Welcome

                       Photo large of St Johns Church

 

 

Please click on the link below to watch an aerial video of the church and listen to our bells.

Drone photography courtesy of https://www.upaerial.co.uk

 

Welcome, and thank you for visiting our website.

Our church is situated in the picturesque village of Lemsford, close to Hatfield and Welwyn Garden City and opposite Brocket Hall. 

We warmly welcome all visitors to our church and we would love you to come to one of our services or events.  We hope that you find what you are looking for in these pages, but if you have any questions and would like to speak to someone about the church, please do contact one of the team members listed in the Who's Who and Contacts page.

We look forward to seeing you.

 


WHAT'S ON AT ST JOHN'S IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS AT A GLANCE

   

    
  • Thursday 3rd October
    • 9am - School Collective Worship*
    • 10am - Morning Prayer
       
  • Sunday 6th October
    • 8am - BCP Morning Prayer
    • 11am - All Together worship with Harvest Festival, followed Bring and Share Harvest Lunch
       
  • Monday 7th October
    • 6pm - Week 3 of ’Start’ Youth Explorer Group*
       
  • Tuesday 8th October
    • 2:30-4pm - Friendship Tea
       
  • Thursday 10th October
    • 9am - School Collective Worship*
    • 10am - Morning Prayer
       
  • Sunday 13th October
    • 8am - BCP Holy Communion
    • 11am - Holy Communion with Sunday Club
    • 4 pm Service of Thanksgiving and Remembering
       
  • Thursday 17th October
    • 9am - School Collective Worship*
    • 10am - Morning Prayer
* Children are welcome at all our services, but these services and events are especially suitable for families and children (as well as people of all other ages!)



    • Readings for Trinity 19

     

    Old Testament: Joel 2:21-27 - to read click here (opens in new window or new tab)

    Gospel:  Matthew 6:25-33 - to read click here (opens in new window or new tab)


CAR PARKING

Because car parking at the church is becoming difficult, we are again opening up the school playground on Sunday mornings for everyone to use.  The playground is at the back of the school, and is large enough to accommodate about 30 cars.  Please do use this area to park in, but take extra care when exiting into the street as cars do tend to speed up and down the hill.


 
SUNDAY 6th OCTOBER IS OUR HARVEST FESTIVAL SERVICE, FOLLOWED BY A BRING AND SHARE LUNCH IN THE SCHOOL HALL 



Don’t miss out on our joyful All Together Harvest Festival Celebration service on 6th October at 11am
We’ll be joined in our worship by children from the school, who will singing, reading and leading us in prayer.  
After the service, we’ll be gathering in the school hall for a bring and share lunch.  
If you can, please do bring something delicious to eat to the school hall before the service.
There will be collection for Thrive, a project in Sri Lanka providing those affected by leprosy with the means to grow their own food and raise their stand of living. Further details can be found here: https://www.stalbansdiocese.org/parishsupport/growing-community/bishop-of-st-albans-harvest-appeal-2024
And last, but not least, gifts of tinned foods and dried produce would very welcome and will be donated to the Foodbank.




ON 13th OCTOBER at 4pm WE HAVE A SERVICE OF THANKSGIVING AND REMEMBRANCE FOR THOSE WE'VE LOVED AND LOST



All are very welcome to this reflective service for remembering those we’ve loved and lost. The service will be held in the Garden of Remembrance if the weather is fine. We’d love you to join us for refreshments afterwards.  
 


’START’ YOUTH EXPLORER GROUP MEETING 3 - THIS MONDAY 7th OCTOBER, 6pm

We began our  ’Start’ Youth Explorer Group on Monday 16th September but it's not too late to join in.
This Autumn, we're looking forward to running an informal six-week Explorer Course for Young People aged 11-16. 
If you've got questions about God, Jesus, faith and life then these sessions are for you!  You don't need to be churchgoer or Christian to come along - just be willing to listen and explore with other young peopleExpect: Food; opening activity or question; short videos; discussion; time for reflection; and an optional takeaway activity.
To find out more or to book a place just email Rev Kathryn at revkathrynalford@gmail.com.


 



FRIENDSHIP TEA - 8th OCTOBER at 2.30 pm






 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER PARISH MAGAZINE

The new October/November Parish Magazine is out and you can download it by clicking here. I'd like to thank everyone who contributed, especially with the very short timescales I gave this time. 

As usual there are lots of great articles and photos. As well as our usual leader columns by Rev Kathryn, Michelle Boylan, Jo Brooks and Andy Chapman, I'd like to give special mentions to the article by Edna Stephens which Andy included in full in his Lemsford Local; History Group column and the Article by Rev. Ron Ingamells enjoy!

Printed copies will be in school book bags this week, and with a following wind in church on Sunday (the printer was very busy and had to split our print run into two parts).








NEW JOB VACANCY AT ST JOHN'S SCHOOL FOR A "WRAP ROUND CARE ASSISTANT ROLE"

 



If the image is too hard to read, don't worry, just click on it, or click here for the 'real' pdf document.
 



COULD YOU BE A ST JOHN'S SCHOOL FOUNDATION GOVERNOR?

St John’s school currently has vacancies for up to three Foundation Governors. Foundation Governors are nominated by the PCC, represent the Church of England on the Board, and help ensure that the Christian ethos of the school is maintained.
 
