15 July, 2012
13 July, 2012
Sunday 15th July - DNA's 11th Birthday! AND the Dedication of Sarah Ajaj.
Please join us at Abbeygate, 10.30am as we celebrate in worship, then gather with Raied, Souzan, Rania and Samaa Ajaj for the Dedication of baby Sarah, before sharing in bread and wine together during the Communion.
This week's guest speaker is a friend and colleague from USA, Jon Shuler, who will preach from Ephesians 1:1-14 on the theme, "Glorious grace!"
To be followed by:
Picnic at Abbeyfields, from 12.30pm
parking outside the Colchester Arena Leisure Centre (CO2 7FZ) , opposite intersection of Flagstaff Rd and Circular Rd North/Napier Rd
Please bring your picnic lunch, something waterproof to sit on, and any additional friends and family who you think might enjoy the day. All are welcome.
Along with football, frisbee and any other equipment available to use, there will be some games and races organised during the afternoon for people of all ages!
In the unlikely event (!) that it rain, we will have the picnic at Abbeygate instead
NB Barn Church people will be invited to join these birthday celebrations with their families- no separate Barn Church this week
This week's guest speaker is a friend and colleague from USA, Jon Shuler, who will preach from Ephesians 1:1-14 on the theme, "Glorious grace!"
To be followed by:
Picnic at Abbeyfields, from 12.30pm
parking outside the Colchester Arena Leisure Centre (CO2 7FZ) , opposite intersection of Flagstaff Rd and Circular Rd North/Napier Rd
Please bring your picnic lunch, something waterproof to sit on, and any additional friends and family who you think might enjoy the day. All are welcome.
Along with football, frisbee and any other equipment available to use, there will be some games and races organised during the afternoon for people of all ages!
In the unlikely event (!) that it rain, we will have the picnic at Abbeygate instead
NB Barn Church people will be invited to join these birthday celebrations with their families- no separate Barn Church this week
07 July, 2012
06 July, 2012
Sunday July 8th
This Sunday, July 8th, Nick Brooke will be concluding the brief series from Mark's Gospel on Jesus' training of disciples. Check out Mark 6, 1-13.
Janie will lead music and there will be children's groups upstairs, with Isaac Lasky and Dave Watson. There will be prayer for our mission both at home and overseas- Manik Corea is back in town and we'll have opportunity to pray for him and his family as they move to a new ministry in Bangkok; we'll also hear something of our UWM team's local activities and needs for prayer as well.
Please take a report from last week's AGM , which will be made available; this details the newly elected Church Council and some of the discussion that took place.
The following Sunday, July 15th, is our eleventh birthday! Following a celebration worship with visiting speaker Jon Shuler and dedication of Sarah Ajaj, there will be a picnic in Abbey Fields for all the family- a great opportunity to introduce friends to the community as well; feel free to invite anyone you'd like to introduce to the church.
Janie will lead music and there will be children's groups upstairs, with Isaac Lasky and Dave Watson. There will be prayer for our mission both at home and overseas- Manik Corea is back in town and we'll have opportunity to pray for him and his family as they move to a new ministry in Bangkok; we'll also hear something of our UWM team's local activities and needs for prayer as well.
Please take a report from last week's AGM , which will be made available; this details the newly elected Church Council and some of the discussion that took place.
The following Sunday, July 15th, is our eleventh birthday! Following a celebration worship with visiting speaker Jon Shuler and dedication of Sarah Ajaj, there will be a picnic in Abbey Fields for all the family- a great opportunity to introduce friends to the community as well; feel free to invite anyone you'd like to introduce to the church.
04 July, 2012
July 7th
Manik Corea meeting: Abbeygate Two, Sat July 7th, 3-4.30pm
Manik will be back in town this weekend! Many of you will remember Manik from his time in Colchester serving among international students between 2000-2005. He has visited a couple of times subsequently including being the preacher at our tenth anniversary celebration last July.
