John Sherbourne 
Monday 15th July at 1pm in the MBC Music Room ‘Wise up to Ageism’.
The course will be led by a team from Leeds Older People’s Forum and will help us to keep developing as an Age Friendly Church.
There are 20 places and if you would like to attend, please email, or call Lesley Murphy to pass your details on to Rachel Beedle or of course directly to Rachel.
If there are spaces left, we will open the course up to the those working locally in our community. .
Visit the Store’s website at www.leedsandmoortown.org.uk
At our March Church Meeting Chris Hutt, the General Manager of the Leeds and Moortown Furniture Store, and Gareth Davies who like myself is one of its trustees said that anyone who wished to join us would be joining a team that over the next few weeks and months would begin to oversee some of the most exciting changes to have taken place in the charity’s 38 year history.
As a result of that appeal three MBC members stepped forward – two volunteered to be trustees and a third, a former trustee, who is coming back to us as a consultant/advisor. So not only do we really appreciate this response, but in terms of commitment to a long tradition of helping people in need it actually takes on extra meaning when I say that at that March meeting everyone in the room voted to hold on to the 50% share that MBC currently holds in the charity’s trading company: LMFS Trading Ltd.
And that’s one of the main reasons why we aren’t simply sitting back and congratulating ourselves on recruiting some new trustees, but continuing to invite applications from literally anyone who thinks they, in any way shape or form, might be able to come on board and help steer the Leeds and Moortown Furniture Store into the future.
As I’ve just said, of the three who have already expressed an interest two are soon to be added to the Charity Commissions register and the third will be called upon as and when his advice is needed; three more people who together with Chris and Gareth will set the agenda and monitor its progress. Between them there is a wealth of experience, but you know they don’t know, and they can’t be expected to do everything, that’s why if you have any experience at all in areas such as fundraising, in the property rental sector or although we have a fully qualified accountant who looks after our books even in finance these are just a few of the gaps that we need to fill.
So that’s it. Gareth, Chris and I are all around to answer any questions you may have, or if you’d like us to contact you just leave your details with Lesley our Administrator and I promise we’ll get straight back to you.
Thank you
John Sherbourn
Last Sunday morning, with the outside air temperature hovering around the 12 to 13 C mark, and a wind blowing that totally redefined my understanding of a light to moderate breeze it was an absolute joy to be in the warm, inside Moortown Baptist Church, to join in the celebrations of not just one, not just two but of three baptisms.
The service was led by MBC’s minister Shelley Dring, however, for the actual baptisms Shelley was joined in the water by her husband Nathan. Shelley’s theme throughout was built around two of the lost and found stories that Jesus tells and that we find in Luke’s gospel. With songs, prayers and of course readings all chosen to underline this theme it was wonderful to hear the three candidates – Diane Argyle, Candice Ng and Mike Shahid each share something of their journey to faith and ultimately to their baptism.
Followed by coffee and cake it was a wonderful morning of celebration and praise. That’s why we ask that God will continue to bless Diane, Candice and Mike as they start out on this, the next step in their journey with Jesus. But likewise we also ask God’s continued blessing on all those of us who either in the room itself or tuning in on Youtube watched them make this bold declaration of faith.
Following an appeal at our last Church Meeting, three MBC members have offered to join the board of the Leeds and Moortown Furniture Store and/or LMFS Trading Ltd. Nick Taylor and Mike Stoodley are two of them who provided they can satisfy themselves on such issues as trustee liability, the exact difference between a registered charity and a CIO (a charitable incorporated organisation) and the implications of taking on a directorship are both ready and willing to sign up. The other is former L&MFS trustee Rod Russell who has indicated his willingness to return to the organisation but this time purely in a consultancy and advisory capacity.
The Leeds and Moortown Furniture Store Ltd began its life here at Moortown Baptist Church in 1986 when, led by Hilary Willmer a small group of members began collecting and storing used furniture and then passing it on to people in need. Today that ethos lives on, however, with the passage of time L&MFS is now a fully registered charity, makes a total of over 1,700 collections and deliveries a year and unlike the olden days when cellars and garden sheds were used to store donations runs two smart vans and operates from a 10,500 square foot warehouse in Seacroft.
Relatively speaking LMFS Trading Ltd, the charity’s retail arm which sources, supplies and in most cases fits new furniture, furnishings and white goods is a new addition. Formed a decade or so ago, and with Moortown Baptist Church as one of just two shareholders, the trading company does not actually employ its own staff but pays a quarterly management charge to the charity for the time its staff gives over. In theory it also pays over any profit it makes to the charity although over the last year and due to L&MFS narrowly missing out on an LCC procurement bid the chances of there being any profit soon is unlikely.
The addition of two potential trustees and an experienced advisor is a huge boon to the charity. However, recruiting from within i.e. from Moortown Baptist Church is nothing new in that right from the word go there has rarely been a time when this church hasn’t provided either s succession of trustees or of dedicated volunteers.
