Last week a group of us went along to pray for the Chief Executive Kevan Collins.
We wanted to pray for for him for God to bless him in his new position and for God to help fulfill the job he wants to do.
Kevan was very approachable and told us he had been living in the borough for over 26 years. When he first came to the borough he was a teacher and used to live in Robin Hood Gardens just near to Mulberry Place(It wasn't there then so had an amazing view across East London).
We expressed to him our aims and goals for the group highlighted on our Statement of Purpose; he seemed impressed.
Steve prayed for him asking God for wisdom for him to do his job properly and bless his tenure giving a good length of time in the Job.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Report of meeting 8 October 2009
When the leaders met with the Rev Alan Green back in July he told us that up until Mr Tony Blair became Prime Minister having faith in the work place was your own affair and the secular world or organization did not tend to mix. However, since he came to power he encouraged organisations to welcome and celebrate faith as an integral part of a work force expression.
Rev Green told us that as this was a bit of new concept many organisations did not know how to do what was asked of them. Forums were set up and consultations made, but it ended up being still a bit of a muddle.
How then can we as a group promote our presence within the borough? we asked.
He suggested we could be as bold and self confident about our beliefs as we liked as long as we don't criticize other faith groups.
After all said and done we felt these pointers were very helpful. We felt we could use these to see the group progress.
This in mind today's meeting was convened.
Stephen Henry could not attend but sent some thoughts via Email
1. I strongly feel the need to address the question of faith equality. Why should our being Christians be considered offensive to anyone. We have as much right as any other faith to make staff aware of our ministry.
2.The lunch time meetings; Would after work meetings, with appropriate refreshments be worth trying to avoid staff not having time, or having meetings to attend during the lunch period.
3. We should be able to advertise our ministry with a mission statement and who to contact for further information. We also could look toward local clergy providing a service, on a once a month basis, with suitable advertising.
Parity within the Borough
Steve asked if there were any thoughts first off.
Straight away many expressed they wanted a room in Mulberry Place dedicated to Christian prayer. This would be somewhere people could go to to reflect and pray away from pressures of work.
It was suggested that in summer, when the weather was good, we could pray outside. We had done something like that last week when we did the prayer walk and another is planned at the end of November.
It was expressed that prayer breaks seem to be acceptable for other faiths.
Recently the Muslim forum was invited to attend a meeting with a deaf signer. The Christian Group would have liked the opportunity to have had something similar.
Changes to our meetings.
Presently we meet on a Monday 1 - 2pm led by Doreen Kersey and Thursdays 12:30 to 1:30 led by Steve and Jessica.
Should our times change to accommodate those who don't come at present or come infrequently.
No time is a good time was expressed, but it was up to the individual to decide on priority and support they wish to make to the group.
As said earlier Steve Henry wondered whether an evening meeting, with appropriate refreshments, occasionally.
The meetings are normally an hour and Flora recommended to attend for that whole hour to get the full benefit of the meeting. Mangers should be flexible to staff to allow people to attend the group. People should be bold to ask for that time especially as Muslims are allowed the 12 to 2 window.
Steve encouraged everyone to get other people to come and be enthusiastic about the group meetings.
Collection of Purpose.
Having the group have a goal or collection of purpose would encourage more to come. That was shown when the group rallied round to be part of the previous Easter campaign.
Maybe knowing the structure of the meeting would help people realize what they where missing.
Variety was also needed as one person felt the meetings had become a bit stale recently.
Christmas and Easter campaigns would be discussed at a later date.
Jessica added further comments via email:
The TH Christian prayer group should be:
- A forum for staff across the borough to worship Jesus Christ collectively.
- Study the Bible and apply its teachings in the workplace/community
- Pray
- Hold events to create awareness about the Christian faith
- Celebrate major Christian festivals such as Christmas and Easter
Rev Green told us that as this was a bit of new concept many organisations did not know how to do what was asked of them. Forums were set up and consultations made, but it ended up being still a bit of a muddle.
How then can we as a group promote our presence within the borough? we asked.
He suggested we could be as bold and self confident about our beliefs as we liked as long as we don't criticize other faith groups.
