Little Milton Church

   The Parish Church of St James, Little Milton

   The Rector: Victor L. Story     01844 279 498029)

CHURCH CLEANING ROTA FOR FEBRUARY

W/E 6th February                                   -              Mrs A Jones/ Mrs S Brough

W/E 13th February                                 -              Mrs. G. Taylor/Mrs H Ridley

W/E 20th February                                -              Mrs A. Hawkins/Mrs E Summers

W/E 27th February                                -              Mrs. M. Davies/Mrs S A Dennis  

W/E 6th March                                      -              Mrs L. Lovegrove/ Mrs C Coward

S. A. Dennis

BELL RINGING PRACTICE DURING FEBRUARY

Tuesday 2nd February                           -              7.30 pm to 9.00 pm

Tuesday 9th February                           -              7.30 pm to 9.00 pm

Sunday 13th February                        -              10.30 p.m. – 11.00 a.m.

Quarter Peal 12.15 p.m. – 1.00 p.m.

Tuesday 16th February                       -              7.30 pm to 9.00 pm

Tuesday 23rd February                       -              7.30 pm to 9.00 pm

Tuesday 2nd March                            -              7.30 pm to 9.00 pm

Raymond Fergusson 279150

RESPONSE IN THE DIGITAL AGE

A friend of mine was telling me the other day how her daughters had finally persuaded her to get her mobile phone upgraded. She wasn’t sure she said whether it made her more or less of an embarrassment to them now. But she was assured she could take pictures, send people videos, make sound recordings and receive Emails under certain circumstances. She could download pictures onto its little screen if she liked but she found that when she did she couldn’t read any of the instructions on it. So she trawled through the settings and then it was much better. ---blank.

She said she still found it hard to answer calls, not because she wasn’t au fait with the technology, but because when it rung she couldn’t find it in her handbag quickly enough.

She went on to tell me that there was one interesting side effect of the new technology in her household; like the old valve sets our digital system takes just a little while to find a signal, and for that time, the screen stays blank.

All of that made me think. Instant response is what we want, only unless we’re very spoilt children, wisdom teaches us that that rarely happens. However when we ask things of God we might expect heavenly technology to be more instant.

When heaven connects with earth there should be extraordinary events-and sometimes there are, but at times God seems absent: in suffering, cruelty, greed, bullying, neglect.

But silence is one place to hear God’s sometimes wordless response- an absence of words and activity for a moment-an opportunity for new vision, and a space for a new empowerment given through his Holy Spirit to make that vision a reality.

May Lent with its quiet moments, be such an opportunity for us.

So a prayer

O Lord, the Scripture says, ‘There is a time for silence and a time for speech.’ Lord, teach me to silence my own heart that I may listen to the gentle movement of the Holy Spirit within me and sense the depths which are of God.

Victor Story 01844 279498

FROM THE RECTORY

LENT 2010.

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday which this year is 17th February. Lent is the time when we commemorate Jesus’ withdrawal into the wilderness to explore his destiny. Who was he, what was he to do? His way was to love and obey God, not to dominate people, nor glorify himself. In Lent every Christian may make a space to ask themselves, ‘Who am I becoming?’ How can I get in touch with my soul, stifled by the relentless preoccupation with the material world, with all its business and dizziness? Who am I becoming in God’s eyes? What’s happening to my integrity, my lifestyle, my values, my relationships, my prayers?  In a way we are all pilgrims in this world moving towards our destiny, exploring who we are becoming and who we could be.  For Jesus the wilderness became a fruitful field. May Lent be a fruitful period for us all.

WEEKDAY SERVICES AROUND THE BENEFICE DURING LENT.

On Ash Wednesday we shall have a Service of Holy Communion in St. Mary’s, Great Milton at 7.30 p.m. On Wednesday February 24th we shall hold the first of the Wednesday evening Compline Services in Great Milton and will begin at 7.30 p.m.  On the Friday morning, the 26^th at 9.00 a.m., there will be a Service of Holy Communion in Great Milton.

The following week, the Wednesday (3rd March)  Compline and the Friday (5^th March) Communion will be in St. James’, Little Milton, and similarly on the 10th and 12th, in St. Peter’s Great Haseley.

LENT LUNCHES.

We are holding our usual Lent Lunches around the benefice this year and the first will be held at the home of Mr. and Mrs. David Maloney, the old School House, Back Way , Great Haseley on Monday 22nd ^February between 12.00 and 1.30 p.m.  Over the years these have been wonderful occasions when we meet around the Benefice at different venues on a Monday for a simple Lunch. There’s no need to book, simply arrive. We meet old friends and we make new friends.  The dates and venues of the succeeding Lent Lunches will be in the March edition of The Newsletter.  Donations on these occasions may be placed in a ‘decent basin’ as the Book of Common Prayer would put it, to be given to Christian Aid.

We look forward to seeing you all.

A QUOTE FROM THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY ON PRAYER

Prayer is like sunbathing. You simply have to be there where the light can get at you.

On the beach, it was no use screwing up your eyes and concentrating: you wouldn’t get a better tan. And yet people often treated prayer like that. But this wasn’t Jesus’ advice.

“Say, Father”, he tells them. Just be confident that you’re welcome as you would be at home. All you need to do is to be where the light can get at you-in this case, the light of God’s love.

Rowan Williams.

Victor

GREAT MILTON METHODIST CHURCH Minister:  Revd. Derick Chambers Tel: 212019

SUNDAY SERVICES IN FEBRUARY

For further information please ring Yvonne Cartwright on 01844 279205

FRIENDS OF LITTLE MILTON SCHOOL 200 CLUB

The prize wining numbers were drawn by the Little Milton School Children at their Good Work Assembly and were as follows:

January 2010                                                                                      

1st Prize                 No 41      Julie Palmer                                                         £16.00                  

2nd Prize                No 36      David Reeves                                                       £12.00    

3rd Prize                 No 51      Lyndell Dixon                                      £8.00     

Mrs Diane Austin

BENEFICE SERVICES FOR FEBRUARY