Naturally the arrival of young or metaphorically speaking not so young blood is wonderful news, particularly so with our enthusiastic new Manager, Chris Hutt, and the Store’s existing trustees seeking out every opportunity they can in making sure that L&MFS’s founding mission continues to be both effective and efficient.
L&MFS Mission Statement… A practical demonstration of Christian commitment to socially and economically disadvantaged people our mission is to relieve poverty by distributing donated furniture,.
You can find out more about the work of the Leeds and Moortown Furniture Store, LMFS Trading Ltd and its new eBay shop by visiting www.leedsandmoortown.org.uk or by asking Gareth, Nick, Rod, Mike or John to share their impressions of one of MBC’s most important and long lasting projects.
Just one more item of news from the Store and that is that after serving for over nineteen years first as a trustee and more recently as Chair John Sherbourne is bowing out just as soon as he is able. Of late John, who is now seventy-five years of age has not been in the best of health which despite outward appearances has actually been pretty draining. So, in many ways perhaps this moment in time is not only the right time for John personally, but also the time when the spark needed to ignite a change that the organisation needs.
Once more takings from MBC’s Plant Sale have crashed through the thousand pound mark which means that in these difficult times this year’s beneficiary, the Leeds and Moortown Furniture Store, is in line to receive a much needed donation of give or take £1,300.
Many thanks to everyone who donated both plants and cakes and of course many thanks to you; the people who came to support us.
We’ll update you on a final total just as soon as we can. That all depends on how many of the surplus plants we manage to sell tomorrow. However, once again this hardy annual proves beyond doubt that the link that has existed since 1986 between L&MFS and MBC is as strong as ever.
Special thanks to Jenny Dixon and her team who never cease to amaze us with their planning and their expertise.
To find out more about the work of the Leeds and Moortown Furniture Store please click here to visit their website.
Dear friends
It’s been great to be back with you over the last week or so. Thank you for all your well wishes and prayers for our time off and the Paris marathon. I did think of you all as I went into the last section of the marathon through the woods! Also, when I saw the cheering, I was reminded again of the verse from Hebrews 12:1
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.” There is a focus and a commitment here to keep going, in times of difficulty and joy on the way and the promise of joy to come.. as the verse goes on to say.. “for the joy set before Him”, one step, then another step. Of course, Jesus was going to the cross, but it’s a reminder of the place of joy. It suggests that there will be times on the way when we may have to adjust our pace, reassess whether we are carrying things that we don’t need. At 9km I threw my family in the crowd an awkward shaped bottle of juice I thought I needed at the start as it was just an extra thing I didn’t want to carry, worse still the sloshing of the juice just kept making me think I needed the toilet! Maybe I needed it to start with but I definitely didn’t need it as I ran on. There are things in our lives too that we carry for a time, maybe they give us confidence, help us to feel safer, maybe everyone else is carrying it so we think we need it in our race as well? Regular moments to check what we are carrying and our running direction are needed on our life journey so we can reassess too. What am I carrying that I don’t need anymore? Is there anything that I have got used to carrying that God is asking me to do something about because it’s affecting my run negatively? Maybe God will bring some of this to mind for us as the 44th London Marathon takes place tomorrow…
Tomorrow we meet at 11am for a service with communion and a separate group for our younger friends during part of the service. We will be online on youtube too on the channel @moortownbaptistchurch. We’ll be continuing a theme of Resurrection.. what did Jesus do post resurrection? What does his journey post resurrection tell us nowadays? Tomorrow we will look at Luke 24:13-35. Its something we’ll be exploring over the next few weeks.
Dates for this week and beyond…
Sunday 21st April – 11am service
Sunday 21st April – 7-8pm rock solid youth group (see Val Boyd, Martyn Grey, Adam Argyle or Nathan Dring for more info)
Monday 22nd April – Beacon warm welcome café 10-12 midday
Tuesday 23rd April – Stepping stones for under 5’s and parents and carers 10-11.30
Tuesday 23rd April – housegroup in church in afternoon.
Tuesday 23rd April – Deacons meeting 7.30pm – 9.30pm in church
Wednesday 24th April – lunchgroup – see Rachel Beadle for more information
Wednesday 24th April – housegroup in church and online at 7.30pm (see Ruth/Andy Berry)
Thursday 25th April – Warm welcome craft group in church 2-4pm (See Karen Ross/Diane Argyle)
Friday 26th April – Bible study at 10am. Please see Shelley Dring or Robert/Carol Owen for more information.
Sunday 28th April – 11am service in church and online with a group for our younger friends
Local elections will be using one of the rooms in church all day and evening on the 2nd May. Do ask Lesley Murphy of you have any questions. All groups should be going ahead as planned even though the room may be slightly different!
Sunday 5th May – café church 11-12midday
Saturday 18th May – 1-3pm plant sale in church (See Jenny Dixon for information). Any cuttings or plants that can be donated then do let Jenny know. There’ll be tea, coffee and cake on the day. Do come along and tell your friends!
What a joy it was to be part of the baptisms at Moortown on Easter Sunday! We have some more baptisms planned from our community at MBC on 9th June so if you would be interested in being baptised on this day or another then do have a chat with me.
