John Sherbourne

After four months of lockdown the Leeds and Moortown Furniture which since 1986 has been collecting donated furniture and then through a raft of statutory and voluntary referral agencies passing it on to people in need will reopen its telephone lines on Monday July 27th. 

Karen Ross has been in touch to say that Yunhee Kim is making washable, reversible cotton masks for adults and children. And looking at these pictures you have to admit that they look fabulous. 

However, alongside the masks Yunhee is making matching wipeable pouches which are just large enough to hold a small bottle of antibacterial gel, gloves and the mask itself. 

You can see a larger selection of masks and pouches by looking at Yunhee’s Instagram page: FRAMESOFHAPPINESS.

Since the start of the lockdown Martin House Children’s Hospice at Boston Spa has, like so many other wonderful charities missed out on thousands of pounds in much needed donations. That’s why to help, all be it in a small way for each mask and pouch sold the hospice will receive £1.If you are interested in helping Yunhee and Martin House please contact Karen on either 0113 2933574 or 07954391303.

Still on the subject of masks, here’s a picture that John Kavanagh sent us of one of a number of vending machines in and around Leeds railway station which have been adapted to stock hand sanitiser and disposable face masks. Clever eh! 

At our recent Church Meeting Ian Richardson explained just a few of the raft of things we need to have done before we can re-open our church building. He also asked for anyone who was prepared to volunteer (as and when we reach that stage) to let him or anyone else on the Leadership Team have their contact details. However, Ian was most keen to emphasise that whilst certain lockdown restrictions are being eased when it comes to us holding any mass gatherings there will be no quick fix.  

To get some idea of what is required of us Ian referred people to three documents, one from the government and two from the Baptist Union that are currently on the MBC webside and which deal specifically with the re-opening of church buildings. You can read these documents by clicking HERE – they are the top three links. 

Ian also appealed for volunteers to help with Church at Home, our regular Sunday Service: hosts, preachers, prayers, singers/musicians, readers, IT specialists and just about anyone else are all needed to ensure our online worship continues. Again if you would like to help out with Church at Home please email Ian on moortownbaptistchurchtreasurer@gmail.com or contact any other member of the Leadership Team.   

Suzanna and Phil Laws’ Homegroup are organising a online ZOOM quiz night, only instead of restricting entries to regular members they are inviting us all to join in. 

7.30pm for 8 is the time and the date is Saturday the 18th of July. 

To get yourself on the list all you need do is to email suzannalaws@hotmail.com 

Since MBC went into lockdown lots of things have gone online, and three of these are Family at Moortown (our child and family centred Sunday morning session) Oasis and Moortots. 

As we now move into what would traditionally be MBC’s summer programme ie lots of all age services we asked Shelley Dring, our Children and Families Lead to talk us through the last sixteen weeks. Here’s what she said.  

• This week we reached our 33^rd Moortots live on Facebook and YouTube and our 8^th Family at Moortown Session, again on YouTube. 
• In total we have done 49 video uploads on Family at Moortown and all these can all be watched at anytime.
• These include 6 bible stories read out by friends of MBC as well as 3 creative videos made by Sarah Meyer and her children.
• We have shown collaborative videos on various themes including movement and treasures.
• Between 19 June and 16^th July the Moortots Facebook page had 1003 engagements, which is up 28 per cent.
• We have 120 page likes, up 3 in the last week.
• Stats on their own aren’t always helpful but I picked these ones out because they show how people are actually engaging with what we are doing.
• Next week is our Silly Summer Special at 11am on Thursday 23^rd July and our Facebook event invite has had a reach of 133 so far. Do join us!
• We also have family WhatsApp groups so if you have children and would like to be part of one of them do get in touch with me
• Next week we’ll update you with a few summer plans. 

In order to help Shelley plan her summer 2020 programme she would like to ask you a specific question…  what helps you pray?  Do you have a special place, a song you sing, a dance, do you paint or write or do exercise at the same time? Do you read out a favourite prayer or say a prayer at bedtime? And have you discovered something new about your prayer life during lockdown?

If any of you have or could take or make a picture or video showing building on this Shelley would love to use it to help encourage others ahead of next Sunday’s church…(all ages included, do pass it onto people!) 

The best way to get these to Shelley is either by WhatsApping her or by emailing them to shelley.dring.mbc@btconnect.com

With husband Michael standing by with full visor, gloves and sanitiser Karen Ross’ ladies craft group met up yesterday (Thursday) in her garden for the first time since March.

The sun shone and as you would expect the conversation flowed as the ladies all shared how they had coped!

Masks were a big topic; how long they would be worn they mused, and whilst most were very reluctant to go anywhere how and when will we ever be able to go “normal” shopping again?

