Join in the prayer broadcasts on Wednesdays and Sundays.

CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW
https://www.baptist.org.uk/Gr…/338268/Prayer_broadcasts.aspx

Sunday 29th March 2020

Here is our Sunday Service for you to take part in.

Please click on the link below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcRiH7ST5Hc&t=756s&fbclid=IwAR1iyVU2NNzI-d_PmWcn9urg6Um_vxnqpwML7etzqRjR8WIagXh-ZEHMTaU

Spring Harvest is still taking place

Click on the link to find out more.
https://springharvest.org/spring-harvest-home/

Rain Garden update

The new view of the church, our Rain Garden is fully installed. The rain off the roof as you can see goes into the garden where it soaks away into the ground instead of rushing straight down the storm drains and flooding further down the hill. Conservation that is beautiful and even more so when the plants grow.

Dear all

Today’s is the first short film clip in a series under the banner ‘Hope in uncertain times’ and we’re planning it (at present) for twelve weeks or for the duration of the Covid-19 crisis. I shall provide a similar clip, which will be broadcast by The Fuelcast each Friday.

Please click on the link below.

https://www.thefuelcast.com/library/2020-03-27-tftd-hope-in-uncertain-times-part-1?fbclid=IwAR0u4LlEYI9GOyYWd8KCIRsWKFE70MaSaVwywoM4AJiAJZjD0j3GXNUR7ao

Thought for the day.

Grant yourself a good meltdown.

Click on the link below to see Max Lucado.
If you do not have a Facebook account you may not be able to view this post.
 
https://www.facebook.com/maxlucado/videos/884560525392456/?q=max%20lucado&epa=SEARCH_BOX

A BIG CLAP

On the 26th March (TODAY) at 8pm can you all either stand on doorsteps or open a window and clap and cheer as loudly as you can for all the frontline workers -NHS staff, carers, food and medicine delivery drivers, shop workers and anyone else on the frontline, risking their own lives to makes yours better. Let's try and get this around the country.

Copy and paste 👏👏🎉🎉

This is really good and explains a lot about how people are feeling right now.....

Sound words:-

The text below was posted on the Haringey Covid-19 Mutual aid group page today. Interesting stuff about why we might all be feeling a bit wobbly. It is by a member called Imogen Wall. 

(Just be aware that some of the advice given about going outside may not be relevant if Government guidelines change or if you are told to stay indoors for health reasons.)

"So… my goodness. A couple of days ago, I threw out an off-the-cuff post on aid worker tips for surviving lockdown and quarantine. Today I’ve woken up to find it’s been reshared thousands of times. I’m getting comments from strangers around the world, messages of thanks, even requests to translate it. If you’ll forgive the expression, it appears to have… gone viral. The overwhelming reason it seems to have a struck a chord is that it talked about how we’re all feeling a bit wobbly. It sounds like there are an awful lot of people having reactions they don’t really understand. So today I thought I’d write a short follow up with my mental health first aider/therapist hat on. Ladies and Gents, this is Pandemic Anxiety 101. (NB for those asked for more lockdown tales, I’ll get to those in coming days).

IN CRISES, WE START DOING WEIRD STUFF: Over the last week I have struggled to sleep, stayed up late into the night reading endless news articles, bought pasta I don’t even like very much, got angry with my mum for not staying home. My spelling is a disaster and I’m definitely drinking more. I’ve been a bit teary, and all I really want to eat is cake, cake and more cake. From what I got back from my post yesterday, I’m not alone. 

If you’re having a wobble, you may also have noticed all sorts of weird stuff going on. Are you arguing more, talking faster, struggling to sleep, restless, desperate for information? Or are you teary and overwhelmed, perhaps feeling a bit sick? Struggling to make decisions? Just want to stay in bed? Tummy upsets? Having palpitations, butterflies, headaches? Ranting, picking fights or getting into arguments? Laughing unexpectedly or saying random, inappropriate things? Developing Very Strong Opinions on epidemiology overnight? Or have you just completely gone to ground?

If you are feeling any of these things: good news! You are not going mad. And you are 100% not alone. You are, in fact completely normal: a fully emotionally functional human being. Congratulations! Why? I’ll explain: take a seat and put the kettle on. 

WE ARE LIVING IN TURBO-ANXIOUS TIMES. Well, no kidding. We’re in the middle of an unprecedented crisis that has showed up unexpectedly (they do that) and which presents a mortal threat to ourselves, our loved ones and our way of life. It’s terrifying and it's getting worse and it makes us feel totally out of control. And this is on top of anything else we have going on.

