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Swanage United Reformed Church

                                and financial giving


       This letter was sent out to church members recently, but there
         may be others who have a heart for SURC and would like to
                      contribute. If so, please read below.

       Dear Friends,

              As we journey into autumn after a grand summer here in
       Swanage, we look forward to all God has in store for us for our
       future. The past few years have had their ups and downs but we
       are loved by and serve a generous and gracious God and this is
       evident in the way people reflect that love and generosity as they
       live out their faith. We must look forward and not dwell on the past
       as Jesus says in Luke: 'No one who puts a hand to the plough and
       looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God’… and in
       Romans we read that ‘the hard times we go through now are
       nothing compared to the good things God will show us’.  Where
       God will lead us in the future is unknown, but we must pray and
       ascertain His will for us wherever that takes us.

              Although small in numbers we sustain a vibrant, active and
       loving church family and have much to offer, but we must not be
                                                              th
       complacent. We look forward to our Away Day on 5  October at
       Worth Village Hall where we will consider, amongst other things,
       how we can increase our church family. As we are all aware there
       has been worship on this site for over 300 years; dedicated
       worshippers - loyal people of faith. If we are to continue as a viable
       body of people, we need to both increase our numbers and our
       income.

       However, in the immediate future we need to increase our giving.
       We are beset with repairs to our building and this coupled with
       falling numbers and increased bills (energy, insurance etc) our
       expenditure far outweighs our income. As a result, we are
       constantly looking at ways of saving money and enhancing the
       building to conserve our energy.


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