Dear friends
Last Sunday we started to look at who God is in the book of John. We see some of this in the miracles, or as John called them, ‘signs’. We will be exploring some of these over the next few weeks as we journey towards Easter. The signs are not merely about power but about God’s identity. What do the signs and the circumstances around them tell us about Jesus and what does that say about our identity too? How can that speak into our lives and our world today? Last week we looked at Jesus turning water into wine and this week we look at the raising of Lazarus as Jesus brought him back to life. It’s a reminder of what John says right at the end of his gospel..
“Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples…But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:30-31)
We start at 11am for all age café church with pastries, fruit and drinks. There will be things for our younger friends to join in with.
We also welcome artists Rev David Hawkins and Pippa Hale who are leading on an arts project called Blanket in collaboration with Leeds Art Gallery, Yorkshire Sculpture Park and St George’s Crypt. It’s described as a ‘bold compassionate sculpture sending a message of hope in a fractured world.’
After church will be the women self defence class starting at 1.30pm to 4.30pm in partnership with our local community and Blossom self-defence. More info about what they do here Instagram
In the evening Rock Solid youth groups meet in church building. All youth welcome! Talk to Martyn, Ruth, Val, Nathan 7-8pm
Monday 2nd March 10-12 Beacon warm welcome café for all. Food pantry available. A reminder that a police community support officer is often present to listen to any concerns you may have, offering support, advice and crime prevention information.
Tuesday 3rd March Stepping Stones for under-fives and their parents and carers.
Tuesday 3rd March in the afternoon, house group in church. See Howard D or Lesley for more information.
Tuesday 3rd March Mission Group meet at 2.45-4pm in the church building. Do get in touch with Phil C or myself for more information.
Wednesday 4th March Lunch Club for those booked on and the volunteer team. Talk to Rachel B for more information. This week Rachel also welcomes members of the Yorkshire air ambulance team to share.
Wednesday 4th March PACT meeting open to all. PACT stands for Policing and Communities together and its a chance to hear about and feed into crime prevention and what’s happening in the ward. Come to the music room.
Wednesday 4th March House Group in the Music Room at 7.30pm carrying on with Zechariah. Speak to Andy or Ruth or Shelley/Lesley for more information.
Thursday 5th March Craft group warm welcome space. All welcome to come along and chat or to make something or learn a new skill.
Thursday 5th March Bible Study in the Music Room 7.00pm – 9.00pm Speak to Gareth, John C or Lesley
Friday 6th March Bible Study in the Music Room 10.00 – 11.00am exploring Ephesians. Speak to Shelley for more information.
Friday 6th March Parkinson’s Exercise Class in the church building 6.30 – 7.30pm Speak to Phil Commons or Lesley for more information
Friday 6th March House group at 8pm in Adel. See Jonathan, Hilary, Steve or Helen.
The ‘Create your own psalm group’ met last Wednesday in the music room at 7pm. They meet again on the last Wednesday of the month on March 25th and all are welcome, materials provided, come and have a go in a relaxing space. You will be guided with ideas and then have freedom to explore. No experience needed. Speak to Krys or Cas.
Every Sunday a small group meet together to pray for Sunday morning and all that is involved. They meet about 10.40 in the music room. It includes the musicians and often those who pray or lead but it is open to anyone who would like to support in prayer.
If you would like to know more about any of the groups, getting involved, giving resource/money to support the work at MBC and in its community, about membership or baptisms then do get in touch with myself, a deacon or Lesley, who will pass on a message and arrange a time to get together.
Around the city…
North Church are hosting ‘Care for the Family’ on Wednesday 18th March called ‘Tweens and Teens: what every parent needs to know’ Book a ticket at the link here Tweens and Teens: What every parent needs to know – Leeds Tickets, Wed, Mar 18, 2026 at 7:30 PM | Eventbrite
There will be a Day of Prayer for the City of Leeds on Saturday 21st March with provisional times being between 9:30am and 6pm. This will be hosted by/held at Bridge Community Church. More information coming soon.
Looking ahead…
Thanks to everyone who came to the church meeting in the room or on zoom. The minutes will be out shortly. We made some important decisions regarding the future in terms of budgets as well as hearing and sharing some encouraging and informative updates from other areas of the church. The minutes will be out shortly. We keep thanking God for his faithfulness and look for His continued guidance.
Sunday 8th March at 11am service with a Sunday school to explore the main theme creatively, we continue to explore God in John: Healing by the Pool (John 5:1-15)
Sunday 15th March at 11am service with a Sunday school to explore the main theme creatively, we continue to explore God in John: Feeding the five thousand. We’ll also share communion together. All welcome.
Please put the date of 28th March in your diary for now as we look to offer a creative workshop as we begin Holy week.
We’ll be having a service on the morning of Good Friday and then at 2.30pm we’ll be joining with other local churches on Alwoodley Green for a short service to share worship and readings. More information to come. Some other ideas for holy week are being explored as we speak so I we’ll be able to firm this up by next week. On Easter Sunday we will come together for all-age Easter café church starting at 11am. After Easter we will be welcoming some of the leaders of the churches in Romania who have relationship with us here in Moortown and hearing some of their stories.
On Sunday 19th April we welcome Helen Harris, Director of Fundraising and Communications for the Baptist Missionary Society to share stories of God at work worldwide, in our service.
Do check out the website for all the latest news and stories.
In Christ
Shelley
Shelley Dring
Minister
Moortown Baptist Church