We sent Manik and his wife Maple out with prayer in September 2005, just a week after they got married! As a church, we have supported them with both prayer and finance over the years while they were studying in Singapore then working with Christ Church, Bangkok. Now they have finished their term at Christ Church and are about to start a new church planting venture in Bangkok.
This Saturday, Manik will be presenting news about this new work of church planting in Bangkok, Thailand at Abbeygate Two, Sat July 7th, 3-4.30pm.
You are most welcome to hear what is going on; prayer partners are needed for this new venture which is a direct spin-off from Manik's experience of getting our church started here in Colchester 11 years ago. If you can't make Saturday, look out for Manik on Sunday and sign up for the prayer letter. Sadly (for us!) Maple and their son Josiah are in Asia and not able to travel with Manik this time.
July 5th
Abbeygate Two meeting Thursday 5th July, 8pm
This is just a reminder from the AGM on Sunday for those who are interested:
Meeting to discuss Abbeygate Two
Where? Abbeygate Two
When? Thursday evening 5th July at 8.00pm
Why? Another organisation has made an offer to lease Abbeygate Two; what is our response?
What? Discussion and Prayer
29 June, 2012
Sunday July 1st
Redina Kolaneci is this week's speaker, continuing the series on how Jesus trained his apprentices. Her talk will be centred around 2 healing miracles from Mark 5:21-43. Naomi Snelling will lead worship music and the morning's worship event will include Communion.
This event will be followed by Part 2 of the AGM, from (approx)12pm - 2pm.
All are welcome to stay and participate.
Agenda will include nominations and elections to the church council, financial report, time for questions and discussion. Carey Watson will be chairing this event.
Please bring your own packed lunch (sandwiches etc) to eat during the meeting.
Notes for the Diary : Events on Sundays in July
July 1st- AGM part 2
July 15th- Anniversary picnic on Abbey Fields after morning worship.
July 29th- Creativity Sunday and International Christian Fellowship
24 June, 2012
July Sundays have special events!!
July 1st- AGM part 2
July 8th- History Maker Foundation event at Pancaldis in the afternoon- and Nay's birthday
July 15th- Anniversary picnic on Abbey Fields
July 22nd- Donau Gemeinde's 10th birthday in Germany- some DNA folk will be visiting
July 29th- Creativity Sunday
July 8th- History Maker Foundation event at Pancaldis in the afternoon- and Nay's birthday
July 15th- Anniversary picnic on Abbey Fields
July 22nd- Donau Gemeinde's 10th birthday in Germany- some DNA folk will be visiting
July 29th- Creativity Sunday
Discussion Questions from Sunday 24th June- the Wind and the Waves!
Questions for discussion (no particular order, pick three or four to discuss)
1. Fear negates faith. Why is it so critical that the faith of his followers be strengthned?
ref. Matthew13:58, James 1:5 - 8
2. What do you think about Jesus’ verbal response to them? ‘Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?’
3. How is this particular miracle a sign of the Kingdom of heaven?
4. What do you think about Jesus’ methods of training?
5. Read Romans 12:2 How relevant is this Scripture to the story?
6. How does having faith the size of a mustard seed relate to this crisis?
What might the outcome have been had the disciples exercised mustard seeds of faith in their predicament?
7. The Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) reveals to us a God-in-community (Three in One). In Old Testament times people received the word of God when they gathered in tribes and as a nation, rather than as individuals. Jesus mentored his apprentices in groups of 12, 72, or in 2’s and 3’s, rather than as individuals. How does this weigh up with the individualism of 21st Century Europe and the West?
8. Just as we put our money in the bank, we put our faith experiences in a faith memory bank. We can draw on these memories of God’s faithfulness to us at any time, to encourage our belief and trust. What difference would it make to DNA as a whole, if we created and kept individual faith memory banks, as opposed to developing and fostering a communal faith memory bank?
