Giving Thanks
Over the past 3 weeks or so,
the focus within our group has been that of giving thanks to Almighty
God for His provision for our needs and indeed the place which we occupy
in creation as stewards of all that He has made. But so often I believe
that many of us fall into the trap of only giving thanks when things
are going well. And I was particularly reminded of this as I prepared
my sermon based on the healing of the ten lepers in Luke 17: 11-19.
In Luke's treatment of this event all ten lepers receive healing through
Jesus but only one returns to praise God and in effect to say thank
you to the healer Jesus. The problem for us is that if our motivation
for giving thanks arises out of receiving something, whether it be a
gift or a compliment then that thankful heart will soon lose something
of its passion and honesty for as the saying goes Eaten bread is soon
forgotten.
On the other hand if a thankful nature and attitude is something to
which we are pre-disposed then we can find reason for giving thanks
to God even in the most trying of circumstances. This is what the writer
to the Thessalonians was getting at as they said Be joyful always; pray
continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will
for you in Christ Jesus (1 Th 5: 16-18). There is no doubt that this
is a great challenge for each one of us. Consider the African mother
who nurses her infant who is dying because of famine or a family whose
lives have been touched by bereavement or illness. But in the midst
of our sense of loss or pain, of feelings of rejection or anger, if
we can find it within ourselves to rely on the truth expressed in the
Bible that God is with us always through the power of His Holy Spirit,
then perhaps we can say thank you. Of course we are not thanking God
for the situation we find ourselves in but rather for His comfort, His
strength and His Son Jesus who endured the cross for each one of us.
When the children of Israel wandered through the wilderness they experienced
a real sense of having been forsaken by God. But time after time God
revealed to them His faithfulness and His love for them as His chosen
people. May we also experience the love of our Heavenly Father as we
journey through those wilderness periods in our lives and may we find
ourselves rushing back again and again and again to the feet of Jesus
to say thank you Lord.
  
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Holiday cover
From Tue 26th Oct to Mon 1st Nov inclusive,
pastoral emergencies should be referred to Archdeacon George Davison at
048 / 028/ 67748994
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Thank you from me to you!
In the first edition of our
Parish Newsletter I encouraged everyone to come to the harvest thanksgiving
services and you certainly did! We were truly blessed as congregations
ranging in number from 65 to 170 came to worship throughout our group
of parishes.
One of the highlights for me was the ministry of a 13 year old young
lady to the congregation at Templeport. As this young person sang The
Lord's my Shepherd set to the tune of Amazing Grace, you could quite
literally hear a pin drop in the church. A real talent was witnessed
and we thank God for blessing us through her singing.
Could I extend a huge thank you to all who came and especially to everyone
who brought produce and decorated our churches so beautifully. As well
as being a great occasion in terms of worship, we also experienced a
great sense of fellowship, in no small part due to the suppers which
followed each Friday night service. Once again, thank you to all who
contributed and made our celebrations a real talking point in the wider
community.
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News Items
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Harvest Service in Templeport
More photos of the Church Service
and tea in the Community Centre can be found on the Group News page
of Parish Web site: www.swanlinbar.kilmore.anglican.org
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Swanlinbar
Parish Supper Dance
Tickets are still available for the Supper Dance on Fri 22nd Oct in the
Unionist Hall. In fact, no one has contacted the rectory for tickets at
the time of writing!! Please don’t leave your ticket order to the
last minute as advance booking allows us more time to make the necessary
arrangements regarding the provision of food. Food will be served at 9.00pm
followed by music provided by Country Cousins.
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Mother’s Union News
Thanks to all the ladies who came along to the opening service of the
MU. I was greatly encouraged by the support from each Parish within
the group and believe that this branch of MU will go from strength to
strength through a more united approach. Vi has planned a busy and interesting
program for the coming months with a few of the events listed below;
| Date |
Venue |
Speaker |
Theme |
| 21st Oct |
Rossory Parish Hall |
Joyce Thompson |
Women’s Health |
| 2nd Nov |
Ballyconnell Parish Hall |
Myrtle Graydon |
Cookery night |
| 7th Dec |
Minor hall Kinawley |
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Christmas theme. |
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Swanlinbar
annual sale of work
It is almost that time of year again when you could be clearing out your
roof space and parting with those items which you said last year that
you might use and never did!! Yes, its the annual sale of work which will
be held in The Old School, Swanlinbar on Saturday 11th December. As well
as those unwanted items from your own homes, please do bring along cakes,
jam, firewood, turf and of course yourselves and support this day with
your presence and your presents! All proceeds from the sale of work will
go towards Parish funds.
