Church spring clean

The church spring clean date has changed to Saturday April 16 10am - 12pm, 2pm - 4pm.  Please come and help if you can spare an hour or two. Everyone is welcome.  Please bring any cleaning equipment you think may be useful.  Please help make our lovely church look even more beautiful!

Irish themed evening Saturday 19 March

Once again we are having an 'Irish themed evening' with the popular band 'Gone to the Dogs' and a supper of Irish stew and apple pie (served separately...).  Book your tickets now!  Only £12 per person!

Institution and Induction of our new Rector

Just a reminder that Rev Lorna Brabin-Smith will be licensed as our new Rector on 17 March 2016 at 7.30 pm at All Saints, Branston.  If you would like to come perhaps you could let me know so we have a rough idea for catering purposes.  We have waited a long time for a new Rector and while we are very grateful to the retired priests who have looked after us for so long (Les Whitfield, Tim Thompson and the late Terry Stokes), we are looking forward to welcoming Lorna to our parishes.  Lorna will lead our worship in Nocton for the first time on Easter Day, Sunday 27 March.  We hope to have a full church...

An afternoon in the labyrinth

The real meaning of Lent (and it isn't giving up chocolate)

Wednesday 10 February is Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent, when we begin the time of preparation for Easter.  On Ash Wednesday we will celebrate Holy Communion at St Andrew's Potterhanworth at 7.30 pm, with the ancient ceremony of 'ashing'.  Each worshipper is marked on the forehead with a cross drawn in ash, which is made from the palm crosses blessed at the previous year's Palm Sunday service.  The 'ashing' is accompanied by the words 'Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.'  The intention is to remind the worshipper to repent of their sins before it is too late.

Nowadays Lent has become a largely misunderstood time, when people give up something (usually chocolate or alcohol) as a reminder of the traditional Lenten fast and a means of self discipline.  This has about as much to do with Lent as novelty Easter eggs have to do with the resurrection!  Instead of (or as well as!) giving up the booze for a few weeks, why not try making a positive difference in your life?  To use the other form of words for 'ashing', 'Repent and believe in the Gospel.'

Lent at San Damiano

The return of the Valentine's Night quiz!

The real meaning of Christmas

Perhaps during Christmas, more than any other time, we fail to hear God's voice.  Distractions abound, and at a time when our focus should be on our blessings and our Saviour, we're tuned in to other things that seem more pressing.  But on Christmas Day, make the choice to open your heart, mind, and spirit and listen for God's voice.
A very happy, peaceful and blessed Christmas to you all.

Carol singing

Thanks to all who turned out to sing carols with the residents of The Cottage Residential Care Home and to (or should that be at) the residents of Wellhead Lane.  Linda Coxon-Carpenter did a fantastic rendition of The Twelve Days of Christmas with all the actions, many of which I had never seen before - six geese a-laying will live long in the memory!  Thanks also to those who listened to us and who generously gave donations to be divided between the church and the Nomad Trust - we raised £55.47.  More thanks to the Village Hall Management Committee who welcomed us at the end with mulled wine and mince pies.  We'll be doing this again next year in a different part of the village - you have been warned!

Our new Rector

We look forward to welcoming Lorna as our Rector on Thursday 17 March at 7.30 pm at All Saints' Church, Branston.

Children and pumpkins...

The church took part in the pumpkin trail and children were invited into church to take part in an activity.  They thought about light and then made and took home a card with a candle stencil, with a flickering tea light behind.  The special Hallowe’en cakes were very tasty and great fun.

The bells, the bells...

Many of you will have enjoyed hearing the church bells ringing out today in all their glory.  We have a fine peal of six bells and today we celebrate the 150th anniversary of their dedication.  We don't know when in 1865 the bells were dedicated, so we decided to tie in the celebration with our Patronal Festival - today, All Saints Day.

This morning, before the morning service, a quarter peal was rung using a method called 'All Saints Doubles' (a method being the order in which the bells are rung).  The service itself featured a re-dedication of the bells, with bell-related hymns, reading and prayers, as well as being our usual celebration of All Saints and commemoration of All Souls.  This evening the bells are being rung in a full peal using the Nocton, Ripon and Hobart Minor methods - all names closely associated with the church.