After all said and done we felt these pointers were very helpful. We felt we could use these to see the group progress.
This in mind today's meeting was convened.
Stephen Henry could not attend but sent some thoughts via Email
1. I strongly feel the need to address the question of faith equality. Why should our being Christians be considered offensive to anyone. We have as much right as any other faith to make staff aware of our ministry.
2.The lunch time meetings; Would after work meetings, with appropriate refreshments be worth trying to avoid staff not having time, or having meetings to attend during the lunch period.
3. We should be able to advertise our ministry with a mission statement and who to contact for further information. We also could look toward local clergy providing a service, on a once a month basis, with suitable advertising.
Parity within the Borough
Steve asked if there were any thoughts first off.
Straight away many expressed they wanted a room in Mulberry Place dedicated to Christian prayer. This would be somewhere people could go to to reflect and pray away from pressures of work.
It was suggested that in summer, when the weather was good, we could pray outside. We had done something like that last week when we did the prayer walk and another is planned at the end of November.
It was expressed that prayer breaks seem to be acceptable for other faiths.
Recently the Muslim forum was invited to attend a meeting with a deaf signer. The Christian Group would have liked the opportunity to have had something similar.
Changes to our meetings.
Presently we meet on a Monday 1 - 2pm led by Doreen Kersey and Thursdays 12:30 to 1:30 led by Steve and Jessica.
Should our times change to accommodate those who don't come at present or come infrequently.
No time is a good time was expressed, but it was up to the individual to decide on priority and support they wish to make to the group.
As said earlier Steve Henry wondered whether an evening meeting, with appropriate refreshments, occasionally.
The meetings are normally an hour and Flora recommended to attend for that whole hour to get the full benefit of the meeting. Mangers should be flexible to staff to allow people to attend the group. People should be bold to ask for that time especially as Muslims are allowed the 12 to 2 window.
Steve encouraged everyone to get other people to come and be enthusiastic about the group meetings.
Collection of Purpose.
Having the group have a goal or collection of purpose would encourage more to come. That was shown when the group rallied round to be part of the previous Easter campaign.
Maybe knowing the structure of the meeting would help people realize what they where missing.
Variety was also needed as one person felt the meetings had become a bit stale recently.
Christmas and Easter campaigns would be discussed at a later date.
Jessica added further comments via email:
The TH Christian prayer group should be:
- A forum for staff across the borough to worship Jesus Christ collectively.
- Study the Bible and apply its teachings in the workplace/community
- Pray
- Hold events to create awareness about the Christian faith
- Celebrate major Christian festivals such as Christmas and Easter
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Steve's Scottish holiday Day 2
3:30! I was woken by the birds at 3:30! It was an explosion of sound. The dawn had come early this far north. I listened for a while in my tent and tried to identify some of them. Green-finch, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Wren.... It wasn't long before I drifted back to sleep.
I next woke at just gone 7
Where we where in Cumbria was one end of Hadrian's Wall. In fact the remains of the wall ran just behind the camp site.
After breakfast we chose a path to follow and all went well until we came to a heathland marsh. The designated path seemed to have disappeared. I sort to trail blaze a path in a macho sort of way. This failed! I was finding a way through when suddenly a leg disappeared down a boggy hole right up to above my knee.
Because of this we had to return to our camp site early to get changed. We had made sandwiches for the journey so we had lunch at the tent.
Being back at camp gave us opportunity to sit and relax and let the stresses and strains of London wash off us. It was only then that we started to enjoy the holiday.
In the evening we walked along the coastal path to the local village. The path actually went through someones garden. I'm sure I would have liked that.
As we arrived at the village we were surprised to see a disused railway station. The platform was still there and the sign seemed to show how it was quite a busy station.
The local village pub was fairly full. We ordered a pot of tea for two and did some people watching.
We returned to camp around 10pm and was still very light. We went to bed ready for the journey north tomorrow.
I next woke at just gone 7
Where we where in Cumbria was one end of Hadrian's Wall. In fact the remains of the wall ran just behind the camp site.