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Church Hymnal news
Large print editions of the Church Hymnal are now available at a cost
of £14.85 (€23.40) if ordered through the rectory. Please
let me know if you would like to order one and I will make the necessary
arrangements. This reprint of the large print edition has come about
as a result of demand and was not anticipated when the Hymnal was introduced.
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X-PLORE
X-PLORE is a series of meetings organised by the Crosslinks Youth Department.
The meetings take place on the 3rd Thursday night of each month in the
Cathedral Halls, Enniskillen. They promise to take an exciting and fun
approach to mission in the 21st Century. The next meeting will take
place on 18th Nov between 7.30 and 9.30pm (voluntary charge of £2).
For more details contact 07966 630820 and ask for Johnny Beare, Crosslinks
Youth Worker.
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Thanks for your generosity
The people of Ballyconnell would like to extend their sincere thanks
to the Greaves family for their generosity in giving €2500 in total
towards the installation and running of the oil fired central heating
system in the Parish Hall. The family have gifted this money in memory
of their parents and this will be marked with a plaque in the hall in
due course.
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Prayer points for October
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Prayer matters in the life
of a Christian, The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective
(Jam 5: 16). Please pray for the following on the day of the week
indicated;
* Monday; That our Sunday School teachers would know God’s leading
and God’s blessing on their work with our children and young
people;
* Tuesday; That parents be encouraged to be regular in their attendance
and in bringing their children to Church;
* Wednesday; For those who are known to us within our group who are
suffering or in need of any kind, that they might know God’s
comfort and blessing upon their lives;
* Thursday; For those within our community who are unable to attend
Church, that they might know they are valued and loved and that there
might be evidence of that in the life of our Church;
* Friday; For our vestries as they make decisions which might affect
the way in which our Church functions in the community, that they
would know the wisdom in such matters which comes through the prompting
of the Holy Spirit;
* Saturday; That as a community we have opportunities for witnessing
to the Love of God in our lives;
* Sununday; For leaders in our Church and that God would raise up
a new generation of leaders with hearts for Jesus so that more might
be lead to Jesus.
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The Deal
A young boy had just passed his
driving test. He asked his clergyman father, if they could discuss the
use of the car. His father took him to his study and said to him, "I'll
make a deal with you. You improve your college up, study your bible a
little and get your hair cut and we'll talk about it."
After about a month the boy came back and again asked his father if they
could discuss use of the car. They again went to the father's study where
his father said, "Son, I've been real proud of you. You have improved
your grades, you've studied your bible diligently, but you didn't get
your hair cut!"
The young man waited a moment and replied, "You know Dad, I've been
thinking about that. You know, Samson had long hair, Moses had long hair,
Noah had long hair, and even Jesus had long hair...."
To which his father replied............"Yes, and they WALKED everywhere
they went!"
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Can you Guess?
The answer to last month's question, which of the four Church drawings was
a 'real' pen and ink drawing was St Peter's Templeport and was drawn by
Angela Rofé in 1978. |
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Service
Schedule fot the next month
| Day/ Date |
Event |
Location |
Service |
Time |
Minister / Reader |
| Sun 17th October |
19th after Trinity |
Templeport
Swad / Kinawley
TomRegan |
All Age
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11.00 am
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Revd Geoff Wilson
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| Sun 24th October |
5th before Advent |
Templeport
Swanlinbar
TomRegan |
Morning Prayer
Morning Prayer
Morning Prayer |
11.30 am
10.00 am
11.30 am |
Revd Geoff Wilson
Revd Geoff Wilson
Mervyn Foster |
| Sun 31st October |
14th before Advent |
Templeport
Kinawley
TomRegan |
Morning Prayer
Morning Prayer
Morning Prayer |
11.30 am
10.00 am
11.30 am |
Mrs Frances Good
*To be Arranged*
*To be Arranged* |
Service Schedule changes as well as next month's
Service Schedule which unfortunately is not available at present will
be posted here as soon as available
Service Schedule changes will be posted on: http://www.swanlinbar.kilmore.anglican.org/pages/schedule.htm
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