White Horse Team Ministry

An update from White Horse Team Minstry

In this edition you can watch a video message from Rebecca, join a discussion group, hear news from around the White Horse Team, nominate a local hero, find links to Bishop Andrew’s video blog Going to Ground, find the readings for this Sunday and a reflection on Genesis by Revd Melanie Otto and find out how to join with a service on Sunday and social gatherings using digital technology!

Coronavirus update

All our churches are now closed in accordance with current government advice.

The latest information can be found on the Church of England website.

For the Christian community

We are not people of fear:
we are people of courage.
We are not people who protect our own safety:
we are people who protect our neighbours’ safety.
We are not people of greed:
we are people of generosity.
We are your people God,
giving and loving,
wherever we are,
whatever it costs
For as long as it takes
wherever you call us.

Barbara Glasson, President of the Methodist Conference

This prayer for the community comes from this a new publication. You can download it to use at home or order it. Read more…

Keep in touch

(there’s is no need to be lonely!)

Look out for new ways to be Church...
Please let us know if you need any help or assistance at this difficult time.
There are many resources available such as a daily prayer on the Church of England website.
Or why not explore our new web pages on Worship at Home. Read more…
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simply hit the unsubscribe button at the bottom of the page.

Using Zoom?

You might find this article helpful
https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-Joining-a-Meeting
Please remember to mute your microphone and open up the video. The icons for these are normally at the bottom left of the screen. Good luck!

Message from Revd Rebecca Harris

Holy Communion 26th April

Join us for another ‘virtual’ holy communion service!

9.45am – for 10am start

Please join any time after 9.45am for a prompt 10am start. There will be time afterwards for coffee and a chat too – just bring your own coffee.

For more information please subscribe to our newsletter by visiting our website

Do feedback if you have any problems and we’ll do our best to help you as we learn together how to use 21st century technology!

Readings for 3rd Sunday of Easter

Psalm 116

Thanksgiving for Recovery from Illness
1 I love the Lord, because he has heard
my voice and my supplications.
2 Because he inclined his ear to me,
therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
3 The snares of death encompassed me;
the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;
I suffered distress and anguish.

10 I kept my faith, even when I said,
“I am greatly afflicted”;
11 I said in my consternation,
“Everyone is a liar.”

12 What shall I return to the Lord
for all his bounty to me?
13 I will lift up the cup of salvation
and call on the name of the Lord,
14 I will pay my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people.
15 Precious in the sight of the Lord
is the death of his faithful ones.
16 O Lord, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the child of your serving girl.
You have loosed my bonds.
17 I will offer to you a thanksgiving sacrifice
and call on the name of the Lord.

Genesis 1

6 And God said, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” 7 So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so. 8 God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

Luke 24:13-35

The Walk to Emmaus
13 Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, 14 and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. 15 While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, 16 but their eyes were kept from recognising him. 17 And he said to them, “What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?” They stood still, looking sad. 18 Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?” 19 He asked them, “What things?” They replied, “The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20 and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. 21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. 22 Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, 23 and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. 24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.” 25 Then he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! 26 Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?” 27 Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.
28 As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. 29 But they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.” So he went in to stay with them. 30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened, and they recognised him; and he vanished from their sight. 32 They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” 33 That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. 34 They were saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!” 35 Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread

Reflection for the 3rd Sunday of Easter

Living Water
Genesis 1:6-8 New Living Translation (NLT)

6 Then God said, “Let there be a space between the waters, to separate the waters of the heavens from the waters of the earth.” 7 And that is what happened. God made this space to separate the waters of the earth from the waters of the heavens. 8 God called the space “sky.”

We have been very fortunate with the weather during lockdown haven’t we – mostly warm, sunshiny days so we can sit in the garden, listening to the birds and gardening. And for those of us who have planted things, we have also been very glad of the rain which helps our gardens to become lush and vibrant.
But we are not always grateful for the rain, or the fresh running water that we have in our homes and buildings. It is something that we take for granted and yet for many this important natural resource can be a matter of life or death.

He is yearning for God, desperate for the refreshment that only He can bring, just like a thirsty body searching, yearning for water. Do we yearn for God like this? Is our faith dry or parched and needing refreshment?

In John’s Gospel, Jesus tells the woman at the well that he would give her living water and that whoever drank that water would never be thirsty again. That it would become like a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.

