The Swanlinbar Kildallon Group of Parishes in the Church of Ireland Kilmore Diocese. Corrawallen Kildallon Kinawley Newtowngore Swanlinbar Templeport Tomregan

Home page	Newsletter No 42 February 2011			Weekly news sheet
Bishop's Anniversary	Quick links - Find you way quickly to:			Prayer Points
Alpha in Lent	Office Surgery hours	Breffni Service	Mothers Union	Service schedule

Questions

Life is full of questions. Here are just a few..
If a word is spelt wrong in the dictionary how would we ever know?
Why do "fat chance" and "slim chance" mean the same thing?
Why is it called "after dark" when it is really "after light"?
Why do you press harder on the buttons of a remote control when you know the batteries are dead?
Ok so these questions are not the most serious, yet life is full of questions. The other day Brendan asked two congregations "what would you ask Jesus if you could see him face to face?" The reply from parishioners in both churches was the same! Both wanted to ask, "Is there life after death? Now that's a lot more serious than those I mentioned at the start of this writing!
In truth we go through life with lots of questions running through our minds. Some questions really don't matter while others really need to be grappled with.
THEY MIGHT BE IGNORED BUT THEY DON'T GO AWAY AND CAN HAVE INCREDIBLE CONSEQUENCES.
Uncertainty and doubt can cripple us while true faith can transform us and give hope even in the darkest places.
The other day I was privileged to hear the testimony of one of the Chilean miners rescued in that great miracle that captured the eyes of the world last Autumn. His was a faith to inspire, a faith that called the other miners to turn to God in prayer with their lives on the line. He was an ordinary miner who had committed his life to God many years before and allowed his faith to grow. He had grappled with and sought after God with the big questions and now when disaster surrounded them he did not lose hope. Asked if he ever lost hope down in the mine, he replied, “He didn’t have time to lose hope - when a Christian, there is such a conviction that live or die we belong to him.” His faith was secure even in the face of death. He was a man who had put down roots in God that would hold in the greatest struggle.
This Lent we will have the opportunity to put down deeper roots in God. As well as the Lent services exploring the Beatitudes we will also have a wonderful opportunity to explore our faith through the Alpha course.

In a fun and safe way it's a brilliant chance to ask questions and grapple with answers. The course will be run in different parts of the group at different times so we all have a wonderful opportunity. Let us pray that God can take our searching questioning hearts and transform our lives in wonderful ways.

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News Items

Surgery Hours			Richard will be available in the Church office, Tomregan hall, Ballyconnell at the times on the left.
Day	Date	Time
Wednesday	16th February	2 - 4 pm
Tuesday	22nd February	3 - 5 pm
Friday	4th March	10 - noon
Friday	11th March	Noon - 2 pm
Wednesday	16th March	2.30 - 4.30 pm
Tuesday	22nd March	3 - 5 pm

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World Day of Prayer in Ireland

World Map Our local World Day of Prayer Service this year is on 4th March in St Dallan's Church, Kildallan at 8.30pm. The Service has been prepared by Christian Women of Chile this year.
The World Day of Prayer which used to be known as the Women's World Day of Prayer has been held for over Seventy Five years in Ireland!
Three services were held in 1934, in Dublin, Dun Laoghaire and Greystones, and the movement has continued to grow here ever since, because of the dedication of many, many volunteers over the years who have worked so hard (and still do!) to prepare the materials, make up the orders and send them out to the branches.

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Dancing Feet Required!

Come along to the Dance 10.30 to 1.30 On Friday 25th February at the Seven Horse Shoes, Belturbet, Music will be by "Showbud" tickets are €10 each and includes light supper. Proceeds will go to Tomregan Parish Hall Repair Fund.

Kildallon Parish will also be holding a dance with music by Showbud on Friday 1st April at the Seven Horseshoes so please put both dates in the diary!

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Mother’s Union

Our closing service of Holy Communion will be led by Rev Brendan McCarthy on Tuesday 16th March at 8pm in Newtowngore Parish Church.

