Mothers' Union Diocese of Lincoln

• About Lincoln Diocese Mothers' Union
• Diocesan President's December 2020 Newsletter
• 2020 Wave of Prayer Service
•  
• 2021 Diary:  Theme - Rebuilding Hope & Confidence
• Map and Groups in Lincoln Diocese

ABOUT LINCOLN DIOCESE MOTHERS' UNION:  We are a small diocese whose members mainly live in rural settings. There are a variety of different memberships to meet personal needs.

We are organised geographically into 12 clusters overlapping deaneries. Each cluster has between two-six branches; the cluster leader often also being a trustee who feeds information back from meetings to members.

Clusters generally organise programmes for Lady Day, Mary Sumner Day and other special events.

Branches generally meet monthly for worship, sharing information and fellowship. They keep in touch with the indoor members in their parishes. The Indoor Members Prayer Circle (IMPC) coordinator keeps in touch with all IMPC members sending cards for Christmas, Easter and birthdays along with letters from the worldwide president or our diocesan chaplain or president.

Diocesan members can be part of a diocesan fellowship group or individual members who join through the diocesan office with a diocesan members coordinator keeping them in touch with Mothers' Union activities. Diocesan members are invited to join branches nearby, when they can, or diocesan activities.

Our work:

• In January 2019 The Mothers' Union Centre moved to a new office at St Peter at Gowts Church Hall.  This office is currently closed due to COVID-19.
• We support The Mothers' Union Wave of Prayer between 16th and 18th November
• A diocesan contact with Stocken Prison Chaplaincy started in 2017 and involves members with the week-long Kairos Bible study, prayers and life reflections on a one-to-one basis for the inmates involved, also cooking hundreds of cookies for the course supported by many local churches
• Members support the local refuges providing toiletries, towels, bedding, emergency rations and other requirements
• Mothers' Union has linked with a local Lincoln-based baby basket charity, providing Moses baskets, knitted garments, toiletries, and everything needed for the new baby and mother in the first three months following delivery. Sent to any needy family recommended by midwives, social workers or Mothers' Union members
• Mothers' Union support maternity units across the diocese knitting for premature babies and newborns, and knitting pockets and blankets for stillborn babies
• Links with hospitals, care homes, nursing homes and at-home dementia sufferers are provided with fiddle blankets, muffs and aprons as required. The dementia coodinator works with NHS staff and provides talks for Mothers' Union groups
• We provide student recipe books, Mothers' Union information at Freshers' Day at Bishop Grostesste University and support the chaplaincy-run "Tea and Toast" once a month in term time providing snacks and a listening ear if required
• Members take part in the Thy Kingdom Come movement in the clusters and attended the diocesan service at the end of the initiative at the cathedral
• In November members meet at the cathedral chapel for prayers before walking down Steep Hill  and High Street to St Peters holding placards and giving out leaflets supporting the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. 
• Along with the majority of Church of England Dioceses, we are involved with The Clewer Initiative which seeks to bring recognition and support by raising awareness of all aspects of modern slavery and helping to mobilise the local church, both in detection and helping to provide victim support and care.  

To get involved, contact our Diocesan President to become a diocesan member. Following recent changes, all members will be receiving the prayer book, which has information about our wonderful global Christian organization and prayers for our members worldwide.  In addition, there will be an exciting new publication as part of membership subscription which will be posted to members of the Britain and Ireland zones directly twice a year with information of the many activities, work and life skills which are making a huge difference to our 4 million members worldwide.

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December Newsletter 2020

Wishing you all a peaceful memorable Christmas with love from all the Leaders of Lincoln Diocese Mothers’ Union.

May 2021 enable us to meet together again

THE WAVE OF PRAYER

16-18^th November 2020

Hope and Confidence

‘He is able to do immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine according to His power that is at work within us’  Ephesians 3v20

Creator God, Wonderful Saviour,

We thank you that you have made us in your image and created each one of us for a special purpose.  We join together in this worldwide Wave of Prayer, offering all that we have and all that we are in your service.  We come with all our failings and weaknesses, knowing that you are patient, loving and forgiving, and can use even us to make a difference in our needy and suffering world.

This year has brought challenges beyond our wildest imaginings  but, as Christians and  Mothers’ Union members, you have been calling us to an intense and focussed prayer ministry through which we believe you are working out your purposes.

Lord, we give you thanks that, in the midst of anxiety and restriction, you have continued to bless us in wonderful ways and provided for all our needs.  We thank you for the precious gift of time, enabling us to realign our thoughts, to learn to be still and hear you speaking to us.  We thank you for the beauty of the changing seasons and the little things that cause us to wonder and delight in your handiwork.

We thank you for this precious moment when we can pray for the needs of our brothers and sisters around the world, and when we can safely leave our past and our future in your loving hands.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.  Amen

Reading:   Psalm 91

Loving Father,   

As we pray for our members all around the world we lift to you especially the Mothers’ Union in IRAQ, KATAKWA IN KENYA, KAFANCHAN AND ASABA IN NIGERIA, TRINDAD AND TOBAGO and our own members in LINCOLN DIOCESE.