That living water is the Holy Spirit. When our bodies are thirsty, we have a cool, long drink and feel satisfied. When our souls are thirsty, what do we do? Where do we go for that thirst to be quenched? We need to follow the Psalmist’s example and ask God to quench our souls with his living water, the Holy Spirit, so that we too can experience a fresh, bubbling spring within us. And as we do so, we will find that we grow, becoming more vibrant and productive because a bubbling spring by its very nature spreads out, overflows, and brings life to the things around it. Can you imagine what our church would look like if we too overflowed with that eternal spring, flowing over into our families, our communities, our country, and our world.

Perhaps during this time of lockdown, we can use the time to develop our relationship with God and ask Him for more of His Holy Spirit? I remember once helping in a year 8 RE lesson and the children were asked to draw a representation of the Holy Spirit. One child drew a dove and the teacher made a link with Dove bodywash and suggested that each time they showered they could ask God to wash them with the Holy Spirit!! Maybe you might like to do that too? And as you do, I pray that you will be drenched in the life-giving power of the Holy Spirit so that you may know the overflowing and overwhelming love that the Lord has for you. Come Holy Spirit, Come!
Rev Melanie Otto

News from around the White Horse Team Ministry…

Requiescat in pace….

Mary Jenkins’ funeral has been arranged for Friday 1^st May at 9.30 am at the West Wiltshire crematorium. Please note that numbers are strictly limited to close family only, so please do not turn up. But the family would appreciate your prayers and support at this time. There is a document on our website (which you can find here) which you can use to remember Mary and pray for the family on the day, if you would like to. They are also planning a Thanksgiving Service in church when we can arrange it, hopefully sometime in the autumn.

You will find resources here to help those who are bereaved

**Discussion Group: Saying Yes to Life by Ruth Valerio**

Would anyone like to join a discussion group to look at some of the issues raised in this book?

This was the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Lent book for this year, and our Bishop Nicholas recommended it for church groups to use during Lent. However, we had already decided on another resource for Lent, which we have done. Given the title of the book, it seems relevant for the Easter season, and we wondered whether anyone would be interested in joining me in a Zoom chat room to discuss the issues raised. There are six chapters in the book, and we have decided to base our sermons/reflections for these six weeks on the chapters of the book, taken from Genesis chapter 1, which are:

1 Let there be light

2 Let the waters be separated

3 Let the land produce vegetation

4 Let there be lights in the sky

5 Let the waters teem with living creatures and let birds fly

6 Let the land produce living creatures and let us make humankind in our image.

Each chapter takes the theme and looks at how it is traced through the whole of the Bible, which I found fascinating. It also looks at how each different aspect of creation is being affected by climate change, and offers some ideas for how we may put some measures in place to safeguard God’s creation for the future. There are some discussion questions at the end of each chapter, as well as resources online we can use. For example, the author has recorded interviews with leaders and speakers in environmental issues, including Archbishop Justin Welby. We would be able to show these videos as part of our Zoom chat. On the back of the book, it says this: Foundational to “Saying Yes to Life” is what it means to be human and in particular to be a follower of Jesus. Voices from around the world are heard throughout, and each chapter ends with discussion questions and a prayer to aid action and contemplation.

The book is available to buy from Amazon, or free to download from the SPCK website.

Please let me know if you’re interested and we can set something up. I was thinking about an early evening meeting once a week, starting in May. This will give you a chance to get a copy of the book and start reading it!

With many thanks, Rebecca

SPCK have a special offer if you sign up to their newsletter and you can download the book for free by clicking on this link

Richard Thomas

I’m sure we all remember Richard, our Ministry Experience Scheme student who has been with us in the Team since last September. He has been shadowing Caroline around, helping out at various services and events and finding out more about what it’s like to be a Vicar in the Church of England.

He returned to his home in Dorset before the lock-down because he came into contact with someone who had the virus and was supposed to be self-isolating. He has since suffered from the virus himself, but fortunately is getting better now. However, because we’re not sure how long the lock-down is going on for, he has decided, in consultation with the Diocese and Caroline, that he will not be returning to the Scheme with us this year. We are sorry about that, as we have appreciated having him around. However, we are planning to have an occasion later in the year, when we can say thank you and good-bye to him properly. We hope we’ll be able to arrange this as soon as is convenient.

In the meantime, Richard will be getting involved in his local church in Poole, where he lives with his family.

We wish him every blessing and hope to see him before too long.

Rebecca Harris

Afternoon Social Gathering using Zoom on Wednesday 29 April from 3pm – 4pm (bring your own tea and cake!)

