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Reproduced from the February 2006 edition of the Prestbury Parish Magazine
The Yellow Brick Road to BethlehemCelebrate! went ‘over the rainbow’ recently when the theme of The Wizard of Oz was used to explore our spiritual journey. Each week different members of the Celebrate! team did a great job leading the service dressed as the main characters of the film. Sue became the Scarecrow; Andy was the Tin Man; Father Michael played the Lion and Kathryn became Dorothy. Much to the delight of the children we had a real live puppy in church too as Dorothy’s dog was played by Kathryn’s puppy. We also watched clips of the 1939 film of The Wizard of Oz where Dorothy meets each of the characters and we learn that the Scarecrow would really like a brain, that the Tin Man would love to have a heart and that the Lion was desperate for some courage. It was unusual and great fun to be watching a film in church! Each week we followed the characters on The Yellow Brick Road as they each took a journey of discovery, challenge and friendship, which resulted in each of them realising that they all already possessed what they were looking for. And, of course, Dorothy also discovers that ‘there’s no place like home’. At the end of each service, we all wrote prayers or did drawings on small yellow pieces of paper which we then took to the front of the church and glued to a long piece of paper which became Celebrate!’s own Yellow Brick Road. Dee Campling Sharing a great start to the New Year!It was a surprisingly bright, mild morning which greeted us early on New Year’s Day and an even more cheerful welcome awaited everyone at St Mary’s; instead of our usual Celebrate! service at 9.30am, we had decided to have a very sociable ‘Bring and Share’ breakfast. So, once everyone had deposited their very generous breakfast donations on the breakfast table at the front of the church, we started the morning with some festive music in the form of a number of traditional family favourites Christmas carols, expertly accompanied by Frances on the piano. This was followed by Father Michael’s welcome and introductory New Year prayers. Then it was time to tuck in to an amazing feast of croissants, bagels, bacon and mini sausages, yogurts, muffins and various other delicious goodies. The children all enjoyed their treats and there was a definite peace as they enjoyed their breakfasts with their friends, while the grown ups chatted and exchanged Christmas and New Year stories. Suitably refuelled, we ended the service with a couple more carols before having one last opportunity to view the lovely crib scene and nativity figures at the front of the church. All in all, an excellent start to 2006 (although not good for the diets…) – thanks to everyone who made this possible and a Happy New Year to everyone! Lucy Brooks This Month at Celebrate!In early February we are continuing our series on some of Jesus’ parables. We aim to present these each week so that whatever age you are, or whatever stage along your Christian experience, you can connect with something relevant for you. Each week our music group leads the singing parts of our worship and sometimes other parts too. We enjoy old favourites and a steady trickle of new songs. The more energetic enjoy the range of percussion instruments on offer and some of the more reflective songs lend themselves to more gentle flag waving. We have a web site www.prestbury.net/celebrate where you can find pictures and news. Most weeks there is also ‘Going Deeper’. If you are at Celebrate! you will know that this is on a paper slip but if you can’t be there then logging on is a handy way to make sure you don’t miss out on the action. ‘Going Deeper’ is always tied in with the theme of the worship that week and offers guided thoughts for reflection during the week. In the first three weeks of February we will be looking at ‘The Persistent Widow’ from Luke chapter 18 verses 1-8, ‘The Workers in the Vineyard’ from Matthew chapter 20 verses 1-16 and then we’ll have a go at making up a Modern Parable. The end of February will see the start of a series about unwrapping some of the ‘I am …’ sayings of Jesus. If any of this is making you curious – that’s great. Come along to St Mary’s any Sunday at 9.30am and experience Celebrate! for yourself. Sue Read |
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