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Magazine of Erdington Methodist Church Station Road - November 2017 GROWING GOD’S KINGDOM IN ERDINGTON, THROUGH WORSHIP, PRAYER, ACTION AND FRIENDSHIP 1

Contents From our Minister, Malcolm 'Church Without Walls' Carly’s Africa Fundraising A Bright Light Beavering away!

Thank you - Raleigh Charity - Tanzania.

Health Awareness The Great Hall of Heaven Let Love be Real My reflections on bath time End of the School Day in 1963 Two sides Pray for Peace The great I AM Bible knowledge November Regular Meetings Tuesday Club Sunday Worship Weekly Church Activities

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From our Minister, Malcolm Dear all, I always find the words of ‘Let love be real’ (printed later in this magazine) to be poignant and they help me to think about Erdington and Stockland Green’s Mission Statements: Erdington Methodist Church : Growing God's kingdom in Erdington through worship, prayer, action and friendship Stockland Green Methodist Church: Depending on God for strength and guidance, we aim to be a beacon of hope & love reaching out to everyone in Jesus’ name.

As 2017 draws to a close and we enter 2018 we continue on the challenging journey of making real these mission statements: Let love be real is a challenge for all of us. As we endeavour to fulfil our Mission statement, we well know, there can be thoughts of failure, both individually and as a church community in striving to be the people God made us to be. We also know that what we sometimes perceive to be failure may enable right doors and pathways to open which otherwise would remain closed. This can give us hope!

Perhaps to ‘Let love be real’ in all that we do and say is humanly impossible, yet our faith as Christians says we can do things in and through the strength of the risen Jesus living within us (Philippians 4:13).

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So I challenge you as the year draws to a close, to let the Christ within you to help you to ‘Let love be real’ and as the first line of each stanza sets out: .…in giving and receiving, without the need to manage or to own …not grasping or confining, that strange embrace that holds yet sets us free …with no manipulation, no secret wish to harness or control I invite you in your quiet time or as you ponder or reflect and perhaps as you come for worship to think about how you can promote and encourage the Mission Statement in order that we can increasingly Let love be real and explore our vision for God’s church for 2018 and beyond.

Do we wish to be a place of fellowship or a place of mission?

You may find the article in the recent edition (Transformational Leadership) of the Methodist Church publication ‘Connexion magazine’ helpful. There are copies in all churches or it can be found online at: www.methodist.org.uk/news-and-events/theconnexion-magazine The words of Let love be real were recently sung by everybody at Erdington Civil Prayer breakfast. Around fifty people including the Lord Mayor of Birmingham and our MP Rt Hon Jack Dromey MP sung the words at the end of the the event having gathered at St Barnabas and prayed that all in the community would Let love be real.

You may like to speak to those who attended the Breakfast Norma; Claudette and Winifred.

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Wishing you every blessing in Christ, Malcolm

'Church Without Walls' As part of this District Initiative the Circuit is running a number of workshops entitled 'At the Heart of Our Community - Practical ways for churches to understand the communities they serve' The idea is that the workshops deliver tools, which help us understand the needs of the community where our church is and aligns with one of our Circuit Mission Priorities 'Understand the needs of each community served by our thirteen churches and respond with at least one new initiative.'

The workshops are on Saturday mornings 10 - 12 on 4th, 11th, 18th & 25th November at South Parade.

It would be ideal if a small group of us could go (I intend to go myself) so if anyone is interested then please speak to me as soon as possible.

A poster for the event follows on the next page . . .

Many thanks Nick

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PRACTICAL WAYS FOR CHURCHES TO UNDERSTAND THE COMMUNITIES THEY SERVE

At the heart of the community we serve?

CIRCUIT MISSION PRIORITY: UNDERSTAND THE NEEDS OF EACH COMMUNITY SERVED

BY OUR THIRTEEN CHURCHES AND RESPOND WITH AT LEAST ONE NEW INITIATIVE.

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Carly’s Africa Fundraising It’s been a year since I started my Africa fundraising challenge so I thought it was time to update you all. To start with I’d like to say a huge thank you to those of you who have supported me so far on my journey to Africa. To date I have raised around £1200 towards my £2000 target.

The trip will take place from July 7th to August 5th 2018 and it is seeming more real as we have now received flight bookings. I have recently attended a meeting with the company organising the trip, Discover Adventure, where they were able to give us a few more details and tips for while we are out there. As well as the physical challenges we will face, during the month we will be undertaking community work where we will get the opportunity to help build a local school or have a go at teaching the students.

