nourish

Opportunities in Your Church

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Belonging at St Nic’s

At St Nic’s we love and follow Jesus and so love and serve one another in kindness. Kindness originally links to the notion of kindred, a family relationship. This is expressed practically as the church body lives out its life together.

We are the Body of Christ 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, serving in our homes, at work and at play. This calling is more than just gathering on a Sunday. We express being kind to one another by offering lifts, sharing meals, praying for one another, shopping for those in need, and alerting our pastoral care team to more specific needs. It can also mean serving in a more formal role within the Church community.

Sunday Services

  • Welcomers: Welcoming guests and regular members on arrival with distribution of newsletter and assistance as required.
  • Children’s Ministry: Godly Play has roles for Storytellers and Doorpersons (see Karen D.)
  • Eucharist Assistants: help prepare for Eucharist and assist in serving during the service and cleaning utensils afterwards.
  • Sound: setting up and running appropriate sound for the various services we offer (see Alf H.)
  • Overheads: running the visuals on the overheads for the service (see Dannielle B.)
  • Worship: vocals, keyboard, guitar, drums, or possibly another musical talent not listed?
  • Readers: for reading the various readings during the service
  • Intercessions: leading our public prayers
  • Preaching and teaching: this requires training towards Licensed Lay Minister status.
  • Hospitality: Ensuring the availability of beverages and biscuits, assisting with cleaning up afterwards.

Blessing & Outreach

  • Op Shop volunteer (see Judy B.)
  • Little Lambs volunteer (see Barbara G.)
  • Lending Library (see Jan C.)
  • Wednesdays Dinners (see Verity M. or Kate H.)
  • Nourish Kids (see Carli K.): providing childcare for the Nourish Women’s group is an incredible blessing to the mums who attend and study God’s word together.
  • Parish Council: nominations will open in October for our 2019 Parish Council.
  • Mission Secretary: we are still in need of someone who is called to this position.
  • Alpha and other courses such as Boundaries: prayer for those who attend, and for Holy Spirit led invitations to people beyond our church community. Provision of hospitality or as a small group leader.

Small Groups Ministry

  • involvement in small groups
  • leading small groups: this requires discussion and oversight from the parish priest.
  • youth ministry: soon we will have a real need for a youth ministry to nurture and grow the faith of our older children.

General Operations

  • administration/ volunteering in the office (see Sophie P. or Ian C.)
  • assist our Site Management Team with maintenance and repairs of the church buildings and grounds, including the Historic Church (see Tony W.)

As a community we want to celebrate and acknowledge those who serve in these roles. By listing them here we can pray specifically for those areas in our church. If there is an area that interests you or you feel called into serving please speak to Rev Jamie or a team member.

Adapted from Opportunities in Your Church by St Nicholas Minster.

 

Receiving the Word

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A few weeks ago at our Wednesday service our reading was Mark 4 the parable of the sower. I spoke about receiving the word into our lives like good soil and the harvest that comes.  The key word we receive is Jesus himself, described by John in his gospel opening chapter as the Word made flesh. In receiving Jesus into our lives we are receiving life, light, bread, the way and so on. We are reconnected, reconciled to God and, through the life giving presence of God’s Spirit breathing into us, become spiritually alive, new creations.

However when we talk of receiving God’s word into our lives I mean putting the weight of our lives on it, our trust, our mindsets. All of this became evident to me on Tuesday evening. Returning from All Saints Donnybrook after a lengthy PC meeting I was stopped at a road works traffic management point in Boyanup. I glanced in the mirror and noticed a car racing towards me, I glanced again and realised there was no sign of it slowing down, I braced and it crashed into the back of me at some speed.

The driver was DUI , heavily intoxicated. Sadly she would not stop to reason and pulling back and swerving round nearly ran over the traffic flow person as she ‘ made her escape. ’ Fortunately I had pictures on my mobile and the police swiftly identified her. I prayed for her and others on the road to remain safe and for her to be quickly apprehended. That did happen although she did have a second crash. Remarkably the driver of the car in front was one of our Nourish members, a nurse. She helped me sort out a tow truck and drove me to the hospital for a once over. She was grateful I was between her and the car that crashed into me. I was grateful for the  blessing of my sister in Christ being there to help.

