2010 Events:

On Saturday, 19th June, the ladies of the Wednesday Group held a Garden Party at the home of Ray and Margaret Le Cornu.  It was a superb, sunny afternoon and some sixty or seventy folk from all over the Circuit enjoyed delicious scones and cakes in a beautiful garden setting.  A magnificent £1,116 were raised towards the church's Kitchen renovation project.  Many, many thanks to Ray and Margaret.

World Cup Worship 2010

On Sunday, 13th June 2010, World Cup fever hit St. Martin's Methodist Church once again!!  The Chapel was bedecked in and out with pennants and flags of the nations; the England flag took pride of place across the pulpit. Worshippers young and old arrived in red shirts, shorts, team colours hats and scarves; even one referee's whistle.

Worship began - or is it kicked off - with a troupe of cheer-leader girls (including Girls' Brigade children from St. Martin and Georgetown), dancing rhythmically to the sound from a DVD projected on the screen above.  Hymns and songs all had football connections:  Abide with me; And when the Saints; You'll never walk alone (adapted) as were other words set to tunes such as the well known signature tune to "Match of the Day".  We even had a 'Mexican Wave'.

Other DVDs and presentations drew on the testimonies of many well known football players from all over the world, and including two of Billy's favourite Everton team players.  Another cleverly arranged DVD, dovetailed scenes from Jesus's life with moments of agony and joy on the football field.  Our Minister, Billy Slatter, well known as a football fanatic, stressed God's love for us and interest in ALL the areas and aspects of our lives.  In all his prayers and address, he drew parallels between the world of football and the Christian pilgrimage and how in a world of champions and heroes, we too have the greatest of champions, Jesus Christ, our hero. 

Not even England's less than sparkling performance the previous evening, (well they drew at least!!) could take anything away from this wonderfully joyous act of worship.  While the more senior members of the congregation supped on teas and coffees in the Hall, the younger perhaps more energetic members went across the way to have a few 'kick-around' matches on a neighbour's field.  Another day to remember.

Easter 2010 at St. Martin

Lent at St. Martin's Methodist Church has been a time of renewal, commitment and discipline.  A number of people have continued conscientiously with the "Bible in a Year" course of study, where they are committed to daily reading portions whereby they will have read the whole of the Bible in one year.  They also meet fortnightly with the Minister, to share impressions, questions and observations. Members have also participated in the weekly soup and cheese lunches with our Anglican and Roman Catholic neighbours, in aid of Christian Aid.  The Girls' Brigade children created collage posters of the Easter story as part of their programme.  Palm Sunday brought the annual procession, complete with our faithful Donkey along a route which takes in all three churches in the parish.  During Lent we had also brought seven symbols of Passiontide to a Cross, made from our Christmas tree.  After the chill and trauma of Good Friday, we rejoiced with our Risen Lord on Easter Day, removing those symbols one by one, and decorating the cross with flowers and garlands as members made their way to receive the bread and wine at Holy Communion.  Our Minister also preached a most powerful and challenging sermon reminding us that the life and death of Jesus are facts beyond reasonable dispute. His Resurrection is a different matter. The power we find in its reality in our lives is not a simple matter of fact or even professed belief.  It comes from a real, life-giving experience within our lives which changes those lives for ever.

An Ambitious Venture

. . . that worked!

Listen to Pauline's Overture while you read & browse.  Right click here,  New_Folder\Sound\Pharaoh Overture.MP3  Select 'Open in New Window and minimise:

Back in late summer 2009, the Revd. Billy Slatter and his wife, Pauline, introduced their congregation at St. Martin with the idea of putting on the Christian musical, "From Pharaoh to Freedom", one of Roger Jones's earliest musical adaptations. With Mr. Jones's permission, Pauline had greatly re-worked the musical accompaniment and, through the magic of a Korg X3R Workstation and Roland A-30 Keyboard, transformed the music of a small band into a full orchestral arrangement with rhythm and sound effects, including a spine chilling, tolling bell!  She added a masterful overture, all performed by her. 

It was a multi-faceted project.  The drama by Victoria Richmond tells a great and often very moving story of faith and love, drawing on links between the Jewish Passover Festival, the great story of the Exodus, which it celebrates to this day, and Jesus's Last Supper and the Communion service we celebrate.  Themes of faith and love, of great testing, and the celebration of grace and freedom won at great cost, run like the Nile through this drama.

