Festival 2008 23rd-27th May - Be there or be... sad!

Monday, April 23, 2007

Change….change…..change….



Festival is approaching fast....Are you excited? Well, we are! Not only excited, but also busy making sure that you guys have a fantastic time while you are here. And of course praying that God’s power and joy will fill our hearts and minds during that time of celebration….

But, what is new?

The venue of the Youth Work

The name of the Youth Work

The leaders of the Youth Work

The band of the Youth Work


Let me explain...

The Youth Work this year is not going to be called ‘Area 51’ anymore, but will have another exciting name….have you got any suggestions?



The previous leaders, Matt and Yaz, are now parents and therefore not leading the work anymore. The two new wonderful leaders are Mick Walker and Graham Edwards. You will love them! Our very own Ian Coles, Lee Redyhoff and James Wood will be part of the worship band.
There will be a programme in the morning as well as the meeting in the evening.



The venue is going to be 'The Haddon Room'. It is situated underneath the canteen....it is bigger than the previous one and it is closer to the campsite.
We look forward to the exciting things that are going to happen this year.


What about the afternoon, some of you might be asking?

Well, there will not be a free minute for you out there. The Detached Team will keep you very busy. Amongst other things, we will be playing crazy golf, volleyball, football, rounders, frisbee. We are going to have a ‘photo’ competition…and we are going to have a trip out bowling (limited numbers, so make sure that you sign early!)


And of course, the Chill Out tent will be open from 11.00 pm to 1.00 am for all you that like staying up late and chatting and having fun.
More information on the Festival will follow. We can't wait to see you all here and take a journey of discovery with you.



In the meantime, enjoy life, have fun, be good and trust in God!

Friday, April 20, 2007

HELLO ALL

Hope you have all had a great time over the Easter break, well, that is, if you like us, had one. I was especially pleased that the weather was way better than the usual April showers. In fact, I think that I, yes, even I, the one who is always cold, experienced the sensation referred to as 'pleasantly warm' by my English friends. It seemed to me that the sunny weather made everyone extra jubilant on Easter day as we celebrated the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Not that one needs sunny weather to celebrate such an amazing act of God for all people.










A CONFESSION AND REFLECTION

I confess that although I like beaches, I tend to stay away from them when I am in England. During the Easter holidays, I happened to be somewhere around Skegness, I was led to the beach for a walk. It turned out to be a freezing experience. My earlier cravings for ice cream soon disappeared. I ended up sitting miserably all by myself on a bench. I was just getting ready to descend into self pity when I became increasingly aware of the people around me. There were many families having fun on the beach, even though I was cold!



So, instead of feeling sorry for myself I decided to enjoy the scene and use the time to reflect on life. This is my reflection on that experience - it is quite interesting to think that sometimes Christians can be so focused on themselves and how things are not so great that they forget how amazing God is, they forget His deep and life changing love for all people. If people tried to remind themselves in all situations of God's love for them and the power of that love, as the story of Easter demonstrates, well, if I tried to remember this at all times, I would not be half as miserable as I am sometimes when I concentrate all my attention on my issues (real and imagined issues).




The Evangelism Department at Cliff, I am glad to say, is nothing like me. It is as lively and jolly as ever! Hallelujah!!! All are eagerly looking forward to the Festival. Many truly wonderful plans are being made and everyone is working hard towards the great event (well, everyone except me, my brain seems to be on holiday!). I hope you are all coming and bringing your family and friends with you. I also hope that you will all come with great expectations and in anticipation of the wonderful things that God has in store for all of us.



See you all soon.

God bless