Community sponsorship scheme for refugees
Baptists are being encouraged to participate in new Government initiatives to support people seeking refuge in the UK

National award for wellbeing café
Renew 37, led by New Life Baptist Church in Nottingham, has been won a national award to replicate its ministry

Skinny jeans in Calais
Former teacher Jenny Baldwin discovered her sewing skills were in much demand during a recent visit to the Jungle

Changes at Soul Survivor
Soul Survivor is moving its main venue next year; while Momentum is to be replaced by an all age event focused on the Holy Spirit

Radio treasure hunt finds Baptist church
Alvechurch Baptist Church had a surprise visitor at the end of its morning service on Sunday 14 August

Catalyst Live: speaker list confirmed
BMS World Mission has revealed the full list of speakers for Catalyst Live 2016

"The Lord is saving today!"
Read how God is working through a church in South Wales, which is supported by your giving to Baptists Together Home Mission

Midlife – Crisis or Chrysalis?
Is God calling you to something new?

Ruth + Naomi: a modern re-telling?
The story of Naomi and Ruth is being lived by many women today – but with an uncertain ending

The children stranded in Calais
There are 750 unaccompanied children in the Calais Jungle. Surely more can be done to help these most vulnerable of people

Have you seen that girl?
'All that I knew of God, to be true, seemed a distant memory'. The crippling impact of severe postnatal depression

Baptist, entrepreneur and philanthropist
Sir Edward Wood was a former mayor of Leicester and prominent Baptist. The money he left in a trust fund is still being distributed today

 

Dereham Baptist Church, Norfolk: Linda Brown-Balaam; Mark Cockbill; Heather Melandri-Street; Fraser Morrison and Tricia Waller
Dover Baptist Church, Kent: Lisa Fox
Lockwood Baptist Church, Huddersfield: Kelly Burke and Graeme Duffin
Park Baptist Church, Great Yarmouth: Gretna Barros Raposa, Sidney Monteiro de Almeida, Lucas Herlan Pontes, aged eight (baptised at home while terminally ill with a brain tumour, died five days later)
Rushmere Baptist Church, Ipswich: Lydia Barnard, Janet Wade, Daniel Somers

Know anyone preparing for baptism? Check out our range of cards

Send your baptism notifications and stories to phobson@baptist.org.uk

Baptism stories
Lockwood Baptist Church, Huddersfield celebrated how God has been working in a wonderful way in the lives of two people from a non-church background.

One of our fellowship, Savneet Singh, was driving in the pouring rain and saw Graeme waiting at the bus stop and felt prompted by God to turn back and offer him a lift, although he was a complete stranger. Savneet explained to Graeme why he had given him the lift and shared his faith. They got to know each other and Savneet later invited Graeme to his Baptism, Easter 2015, where Graeme made the decision to follow Jesus.

Prior to this Graeme had challenged God that if He existed to help him with his life, to his complete surprise Savneet had stopped and given him the lift. By the end of the journey Graeme felt this was the answer to his plea to God.

Following this, Graeme, an old school friend of Kelly's, having not contacted her for years did so through Facebook and told her about his new found faith and invited her to church.

There were other 'coincidences' in Kelly's life, including a Lockwood BC leaflet pushed through her door when she was out, inviting her to church at a time she was questioning the meaning of life and wanted to know more about God, having avidly read a children's Bible at the school where she was librarian.

She found out that Lockwood BC was the same church that Graeme attended and had invited her to. She eventually accepted Jesus as her Saviour in June 2015.

David Martin, their Bible study leader baptised them, assisted in the water by Savneet.


Death
LEIGH, the Revd John 1921 - 2016
The Revd John Leigh died in the Queens Medical Centre, Nottingham on 6 August.
He devoted 34 years of his life to ministry, including pastorates at Madeley and Bingley and ending at Eastwood Baptist Church, Nottingham, where he was minister from 1963 until his retirement in 1983. Eastwood Baptist Church agreed to appoint him as Minister Emeritus in recognition of his service to the church in 20 years of ministry.
There will be a thanksgiving service for his life at Eastwood Baptist Church, Nottingham, on Tuesday, 6 September at 2pm.

Engagement
Roger Gray (of Derby) and Maureen Scholes (of Hastings) are delighted, if still somewhat surprised, to announce their engagement! "God ambushed us" sums up how a friendship was transformed into a deep love over a very short period of time by the grace and kindness of our loving heavenly Father. The wedding will take place at Halton Baptist Church, Hastings, at a date yet to be decided.

Click here for more information on these positions

Baptist Assembly Review
Since 2013, we have been experimenting purposefully with the style and format of Assembly. The intention has always been to review the experience after the 2016 Assembly: to reflect on what Assembly means to us; and to look at options for the future.

An online survey is currently taking place. Whether you normally attend Assembly, have been only occasionally or have never been, your thoughts will be taken into consideration as the Baptist Steering Group and Council consider the future shape of Assembly from 2018 onwards.  

Full information about the Assembly review we’re undertaking can be found on the Assembly website, along with a link to the online survey.
The deadline for responses is Monday 19 September

Peacemaking Sunday - 18 September
Peacemaking Sunday is held each year on the nearest Sunday to the United Nations International Day of Peace on 21 September. The theme for this year’s resources is solidarity with refugees. On 19 September the UN holds a summit on refugees and migrants, and on 20 September President Obama will host a meeting of world leaders on the global refugee crisis. The focus of our prayers on Peacemaking Sunday will be for the success of these meetings and for our churches to continue to express concern for and act in solidarity with refugees.
Click here to download the service materials.

National Prayer Weekend - 23-25 September
This is a weekend to initiate a wave of prayer over our nation, one life, one street, one community at a time. Local people praying for their community can transform the nation. Central to National Prayer Weekend 2016 is the heart to see people in our local communities know and encounter God as their Father through the power of prayer.
Click here to find out more, and download resources.

The Baptist Historical Society wants to capture your memories and experiences of Baptist life. This is about building up a history of local Baptist life - what happened on a Sunday morning, what happened during the week, what was the building like and how has it changed, what kind of groups were there, what was a baptism or the Lord’s supper like, how were church meetings conducted.

We’re not looking for books or long essays, but shorter pieces around different topics.

No one is too young to take part, because yesterday is now history, but there is particular opportunity for those who are older to pass on their stories that they might not get forgotten. So perhaps as a church you might like to see this as a project around a Church Anniversary - a memory for every year of your church life - if your over a hundred years quite a challenge!

For further details please email Ruth Gouldbourne (ruth@bloomsbury.org.uk)

A used Portable Immersion Heater'' (P.I.H.) of 3 kw maximum capacity capable of plugging into a 13amp mains wall socket is required for a baptistry Pool at Highworth Methodist Church.
Please contact Malcolm Alexander 01793 763745