On September 13 we start a new sermon series which will journey through key moments of the Old Testament, discovering our origin story as Christians, and reflecting on how God forms his people for the journey ahead. Here is the schedule of readings:

13 September
Genesis 12:1-8
God calls his people

20 September
Exodus 2
God prepares his people

27 September
Exodus 3
God goes with his people

4 October
Deuteronomy 8
God provides for his people

11 October
Exodus 16
God sustains his people

18 October
Exodus 18
God equips his people

25 October
Numbers 13:26-33,14:22-33
God grows his people’s faith

1 November
Deuteronomy 34
God Continues his mission

8 November
Joshua 1
God strengthens his people

15 November
Leviticus 19:9-18,32-37
God makes his people holy

22 November
Exodus 35
Gid invites his people to participate in his mission

On 2 August we start a new sermon series where we will be looking at women of faith n the Old Testament. Here is the full schedule of readings:
2 August
Judges 4:1-10
Deborah: God Raises Unlikely Leaders

9 August
2 Kings 22:14-20
Huldah: God Raises Faithful Voices

16 August
Esther 4:9-17
Esther: God Works Through Those Willing to Risk Everything

23 August
1 Samuel 25:14-35
Abigail: God Brings Peace Through Humble Wisdom

30 August
Joshua 2:1-14
Rahab: God Welcomes Outsiders to His Story

6 September
Genesis 16:1-13
Hagar: The God Who Sees

On Sunday 7 June we start a new sermon series exploring how the living God continues to be present and at work among his people.

Here is the schedule of readings:
7 June
John 14:15-27
When the Advocate Comes

14 June
John 3:1-12
Spiritual Experience

21 June
1 Kings 19:7-13
Discernment

28 June
1 Corinthians 14:1-12
Prophecy

5 July
James 5:7-16
Healing

12 July
Acts 1:6-14
Witness

19 July
Romans 8:18-27
Redemptive Suffering

26 July
Galatians 5:13-26
The Way of Love

This year’s theme is God With Us. We have lots of prayer initiatives planned from Ascension Day to Pentecost:

Sunday 10 May
Introduction to Thy Kingdom Come at today’s services.
Pick up your prayer journals and booklet with prayer ideas today.
Thy Kingdom Come Youth sessions at 11am & 4pm.

Thursday 14 May
Ascension Day Holy Communion at 8pm.
Launch of Thy Kingdom Come.

Friday 15 May
Prayer Walk at 10am - starting at church.

Saturday 16 May
Cake & Coffee for Christian Aid 10am-5pm.
Church open for prayer.

Sunday 17 May
Sunday services plus Thy Kingdom Come Youth sessions at 11am & 4pm.

Monday 18 May
Morning Prayer at 9am (join in church or online).
Church open for prayer between 9am and 3pm, 5pm and 8pm
Invitation to pray in the church or churchyard.

Tuesday 19 May
Morning Prayer at 9am (join in church or online).
Church open for prayer between 9am and 3pm.
Invitation to pray in the church or churchyard.

Wed 20 May
Morning Prayer at 9am (join in church or online).
Church open for prayer between 9am and 3pm.
Invitation to pray in the church or churchyard.
Midweek Holy Communion at 11.30am.

Thursday 21 May
Morning Prayer at 9am - online.
Prayer & Worship night at 7.30pm, starting 48 hours of prayer.

Friday 22 May
48 hours of prayer continues

Saturday 23 May
48 hours of prayer continues,
ending with evening prayer from 6.30-7.30pm.

Sunday 24 May
Pentecost: Sunday services plus Thy Kingdom Come Youth session at 11am & 4pm.

After over five years of fundraising, we are delighted to be starting our bell restoration project. All eight bells will be taken away from the church for tuning and will be returned with new fittings for re-installation at the end of July. During this period, there will be no bell present for the hourly clock chime. In addition, it will be necessary to remove the mechanism that drives the four clock faces on the tower as it blocks the access to the bells. Everything will be returned to normal after the bells have been replaced in the tower. For further details about this project and for information on how you can make a donation, please visit hampton-church.org.uk/bells

Starting on 8 February at 4.30pm, Connect is a new monthly youth evening during term time, held on the second Sunday of each month. It’s a relaxed space for young people to grow, build friendships, and explore faith together.
Dates for the rest of the term are: 8 Feb, 8 March, 10 May, 14 June and 12 July.
Expect games, music, snacks and more for young people in year 5 and upwards.

You may have noticed that the lights outside the church are still up. This is quite intentional, and they will stay in place until Candlemas (2 February). In the darker part of the year, they offer a welcome sense of light and continue to symbolise the light of Jesus revealed in the Epiphany season.
Thank you to Peter Sait for the wonderful photo.

On Sunday 4 January we start a new sermon series where we will be unpacking The Gospel of Mark.

