Be is a fresh expression of Church.
We don’t ‘go’ to Church because Church is not about buildings. It’s about people.
We don’t ‘do’ church because Church is about identity more than productivity.
We are called to ‘be’ Church – Knowing Jesus and making Him Known
After lots and lots of discussion about where and when just be should be meeting, we think we might have cracked it!
For the next few months we will continue meeting at the Raynes Park Tavern, but at the slightly later time of 7:30pm every Monday night.
If people don't want to eat at the Tavern, and bunch of us will be sampling the culinary delights of the Edward Rayne beforehand and heading over for the 7:30 start.
See you there!
For the last few months the be church community has been discussing and exploring how best to develop as a community in our relationship with each other, God and our wider community.
For the next couple of months we will be experimenting on how best to gather as a community. For Oct-Nov we will be meeting every Sunday eve at 7pm in various venues working through the theme of waiting.
Click here to download Oct-Nov calendar.
4th Oct be fed: Waiting for answers @ the Frosts
11 Oct be worship: Waiting on God @ Wimbledon Methodist Church
18th Oct be taught: The Waiting Game @ Tom, Jane and Kit's
25th Oct be the change: Waiting for change @ The Bash
1st Nov be fed: Waiting for what's next @ Tom, Jane and Kit's
8th Nov be worship: Waiting for healing @ Wimbledon Methodist Church
15th Nov be taught: Waiting as a discipline @ The Slug and Lettuce, Wimbledon
22nd Nov be the change: Waiting for Shalom @ The Bash
29th Nov be community: Celebrating anticipation @ the Frosts
So with a full and fun packed couple of months ahead - we would love you to come and join in!
So here is what we have in store for September...
Thursday 3rd September - New term, end of summer BBQ. 7pm; details to follow...
Friday Sep 4th - Raynes Park gig (TBC)
Monday Sep 7th - Just Be at the Wetherspoons - over the summer we have been doing Lyfe and we will continue to do so but over the summer we were challenged to finnish 'The Secret Message of Jesus'. On the 7th we will be chatting about how we found the book! We will also be dishing out our next group book - A Tale of Three Kings (a very different style of book). 7pm onwards...
Sunday Sep 13th - Be Worship at Wimbledon Methodist Church. 7pm onwards...
Thursday Sep 24th - Be Taught, Venue TBC - The Bible in an hour!! Come and learn how the Bible fits together in one session!
Quick shout out to see if anyone from the Be Community wants to help out with Soul in the City Wimbledon mission - 26th July - 1st August. A week of sport, workshops, wide games, regeneration projects, drama and more based on High Path Estate, South Wimbledon. If you are game and want to help out in some awy, either for a few hours or the whole week, contact naomipanter@hotmail.com
Over the summer, things will quieten down somewhat on the Be front. We will quieten but we will not be stopping!
Just Be will continue each Monday at 7pm at the Raynes Park Tavern.
Be Worship will be on July 12th and August 9th...
And we will be having an away weekend in Bournemouth. Chris has organised a weekend with Camping,Muddy walks, A fire, Marshmallows, Prayer and worship, A hot tub, Interesting discussion, Local ale, An andy frost game challenge, Barbecuing, Music, A big marquee and Kit Lewis wrestling an alligator. The weekend is the evening of Friday 14th - Sunday 16th. For info, get in touch with Chris or join the facebook group here.
There will also be a few of us going to Greenbelt. Dan Hoyes is organising the trip. To find out more join the facebook group here.
For more info on any of the above you can also email Andy.
Last week's Be Taught was great with Rob Hare from Lyfe - a really interesting way of engaging with the Bible. No series of questions, just the opportunity to read a chunk of the Word and allow God to show you blockers (things that you just don't understand) and shockers (things that inspire you). After a quick read you let the conversation flow...
We had a look at Exodus 3:1-14, the calling of Moses. Although we had read this passage a stack of times before, we all received a whole load of fresh insight...
So - the Bible - how do we get into it? Welcome Rob Hare from the Bible Society. He will be leading a session on LYFE. 7.30pm at the Frost Residence with coffee and donuts! Rob will lead us through...
A busy week in the world of be! This Wednesday a whole bunch of us checked out Izzy's art at Wimbledon Art College. Her worked rocked!
Then last night we enjoyed fishfinger sandwiches and chips as we watched Pakistan beat South Africa in the cricket. Kit then led a discussion based on 'What Sport tell us about Life' - does hard work make us succesful? is it about luck? what about fate? ...and what is the God angle on life? does God know the future? do we have free choice? is our life mapped out for us or do we make our own life journey? stimulating discussion!
Be Worship - Sunday 14th @ Wimbledon Methodist Church
Be Fed - Thursday 18th @ Kits House - the usual mix of banter, discussion and grub!
Be Taught - Thursday 25th @ Venue TBC with Rob Hare from Lyfe looking at how we engage with the Good Book...
As well as our weekly Monday nite get togethers...
