Outreach Update- Thanks be to God!

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere." 2Cor 2:14 (NIV)

What an amazing week the past week has been, with several expressions of God's grace and goodness to us throughout. From Monday through Sunday, we were privileged to engage our community with our offers of free drinks at Costa Coffee Westhill. We would like to thank everyone who took us up on our offer and we hope you enjoyed your drink, whichever one you chose to have. We would also like to express our appreciation to the barristers and Management at Costa Coffee for the allowing us to use their services in this outreach. May God bless you all.

We believe that everyone at some point in life deserves a break. Our offers were a way of meeting that need in the simplest way possible for people in our community. As a Christian group, it was also for us, a deliberate response to those words of Jesus in John 7:37- "Let anyone who is thirsty come". The grand question now becomes, "who is thirsty? and for what?". 

In a way we all are thirsty. We thirst daily. We thirst for fulfilment. We thirst for satisfaction, for health, for security, for hope, for assurance, for strength, for food and shelter, for love, for knowledge, companionship, fellowship and belonging, forgiveness, freedom, mercy, wealth, or glory. And so forth... Whatever the hue or shade or intensity of this thirst, it is perfectly understood by God our maker. And he sent One person to quench our thirsts God's way -Jesus Christ. 

It may come as a surprise to many, but God knows our frame. He knows what we think and how we think. He knows our cares, fears and worries and why we care, fear or worry. He does, because He is our maker. And as any manufacturer holds the details of a products warranty and repair/replacement, he made the same available through the Word of God- the scriptures. That Word became flesh, Jesus Christ, and he said, " Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest" Matthew 11:28. The prophet Isaiah puts it this way:

"Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost"- Isaiah 55:1

Such was the case of one woman, a Samaritan, who Jesus met at the well. She too was thirsty. But the water He gave her satisfied her deepest needs (John 4:1-26). It became a source of eternal life within her:

"...but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:14

That was his promise to her. That is his promise to us. That remains His promise to EVERYONE, and it is for this reason that we share this good news with everyone. We hope that all who took up our offer, get to taste of this water of life. It is for this reason that He spreads the aroma of His goodness through us. And for this, we thank God.

This Christmas At Vinespring Church

It is that time of the year again. Christmas trees, carol nights, special treats and that wonderful story that has changed, and is still changing the world.

But before we tell you just what to expect at Vinespring Church this Christmas, permit me to reflect on what we have been up to over the summer.

In August about 200 individuals in Westhill received our free invitation and offer of a free coffee at Costa Coffee. Our team handed out the invitations at the Westhill Shopping Centre, Denman Park, and around ALDI car park. Nearly forty persons took advantage of the offer, which lasted from the 8th – 12th August. We are grateful for the kind assistance of the staff at Costa Coffee, without whose partnership the outreach would not have been possible. This was also our way of giving back to the community while giving everyone an opportunity to know more about who we are and what we are about.

On 27th August, we had another outreach; this time an environmental clean up exercise within Denman Park. We had identified a shaded area outside the immediate visibility of the local cleaners, but was often used by our young ones for play. This place had been littered with broken bottles, empty cans etc. We decided to come together and clean up this small area, to make it safe for our young ones and all who may want to rest in those shaded areas from time to time. All those who participated attested to the great feeling of being able to do something worthwhile for the benefit of all in Westhill that use Denman Park.

In a nutshell, that’s what we have been up to at Vinespring Church over the summer. We would like to invite anyone to join us for another clean-up event on 3rd December from 10.30 am. We will be meeting up at Costa Coffee.

This Christmas, we will be heading back to the Holiday Inn, Westhill for another experience of our annual Christmas event themed ‘Watered’. This promises to be an evening of love, friendship and joy for all who will come. We will be having carols, talks, laughs, recollections of our best Christmas memories, and light refreshments. Children under 12 years will have their own, duly supervised, special Christmas entertainment for the duration of the event. The programme is available on Eventbrite for bookings to help us prepare adequately for the numbers coming.

Date: 10/12/16, Time: 5:30 -7.30pm, Venue: Holiday Inn Westhill.

We hope you can add us to your to-do list for this Christmas but whatever you choose to do this Christmas, let Christ’s joy and peace be your guide. We wish you a fantastic Christmas celebration and a Happy New Year, when it comes.

Chika Edeh,
Pastor at Vinespring Church

This piece was also published on page 80 in the Westhill Bulletin.