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Healing Services Healing hands

Derrylin Parish will be holding their monthly healing services on Sunday February 20th at 8 pm in Derrylin hall and on Sunday March 20th in Teemore hall also at 8 pm.
A number of parishioners from our group have been along and found these meetings of great worth. Once again we are most welcome. .

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Prayer Prayer meeting

Following a meeting with those keen to further the work of prayer for the group we will be having a weekly prayer meeting on Thursdays at 7pm in Swanlinbar Rectory begining on 24th February. This is usually the hour before the evening Alpha meeting and will be a special time set aside to pray that God would really break in and make a huge change in His church in this small part of Ireland. The meeting is open to all with a heart to pray and see God's work amongst us grow.

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Bishop's 10th Anniversary Celebration

Kilmore Cathederal Bishop Ken Clarke On Sunday 27th February there will be a special service to mark our Bishop's ten years serving this diocese. The service will be in Kilmore Cathedral and it is hoped that at least four representatives from each parish would be able to attend. There will also be a meal at the Bush Hotel on Friday March 11th. Watch out for further details.

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Trip to India Update

Well; it looks like around twenty parishioners are planning to join the trip led by Brendan to India to visit Pastor Jay and his children's orphanage. We will let folk know who is going in the next newsletter. One of the great things is that it looks like each parish will be represented. There will be a meeting for all those planning to go on Sunday 20th at 2pm in Tomregan minor hall. There will be some special events to raise funds for the House of Peace orphange in India as well as Beryl Baker in Paraguay in the coming months. These will include a Gospel Evening on Friday Pastor Jay's orphanage May 6th at 8pm in Swanlinbar parish church. Singers will include Victor Hutchinson from Coleraine, Margaret Johnston from Ballinamallard and Rev Brendan McCarthy and family. For those who like surfing the web you can get a sense of the place the group intends to visit from their web site at: www.icmcindia.org

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Breffni Holy Communion Service

The next service led by Rev Steve Clarke will be Holy Communion on 22nd February at 2 pm.

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Alpha in Lent Alpha logo

Lent is a great time for reviewing and renewing our faith.
To help us to make the most of Lent and Holy Week this year we are preparing a ‘Lent ALPHA’, midweek Lent services and a Holy Week Parishes’ Mission.
ALPHA is a world-renowned exploration of the Christian Faith, enabling people to ask questions, to seek answers and to come to a fresh understanding of their faith.
This year, Richard and I will be hosting the ALPHA course each Thursday between March 1st and April 14th, with a break for St Patrick’s Day: six weeks in total.
To give everyone a chance to attend we will be holding morning, lunchtime and evening groups.
The morning Alpha will run from 10.30am until noon and the first meeting will be held at Joe and Claire Hyland’s home at the Post Office in Corrawallen.
The lunchtime Alpha will run from 12.30pm until 2pm and will be centred in Valerie Livingstone’s bungalow in Kildallon.
The evening Alpha will be held in the rectory in Swanlinbar and will run from 8pm until 9.30pm.
Each group will begin with light refreshments and informal chat, before a presentation of the day’s topic. This will be followed by group discussion (you are welcome simply to listen, if you don’t want to speak; you will not be asked to do anything that you might find uncomfortable) and a final summing-up at the end.
The topics for the six weeks are:

Week 1 1	3rd March	Who is Jesus?
Week 2 1	10th March	Why did Jesus die?
Week 3 1	24th March	How can I be sure?
Week 4 1	31st March	Why read the Bible?
Week 5 1	7th April	Why and how should we pray?
Week 6 1	14th April	How does God guide us?

