CHURCH NOTICES

1. A Young Women’s Bible Study group meets on a Thursday 09:30 at a child-friendly venue. Please contact Sonika at the Church Office to join or for more information.
   
   
2. Have you ever seriously thought about whether our God of love would actually send people to suffer eternally in hell? Dawn will be running a 12 week course entitled “Razing Hell” which will hopefully answer any questions you may have about hell. Venue, time and date is still to be decided depending on the number of people interested in attending.
   Please add your name and telephone number to the list in the foyer if you wish to attend.
   
   
3. Kevin will be away on retreat from (17 February 2012 – 20 January 2012) are available. Please keep him in your prayers.
   
   
4. Confirmation classes for the next quarter (January 2011 – March 2012) are available in the Church Hall for collection).
   
   
5. Those wishing to donate flowers for a Sunday service, please write your name on the flower calendar together with the reason, eg. "in memory of name", "in memory of name," "in memory of event," etc.
   
   
6. A Young Women’s Bible Study group meets every second Thursday at 09:30 at a child-friendly venue. Please contact Sonika at the office to join or for more information.
   
   
7. Please be advised that anyone needing to get into the premises after office hours will need to make alternative arrangements with one of the Society Stewards –
   Ann Meager.
   
   
8. A number of members are in need and the Poor Fund is able to help. If you should be approached for money or help, please don’t feel obliged to assist, rather refer them to Kevin and if you have an uneeded computer, one of our members could use it to generate an income.
   Please call the Church Office.
   
   
9. Please note that when issuing a cheque to the Church, it must be made out as follows. The Methodist Church of SA – Bergvliet Society.
   The bank will no longer accept cheques made out in any other name.
   
   
10. The Women’s Auxiliary invites all women who are interested to join the group to contact the following members:
    Hilda Raubach (021-712-6636), Joy Gerber (021-794-2043) and Pauline Jackson (021-712-4347).
    
    
11. If you would like a very helpful document about what to do in case of bereavement in your family, please contact the office for a copy at a cost of R2,00.
    
    

We wish the following 11 Church member a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

In the days when I was young and when one could open any of the garden gates and walk through them, some of these gates had a NO HAWKERS sign on them. In much the same way, the words LOCAL PREACHERS were displayed on a gate half a mile or so from our home. I meaant to photograph this, but never did so.

Of course these words were placed on the house in order to shield its inhabitants from callers representing some or other religious group. But when we in the Methodist Church use the phrase LOCAL PREACHERS we mean something different. We are referring to people who share with our ministers the work of taking services. (In many congregations local preachers are responsible for most of taking services).

All of us who know the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour know that he calls us to serve Him in many ways. To some, the call includes a summons to become a Local Preacher and thus to share the privilege and responsibility of leading congregations in worship and in prayer, and of preaching God's word – showing to all who listen the wonderful purposes and promises of God, revealed in Scripture.

This is not something to be lightly undertaken! But our congregation and the Circuit of which we are a part, need peoople whom God calls to this work. Training and help are provided; if you think God may be calling you to this work, then do talk to one of our Local Preachers about it.

And if you are sure this is not for you, then you will please pray ernestly that God will raise up more preachers among us. And let the daily prayer of each of us be "Show me how I can be a part of Your light in the world today".

Cathy Maunder, who wrote Umbilo's Treasure, has written another adventure story for young readers called Danger Point, which is set in Gansbaai. It is educational and exciting, a good “family read.” It sells for R90,00 and proceeds will be tithed to a local charity. Please contact Cathy at 021-715-2752 for a signed copy.

Thank you so much for the boxes that were made, and the contributions given towards the Christmas boxes! Forty children each received a gift, but the greatest gift of all was to see the smiles on their faces.

There are about fifteen exciting new books in the library. Amongst them is "Her Daughter's Dream", which is the sequel to Francine Rivers "A Mother's Hope".

Also are books by the well-known authors Karen Kingsbury, Lynn Austin, and Ted Dekker, as well as the new authors Randy Singer and Susan Meissner plus many others.

So don't miss out! Pop into the library today.