Tree of light Project – Slough Town Centre Churches to get involved

At a meeting last night I learnt so much about trees. In just fifteen minutes I was amazed at how a group of people looking at a few postcards came up with such wonderful and creative images of the human interaction and ultimately our dependency on trees. One such image was the idea of trees watching us through history being there through time observing our relationships and interactions with one another.  With God in the midst of all that sustains and norishes we need strong roots that will enable us to grow and develop in all sorts of ways, to do this we must plant our roots deeply in the teaching of his word. This morning I read Psalm 126 a favourite of mine. A song of restoration when Israel returned from Babylonian exile, they hardly dared to believe it.  The joy for those who returned felt like a dream.  As I reflected on last night’s event to recruit volunteers to be part of the tree of light project  and as we celebrate ‘one year to go’ to London 2012, I wonder whether we will look back and see the opportunity of the Games  as a dream that we dare not believe that God could set before us.

The tree of light is one of four cultural Olympiad events across the UK.  It’s a large scale community event to take place in four locations Oxford, Henley, Reading and Windsor. It will be a visually stunning performance featuring music choreography and cutting edge digital arts in spectacular surrounding.  The project aims to encourage the excitement of the 2012 Games and will be shared by many thousands of people at community level.  The Slough town centre churches applied to take part and have been selected alongside other community groups to take part.  Christians will be encouraged through working with songwriters to use our Christian faith and bible knowledge to develop their own creative response and performance to one of the Tree of Light themes.

Anne Brown a member of the local Baptist church has the experience of managing a project of this scale is heading up the initiative. She says ” This came at the right time for me as this was just the sort of thing I wanted to get involved with, I felt very excited and enthusiastic about the project.  She goes on to say that “all that is needed is enthusiasm and a commitment to see the project through from beginning to end. Representing Christian values and beliefs and a passion to take part in arts activities and a large scale performance”

This is an amazing opportunity for Christians to be part of an amazing project and there is many more. In our Christian journey all that is needed is enthusiasm, commitment and a passion to be part of the God’s plan and purpose for his people. To hold firm to the teachings of the Gospel and represent Christian values and beliefs and see the journey through from beginning to the end.

When we look back on the London 2012 Games in years to come let’s not think of it as a dream but that we did everything we could to make it a reality that God could put such an opportunity before us to reach out to our communities and change lives for ever. 

http://www.racebeforeus.org.uk/

Church notices - It's just one year to go to the Olympics

It’s always a bit difficult to get church members to listen to the notices and then even more difficult for them to volunteer for things, the Olympics is no exception.  At the start of the service on Sunday If you were to ask the question "who can tell me what big event is happening next year in this country". Most people would respond the Queens Golden or is it her Diamond? never mind it’s one of her jubilees.  If you then probe a little with “Is there anything else going on”? then depending on where you are you could get it’s the Olympic thingy isn’t it? With a year to go tomorrow to the opening ceremony of the Olympics in London no longer can we call it the Olympic thingy because like it or not it’s happening and from here on end it will be coming very quickly. So will we as churches be ready to respond to Jesus call on us as Christians to serve our communities. We could be, because we are very well served by More than Gold a Christian organisation who can help us to be ready for the biggest party on earth. They have been around since 1996 and have the expertise and experience to help us plan and not be caught out at the last minute as we usually are, so don’t miss the boat let’s get planning.

There are many activities and events we can run, from children’s holiday clubs , sports clinics, big screen events the list is endless. It’s a great way to get the church out into the community.  You are not on your own there are many individuals, organisation, other churches who would like to do something but don’t know where to start.

Be the one to get a group of people together to form a committee and register as a Gold champion on the either the Racebeforeus http://www.racebeforeus.org.uk/or More than Gold http://www.morethangold.org.uk website.

Run the race

Local churches working together for the local community

A group of churches in South Bucks and Chiltern has grasped the opportunity to serve their community by planning a series of events and activities to take place during the Olympics and Paralympics Games. They see the Games as a once in a life time opportunity for local churches to show the world what we are about. Extending hospitality to our neighbours is a big part of the Christian ethos and there is no better time to demonstrate the love of Christ in its fullness by serving our community. Run the race is the name of the project which covers Hospitality, Outreach, Justice Prayer and Discipleship.  There is a lot that could be done and these areas help people consider where they might best focus their particular gifts.  A presentation by More than Gold at an event held on 18^th July at St James’ Gerard’s Cross  highlighted the need to build community relations, and sports is a good way to develop connections, bridge gaps that ultimately change lives. A further More than Gold evening to inspire members takes place at Goldhill Baptist Church on Thursday 21^st July.

