Creative Writing Group – Such a blessing!

Those of you who are familiar with what is happening here at ECF will know that we have recently started a new Creative Writing Group.

Comprising of about 12 sessions in total, the purpose of this group is quite simply to explore and share any gifts that God may have given folk here at ECF whilst at the same time learning more and more about Creative Writing and how God can and often does use it.

Our first meeting was Monday evening at Natalie and John’s home two weeks ago and was basically just an introduction evening with the first module based evening being yesterday.  At our first session together, those participating, were asked to write a short piece (there will be a different assignment each time we meet) and to bring it along and share it with the others in the group this week.  The subject matter of this first assignment was “My first time at ECF” and participants were asked simply to write a piece on that subject matter and share them this week – which they did last night.

Well all I have to say is WOW!  What an evening!

I cannot begin to express the warmth and love and delight of the blessing that it was to hear folk sharing their work and how God had directed them to ECF.  Additionally I cannot begin to describe the wealth of writing gifts that were so obviously preset in the folk who attended.

You know it really is such a wonderful thing when we consider the relative small number who attend ECF and yet within that number there are so very many gifts and I am humbled to be able to see those gifts.

It is a funny thing really and you would think that I would have learned by now, but God is such an awesome heavenly Father and touches us, blesses us, challenges us in so many different ways doesn’t he?  You would also think that I would have learned by now that when I get it into my heart to set an assignment in order to challenge, refocus our thinking or in order to make a point, maybe just maybe, God actually put that on my heart to challenge and refocus MY thinking and to make a point to me!  ( Sorry Lord, I can be so incredibly slow at times)

But God is a wonderful God isn’t He?  What we often see as a small isolated incident or circumstance is so very often a part of a much larger and much greater picture.  Many of the eight of us who attended  last night’s group shared what we had written and WOW what blessings they were!  Now I need to point out, for those who don’t know me, that I am not usually given to excitement or making statements such as “Wow” but last night my heart was touched in so many ways and I am indeed humbled and blessed to have been present at it.

I loved the intimacy, the openness, the vulnerability, the passion, the joy, the hurts, the hopes, the fears, the witness that was present in the pieces shared and in the fellowship that we enjoyed and I so very much want to thank all those involved and of course to thank God for all that happened last night.

Because of the nature of the pieces shared I haven’t asked if could include and publish them on this blog although I have mentioned that I would very much like to include some of those written in response to this week’s assignment whioch was to write a review on a Book, Play, Song, or Film.

If you are a local to ECF and feel you may have a gift in respect of Creative Writing  please feel free to speak to me about participating in the group or if you live further a field and feel you may have a gift in this respect then I fully encourage you to explore it and to see what God does!

God bless one and all.

Kevin.

Personal Testimony – Liz.

This is the personal testimony of a lady who spoke to 100 ladies at a Beautiful Womens Night organized by Enniscorthy Christian Fellowship.

Hi Ladies,

I’d like to welcome you all here tonight.  Liz is my name and I am privileged to have the opportunity to share my story with you all.

Here is my story.

I was brought up as a catholic and all the family went to mass every Sunday.  We lived a normal life and we were good neighbours and lived good lives and thought that was enough to get us into heaven.  I was to find out later in my life that this was not the way to be saved.

My husband and three children and I lived normal everyday lives in Dublin and moved back home to a mile outside the town in 1998.  In 2000 during the Fleadh Cheoil as my family and I walked about the town enjoying the festival I saw a sign over the credit union, which said, “Jesus in the Millennium”.  I told the family I was going in to see what that was all about.  My family tried to put me off but I felt drawn to call in.  I met Andrew and Lorna (the Enniscorthy Christian Fellowship leader and his wife), I also met John and Linda, another couple from the church.  They chatted about Jesus. They did not preach to me or ask me to join their church.  They were ordinary people and they were to become a very important part of my life. (My friends in Enniscorthy Christian Fellowship have heard this story so often that they are surely yawning now.  J)

Time passed, about a year and I had no involvement with anyone from this church.  A friend of mine invited me to come along to a ladies bible study in Lorna’s house.  I went along not knowing what to expect.  After a few weeks I began to look at Jesus with a new heart. In case you think we just arrived and studied a part of the bible and then went home, that was not the case.  On arrival we chatted and shared stories, always with a mug of tea or coffee.  We did little stories from the bible, which at first I wasn’t always able to follow as I never read the bible before.  As time went by I became more aware and familiar with the bible and wanted to know more.