As I waited in hospital I was aware of the underpinning of several scriptures, especially Psalm 34:19 ‘A righteous person( i.e. someone in a right relationship with God ) may have many troubles but the Lord delivers him from them all.’ What scriptures are you placing the weight of your lives upon?

Shalom

Jamie

Harvey the 'Lost Sheep' turns up at Nourish Kids

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The Nourish Kids were in for a very special treat last Friday when they were visited by Harvey the Lamb! Harvey enjoyed lots of cuddles and ‘oohs and aahs’ as he joined in with the  kids in their activities, songs and stories. This term, Shirley has been teaching the Nourish Kids through the theme of ‘Jesus is the Good Shepherd’. For some of their inspiring artwork, check out the pin up board at the back of the church. Thank you to Travis and Zoe for arranging Harvey’s visit with us.

The Nourish women’s small group has grown in numbers this year as we have sought to cultivate, encourage and support women in faith. Our alongside program Nourish Kids has also grown and gone from strength to strength under the energetic leadership of Shirley. Nourish is a place of belonging and blessing as we seek to grow in belief together. As one of our participants said ‘What an amazing group to be a part of. Our children are amazing and all extremely blessed to have each other.’

Thank you all for your continued prayers for Nourish.

 

Blessings,

Carli

Getting Ready, Wondering and Godly Play Training

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When is a training course like a retreat?  When it’s a Godly Play training course! 

At the end of April Shirley Busby, Karen Dennison and myself, along with 9 others, took part in a 3 day Godly Play training course in Bunbury, led by Brenton Prigge from the Uniting Church in Busselton and Carolyn Handley from Sydney.   Our intention was to learn how to deliver the Godly Play programme effectively to the children at the 10am services at St Nick’s – but we got so much more than we bargained for.  We also came away blessed, refreshed and revived in our own inner being. 

Godly Play is much more than a teaching programme.  It is founded on principles which help us, whatever our age, to engage with God through scripture by ‘getting ready’, ‘wondering’ and responding at a deeper level to what we see and hear.  We were able to learn through taking part in the stories as the children do, and found that God met us profoundly in our own personal ‘response time’.  We also were coached through our own story telling and grew in confidence to tell the stories without a script, to not be afraid of silence, and to allow listeners to make their own connections with the story.   Godly Play is a different way of telling bible stories – it allows us to see things from a different angle – and all of us on the course were surprised that we saw things in familiar bible stores that we hadn’t seen before.

Karen, Shirley and I are looking forward to continue to grow in using these principles – not only on Sunday mornings, but with the Nourish kids on Fridays and in our small groups.  If you are part of any of those groups, you may hear  phrases  like “Let’s get  ready . . .?”  and  “I wonder . . .” being used . . . I wonder where Godly Play will take us next?!

Verity Murray

Nourish – United together in Christ

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It has been a great start to the year for Nourish. After the summer break it has been wonderful to connect with new members and reconnect with familiar faces. This year we have had the pleasure of Shirley’s enthusiasm and teaching skills in organising a fun and educational crèche program for our children.  Shirley joins our other fantastic volunteers who give their time generously to support our children while we meet.  Thank you!

This term we began with an overview of the book of Psalms which served as a great introduction to the Prayer Course we are exploring as a congregation. I can’t help but be amazed and inspired when exploring personal issues, such as your prayer life with God, within the small group setting. Everyone has a unique story and different experiences; yet often we are faced with similar challenges and shared frustrations. Together we have been able to explore, discuss, encourage and support one another, and it’s only week two! For every heartfelt moment shared there has been plenty of laughter and a deepened understanding that whilst we are all so very different we are united in Christ.

x Sophie

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'Meet the Team' – Carli

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Carli King

This week we talk to Carli who has stepped into the role of Group Leader of Nourish.

Q1.  What roles and ministry do you serve in at St Nicholas?

