Dear friends, Today is Advent Sunday and we begin our journey of preparation for the incarnation of Christ. The national Methodist Church has launched its 2022 Christmas Campaign “There is Room” which seeks to demonstrate that the Methodist Church is welcoming and inclusive. We are reminded in the Christmas story that when Mary and Joseph…

Dear friends, Karen and I had a lovely holiday last week, and while we were away we had a chance to catch up with family and friends we haven’t seen for quite a while. We had an opportunity to eat out in some of our favourite places and have trips out to some of our…

Dear friends,As we move through October things are starting to pick up in the life of the Circuit and our Churches and I thought that it might be helpful to flag up two or three events. Occasions like this don’t happen very often in a lot of Circuits, please come along and support Ruth. Please…

Dear friends, Channel four are currently screening their modern adaptation of the James Herriot story “All creatures great and small” I loved reading the books, more than once and whilst I loved the original BBC story screened from 1978-1990 starring Christopher Timothy, I love the new series. I often find that when we have had…

Dear friends, Karen and I enjoy going to Church when we are away on holiday, mainly because we seldom have the opportunity to sit together in worship, and I believe that it is good for me to be able to receive and be fed instead of always being the one who is attempting to preach.…

Dear friends, A lot has happened since I wrote my letter last week. One of my pet hates as a minister is training, when I am told that I have to participate in compulsory training, I become irritated and never take part with joy, rather with utter reluctance. In May of this year several of…

Dear Friends, The words “living in unprecedented times” have been quoted over and over again during the last two years and following one of the most challenging weeks that I can remember, I believe that the last fortnight definitely qualifies. I will normally write my letter to you first thing on a Wednesday morning, when…

Dear Friends, One of my mantra’s that I have found to be true over the years is something I learned a long time ago, surround yourself with good people and you will experience the very best that life has to offer. I believe that was true of the wonderful welcome service we offered to God…

Dear Friends, I always look forward to September with a mix of emotions, on the one hand, it is one of the busiest months of the year for me, with a string of meetings, several of them quite heavyweight. I also find it quite depressing as the evenings start to draw in. On the other…