Over the summer I have been selling handmade paracord bracelets and am now working towards selling homemade decorations at Christmas Fairs in various locations. My next fundraiser at Church will be an early Christmas coffee morning on Saturday 18th November, it would be lovely to see you there!

Carly Porter

A Bright Light I am walking toward a bright light and the nearer I get the brighter it is.

D L Moody 7

Beavering away!

Here’s an update on what the 177th Beavers have been up to during Summer & Autumn this year.

In June some of the Beavers and Scouts attended the Tame Valley District Camp - two nights away which was held at Rhydd Covert next door to the West Midlands Safari Park. The Beavers and Scouts had a fantastic time with a visit to the safari park on Saturday and doing various activities on Sunday morning. Many thanks to our leaders from the 177th who helped to make this camp successful.

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In July our scout group held a joint sleepover at our headquarters .

We travelled by train to Barnt Green Station and hiked all the way to the visitors centre at the Lickey Hills where on arrival we had our lunch. After lunch we played in the play area, went round the visitors centre and played games. It was then time to hike all the

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way back to the station through the woods singing songs as we went along.

In July some of our Beavers went kayaking at Blackroot Pool in Sutton Park and had a fantastic night on the water. All the beavers at the end of the session got to run off the kayak which was upside down and jump into the water. Great fun was had by all and many thanks to the instructors who are also scout members for looking after our Beavers.

Our Beavers visited Tesco's In October to learn all about the topic from"Farm to Fork". Each Beaver had a booklet and were given a short talk by Tim and Alice from Tesco. It was then off to the shop floor to visit the bakery and be shown how the various breads and rolls were made and sliced. Then to the Cheese counter where the beavers tried several types of cheese. Most didn't like the Stinky cheese. "Can you guess what cheese that was?" asked one the 10

Beaver leaders to find out. The tour continued to the fish counter and finally the fruit and vegetables counter. Our tour was coming to an end but not before seeing the huge freezer behind the scenes which the Beavers were able to go in and feel how cold it was.

Finally it was back upstairs where the Beavers tasted some different fruits before being collected by their parents.

Thanks to the Beaver leaders for keeping us up to date with your fantastic activities - it all looks great fun.

I’m sure there are other groups that use our church building who could tell us what they get up to - we’d love to hear about it - ed.

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Thank you - Raleigh Charity - Tanzania.

Thank you to everyone who supported Tom's coffee mornings.

We raised ÂŁ290.

He went on September 25th and returns December 16th. Internet is limited but he has settled in. He is living with the Chairman of the village.

Tom said Tanzania is a beautiful country - 30 degrees in the day but cold at night. He is working on his project and all the volunteers are friendly.

We are very proud of him and look forward to more news.

Jenny Hill and family

Health Awareness Did you know that 1 out of 3 women who are diagnosed with breast cancer are over 70 years of age?

Did you know that after 70 years of age women stop being invited automatically for a mammogram every 3 years?

Did you know that you can refer yourself by phoning 0121 504 4967 & booking an appointment for a mammogram?

DON’T MISS OUT 12

The Great Hall of Heaven Tomas the coach driver died and was met at the gates of heaven by St Peter. “Who are you?” St Peter asked. “I am Tomas the coach driver,” Tomas replied. “Enter and go and sit on the front row of the great hall of heaven”.

Some time later Herman the village priest died and he too was met at the gates of heaven by St Peter. “Who are you?” St Peter asked.

“I am Herman the village priest.” “Enter and go and sit on the back row of the great hall of heaven”.

“That’s not fair,” said Herman “I have spent all my life preaching the word of God and delivered a sermon to my flock every Sunday”.

“Well,” St Peter replied “every time you preached a sermon everybody slept but every time Tomas drove his coach everybody prayed!”.

As told by Tomas the coach driver at the end of a trip around the Black Forest.

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Let Love be Real (mentioned in Minister’s Letter - Sung to Londonderry Air)

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Let love be real, in giving and receiving, without the need to manage and to own; a haven free from posing and pretending, where every weakness may be safely known.

Give me your hand, along the desert pathway, give me your love wherever we may go.

As God loves us, so let us love each other: with no demands, just open hands and space to grow.

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Let love be real, not grasping or confining, that strange embrace that holds yet sets us free; that helps us face the risk of truly living, and makes us brave to be what we might be.

Give me your strength when all my words are weakness; give me your love in spite of all you know.

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Let love be real, with no manipulation, no secret wish to harness or control; let us accept each other's incompleteness, and share the joy of learning to be whole.

