Kenilworth Carnival

Hey, 

So, a few weeks ago I went to the ‘Kenilworth Carnival’ on my own as mum, dad and Nicola were off seeing a university, but it was still a great day and I met some of the children from work experience as well as some friends. I also got to talk to new people which was nice.

The parade carried on the tradition of starting with the marching band and then followed by the princess float. This happens every year and I think it is nice as it creates the feeling of tradition and community due to the fact that loads of people come out to watch the parade before continuing on to the fair, in Abbey Fields. The Floats that followed on from the marching band were: Day of the Dead; Let’s go fly a kite – from Mary Poppins; Princess and Superheroes; Under the Sea – from the little Mermaid – By st John’s Primary School - Nursey and child centre; Peace by the 4^th Kenilworth Scout group; Tropical by Ambassadors of Groove; Where’s Wally by st Augustine’s, and Butterflies by the 12^th Kenilworth Brownies (this is the brownies that a friend from work experience and my sister work at).

 

The walking Knights from the 10^th Kenilworth Guides followed on from the butterfly float, as well as someone with a push chair that was dressed to look like a rocket, before the next lot of floats came. This was nice as it gave a break from throwing coins into fishing nets. The float that started the next lot were Titanic by Viva! Theatre Arts, and here are the ones that followed: A Giant yellow dog by dog trust; Mary Poppins by Town and Country Furniture; some dancing by the Chinewide Morris dancers; eighties, and finally ending with people dressed up (example: Minnie and Batman) and the van to collect any coins you had left for last donations.

I then went down to the fair in Abbey Fields like most people; I first looked at the rides although I didn’t go on any, even though I had a voucher to get some money off, which I ended up giving to someone heading that way when I was on my way home. Here are what were available to go on Trampoline, Super-hero fly, Carousel, Dodgers, Dominator, Waltzer which is like tea cups, Vehicle Carousel, Alagator, Balloon ride, The King which goes upside down, and finally the Twister which I actually went on years ago with my sister, which just shows the amazing tradition the carnival has become and the success it has had as it is a great day to spend time together with friends and even a place to make new friends in our community.

I also explored the stools and thought I would share what they were so you have an idea of what will be there next year if you want to attend which I highly recommend. So, here they are: Guides tombler for toys; Kings Tables that sold a variety of books; stools for food; TWAM which had information about it as well as a raffle, bits and bobs; Cats Protection which sold books, gifts and pick a parcel; Warwickshire wildlife trust which shared information and sweets; <ELST – Lip reading which had information and games; Sweethearts that had, homemade donuts, glitter tattoos and face paint; Kenilworth outdoor pool who had information and sweets; Macmillan – Cancer support which had books and stuff (things you would find in their shops); Scouts food and drinks; Talisman theatre that had information and taking your photo as Cinderella, and a teddy tombler.

There was also another tombler which was food and drinks, where I won a packet of pawn cocktail crisps, a bottle of flavoured lucozade and a packet of smarties, which was the Save the children stool. The final stool that I haven’t spoken about yet is the Heart of England Revival Church who actually came as spoke to me as they noticed that I was taking notes so I could write this post which led to me talking about my blog, and talking about getting the word of God out there, as well as talking about our churches as I go to a Church of England Church which is what their church is. There was plenty to do at this stool as they were: a place to write prayers down that they would then pray for, game, face paint and getting a colour streak in your hair, as well as people being around to talk to if you wanted it.

Thanks for reading,

Any comments or questions please use the contact box

Amy x

Flourish

Hey,

Late again, On the first Sunday of July we had Café plus which is the service where we arrive earlier and have breakfast together, and that is what this post will be about.

John 21:2-8

“Simon Peter, Thomas, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. ‘I’m going out to fish,’ Simon Peter told them, and they said, ‘We’ll go with you.’ So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realise that it was Jesus. He called out to them, ‘Friends, haven’t you any fish?’ ‘No,’ they answered. He said, ‘Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.’ When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish. Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘it is the Lord!’ As soon as Simon Peter heard him say this he wrapped his outer garment round him and jumped into the water. The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore.”

Flourish

This is a charity about bringing those with low self-esteem, focusing on girls, to the grace a God and see that they are made in God’s image.

Isaiah 61:3

“To bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendour.”

The person from flourish who spoke, shared a poem ‘Come and find me’ by Meg Cannon which she adapted to show how the children that this charity deals with feel.

Feedback from one of the children this charity helped said, “I feel stronger now.”

If you want to know more, click on the link: Flourish

Hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading,

Any comments or questions please use the contact box.

Amy x

Wholehearted Worship

Hey,

Sorry for this post being late but I have been busy. Anyway, On the 19^th June, I went to Streams with my mum and the talk this service was about Wholehearted Worship. Streams is a service held on Monday’s (once every month except holidays) for women only.

What do we need to do to become free worshipers?

1 Chronicles 16:23-36

“Sing to the Lord, all the earth; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvellous deeds among all peoples. For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Splendour and majesty are before him; strength and joy are in his dwelling-place. Ascribe to the Lord, all you families of nations, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due to his name; bring an offering and come before him. Worship the Lord in the splendour of his holiness. Tremble before him, all the earth! The world is firmly stabled; it cannot be moved. Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let them say among the nations, ‘The Lord reigns!’ Let the sea resound, and all that is in it; let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them! Let the trees of the forest sing, let them sing for joy before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures for ever. Cry out, ‘Save us, God our Saviour; gather us and deliver us from the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name, and glory in your praise.’ Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.”