We pray for all MU Leaders – for Sheran Harper and Bev Jullien, for Elizabeth and all Diocesan and Provincial Presidents, for Branch and Cluster Leaders and all who hold office in Mothers’ Union.  We thank you for their leadership and the generosity of our members in guiding us through the many challenges    that our organisation has encountered this year.  We pray that we may come through this with determination and resilience, full of hope and confidence.  May the work of Mothers’ Union flourish as we continue to support so many needy causes.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.   Amen

God of Compassion,

We bring before you all those people and places that have been ravaged by the coronavirus, where healthcare is minimal or non-existent and many thousands have died, leaving immeasurable grief and suffering.  We pray Lord for an end to this devastating scourge and for a vaccine to protect your people.   We pray for world leaders as they seek ways to keep the virus under control and we ask that you will teach us all new ways of caring for our environment – of being good stewards of all that you have placed in our care.

Lord, we believe you are working out your purposes and weaving all things together in ways that are beyond our understanding.  We pray for the gift of faith in all our praying and for courage to believe that you hear our every whisper.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.   Amen

Father God,

We pray for the future of our nation and for its present needs.  We give thanks for our healthcare services and ask your blessing on our doctors, nurses, carers and medical staff.  We pray for their protection, health and stamina, particularly in these extraordinary times, as they minister to those in their care.

We pray for our government and the people they serve.  Give them wisdom and kindness in all their dealings as they endeavour to set our country back on its feet.

We offer heartfelt prayers for families everywhere in all their forms.  May the power of love enter the heart of each family unit, that all may know the value of appreciation and acceptance.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.   Amen

Lord, you are turning our world upside-down – we ask that our prayers will help to win the battle against disease, corruption, greed and materialism.  We link hands with our fellow-members across the globe as we humbly offer our petitions to you.

In Jesus’ Name we pray.  Amen

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October Newsletter 2020 from Elizabeth.

Autumn my favourite time of the year.

My Dear Friends and Fellow Mothers’ Union members,

Where have those last two months gone. I have so missed my visits to you and seeing you all at Summer and Autumn events in Branches, Fellowship groups and Clusters. We have been Zooming within the Diocese, Province and Worldwide sharing our good news and sad times and trying hard to rethink MU in the context of this Pandemic. Mothers’ Union is so special to me. I just wish I had been introduced to it when I was much younger. Life has been very busy since Sue left. I am gradually getting to grips with the finances, (not sure Phil would agree) but I will get there in the end. The not so new Laptop is still a bit of a mystery to me, doing wonderful things that I don’t ask of it, but like many of you I am getting to grips with the Technology.

SO WHAT IS SO SPECIAL ABOUT THE MOTHERS’ UNION?

I think we need to remember that no two MU groups are the same and neither should they be. The purpose of a group or branch is to have a framework to meet together, to pray together and to get involved in making a difference to family life and our own communities in any way we are able. MU members meet together for Faith, Fellowship and Friendship. Being part of a group or branch should provide the opportunity to be actively involved in your local Community and Church activities and to discover more about what is happening to Mothers Union locally and globally, something we have found hard to do over the last year.

To help this aim, as from 2021 MSH will be posting to every member the prayer book, which has information about our wonderful global Christian organization to which we all belong, and prayers for our members worldwide.

In Addition, there will be an exciting new publication as part of your membership which will again be posted to you directly as members of the Britain and Ireland zones twice a year; for the first time ever updating you on news, events and stories of changes MU makes to the lives of so many in this country and around the world. This will replace the Families First which only reaches a small number of our members. The new magazines will ensure that every member knows what it means to be part of this amazing organization and can spread the word to others in their communities.

To make this possible every member will need to subscribe £20 towards the work of MSH. Last year we sent £14.50 per member to MSH from our Subscriptions of £28 / £30.

Thanks to all the changes and savings we have been able to make in 2020: With the agreement of Trustees and leaders we have set the subscriptions for Lincoln Diocese at £30. There will be no extra postage required for NEWS which was difficult to produce and distribute with COVID restrictions.    

During the Lockdown we have been sending out monthly newsletters including  articles sent in by you. The Trustees have agreed that this will continue on a bi-monthly email or post into the foreseeable future.  Thank you to all the Branch Leaders who have copied, delivered or posted these to their members during these difficult times. Your efforts have been much appreciated. Any expenses can be taken from Branch funds.

All Diocesan members will have received the newsletter by email or post. Huge thank you for the big increase in email addresses, which has enabled us to keep the cost down, and to Jenni for emailing out all the messages as well as the newsletters.

The Diocesan members will have the option of bank transfer or cheques to pay subs. The bank informed me that we cannot do Direct Debit with our Business account. 

All IMPC members have the letter posted to them along with a reflection from MSH, usually in slightly larger print. As from next year any former Member or IMPC member who can no longer attend meetings and are frail in body or mind and possibly in care, will receive Christmas and Easter cards without having to pay subs.  Names and addresses will be collected with the return forms.

The return forms will be simpler with not as much information being required. Thanks to the help of Jenny in doing this. Before leaving, Sue made sure I had all the Branch members as of Jan 2019 printed out so you will only need to make any changes before returning them.

Remember you are part of the biggest Christian Lay Organisation in the Anglican Church and possibly the world; with representatives heading up discussions and actions on: Gender Violence; Women’s Rights; Family Life; Modern Day Slavery; working in the community to make a difference; in Parliament; in the United Nations and other large meetings around the world.

Everything we do as MU is centred on prayer; every meeting should contain bible study or/and prayers. In many churches Mothers Union are a main support for clergy and congregation. We have clergy, church wardens and committed helpers in our ranks. Thank you all for everything you do for MU.

I think 2020 has taught us a lot about Christian Love, looking out for our neighbours and helping each other. May we continue to do this during the present Pandemic and into the future.

With much love to you all Elizabeth

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2021 Theme – Rebuilding Hope & Confidence