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UPDATE – Jill’s Walk for Mothers’ Union 2021

I have come up with the idea of virtually walking the length and breadth of the diocese. The distance north to south from Whissendine to Aynho is 135 kms.

West to East from Boddington to Eye is 80kms, making a total of 215 kms.

I started daily walks in Weymouth when staying with my daughter during the last lockdown and over Christmas and have continued once back home in Uppingham.

I have just completed 2 laps of the diocese and so have updated my just giving site.  If you would like to support or sponsor me please go to:

Jill Cannings is fundraising for Mothers’ Union (justgiving.com)

And like Forrest Gump, I will just keep walking !!

The funds raised will contribute to our worldwide work and also work in the diocese. In particular, I would like to support AFIA (Away from it all). MU has traditionally sent families away on holidays by the sea. This may be possible this summer. However, in recent COVID circumstances they have offered flexible packages of support to families. The feedback has been amazing. I also want to support creating helpful packs for clergy to practically help them in their ministry.

Thank you for your support.

Jill Cannings

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News

Celebrating Mothers’ Union in My Final Year as Diocesan President

As I write this article in the midst of the COVID 19 pandemic, there seems little to celebrate. However, this year MU celebrates 145 years since it started in a small Hampshire village and has grown into a worldwide charity with over 4 million members in 84 countries.

In the light of a worldwide pandemic MU has never been more important; acting and praying across the world. I have pledged myself to undertake 145 events, which will be real and virtual. We also celebrate 100 years since the death of our founder Mary Sumner.

As I am spending a lot of time walking at present, I have come up with the idea of virtually walking the length and breadth of the diocese. The distance north to south from Whissendine to Aynho is 135 kms.
West to East from Boddington to Eye is 80kms, making a total of 215 kms. As I started daily walks in Weymouth when staying with my daughter during the last lockdown and over Christmas, I have already completed the first 215 kms. I will therefore just keep walking rather like Forrest Gump!! I have set up a Just Giving
site: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jill-Cannings7 – The funds raised will contribute to our worldwide work and also work in the diocese.

In particular, I would like to support AFIA (Away from it all). MU has traditionally sent families away on holidays by the sea. This may be possible this summer. However, in recent COVID circumstances they have offered flexible packages of support to families. The feedback has been amazing. I also want to support creating helpful packs for clergy to practically help them in their ministry. My DP role comes to an end in December 2021 so I hope to fit in a great deal before then. There is a great need for prayer and action in this country and across the world, as families struggle with the multiple impacts of the Coronavirus. Thank you all for your prayers and support.

Jill Cannings Diocesan President

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News

Working Together To Build God’s Kingdom

As a lay minister and Mothers’ Union Diocesan President (DP) I am a great believer in lay and ordained working together to build God’s Kingdom. We may have different roles and responsibilities, but are all gifted by God to share the good news of salvation. We may think of it in terms the great commission of making disciples (Matt 28:19 ), or in Mary Sumner’s prayer “touching lives for Christ”. Working and
praying together in our churches and communities can be mutually supportive.

Sadly many of our churches may no longer have an MU branch and the only evidence of past activity may be the old banner in the church. However, in my role as Diocesan President I am aware that across the diocese every possible support role in our churches is undertaken by MU members – lay ministers, church wardens, choir members, welcomers, intercessors, readers, servers, vergers, sacristans,
brass cleaners, etc. etc. I became starkly aware of this in two examples.

As a branch leader I was struggling to find MU members to run our popular homemade produce stall at the Church Christmas bazaar. I then realized that MU members were involved in all other stalls. MU can also fill our churches. My first engagement as DP was to speak at a Lady Day service. On a Tuesday the church was full and every role including welcoming, presiding, preaching, serving, reading and
interceding was undertaken by MU members. And of course after the service was a fabulous spread with tea and homemade cakes.

Many clergy are MU members. In my church we are blessed that the Rector and her husband are members, plus our curate, and our youth worker. Together we can achieve so much more in ministry and mission.

Jill Cannings

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Past Events

Mothers’ Union Service November 2020

Due to the pandemic restrictions, we have been unable to meet for Forum and share in a church service as is our custom.

Please join us in this service specially recorded for this occasion featuring Jill Cannings, our Diocesan President, Rev. Deborah Marsh, our Diocesan Chaplain, Nat Stiles, and the choir of Uppingham Church. Please click here to download the accompanying service sheet.