When you sing to the lord you must fully give yourself to him. Give the lord what is due and worship in his splendour. We also need to remember that worship isn’t something to do but a way of living.

Claire, the speaker, spoke about worship as a way of living by looking at 3 different parts which are intentional, expectant and journey.

Intentional

Expectant

John 21:2-8

“Simon Peter, Thomas, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. ‘I’m going out to fish,’ Simon Peter told them, and they said, ‘We’ll go with you.’ So, they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realise that it was Jesus. He called out to them, ‘Friends, haven’t you any fish?’ ‘No,’ they answered. He said, ‘Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.’ When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish. Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘it is the Lord!’ As soon as Simon Peter heard him say this he wrapped his outer garment round him and jumped into the water. The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore.”

Peter had so much enthusiasm to see the Lord that he jumped into the water to meet him without a second thought, for he had acceptance of Jesus and a joy to see him. I am not sure I would have had the bravery to jump into cold water and go to Jesus. You can use this as an example of what we should do, and I don’t mean go jumping in cold water, but to jump into his arms and have acceptance of him as he is our father who will always hold us up and comfort us, as you would expect from a father. This passage supports what Claire said, which was “Worship isn’t about how you feel but about who God is.” This reminded me of a Casting Crown song which I am sure I have spoken about before, but it is such an amazing and inspirational song. ‘Who I Am’.

Revelations 3:14-16

“These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot, I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are luke-warm – neither hot nor cold – I am about spit you out of my mouth.”

God gives us passions which leads us to spread his word in different industries and places. He takes our love and hope that we gladly give him for he is our father and he loves us for who we are. He calls us to give what we can even if all you have are tears, bring those tears and they will be your worship.

                                                                                                                            

Matthew 26:30

“When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.”

Worship doesn’t have to be song or prayer but just giving yourself and what you can to God.

Journey

Leading on from the last statement ‘Worship doesn’t have to be singing or prayer’ we look at . . . What is worship really? It is to have a greater intimacy with God which could be just taking time out of our busy lives to just sit and be in his presence. Just sit in peace and give what you can to God, whether that be yourself fully or just tears.

We are all in different places when worshiping God. I know I have not completely given myself to God as there are so many worries in my life that I feel I can’t just leave to God, but I need to remember that he has a plan for me and my worries are just getting in the way of my relationship with God and the feeling of having a greater intimacy with him.

Where are you in worship?

You could be a puddle; you just feel like a complete mess and all you can give to God is tears. If that is you remember God is with you always and has a plan for you, but also remember that giving God your tears is enough because all you can give is what you have. It’s ok, even if you feel it isn’t enough, it is!

You could be on a light swim; like me who has given part of their-self to God but there is so much baggage, such as worries, which are just getting in the way of your relationship with him. It could be that you a struggling with some horrible events, such as: losing someone you care about; losing a Job; suffering from an illness or anything really, and right now you are questioning why God let this happen? Push through and remember that with God you have the strength to continue and that it is ok to lean on others for strength. Also, don’t forget God is with you and has a plan for you.

You could be on a deep swim; where you are risking everything, and giving yourself fully to God. You have put all your trust in him and for that I am proud because it isn’t easy. I just want to say keep going and remember God has a plan for you and will give you the strength to continue, but if you fall it doesn’t matter because God will be there to catch you and comfort you, and then give you the strength to get back up and continue.

Songs

 Come Thou fount of every blessing

1 Samuel 17:48-49

“As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly towards the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead and he fell face down on the ground.”

How deep is the father’s Love for us

This is a Stuart Townend song which is all about our father’s love for us which therefore makes this song inspirational.

Better is one day

You’re Beautiful

No matter what you have done or look like you are beautiful as you were made in God’s image. You are God’s child and therefore he loves you which makes you beautiful.

Then we sung traditional songs, well traditional for me as I have heard these songs since I started going to church as a young child, and they are some of my favourites. . .

Open the eyes of my heart Lord

What a beautiful name

And finally,

My hope is built on nothing less

Absolutely love this song and find it so amazingly inspirational.

For prayer, we got into groups of 3 (for me 2 as it was just me and mum) and we each had piece of paper with a letter on it, and in groups we prayed for each other with characteristics of God beginning with the letter the said person had. So, in groups of 3, 2 people would pray for the other person with characteristics starting with the letter they had for a minute and then move on to the next person, and then again so everyone had been prayed for.

I had ‘L’ so the characteristics mum prayed for me were:

Loving, Leading me on my path, help in Leading, Law, Laughter in Life, Knowing he is Lord, he is the Living God and that God is the Light.

Mum had ‘E’ so the characteristics I prayed for were:

He will be with you forever and Ever, he is the Emmanuel, his love is Everlasting, he is Eternal, to be Entertained and to have the Energy to continue and fight against worries.

Again, sorry for the late post, but I hope you enjoyed it,

thanks for reading,

Please use the contact box for comments and questions

Amy x