Letter from the Elders

I can't believe that we are nearly into February. Why is it that time passes so quickly as we get older?! Despite the adverse weather throughout December, we were able to have the Toy and Gift Services here with our Ewell friends and then the annual ‘Carols by Candlelight’. Many thanks go to Alan and Valerie Wood and to Neil Stuart for rearranging everything into Unity Hall, where we had a very warm and enjoyable Carol Service despite the snow. Sadly, some of our number were unable to attend and they were missed.

This month, sadly, we lost the church's longest serving member, not only by age but by the length of her membership of over 70 years. Marjorie Thompson was very active in the church throughout her life for which we are very thankful. Tributes to Marjorie will be published next month.

You will all now know of the change in the Sunday Services as from February - details follow this piece, but briefly, we will have alternating morning services with Ewell as well as the evening services, so, rest assured, there will be one service in each church every Sunday.

Those of us of senior years have seen so many changes in the world, and in our lives, over the years – exploration into space, the use of the car, advances into medicine, and the different values in life we have today, and we have learnt to adapt. We may not think they are for the better but for most of us today's lifestyle no longer resembles the way we were over 50 years ago.

We can all look back with nostalgia and have many memories to pass on to future generations of our families, but we must also look forward to the changes that are taking place. The church in England is no longer the powerful voice it once was and this has affected the way we are today. Do not let our yesterdays take up too much of what is ours today. Let us all move forward with hope and in our love of God and the Holy Spirit.

God bless you all