Category Archives: Llansadwrn Church

Covid 19, Llansadwrn Church, Vestry Venture

Outreach newsletter January

Comment
Eglwys Llansadwrn church Carmarthenshire Sir Gar

Thank you for all the help you have given Llansadwrn Church and community over the years. These last twenty-two months must be some of the most difficult any of us can remember. The Covid pandemic has affected each and every one of us, whether through sickness and loss, or through the restrictions placed on our daily lives.

The church too has been affected. As you probably remember, there was a time when we were unable to go into church at all and many of the services we normally offer, like baptisms, weddings and funerals, had to be severely restricted. We are getting back to ‘normal’ now, although things will continue to change and adapt as circumstances dictate. It has been a learning experience for all which has made us ask questions about the role of our church in the community. 

The church has always felt very appreciative of the support given by the people of Llansadwrn and at the beginning of this new year, we feel this is an opportunity to hear from you – to know if there is any practical way in which the church can express her gratitude to you through providing venues and opportunities. Covid has had an impact right across the country and each community has responded differently: in some, people have asked for the chance to come together and enjoy each other’s company, because of the loss and loneliness experienced through the pandemic.

Vestry Venture was an attempt, in more normal times, to bring people together in that way, and there are plans to recommence as soon as it is safe: but perhaps now there are other more focused needs which require an additional response. Carers, as well as those they care for, have been under huge pressure during the pandemic and a monthly coffee morning might provide a opportunity to meet friends new and old. Regular phone contact for anyone feeling isolated is another possibility as is the opportunity to meet and practise Welsh in a relaxed and supportive environment.  

The last two years have raised some big philosophical questions. Discussion groups, for different ages, can be an ideal forum in which to explore a range of contentious issues, such as the limits of individual freedom and the nature of our personal and cosmic responsibility. Our young people have an especial interest in the future of the planet and might appreciate practical opportunities, such as an organised nature club, to interact with the environment. 

Undoubtedly you will have your own ideas which we haven’t even thought of. Please feel free to share them! Call Vicar Viv on 01550 777200 or Jane Shaw on 01550 777302. Or email us:  revd.viv.sayer@gmail.com or ffynnongarreg@btinternet.com 

In the meantime please accept our heartfelt thanks for your continuing support.

From all at Llansadwrn Church

Llansadwrn Church, Vestry Venture

Update on Vicar Vi, Vestry Venture and Church

1 Comment
Eglwys Llansadwrn church Carmarthenshire Sir Gar

It is a great relief and with delight to hear Vicar Viv is progressing quietly on the road to recovery after her nine month battle with long covid.  She hopes to make a gently phased return to work, guided by Occupational Health.

Meantime, services continue on a fortnightly basis, Holy Communion alternated with a half hour service of Morning Prayer.  Times vary according to availability of clergy, so please look out for notices on the church gates, a few days beforehand

Meantime Vestry Venture will be re-starting on Tuesday 14th September, 2.30pm – 5.00pm. 

All ages are most welcome, be it just to dip in for a ten minute link up, an hour’s chat or simply to say hello over a cuppa. If you know of someone new to the area who might value a chance to meet others living locally, please invite them along.

For further details of either of the above, please contact  Jane  on 01550 777302,  or via e-mail   ffynnongarreg@btinternet.com

Llansadwrn Church, Local stories

Food Bank in Church Entrance

Comment
food bank

In these difficult times more and more families face uncertainty, if you are in a position to give there is now a box in the church porch to receive items for the Food Bank. Tins are especially welcomed and long life / pantry items would also be welcome. Fresh food items are generally not accepted because of difficulties around keeping them. If you find yourself in need then please find some useful numbers below

The Discretionary Assistance Fund (DAF) in Wales gives one-off assistance to individuals over 16 who need urgent financial help. There are two types of support (both are non-repayable):

Emergency Assistance Payments (EAP) – there must be an immediate threat to your health or well-being, e.g. due to a fire, flood or other emergency.
Individual Assistance Payments (IAP) – enables you, as a vulnerable person, to live or remain living independently.
DAF payments are only available to people with no other means of getting the money they need and are not intended to be ongoing. Freephone: 0800 859 5924 or apply online.

Armed Forces personnel and veterans

There are various kinds of financial help available for Armed Forces personnel, veterans and their families, including benefits, council tax relief, reduced travel costs and discounts using the Defence Privilege Card. For more information, visit Citizen’s Advice.