9. In DNA what practical ways can we grow a communal faith memory bank, rather than individual ones, to encourage our faith and trust in God?
1. Fear negates faith. Why is it so critical that the faith of his followers be strengthned?
ref. Matthew13:58, James 1:5 - 8
2. What do you think about Jesus’ verbal response to them? ‘Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?’
3. How is this particular miracle a sign of the Kingdom of heaven?
4. What do you think about Jesus’ methods of training?
5. Read Romans 12:2 How relevant is this Scripture to the story?
6. How does having faith the size of a mustard seed relate to this crisis?
What might the outcome have been had the disciples exercised mustard seeds of faith in their predicament?
7. The Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) reveals to us a God-in-community (Three in One). In Old Testament times people received the word of God when they gathered in tribes and as a nation, rather than as individuals. Jesus mentored his apprentices in groups of 12, 72, or in 2’s and 3’s, rather than as individuals. How does this weigh up with the individualism of 21st Century Europe and the West?
8. Just as we put our money in the bank, we put our faith experiences in a faith memory bank. We can draw on these memories of God’s faithfulness to us at any time, to encourage our belief and trust. What difference would it make to DNA as a whole, if we created and kept individual faith memory banks, as opposed to developing and fostering a communal faith memory bank?
9. In DNA what practical ways can we grow a communal faith memory bank, rather than individual ones, to encourage our faith and trust in God?
22 June, 2012
Sunday 24th June
Theme: How Jesus apprenticed his disciples - No. 3: Mark 4: 35-41 "The Wind and the Waves"
Dramatic story telling
Creative all-aged prayer activity
Children's Arts and crafts (in the main hall)
Interactive talk (upstairs) for the adults (and those preferring not to do Arts and Crafts)
This week the seating arrangements will be different. Following on from the story-telling and prayer, children will remain downstairs for their Arts and Crafts, with activities led by Richard and Sue Hearing, Jenna Chapman, Maisy and Georgia Collins. The adults will move upstairs and enjoy more comfortable setting for their talk and discussion.
PLEASE NOTE - Colchester Foodbank need support
Colchester Foodbank is struggling at the moment, with a greatly increased
demand, and would welcome donations of food. The items requested include
long life milk, cereal, fruit juice and sugar (ideally1kg bags).
Please bring your contributions to DNA on Sunday and they will be delivered to
Foodbank next week. Alternatively, food can be taken directly to the Big Yellow
Warehouse near North Station on Mondays between 10-12pm,
or at CCVS in Winsley's House during working hours.
THANK YOU!
20 June, 2012
AGM part 2 on July 1st
The 2nd part of the Annual General Meeting for DNA Networks will take place on Sunday July 1st, after morning worship.
The purpose will be to finalise the election of members of the church council; for this the electoral list will need to be complete, so if you have not yet filled out the relevant form please do so. You have to be over 16, baptised and/or confirmed and part of DNA for at least 6 months.
Church Council members will represent the Mission Units, Missional Communities and Servant Teams.
The purpose will be to finalise the election of members of the church council; for this the electoral list will need to be complete, so if you have not yet filled out the relevant form please do so. You have to be over 16, baptised and/or confirmed and part of DNA for at least 6 months.
Church Council members will represent the Mission Units, Missional Communities and Servant Teams.
09 June, 2012
Sunday 10th June
John Orchard begins a new series on Mark's Gospel, chapters 3-6 this week. The series starts with Jesus choosing the Twelve and ends in five weeks when Jesus sends them out to do his mission. What He did in between represents his initial training process for his followers. What does this say to us? What kind of similar training do we need to be equipped for the mission to which Jesus has called us? What was he doing with the Twelve and why did He choose them?
This week, Nick Brooke will be leading us in worship songs and the children will have learning groups upstairs; there will be time and space to pray about local and wider concerns as well as to respond to the story from Mark.
