Christchurch News November 2008 Page 1

Minister's Letter

Dear Friends,

November is a month of remembrance. It starts the day after Hallowe’en, on the 1^st with All Saints day, followed by All Souls - times to remember all those who have died in Faith. The cold and death of Autumn really takes a bite, and it’s the month of national remembrance. I hope and guess many of us will have felt a pang of vulnerability at some of this: you may be remembering a family member who has died in war, or an old saint who has been a precious influence, or you may bristle at the mention of Hallowe’en!

 “Christ at the Centre of the Church at the heart of the town” puts me in mind of two words that have come to mean a lot to me in my faith, ministry, and witness.

The first is Vulnerability. Some would see this as weakness and want to find strength. My experience is that by exploring my own vulnerabilities within the all encompassing love of God I grow in faith and am made strong. If Christ really is at the heart of our faith, then like a real biological heart, He is vulnerable. Coming to faith often involves being broken in some way, either through forgiveness and conquering sin, or admitting a need that we cannot meet; or recognising our faith has grown through personal tragedy, grief, or suffering. This is the Christ of passion and cross, the Christ of the second half (roughly speaking) of all the versions of the gospel told by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. For Christ to be at our centre is for us to be a vulnerable people, held together gently in His Love.

The other word is Availability. For Christ who is at our heart to be at the centre of the town is for our church doors as well as the doors of our hearts to be open. It is for us to give ourselves to each other in love and care, something I am finding Christchurch is pretty good at (at some personal cost, see above!). It is for us to make ourselves available to God, for Him to use in any way he chooses, and it is for Him to be available to us. Again, His availability in Christ led to the cross, the empty tomb, and the coming of the Spirit, perhaps God’s greatest act of making him/her/it/themselves available to humanity including you and me.

 November is a sombre month - may we grow in our faith and be ever conscious of God’s love and who He calls us to be.

 Your Friend and Minister,

Rob Hilton

Worship At Christchurch
November 2008
	2nd	9th	16th	23rd	30th
		Remembrance			1st in Advent
9am	On-Line@9	On-Line@9	On-Line@9	On-line@9	On-line@9
10.30am	Irene Burns	Rev. Rob Hilton	Stan Loach	Rev. Rob Hilton	Brian Scott
		HC
6.30pm	Rev. Arnold Clay	Rev. Rob Hilton	3rd Sunday @	Rev. Arnold Clay	Taize
		Prayer & Praise	All Saints	HC
			Church
SHOPPERS’ SERVICE EACH FRIDAY at 10.30am
7th Rev. Rob Hilton, 14th Rev. Stuart Jenkins, 21st Father Phillip Gray,
28th Rev. Dan Price, 5th Dec. Rev. Rob Hilton