Rivertown United Reformed Church

The Vision4life working group are meeting on 8th January 2009 at 7.30 pm. to review the material and consider our approach to the programme for 2009. We will take our thoughts to a meeting with David Salsbury on Wednesday 14th January 7.30 pm at Dyserth to share and explore others' thoughts on what to do next.

We will start the events at Rivertown as soon as practical in the New Year.

Please come and join us singing carols at Deeside Community Hospital, when we can bring Christmas cheer to the patients and staff.

Sunday 21st December at 2.15pm

Churches Together on Deeside invite you to join us on our Procession of Lanterns - a walk of witness through Connah's Quay and Shotton.

We will start at Blessed Sacramnet in Connah's Quay at 3.30pm and walk along the main road with candles and lanterns to Rivertown in Shotton. There we will sing carols to passers-by and enjoy mulled wine and mince pies.

Rivertown Christmas calendar started on Sunday 30th November with the 1st Advent Sunday service and was followed by the Churches Together on Deeside Advent Service on Thursday 4th December.

Here are the services and events for the rest of December, all at Rivertown:

Sunday 14th December 11.00am - Nativity Service and Evening Service at 6pm Sunday 21st December 11.00am - Christingle Service Sunday 21st December 4.30pm - Fellowship Tea
Sunday 21st December 6.00pm - Carol Service with Deeside Silver Band

Wednesday 24th December 11.45pm - Midnight Christmas Service

Sunday 28th December 11.00am - Sunday Service

Rivertown wish all our internet readers, near and far a very happy and Christ filled Christmas.

What does advent mean to you?

It’s nearly here and lots to do.

Christmas nears and panic strikes

Presents to buy, dolls and bikes.

Writing lists of gifts to pick,

Cards to write and stamps to lick.

Decorations, Christmas tunes,

Garlands, lights and red balloons.

Busy shops and tired feet,

Traipsing round from street to street,

Buying this and buying that

A shiny bell for Tibs, the cat.

Spending money you haven’t got,

But never mind it’s not a lot.

A few hundred pounds, maybe seven or eight,

Interest payments – they can wait.

It only happens once a year,

A special time so full of cheer.

That reminds to get some wine

Red and white will do just fine.

Vodka, Gin and brandy butter,

Shopping lists, people mutter.

At Christmas time lists don’t work

Buy some more, go beserk!

Trolly’s full of fancy goods

Nuts and crisps and Christmas puds

Spent a lot, but what’s to care

Isn’t

Deeside Pastorate Minister’s Letter December 2008 / January 2009

Do you have “sacred spaces”? Moments you look forward to every year, times you almost feel you cannot do without? For me it has to be Christmas Dinner. (I have to be careful what I say next - this feeling could be deemed “sexist”!). No – what I mean is, that hour or two of supreme relaxation (and yes, we do try to make sure it’s that for ALL of us!) when, as a couple, a family, we can sit down together and say “this time is ours”. Quality time which, hopefully, will leave us all feeling more loved, more appreciated, more an essential part of the family.

People have an increasingly multicultural attitude to food these days We have for some years taken to Christmas Day salmon, easy and quick to cook. But what will the food air miles be for our Christmas celebrations? Much of the traditional fare hails from far afield across the ocean.

“Because I love them”

Greetings! It is so good to have settled among you. We are already starting to feel “at home”! And once again, many many thanks for all the wonderful expressions of goodwill – and all the hard and generous work that has gone into making the Manse such a lovely home. Thank you very much indeed!

It happened on a beach in Tenby, not long before we moved. We were 4 – Joanna our daughter, Ruth and I, and of course, 12 year old dog Toby. As we played with him on the beach, a couple came up to us and asked “Does your dog moult a lot?” “All the time!” I replied, “he must grow it again very quickly – and thickly – otherwise he would have been bald years ago!”

We are now truly in Autumn, as the green turns to beautiful shades of red, yellow, orange and gold.

On October 13th at 7.30 at Rivertown Church. The start of a six week programme to discuss the world we all want and discover how the Bible can help.

On Saturday 4th October we enjoyed a celebration to mark the calling of Rev. Colin Foreman to the Deeside Pastorate. The service was well attended and well received by all. Our time together included the necessary formalities but the overall feeling was of a special time together in the presence of God.

Our thanks go out to all those people who traveled far and wide to be with us and to be share Colin and his family's special day. People came from his recent pastorate in Milford Haven and others from past days at Rivertown. We were also pleased to see representatives of local and national government supporting us at this time.

Despite the difficulties caused by the roof work and scaffolding we managed to move from the induction service to a time to sharing and refreshments with relative ease!

Thank you to the people who presided, those who shared worship with us and a special thanks to those who took part.

The induction of Rev. Colin Foreman into the Deeside Pastorate (Garden City URC, Rivertown URC and Northop Hall PCW) will take place at Rivertown URC Chester Road West Shotton Flintshire on Saturday 4th October at 3pm.

DIRECTIONS

From M56 Manchester/M6

Follow M56 to the end then bear left onto the A5117 following signs for North Wales. There are currently extensive road works along this route. Follow temporary signs to North Wales until you join the A550. Soon after crossing over the River Dee take the next exit, sign posted Connah’s Quay. At roundabout take last exit right. Bear left through the traffic lights (do not turn left into ASDA) along Chester Road West for about ¾ mile. You will pass Deeside Leisure Centre on your right. Go through a set of traffic lights, passing Pizza Hut and B&Q on your right, then an ESSO garage and the St Ethelwold Parish Church on your left.