The bells were cast in 1865 at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry in London - where Big Ben and the Liberty Bell were also made.  The bell inscriptions are 'Blessing', 'Honour', Glory', 'Power', 'Be unto Him that sitteth on the throne' and 'And unto the Lamb for ever and ever'.  The wording of the inscriptions is instantly recognisable to anyone who has heard Handel's 'Messiah', as they occur in the chorus 'Worthy is the Lamb' which we heard as part of the service.  The original words are from Revelation 5 and were read as part of the re-dedication.

Long may the bells continue to ring out over the village!

Group Captain Gilbert Stuart Martin Insall VC. MC. Remembered

Group Captain Gilbert Stuart Martin Insall VC. MC. Remembered

(Awarded the Victoria Cross on 7^th November 1915)

Group Captain Gilbert Stuart Martin Insall VC. MC.

On Saturday 7^th November 2015 a quarter peal (lasting approx 45 minutes) will be attempted at All Saints Church Nocton to mark the centenary of Group Captain Gilbert Stuart Martin Insall VC. MC. on being awarded the Victoria Cross during the Great War.

Group Captain Insall is buried in All Saints Churchyard and survived the Great War dying at the age of 77 on 17^th February 1972.

Group Captain Insall’s Citation for the Victoria Cross

“For most conspicuous bravery, skill and determination, on 7 November 1915, in France. He was patrolling in a Vickers Fighting Machine, with First Class Air Mechanic T. H. Donald as gunner, when a German machine was sighted, pursued, and attacked near Achiet.

The German pilot led the Vickers machine over a rocket battery, but with great skill Lieutenant Insall dived and got to close range, when Donald fired a drum of cartridges into the German machine, stopping its engine. The German pilot then dived through a cloud, followed by Lieutenant Insall Fire was again opened, and the German machine was brought down heavily in a ploughed field 4 miles south-east of Arras.

On seeing the Germans scramble out of their machine and prepare to fire, Lieutenant Insall dived to 500 feet, thus enabling Donald to open heavy fire on them. The Germans then fled, one helping the other, who was apparently wounded. Other Germans then commenced heavy fire, but in spite of this, Lieutenant Insall turned again, and an incendiary bomb was dropped on the German machine, which was last seen wreathed in smoke. Lieutenant Insall then headed west in order to get back over the German trenches, but as he was at only 2,000 feet altitude he dived across them for greater speed, Donald firing into the trenches as he passed over.

The German fire, however, damaged the petrol tank, and, with great coolness, Lieutenant Insall landed under cover of a wood 500 yards inside our lines. The Germans fired some 150 shells at our machine on the ground, but without causing material damage. Much damage had, however, been caused by rifle fire, but during the night it was repaired behind screened lights, and at dawn Lieutenant Insall flew his machine home with First Class Air Mechanic T. H. Donald as a passenger."

More information about Group Captain Insall can be found on Wikipedia at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilbert_Insall

Group Captain Insall’s Grave in Nocton Churchyard.

Harvest Thanksgiving service & supper - thanks!

34 people came together to give thanks to God for His blessings on us all.  Thanks to all who decorated the church for the Harvest Thanksgiving service.  We also had the benefit of the display made by donations from Nocton Community Primary School to Lincoln Community Larder - much appreciated by us and by the people who will benefit.  The collection at the service raised around £50 for the church and another £50 for WaterAid - an international charity that transforms lives by improving access to safe water, hygiene and sanitation.

Following the service was the (in)famous Harvest Supper.  This was greatly enjoyed by all who attended.  Thanks to the fundraising team for all the hard work behind the scenes, all who helped in any way especially to all those who did the catering, Chris for the potatoes and the wine, and to Ted & Ian who unblocked the sinks at the end!  A special mention to Rev Les Whitfield for selling off the left over food at the end, including an already open bag of salad!!

The Harvest Supper raised £400 for church funds.  A massive thank you to all who attended the service and/or the supper - see you again next year!

Harvest Thanksgiving