Can’t see much craft being done but never mind, let’s hope that this was just the first of many such socially distanced sessions. 

It’s Friday the 10^th of July 2020 which means that if you include those that we broadcast on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday this coming Sunday’s Church at Home will be MBC’s nineteenth online Service.

However, as many of you know it’s not just the way we do our Sunday worship that’s changed. Moortots and Oasis have taken to Facebook Live with Shelley Dring presenting twice weekly sessions of song, dance, storytelling and craft. On Sundays Shelley also hosts Family at Moortown, a programme that imaginatively mirrors the themes of Church at Home only this time via its own dedicated YouTube channel.

Those currently leading our Youth work are, as you might expect also making the most of digital technology be getting together through a mix of regular Zoom meetings, WhatsApp catch ups and the like.

Although it’s now more than three months since Carole Smith, her Lunch Club team and their guests were in the same room the caring continues. Hundreds of phone calls have been made, regular newsletters have gone out, most recently a number of sheltered visits have been carefully managed and last week there was even time for some extra special takeaway treats.

Likewise with our expanded in-house Pastoral Team. Available 24/7 to respond to need and to provide support co-coordinator Jane Coates and the group of trained volunteers who work alongside continue to do their very best to ensure that no one feels alone. The MBC website, normally updated two or three times a week is now not only providing a whole raft of Covid related information but as a means of communication has come to resemble a rolling news service as virtual contact has replaced the real thing. Home Groups were one of the first to embrace Zoom, as was Life Worth Living and of course in early June we even had a virtual church meeting.

What follows are four short messages from Carole, Abi, Shelley and Graham in which each of them share some thoughts from lockdown.

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Long distance Lunch Club

On Wednesday 11^th March 2020 there was the usual hustle and bustle at Lunch Club as we played some energetic games of adapted table tennis together. There was laughter and competitive spirit with Raymond Newton achieving a rally of over 100 hits seated at a table with his opponent Mike Gray!  We enjoyed a delicious lunch together and a quiet game of Bingo afterwards. Little did we know then that it would be our last meeting altogether for some time…

Both our Lunch Club members and the team who support them have responded to the challenges of Covid-19 with gusto. Many of our seniors have drawn on the resilience and wisdom which they have learned through other difficult life experiences. They have done their best to stay connected and keep well and have also reached out to others. Several members asked to be put in touch with those in the group whom they knew were particularly isolated, some have welcomed family for a wave outside their window and others have started a regular local walk or been busy in their gardens.

The Lunch Club Team have made over 450 telephone calls to our 28 members in the last 12 weeks to offer a chance to chat and to provide practical help or signposting to it. We have delivered jigsaws and books, organised food shopping and supported people when they have been feeling low. There have been 5 mail-outs sent to the group as another way of staying in touch and to provide information, articles and activities of interest. Last week our first doorstep visits and cake drop-offs were a welcome surprise for our members!

We now know our seniors a lot better, and we hope that we have enabled the spirit of fun and friendship which is so present each Wednesday at Lunch Club to prevail at a distance… and we thank God for the opportunity to continue to do that and to be part of this community.

Carole Smith – Seniors’ Worker and on behalf of the Lunch Club Team

MBC Youth Programme… Zooming through the crisis

MBC Youth have been meeting regularly throughout lockdown. All of our contact has been virtually, on Zoom, which has made it possible for us to stay in touch even though apart.

The youth team have been running weekly Sunday evening Zoom calls where we have been exploring the same themes and bible passages as Church at Home. This has helped us all to feel connected and part of the whole church.

God has been speaking to us about how Christ is the head of the church, which is the people – not the building! We are all still able to be part of Christ’s church, even when we are physically apart.

We have also been running mid-week groups:

• Tuesday evening (weekly) – Deepening Faith (a discipleship group for those wanting to go deeper and find accountability with others)
• Wednesday evening (monthly) – Topical Discussion (a chance to discuss topical issues raised by the young people)
• Friday evening (monthly) – Social (a chance to hang out with each other and play games)

We have been really encouraged by the engagement from some of our young people and have been able to continue to build and strengthen relationships during this time. As we come towards the end of a what has been a long and difficult term for many of our youth, there is certainly a sense of “Zoom fatigue” and a desire to meet together again in-person.

As we head towards the summer holidays we are discussing as a team what we might be able to offer our young people during the break.

Thank you for your continued support and prayers for our amazing young people and their leaders.

Abi Tilley – on behalf of the Youth Team

Being church in a new era

I write this on a rainy Wednesday after visiting Sainsburys with its screens, face masks and one-way system. It’s a very different picture to the one back on Wednesday 25^th March when I filled my car with a load of paint and ribbons, my diary and laptop, postponed Rewind and went home to start the journey I’ve been on for 15 weeks.