One of my favourite studies was when Jesus visited Mary and Martha.  Martha rushed about cooking and fussing.  Mary sat at the feet of Jesus and listened to his stories.  Which do you think you are?  I was certainly Martha but now I am trying to be more like Mary.

As time went by Jesus became a really big part of my everyday life.  I wanted to know more and more. So now I read a little of my bible everyday with the help of two little books.  One is called “Daily Bread” and the other is called “My Upper Room” .

I have had a difficult time in the last few years.  Both my Mum and Dad passed away.  I became very ill with Cancer but throughout this time I felt God’s presence.

When I was going through very bad days and could do nothing for myself, not even look at the telly, phone people or answer the phone.  I could not even do my little bible stories so all I did was lie in my bed with my hand on the bible.  My husband and family were all so very good to me as were my friends who would come to visit and pray with me.   I finished all my treatment in July and thank God for so many blessings.

Now I also go to church on Sunday with the Enniscorthy Christian Fellowship, I am so blessed to be a part of this church.  Everyone is so supportive of each other and we all follow Jesus with a passion.

I was once afraid of what people might say or think of me but now I have handed over my life and let God be in charge.

Thank you for coming along here tonight and listening to my story.  I do hope you enjoy the rest of the evening.  If you want to hear more or get some information about the church please come and ask any of the ladies in the church, they will be the ladies keeping themselves very busy J  If you would like to ask me anything I will be happy to share with you.  Just ask any of the ladies and they will point me out.

Liz.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God.  (Philippians 4:6 NIV)

And the Peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Art Group plays The Pot Luck Painting Game

Yesterday evening saw the last night of Enniscorthy Christian Fellowship’s Art group this season.

So far since the Art Group began, (way back when) we have taken a basic look at several art forms, media, genre and styles looking and have done such things as sketching, drawing, painting, sculpting, using such things as clay, chalk, charcoal, pencils, watercolours, and acrylics.

Intended purely as a basic introduction the Art group has been attended by about 20 different folk and has been a great source of education, entertainment, inspiration and fellowship and I have to say that I have been so very blessed to have been a part of it and to see just how much joy it has brought to so many including in no small way to me personally.

Normally when you start a picture or a sculpture you consider what it is you want to produce and then choose the medium, materials, etc, that you are going to use and roughly how you are going to use them. So just for a bit of fun and for a change, since last night was to be our last meeting for a while we all played the “Pot Luck Painting Game.” (Please don’t bother googling it, I invented it yesterday afternoon.) The “Pot Luck Painting Game” is designed to illustrate just how different things are when you don’t have a choice of what colour canvas you use or what size of brush or colour of paint you can use.

Basically the game is split into rounds – the length of each round being decided by the toll of a dice and each player (blindly) dips into a bag of tubes of paints and selects one which they then have to use for the duration of that round, plus they also have to choice a brush size through dipping into a bag fill of different brush sizes. PLUS to make it even more fun (and more difficult), each and every round one player in turn rolls a dice and if they get an odd number their original brush is swapped for a very large brush. This process is the repeated for every round so that after several rounds you end up with a painting that you have had to paint with no control over the colours used, the brush sizes used or indeed the colour of the canvass used.

At the end of the game and independent judge (Natalie’s husband JOHN) who had not seen who painted which picture, was asked to choose the picture he liked and that person was awarded an art book.

Below you will see photos of the hose attending the Art Group last night as well as pictures of the finished Pot Luck Paintings and the winning entry which was painted by Mags Burt. Well Done Mags!

As I said before, the art group has been a wonderful success and such a blessing and I am very grateful to Mags who helped with the transport and logistics, Natalie and family for the use of their home and of course to each and every person who participated.

I am really looking forward to when the Art Group starts up again after the Summer Break or after the intended Creative Writing Group.

God bless!
Kevin.

(Damien's)

(Wiesia's)

(Patricia's)

(Fionnuala's)

Runner - Up (Natalie's)

The Winner (Mags B)

Meet The Family – Lorna Burt

One of the things that makes ECF what it is, just has to be the friendly, loving, family-atmosphere it has  Something that is often commented on by folk visiting or joining the fellowship.

Several folk have joined us as a result of our Internet Ministry and have said how much they enjoy our website or blog and so we thought it would be good fun and quite informative to run this our “Meet The Family” series in order to afford folk a chance to get to know and “meet” (if you will) different folk from the fellowship.

