Craft Morning

Saturday 6th April, 10.30 -12.30 St Alban’s Hall

The Mothers’ Union are running this craft morning, but it is open to all. You don’t have to be a member to come and enjoy some crafting (and delicious cake…)! The suggested donation is £2 which will cover the craft materials, refreshments and a raffle. Crafts suitable for adults and children.
Look forward to seeing you there. More information from Sarah Magrath.

Parish Visioning Awayday

Saturday 13th April 10am-2pm

Everyone is invited to St Alban’s Visioning Awayday on Saturday 13th April from 10am to 2pm. This will take place at St Andrew’s Church, Furnace Green, RH10 6NU. Please bring a packed lunch with you as we will be having a short lunch break during the day. Refreshments will be provided.
Please sign the sheet on the table in church so we have a rough idea of how many people will be coming.

Concert in the Hall

Sunday 14th of April at 3pm

A date for your diaries – Sunday April 14th at 3pm. We are delighted to welcome Hannah Ford to sing for us while we enjoy afternoon tea. Tickets will be available soon for catering purposes but as on previous occasions we will be asking for donations at the event.

APCM

Sunday 12th May – After main service

This year’s Annual Parochial Church Meeting is on Sunday 12th May after the main service. This is your opportunity to look at the financial Accounts and Trustee Report as well as the wider church reports on what has been done throughout the year.
There will be three openings for new PCC members and two openings for Deanery Synod members. Please, please consider whether you could offer to join the PCC this year. As our PCC Secretary so rightly said:  Alone we can do so little – together we can do so much.
Revd Ann

Would you like to be confirmed?

The next Deanery confirmations will take place at 3pm on Sunday 12th May at Worth Abbey.
We will be running a confirmation course at St Alban’s in April, which will run for three weeks on Monday and Wednesday, between 4pm and 5pm on the following dates: 
Monday 8th April and Wednesday 10th April 
Monday 15th and Wednesday 17th April 
Monday 22nd and Wednesday 24th April 
Could anyone who wishes to be confirmed please contact me (Debs) and/or Rev. Ann so that we can plan accordingly.

Wild Wednesdays

The current three year theme of Mothers’ Union is ‘Transformation Now’, when we look to make positive change in our members, our branches, our projects and the churches and communities in which we live and work and worship.
As part of this, our branch at St Alban’s (Gossops Green & Bewbush), has organised a new initiative called Wild Wednesdays! These are social evenings at Goffs Manor Pub at the top end of Goffs Park.  These are for everybody. Third Wednesday of the month, 7.30 -9.30pm. They will just take place during the warmer months and for all age groups. Hopefully people will feel able to bring children with them as Goffs Manor has nice outdoor space. Come for an hour, or longer, it’s up to you. Just pop along for a drink (soft or non-soft) with friends.
7.30 – 9.30 GOFFS MANOR PUB – Next meet TBC.

Help needed – Just once a year!

Could you take on a small job for St Alban’s? 
Merle has been administering the Children’s Society’s collection boxes for many years but would like to hand this over to someone else.
The job entails totalling up the Children’s Society collection boxes held by some parishioners once a year. Then sending off a form to them with the total for the year.
Could you take this on? Please contact the office if you are interested. Thank you.

Volunteers Needed

Jesus said, ‘Remember, you did not choose me. I chose you. And I chose you to bear fruit’.
He also said ‘do not hide your light under a bushel’.
There are many ways in which you can contribute to our common life as a church and be a beacon of light to our community. For example, we need people:

• To join the fundraising team. You may bring new ideas or you may bring a pair of hands. All contributions are really needed and appreciated, especially at this current time when church finances need every boost we can find.
• To enhance our worship. We need people to join the serving team (training is provided). We need more people to do the prayers (could this be you? Guidance is provided).
• To help with Junior Church. Do you love working with children? Our Junior Church leaders really could do with more people on the rota so that they, too, can have weeks when they can worship in church along with everyone else.
• To do pastoral visiting. Since the pandemic started and home visiting became impossible, most of our pastoral team have stepped down. We do need to resurrect a team of visitors to either do Home Communions or just to simply visit or keep in touch with those not able to come to church. Could this be you?
• To help with Tiny Toes, our carer and toddler group on Monday mornings. The group runs from 9.30 to 11 am but setting up and clearing up adds an extra half hour at each end. Even if you can only help with part of this (doing refreshments, clearing up etc) every little helps. Please do offer some help if you can.

Please, please, do consider any way you can help with the mission and ministry of our church. You may have new ideas to bring to the table. Please do, because every little helps!
If it helps you to think of how your individual gifts contribute to the whole, helping us all to celebrate God’s love in the community, remember the words of a favourite hymn ‘This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine’!

Online Book Group

Reading Genesis & Exodus as Christian Scripture for Today’s Church

An afternoon and evening Zoom group led jointly by The Revd Marc Lloyd (Rector of Warbleton, Bodle Street Green & Dallington, who has written and taught on a wide range of biblical and theological subjects) and by The Revd Thomas Pelham (Rector of Burwash, Burwash Weald & Etchingham, who is part of the podcasting team at Irreverend: Faith and Current Affairs).

The fortnightly sessions will enable participants to engage deeply with the books of Genesis and Exodus by looking at the big picture and reading key passages closely.  There will be plenty of time for questions and discussion.

This group will take place through the year on Zoom at approximately fortnightly intervals (excluding Lent, August and Advent). Sessions are from 1:30pm to 2:45pm and 7:45pm to 9pm on Wednesdays.  

Genesis sessions: 11th Jan; 25th Jan; 8th Feb; 19th April; 3rd May; 17th May; 7th June; 21st June; 5th July; 19th July.
Exodus sessions: 6th Sept; 20th Sept; 4th Oct; 18th Oct; 1st Nov; 15th Nov; 29th Nov

For the Zoom link, please email the Revd Marc Lloyd: marc_lloyd@hotmail.com

Free Blankets

At St Alban’s we have free blankets to give out, courtesy of Age UK and Biffa. Come and collect one for yourself or for a neighbour or friend on Thursdays, 10am till 12, at our Community Café morning. Have a cuppa and a chat while you’re here!

St Alban’s supporting the Free Shop Crawley

The Free shop Crawley is a charity based in our parish, in Dorsten Square, Bewbush. The work they do to support those in need is truly heart-warming. If anyone would like to donate food items there is a designated box at the back of church for collections. Alternatively, text to donate cash: Text: 70085 5FOOD to donate £5,10FOOD to donate £10, 20FOOD to donate £20 etc. Go to freeshopcrawley.com for more info.
Thank you!

St. Alban’s Opening Times

In addition to normal services, the Church will now be open to the public at the following times:

Mondays 9am – 4pm

Tuesday – Thursdays 9am – 5pm