News

Looking forward to Lent - For those who are interested there will also be a Churches Together Zoom Meeting each Thursday evening at 7.30pm starting on 25th Feb - so that we can share our lenten journey together.

Please contact Pat Goulding to ask her to email you the Zoom link.

This year we invite you to join with the Church of England’s “Live Lent 2021” called God’s Story Our Story. It is based on the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Lent book for 2021, Living His Story by Hannah Steele. From Ash Wednesday (17 February) to Easter Sunday (4 April), there will be six reflections for each week, written by Stephen Hance, the Church of England’s National Lead for Evangelism and Witness. Each reflection will include a short passage from the Bible, a brief exploration of the reading, and a prayer. Additionally, each week will have a unifying theme and an action to be taken during the week.

Register on line to have the meditations delivered free daily to your phone or computer.
Info can be found at https://www.churchofengland.org/resources/livelent-2021-church-resources-gods-story-our-story
Or Google Live Lent 2021
Half way down the page is an invitation to sign up to the reflections…. I have done it, and it should work!

The daily reflections can also be bought as a booklet from Church House Publishing (£1.99) (you can preview online before you buy!) Booklets may be slightly cheaper bought in bulk - so if you would like me to order a book for you please tell me so as soon as possible. I already have a few - so let me know if you want one!

40 days

We also have:

• The 40 ideas sheet for children and families prepared by Keith Callard ( Reader at St Mary’s ) to help us all enjoy Living Lent together.
• From Together at Home a self care sheet for Lent. They say "In a really challenging season why not focus on self-care this Lent. Here are 40 self-care ideas to choose from, why not pick one each day and give yourself a boost of positivity.. "

Do you need prayers?

We have a small group of intercessors who will continue to pray confidentially for those who ask for prayers. If being held in prayer in that way is something you would like, please talk to Roni 339962 / 07533376880 or Jenny 07379345967.

Together or apart - let us continue to hold one another in prayer, and where possible to reach out in love and service.

With my love and prayers, Be safe, keep well and keep warm, and God bless you,

Roni

The vaccination programme is being carried out by the various parts of the NHS. This is a huge logistical endeavour and partners have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to plan and prepare for vaccinating thousands of residents as soon as the supplies of the vaccine become available.

Vaccinations will be available through: 

Mass vaccination centres - The nearest regional centre to Central Bedfordshire (so far) is at Robertson House in Stevenage, the full address of which is:

Unit 6, Six Hills Way

Stevenage

SG1 2FQ

May you all be blessed by your jabs!

If you receive an invitation to attend this centre but you do not want to, or cannot, travel to Stevenage don’t worry you will be able to attend an appointment locally through your GP but this might take a little longer.

GPs - In Central Bedfordshire the GPs are grouped into networks (called Primary Care Networks) and each PCN will have a centre where they will vaccinate people. Some are already up and running, others will be starting to vaccinate in the coming weeks.

The latest information we have is provided below (please note this is subject to change):

The PCNs will also be responsible for vaccinating those people who, for medical reasons, are not able to leave their homes, such as care home residents.

Community vaccination centres - Like the Mass Vaccination Centres above, these are centres which are being set up to vaccinate around 500 people per day. These are unlikely to be available for a few weeks yet. Again, invites will come to residents to book an appointment online on a priority basis.

Wait to be invited for your vaccination

The vaccination at this stage is only for those invited. Residents should not contact their GP practice, hospital or other sites to request the vaccine. Residents will be contacted when it’s the right time to come forward.

The government has set out the order in which groups of people will be prioritised for vaccinations.

The top four priority groups are the current priority. If you do not fit into one of these groups, you will not be invited for a vaccination yet. Further detail about the priority groups is available on the Government website.

COVID-19 health advice

We have just received a letter from Bishop Alan, Bishop of St Albans which we'd love to share with you.

You can download a copy of his letter here.

Source: Revd Roni Goodman

Date: 29th October 2020

As part of our mission to reach out with God's message to as many people as possible, a blog has been launched which allows you to listen to a Service or Talk from St Michael's Shefford and St Mary's Meppershall in Bedfordshire, England. This Podcast is also available by phone - please share the number with a friend who doesn't have internet - T 01462 559112.

Click here, or on the image to visit the blog.

Source: Andrew Goodman

Date: 14th October 2020