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Resources

Communicate Winter 2020

Communicate Winter 2020 (click to view)

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News

AFIA Mothers Union Report Autumn 2020

AFIA Mothers Union Report Autumn 2020 (click to view)

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News

MU Trustees Annual Report 2020

MU Trustees Annual Report 2020 (click to view)

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News

Greeting from Nat Stiles – Youth Worker and MU Member

My name is Nat and I am currently about to start my second-year training as a Children and Youth Minister in the Peterborough Diocese. When my training is finished, I will be working for the Rutland Deanery.

I live on my family farm, with my husband Pete and two teenage daughters Evie 13 and Abigail 16 and up until a year ago I managed a 20,000-bird poultry unit and was making plans for my next move to a bigger farm – silly me!

I have felt God’s call in my life for a while and would like to say I embraced it but being human I doubted I had the skills and knowledge to follow that call, I still do! I have been on our village PCC for a few years and served as Church Warden, I also helped to start a messy Church group, I thought all of these things would ease that sense of God’s calling, but I couldn’t ignore it any longer, so here I am!

I love being part of the Mothers’ Union family; it supports two of the things I am most passionate about, one being intergenerational worship and the other the power of prayer.

I was lucky enough to grow up with both sets of Grandparents and a Great Grandma, and although I didn’t realise it at the time my Great Grandma was the one who helped to sow that first seed of Faith.

My Great Grandma lived independently by herself till the day she passed away at 94, cooking for us all and always making sure to have the sweet jar full, she really was a very special lady. She hadn’t had the easiest of lives, contracting polio as a child left her partially deaf, she lost my Great Grandad to cancer when she was in her early 50’s, she also lost her son to a motor bike accident, he had only just come home from the war.

Her house was always busy with friends and family and I don’t think I ever saw her get cross or say an unkind word. Every night she would kneel next to her bed to pray even at 94, and when having a sleep-over I would kneel next to her, I didn’t really understand it but I knew it felt special. Her faith was very important to her and part of her everyday life, and she gave us the gift of taking the time to share it with us. I was only 14 when she passed away so she never got to see what a difference she made to my faith journey, but I guess she knows.

How privileged we are as Christians to have the opportunity to live out our faith every day, touching the lives of others for Christ.

I grew up in the environment of a large, loving family, a mix of all generations, sharing skills and knowledge with each other and empowering us all when we were young, and now, to go out and try to succeed in some things and make mistakes with others, with the confidence they would be there to support.

I now live next door to my sister and my mum and dad aren’t far away, and we have tried to do the same with our two girls and my nephew – it is a team effort!

But family doesn’t just mean someone we are related to, people I have met over the years have had a huge impact on my life, my Church family is one of them. As a Church it’s so important that we come together to worship and learn from each other.

It continues to amaze me the things children and young people say, things that can completely turn your thoughts around, they look at scripture with different eyes. I find they help me to think about how my faith and the way I share Christ with others, which can make a real difference and be so relevant in these new and sometimes troubling times.

Praise God for the individual gifts and skills we all have to offer across the generations, and though we may never know the difference we make to others, we just have to trust in the awesome wonder of His plans.

‘We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, His power and the wonders he has done’ Psalm 78:4

 

Here are some family friendly links to some easy to use resources, if I can be of further help please get in touch, I would also love to hear about any resources you have found useful.

The Church of England, Faith at Home

https://www.churchofengland.org/faith-action/faith-home

Parenting for faith

https://parentingforfaith.org/

Flame, creative children’s ministry

https://flamecreativekids.blogspot.com/

Pinterest has so many ideas to chose from.

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/

The kitchen table project

https://kitchentable.org.uk/

The Bible society

https://www.biblesociety.org.uk/

Scripture union

https://content.scriptureunion.org.uk/

 

Nat Stiles      email: uppinghamyouthandchildren@gmail.com

Categories
Past Events

70km MU Prayer Pilgrimage 2019

To mark her 70th birthday Jill came up with the idea of a walking 70kms on a Prayer Pilgrimage.  She identified a 2 week period in July 2019 and Deaneries planned walks.  On the first day we were sent off with prayer by the Vice Dean from Peterborough Cathedral.  Numerous supporters turned up to see us off.  Each day Jill walked with various people.  We visited St Botolfs and were treated to refreshments and prayers led by Rev’d Barbara.  This was the pattern most days.  That day we also visited St Paul’s church, and Paston and Werrington branches.