For further information go to www.runtherace.org’uk.

Olympic 'one year to go' event unites community

Dorney Village

Olympic countdown event

22^nd-24^th July 2011

We are all very excited about the Olympics and Paralympics coming to Dorney, and having  met with the Bucks 2012 representative who advised that there are many opportunities available to the community and that the identification of a lasting legacy was important.  One enthusiastic villager took the initiative to form a committee to look at the opportunities available . The group came together on 21st June for the first time and those present represented the non-profit organisations in the village such as Playground4dorney, Youth Club, Village hall committee, Walk to school team and the Parish Church.

The possibility of organising a free, community weekend to celebrate ‘one year to go’ met with a lot of energy and enthusiasm. The aim to bring everyone together as well as help to dispel some of the anxiety for those who are concerned about the Games disrupting their lives.

The weekend was organised to include the following: 

Friday 22^nd July

Olympic themed Walk to School. Children to walk in sports gear, Flags, mock Olympic torch and possibility of an Olympic athlete to walk with the group. Olympic themed, healthy breakfast available at the school at the end of the walk. BBQ event with music late afternoon.

Saturday 23^rd July

Dorney one year Countdown Rowing challenge. Ergo machines in the village hall. Challenge for residents to row the 35 miles from Dorney host village to the Olympics village. a Fun Run for all abilities and a tennis competition.

Sunday 24^th July

Ergo challenge continues if miles have not been completed. Cadburys Spots and Stripes Olympic family afternoon. Olympics games for all. Competitions, prize giving. BBQ to run during the afternoon. Tuck shop, tea and coffee. Face painter to be invited to provide Olympic face designs.

The weekend of the event is fast approaching and villagers especially children and young people who have been busy making Olympic torches are all very excited.

We are praying for good weather and that many will turn out for the various events.

Put your church at the heart of your community

Community Festivals are a good way for churches to connect with their communities. See below for more information.

Are you planning, or thinking about running, a Community Festival? Then read on.

For you to run a Community Festival in response to the 2012 Games would be a smart move. And there's lots of help for you.

If you are in any doubt about what a Community Festival offers then click here - for our web pages. They tell you how a festival can -

· Put your church at the heart of your community

· Help you build lasting relationships

· Be a demonstration of what the Kingdom of God can look like

Think wider than the Games

There are opportunities for festivals even before the Games start. The Royal Wedding showed us that. Three possibilities are -

· The Diamond Jubilee - a special Bank Holiday on Tuesday 5 June

· St George's Day - run it the weekend before the actual day, Monday 23 April

· The European Cup - running from 8 June to 1 July

If you are first time to the concept of a Community Festival, any of these would be a great way to put your toe in the water.

More training dates added

To give you more opportunities to see a festival and learn the ropes we've added extra training dates. The details are on our website - just click here.

By taking part you'll get -

· A clear rationale for festivals as a way to do mission

· Training to define a vision for your festival

· Practical guidance - what works and what doesn't

· A fat resource pack

· Lots of ideas, resources and useful contacts

You will also meet a bunch of people just like you - to share ideas and the vision to reach their community. Even if you can't make the training come to experience what a festival offers.

The complete list of training dates is -

Tooting Junction, Saturday 2 July

Leyland, Lancashire. Saturday 9 July

Reading, Berkshire. Saturday 9 July

Headington, Oxfordshire. Saturday 16 July

Preston/Clayton Brook. Saturday 16 July

Bradfield, Essex. Saturday 30 July

Croydon, Surrey. Friday 5 to Sunday 7 August

Liverpool. Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 August

Aylesbury. Saturday 3 September

Festivals Guide Book now available

You can now find everything you need to know about running a community festival in one book. That's thanks to Share Jesus International.

They've done it despite being in the middle of their own festival season where they have seen festivals in Central London, Spelthorne and Sheffield. And report that 'sporting fever is creeping its way in with volleyball tournaments, Aerobics classes and street dance'.

To get hold of a copy of the Festivals Guide Book or find out more about their festivals just click here.

