An Easter message from Dave Haseldine, pictured, the Methodist Circuit minister working part time in the Stantonbury Ecumenical Partnership.

Dear Friends,

Happy Easter to you! Christ who was crucified is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! We believe in the goodness of God that we see all over the place: in the natural world; in the the Bible; in the person of Jesus; and when we are aware of and see the presence and activity of the Holy Spirit. And we believe: ‘all things shall be well’; and in a new heaven and a new earth where there will be no more illness or death and God’s love will reign unopposed.

But we live with the tension that this Kingdom of God is coming, it is not here fully yet, and for too many people it seems a cruel fantasy.

Paul of Tarsus knew of this almost unbearable tension and wrote of it and of how Jesus: knew of it; lived in it; faced it; what it cost him to overcome it; and calls us to live with the same tensions and trust him by following him. In Romans 4:25-5:5, Paul writes:

            Jesus was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.  Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.  And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.  Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

Life is a struggle! But we grow when we struggle. Maybe that is the only time and way we grow. I wish it were different, that Jesus could make me grow without it being so costly, without me having to ‘die to my self’, to the worst that is in me, or the ‘me’ that most resists Jesus’ call to trust him in and above absolutely everything.

So there is no short-cut to resurrection by-passing the crucifixion. Jesus says that losing your life is the only way to find new life. And everyone who takes even small steps on this mad way of his grows as perseverance produces character, and character produces hope.

I confess that I only take small steps trusting Jesus in this way, but when I do, God’s love seeps into my heart. And I take huge encouragement from others who take bigger steps and it is clear that the Holy Spirit does indeed abundantly pour God’s love into their hearts. As we face all the challenges that we do at this time, may we encourage one another in this way and look for the outpouring of God’s love through us! Amen! Dave Haseldine:-)

Well known choir Quorum will be presenting Reflections for Holy Week at St Mary Magdalene Church, Willen, on Sunday March 24.

The programme will feature music by Tomas Luis de Victoria to accompany words for the occasion.

The event begins at 6pm. Full details on the poster, available to download here.

At last there’s some potentially good news to report about the two ministerial vacancies in the Stantonbury Ecumenical Partnership.

A prospective applicant for the Baptist post has now visited the six church buildings in our Partnership as well as the Manse. The Trustees will organise an Interview Panel, formal interview, Preach with a View and a Church Meeting in April.

Meanwhile the advert for a Team Rector will go out on March 31 2024. Thank you to Paul Brookman, Bradwell Church, for his work on our Parish Profile. A Section 11 meeting will be part of the PCC meeting held before the next SEPC on March 21 2024.

An arts and heritage event will be held at St.James Church New Bradwell from 10.15am to 3.30pm on Wednesday March 20.

The event will celebrate the work of the Arts Society of North Bucks  and their group of volunteer Church Recorders.

The event will include a lecture by Janet Gough, formerly Director of cathedrals and church buildings at the Church of England and a Director at Sotheby’s, with City and finance experience. Janet studied history and history of art at Cambridge and was awarded an OBE for services to heritage in the New Year’s Honours 2017 and in 2021 she became one of the first lay canons of Bangor Cathedral.

The event promises to be most interesting and informative so please do support it if you are able.

This and more information from across our Partnership can be found in this month’s bumper SEP newsletter available to download here.

Cross and Stable Church, Downs Barn, has announced its programme of activities to be held during Holy Week from Sunday March 24 to March 31.

Sunday March 24 will be a Holy Communion service at 11am with the distribution of Palm Crosses, followed by the church’s annual meeting.

Lenten Reflections will be held on Wednesday March 27 from 12.30pm to 1.30pm before a free ticketed Passover Supper takes place on Maundy Thursday from 6pm.

From 3-4pm on Good Friday there will be Meditation at the Cross. Holy Communion for Easter Sunday takes place at 11am.