After breakfast we chose a path to follow and all went well until we came to a heathland marsh. The designated path seemed to have disappeared. I sort to trail blaze a path in a macho sort of way. This failed! I was finding a way through when suddenly a leg disappeared down a boggy hole right up to above my knee.
Because of this we had to return to our camp site early to get changed. We had made sandwiches for the journey so we had lunch at the tent.
Being back at camp gave us opportunity to sit and relax and let the stresses and strains of London wash off us. It was only then that we started to enjoy the holiday.
In the evening we walked along the coastal path to the local village. The path actually went through someones garden. I'm sure I would have liked that.
As we arrived at the village we were surprised to see a disused railway station. The platform was still there and the sign seemed to show how it was quite a busy station.
The local village pub was fairly full. We ordered a pot of tea for two and did some people watching.
We returned to camp around 10pm and was still very light. We went to bed ready for the journey north tomorrow.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Steve's Scottish holiday Day 1
I had been planning a camping trip for some time. As a couple, my wife Andrea and I are very interested in birdwatching. The pound was very week so I thought it would be good to have a "stay-cation".
I decided on Scotland because of what I saw in Birdwatching magazine which I subscribe to. They feature walks around the country depending n time of year. A forest walk in Glenmore caught my eye. The trouble is living in London, it was a long way to go. This got me planning camping.
We had packed the car the night before in readiness. we finally got away about 10 minutes to 8, Ahead of us was, what I thought would be, a six hour journey, or at least that was what the GPS told us. As it turned out, and probably always the way, it took longer than we hoped. It did not help by the road we were due to travel on was closed as a lorry had shed it's load. This meant it took ten hours to get to our first camping place.
We used our new car. Even with it's size the car was still packed full. We always tend to take things “just in case”. I had packed the car the previous evening but we still had things to fit in in the morning.
We arrived, as I said, about eight hours from start. I nearly missed where it was and would have driven past if it wasn't for Andrea calling out the name of the farm. I parked up in a little lay by and entered the farmyard. I was greeted by a nice Lady and her dog. Immediately she offered a cup of tea. Andrea was still in the car so I went to collect her.
We told her of our journey and complained of the traffic. She listened with interest and offered us her home-made biscuits; she seemed very kind and welcoming. It was a pleasant end to our long journey.
The camping field itself was a little way up the road. so we chose our spot and pitched the tents. We had two tents, both were throw-up and easy to pitch.
We were right by the sea so, after settling in, we went for a short walk. Straight away we were able to see some lovely birds: Curlew, Shelduck, and herring gull, to name a few. When we returned to the campsite we were able to spot a Bulfinch! This bird is quite rare and is on the RSPB endangered species list. Fantastic we thought, such a rare bird right near where were camping.
Being so far north, the evenings were very light. In fact the sun did not set later than 9 pm leaving it still light until gone 10:30.
Many would have followed what we we were doing over the holiday. I posted my daily adventures on Twitter and Facebook. Many times I used my mobile phone to post them, but trouble is the text did not come out as I had hoped.
We went to bed nice and early ready for day 2.
I decided on Scotland because of what I saw in Birdwatching magazine which I subscribe to. They feature walks around the country depending n time of year. A forest walk in Glenmore caught my eye. The trouble is living in London, it was a long way to go. This got me planning camping.
We had packed the car the night before in readiness. we finally got away about 10 minutes to 8, Ahead of us was, what I thought would be, a six hour journey, or at least that was what the GPS told us. As it turned out, and probably always the way, it took longer than we hoped. It did not help by the road we were due to travel on was closed as a lorry had shed it's load. This meant it took ten hours to get to our first camping place.
We used our new car. Even with it's size the car was still packed full. We always tend to take things “just in case”. I had packed the car the previous evening but we still had things to fit in in the morning.
We arrived, as I said, about eight hours from start. I nearly missed where it was and would have driven past if it wasn't for Andrea calling out the name of the farm. I parked up in a little lay by and entered the farmyard. I was greeted by a nice Lady and her dog. Immediately she offered a cup of tea. Andrea was still in the car so I went to collect her.