Thank you to those who helped with the funeral and thanksgiving of Barbara Dews after Easter, Do continue to pray for Howard, his family and all those who grieve the loss of a loved one.
Thank you to all those who continue to pray for our community, our city and our wider world.
And something to ponder… (click on the link below)
See you tomorrow
In Christ
Shelley
MBC’s links with Romania go back 33 years to Easter 1991 when following the fall of communism six people travelled overland with aid to some churches there. Over the years many people from MBC have visited Romania and been blessed by fellowship with the Christians there and a number of people from the Romanian churches there have visited us in Leeds. More recently Florin Fodor and family visited us in summer 2022 and Rod Russell was in Romania in earlier this year.
God is at work in Romania. The churches there are very dedicated to sharing the Gospel and over the years the churches have seen considerable growth. We are pleased to have been able to be part of this by sharing in the mission of the churches there. In April last year we provided financial support for the projects listed below and we will be sending further support shortly. Our friends in Romania extend their thanks to all who have made this possible. Further donations can be made via Howard Dews from the Romania Group, Geoff Fennell as church treasurer or in a marked envelope in the church collections.
Manastur Baptist Church is a large church in the major city of Cluj-Napoca in northern Romania. We provide help for the youth work including enabling young people from poorer families to attend summer camps and we supplement the support provided by the Manastur church to people in need.
We also contribute to a bursary scheme for Christian students from poor families in more remote parts of Romania who are studying in Cluj.
We also support an outreach from Manastur Church to a very deprived gypsy community which exists separately to the other communities around it and the practical needs that enable this church to function. Florin Fodor is a deacon at Manastur Church and is in full time Christian work for Campus Crusade. A recent initiative has been to establish a network of Christian teachers.
Another church in Cluj which we have links with is called VIA (The Way) and was formed by people from Manastur church. Although they do not need our material support, firm friendships have been established with a number of families there. They keep in regular contact and pray for us often.
They too have visited Leeds and stayed with members of MBC and we hope to continue these links. When visiting Cluj anyone from MBC would be welcomed and hosted by our friends at these churches.
We also have links with two Hungarian speaking churches in Romania. The village church in Cserefalva serves a very rural community. Zsuzsi and Andor Ferko are both pastors at the Hungarian Reformed Church in the provincial town of Udvarhely. We have provided support for young people’s work and for people in need. We are hoping that Andor, Zsuszi and their worship band will be coming to visit us in the near future and to play for us at MBC.
Our links with Romania took a new and unexpected turn with the wave of refugees from Ukraine.
With our help Manastur Church was able to provide support for people en route to western Europe (as did VIA church). Manastur Church still has nine Ukrainian families as part of their congregation and has taken aid into Ukraine.
Thank you notes from students at Manastur Church:
Peace of the Lord Jesus! My name is Ana-Maria, I am 20 years old and I am involved in the work with the youth of the church and I am passionate about confessing Jesus to other people. Thank you for your gift and God bless you!
My name is Samuel DELPHIN, I’m from Haiti, and I’m 28 years old. I am in my 2nd year of study for my master’s degree in ecological agriculture at USAMV Cluj-Napoca. Since I arrived in Romania, the Lord has prepared for me a church where I can grow in His Word and where I feel well received. So from 2022 I became a member of the 1 st Baptist Church in Manastur and I try to get involved as much as possible in the Lord’s work to glorify Him for everything He has done in my life.
I would like to express my gratitude to you for the way you have thought of the young people of the Church through this scholarship. Thank you very much for this generous financial support which is crucial for me and which helped me understand how well the Lord takes care of me and never fails to respond to my needs. I Know that the word thank you will never be enough to express my gratitude to you! May the Lord bless you abundantly and accompany you in all that you do.
Thank you very much!
Samuel
Hello, my name is Sebastian, I’m from Baia Mare, I’m a student at the Faculty of Physical Education and Sport, in physiotherapy, in the 2nd year of my bachelor’s degree, since I was little I liked things about God but I started to study seriously in the first year college and I decided to come to the Baptist Church Mănăsturi No. 1 . I wanted to thank you very much for the financial support you gave me that I will use in my spiritual growth.
Just a reminder that tomorrow we meet at 11am for worship together and communion. There will be a group for our younger friends during the service. After the service we will have our bring and share lunch, a time to relax a bit together over food and drink. If you are bringing things, then we’d be grateful if it was pretty much ready to serve rather than needing lots of prep in the kitchen. We have helpers in the entrance hall at the beginning of the service to take any food that needs to go into a fridge.
We look forward to seeing you
Rock solid meet in the evening for youth at 7-8pm
Our weekly activities continue as usual so it will be great to see you then
I will send an updated email tomorrow evening with all the information on for the next few weeks including Easter but just a reminder that we have a 10.30am short Easter service on good Friday, there’s a walk in the afternoon and we have an Easter Celebration with baptisms on Easter Sunday starting at 11am
In Christ
Shelley