Give me your hope through dreams and disappointments; give me your trust when all my failings show.

Michael Forster (b. 1946)

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My reflections on bath time On reading Peter’s recollections of his bath time as a child, it brought memories of my own family’s bathing procedures. Today we cannot imagine what it was like not to have a bathroom in the house, but few houses had one when I was a child.

We too had to bathe in front of the fire. Ours wasn’t in the kitchen, we didn’t have a kitchen!

We lived in a 200 year old cottage in the country with one room downstairs (12ft square) and a lean-to wooden construction at the back of the cottage containing a sink and an electric stove, draughty but dry. The main room in the cottage served as kitchen, lounge and dining room.

The heart of it all was a large black-leaded range on one wall with an over mantle shelf. It had an oven, which my mother had to learn how to regulate the dampers if she wished to bake. The only way to heat water, including all bath water, was in large saucepans and kettles over the fire.

Baby was bathed each day in a large bowl on the table. (Lucky fellow!). When we were small sister and I went in the bath together, but as we grew there was insufficient room.

The bath would be brought in and it would be filled. My sister would have the first bath, being the youngest, then me, mother would go next and dad last. This was because he worked at the colliery and although he never went underground, he came home, 17

well, as black as coal! While he was having his bath, sister and I would be taken up to bed.

It was cosy having a bath in front of the fire but, of course, each bath had to be topped up with hot water as it went cool quickly.

There was no lying down and having a good soak. It was in, good thorough but quick wash, then wrapped into a towel and dried.

This was a weekly ritual for Friday nights only. Dad had a smaller bath cum bowl on the table on other nights to remove his coal dust.

It wasn’t until I was 12 that dad built a brick extension onto the cottage in which he incorporated a living room with a Reaburn range which heated water, a kitchen with sink and fitted cupboards and a bathroom. No flush toilet as yet, the privy in the garden had to suffice for the moment. Believe me, if you have never experienced that. It’s no fun going down the garden on a cold frosty night to use the loo with no lighting of any kind! On a moonlit night it was spooky with all the shadows! But that’s another story!

It wasn’t until I had married and left home that a septic tank was installed under the cottage garden and finally mum and dad went ‘posh’ and had flush sanitation. What a red-letter day that was.

Ann Tomes

End of the School Day in 1963 1963 was a memorable year as far as I was concerned. At last, after 3 years of studying at college, I became a fully qualified teacher.

Soon I would receive my first pay cheque. GREAT!!

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Looking back, now retired and blissfully free of OFSTED, SATS and other pressures, I realise I was fortunate inasmuch as I had the opportunity to teach pupils in Primary, Middle and Secondary schools. Many of the pupils were delightful - others were not quite so delightful!

My first appointment was at a Junior School in Kingstanding. It was somewhat unnerving to suddenly find myself responsible for forty four 7 to 8 year olds, but what a good year it turned out to be.

Some things remain clear in my mind. For instance, I remember the school bell announcing home time at 4.00pm and once the children had cleared their desks and packed their school bags, they gradually stopped chattering in readiness for the short prayer which we repeated together at the end of the day.

Lord keep us safe this night Secure from all our fears, May angels guard us while we sleep Till morning light appears.

As we all know, times have changed considerably since 1963 and teaching has certainly borne its fair share of significant changes over the intervening years. Nevertheless, I believe my class of young, enthusiastic children responded well to a few moments of calm prayer.

I thank Margaret, my older sister, also a teacher, for giving me this idea. It was a pleasant way of winding up a busy school day.

Barbara Rawson 19

Two sides I noticed a book the other day by Phillip Pullman 'The good man Jesus and the scoundrel Christ'. I have read Pullman before and seen the film of Northern Lights, released as Golden Compass. I was intrigued and picked it up. Then was surprised that I had not noticed it before. It was first published in 2010. The book retells the Gospel story from the standpoint of two brothers a healthy child, satisfied with life called Jesus and a sickly child called Christ, favoured by Mary and worshipped by the Wise Men. I decided that my rack of books waiting to read was full enough and this one would have to wait for another day.

It put me in mind of 'Tweet of the Day' on a Sunday morning, which is generally the deadline for leaving the radio behind and starting the day. This particular episode solved a problem for me.

Living, as we do, close to Sutton Park the birdsong is wonderful.

But the only birds that I can recognise from their call/noise are the crow, the cuckoo, the woodpecker and the owl. In my ignorance I had always assumed that we had two species of owls in our locality, a barn owl and a screech owl. But I now know better, they are the calls of the male and the female owl. But please don't ask which is which because I have forgotten.