HERE’S THE SCIENCE BIT. When we are exposed to threats and need to deal with them, our brain springs into action. Specifically a tiny, innocent-looking thing buried behind your ear called the amygdala (fun fact: it's the size and shape of an almond). It’s the bit in charge when we are frightened and right now, it’s in full tin-hat klaxon mode. Unfortunately, it’s also very ancient bit of kit. It came into being when threats basically consisted of being eaten by large scary animals like bears. You know that thing about when you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail? Well, to the amygdala, everything looks like a bear. It’s also pretty basic, so it really only has two settings. They are no bear 🙂 and BEAR!!!. 

SETTING: BEAR!!!. Because all threats look like a bear to the amygdala, it preps you accordingly. There are really only two reactions to a bear about to eat you: fight it, or run away really fast. So this is what the body gets you ready to do. It’s called the Fight or Flight response (there’s also freeze, meaning you just get paralysed). It does this by flooding your body with chemicals like cortisol, and adrenaline. Your heart rate goes up, you feel super alert, your breathing goes shallow, your muscles are ready for action. These chemicals are also largely responsible for the huge range of other cognitive/physical/emotional reactions in my intro. In group fear situation like a pandemic, this tends to happen whether you think you're scared or not - anxiety is even more infectious than COVID. Your body reacts even if your conscious mind doesn't.

BEAR V VIRUS: Obviously this is all great if you really are running away from a bear. But we’re now in a situation where we’re being asked to do the EXACT OPPOSITE of running away. We are being told to sit tight. Literally stay still. Process large amounts of information, make complicated and life changing decisions, and stay calm. All while a bit of your brain is running around yelling BEAR!!! BEAR!!! BEAR!!! This isn’t easy. The result is an awful lot of stress and anxiety. And if you’re anything like me, you end up feeling really overwhelmed and having all sorts of reactions.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS: Anxiety isn’t just mental – it’s also physical, cognitive and behavioural. You will notice all kinds of things: stomach upsets, headaches, insomnia, changes to eating, changes to the way you talk. It’s also cognitive: it’s very difficult to think straight when you’ve got the BEAR!!! BEAR!!! BEAR!!! thing going on – so we also become very bad at making decisions, absorbing information and generally thinking rationally. Which is EXACTLY what we need to do. 

SO WHAT TO DO: well, the good news is it is possible to calm down. We can turn the amygdala from BEAR!!! to NO BEAR 😊, and not just by distracting it with cake and tea. Her are some solid, scientifically proven things you can do.

BREATHE. It’s so basic, but breathing exercises are basically magic. They work in minutes and you can do them anywhere. They work because of all the physical reactions the amygdala triggers, rapid breathing is the only one over which we have conscious control. Control your breathing and you are basically telling your body: it’s OK. There is no bear. Your body will then start to dial down the adrenaline and cortisol and all the other reactions will slow to a halt. How to control your breathing? It’s easy – and if you want help just put "two minute breathe bubble" in into Youtube. The golden rules are these:

• In through the nose, out through the mouth. SLOWLY

• Make the outbreath longer than the inbreath – imagine there’s a candle in front of you and it mustn’t go out

• Breathe from the tummy not chest – really make your tummy go out when breathing in. 

• Do it for two minutes - time yourself - and see how you feel

Seriously, try it – this technique is used by everyone from top athletes to the US military to help stay in control while under stress. There are all sorts of versions – from yogic breathing to box breathing to 4-7-8. Google them, mess around, figure out what works for you.

CALL A FRIEND: Don’t suffer alone. Call a mate - someone who’ll listen while you have a bit of a rant, or a cry, or a general wobble. Someone you can trust not to judge you and who’ll just sympathise. And if you get one of those calls, just be nice to them. You only need to be kind. You can’t fix what’s going on so just give them a bit of space to rant and tell them they're normal and doing great. And if you’re OK, call your friends and check in on them. Especially if they’ve gone silent. 

LAUGH: it doesn’t matter what is funny – laughter is a huge releaser of endorphins. Silly memes, silly jokes, stand-up, rolling around with your kids – videos on youtube. The sillier the better. Also v good for bonding with friends, which will also help you feel less alone. 