I have been coordinating our monthly church community lunches which I have just loved. This year I am also Group Leader for Nourish, a women’s small group that meets at the church on Friday mornings.

 

Q2.  Have you always been a Christian?

I was raised in a nominally Catholic home. As a child I always loved bible stories, especially the story of Joseph. When I was 13, I was taken to a Baptist church. It opened my eyes to a different approach to God. He became more real and more relevant to me and I gave my heart to Him.

 

Q3.  What helps you daily with your walk with Jesus?

I have a daily appointment time with Jesus that I try not to miss. But I also like to practice his constant presence and to keep an ongoing conversation and awareness of him throughout the day.

 

Q4.  Favourite Hymn or worship Song?

I wouldn’t say I have a favourite. At the moment I am listening to The Corner Room’s album Psalm Songs Vol. 1. Their version of Psalm 23 is particularly beautiful.

 

Q5.  What do you enjoy doing?

Sewing! Mainly for myself, I am sorry to say I am a selfish sewer.

"They have real coffee!" – A testimony about grace, friendship and belonging

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“I just found this really great playgroup!” exclaimed my friend. “It’s at a church and they have cake and fruit for the kids and heaps of toys. They even have NICE coffees, like barista style. And best of all? It’s FREE! Want to go with me?” Little Lambs was my first introduction to St Nicks. A noisy somewhat chaotic playdate shared with two dozen mums, twice as many children and a host of mature ladies and gentleman INSISTING that they serve us and we take the time to rest and recharge. For a new mum suffering child-induced cabin fever it was heavenly. My friends and I attended Little Lambs for the better part of a year. What stood out the most to us, and what my friends still remember it for, was how welcoming, encouraging and gracious the hosts were each week.

One week when I was visiting on my own with my (now) two children a lady came and sat next to me. She introduced herself as Verity and we had a pleasant talk before she handed me a pretty little invitation to Nourish, a new Bible Study group aimed at mums of young children. She explained that I would be welcome to bring the kids and pointed out Emma, the organiser, a mum I had often seen and spoken to but until that point had never been able to remember her name and had been too embarrassed to ask.

I was very excited about getting the invitation. I had been a Christian for five or six years but my Christian walk hadn’t so much as slowed to a crawl as stopped dead. I had only attended a group bible study a few times, and only in the company of my husband (as nice as that was, I confess I rather prefer it when we go separately…), and a group that catered for mums with young kids (i.e. not in the evening or during nap time) was what I had been wishing for.

Nourish was or rather IS a blessing. At first it was quite a challenge. Six or seven mums, a dozen kids and a bible. As any parent knows, children have this fantastic propensity to drive you to the brink of insanity and they really don’t care who they do it in front of. Fortunately for all of us, they took turns. If it wasn’t your child throwing a tantrum, pushing the other children over or face planting it into a door that week then you knew most likely next week it would be.

Hence, what I believe, one of the greatest lessons learnt in Nourish, at least for me personally, was grace- both how to give it and how to receive it.

Interestingly the more I received it, the better I became at giving it. Those early days were like a prolonged team building exercise.

We have evolved quite a bit since those early days. We now have MINDERS- truly wonderful people who give up their Friday mornings to care for and entertain our young children. This has really given us the opportunity as a group to delve more deeply, talk more freely and listen more attentively. We have realised we are an extremely diverse group of ladies from different backgrounds and at different stages of our walk but still with so much in common and that we can relate to.

I love it that on Thursday nights my three year old son is always happy to go to bed because tomorrow is Friday and “on Friday mum goes to bible study and that means friends! Friends for Michael and friends for you too mum!”

X Sophie

Stirling Cottage Adventure

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Saturday saw some of the nourish ladies off on a road trip to Harvey. It was a time for coffee, cake, laughs and no children. We visited Stirling Cottage on the banks of the Harvey River, this building features the shingled roof, jarrah walls and hexagonal paving blocks of the original cottage built in the mid 1800’s. Check out our photos below. If you want to join us we meet on Fridays during school term, 9.30am at St Nicholas church.

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