Welcome to

Photo by John Stone

Join us for Sunday Service

10.30am every Sunday, followed by a chat over tea and coffee.
Next service:

23rd August – Mr Terry Rowell

VIEW UPCOMING SERVICES

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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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August 2026

Message from Rev Chris Evans:

Dear Friends,

It was such a joy to celebrate with you at the 70th Anniversary of the rebuilding of the Chapel. It felt like a blessing to bring Burghfield and Mortimer churches together to celebrate all that God has done in our lives. Moreover, it felt humbling to see so many people respond to the invitation to come forward and acknowledge Jesus as Lord!

Many of you will have been disappointed that we were let down by our caterers after the service. It was a shame that we couldn’t eat together, but the contrast between the unexpected joy of our altar call and the unexpected disappointment of our empty tables set me thinking.

Isaiah 55:8 says, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.”

We will have all experienced this in our own ways over the years. Sometimes we have received blessings we didn’t ask for, and on other occasions, pain we didn’t imagine inflects us at the most unexpected times. This week, after a hectic term, when the Evanses were just about ready for a much-needed holiday, Tommy broke his leg. It felt like the last thing we needed, just before a fortnight of camping in Wales, and our energetic 13 year old will now spend a frustrating summer in plaster.

In all this, we must remember Romans 8:28, which promises us “that in all things God works for the good of those who love him.”

Somehow, the lack of feast after our anniversary service was God working for good. Somehow, my son breaking his leg will be for the good. Somehow in each cloud, each valley and each tribulation the King is present and his Kingdom comes.

Please may I encourage you then, to surrender your ways, your thoughts and your plans. May Jesus be your Lord. May he be the Commander of your thoughts. The Master of your plans. The Director of all your ways.

May no empty table worry you. No broken leg perturb you. No diagnosis disturb you. No disappointment trouble you.

Deep peace of the running wave to you.

Deep peace of the flowing air to you.

Deep peace of the quiet earth to you.

Deep peace of the shining stars to you.

Deep peace of the gentle night to you.

Moon and stars pour their healing light on you.

Deep peace of Christ, of Christ the light of the world to you.

Deep peace of Christ to you.

With much love, Chris.

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Photo by John Stone

Church Service 10.30am every Sunday.  Junior Church.

Lectionary

Worship

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Ladies Monday Morning Prayers.   Ladies Monday evening Bible Study.

Men’s Thursday evening Bible Study.   Pastoral care.   

Learning and caring

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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

.https://4freedomph.com/

Citizens Advice Tadley & District

Citizens Advice Tadley & District will continue our presence in Mortimer as part of our Outreach program.

Whether you’re worried about debt and finances, benefits, housing, employment, or something else, our trained advisers can help you understand your options and find a way forward. We’re an independent charity, so everything is free, confidential, and completely impartial — no judgment, just practical support.

The sessions will be held at the Mortimer Methodist Church from 10:00 to 12:30 on every first and third Friday of the month

To avoid delays, we can make appointments – just contact us using the details below. Alternatively, just pop in, have a chat, and see how we can help. Sometimes a bit of friendly advice can make all the difference. If you do drop in, please be aware that you may have to wait for an adviser to be available.

Contact us Phone: 0808 278 7987 (including a voicemail service)

Onlinehttps://www.catadley.org/email

In person: at Mortimer Methodist Church, 17 W End Rd, Mortimer Common, Reading RG7 3TB.

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Warm Welcome report for 2025 to May 2026


We are a drop in from 9.30 to 12.30 every Friday morning meeting in Mortimer Methodist Church and Hall.
Most stay for the morning just enjoining each other’s company chatting to each other or joining in with the many activities that are on offer.
Our weekly meetings consist of the following.
We have various activities on the go every week. Two tables of up to 9/10 people both men and women playing cards mainly Whist. Two puzzles on the go with up to 8 people sitting around the two tables. Recently our Art and Craft tables have had as many as 12 people joining in with painting as well as the many other craft activities that are going on in that area.
We are lucky enough to have a retired Physiotherapist within our group and she takes up to 17 people out and into the Church where they sit in a circle and enjoy a fun hour of chair keep fit. Lots of laughter can be heard coming from that group as they do their exercises.
At least another 30/40 people just enjoy siting and chatting with each other or playing one of the board games that are always on the tables for them to play if they wish. There is always puzzle books, crossword and Sudoku books and adult colouring books that they can collect and take back to their table and sit quietly enjoying their own space. We always have Newbury Weekly News,
Reading Chronicle and a Daily paper are on the tables for our guests to read if they wish.
Tea/Coffee and Biscuits are on offer all morning. Some can drink up to 4 cups throughout the morning. Homemade cake is on offer from 10.30am.
We have a lovely lady and her petting dog pop in on the first Friday of the month. Our guests love petting her dog. On the 1st and 3rd Fridays each month Tadley Citizens Advice Bureau set up in the lounge where they offer advice to all of the villagers of Mortimer including those who visit our group. People can make appointments by phoning their Tadley office or just drop-in and wait for a free slot to speak to them about an issue that they need help with. While waiting people are very welcome to drop in on Warm Welcome for a Cuppa and slice of cake while they wait.
New this term for a trial period 45 min 10.00 to 10.45. Two of our regular helpers, one of which is a lay preacher, have been offering a Bible Study Group to any who wish to go out into the lounge for about 45 mins study and understanding the different stories in the Bible. This is held on the 2rd, 4th and 5th Fridays. This group is open to all and is not denominational. At the moment about 4 people
go out and enjoy learning together.
Last May we run a Coffee Morning with both cakes to eat and also for sale in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support. We advertised the morning to other villagers. Every space in the Church was used. While with us all visitors were invited to wonder around and join in with the Warm Welcome activities. This was very successful raising over £800 for Cancer research.
This May we will be holding a Coffee Morning with cakes to eat and for sale in aid of Dementia.
We knitted Rabbits and Chicks covering small cream eggs and donated them to the Alexander Devine Hospice where they were sold for £3 each. This year we knitted some 40 egg covers and filled them all with eggs.

We enjoyed a lovely Christmas Party everyone enjoying lovely food some games and best of all a professional singer/entertainer Mr Derry Pope sang to us for one hour
Just before Christmas Children from St Johns School came and sang to us then came into the hall and played games while chatting to our guests.
We entered Mortimer Scarecrow Trail some of our group enjoyed making Wallace and Gromit. We won second prize.
We are now preparing for World Bee Day in the month of May where we will decorate in and around the Methodist Church and grounds with knitted bees. All knitted by our ladies in the group.
Also new to us this year is the Mortimer and Burghfield Handy Bus. This has been invaluable for some of our group who wouldn’t be able to get out without this very valuable service. I think there is still one space left on the bus.
We have up to 58 people joining us every week with new people still dropping in most weeks.
If you are reading this and think that you might like to join us please just pop in on Friday mornings or know anyone who might enjoy time chatting to others. Or if you would like to help, we do still need helpers to help set up/pack up and also to help serve the tea, coffee cake etc.


Quotes from a few of our guests.

  1. I would rather come here than go to my therapist. It does me more good.
  2. This group saved my life after my husband died.
  3. I wish we could meet every day of the week.
  4. I have made so many friends here. I have got a life now.
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21st Sunday in Ordinary Time 23 Aug

Matthew 16:13-20

New International Version – UK

Peter declares that Jesus is the Messiah

13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’

14 They replied, ‘Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’

15 ‘But what about you?’ he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’

16 Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’

17 Jesus replied, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.’ 20 Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

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.


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