DO SOMETHING WITH YOUR HANDS. Yes you can meditate if this is your bag, it’s amazing. But if it’s not, and personally I’m rubbish, then trying to start when you’re already anxious is really hard. So do something instead with your hands, that you have to focus on to get right. Cook. Tidy. Knit. Draw. Bake. Garden. Mend things. This is what nice middle class therapists like me call Mindfulness.

TREAT YOUR BODY: We hold stress in our bodies at least as much as our minds. Take a bath or a shower. Put on things that feel good on your skin. Use nice smelling body creams. Stretch. Skip. Do yoga. Dance. Eat healthy but delicious things - fresh if you can get it. All of these will help calm you down. 

SUNSHINE. It’s SPRINGTIME amid this horror – enjoy it. If you can’t go outside, open the windows and feel it on your face and breath it in. If it’s safe for you to go outside (maybe you live in the country) do it, while of course observing social distance. Go for a walk. Being outdoors, connecting to nature, is hugely calming.  

STEP AWAY FROM SOCIAL MEDIA/THE NEWS: All it will do will scare you more and make things worse. Turn off the telly and for gods sake avoid the psychopathic digital wild west that is Twitter. Stick to sensible sources like the BBC and the NHS, and limit yourself to short need-to-know bits a day. You’ll feel better immediately. Talk to friends instead - this is physical, not social distancing

STEP AWAY FROM TERRIBLE COPING MECHANISMS: They will all translate as BEAR!! to your poor brain. Especially don’t get drunk, especially if you’re alone (BEAR!!!), take drugs (BEAR!!!), stay up all night reading (BEAR!!!), get sucked into conspiracy theories (BEAR!!!), pay attention to ANYTHING Donald Trump says (BEAR!!!).  See? Stress levels going up already. Breathe. 

BE KIND: to yourself and others. Now is not the time to go on a diet. Nor is this the time to start on Proust or makeover your life. You'll probably struggle to concentrate, fail and make yourself feel worse (hat tip Laura Gordon for this bit). Don’t make this more stressful than it already is. Think comfort books, comfort telly, comfort everything. Personally I re-read children's books. Everyone is wobbly, everyone is going to have a meltdown at some point. Understand that if someone is angry or aggressive, then they are also just scared. And eat more cake. Cake makes everything better.

So, there we go. Hopefully a bit less BEAR!!. Now, that kettle should have boiled by now. Go make a nice cup of tea, sit by a window and drink it in this lovely morning sunshine. We are British after all. And save me some cake ❤".

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY FROM CHINA

This is from a teacher in China reflecting on lock down. It's lovely. 

We are just finishing our 7th week of E-Learning, seven weeks of being mainly housebound and seven weeks of uncertainty. We are healthy, we are happy, and we are humbled.

We are allowed to move around freely now with a green QR code that we show when we get our temperature taken. You get your temperature taken everywhere, and it's just become part of the routine. Most restaurants and shopping centres are now open, and life is coming back to our city.  

As we watch the rest of the world begin their time inside; here are some of my reflections on the last seven weeks:

1. Accept that you have no control over the situation. Let go of any thoughts of trying to plan too much for the next month or two. Things change so fast. Don't be angry and annoyed at the system. Anxiety goes down, and you make the best of the situation - whatever that might be for you. Accept that this is what it is and things will get easier. 

2. Try not to listen to/read/watch too much media. It WILL drive you crazy. There is a thing as too much! 

3. The sense of community I have felt during this time is incredible. I could choose who I wanted to spend my energy on - who I wanted to call, message and connect with and found the quality of my relationships has improved.

4. Appreciate this enforced downtime. When do you ever have time like this? I will miss it when we go back to the fast-paced speed of the 'real world'.

5. Time goes fast. I still haven't picked up the ukelele I planned to learn, and there are box set TV shows I haven't watched yet.

6. As a teacher, the relationships I have built with my students have only continued to grow. I have loved seeing how independent they are; filming themselves to respond to tasks while also learning essential life skills such as balance, risk-taking and problem-solving, that even we as adults are still learning.

7. You learn to appreciate the little things; sunshine through the window, flowers blossoming and being able to enjoy a coffee in a cafe. 

To those just beginning this journey, You will get through it. Listen to what you are told, follow the rules and look out for each other. There is light at the end of the tunnel.

