God Loves is back!

God Loves is back for 2018!

God Loves is our annual June mission week, of practical serving - demonstrating Jesus’ love to our communities - backed up with lots of prayer, worship, teaching and family fun!

This year, God Loves runs from Saturday 9th to Sunday 17th June, and we’ll be focusing in Chester-le-Street, Gilesgate, the A1/19 corridor and local schools.

We’ll begin with a Fun Day in Chester-le-Street on Saturday 9th June.

From Tuesday 12th to Friday 15th June, we’ll be gathering each morning at Durham City Baptist Church, in Gilesgate, for teaching, prayer and worship. And then in the afternoons we’ll be out and about, doing street mission, prayer spaces, supporting local causes and charities and much more, yet to be confirmed!

The week in Durham concludes with a baptisms service at The Durham Centre on Sunday 17th June. In Chester-le-Street, there will be a family service at 10:30am and The Living Room from 3pm to 5pm.

This is open to all in our church, and there are lots of ways you can get involved, whatever your availability – from helping organise the week, to providing transport, to getting involved in the practical serving, to feeding tired (but fired up!) students and 20s on a midweek evening.

For more information, see Ali Scott or John Oliver. Or email: info@emmanuel.org.uk. Or sign up here. 

South Africa educational visit

Stephen Jones, one of our members, part of the Pastoral Care team and a teacher, is to visit Mtubatuba, South Africa, this summer. Here, he explains why.

During a vision day at church in 2017, Alan Bell and Ian, having recently returned from South Africa, shared their experience. This included a recount of meeting two 17-year-olds in a township who, having had no education, thought the world was flat.

As a Christian and a teacher I found their experiences very challenging and began to explore the possibility of travelling to South Africa to support the church in anyway that God would reveal but especially to use my skills as a teacher.

After discussions with several of our church leaders in South Africa I was invited to travel to Mtubatuba and work alongside the staff at Mtuba Christian Academy and Destiny House (a children’s home). The school and children’s home have been established by Grace Community Church (part of our Regions Beyond Church family) in the district of Kwazulu-Natal. This is a region with one of the highest rates of HIV infections, orphans and poverty in South Africa.

God has faithfully provided funding for the trip (courtesy of a HMRC rebate and additional responsibilities from leading two schools), as well as providing appropriate timing for the visit (Schools in the UK break up for our summer holiday when schools in South Africa have just begun their spring term!)

I will leave the UK on Monday 24th July to travel to Mtubatuba where I will work in the school and children’s home until Sunday 13th August. I will be supporting staff in both areas and especially in the school helping with curriculum development as well as working alongside individual staff. This is an exciting opportunity to serve God and the church and I have been blown away by his provision and preparation for the trip. Over and over again he has shown me that he gives more than we can even see or imagine is possible. He truly is a ‘Good, Good Father!’

Please would you pray for safe travel; good health during the visit; developing long-term relationships with staff and pupils; that time will be used wisely throughout the visit; for opportunities to share my own faith in God; as well as planning for future opportunities for myself and other members of Emmanuel to support the school, children’s home and church.