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March
2017 - May 2017 Parish Newsletter
A concept plan for the First Church Sanctuary re-build
MINISTER'S REFLECTION:
'For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under
heaven.' (Eccl. 3:1 - NRSV).
Church life, just like nature itself, experiences different seasons.
We at First Church, as you can see from the contents of this newsletter,
are coming into a new season of change, with:
1. The Reverend Heather (& Jim) Kennedy moving to the Ellesmere
Co-operating Parish in Canterbury, having completed 16 years of
faithful service here in
the South. Our prayers and best wishes
go with them.
2. The refurbishment of the Worship Sanctuary is gaining traction.
Hopefully the community of faith will be back in the Church by August
2017. My grateful thanks to Bill Watt and David Cocker for their
ongoing oversight of the work.
3. The continuation of ESOUL, the Church's outreach to international
students, which is led by Jen & Ian Richardson and ably supported
by members of the First Church Women's Group. We've been encouraged
to see a number of young students joining us on Sunday mornings
for worship.
4. My induction as the new Moderator of the SYNOD of Otago &
Southland on Friday 20 April 2017 in Cameron Hall at Knox College
in Dunedin. Already I've spent a number of Thursdays in Dunedin
meeting
with the executive of SYNOD and the Otago Foundation Trust Board
as we sort out grants for church buildings, education (both religious
and secular) and mission and evangelism projects.
5. Lastly but not the least, the retirement of Sherry Shelton, who
has served as our Director of Music over the past five years. Sherry's
choral experience and prowess on the organ will certainly be missed
and again our prayers and best wishes go with her.
Do join me in praying that First Church will embrace what God is
doing in our midst. I'm hopeful that the church will flourish in
the city as we embark on a new season of Christ-Centred and Community-Facing
Mission. Look out for our new mission statement in our next newsletter
in June 2017.
Carpe Dem
Reverend Nyalle Paris
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