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(Link April 2008) Church Vandalised
Some of the vandalism done on the 15th March to the Remembrance window
commemorating Bugbrooke’s war dead, which was one of three windows
damaged. This may have been done by someone in the village. Anyone with
information should contact the police, or contact us via the feedback page
of our website.
Spiritual
Health Warning I
often feel that The
Bible should
come with a health warning similar to that found on a cigarette packet;
"Reading the contents of this book may change your life". The
following story from the old Soviet Union shows what the word of God can
do both negatively and positively: – A
minister travelling by train sat in a compartment with just one other
passenger. As often happens, they started talking and the conversation
soon started to revolve around what they did for a living. It
was then not long before the conversation was purely about religion. The
minister listened patiently as the other man extolled the logic of
atheism. Then the minister shared his faith and read a couple of
passages from the Bible that he always carried. However, the
conversation ended in stalemate. The minister then had to leave the
compartment for a short time but upon his return he found that the
person he had been talking to had thrown his Bible out of the window of
the moving train. A
few months later, a stranger came to call on the minister and, coming
straight to the point said that he wished to be baptised. The minister,
not being used to so direct an approach, asked the stranger what Church
he belonged to. The stranger replied "None, but I have read my
Bible and I know about God. I know that Jesus Christ is Lord, and I want
to be baptised so that I can be counted as one of His followers." The
minister was surprised to say the least, as Bibles in the old Soviet
Union were not plentiful . So he asked the man where he had obtained his
Bible? The stranger gave a small grin and started by saying that it was
a strange story. He had been working on a building site some months
earlier. It was next to a railway track. As a train went by someone
threw this Bible out of the window; so he picked it up and read it, and
gave his life to God. The
minister could not contain himself any longer. "Have you got it
with you?" he asked. The stranger said "Yes", and showed
it to the minister. And yes, you've guessed, it was the minister's Bible
that had been thrown out of the train some months earlier. Here
was a Christian asking to be baptised thanks to that Bible and the power
of truth it contained. The stranger went away from his baptism brimming
with enthusiasm. Over the next few years, most of the people in the
village where the stranger came from gave their lives to Jesus and made
Him Lord of their lives. The
story just speaks for itself and does not need any adding to; but take
care the next time you open your Bible — it may change your life... Stephen
French Rector of Bugbrooke, Harpole, Kislingbury, Rothersthorpe www.bugbrookelink.co.uk/Church Friends
of St. Michael & All Angels Church Since
our inception in 1999, the Friends have raised £34,000 towards the
maintenance, repair and restoration of our wonderful Village Church. Our
next event is the ever-popular Race Night to be held on Friday, 25th
April at the Community Centre. Tickets available from myself or any
Committee Member and if you can't come along, please support us by
‘buying’ a horse. In the Summer, we are holding our Fish & Chip
Quiz Night on Friday, 4th July, again at the Community Centre. Tickets
are available from May onwards. Meanwhile our AGM will be held in the
Sunday School Building on 16th April at 8pm
– we are always looking for new ideas and more help so please
come along. Mike
Phillipson 832525
www.bugbrookelink.co.uk/friends How
Much Water Can You Carry? Christian
Aid Week May 12 –17 2008 Many
people in developing countries have to walk miles for water and carry it
home! We were lucky in the home we stayed in in Tanzania, they had a tap
in the yard for washing. But the school we were building had no water,
and much of our money was spent ensuring a constant supply. They have 5
months of the year with NO rain, so one solution is to capture water in
the rainy season to be used later. I even visited a local hospital that
has only an intermittent water supply. Christian
Aid works to support just such projects and local people provide the
labour. This is how the money you put in the Christian Aid envelope will
be spent helping local people in their everyday existence, growing
crops, keeping cows and chickens etc. Think about how much water you
could carry next time you turn on your washing machine or dishwasher!
And please give generously to those who have so little. Sue
Pace—local Christian Aid organiser Bugbrooke
and Harpole Scout Group It
was reported in national newspapers recently that Pancake Day is going
flat because only one person in five knows when Shrove Tuesday is, and
not many know the pancake recipe that was common knowledge a generation
ago. This was not the case at schools and colleges in Northampton
however, where pancakes were flipping on February 5th. At Bugbrooke
Scout Group too, the leaders remember the batter recipe, and all three
sections were cooking and enjoying pancakes in Shrove Tuesday week. Beavers
have been cooking up other dishes this term, working for their healthy
eating badge.
They made a fruit salad, cutting up a different fruit each, and mixing
them together with fruit juice to cover. The following week they made
healthy snacks, omelettes and pizzas with their favourite toppings.
Beavers have also earned their Health and Fitness badge which included
learning about hygiene and doing exercises and taking their pulse rates. The
Healthy Eating badge is one of 40 new badges introduced by the Scout
Association in January. Chief Scout, former Blue Peter presenter Peter
Duncan said he believed the new badges (e.g. for skateboarding, racing
quad bikes, and emergency aid) will persuade more children and young
people to join the half a million strong movement in the UK. For
Chinese New Year Beavers made a dragon puppet and tried some Chinese
food, and Cubs made large dragon heads with big teeth and long red
tongues. Cubs found out about Scotland for St Andrew’s Day and
Burn’s Night. They had a look at Scottish money, and took a map of
Scotland home to find all the lochs; there are 60. They tried haggis,
potatoes and gravy, and some of them liked it! They made porridge and
shortbread and have gained their Chef’s badge. They have played
shotput, tossing the caber and designed their own tartan. Cubs
investigated fossils, rocks and minerals and brought in their own
treasures and books. Scouts
have talked about aspects of fire safety, including an escape route from
their rooms, and made a poster. They had a discussion with our vicar,
Stephen French, with a lively question and answer session about the
Christian faith. Another time they considered the way we perceive
differently-abled people and were challenged to be more open minded and
not stereotype people. Scouts had practice with pioneering poles and
rope, one time to bridge a gap over a 10,000ft ravine to fetch a glass
of water from the other side, and another time to build a bivouac big
enough for 12 people, which needed good teamwork.
At
February half term, Scouts had a fundraising sleepover weekend at the
Hut; there were overnight frosts and sunny days. They went on an 8 mile
hike where they made a fire and ate their lunch en route, and enjoyed
films in the evenings. All
three sections took part in the well-attended Mothering Sunday parade
service on March 2nd at St Michael’s, and enjoyed the live music,
which they helped make, the posies and the cakes. Future activities
include a working weekend camp in March, for Scouts to help clear the
lake at Welton camp-site. A special ramp is being constructed to allow
disabled people to take part in water activities. Our Scout leader is
forming a new Explorer Scouts section for 14 –18 year olds; They will
be trying adventurous activities e.g. at the Snowdome and water skiing. Spaces
are available at Beavers and Cubs, and we welcome new recruits. We also
welcome anyone interested in joining us at the Scout Group as a leader,
committee member or helper. By the way, everyone is CRB checked. At the
moment we are looking for a quartermaster and in particular for a new
leader for the Scouts—two or more volunteers could work together to
share Scout meetings. Our website is at www.bugbrookelink.co.uk/scouts. Secretary Margaret Raymond 830532
Bugbrooke
Scout Group Needs You! New
Scout Leader
(for
10-14 yr olds), needed at Bugbrooke Scout Group. Our present leader will
start Explorer Scouts (14-18 yr old) in April, and we need a
replacement. Scouts
meet on Wednesdays 7.15 – 9pm
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