But Pullman's concept drew another spark about life which only gets worse as I get older. When I was in my 20s many things were black and white and I would spend the wee small hours debating the nuances. Over the intervening years I have changed, and a lot of the things that I would have argued over have now morphed into shades of grey.

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As a child, I assume, like most children at that time, I was given an autograph book. I suspect I still have it somewhere in the house along with many other things. Stuff that I ought to part with but is still too precious and too integral to who I am, that I cannot bear, as yet, to clear it away. The other day I was given a pencil 'Sold in aid of the Erdington Methodist School Hall rebuilding project', given by someone to whom it means something, to me, who would appreciate the gift for what it was, a part of our shared heritage.

But to return to the autograph book, I pestered all sorts of people to write something, family, friends and folk at the church. One entry I remember well and another only partially. The partial one was written by my Sunday School teacher, someone known to many of you, Norman Tomes. It was a bit of doggerel verse and I can only remember the last line 'letters that we ought to burn'. So often as we journey through life we do things, maybe in good faith and then suddenly realise what we have done and think 'I hope no one ever sees/hears/discovers that, whatever it was. Unfortunately if this is a significant act then in the end it will be revealed. I cannot believe that Norman would have had any idea how that entry in my autograph book would have affected my life, but I have always been very cautious about the footprint that I leave behind because 'the truth will out'.

The other entry was a limerick type verse from someone well loved Some ships sail east and others west by the self-same wind that blows but it is the set of the sails and not the gales that determines the way she goes.

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Whilst I was writing this we went to the MAC to see Benedict Cumberbatch playing Hamlet at The National Theatre. This is one of my favourites, if not my favourite Shakespeare play. We heard all of the line that have come from there into our everyday parlance including the quotation from Polonius 'to thine own self be true ............ thou canst not then not be false to any man'. To the Elizabethan listeners this would have carried the message that individually they were the best judge of what they could or should do. Are we always the best judge?

In the end we all have the opportunity to live at least two lives, like Jesus and Christ, which may or may not be approximately the same. It is this human trait that makes Jesus comment about the splinter and the beam as relevant today as it was then. Similarly there are the oft-quoted verses from St Paul about doing the things that we should not and not doing the things that we should.

Maybe on consideration I will buy the Phillip Pullman book, who knows what it might teach me.

Peter Farley

Pray for Peace Where people are praying for peace the cause of peace is being strengthened by their very act of prayer, for they are themselves becoming immersed in the spirit of peace.

John Macquarrie

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The great I AM If I were to ask you, ‘What is a lie?’ you would probably respond fairly quickly that it is something which is not true. ‘Our ministers are 20 feet tall.’ That is a lie. It does not correspond to the facts as we have observed them. Even if you have never seen them it is unlikely that you would believe what I have said because no person in recorded history has been anywhere near 20 feet tall.

It is just not true that our ministers are that tall.

If I were to ask you, ‘What is truth?’ you would probably find it much more difficult to answer. In the words of John’s Gospel, Jesus is reported as saying: ‘I am the Truth’. What does that mean?

I want to suggest that Jesus, or the evangelist John, is claiming that he is an expression of Ultimate Reality.

You will need no convincing that some things are only held to be true in the present state of our knowledge. They may prove to be untrue or only partially true.1 It was once believed that the earth is flat. However, although there are still a few flat-earthers about, no one claiming to be in touch with reality holds to that position any more. It was deemed to be true at the time. It was believed until greater knowledge became available and made the ancient ‘truth’ untenable. I believe that the claim that Jesus is the Truth is an attempt to say that there is nothing provisional about Jesus. He offers us a glimpse into Ultimate Reality. He is the final revelation of what God is like. We can have no further increase of knowledge which will make that untrue; we can make no greater discovery which will change that fact.

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In John’s Gospel there are seven basic ‘I am’ sayings: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

I am the Bread of Life I am the Light of the World I am the Good Shepherd I am the Resurrection and the Life I am the Way I am the Truth I am the Vine

Where do these sayings come from and why would they be so scandalous on the lips of Jesus? Well, as I have had to remind people repeatedly, to do Christian theology one must always begin with the New Testament, with the foundational experience of Jesus.

The people who lived with him and felt his impact looked for appropriate categories in which to describe him. They found them in the Old Testament.