Veterans UK will also offer advice.

Carmarthen Food Bank

Phone. 01267 232101 or 01267 225996.
Website. http://carmarthen.foodbank.org.uk/
Email. carmarthenfoodbank@towychurch.co.uk.

Llanelli Foodbank

MAIN LOCATION
22 Myrtle Terrace,
Llanelli,
Carmarthenshire,
SA15 1LH
PHONE
07594 609952
WEBSITE

Home


EMAIL
foodbank@myrtlehouse.org.uk

Llansadwrn Church, Sermons

Virtual Easter Experience

Comment
Eglwys Llansadwrn church Carmarthenshire Sir Gar

EASTER EXPERIENCE

Welcome to the electronic version of the Easter Experience and visit in your imagination the important events in the Easter story. At each point you will find a simple retelling (with a Bible reference) and some visual prompts. You will also find an invitation to interact with the story and reflect upon it at each stage:

  • Hopes and Dreams (Palm Sunday)
  • Servant King (Maundy Thursday)
  • Remember Me (Last Supper)
  • Alone (Garden of Gethsemane)
  • Sharing Our Sorrows (Good Friday)
  • Resurrection (Easter Day)

You might like to start your virtual journey by reading the following prayer by Saint Teresa of Avila:

Christ has no body now on earth but yours:
Yours are the only hands with which he can do his work,
Yours are the only feet with which he can go about the world,
Yours are the only eyes through which his compassion
can shine forth upon a troubled world.
Christ has no body now on earth but yours.

The Story of Easter retold for children and families

Easter is a very special time of year. It is when Christians remember what happened to Jesus before he died and what happened afterwards.

On Palm Sunday Jesus and his friends made their way to the great city of Jerusalem. They were going there to celebrate Passover. At Passover, even today, the Jewish people remember how God set them free when they were slaves in Egypt.

As Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the back of a young donkey, the ordinary people went wild. They threw their cloaks into the road to make a royal pathway for Jesus; they waved palm branches to welcome him and shouted: ‘God bless the king who comes in the name of the Lord.’

But some of their leaders weren’t so happy. ‘This Jesus is a troublemaker,’ they said. ‘We need a plan to get rid of him.’

Jesus and his friends got everything ready for the Passover meal. When they were all together, Jesus took a bowl of water and a towel. Then he knelt down and washed his disciples’ feet. Then he dried them.

‘Why are you doing this?’ one of them asked.
‘I am being your servant,’ said Jesus. ‘I want you to serve one other, just as I am serving you.’

Then Jesus broke some bread. He gave each one of them a piece and said: ‘When you eat bread like this, I want you to remember me.’

Then he poured out some wine, and said: ‘When you drink wine like this, I want you to remember me.’
Then they all sang the special Passover hymn. And they went out to a garden called Gethsemane where olive trees grew. It was a place they knew well and it was very peaceful there. Jesus told his friends to keep watch while he went away by himself to pray.

During the night soldiers came to arrest him. They took him for questioning to the Temple leaders. People came and told lies about him. They said that he deserved to die. Some of them made fun of Jesus.

Next day, Friday, he was taken to the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate. Pilate knew that Jesus was a good man but he gave in to the crowds who wanted Jesus to be put to death. So the soldiers took him away and nailed him to a cross.

When Jesus died, a friend took his body to a beautiful garden, and laid him in a tomb cut out of the rock.

The next day was Saturday, when nobody was allowed to do any work. So it was Sunday before some of Jesus’ women friends came with special oils and spices for his body. But when they got to the tomb, the tomb was empty.

An angel told them that Jesus wasn’t there; he was alive.

Christians believe that Jesus rose from the dead at Easter and is still alive today. That is why Easter is such a happy time.

HOPES AND DREAMS (stones to hold; a pathway strewn with palms leading to a simple wooden cross)

When Jesus came into the great city of Jerusalem, the crowds were excited and restless. Many had heard of Jesus’s teaching and miracles. They longed for a leader who would help them drive the Romans from their land so that they could live in peace and prosperity. As Jesus rode through the city gates on a young donkey the people cheered and praised God: ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord.’ As people threw their cloaks and palm leaves onto the ground to pave the way for Jesus, their hearts were full of hope. Some of the religious leaders grumbled at Jesus but he told them that even if the crowds were silent, the very stones would cry out.
(Matthew 21.1-10)

Part of being human is to hope, and to dream. Some of our hopes and dreams are personal, but others are more public. At the time of Jesus, Palestine was ruled by the Romans. The people dreamed of overthrowing their Roman conquerors. They were hoping for a Messiah, a leader who would set them free.

