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Black History Month - October 2022
Some of our African members took the church service on 9 October in Black History Month, and some of the African ladies led us in vibrant worship with dancing. The service focused on being inclusive to all, regardless of race, skin colour or nationality, and we watched a moving recording of the song 'The Blessing' on YouTube being sung in different languages by people of all nationalities: a vivid reminder of how different we all are, and how all are equally loved by God.

Harvest 2022
Our Harvest gifts of produce this year kindly brought by friends and members of Crayford Baptist Church were donated mainly to the Bexley Foodbank.

At the special Harvest service we welcomed as our speaker David Stephen Butler from BMS World Mission, and heard about the needs of a remote village, Ghusel, located in Nepal's mountains. The village has just 400 households and we heard about the hopes and dreams of the people in that community. The church is partnering with them through our Harvest monetary offering, seeking to make life better for their whole village.

Young people lead church service
Some of the young people helped lead the church service in August, on the theme of the Bible verse 'Blessed are the peacemakers.' Below are some photos of the service. The boys are sporting T-shirts from the Boys' Brigade camp they had just attended.

Platinum Jubilee
The Queen's Platinum Jubilee gave our Friday morning a special theme as we tucked in to cakes, tea and coffee while chatting and conferring over crosswords. The sunny weather enabled us to be outside in the church garden for an enjoyable summer morning.

Easter 2022
We held some special services over the Easter period as we especially remembered the death and resurrection of the
Lord Jesus.

Our Easter garden portrays three crosses in the background, depicting how Jesus was put to death alongside two criminals and how he identified himself with sinners. But although Jesus was without sin and didn't deserve to die, he chose to take on himself our sin and our punishment, so that we could be forgiven and have access to God which would otherwise have been impossible.

There is a whip in our garden to remind us how Jesus was flogged mercilessly before his death. A scarlet robe was put on Jesus as soldiers mocked him, not considering him to be a king. They twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They
just couldn't see that Jesus was really the King above all other kings.

In the foreground the stone is rolled away from the tomb, because after being wrapped in graveclothes and buried, Jesus was raised to life, conquering over the power and penalty of sin and death. The power of God was stronger than any human power! Death itself had been defeated!

The bread and wine on the left is a sign of Communion, taken by Christians who have believed that Jesus, through his death, paid the price for their sin. They no longer want to live a life of sin, and have received God's forgiveness and want to obey his commands and follow in his ways. This is what Easter means for us, and why it truly is the greatest event in history!

Men's breakfast
A group of men of all ages meet up for breakfast at Wetherspoons (Furze Wren) in Bexleyheath. These events are well attended, with several men attending from outside our church community.

There is also a more specific focus for the breakfast rather than trying to have a general chat whilst munching on a sausage sandwich, and we also 'meet' from time to time on Zoom to discuss a short film exploring Christian values and the teachings of Jesus. While not everyone might agree with all the points made in the videos, they have made for interesting and diverse conversations over the hour-long period we have met.

The two forms of breakfast meetings have been very different, of course, but both have been experiences well worth having.

All men (whether you attend Crayford Baptist Church or not) are more than welcome to jo

in us for the breakfasts, and new ideas for venues, online videos, etc are always appreciated.

Coffee - with a difference
Each Friday from 10.30 am until mid-day the church is open for people to come in and enjoy a chat over coffee, tea and refreshments, to do crosswords together, play games (sometimes), or enjoy a (not too difficult) quiz. A jigsaw puzzle is also out for anyone to keep adding to each week. Most of those who come are from the church congregation but we are also visited by friends, relatives and neighbours.

Coffee with a difference?
The difference is that all the refreshments can be enjoyed free of charge. If people choose to do so, there’s a cause that can be supported through contributions towards the coffee and cakes. On the table beside the cakes is a pot where people can contribute towards the Baptist Missionary Society (BMS) World Mission scheme, Coffee for a Cause. This is explained in leaflets on the tables and beside the pot. 5p or £5, any contribution is welcome.

Last year we raised £954.76 even though we couldn’t
meet for the months of lockdown. Each pound
makes a difference in the life of a child in a less developed country who would be unable to access education without it. BMS missionaries like our link missionary, Liz in Mozambique, set up nursery schools where deprived children can be prepared to access primary education when they are old enough. They learn to hold a pencil, to draw, to look at a book; and also they learn how to clean their teeth, and that God loves them. Just £1 can make an incredible difference in a child’s life. The leaflets on the tables will tell you much more about this remarkable scheme.

All are welcome to Coffee for a Cause – come and join us for a couple of hours of pleasant relaxation.

Remembrance Sunday
On Remembrance Sunday 2021 we looked at a Bible passage (John 16:1-11) on the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

In a prayer we asked the Holy Spirit to pinpoint a specific thing in our lives to pray about and ask forgiveness for. We were then invited to place a piece of red wool on the cross, the red colour representing the blood of Jesus shed for us on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins.

Ladies Chinese & Chat
Since CBC has its ‘men only’ Saturday breakfasts, the ladies at CBC decided to have their own social and recently enjoyed an evening catching up over a Chinese meal. Meeting in the church hall, 15 of us tucked in to a variety of dishes delivered by one of the local Chinese takeaways – and there was even enough left over to take some back to those at home who were not able to join with us (which we have heard went down very well!).  Here are a few pics of the evening…

Our first wedding during the pandemic took place last autumn, following Covid-19 restrictions, with a limited number of people able to attend and social distancing in place. The bride looked lovely. The bridegroom looked quite dapper too!

We have also had the joy of witnessing a number of baptisms in the past few years - a wonderful testimony to God's grace in the lives of those in the church.