Day two involved some challenging field walks around the churches in Rutland deanery led by Rev’d Deborah Marsh.  We were welcomed by various church members and wardens.  They no longer have MU branches, but many still have banners.  After covering 11kms on foot we covered the final two churches by car, and ended by joining others in evening prayer in Whissendine.

Next stop was organized by Kettering deanery and again involved some challenging cross country terrain.  We started by joining the regular weekday Eucharist. After coffee we walked to Thorpe Malsor for prayer and lunch. We were joined by other supporters.  Then to Loddington and Orton for prayer, and finally a very splendid tea back in Rushden.

At the end of the first week Jill started in her own church in Uppingham and was sent off with prayer from the Eucharist.  Today she was joined by other members and two miniature Dachshunds. We prayed in Lyddington and Bisbrooke churches and then returned to Uppingham on the field route.

Week two started at St Peter’s Weston Favell where we prayed with the Vicar David Kirby and a Curate who had just started that day.  We walked again with the little dogs and my grandchildren and another young friend.  We called at Abbington church and were met by many members.  We visited Christchurch to pray and stopped for lunch at St Alban the Martyr.

On Tuesday we were in Wellingborough, greeted by members from All Hallows and All Saints.  Several people walked with us at the start and we prayed for the planned homeless shelter.  An intrepid few set off along the river, but the going was very hard as the path disintegrated.  However, we eventually arrived at St Mary’s Wollaston for prayer, and then a splendid garden party nearby.

On Wednesday we ventured to the south of the Diocese.  We started with a service at Helmdon church and then walked with local members to the Millponds where we prayed and sang. We finished with a wonderful tea joined by several others.

On Thursday 18th July we did 7.09 kms leaving from St Mary’s Higham Ferrers. In the church we processed behind the branch banner and sang.  We walked to Irthlingborough via lanes and the gravel pit lakes. Again we prayed.  We completed our day in Finedon with another wonderful spread of cakes. The Rector, Richard Coles led us in prayer and song.

The summary statistics were

Distance walked 71.90 kms (how accurate is our great and glorious God!)

8 areas over 10days

31 churches visited and prayed in

22 branches visited, often with catering

Met and prayed with 18 clergy

Attended 4 services

Walked with too many to count, including 6 dogs and 3 children

Raised £2,500

Most importantly it was a real prayer pilgrimage, praying for our clergy, their churches and communities.

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Past Events

Visit of Sheran Harper our World Wide President

In May 2019 it was a great joy to welcome Mrs Sheran Harper of Guyana who is our new worldwide president.  She is a woman of great faith and experience.  She has led the parenting programme for MU in many countries, and thereby improved the experiences of countless children and families.  She was accompanied by Provincial President Nikki Sweatman.

Representatives from Peterborough Deanery, complete with banners joined Jill Cannings, Diocesan President to greet them at Peterborough station.  They were touched as the welcoming party greeted them with a worship song.

At a packed open meeting in the Methodist church in Uppingham people were able to hear from Sheran and Nikki about the work of Mothers’ Union in this country and worldwide. Speaking at Sheran’s commissioning earlier that year Archbishop Justin Welby described MU as “the world’s oldest and largest women’s movement.  It is one of the Anglican communion’s greatest gifts to the worldwide church.” Sheran was challenged by him to ensure that MU no longer remained the Anglican communion’s greatest secret.  She spoke with passion about her own journey of involvement in MU and the work undertaken by members.

During this brief visit we were also able to join a prayer group, the backbone of the church, as “prayer warriors” pray for aspects of church life and our communities.  Our visitors heard of the role of the MU lunch club in Kettering which gives a meal and activities for children during the holidays, who would normally receive free school meals.  We held a service of thanksgiving and welcome at St Benedicts Northampton.  More people had the opportunity to hear from Sheran and Nikki. As part of this whistle stop tour of the Diocese they attended a branch meeting in the evening. They were both generous with their time, listening to members and thanking them for their commitment to MU.

Two days later many of us attended a major Mothers’ Union “Thy Kingdom Come” service. We filled Coventry cathedral and the service was streamed across the world.