AbsolUKE - a right royal performance!

Congratulations to the 9 ukulelists and 3 vocalists and 3 solo dancers who performed on the big stage in front of HUNDREDS and HUNDREDS, and the Tongan Princess at the Methodist Multi-Cultural Festival tonight. Wow!

Here are a few photos of our amazing AbsolUKE performers waiting to go on stage. In the background you can spot the princess.

We will put up some pictures of our performance in the next few days.

Thank you so much to our AbsolUKE team and all our amazing supporters. You were stars!

Fruits of the Spirit song

Here is the link to the song we are doing on Sunday, if you need a refresher!

Methodist Multi-Cultural Festival Saturday 29 Sep 6pm

Join us at St Andrews College (in the gymnasium) for a brilliant concert, featuring our own AbsolUKE and some of our awesome dancers!

FISH this Saturday

Join us for FISH this Saturday 22 September

5pm to 7pm

at the Chapel Street Centre

all welcome

Words are like Toothpaste

With the very willing help of some of our Awesome Kids, Carol emptied an entire tube of toothpaste onto a plate. We observed how easy it was to get the toothpaste out. But then Carol asked if someone could put all the toothpaste back into the tube. Izak volunteered to have a go, and it proved rather tricky.

Carol said that words are a bit like toothpaste. They come out very easily, but they are hard to put back. Sometimes we say things without thinking, and our words can be hurtful. 

We then have to stop and say to our neighbour, I'm sorry, will you forgive me? 

Hopefully every time we brush our teeth, we will be reminded that we need to think before we speak, and use kind words that build one another up.

Check out the toothpaste video:

https://youtu.be/94qpNv092e0

James 3:1-12

Sky Sunday

We celebrated Sky Sunday by creating some galaxy jars and night sky paintings.

Bella led us in prayer:

Loving God, Thank you for your amazing creation. Thank you for the sky, for sun, moon and stars. May Your love shine through us and around us. Help us to go out into the world knowing that You are with us, rain or shine. May we shine like the stars in Your sky! Amen.

The Chapel Street Band began leading worship with the beautiful song by Louis Armstrong, What a Wonderful World and the hymn, Here I Am Lord (or, I the Lord of Sea and Sky).

Psalm 19:1–6 (a paraphrase) 

The heavens are telling the wonders of God. The skies are telling all that God has done. 

Each day announces to the next day: “God is amazing!” 

Each night passes on the same news. They do this without words. 

We can’t hear them speaking. But the message, “God is amazing!” 

goes out to the whole world. 

The sun shines in the sky, warm and joyful, like a person on their wedding day. 

The sun shines in the sky, strong and sure, like an athlete running a race. 

The sun travels across the great wide sky, from one end of the heavens to the other.

The heavens are telling the wonders of God. The skies are telling all that God has done. 

CHYPS and bread

Eating challenges at CHYPS!

Mother and Daughter Team

Amanda and Dorothy teamed up to lead Musikool Kids last week. Thanks to musical mum and daughter for a fabulous session!

Windmills, Spring and a Giant's Garden

Last Sunday we heard the story of the Giant's Garden. 

The giant was so selfish, he didn't let the children play in his garden. He built a big wall around it to keep them out and put up a sign, 'No Trespassers'. The trees and flowers and birds missed the children so much. Spring forgot the giant's garden, the flowers didn't feel like blooming, the trees didn't blossom and the birds disappeared. The giant's garden became wintry, grey, cold and lonely. The giant was miserable.

When the children crept back into the garden through a hole in the wall, Spring returned. The trees and flowers bloomed and blossomed and the birds sang. The giant's heart melted when he noticed a small child who couldn't reach to climb a tree, and he went out into the garden and gently lifted him up into the branches. The child threw his arms around the giant's neck and kissed him. The giant tore down the wall and the sign, and welcomed the children back into the garden.

We talked about opening our hearts to others, welcoming people into our lives and sharing God's love and kindness.

We made windmills (in the giant's garden, the flowers "bloomed like stars") and created a tree on canvas, which we added our thumbprints to. We are all different, each one of us is special and unique, loved by God and has a place in the church family and in the world. We need to remember to welcome others into our "garden" and share what we can.

CHYPS this Saturday 8 Sep

Join us at the Chapel Street Centre for CHYPS Youth Group

Saturday 8 September

6.30pm to 8pm

Gold coin donation appreciated

Multi-Cultural Festival

Come along and be part of the cultural festival on Saturday 29 September! See our fab AbsolUKE team perform! They would really appreciate your support!

Bird Feeders

Check out the amazing bird feeders our Awesome Kids made last week, with Heather and Dave.

Henry the Rooster

Henry the Rooster.
Drawn by Dave the Artist & Storyteller Extraordinaire.

We began celebrating the Season of Creation, starting with Planet Earth Sunday. 

We talked about some of God's amazing creatures on Earth. Dave told a fabulous (true) story from when he was a kid... 

The story involved a rather unusual rooster named Henry and an outdoor loo. Dave had us in giggles over an unfortunate incident in the nighttime.

We marveled at how amazing our planet is, in terms of the incredible variety of life it supports. We remembered there are animals that are beautiful and wonderful, and some that are quirky or annoying, but they are all part of God's incredible creation.

Just as there is an enormous range of people on our planet - each individual so unique, with their own gifts and talents. Each person is created equal, each person is loved and treasured.

We are blessed to be surrounded by a bunch of amazing people in our church family, who love God, who love to meet together to sing and pray, and laugh, and help one another along this journey of life.

Dylan and Monica led us in prayer:

O God, thank you for this amazing world, for plants and galaxies, for oceans and birds. Thank you for the gift of your creation. Amen. 

Our Chapel Street Band led the congregation in singing Louis Armstrong's 'What a Wonderful World', helped along by Monica playing saxophone. 

Jillian's Recipe for Pretzels

Pretzel Cookies

50g melted butter

½ cup white sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 egg

1¼ cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

Sugar/cinnamon mix (approx 1 Tbsp sugar/ 1\2 tsp cinnamon)

Mix together butter and sugar

Add vanilla and egg and mix well

Add flour and baking powder

Mix all together, then mix with hands to combine

Roll small spoonfuls into a snake in the sugar/cinnamon mix and shape into a pretzel

Place on baking paper on a baking tray

Fan bake 180˚C for 10 mins