Link Blog: May 2012
It is wonderful how God has provided so many helpers and speakers over the years, and added to our numbers. This was brought to our attention only this week, when Claire Jeavons gave us a memorable talk on the road she and her husband have just travelled to fulfil a dream and a promise from God – her lovely daughter Jasmine. Claire recalled speaking at Link several years ago, in front of about 25 people, this time to be confronted by no less than 70 people.
For the last two years we have rounded off our summer term with a 2 hour cruise and lunch in July on the River Severn / Sharpness Canal. This year we are hoping to do something different – watch this space!
If you have never been to Link why not give it a try? We always try to go out of our way to make newcomers feel welcome.
Link Blog: October 2011
Have you experienced LINK?
Since we restarted Link after the summer break our numbers have continued to rise with seldom a meeting where we have not welcomed new people who have made Link a regular fixture.
Once again we are thankful for speakers who have encouraged us, some even taking time off work to minister.
Link continues to be a great place for meeting new friends, drinking lots of tea and coffee, enjoying “quizzes”, singing worship songs, praying for special needs and listening to talks from some fantastic people.
We are looking forward in the coming weeks to hearing Faith Anders telling us something about her life and how God has kept her. Faith was born to missionary parents in China. We will be finishing off the autumn term with a special Christmas lunch.
Everyone tells us they can’t wait until the next Link meeting – so why not give it a try? Are YOU the missing Link?
Link Blog: June 2011
For some time we have felt the need to visit people from Link who find it difficult to get out and meet others. After getting a group of people together who were interested in being involved in this we have a team who will be going out in pairs to those who have requested a visit, we are starting this scheme later this month.
Only 4 more Link meetings to go before we break in August – How time flies’
On 24th May we are looking forward to hearing from Simon Jarvis our Senior Minister, followed by Kirsty Brooks (7 June) who is passionate about our young people and Fire Academy, as well as Debbie Hunston (21 June) and Sue Jorden (5 July) who have always inspired us so much in the past.
Our final get together before the holiday season will be on 19 July when we plan to go on a short cruise which includes lunch.
Mike and Faith Anders
Link Blog – January 2011
We are still planning the year ahead including a Communion service around Easter time which was so popular last year… our priority is that everything we do is God-inspired.
As we start a new year it is worth looking back to see how God has blessed us at Link these last 12 months. Newcomers continue to tell us how much they enjoy the wonderful atmosphere in the place. It has been very encouraging to see our numbers steadily increase.
We have had some amazing speakers throughout the year. We got off to a great start as reported on our main page and continued, reaching a climax at the year end when Michael Jarvis presented an anointed powerful Gospel message. We have also heard some amazing testimonies of God’s goodness, many from Link regulars.
Mike and Faith Anders
Link Blog – November 2010
The year seems to be flying by. It is hard to believe we only have one more meeting on 23 November, Michael Jarvis will be our special speaker, ending the year with our Christmas Lunch at Highfields Garden Centre on 7 December. We have over 70 booked in for this annual event.
In September we joined forces with several of our One Church Connect groups to put on a Songs of Praise event one Sunday afternoon which proved to be a great success. As it was autumn, we also made it a Harvest Festival which resulted in us being able to pass on donated produce to the Gloucester Food Bank. We were particularly pleased to welcome a number of guests and it has been so good to subsequently see many of them joining us in our Link meetings.
It continues to be very encouraging to hear so many individuals of all ages, who come to Link for the first time and say how much they enjoy the ‘atmosphere’ in our meetings.
Please pray that God will guide us as we plan the Link programme for 2011. Our first get together will be on Tuesday 4 January.
Mike & Faith Anders
Link Blog September 2010
At the first meeting after our summer break we presented our vision for Link under 3 headings. We want to encourage and inspire all who come to Link, to reach out to people beyond the 4 walls of the church, and to be led by the Holy Spirit.
These are goals we all need to take to heart. We all get discouraged at some time or other so let’s be encouragers when we get together and remember to spend time in the quiet seeking God. He has a plan and purpose for our lives regardless of our age, health or circumstances. God wants us to be Christians who enjoy life to the full.
Jesus said ‘Go into all the world and preach the good news …” It is nice to share good things with others, so pray that people will see you have something that will attract them. We must be prepared to adapt to the ever changing world around us if we are to be relevant.
Without the Holy Spirit our Link meetings, and indeed our own lives, become powerless. Amazing things can happen when people are filled with the Holy Spirit so it is important we pray that we might all be filled.
We look forward to hearing from Lee Hudson, Ally Jarvis, Steve Cresswell and Michael Jarvis before we end the year with a Christmas Lunch.
Mike & Faith Anders
Link Blog – April
We are encouraged by the positive feedback we are receiving and the increase in numbers attending Link. We are now close to getting 50.
Everyone who came to Link on the Tuesday before Good Friday seemed to be particularly inspired by the Communion service which was presided over by Andy Jorden. Andy explained the significance and the history of Communion in relation to the Jewish Passover. It was thrilling to learn of the links between the way Jews celebrate the Passover and the Trinity.
On 27 April, we look forward to welcoming Ben Oliver, the pastor of our local Elim Church. Coming up … Sue Jorden… and a special testimony 2 weeks later.
As always we love to welcome new people even if they can only attend once in a while.
Mike and Faith Anders
Link Blog – February
LINK has enjoyed some ‘quirky quizzes this year – even a test of our origami skills. We soon discovered this was not our forte! Remember our journey home in the snow? It took us almost 24 hours to get to the comfort of our own home!
We have had fun – and spiritual challenges from a variety of speakers… even our own Joyce shared the story of her conversion to Christ and how God wonderfully provided for her in difficult times. More speakers planned… Jo Izatt, Mavis Jarvis, Easter Communion with Andy Jorden… and in April… Ben Oliver – Elim Pastor.
In spite of all this activity we still have time to relax and enjoy each other’s company, make new friends and have a tasty light lunch. Remember Link is open to adults of all ages so why not look at the church calendar for our next Tuesday meeting.
Mike & Faith Anders
