Photo by John Stone
Join us for Sunday Service
10.30am every Sunday, followed by a chat over tea and coffee.
Next service:
22 February Allan Meakin
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17 West End Road, Mortimer Common, RG7 3TB
Minister: Reverend John Banks
Mortimer Methodist Church is to respond to the gospel of God’s love in Christ and to live out its discipleship in worship and mission.
It does this through:
Worship The Church exists to increase awareness of God’s presence and to celebrate God’s love.
Learning and Caring The Church exists to help people to grow and learn as Christians, through mutual support and care.
Service The Church exists to be a good neighbour to people in need and to challenge injustice.
Each one of us is God’s special work of art. Through us, God teaches and inspires those who view our lives. ———– Joni Eareckson Tada
Love comes out of heaven, unasked and unsought. Pearl S Buck
Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” (John 12 vs 23-24)
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Lent
Lent is often seen as a season of giving things up – chocolate, coffee, social media. But at its heart, Lent is about making space for what gives life. It’s about loosening our grip on the things that promise happiness but leave us empty and opening ourselves to the presence of God. This isn’t about punishment or deprivation; it’s about freedom. Freedom from the illusions that weigh us down and the false promises that keep us restless.
This week’s theme
is about idols – not statues, but the subtle things we trust more than God: success, image, control, comfort.
They’re like plastic plants: They look alive, but they can’t grow. Lent invites us to notice those false promises and gently let them go. What would it feel like to live with less pressure to perform, less fear of failure, less of a need to control?
What might grow in that space?
This is the beginning of a journey toward what is real, rooted and alive.
Try this spiritual practice
Keep a journal (or use your notes app) and each day write down:
One false message you’ve noticed
(eg ‘I have to be perfect to be loved’).
One true message from God
(eg ‘You are my beloved’).
As you notice these messages, you may also want to reflect on where these pressures come from – and how choosing what is true might shape the way you speak, work, vote or care for others.
A short prayer: God, help me let go of the false and hold fast to what is true.
Bible readings for the week
Genesis 2:15–17; 3:1–7 Matthew 4:1–11
Watch the reflection below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbT53WVtmsQ
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Message from Rev Chris Evans
Dear Friends,
I’m writing to say ‘hello’ as, during Rev. John Banks’ illness, I’ll be stepping in to provide pastoral oversight and care in Mortimer. My time is stretched with my day job, so I might not be nearly as good as John, but I’ll be praying for you, preaching in Mortimer once a month, and doing anything I possibly can to support you.
My family (Lana and I, plus our four children Daisy, Noah, Tom and Zachy) live just round the corner in Burghfield, and know Mortimer well, having lived nearby since we were married in 2007. I’ve loved this church for a long time. I made my first clear decision to follow Jesus during an evening service in Mortimer in about 1993. In 2001 I used to help run a youth club in Silchester which engaged many young people from Mortimer, and whilst I was training for the ministry for a couple of years from 2008, my wife (Lana) and I ran a youth group at Mike and Val’s house. Through the work in Burghfield, I’ve loved supporting two Alpha courses with Mortimer, and still see three of Mortimer’s teenagers every fortnight at a youth group in Mortimer West End Chapel.
Whilst this might be for just a short time, I hope you’ll let me know if I can do anything at all to support you. Sandra has already added me to the prayer chain. It feels as though this is a tough time for a number of you right now – with desperately ill children and grandchildren, health afflictions and personal challenges. Yet, “The One who calls you is Faithful” (1 Thessalonians 5), and he is “Able to keep us from falling” (Jude 1)… so “This we call to mind and therefore we have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3)
I’ll do anything I can in these weeks or months to encourage all the wonderful things that go on in the fellowship and in your outreach, and give thanks to God for each of you.
Sending you love and prayers,
Chris
Some words of encouragement from Psalm 91
“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness.”
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Church Service 10.30am every Sunday. Junior Church.
Lectionary
Worship
Ladies Monday Morning Prayers. Ladies Monday evening Bible Study.
Men’s Thursday evening Bible Study. Pastoral care.
Learning and caring
Service to the community
Warm Welcome Faith and friends Who Let the Dads Out Safeguarding
Eco Church Bric-a-Brac
The Philippines Appeal
At the end of the service on 7th December, there was a collection for people in The Philippines who have suffered earthquakes and typhoons in 2025. The total raised was £855 and this was sent to 4Freedom Philippines (4freedomph.com), an organisation co-founded by Peter Clemison, the son of a member of this church family. Thanks so much to all for your generous donations
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1st Sunday in Lent 22 Feb
Matthew 4:1-11
Jesus is tested in the wilderness
4 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting for forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, ‘If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.’
4 Jesus answered, ‘It is written: “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the highest point of the temple. 6 ‘If you are the Son of God,’ he said, ‘throw yourself down. For it is written:
‘“He will command his angels concerning you,
and they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.”
7 Jesus answered him, ‘It is also written: “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”
8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour. 9 ‘All this I will give you,’ he said, ‘if you will bow down and worship me.’
10 Jesus said to him, ‘Away from me, Satan! For it is written: “Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.”
11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.
Prayer of Commitment (inspired by Matthew 5: 14-16) and other prayers.
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Praying for peace between nations, peace in communities and peace in our hearts.
International Prayer of Peach
Lead me from death to life, from falsehood to truth; lead me from despair to hope, from fear to trust; lead me from hate to love, from war to peace.
Let peace fill our heart, our world, our universe.
The source of this prayer is credited to both Hindu and Buddhist faiths and it was used by Mother Teresa in 1981 at St James Church, London. It is used by people of all faiths and none each day at noon to form a wave of prayer and hope rippling each day around the globe.
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Mortimer Methodist Church has installed a Bench, (made of recycled plastic) at our Cemetery in Drury Lane. So when waking, you may rest in the peace and tranquility of our wonderful village, and give thanks.
A welcome rest when walking in our beautiful countryside.
Church Spring Clean
See Spring Clean Photos click HERE
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Mortimer Methodist Church 