Download manuals ready soon

There will soon be a place where you can download manuals on subjects that include -

· An Introduction to Festivals

· Sharing your Faith at a Festival

· Puppets

· Clowning

· Building Festival equipment

It will all on the member's area of Fusion's 2012 website that opens in a week or so. There will be details in our next On Track eNews that you will receive.

Sorting the tricky issues for you

The BBC have announced that there is no need for a licence other than a regular TV licence to show their Games coverage on big screens - so long as the content is not messed with or charged for.

On the way from Fusion is an online shop with low-cost resources for festivals from balloon modelling to face painting, from Diablo to inflatable balls.

We've found a production company able to arrange Day/Night Screens and we'll have a manual on how you can do screens on a small budget by August.

We're currently sorting through how to best serve local groups with insurance, council permissions and forms to help simplify organising.

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The Games are coming our way and only 388 days to go

For most of us London 2012 will be a "once in a lifetime" opportunity to experience the world’s greatest sporting event on home soil here in the UK. - something we're not likely to forget. It’s been a year since I started the role as Diocese of Oxford Chaplain to the Olympic and Paralympic Games, initially for three days each week and then full time from September 2011, and so much has happened in that time. My first task was to meet Canon Duncan Green, the Church of England Chaplain and Faith Advisor to LOCOG. It was then important to meet others doing similar roles as well as other organisations and agencies getting ready for the Olympics and Paralympics. I soon realise that there was already quite a lot of work going on. In fact More than Gold a Christian organisation with experience of helping churches to engage with the Games was already years ahead. It was a pleasure to meet members of the team at More than Gold, their enthusiasm and insatiable appetite to share the good news of Jesus was a joy to behold. I was somewhat relieved that I wouldn’t have to work on this mammoth and challenging project on my own. The next task was to put together a committee who would support the role and assist with driving the project forward but first we needed someone with the right credentials willing to act as chairperson. I was delighted when Bishop Alan contacted me with the news that David Brodie, a Professor of Cardiovascular Health at the University of Buckingham and a member of St James’ Church Gerrards Cross had been invited to head up the committee. David and I met in August 2010 and soon realise that our passion for mission and a common interest in sport made us ideally suited to work together on a project of this nature. We set about planning our first committee meeting which took place in September 2010. An exciting meeting where Bishop Alan spoke to the group about the opportunity for the church to re-connect with our communities and the need to be intentional about mission. The challenges have been many but one of the most difficult came about when we had to change our logo ‘Challenge 2012’ when it was discovered that LOCOG forbids use of the numbers 2012 from any activity associated with the Olympic and Paralympic Games.  Going back to the drawing board however proved all was not lost and The Race

Before us’ our current logo proved to be a blessing.

For me the last 12 months has been a huge challenge but the joy and privilege of serving God in this way is even greater. The London 2012 Games will surely be an amazing event in all sorts of ways. Wouldn't it be wonderful if everyone in our communities including visitors across the UK had the opportunity to hear and respond to the gospel message? We hope that as many churches as possible will run all sorts of activities to coincide with the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The opening ceremony is a little short of 12 months to go and if we haven’t already done so we need to start planning in earnest now.

Current members of Challenge 2012 are:

Revd Charlotte Bannister - Parker -  The Bishop's Adviser for Overseas Programmes

Revd Dr Michael Beasley – Diocesan Director of Mission
Revd Janet Binns – Diocese of Oxford Olympic and Paralympic Games Chaplain.
Revd Andrew Blyth – Vicar St Mary’s Church Aylesbury
Prof David Brodie – (Chairman) Professor of Cardiovascular Health - University of Buckingham
Revd Simon Cansdale – Vicar Great Chesham
Steven Dass – Secretary
David Gambier – Diocesan Advisor travel and tourism
Canon Duncan Green – C of E Olympic and Paralympic Chaplain and Faith Advisor to LOCOG

Revd Lucy Holt – Vicar of Eton Eton Wick & Dorney
Sarah Meyrick – Diocesan Director of Communications
John Underwood – Head teacher Chalfont St Peter C of E Academy
Steve Ward – South East area Co-ordinator  ‘More than Gold’
Bishop Alan Wilson – Bishop of Buckingham

Please join with us in praying for the London Olympic and Paralympic Games 2012, and watch out for news and information about ways in which you might get involved. For information simply log on to The Race Before Us or More than Gold websites and register as a gold champion for your church or to receive up to date information. Look out for year to go events.

Websites: www.racebeforeus.org.uk and www.morethangold.org.uk