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Midweek Lent Services Beatitudes

On Wednesdays in Lent we will be exploring some of the most famous words of Jesus, The Beatitudes.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart , for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

The services will be on Wednesdays at 8pm starting on Ash Wednesday.
9th March	Ballyconnell	Poor in Spirit and at a loss
16tth March	Newtowngore	End of year Mothers Union Holy Communion Service, Open to all.
23rd March	Swanlinbar	Meek and Hungry
30th March	Corrawallen	Merciful
6th April	Templeport	Pure in heart
13thApril	Kinawley	Building Peace and persecuted

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Supporting Beryl Baker Jar of Grace nearly empty

We will soon enter the season of Lent and once again we hope that many of you will support our annual Jar of Grace initiative. Just a quick recap for you as you engage with this idea again or perhaps for the first time. With this newsletter you will find a self adhesive label with the words "JAR OF GRACE" printed on it. From the 9th March, Ash Wednesday, I would ask that you stick this on a jam jar and place it in the centre of the table where you have most meals. Each time you sit to have a meal, I would invite you, along with every participating home in our Parish Grouping, to place a coin in the jar and say a simple prayer for those less fortunate than ourselves. Please do try and remember this each meal as a note shoved in to make amends for forgotten coins and prayers really is not quite the same as regular giving and prayer. On Easter Sunday we will collect in all the offerings and give thanks to God in this grace giving.
Beryl Baker Each coin, no matter how small can make a difference. Let us give together and pray together and together we can make a difference.
Jar of Grace full This is now our third year supporting Beryl in her work as a Christian nurse in the Chaco region of Paraguay. Our gift was hugely valuable as she was able to use it to get medical supplies for her work. This is a hugely practical way to share the love of Christ. We continue to support Beryl this year through our Jar of Grace appeal and each of the loose plate collections at each of our Lentern services in our own Group of Parishes. Please give generously and don't forget they will be recieved at our Easter Day Celebrations.
Later this year, in July, Richard will be joining a team visiting Paraguay in order to meet Beryl and get a sense of her work and surroundings to report back to us.

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Pancake Party Sunday 6th March Tossing a pancake

Following our last Sunday school leaders meeting we were exploring our next steps espaecially after the Group Christmas Party was cancelled due to the weather. One leader had a fantastic suggestion - A pancake Party! So here goes ...on Sunday 6th March there will be a children's party to mark the coming Shrove Tuesday and start of Lent. There will be lots of games and fun, gifts, chocolate and of course pancakes!! The party begins at 3.30 pm and continues until 5.30 pm in Tomregan hall Ballyconnell. We hope this will be the first of a monthly children's event and we ask that parents would support this new initiative.

There will be a meeting to plan the fun on Wednesday 23rd February in Kildallon Rectory at 7.30pm for parents and Sunday school leaders able to help.

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Newtowngore National School Enrolment

Forms for junior infants 2011 are now available at the school. Contact the secretary on Tuesday or Thursday between and 9 am and 1 pm or the Principal Miss Faulkner before or after school hours. Applications should be received by 30th April 2011. Telephone 049 4333955

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Congratulations Babtism

Congratulations to Robert and Josephine Gould on the baptism of baby Malcolm in Templeport Parish. We also rejoice in the baptism of Alan and Michelle Gould's daughter Laura on the same day in Swanlinbar. We pray for both families and their walk of faith. We also continue to pray for young Malcom's health in the coming days.

The Arnold family were also celebrating in Kildallon recently with the birth of Oscar Connelly (8lbs 5oz) son of Carl and Melanie.

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Want to Grow?

Derrylin Parish are holding a special evening of worship, ministry and teaching on Wednesday 16th February at 8pm in the church. This event is part of New Wine’s work to support local churches. The speaker is Mark Aldridge and the evening will especially encourage folk busy helping in the life of ordinary parishes keen to move forward and grow.

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Lent: What to Give Up?

Give up Complaining - Focus on Gratitude.
Give up Pessimism - Become an Optimist.
Give up Harsh Judgements - Think Kindly Thoughts.
Give up Worry - Trust in God.
Give up Discouragement - Be Full of Hope.
Give up Bitterness - Turn to Forgiveness.
Give up Hatred - Turn Good for Evil.
Give up Anger - Be more Patient.
Give up Jealousy - Pray for Trust.
Give up Gossiping - Control our Tongues.
Give up Sin - Turn to Goodness.
Give up Giving up - Hang in there!

