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Living in the Light! (introduction to the 1st Letter of John) – 1 John chapter 1 verses 1-4 – sermon by Gordon Curley

PowerPoint slides to accompany this talk are available on request – email: gcurley@gcurley.info

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“Houston we have touch down” – ‘Space Academy’ Holiday Club 2016 at Duncan Road Church. Southampton. Hants. UK.is now officially over!
Great to finish the week with all the usual fun & laughter as well prize-giving!

Did you know what happened on the Moon on July 20th, 1969?
Forty years ago today two human beings changed history by walking on the surface of the moon. But what happened before Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong exited the Lunar Module is perhaps even more amazing, if only because so few people know about it.
I’m talking about the fact that Buzz Aldrin took communion on the surface of the moon. Some months after his return, he wrote about it in Guideposts magazine. And a few years ago I had the privilege of meeting him myself. I asked him about it and he confirmed the story to me, and I wrote about in my book Everything You Always Wanted to Know About God (But Were Afraid to Ask).
The background to the story is that Aldrin was an elder at his Presbyterian Church in Texas during this period in his life, and knowing that he would soon be doing something unprecedented in human history, he felt he should mark the occasion somehow, and he asked his pastor to help him. And so the pastor consecrated a communion wafer and a small vial of communion wine. And Buzz Aldrin took them with him out of the Earth’s orbit and on to the surface of the moon.
He and Armstrong had only been on the lunar surface for a few minutes when Aldrin made the following public statement: “This is the LM pilot. I’d like to take this opportunity to ask every person listening in, whoever and wherever they may be, to pause for a moment and contemplate the events of the past few hours and to give thanks in his or her own way.” He then ended radio communication and there, on the silent surface of the moon, 250,000 miles from home, he read a verse from the Gospel of John, and he took communion. Here is his own account of what happened:
“In the radio blackout, I opened the little plastic packages which contained the bread and the wine. I poured the wine into the chalice our church had given me. In the one-sixth gravity of the moon, the wine slowly curled and gracefully came up the side of the cup. Then I read the Scripture, ‘I am the vine, you are the branches. Whosoever abides in me will bring forth much fruit. Apart from me you can do nothing.’
I had intended to read my communion passage back to earth, but at the last minute [they] had requested that I not do this. NASA was already embroiled in a legal battle with Madelyn Murray O’Hare [sic], the celebrated opponent of religion, over the Apollo 8 crew reading from Genesis while orbiting the moon at Christmas. I agreed reluctantly. I ate the tiny Host and swallowed the wine. I gave thanks for the intelligence and spirit that had brought two young pilots to the Sea of Tranquility . It was interesting for me to think: the very first liquid ever poured on the moon, and the very first food eaten there, were the communion elements.”
And of course, it’s interesting to think that some of the first words spoken on the moon were the words of Jesus Christ, who made the Earth and the moon — and Who, in the immortal words of Dante, is Himself the “Love that moves the Sun and other stars.”

Great to have a visit from Commander Tim Beake at Day 2 of the ‘Space Academy’ Holiday Club at Duncan Road Church. Southampton.
As you can see from the photos we are ready for Space: the final frontier. We are looking forward to our mission: to discover more about the God who made us and sent his Son Jesus to save us!

The Holiday club will run each day this week (Tuesday 29th March to Friday 1st April), it starts at 10.00am and finishes at 12noon.
Each day the children from school year R to year 5 will enjoy two hours of fun and excitement. A mixture of
quizzes, crafts, DVD’s, Bible stories, activities, games, competitions and a lot more!

Day 1 of the ‘Space Academy’ Holiday Club at Duncan Road Church. Southampton. Hants. UK.
A good start with 40 energetic children joining in the singing, activities, games, competitions and a much more!

The Holiday club will run each day this week (Tuesday 29th March to Friday 1st April), it starts at 10.00am and finishes at 12noon.
Each day the children from school year R to year 5 will enjoy two hours of fun and excitement. A mixture of
quizzes, crafts, DVD’s, Bible stories, activities, games, competitions and a lot more!

10. 9. 8. 7. 6. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1. Blast Off!
Another ‘Space Academy’ Holiday Club. This time the venue will be Duncan Road Church. Southampton. Hants. UK.

The Holiday club will run each day (Tuesday 29th March to Friday 1st April), it starts at 10.00am and finishes at 12noon.
Each day the children from school year R to year 5 will enjoy two hours of fun and excitement. A mixture of quizzes, crafts, DVD’s, Bible stories, activities, games, competitions and a lot more!

Encountering Jesus on the Emmaus Road – Luke chapter 24 verses 13-31 – sermon by Gordon Curley

PowerPoint slides to accompany this talk are available on request – email: gcurley@gcurley.info

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“If Jesus rose from the dead, then you have to accept all that he said; if he didn’t rise from the dead, then why worry about any of what he said? The issue on which everything hangs is not whether or not you like his teaching but whether or not he rose from the dead.”
Timothy Keller, The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism

In the tomb so cold they laid Him,
death its victim claimed;
powers of hell they could not hold Him-
back to life He came!

Christ is risen, (Christ is risen),
death has been conquered, (death has been conquered),
Christ is risen, (Christ is risen),
He shall reign for ever!

Hell had spent its fury on Him,
left Him crucified;
yet by blood He boldly conquered,
sin and death defied.

Christ is risen,,,,

Now the fear of death is broken,
Love has won the crown.
Prisoners of the darkness – listen,
walls are tumbling down!

Christ is risen….

Raised from death, to heaven ascending,
Love’s exalted King:
let His song of joy unending
through the nations ring!

Christ is risen….

Good Friday:

The paradox of the cross:

It is a picture of violence, yet it is the key to peace.
It is a picture of suffering, yet it is the key to healing.
It is a picture of death, et it is the key to life.
It is a picture of utter weakness, yet it is the key to power.
It is a picture of capitol punishment, yet it is the key to forgiveness.
It is a picture of hatred, yet it is the key to love.
It is a picture of shame and yet the Christian’s supreme boast!

This time of year always provides many openings to share the true meaning of Easter. A mixed bag of opportunities, from school assemblies, coffee mornings, ladies meetings, children’s & youth groups & senior citizens teas! The ages of those spoken to may be varied, as is the format & presentations, but the message is always the same: “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” ( The Bible: 1 Corinthians 15:3-5)

Thank you for your prayers for Penny at the Welsh Women’s Bible Study Conference – Hebron Christian Centre. Dinas Powys. Vale of Glamorgan.
Penny spoke at 3 main sessions and also gave 2 short talks on the topic ‘A Few Taboos’ – Dealing with Doubt, Depression and Destiny!

Feedback from those who attended has been very encouraging, it is good to know that the Bible teaching and conversations had over the weekend was a help and a blessing.