In the case of the I AM sayings, those looking for a hook on which to hang their interpretations of the significance of Jesus latched on to the conversation of God with Moses. Moses asks God: ‘What is your Name?’ He is concerned to tell the people just who it is who is giving them his commands. God replies: ‘I am who I am’ and subsequently ‘Tell them that I AM has sent me.’ I AM is the name of God.2 So, to apply the words I AM to Jesus is to make a claim to Ultimacy i.e. it is to claim deity for him. It is to claim that he is God. No wonder there were cries of blasphemy in the air.

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I AM the Bread of Life is a reference to Exodus 16, where God feeds the hungry people in the desert. In John 6:46-51 ‘I am the living bread that comes down from heaven; if anyone eats this bread, he will live forever.’ The dimension of Ultimacy lies in the claim that no one who eats this bread will ever hunger again.

I AM the Light of the World picks up the story of God leading the tribes through the wilderness, the pillar of smoke by day and the pillar of fire by night. Cf. John 9:5 followed by the healing of the blind man. No one who walks in this Light will need any further illumination.

I AM the Good Shepherd echoes Psalm 23, the LORD is my Shepherd. Cf. John 10:14. God’s constant presence and eternal care are affirmed.

I AM Resurrection and Life, see Daniel 12.2 ‘many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake…’ Cf. John 11:25 The Raising of Lazarus. God gives life and ultimate significance.

I AM the WAY. There is only one Way to know God as Father and that is by following Jesus. There are other ways of understanding what God is like but the only way of knowing him as our heavenly Father is through Jesus Christ his Son. Cf. John 14:1ff. (Likewise the door of the sheepfold. Jesus is the Way In.) I AM the VINE. See Isaiah 5:1-7. In the Old Testament Israel is the vineyard on which God has lavished his care. In John’s Gospel (John 15:1-10) Jesus is the Vine of which we are the branches.

We must be joined to him to be alive and on the right path.

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The finality of these claims consists in the fact that we can need no further knowledge to fulfil our destiny. To recognise Jesus of Nazareth in the I AM sayings is to get hold of the very meaning of life, for it is in him that it is found.

Rev John Taylor ————————————————————————————— - 1. Truth is both journey and Discovery, a Way which leads and Urges without rest.

No castle for retreat, but Camps, where fellow pilgrims join To take refreshment in each other’s Company. Assorted in experience, they Enrich, enlighten, challenge and Go on to further exploration, Travelling light... Ann Lewin

- 2. The Hebrew words of God’s reply to Moses might appropriately be translated into English as ‘I will be who\what I will be’.

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Bible knowledge A minister was approached by his small son who told him proudly, ‘I finally figured out what the Bible means!’ The minister thought of his extensive theological library and smiled indulgently. He asked his young son what he thought the Bible meant.

‘It’s easy, Daddy...,’ the young boy replied excitedly. ‘It means 'Basic Information Before Leaving Earth.’ from the Parish Pump Website 26

November Regular Meetings

Each Saturday 10.00 am to 12.00 noon

Tuesday Club Every 2nd Tuesday in the month at 2.00 pm

Sunday Worship All worship starts at 10.30 am unless stated otherwise below.

5th

Rev Alan Smithson

12th

REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY - Nikki Murcott

19th

ALL AGE WORSHIP - Rev Andrew Brazier

26th

HOLY COMMUNION - Rev Malcolm Oliver

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Weekly Church Activities Sunday

10.30 am

MORNING WORSHIP and Young Church

Tuesday

2.00 pm

Tuesday Afternoon Meeting : Margaret Hillman (2nd)

Wednesday

9.30 - 11.30 am 12.30 pm

Stay and Play Luncheon Club - (1st and 3rd)

Friday

5.00 - 6.15 pm 6.15 - 7.45 pm 7.45 - 9.15 pm 7.45 - 9.15 pm 5.30 - 6.30 pm 5.00 - 6.30 pm 7.30 - 9.00 pm

Beavers : Lynn Turner Cubs : Elizabeth Baizon Scouts : Paul Harris Explorers : Lucy Porter Rainbows : Debbie Barnett Brownies : Lesley Carter Guides : Helen Rainsford

Saturday

10.00 - 12.00 noon 10.30 - 11.30 am

Coffee Morning : Lesley Morgan Church open for prayer : Margaret Curzon

Please hand any items for the Dec 17 / Jan 18 CONTACT to any of the Editorial Team (Peter Farley, Christine Rankin, Ann Tomes & Nick Riley) by 15th November 2017 at the latest please, or alternatively email me: nickriley@blueyonder.co.uk with the word ‘CONTACT’ in the title.

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