We told her of our journey and complained of the traffic. She listened with interest and offered us her home-made biscuits; she seemed very kind and welcoming. It was a pleasant end to our long journey.
The camping field itself was a little way up the road. so we chose our spot and pitched the tents. We had two tents, both were throw-up and easy to pitch.
We were right by the sea so, after settling in, we went for a short walk. Straight away we were able to see some lovely birds: Curlew, Shelduck, and herring gull, to name a few. When we returned to the campsite we were able to spot a Bulfinch! This bird is quite rare and is on the RSPB endangered species list. Fantastic we thought, such a rare bird right near where were camping.
Being so far north, the evenings were very light. In fact the sun did not set later than 9 pm leaving it still light until gone 10:30.
Many would have followed what we we were doing over the holiday. I posted my daily adventures on Twitter and Facebook. Many times I used my mobile phone to post them, but trouble is the text did not come out as I had hoped.
We went to bed nice and early ready for day 2.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Things are changing
After we finished Alpha, (which we felt went well, although numbers diminished towards the end) I have asked Stephen Henry, Paulette Samuels and Cath Jonker to help lead the group. Stephen is a newly returned believer with, I feel, a lot of sensible things to say. Cath and Paulette too have shown commitment and have an insight into things.
Recently we had a meeting together to discuss where we felt God was taking us as a group. Numbers have been a little low of late. Jessicca reminisced how we had a thriving group about 18 months ago when lots of people came. Those sorts of numbers don't seem to happen any more and we discussed why that might be.
Work always seems to be a pressure, we felt, and people can get discouraged. We also felt there was no time to "get to know you”.
The purpose of the group is to glorify Jesus, learn from Him and to be a little oasis for people. We want to be available for people to ask for prayer for whatever situation they find themselves; and to be open to all.
We do have a sense of unity though: we all come from different backgrounds and persuasions. We have a good track record of answered prayer.
The trouble is some feel a little like "second class citizens" within the Town Hall with not much sense of equality for us. We felt we wanted a higher profile so people knew we are there and available.
To help us on the way we have asked a couple of local church leaders and Rev. Alan Green (Chair of the inter faith forum) for advice on how things are doing and for us to be the best we can be to serve the group and Tower Hamlets.
Eventually we hope to produce a "statement of faith" which we could show to Michael Keating (Scrutiny & Equalities head) with the hope of getting some equal standing in the borough.
We want to do something major for Christmas to highlight our prescience here and for next year do something around Easter time; ideas are most welcome.
We do want to encourage people to come and if there is anything you wish to comment please don't hesitate.
Steve
Recently we had a meeting together to discuss where we felt God was taking us as a group. Numbers have been a little low of late. Jessicca reminisced how we had a thriving group about 18 months ago when lots of people came. Those sorts of numbers don't seem to happen any more and we discussed why that might be.
Work always seems to be a pressure, we felt, and people can get discouraged. We also felt there was no time to "get to know you”.
The purpose of the group is to glorify Jesus, learn from Him and to be a little oasis for people. We want to be available for people to ask for prayer for whatever situation they find themselves; and to be open to all.
We do have a sense of unity though: we all come from different backgrounds and persuasions. We have a good track record of answered prayer.
The trouble is some feel a little like "second class citizens" within the Town Hall with not much sense of equality for us. We felt we wanted a higher profile so people knew we are there and available.
To help us on the way we have asked a couple of local church leaders and Rev. Alan Green (Chair of the inter faith forum) for advice on how things are doing and for us to be the best we can be to serve the group and Tower Hamlets.
Eventually we hope to produce a "statement of faith" which we could show to Michael Keating (Scrutiny & Equalities head) with the hope of getting some equal standing in the borough.
We want to do something major for Christmas to highlight our prescience here and for next year do something around Easter time; ideas are most welcome.
We do want to encourage people to come and if there is anything you wish to comment please don't hesitate.
Steve
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Visit of Bishop Riah
Last Wednesday 25th March the Form Bishop of Jerusalem visited Tower Hamlets Town Hall. The group was invited by the leader of the council to meet and welcome him. Here are some photos of the event.
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