Connection seemed to be key. My main thoughts and prayers were around ‘how do we keep being church for all ages in a new era?’  In the news there were pictures of empty churches. But the church hadn’t gone, it had left the building.

Suddenly I was making more phone calls, setting up what’s app groups, texting, emailing, zooming and creating new social media platforms. These included two live under 5’s sessions on Facebook using the Moortots Facebook page. We ‘meet’ every Tuesday and Thursday at 11am online. I am ably supported by my two children and we have an average of 20 live views joining in with songs, crafts, stories and dance. By the end of the day we have over 100 watchers. 

Topics have included everything from the Lost Sheep, Thankfulness, Space and the Eurovision Song Contest and we hope it’s an ‘anchor point’, encouragement and safe space to join in God’s story each week.  Those who do join us are a mixture of ages and include those who come to MBC regularly, those who attend the toddler groups and new some people who have joined us during lockdown. It’s a great opportunity to reach out. If you haven’t already then do tune in; the songs might bring back some memories!  Sessions are available on our new YouTube channel, Family at Moortown. 

Sunday school group sessions are also made each week for the YouTube channel. I’m always on the lookout for how God wants to speak to us and how we can empower each other. In these sessions and through Church at Home we’ve seen people move, paint, play, find new paths, exercise, share their treasures, re-enact bible stories and pray creatively each week. Families and those in the children’s teams often post what they have thought/made on a Sunday and it’s great to share it.

I’m supported in all this by our children’s teams, each with a heart for sharing Jesus in an accessible way. They have been praying, messaging, some have kept in touch with families, encouraged each other and joined activities.  These have included reading their favourite bible stories (available on the Family at Moortown channel), virtual afternoon teas and a virtual Easter egg hunt.

And the journey continues… As Coldplay sang, “I’d rather be a comma than a full stop”.

So, we look to how we can be a comma in the new season.  We all have a part to play in God’s family. 

Do get in touch with me if you want to get involved or if you could do with a bit of support yourself.

Shelley Dring, Children and Families Lead

And finally, a word from Graham 

So many aspects of our lives have changed significantly over the last few months and MBC is no exception. Covid-19 has re-shaped the way we do church, our regular programme of activities and being able to see the people we are used to meeting up with.

Technology has given us new opportunities – we have Church at Home; live on Facebook and with recorded content on YouTube. At 10.45am each Sunday we have upwards of 100 separate devices watching tuned in both locally and from across the world (in effect that could be as many as three to four hundred people) and as many as three times that number watching regularly on catch up.

During our time together members share videos, messages, sometimes a dramatic unpacking of the service theme with a short talk and prayer. Highlights have been the shared music items all so well run by the tech team: Murray, Sam, Mike, Abi with Tracy and others on hand. We have always aimed to produce accessible content produced by MBC people. In recent weeks the family at Moortown playlist has complemented the same theme for children and families.

Throughout Covid-19 lockdown 12 volunteers from MBC have joined a local volunteer hub run jointly by Leeds City Council and Voluntary Action Leeds. Every week they are providing food shopping and pick-ups of medication. We have highlighted the work of the Christian charity Home for Good encouraging Foster carers in Leeds and offer ongoing prayer and support of NHS and other carer/ key workers.

We have offered prayers and public statement that silence is no longer enough in the face of ongoing racism in society as highlighted by Black Lives Matter.

Alongside the friendships we share in church we have a pastoral care team of 18 volunteers which is set up to offer visits and maintain contact with people. Throughout the lockdown this has been through phone calls but, as the lockdown eases, the team is able to offer ‘safe distance’ visits. The team is coordinated by Jane Coates, with Pastoral Deacon Julia Hyliger and Robert Owen on the core team.

Many of our home groups have continued, so have met by virtual means such as Zoom, Skype or WhatsApp. Others have simply kept in touch by regular phone calls.

Looking forward, we wish to take the best experiences from lockdown as we try to plan for what we may be permitted to do in terms of regular activities or services. We need to ensure that anything we do in the MBC building can be provided and accessed within Covid-19 safe protocols. It is likely the way we do church in future months will be a combination of on-line and smaller in-person meetings or services …watch this space!

Graham Brownlee, co-minister

ALSO AVAILABLE IN PRINT. This article together with Roundabout MBC, a collection of recent stories from our website has been printed out and distributed to a number of people we know who don’t have easy access to the internet.

If you can think of anyone who would appreciate receiving a large print paper copy of any future issues please email their name and address to mbcnewspics@gmail.com