Don't forget the invitation from our German partner church, Donau Gemeinde, to celebrate their 10th anniversary over the weekend of July 20th-22nd.
This week, Nick Brooke will be leading us in worship songs and the children will have learning groups upstairs; there will be time and space to pray about local and wider concerns as well as to respond to the story from Mark.
Don't forget the invitation from our German partner church, Donau Gemeinde, to celebrate their 10th anniversary over the weekend of July 20th-22nd.
01 June, 2012
Trinity Sunday June 3rd 2012
Morning worship event, 10.30am at Abbeygate 2
Sunday's speaker is Isaac Lasky on the theme "You must be born again" from John 3: 1- 17. Naomi Snelling is the music leader this week and worship includes Communion together. Nick Brooke will introduce John and Kerry Clayton to everyone - we look forward to hearing about different things they are up to.
Sunday also sees the commencement of regular Children's Ministry - a real milestone for DNA!
2-3 year-olds will be led by Carey for a lovely programme of activity. 4-7 year-olds and 7-10 year-olds will combine this week for special activites to be led by Emily and Janie with the assistance of Maisy. The children's sessions will take place upstairs in Abbeygate for approx 40 minutes during the worship event. It promises to be a load of fun!
Sunday's speaker is Isaac Lasky on the theme "You must be born again" from John 3: 1- 17. Naomi Snelling is the music leader this week and worship includes Communion together. Nick Brooke will introduce John and Kerry Clayton to everyone - we look forward to hearing about different things they are up to.
Sunday also sees the commencement of regular Children's Ministry - a real milestone for DNA!
2-3 year-olds will be led by Carey for a lovely programme of activity. 4-7 year-olds and 7-10 year-olds will combine this week for special activites to be led by Emily and Janie with the assistance of Maisy. The children's sessions will take place upstairs in Abbeygate for approx 40 minutes during the worship event. It promises to be a load of fun!
26 May, 2012
Pentecost Sunday May 27th
This Sunday we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit at the Feast of Pentecost! We are delighted that Linda Pepper of Friends International will be our invited speaker; Linda started last autumn as Friends International worker at Essex University.
Since Pentecost marked the beginning of the Gospel being made available to the nations and all ages, there will be some World Music and some inter-generational storytelling and worship to begin with. Children will be invited to a creative activity upstairs with Naomi and Mark Snelling and friends. We'll find out a bit of Linda's story and then read Acts 2, 1-20 before the talk.
Wishing you a very Happy Pentecost!
PS At last week's AGM a number of papers were distributed. the Pledge and Electoral List papers can be picked up at Abbeygate at any time or downloaded here http://www.facebook.com/groups/208717309164931/
Since Pentecost marked the beginning of the Gospel being made available to the nations and all ages, there will be some World Music and some inter-generational storytelling and worship to begin with. Children will be invited to a creative activity upstairs with Naomi and Mark Snelling and friends. We'll find out a bit of Linda's story and then read Acts 2, 1-20 before the talk.
Wishing you a very Happy Pentecost!
PS At last week's AGM a number of papers were distributed. the Pledge and Electoral List papers can be picked up at Abbeygate at any time or downloaded here http://www.facebook.com/groups/208717309164931/
18 May, 2012
Communion, Lunch, AGM Sunday 20th May
This week's celebration of Holy Communion begins at 10.30am at Abbeygate Two. A considerable band is being assembled to make a joyful noise and Sara Lewis will be introducing Sam from Singapore. Jess McCarty will be speaking on Jesus' Ascension from Acts 1, 1-11 while Mamie Ramazani will lead a children's activity on the same theme. Communion will follow with space for silent prayer and listening to God.
After a short break we'll reassemble for lunch and following that we'll have the AGM, part 1. This will include Vision Casting and brief reports from Mission Units, Missional Communities and Servant Teams. There will be opportunities for discussion of the proposed new structure for DNA as we develop and grow.