In our “Meet The Family” series members of ECF are asked a set of standardized questions and their answers are shared here on ECF Interactive.  For our very first “Meet The Family” posting I have chosen Lorna’s answers…

Lorna Burt

Name: Lorna Burt

Age: 37

Marital Status: Married

Do you have any children? Two girls, 5 & 7.

Where did you grow up? Lanarkshire, in Scotland

When did you move to where you are now? January 1999

QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PAST….

Do you have a nickname?

“I used to be called logie bogie at school.” (Lorna’s maiden name is Logie.)

How old were you when you became a Christian?:

“9.”

Would you say you grew up in a Christian home?

“Yes.”

Please describe your earliest memory of church?

“Playing in the crèche and my mum going off to church.”

Please describe your earliest memory of being told about God and/or Christ?

“I remember my Dad reading Childrens’ Bible stories to us from a big blue book.”

What was your favourite Childhood book?

“Enid Blyton, the Famous Five.”

What was your favourite Childhood meal?

What was your favourite Childhood film or programme?

“Don’t remember.”

What is your favourite childhood memory?

QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PRESENT…

Do you have any interests or hobbies?

“Um reading I think”

Please tell us about any one ‘person’ who has had the biggest impact on your faith?

“I would probably say my Youth Leader – Norma Deffin, she was the leader of the Youth group I was part of.  She taught us and if things were going wrong she would sit us down and help us sort it out.”

If you were to describe your gifts what would they be?

“Doing practical things, I think.  Yes it would be the thing I think. I like to get stuck in.  Working with Children should also be in there.”

Please describe the gifts you most admire in others?

“Things that I can’t see, like someone being able to draw someone out when someone needs to talk.  Someone you trust and can confide in.”

What do you think is the biggest challenge in your faith today?

“To go beyond my comfort zone and letting God use me in the ways that I wouldn’t naturally feel able to do.”

Do you read and if so what kind of books?

“Yes, I try to read Christian books that challenge me as a Christian, about my faith and lifestyle.  But nothing too heavy.”

What is your current favourite book?

“The one that challenged me the most is “True Discipleship” by William McDonald”

Who is your current favourite author?

“Max Lucado.”

Are you very involved in church and if so how?

“Yes, all over really, kids and youth work, the ladies work and treasurer would be the main ones I think.”

Do you listen to music and if so what kind:?

“Yes, All Christian.”

What is your current favourite song?

“Praise You in the storm – Casting Crowns.”

Who is your current favourite songwriter or group?

“Casting Crowns and Brendon Brown at the moment.”

Do you watch films and if so what kind do you prefer?

“Yes I like detective thrillers, like The Bourne Supremacy, that sort of stuff.”

What is your current favourite film?

“I really liked Sweet Home Alabama even though it is completely different to what I usually like.”

Where do you go to find peace?:

“For my time alone with God it is my kitchen in the morning, after that forget it!”

In what way do you feel having faith in Christ helps you in life?

“My whole sense of why I am here, purpose, why things happen – even the bad things, knowing that Jesus loves me helps me through everything.”

What do you think should be the number one priority for parents today?

“To love their children to bring them up to respect and love others and to teach them about God.”

What is the hardest thing about being part of a fellowship for you?

“The desire or responsibility to support everyone.”

What is the best part of being part of a fellowship for you?

“Having the support and love and friendship from other Christians.”

What is your favourite Bible verse?:

“Can I choose like 5 million?  No? Ok! Romans 8:32. “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?”(NIV)”

If you could choose just ONE characteristic of Christ that means the most to you, which would it be?

“Love and Compassion.”

Who is your favourite biblical character and why?

“Paul, I am always looking at Paul because his whole life was committed to God.”

What is your favourite bible story?

“Too many to choose!  David and Goliath”

QUESTIONS ABOUT THE FUTURE…

What do you think will be YOUR biggest challenge in the forthcoming year?

“Being excited about the everyday things, not just doing it because I have said I will but being excited about it.”

What do you think the biggest challenge facing ECF is for the forthcoming year?

“For ECF?  Seeing God changing us into the people He wants us to be even with the difficult personal issues that people face.”

If you could see ONE thing realized in the forthcoming year what would it be?

“Seeing some folk come to faith in Jesus who haven’t taken that step as yet.”

ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITY:

Is there anything you would like to add that has not been covered by the questions above?

“No, not really-.”

Water Colour Pencil Night @ Art Group

Yesterday evening (10th May) saw our fortnightly Art Group look at Water Colour Pencils as a medium.