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Time for a Smile!

For those over forty!
Old Shilling Gas Meter said to Shilling: “Glad you dropped in Bob, I was just going out!”

shoes Silly Sign in Shoe Shop
“Buy One Get One Free!”
Hasn’t that always been true?

Break-fast?
Breakfast setting A local café advertises: ‘All Day Breakfast - from 7 am to 11am’. Am I missing something?

The Human Race
A little girl asked her mother “How did the human Race appear?”
The mother answered “God made Adam and Eve and they had children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and so on so all mankind was made.
Two days later the girl asked her father the same question. The father thought for a moment then answered “ Many years ago there were monkeys from which the human race evolved.
The confused girl returned to her mother and said: “How is it possible that you told me the human race was created by God and Dad said we developed from monkeys?”
The mother answered without hesitation, “Well dear, it is very simple, I told you about my side of the family and your father told you about his side.”

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Prayer Points for February and March

Let us continue to listen to God in prayer and develop a daily routine of praying for the following on the day of the week indicated;

Sunday:	Pray for those employed in the caring profession – that their work would bring comfort, peace and healing to those in pain;
Monday:	Continue to give thanks for the work of the South American Missionary Society. We pray for Beryl Baker as she shows God’s love in very practical ways, that the medicines and equipment she uses would be instruments of love and healing;
Tuesday:	Pray for the team from this group visiting an Indian Orphanage this summer. We especially pary for the team in their preparations that truly they will grow as a team able to encourage one another;
Wednesday:	Pray for our Jar of Grace this Lent – that it would be seen as much more than coins in a jar and would bring us closer to knowing God’s compassion for the marginalised and least in society;
Thursday:	Pray for the coming elections in the south and for all in positions of authority, especially in the midst of recession – that they would govern wisely and have the courage to lead in these difficult times;
Friday:	Pray for the ongoing work to develop our church halls. Grant wisdom in decisions and may they be used in ways that make a real difference in our communities;
Saturday:	Pray for those who have lost loved ones and still feel the acute pain of loss – that we would show love and support through our words and actions.

C of I Cross

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Service Schedule for the Remainder of February and March
Date	Time	Location	Service	Leader
February
Sunday 20^th	10.00	Swanlinbar	MP1	Margaret Crawford
	10.30	Newtowngore	G.F.S. Service	Brendan & Richard
	11.30	Ballyconnell	MP1	Mervyn
	11.30	Templeport	MP1	Margaret Crawford
Tuesday 22^nd	2.pm	Breffni	HC1	Rev Steve Clark
Sunday 27th	10.00	Kinawley	MP2	Richard
	10.30	Corrawallen	HC1	Brendan
	11.30	Ballyconnell	MP2	Richard
	Noon	Kildallon	HC1	Brendan
March
Sunday 6^th	10.00	Swanlinbar	MP2	Richard
	10.30	Newtowngore	MP1	Margaret Crawford
	11.30	Ballyconnell	MP1	George
	11.30	Templeport	MP2	Richard
	Noon	Kildallon	MP1	Margaret Crawford
Ash Wednesday 9^th	8pm	Ballyconnell	Lent	Richard
Sunday 13^th	10.00	Kinawley	HC2	Brendan
	10.30	Corrawallen	MP2	Richard
	11.30	Ballyconnell	HC2	Brendan
	Noon	Kildallon	MP2	Richard
Wednesday 16^th	8 pm	Newtowngore	Mothers Union HC	Brendan
Sunday 20th	10.00	Swanlinbar	MP1	Richard
	10.30	Newtowngore	HC2	Brendan
	11.30	Ballyconnell	MP1	Mervyn
	11.30	Templeport	MP1	Richard
	Noon	Kildallon	HC2	Brendan
Wednesday 23rd	8 pm	Swanlinbar	Lent	Richard
1 after Service type indicates Traditional 2 after Service type indicates Contemporary After the United Services there will be a cup of tea in the Church or local hall

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