For those intending to stay on, please bring something for lunch. We can put it all out on tables and share it around. There are two microwave ovens, so only limited facilities for heating food!
Here's the intended timetable:
10.30-11.45 Worship
12.00-12.45 Lunch
12.45-1.45 AGM pt 1
After a short break we'll reassemble for lunch and following that we'll have the AGM, part 1. This will include Vision Casting and brief reports from Mission Units, Missional Communities and Servant Teams. There will be opportunities for discussion of the proposed new structure for DNA as we develop and grow.
For those intending to stay on, please bring something for lunch. We can put it all out on tables and share it around. There are two microwave ovens, so only limited facilities for heating food!
Here's the intended timetable:
10.30-11.45 Worship
12.00-12.45 Lunch
12.45-1.45 AGM pt 1
09 May, 2012
Sunday 13th May
Sunday 13th May: 10.30am at Abbeygate 2
This Sunday's worship event includes the Dedication of baby Rachel Watson. Naomi Snelling will be leading the songs, Marie Morris the prayers and David Beales will speak from Acts 10: 44-48, Peter's Resurrection Speech 3. We look forward to seeing you there!
5pm -7.30pm Barn Church - this week meeting at Abbeygate
RETREAT Wednesday 16th May , 9.30am-2pm, The Annex, Assington, CO10 5LQ
time to be still, to connect with God and hear what he might be saying......
time to enjoy the peaceful Suffolk countryside......
bring a packed lunch, notebook and pen, Bible
tea and coffee provided
contact Janie Beales if interested in coming
janiebeales@ntlworld.com or 01206 530934
This Sunday's worship event includes the Dedication of baby Rachel Watson. Naomi Snelling will be leading the songs, Marie Morris the prayers and David Beales will speak from Acts 10: 44-48, Peter's Resurrection Speech 3. We look forward to seeing you there!
5pm -7.30pm Barn Church - this week meeting at Abbeygate
RETREAT Wednesday 16th May , 9.30am-2pm, The Annex, Assington, CO10 5LQ
time to be still, to connect with God and hear what he might be saying......
time to enjoy the peaceful Suffolk countryside......
bring a packed lunch, notebook and pen, Bible
tea and coffee provided
contact Janie Beales if interested in coming
janiebeales@ntlworld.com or 01206 530934
05 May, 2012
Activities coming up during the week
Monday May 7th: The Wivenhoe Walk, meet at East St Bridge (by Siege House) 10.30am for a walk along the Wivenhoe trail. After lunch in Wivenhoe (byo or visit local hostelry) walk back to town or take the train.
Wednesday May 9th: DNA cricket match, 6pm at Essex University v West Mersea. If the rain stops the T20 season begins! (& don't forget practice at 4.30pm on Fridays).
Saturday 12th May: History Maker Film Quiz Night 7pm at Abbeygate Two. For information about the History Maker chairity, see http://historymakerfoundation.co.uk/History_Maker_Foundation/Welcome.html
Wednesday May 9th: DNA cricket match, 6pm at Essex University v West Mersea. If the rain stops the T20 season begins! (& don't forget practice at 4.30pm on Fridays).
Saturday 12th May: History Maker Film Quiz Night 7pm at Abbeygate Two. For information about the History Maker chairity, see http://historymakerfoundation.co.uk/History_Maker_Foundation/Welcome.html
Sunday 6th May
DNA worship at 10.30am, Abbeygate Two, 9 Whitewell Rd, Colchester, CO2 7DE.
Including... Refreshments; Music led by Janie Beales with African singers; Prayers led by Redina Kolaneci; Children's activity led by Mamie Ramazani; Reading Acts 8, 26-40 and talk on "Philip's Bump" by Nick Brooke; Interview with John and Kerry Clayton.
Barn Church will be at 5pm at Abbeygate Two.
Coming up on May 20th- Shared Lunch and AGM.
