July Spotlight

Welcome to our Monthly Newsletter

Holiday Club Spotlight

We've yet again had an incredible week. Despite the challenges, it has been such a joy to see so many children and families excited, engaged and genuinely enjoying everything that has taken place.

Once again, the feedback from parents has been overwhelming. So many have commented on how amazed they are by the quality of Holiday Club, the care shown to every child, and how smoothly the week has run. That is entirely down to the incredible army of volunteers who give so generously of their time, energy and love each year.

We never take for granted the huge amount of work that goes into making Holiday Club happen. From months of preparation, administration and set-up, to welcoming families, leading groups, serving refreshments, providing first aid, running activities and countless behind-the-scenes jobs, it truly takes a village. We are so thankful for every single person who has played a part.

One of the highlights for me was our Family Fun Night, where we saw our wider community come together to laugh, play, build friendships and make new connections. What a privilege it is to have the space, resources and team to host an event like this for our community.

As the week comes to an end, our prayer is that the impact of Holiday Club will continue long after the final session. We pray that many lives will have been transformed through the love of Jesus, and that the seeds planted this week will continue to grow in the months and years ahead. Helen

I have loved my first holiday club! It has been such a privilege to serve alongside the team. The whole team work tirelessly and give their all so that this week is a transformative and impactful week for the children. I have loved seeing the passion and energy that the group leaders and core group have brought which has been matched by the children who have been full of life. But most importantly, what an honour it has been for us to share the good news of Jesus this week. It has been great to see children asking questions and being hungry to find out more about who Jesus is and how He can change their lives. Praying that the Holy Spirit moves powerfully in each child, leader and families life as a result of this week and they are reminded of the love of Jesus. Josh 

Teen Leader view: I love volunteering as a teen leader at holiday club. It’s great to help the younger children learn about the Bible stories and have lots of fun playing games and doing crafts with them. Some of the children remember you from the year before and it’s nice to see them again. It’s so much fun to join together as a community to praise god in lots of different ways. Seeing people getting gunged at the end of each day is always a highlight!

Parent’s view: My kids are loving St Peter’s holiday club! When they get home they are tired out and have had the best time doing so many different things. I can tell they love it because they next day they are really excited to go back in. They are clearly very welcoming and caring especially of my little one who is in Reception, the staff are very kind and really know how to get the kids enjoying themselves. The atmosphere is really centred on the families. I always try and book mine on every year. (I also love the coffee and pastry I receive on my way out, what a great extra touch!).

Year 5-6 child’s view: My experience of holiday club was very fun. I was in 5&6s red team. We created mocktails with Mark and Zillah, which was very refreshing on a hot day. We created dramas, some were really good and others were interesting. We learn’t that God forgives us and that he created us. Josh came and answered lots of our questions which helped us understand more about Christianity. Holiday club was fun and I can’t wait for next year.

Parent / Adult Leader view: Another fantastic year for our youngest group, Year R - Yr 1, with the 'Spy Squad' theme igniting the imagination throughout the week! 

We've had mornings filled with happy and energetic youngsters fully engaging in our morning 'wake up and shake up' and worship songs (a really heart-warming sight!), followed by stories around our 'truth' of the day, and enormous amounts of amazing crafts.

Break and lunch times have been fun-filled and free-flow on the lawn in front of the parish centre, with our teen leaders throwing themselves into supporting the little ones, as they have done admirably in all areas all week long. Talks focused on the morning stories in the afternoon have triggered some really thoughtful and lovely responses, as have further crafty afternoon activities, and our 'Spy School' to finish on Friday, marking the graduation of all our agents in training.

 The holiday club experience at St. Peter's consistently generates feelings of both immense privilege - to care for, entertain, teach, and hopefully inspire, so many young children, all with a focus on the amazing truth of Jesus - and massive appreciation for the army of volunteers needed to make it happen and keep it running. Huge thank you to all who play their part. Albeit tiring by the end of the week, it's such a massive blessing; roll on holiday club 2027!!

LLM Relicensing

We have a number of licensed lay ministers who serve through leading and preaching services. It was a joy to witness Elizabeth Rowlandson and David Shervington be relicensed and commissioned once again for this work at Guilford Cathedral earlier this month. We are so grateful to Elizabeth and David, and all our Licensed Lay Minsters, who faithfully serve our church family and local community. Tim

Mission Sunday

It was wonderful to welcome Andy Pask, CEO of Cord, and Kolade Ilesanmi, from Open Doors, to share God’s word and stories of what God is doing across the global church. It was a Sunday to reflect on how God partners with us, how we seek him in prayer, and how we take part in God’s work of bringing about reconciliation. As we seek the God of mission, we continue to ask God to fill us with His Spirit so we fruitful as we serve Him. 

In June we had our Alpha Holy Spirit day, held in the St Peter's church building. We had a great time where we watched videos about who the Holy Spirit is, how He moves and ministers. We also had times of discussion and prayer. It was wonderful to see guests encountering Jesus as the Holy Spirit moved. Tim

This week's Mission News is from Johannesburg and Frimley. 

John and Jenny Miller are based in Johannesburg where John teaches at a Bible college. 

The charity 'Emerge supports young people after attending A&E because of self-harm, suicide attempt or emotional crisis.