For those of you who are not familiar with the Art Group here at ECF it is basically a group that evolved from the Creative Art Group – which looked at several difference subjects from puppetry to writing to art to drama – and focuses purely on art itself.

Meeting once a fortnight the concept is very simple.  Fun, Fellowship, and Creative learning.

Open to all age groups all we ask is that folk have fun, pay attention and contribute a couple of euros towards the running costs.

It really is that simple.  Each meeting Kevin introduces a new medium for folk to explore and this week we were very blessed to have Teresa join us again to help out with learning and exploring water-colour pencils as a medium.

Folk had great fun trying water colour pencils and soon learned how versatile and fun these are.

Teresa introduced everyone to the different techniques that can be used with Water Colour pencils and then Kevin showed three pictures that he had started earlier that afternoon in order to show the different results using these techniques…

Folk then painted their own pictures using some of the suggestions that were provided.

The finished items were impressive and good fun was had by all.

This rose was done by Mags

This flower was painted by Wiesia

This one by Patricia

And this fairy painting is being painted by Fionula

So as you can see, everyone has a go and everyone has fun and trust me everyone achieves !

So if you are interested in joining ECF’s Art Group why not speak to Kevin?  We would love to have you there!

Great Forestry, Great Football, Great Fun, and Great Fellowship!

Yesterday, being the May bank holiday, saw the fellowship’s day out at the JFK Arboretum over in New Ross and what a fabulous day out it was!

Attended by arrived 30 adults and children it was a day of wonderful weather and as the title of this post says a day of …

Great Forestry

Great Forestry

Dedicated to the memory of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, President of the United States from 1960 to 1963, the Arboretum is a plant collection of international standing. It covers 252 hectares (623 acres) on the southern slopes and summit of Slievecoiltia. It contains 4,500 types of trees and shrubs from all temperate regions of the world, planted in botanical sequence.

Great Football

Great Football

As some of the children went off to explore the small maze and to play on the nearby children’s equipment the guys started up a game of football featuring all star international team selections, dubious but fun rule adherence, and just good-hearted enjoyment.

Great Fun…

Great Fun

Several of the ladies went off for their own game of “frisbee throwing” and others simply enjoyed a sit in the sun.

Great Fellowship…

Great Fellowship

But great Fellowship was clearly the main feature of the day both during our activities, at lunch, during the walk through the arboretum, and by the pond before heading home.

Fellowship by the pond

So a really big thank you goes out to everyone who attended and who contributed to making the day such a wonderful and enjoyable day out for everyone and of course a prayer of thanks goes out for the wonderful weather were blessed with!

JFK Arboretum is a great place to visit and the peaceful, beautiful surroundings really enhanced the day and really did provide something for everyone.  Even the youngsters got to play on things!

"Sorry I just had to do it!"

The Statement of the Stone

Have you ever considered the statement of the stone?  That stone that boulder that sealed the tomb which temporarily held our Lord?

Here are the biblical accounts about the stone…

Rolled Away

Matthew 28:2 – “There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.” (NIV)

Mark 16:4 – “But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away.” (NIV)

Luke 24:2 – “They found the stone rolled away from the tomb,” (NIV)

John 20:1 – “Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.” (NIV)

In each and every single account of the resurrection, the statements regarding that stone which had previously sealed the tomb say the same thing.  It was “rolled back”, “rolled away”, “removed from the entrance.”

Surely we can have no confusion or doubt or argument here.  It wasn’t moved slightly or dislodged or displaced just enough for the risen Christ to push or edge his way out.  It had been rolled back, rolled away, removed.  Was it so that the risen Christ could walk out without obstruction or hindrance.

In fact the stone wasn’t rolled away for the risen Christ at all.  He was already risen!

Look again at the words of Matthew 28:2-6 and especially verses 5 & 6: “There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. ³His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. ⁴The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.  ⁵The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. ⁶He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.“(NIV).

No, the stone wasn’t rolled away in order to let the risen Christ out it was rolled away to let the women in!

Christ had and IS risen. Just as he (Christ) had promised and as had been foretold and promised all those years before, death had been conquered and access to God through the risen Christ IS assured!

What an amazing, glorious and undeniable statement that stone was used to make.

Christ IS risen!

And yet as glorious and as undeniable a statement as this is it is not final statement or simply one meant to inform.  It is one meant to declare, to inspire and to invite.  One to which, along with all the other truths that we are given in God’s word, we are called to make a response.

I wonder, have YOU already made that response?  And if not what will your response now be?

God bless you.

Kevin.