Well last week's second birthday was fun as we reminisced and ate Eritrean food (interesting pancake type things with lots of curry!) This week are all about Pentecost Festival... In particular Be Church will be at...
Tuesday - Dan's band is playing as part of the Music Stream which features Jon Bilbrough: gritty guitar work, exotic arrangements and a powerful and emotive voice and Adam Wedd & the Independents: Cracked, emotional, wistful songs. They'll be playing from 7.30pm at Lounge 34, Waterloo.
Wednesday - The Laughter Lounge Comedy Night at Slug and Lettuce, Waterloo. Again 7.30pm - it is sold out but we may have a spare ticket - contact Jo for info.
Thursday - Faraday London Lectures - 'Creation or Evolution, do we have to decide?'
Then on the Saturday night we will all be salsa dancin'.
Meet us there at the venue of email Jo if you want to venture up to London with us...
(PS Quick note for the diary! Just Be is back on Monday - Chapter 10 of The Secret Message of Jesus and we'll be having a look at Acts 2. Also - 25th June we have a Be Taught with Rob Hare from lyfe - more info to follow...)
Tues. 28th April 6.30pm, C-SCAIPE Debating Chamber, Main Building, Kingston University Campus, Penrhyn Road. Free event—no booking required. Organised by Kingston Uni Chaplaincy.
Enjoyed having a look round Small Boat Big Sea church website today. Love this idea of striving to have more of a Jesus character with the following questions each week. Maybe Be should explore some of these ideas?
BLESSING: Who have you blessed this week through words or actions and what learning, encouragement or concerns were raised by it?
EATING: With whom have you eaten this week and what learning, encouragement or concerns were raised by it?
LISTENING: Have you heard or sensed any promptings from God this week?
LEARNING: What passages of Scripture have encouraged you or what other resources have enriched your growth as a Christian this week?
SENTNESS: In what ways have you sensed yourself carrying on the work of God in your daily life this week?
- What is the role of prayer in worship?
- How should we use individual/corporate prayer in worship?
- What should we pray for?
- How should we pray?
A space to ask these questions and discuss others, with most of the evening given to practicing worship through prayer. All are welcome and yes, there will be biscuits. Sunday 19th April, Wimbledon Methodist Church, 7.00-8.30pm.
Yesterday Be Church went walking again! Chris found this great 9k walk on-line which took us past the ruins of Waverly Abbey. Chris had also done his research and shared some of the history including some of the practices of the monks. Apparently, they were real innovators anmd enjoyed the practice of silence.
So along with the normal banter, conversation and prater, we also spent time being quiet and listening to God. Cheers Chris for orchestrating!
be fed is our monthly gathering. Pretty chilled, this month will be
hosted at Andy and Jo's, so should be good food and interesting chat.
Looking at what's going on in the world and how that relates to life's
big questions.
Come armed with questions, thoughts, or just a hungry belly, anyone is welcome.
If you have any dietary requirements email Jo, otherwise just let us know you're coming so there's more than enough food!
Venue: Frost residence, Raynes Park, also email Jo if you need directions or transport tips to find us.
See you on Wednesday! Whoop Whoop!
be worship is back this month at the beginning of the season of lent.
be worship is our monthly worship gathering at Wimbledon Methodist Church. Using art, music, words and creativity to help us worship, this is our opportunity to make space to worship and experience Jesus.
We hope that you can join us.
be fed is our monthly gathering for those who want to eat(!) chat, and discuss topical matters with a faith angle. It's really chilled, and lots and fun, so if you haven't joined us before, why not make this your first time!
This month we're back at the Frosty's abode in Raynes Park, looking at what's going on in the world and what the heck we're supposed to do about it! Should be interesting.
Email Jo if you have any special dietary requirements, otherwise just let us know you're coming and we'll see you 7:30, 25th feb!
We are back on Monday for just be. This will be the final week of Uprising and we will be kicking off our new book the week after - Brian McLaren's 'The Secret Message of Jesus'. If you haven't got your copy yet, then Jo will have 'em!
Also, for be social this month, Andy and Jo are having a house party for Andy's 30th. Saturday 21st from 8pm at their house... feel free to come along.
Monday evening was Be Taught with Russ Rook. A fascinating look at how we learn - you can download the personality test (Download Be Taught - learning questionnaire) and find out how you learn! Russ then worked us through four stories in Acts looking at how the disciples learnt and processed. A fascinating activity to do as a community, to work out how we learn as disciples and how we can work better together.
Just a quick note to say that my buddy has started a new podcast - exploring what it means to be Christian community with top theologian Tom Wright. Check it out here.
"God, In this moment of personal prayer, make me wholly focused in this time of worship. As I remove my shoes to stand on your holy ground, remove the distractions that surround me. Forgive me my wrongs. Take away my worries. Calm my fears. Make me totally ready to worship, completely ready to mee with you."
With a mixture of music, meditation and visuals (down load here), we began a whole new format for be worship. A great space to encounter God and allow Him to speak.
Alternative worship... Cafe worship... Worship without walls...