Here is the schedule of readings:
4 January
Mark 1:1-13
Who is Jesus?
11 January
Mark 1:9-20
Called and Sent
18 January
Mark 1:21-34
Authority Like No Other
25 January
Mark 1:35-45
Compassion that Transforms
1 February
Mark 2:1-17
A Forgiving, Welcoming Jesus
8 February
Mark 2:18-3:6
New Wine: A New Way of Life
15 February
Mark 3:7-35
With Him, To be Sent
22 February
Mark 4:1-20
The Sower
1 March
Mark 4:35-41
Jesus in the Storm
8 March
Mark 5:1-20
Set Free to Follow
15 March
Mark 5:21-43
Jesus’ Tender Care
22 March
Mark 8:27-38
Who do you say I am?
29 March
Mark 11:1-11
The King who Comes in Humility
5 April
Mark 16:1-8
Astonishment and New Beginnings

SUNDAY 14 DECEMBER
5pm Rock ‘n’ Carols

THURSDAY 18 DECEMBER
8pm Festival of Carols & Readings by Candlelight

CHRISTMAS EVE
3pm & 4.30pm Children’s Carols & Christingle
11.30pm Midnight Holy Communion

CHRISTMAS DAY
10am Christmas Day Carols & Communion 

From Sunday 12 October, we will be hosting Alpha Youth during our 4pm service in place of the usual sermon. All ages will meet together  during this service.  Alpha Youth gives young people a space to explore their questions about life, faith and purpose. It has been designed to help them engage with the core ideas of the Christian faith in a way that is relevant, accessible and engaging. We also believe this will be a valuable opportunity for the whole church family. It offers all of us the chance to grow in faith—whatever stage of life we are at—and to support our young people as they explore theirs. For further details contact Teri-Anne:
teri-anne@hampton-church.org.uk

On Sunday 15 June we start a new sermon series where we will be looking at the Book of Leviticus.

Here is the schedule of readings:
15 June
Leviticus 1:1-9
Called to Draw Near
22 June
Leviticus 11:1-8, 41-47
Clean Hands and Pure Hearts
29 June
Leviticus 16:1-10, 15-16, 20-22, 29-30
Atonement and Mercy
6 July
Leviticus 19:1-18
Be Holy and I am Holy
13 July
Leviticus 26:1-17
Blessing or Curse?

On Sunday 27 April we start a new sermon series: Being Church: Living as the body of Christ, where we will be looking at the five key principles of church life at St Mary’s: Come, Pray, Join, Serve, and Give.

Here is the schedule of readings:
27 April
Hebrews 10:19-25
Come: Let us Draw Near
4 May
Acts 4:23-31
Pray: They Raised their Voices Together
11 May
Acts 2:42-47
Join: Devoted and Together
25 May
Romans 12:3-13
Serve: One Body, Many Gifts
1 June
2 Corinthians 9:6-15
Give: God Loves a Cheerful Giver

In the lead up to Easter we will be looking at The Gospel According to Matthew. Running for eleven weeks, this series will take us on a journey through Jesus’ life and teaching, culminating in his triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday and the joy of his resurrection on Easter Sunday.
Here is the schedule of readings:
9 February
Matthew 1:1-17
The Family of God
16 February
Matthew 4:12-25
The Kingdom is Near
23 February
Matthew 5:1-16
The Upside-Down Kingdom
2 March
Matthew 5:38-48
The Call to Radical Love
9 March
Matthew 6:5-15
The Lord’s Prayer
16 March
Matthew 8:23-34
The Power of the Kingdom
23 March
Matthew 22:1-14
The Invitation to the Banquet
30 March
Matthew 18:21-35
The Heart of Forgiveness
6 April
Matthew 22:34-46
The Great Commandment
13 April
Matthew 21:1-17
The King Enters His City
20 April
Matthew 28:1-10
The Risen King

Following on from the success of last year's 24-7 prayer event, we will be doing a similar event this year - this time for 6 days! As a church family, we will commit to praying for 24 hours a day, for 6 days from 9 to 15 March. Lots more details to follow, but please do save the date!

The Bishop of Kensington, Bishop Emma, will be coming to St Mary’s on 26 January to preside at our 10.30am Confirmation & Holy Communion service.

On Sunday, 5 January, we start ‘What is Church’?, a short sermon series for the New Year.
Here is the schedule of readings:

5 January
Matthew 16:13-20
The Rock

12 January
Ephesians 4:1-16
The People

19 January
1 Corinthians 11:17-34
Communion

Our friends at MTV Youth Hampton have just taken part in the Grim Challenge, running through four miles of thick, glutinous mud, waist-high water and bone-chilling conditions to raise money for MTV Youth.
This was all part of The Big Give Christmas Challenge: if MTV Youth can raise £2,500 then The Big Give will double it, making a whopping £5,000! The donation link is now live until 10 December, so if you would like to
sponsor the team, go to: https://donate.biggive.org/christmas-challenge-2024
and type MTV Youth Hampton in the search box.

As part of our preparations for Christmas we remember the journey of Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem. Our two crib figures travel from house to house spending the night in 24 different households in the parish before coming to rest in church on Christmas Eve.

Starting September 29 we have a new sermon series for autumn where we will be exploring The Letter of James in depth. Here is the schedule:

29 September
James 1:1-18
6 October
James 1:19-27
13 October
James 2:1-13
20 October
James 2:14-26
27 October
James 3:1-12
3 November
James 3:13-18
10 November
James 4:1-12
17 November
James 4:13-5:6
24 November
James 5:7-20

Starting on 11 September 2024, we will be running a 9 week Alpha course in church. The course will run on Wednesday evenings from 8-9.30pm, starting with supper at 7.15pm, and one Saturday morning.
The course is totally free and runs for 9 weeks. Supper is served from 7.15pm before each meeting.
Dates: 11, 18 September, 2, 9, 16, 23 October, 6, 13, 16, 20 November.

If you have any questions, or want us to contact you with more details, please contact our curate, Teri-Anne, HERE.
Or to sign up, visit hampton-church.org.uk/alpha