St Peter's new schedule of services

In January 2015 we started a new pattern of morning services for St Peter's, with an informal worship service in the Church Centre, running concurrently with the service in the church building, every Sunday at 10:15am.

If you have any questions, comments and suggestions which are not answered in this letter, or if you'd like to volunteer to help with any of our services, please do ask Kate, Barry, Lynn, Pat, Steve or Wendy. 

Why change?

During this year, we have been looking at our overall health as a church community, and the work we have done shows the area where we have greatest scope to improve is in creating inspiring worship services.  Currently, on the first Sunday of each month we have Holy Communion services in the church building at 8.00 and 10.15, and also at 10:15, Cafe Connections informal family worship in the Church Centre.  Offering these differing styles of worship means that more people are inspired to join together to worship on first Sundays, than any other Sunday in the month.  The pilot will build on this strength and is overwhelmingly supported by the church PCC.

What will change?

Firstly, our usual 8am and 10.15am services in church, and our evensong services, will continue very much as now.  Also, our Cafe Connections informal worship will continue as it is on the first Sunday of each month. 

The change is to add a new Connections informal worship service on the other three Sundays each month.  Connections will run a little longer than Cafe Connections and will have about 20 minutes of worship, 20 minutes of bible reading & teaching, and 20 minutes of prayer & application of what we've learned together to our lives - so about an hour in total.  Unlike Cafe Connections this service will not be specifically designed for all ages, so on these weeks we will have age-appropriate groups for children and teenagers running much as we do on weeks two and four now.  The groups will be timed to allow young people to come from, and return to, either of the 10.15 services.  

What difference will this make to you?

• If you usually attend our 10:15 services in the church not much need change.  The three Holy Communion services each month will be just as they are.  The Faith in Forty slot on the third Sunday each month, will continue to be screen-based worship and to include some contemporary worship songs.  There will now be some child and teenager provision available that week.  Every week you will also have the new choice of being part of the Connections informal service in the church centre.
• If you usually attend Cafe Connections, there will now be worship of a similar style available every week.  Cafe Connections will continue as it is on first Sundays, and Connections will be available every other week.  On Connections weeks, at least during its central 'bible & teaching ' time, there will be age appropriate groups available for children and teenagers, so both adults and young people can enjoy appropriate learning about life as followers of Jesus.
• If you usually attend Discover, our aim is for the new Connections 10:15am service to provide similar worship, learning, discussion & application opportunities.  We hope you will be able to come to Connections instead of Discover.  We are working to see if Discover should continue in a new form as an open and accessible home group, and when and where would be best for it to meet.

What about fifth Sundays?

We want to use fifth Sundays, when they happen, as opportunities for the whole community of St Peter's to meet and to worship together, and we want to avoid fifth Sundays being some form of unhappy compromise between the different styles of worship of the two 10.15 services.  We will therefore approach each fifth Sunday as a distinctive 'one-off' event, where we will worship together in a form appropriate to that particular season.

Our hope

St Peter's purpose is to worship God, to make disciples and to serve our community.  We are making these changes to our services with that in mind.

• We want to enable more people in Wellesbourne to be part of regular worship services which they find, and make, inspiring. 
• We want to increase the time we have together to learn about God and support each other. 
• We want to encourage loving, serving lives which put a smile on Jesus' face. 

Our hope is that these changes will help you as you seek to love God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength, and to love your neighbours.