St. Luke's Church in Person at 11am.​

Now with groups for children from 0-15.

If you can't join us in person,

here is the Livestream

available from 11am on Sunday:

"Finally, be strong in the Lord and his mighty power."

(Ephesians 6:10)

This Sunday at St. Luke's is both an ending and a new beginning.

It is an ending, because we are finishing our series on Ephesians. We have been seeing what difference being 'in Christ' makes to us. If the true head of our church is Jesus Christ and he is the one who is sitting at God's right hand and has the ultimate power in the universe, then Paul says we can find real strength in him.

Not that we always feel powerful. Many may feel weakened or less confident after the struggles of the Pandemic and lockdown. Some may feel weighed down by anxiety about the continuing levels of infection or daunted about returning to the old patterns and ways of life.

Yet, Paul's command is not to 'pull yourself together' or to 'draw on your inner strength.' He says look to Jesus, rely on his strength and his power. 

My prayer for those who have not made the big step of returning to in person church services is that they will both find strength in Christ to be able to do so, but also in doing so may find a renewed strength in Christ to live their lives more fully, whatever pressures they may face.

So, as we end our reflection on what it means to be 'in Christ', we also face a new beginning as a church. Not everything is restarting, but this Sunday we take a new step forward. At last our children and youth groups return and we hope that as a result our youngsters can be encouraged to re-engage with church life and find the strength for their whole lives in following Jesus.

Please read on...

• Calendar: What's happening at St. Luke's this week?
• Prayer: The latest prayer requests. 
• Care: How we are making our Sunday Services accessible to all.
• Share: As we face the refugee crisis from Afghanistan, a blog on 'loving the stranger'.

Saturday 4th

Churches Together Prayer Breakfast (Salvation Army, the High Street, 9:00-10:00am). You can also join this on Zoom: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/8651865167

Meeting ID: 865 186 5167

Sunday 5th

Family Service (St. Luke's, 11am) - Ephesians 6:10-23, The Armour of God

Monday 6th

St. Luke's hosts Thanet Deanery Synod at 7:30pm. The Deanery Synod is a gathering of clergy and representatives from all the Church of England churches across Thanet.

Thursday 9th

Daily Prayer (at St. Luke's Church) - 9:30-10:00am

Cafe4All - St. Luke's Church, All Welcome for a coffee and chat. 10:00-11:30am. 

Friday 10th

Play and Praise (St. Luke's Hall, please use the side door off the driveway), Parent and Toddler group restarts. 10:00-11:30am.

Saturday 11th

Daily Prayer (at St. George's Church) - 9:30-10:00am

Ride and Stride - St. Luke's church is open for those who are doing sponsored walks to raise money for Kent Churches Trust and their own church. We need volunteers to welcome people into the church. Please sign up on the list on the welcome desk at the back of church to volunteer or email to offer some times.

Sunday 12th

Family Service and Baptisms (11am, St. Luke's Church) - Mark 8:27-38

Prayer Requests:

​​Be assured I will do my best to check that people are happy for the requests to be shared before including them. Please pray for...

• Those fleeing the Taliban in Afghanistan. For safety and a welcome into new countries.
• Those leading our children's and young people's groups this Sunday, that they may find joy and enthusiasm as they return to or start this important work.
• Children returning to school and students to university. Especially those starting new schools or universities.

Please also continue to pray for: Flo Baldock, Nathan Court, Pauline Emptage, Jean Mayton, Shirley Crabb, Collette Judge, Barb (Gloria's daughter's friend), Jean Simmons, Rita Ryan and Joy Smithers.

In Person Church for All

September is a natural time for people to return to activities after a break, as schools and colleges start a new year. This year some of those activities - like attending church in person - have had a very long break! We want September to be the month when we can welcome everyone back who has not felt able to return during the period of lockdown and Covid restrictions. 

So from this Sunday our groups for children and young people restart. Hopefully, this means that all families will feel comfortable in returning. It does mean that we will be losing the 'family tables' down the side of the church and families should sit in the pews with others.

We are also aware, that although Covid restrictions are no longer law, there are still cases of Covid in our local community and people will still want to be cautious about being in public spaces. Some will still want to be very cautious, whereas others will be more relaxed. If you are more relaxed, please be sensitive to the anxieties of others!

To help make everyone feel welcome, we are going to introduce three zones of seating:

• The front pews, will be an area with no enforced social distancing.
  
• The rear pews will have every other pew blocked off and people will be encouraged to remain socially distanced from other groups.
• We will set up an area of chairs on the South Side of the church near the side entrance. Here the chairs will be socially distanced and everyone will be required to wear masks. People in this zone can also avoid the crowds and exit from the side door at the end of the service if they like.

We hope these changes will make everyone feel able to return and join us through September. 

Last Week's Talk:

Everyday Relationships - Available Online

What difference does being in Christ make to our everyday relationships? In this passage we see what Paul has to say to employers and employees and to parents and children about how as Christians we are to relate to each other.

St. Luke's Stories

Do remember to send in personal stories, poems etc. to share with others. Why not have a look at what is already there? 

Interesting Blog

Love the Stranger​

As images of desperate masses trying to flee flash across our screens on a daily basis, it seems natural to find ourselves feeling empathy for the people we see. Yet, all too often we switch off to their plight. This blog is a reflection on Jesus's call to love the stranger.

Finally, let's pray that Christ will give us strength as we face the challenges ahead.

Yours in Christ,

Paul Worledge 

Vicar, St. Luke's Ramsgate

www.stlukesramsgate.org​