Billy and Pauline trusted to the acting, dancing and singing talents of their congregation at St Martin, but knew that the music would sometimes prove testing and the project would need much hard work and commitment to get the 'show on the road' in time for the Chapel Anniversary weekend in mid-February.  The reward, they promised, apart from a wonderful presentation, would be an excellent team building opportunity.  And so it proved!

A familiarisation exercise began during each Friday in November, and all the volunteers were soon captivated by the splendid tunes of Roger Jones, even if they did not under-estimate the challenge they presented to 'artists' more accustomed to simple hymn melodies!  Undaunted, they returned after the Christmas break in December, albeit a week late after early January snow caused a week's postponement.  February 13 and 14 seemed to loom horribly close and many flaws still needed ironing out.  It will be "all right on the night!" began to sound a little hollow as those January weeks sped by.             

BUT  . . .  it was all right on the night!   "From Pharaoh to Freedom" played to a packed house on Saturday 13th February, 2010 and to the equally well attended Circuit service on the Sunday evening, when the worship-centred qualities of the production came to the fore in a most moving drama.  Narrator, Tom Perchard took us through the strands of the story, the actors under Billy's expert direction, brought the scenes to life, while the singers all gave of their best under masterful conducting by Pauline.  There were moments when soloists and duetists positively raised hairs on the back of the neck.  The dancers added imaginative commentaries on the drama going on around them and the children acted very vividly their roles as a variety of plagues.  Many thanks must also go to the backroom boys and girls who produced splendid costumes, acted as stage builders and managers and yet others who expertly fulfilled roles as sound and lighting engineers; not forgetting our resourceful ticket sellers.      

  Soloists, Wendy & Judith                                                           Preparations for the big night

  What a wonderful team effort!

 Picture Gallery

Last minute reminders	How does this one go. . . ?	Narrator, Tom Perchard	Final costume adjustments
Passover meal & remembrance	A cruel tyrant	Egyptian soldiers crack the whip	Eliesheba sings of her faith
The Singers	The Burning Bush	The Dancers	Pharaoh says: "NO!"
The 'Plagues'	We're free! We're FREE!	Ready for a new life . . .	Eleazar & Rachel enjoy their freedom
'Guide me O my great Redeemer'	'When I tread the verge of Jordan'	'Take, eat, this is my Body'	'Take, drink, this is my Blood'

Photographs by Hannah Elson, Pauline Slatter & David Marett

Open Air Worship, Barbecue & Games

Sunday 16th August, 2009

The weather was kinder this year and upwards of ninety members and friends, including visitors from Lincolnshire met in a field near the church and enjoyed 'open-air' worship led by the Minister , the Revd. Billy Slatter.  Using very effective amplification both words and music came over very effectively and Billy led our thoughts through interviews and an amusing but meaningful illustration involving some 22 members of the congregation to consider the need to work at our faith and the much greater need for develop relationships, particularly with our Lord, over the simple following of rules and dogmas.

The service was followed by a mouth-watering barbecue, complete with barbecued bananas and ice-cream, diligently prepared by the Junior Church Staff.  (Our grateful thanks to them)

Some twenty young people, ranging from age 4 to 17 joined in "It's a Knockout" style games, which were expertly organised by stalwarts, Gordon and Muriel Cobden, and enjoyed greatly by participants and onlookers alike.  A great day in the life of our church and community!

Our web manager forgot his camera, but hopefully photographs will follow as they are gleaned from the photographers who remembered theirs!!

An exciting weekend of Youth Activities

May 15th and 16th 2009.

Then followed a humorous but, in the end, highly poignant and soul searching drama called "The Stool".  Alex gives a stool (his life) to Christ but when those everyday incidents come along, he so easily reclaims his 'stool'.  We got the message!!

A quiet moment before setting off.	The procession sets off.	Arrival at the Roman Catholic Church
Deacon Tony Ward looks on.	Next stop: The Parish Church	Striding on . . .

Down the road  . . .	. . . and up to the Methodist Church

The "Y-Factor" a local talent Concert in aid of the Piano Keyboard Fund