In your imagination . . .

Choose a stone and hold it in your hand. Let it represent the hope or dream you hold most dear. Then take it and place it with the other stones by the cross at the end of the road.

SERVANT KING (a pitcher and a bowl of water, towels and cushions)

Jesus took off his outer clothing and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel . . . When he had finished, he put on his outer clothes and returned to his place. ‘Do you understand what I have done for you?’ he asked them. ‘You call me “teacher and Lord”, and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you should also wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.’

(John 13.3-5, 12-15)

Jesus lived in a hot, dry land. Most people travelled from place to place on foot. It was the custom to welcome visitors by washing their feet in cool, clean water. Normally a household servant did this.

Think about . . .

how God might be calling you to serve others

In your imagination . . .

Ask God to help you serve others in a special way this Easter. Now dip your fingers into the water and make the sign of the cross on the palm of each hand.

REMEMBER ME (a table, a candle, some bread, some wine)

On the night before he died Jesus had supper with his friends. He took some bread. He thanked God for it and broke it. Jesus gave the bread to each of his disciples and said: ‘Take, eat, this is my body which is given for you. Do this to remember me.’

(Matthew 26.26)

Most of us have objects we treasure which help us to remember important times in our lives. When Christians meet together, we often share bread and wine to remember the last meal that Jesus had with his friends before he died.

In your imagination . . .

Please sit and light a candle. Now imagine Jesus blessing the loaf and giving you a piece of it. Imagine him blessing the cup of wine and giving it to you to drink. Think of the love Jesus had for his friends and for the world.

ALONE (green plants, holding crosses*, a tray of sand)

I have called you by name, you are mine.

(Isaiah 43.1)

I have loved you with an everlasting love.

(Jeremiah 31.3a)

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
(John 14.27)

Jesus knew that soon the soldiers would come to arrest him, and he would be sentenced to death. He went with his friends to a garden called Gethsemane. There he asked them to keep watch for him while he prayed to God for help. But his friends were tired and they fell asleep. In the darkness Jesus felt very alone. Even so, he trusted himself to God’s care.

In your imagination . . .

Take one of the holding crosses and hold it in your hand. Think of a time when you were lonely or afraid. Now re-read the verses from the Bible, then place the cross gently in the tray of sand.

*Holding crosses are usually made of olive wood in the Holy Land. They are shaped to fit into the palm of your hand and give great comfort in times of stress.
SHARING OUR SORROWS (large cross draped with red ribbons streaming down, small crosses each with a different group to pray for: for, such as NHS staff and Coronavirus patients)

Soldiers led Jesus outside the walls of Jerusalem to Golgotha, the place of the skull. A crown of thorns had been placed on his head. The soldiers nailed him to the cross and fastened a notice to it: ‘Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews’. While they waited for Jesus to die, the soldiers cast dice to see which of them would have Jesus’s robe for themselves. When he became thirsty, the soldiers offered him a sponge soaked in vinegar.

At three o’clock Jesus died.

(Matthew 27.27-50)

The Cross reminds Christians of the death of Jesus, but because he rose again it has become a sign of hope for anyone who is suffering.

In your imagination . . .

Please say a prayer for someone who is suffering today. Either imagine taking hold of one of the ribbons on the Cross and ask God to help the person you have chosen, or take one of the small crosses and pray for the person or situation on the label. You don’t need to use many words, just: ‘Dear God, please help . . .’

RESURRECTION (pop-up tent veiled, white sheets and cloths inside)

After the Sabbath, Mary Magdalene and two other women set out at dawn to visit the tomb where Jesus had been laid. As they reached the entrance, they were startled by the dazzling figure of an angel. The angel said, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here. He has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.’

(Mark 16.1-6)

Like the women, Christians look into the empty tomb to remember that the son of God was crucified, but, after three days, rose from the dead. We believe that this is the greatest miracle the world has ever known. It is why churches often create an empty tomb or make an Easter garden. It is why we celebrate Easter.

Think about:

how the women felt when they heard the angel’s words
what God might be saying to you today.

In your imagination . . .

Choose one word to describe the miracle of the empty tomb. Treasure the word in your heart this Easter.