Please pray and think about whether you - or someone you know - would make a great governor. They don’t need to be a member of St John’s church, but would need to be able to fulfil the role description above.
As a governor myself, I promise you that it’s an extremely rewarding (and often fun) role, and is manageable alongside other responsibilities.
Please contact me if you’re interested.
Rev Kathryn
 



FOOD BANK

Our local Food Bank at the New Zion Christian Fellowship church would appreciate receiving donations of food and other things from us now and all year round. It would be wonderful if you could support them by bringing various things in on Sunday mornings, and placing them in the big plastic box which will be placed in the porch. The sort of things the Food Bank would like to receive are:
  • All food with good sell by dates (tins of fruit and veg, jams, packets of cereal, coffee, tea, long life milk and so on)
  • Toiletries such as shampoo and conditioner and toilet rolls
  • Cleaning products (kitchen and bathroom cleaners etc)

We are asked not to donate clothes.

Nigel will arrange to take our offerings to the New Zion church every Wednesday morning.





Please sign up for a spot in the Cleaning Rota
Still slots to fill!
"The Cleaning Rota" did not run during Covid and instead the Churchwardens Jenny and Nigel cleaned and disinfected per Covid best practice, but now it's time to ask for your help with getting the rota started again.
Jenny will be contacting people who have previously taken a turn with cleaning. More volunteers are needed to help us. All the  materials you'll need are provided. All that we need is your time!
Let's spread this load between us all!! Please contact Jenny if you would like to take a turn with cleaning. 
You can choose a date that suits you!
 


The violence in Israel and Gaza
A message from the Archbishop of Canterbury & the Archbishop of York

“We are grieved and deeply concerned at the violence in Israel and Gaza, and we unequivocally condemn the attacks by Hamas. We pray for those who are mourning, those who are injured, and all those fearing for their safety. We pray for restraint on all sides, and renewed efforts towards a just peace for all. The way forward must be for both sides to build confidence in a secure future through which Israel and its people can live in security within its internationally recognised borders, and Palestinians have their own state and live in their lands in security, and with peace and justice.”
Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury & Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York

 


We continue to think of Ukraine:

Update - John Blanch emailed me to say that the "Taste it Polish Restaurant" in Hatfield is no longer taking donations of clothing for Ukraine.  However this doe snot stop our efforts.

Bishop Alan says we can pray, and practically we also have an option to donate to the Red Cross Appeal which I again repeat here:

To see their appeal details, please copy and paste this link into your browser: https://donate.redcross.org.uk/appeal/ukraine-crisis-appeal.  You may donate any amount you wish, and your cash will go towards helping people who are being affected by the crisis, by supplying them with food, water, first aid, medicines, warm clothes and shelter.  Donations may be made direct to the Red Cross appeal, or alternatively, you may care to donate using the QR code below.  The QR code will also be displayed in church.

If you don't do QR Codes then clicking this link on your computer goes to the same "give-a-litte" link: https://givealittle.co/campaigns/753bbfac-510a-47d8-86cf-f6a707ddc585
 

 

Church Giving.   We are now passing the offerings plate at services.  I know that many of us are happiest giving cash rather than scanning QR codes or tapping payment cards or smartphones, so this is good news indeed.
But, if you like the QR Code, you can point your Smartphone’s camera or QR app at it, and it will let you give, or from your PC/Mac you can just click this link: https://givealittle.co/campaigns/10cd954f-25f7-46d9-8813-634634729bfa.    You can also give via the new (easy to use) card payment device – both at the back of the church - these donations go to St Johns funds.  We are planning to make the QR Codes easily accessible from the pews too.
 


Friendship Teas - every second Tuesday of the month at 2:30pm in the Annexe!
The next one is this Tuesday 13th February 2023 at 2:30pm

 

 HOME INSURANCE

If you need to take out, or renew, a home insurance policy, please think of using Ecclesiastical Insurance as they will donate £130 to the church through their Trust 130 Promotion.  All you need to do is to say that the donation is to go to St John's Church, Lemsford.  Find out more at www.ecclesiastical.com/trust130 or call their team on 0800 783 0130 and quote Trust 130.

 


 

2024 PCC meeting dates


15th January at 7.15pm

13th February at 7.15pm

16th April at 7.15pm

30th April via Zoom 7.30pm

APCM - 12th May at 12 noon

4th June at 7.15pm

22th July ay 7.15pm

7th September at 7.15pm

19th November at 7.15pm


  


    

 

 


PLEASE CAN YOU HELP

 

WE COULD REALLY DO WITH YOUR FINANCIAL HELP IN THIS DIFFICULT TIME.

PLEASE CONSIDER GIVING IF YOU CAN TO SUPPORT OUR CHURCH AND OUR WORK IN THE COMMUNITY.

EITHER

CLICK HERE TO VISIT OUR QUICK DONATION PAGE

CLICK HERE


   OR

ALTERNATIVELY WE CAN NOW RECEIVE DONATIONS VIA TEXT MESSAGE BY TEXTING THE WORD LEMSFORD FOLLOWED BY A SPACE AND THEN AN AMOUNT OF YOUR DONATION, TO 70085.  FOR EXAMPLE, TO GIVE £5 TYPE LEMSFORD 5, TO GIVE £10 TYPE LEMSFORD 10.  THEN SIMPLY SEND YOUR TEXT TO 70085.  TEXTS WILL COST YOUR DONATION AMOUNT PLUS ONE STANDARD RATE MESSAGE.

MANY THANKS

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

IMPORTANT REQUEST TO REGULAR GIVERS FROM THE FINANCE COMMITTEE

 

If regular givers would prefer to make their payments by bank transfer, the bank details of the church are:

HSBC Bank.  Sort Code: 40-46-08 A/C No: 51431609

Many thanks

 

 

 

Choir practice every Sunday at 9.30 am 

Bell ringing practice every Monday evening at 7.30 pm

 

 

To email us either click the button below or go to the Who's who and Contacts page and click on the person you would like to contact.  Alternatively please use the form at the bottom of the Who's who and Contacts page.