A message from William Taylor

Dear church family,

I am writing to let you know our plans at St Helen’s, as the virus takes hold. Before outlining the steps we are taking in caring for those most vulnerable and in continuing the gospel ministry at St Helen’s, I’m eager for us to reflect on one or two foundational truths.

First, this wretched affliction reminds us of our frailty and vulnerability. It is a time of great concern for us all, it will involve considerable suffering across our nation, many of us will experience the sadness of bereavement. I do hope you will take particular caution if you, personally, are vulnerable. Please let us know by the means outlined below if you are having to self isolate. I would strongly encourage those who are exposed to the greatest risk not to come to St Helen’s as we continue to meet. Please make use of the various provisions for mutual encouragement outlined below, and please keep in touch.

Secondly, the virus will cause all of us to ‘cast ourselves on the Lord knowing that he cares for us’. Psalm 23 is such a wonderful psalm for this moment.  We are reminded of the sovereign care of the Lord, our shepherd. He assures us of his ordering of all things, his care of us personally, the provision he makes for us both in this life and the next. Above all else, Psalm 23 promises his presence with us even as we ‘walk through the valley of the shadow of death’. He is with us, he will lead us, we shall ‘dwell in the house of the Lord forever’. What glorious assurance we have as Christians in knowing the Lord Jesus, the Good Shepherd. One of our octogenarian members said to me last Sunday that he has been committing the last verses of Romans 8 to memory: ‘we are more than conquerors through him who loved us ... nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.’

Finally, let’s not forget the extraordinary opportunities we are now being given to love and serve those around us and to speak to those who have no knowledge of the Lord Jesus about the benefits of being known by him. For those without Christ, this is a time of even greater anxiety—even panic. We have a glorious gospel to offer them. Do pray earnestly for an opportunity to serve them and to speak of the love of Jesus and the hope of resurrection life with him.

With warm regards,
William

Looking out for those at greatest risk

Public meetings

We are following government advice and suspending public meetings until further notice.

Help during this period.

Please look out for others in your small group (spiritually and physically) during this period of isolation. However, if you need extra help (eg groceries, a phone chat, help with technology, financial or other help) and your small group is unable to provide this, or you are not currently a member of a small group, please fill out this form.

If you are able to help beyond your small group please also fill out this form to let us know how you might be able to help. We'll do our best to then connect people across the church family.

Continuing gospel proclamation

Live streaming services

From Sunday 22 March we will be running a live stream for all our Sunday meetings. This will be available through our website.

Small group Bible studies

Small group Bible studies will not be meeting in any of our church buildings. Groups are being encouraged to meet virtually instead. Please speak to your small group leader in the first instance. If you would like to join a small group, please contact us.

Our resource library

We have over 10,000 Bible teaching resources available free of charge. Search our resource library to find individual talks (audio and video), talk series, training videos, Bible study notes, articles and more.