For more information please subscribe to our newsletter by visiting our website

Zoom Coffee Morning – Tuesday 28 April 11am – 12 noon

with Revd Caroline Husband. Bring your own coffee & biscuits!

For more information please subscribe to our newsletter by visiting our website

News from Westbury Junior School

Prayer Council meets once a week at Westbury Junior School. We have about twelve students from years 3-6 who attend for a time of sharing, Bible study and song, and we pray for each other and the needs of the school and community. Two of the Year 6s wrote this prayer for the current crisis and they and their parents have given consent for us to share it with you.

Please pray for them and all our schools at this time.
Melanie

Prayers from Westbury CE Junior School’s Prayer Council

Dear Heavenly Father,
We pray for you to give us hope even though times are tough.
We need you to shine your rainbow down to earth at the end of the storm to show us you heard our prayers of hope.
We pray for togetherness.
It might not be physical, but our hearts will be connected with our loved ones, the people we know and give us the strength to keep our spirit alive.
We pray for all of the key workers.
Keep them safe in your love to allow them to help those that need them.
To you we pray,
Amen
By Phoebe A, Year 6

A Prayer for Peace
I pray for peace in these uncertain times, a comforting blanket of peace that will unfold over our community, our country and even our world.
We do not know what tomorrow holds, but instead may we take each day at time, focusing on the small wonders that life brings.
Be with us all during these trying times.
Amen
By Hannah B, Year 6

Feedback from around the Team…

Thank you very much for these Team Notes. It is a great comfort to keep in touch in this way.
I really appreciated the services on Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
I would also recommend Bishop Andrew’s ‘Going to Ground’ which I watch every day – it is inspiring and so full of love for the natural world and his chosen snippets of a variety of texts.

Stewardship

On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with your income.”
Corinthians 16:2
The church may be closed but we will still need to pay our Parish Share, utilities and insurance expenses as well as other unavoidable costs.

Our Parish Share helps to support our three full time clergy who are busy supporting us at this difficult time as well as a number of other functions in the Diocese. As we explained in the February Newsletter there is a shortfall between our regular giving and our expenses. The Current restrictions means that many of our usual fundraising activities will be curtailed. Your support has never been so important.

Please continue to make your offering as usual.

If you usually make a weekly offering in cash please consider setting up a standing order with the bank while our services are suspended. This is the most efficient way to donate.

Alternatively, a cheque can be sent to the
Parish Office Church Lane Westbury BA13 3BT.
Make sure you have signed a Gift Aid form too. That way we get maximum support for your donation.
Please follow this link to download the forms. which are available for both Dilton and Westbury PCCs

Or contact Beth Thomas, Treasurer wcw@whtministry.org.uk 07790 870 247 for Westbury PCC and Chris Hill, Treasurer. cprh@divingdog.co.uk Dilton Marsh PCC for Holy Trinity and Brokerswood

Thank you for your continued support.

Resources to enjoy at home

We’ve added a new page to the website called “Worship at Home” and includes a “Book Corner” page – let us know if it’s helpful and share your ideas with us!
What are you reading at home?

Daily Reflection at 5pm on Facebook

Have you found our Team Facebook accounts yet?
Everyday at 5pm we are posting a Reflection with a reason to be thankful on both the All Saints’ and Holy Trinity Facebook pages.
A daily moment to reflect and give thanks.
Why not look out for it?
Do you have something to be thankful? Share it with us!

Morning and Evening Prayer

You can find the words and liturgy for Morning and evening prayer by using the CofE Daily Prayer App or on their website .

Salisbury Cathedral

Salisbury Cathedral are offering a live reflection at
5pm each day on their website.
Click this link to find the page on the Salisbury Cathedral website

Contact us…

Rev’d Rebecca Harris – Team Rector
teamrector@whtministry.org.uk 01373 822 209Rev’d Caroline Husband – Team Vicar
teamvicar@whtministry.org.uk 01373 596 104Rev’d Melanie Otto – Team Curate
melanievotto@gmail.com 01373 858 357Garth Brocksopp – Churchwarden Holy Trinity & Brokerswood
cgbrocksopp@hotmail.co.uk 01373 822414

Beth Thomas – Churchwarden All Saints’ & Holy Saviour
wcw@whtministry.org.uk 07790 870 247

During this time the office will be closed to the public and Lynne will be working from home.
You can still reach the office via email on office@whtministry.org.uk

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