Sometimes it’s so nice to read positive things, also to know that we shouldn’t  think about 12 weeks unable to get out for the vulnerable, work on one week at a time and this will pass and one day, whenever it will be, life will return to “normal” with just a touch more kindness in the world.

Margaret with her first short talk during the Coronavirus epedemic

Please click on the link below to see the video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Iom8MWmOII

The Archbishop of Canterbury's Virtual Service for Mothering Sunday

Here is a chance to hear words of encouragement.
Please click on the blue text below to listen.
Please share with your friends.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000gm8f

MATSON BAPTIST CHURCH NEWS SHEET 21st March 2020

In these very uncertain times let’s remember that we are ‘People of Hope’ in a world that desperately needs hope, along with the comfort love and forgiveness of God.

We have drawn up a Pastoral Care List, so we will all receive a regular phone call from our designated person, who will explain their role to you.

This first edition of the Matson Baptist Church NEWS SHEET is going out to many via email, and for those who do not use this means we are printing it off and delivering it through your letter box. (If you would prefer a paper copy let Margaret know on email margaret.matsonbaptistchurch@gmail.com or mobile: 07759194700. If you have an email but received it in paper form and want it by email please email Margaret).

Messages: If you have a message which you would like to send to everyone let Margaret know for the next News Sheet.

Prayer requests: please continue to let Shirley have these on 07915074529 or Margaret if it’s not so private and you are happy to have it on the wider circle.

This Weekend for you to watch/listen to:

SUNDAY:

Radio 4: or 05:43 – 05:45 Lent Talks

TV: Freeview Channel (704) 08:10 – 08: 48 Archbishop of Canterbury – Service

TV Channel BBC 1 (01) : 11:45 – 12:15 Sunday Worship for Mother’s Day

13:15 – 13:50 Songs of Praise

[TV Channel numbers are Freeview, and may vary if you have internet TV]

National Day of Prayer and Action this Sunday: Called for by the Archbishop of Canterbury to all denominations.

We are asked to LIGHT a CANDLE and put it in our windows at 7pm Sunday night and pray. (Please open wide curtains and retract blinds – no fires please!!!)

If you have access on your computer go to the Baptist Union of Great Britain website: click on blue square entitled Latest Updates; click on Corona Virus Advice for Churches; click on Guidance and Prayer Resources; Click on Prayer Broadcasts; click on National Day of Prayer Sunday 7pm and participate live! (You can listen to previous coronavirus BU prayer times here also)

West of England Baptist Association:via internet has a message from Nigel Coles – Regional Team Leader – to us all and after a link to the Sunday prayer event.

GENERAL

Freeview TV Channel 725: is Premier Christian Radio

Freeview TV Channel 65: is TBN which has some very good speakers and some not so, so be selective on what they say….

I want to assure you that we are still going to keep in contact via various means which will expand as we get more technical! If you have someone in the house who can link you to the internet then create an email and let me know: margaret.matsonbaptistchurch@gmail.com

PRAYER REQUEST:

Marion B has gone down with a suspected cold and so is having to self-isolate. Pray for her speedy recovery and peace for all the family isolating with her.

Constant in our prayers: That this virus passes quickly; wisdom for our and world leaders in dealing with this situation; resilience for our medical personnel and other key workers; safety for families at home especially the vulnerable; comfort for those who are mourning and will mourn; for those who are on the streets, refugees, famine victims, those in the middle of wars/conflicts…. that they will not be forgotten or abandoned.

There is much we can pray for during this time of isolation, may God have mercy.

A thought for today and each day:

Psalm 46:1-3 (NIV)

1 God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.

I pray that today and in the coming days we will all know in increasing measure, this assurance and reflect it in these difficult days.

When we feel anxious or afraid let’s pray calling on God who promised ‘I will never leave you or forsake you’ and, we may call someone and pray together as God’s family.

Let’s be aware of our neighbours who are anxious, offer them help and our words and prayers no matter how simple they may be, for God’s Spirit is in them and so they are powerful.

Jesus said to the disciples just before returning to heaven ‘I am with you always…’, so they knew they would never be on their own, and neither are you or I, for that is also Jesus’ promise to us.

So,

May the Love of God enfold you.

May the Light of God surround you,

May the power of God protect you,

May the presence of God watches over you,

Wherever you are, God is.

Blessings, from Margaret and the Deacons.

Coronavirus

Unfortunately we need to suspend Church activities to safeguard our members and friends.
We will endeavour to post news or items that you may find helpful at this difficult time.