. Pilots, Urchins and Coffee shop were soon up and running again, followed by Connect and the House group. J Zone held their party on the 22nd. The afternoon fellowship and the choir meet again in early February and Rosemary, our Community Link Facilitator has organised the first event of the New Year in a few days’ time.

Ours is indeed a busy 7 days a week Church and Bridget can be proud of what she leaves behind, (though of course we look forward to giving her and Martin a warm welcome back to join us again in twelve months’ time!) But now is the time for the Elders and our members to step up to the plate and work together to build on what we have. We have a full compliment of nine Elders making us the envy of many of the churches in the area. Just a week into the New Year serving and non-serving Elders alike met to put together the Church profile, a document which we hope will eventually help us in attracting a new minister. Tom and John have already filled all our pulpit supply slots for the first half of the year. Many of the services are being led by our own members and we have two who are able to take communion services. We have two members who have already completed the TLS Lite course, and I myself am half way through the course under the guidance of Erna Stevenson at Amersham.

So we can be pleased with what we have to build on and it was so good to have three new members joining us last month at a time when so many local churches are in decline. There will of course be some tough times ahead and difficult decisions to be made both here in Chesham, and further afield at Area and Synod level. We cannot know what the future holds but we pray together for God’s blessing in the months ahead. Even when hard decisions have to be taken, and sometimes there do not seem to be enough hours in the day, we know that He will be with us every step of the way. Let us look forward to 2017 as a new challenge and we pray together for God’s blessing in our efforts.

With love,
Stephen Murray (Church Secretary)