Contemporary worship... Holistic worship... I'm coming back to the
heart of worship... Charismatic... Experiential... Informal... Congregational... Multi-sensory... Emerging...
It seem that for every new worship song being written, and every new church being planted, there's a new phrase coined to describe it. Maybe there's nothing wrong with this - maybe it just conveys how unsatisfied we are that our worship isn't good enough?
Maybe we feel our worship isn't true/creative/dedicated/deep enough?
Maybe all this talk just does our head in - we don't really know what half of it means anyway and we lose interest?
Maybe I'm just talking rubbish. Join us this evening at Wimbledon Methodist Church from 7pm to help figure out what worship actually means. Bring ideas, bring answers, bring questions... or just simply bring yourself.
With a break from normal proceedings, Monday 9th February, will not be
our usual, run of the mill, fine start to the week, just be.
Instead.... a once in a lifetime (or at least this month) opportunity is available to one and all.
be church is proud to present Russ Rook, director of Spring Harvest, ex-director of ALOVE, co-leader of Raynes Park Community Church, and founder of the social enterprise initiative; Chapel St.
Russ will be sharing his heart and passions with us at be taught, an intimate and cosy evening, with lots of time for discussion and interaction.
To avoid too much confusion be taught will be at Edward Rayne Wetherspoon 7pm (for a 7:30pm start) and we should be done by 9ish.
Do spread the word and we look forward to seeing you there.
A whole bunch of us from be Church are also taking the thirst for life challenge! 40 days alcohold free. It is part of a national initiative - for more info, www.thirstforlife.org - "two tapwaters, please!"
be Church are fully supporting a local initiative called Save you Home. In conjunction with Raynes Park Community Church, we're helping provide resources for people as the recession hits. Check out www.myraynespark.co.uk for the full low-down. If you want to help out practically, do let us know!
be fed this feb is at the Frost's beautiful abode.
We will be tucking in to home cooked mexican grub and chatting about topical issues and questions of faith, spirituality and ethics that arise.
Chilled out but engaging, be fed is always a great night at be church. If you want direction, more info, special requests for food, or just want to let us know you're coming; email jo.
Sunday was be's first ever day away - and it was rather fun!
We ate - a lot! We travelled into the depths of the British Countryside (Hemel Hempstead)! We drank coffee, played human ten-pin bowling and also delved deep into the heart and mind of the be church community.
To start the year right, we each went through a Personal Development Vision, setting ourselves targets for how we want to progress and deepen our faith and our relationship with Jesus.
With that as our foundation we moved on to discuss the overall vision and purpose of be church as well as how that works practically this coming year. More on the outcomes will be appearing on here in the coming weeks, so watch this space for how things develop.
Sunday night was the first be worship back and we started the year as we mean to go on; by listening to God.
Dan lead us superbly in worship as we enjoyed spending time with our Dad. We then chatted about what it meant to hear from God, what does theat mean? how do you?
We talked about different experiences people had. Some people had heard God speak through other people, some people talked about pictures, or bible verses, others simply knowing God wanted them to wear a specific t-shirt!?! God speaks in a varity of ways - but most people seemed to agree, God DOES speak!
We then went on to listen to God for each other, people saw pictures, and spoke messages of encouragement to each other. It was what you might call a holy time.
And imagine - if God is really vocal when you listen to Him for 30 mins, what might happen if we listen to Him for the rest of 2009??!!
Merry Christmas! Last night be church rocked the pub, with tuneful renditions of all your favourite christmas carols. Well done to Karen, our White Christmas X Factor superstar. A huge thank you to Snowflake, our resident caroling band, and thanks to all you who help us raise over £150 for Charity: Water and The Salvation Army in London.
Within a blink of an eye it will be 2009 so here's a quick update on what's happening:
January:
5th Jan: just be will be back, 7pm at the Edward Rayne, Chapter 6 of Uprising. Every Monday
12th Jan: be worship, on how to hear God speak. 7pm at Wimbledon Methodist
18th Jan: be envisioned. Our annual day away, praying, chatting and worshipping through God's agenda for the coming year.
22nd Jan: be fed at Andy and Jo's. 7:30pm
February:
8th Feb: be worship, 7pm at Wimbledon Methodist
TBC: be taught with Russ Rook
25th Feb: be fed at Dan's, 7:30pm
For more info, addresses and details, please email Jo.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
Oliver Stone's new movie W. looks at the life of George W. Bush. Oliver Stone's political edgy style is as good as ever... he delivers a fascinating portrayal of Bush's rich kid beginnings, his drunken early adulthood and his coming to faith. The film questions how much Bush actually knew what he was doing and how much he was being manipulated by those around him. He continually battles for his father's approval and the film concludes with his legacy and the mess left in Iraq. Throughout the film Bush has this religious fervour and firmly believes the war in Iraq is God's will. Big questions are raised... Can we have a 'just war'? How much should faith and politics mix? What kind of a legacy will we leave? Is Good vs Evil really as clear cut as war portrays it?