Message from our Minister, Sean Fountain
It is a great pleasure to be able welcome you to our Church website.
If you are visiting Clacton, why
not come and join us at Pier Avenue
Baptist Church, you are guaranteed a warm welcome.
Change the Setting
Since Paula’s illness I have
had to learn some new skills. One involves a terrifying looking silver
machine which sits under the work top near the sink in the kitchen. My
first attempts at this machine, were not successful. I placed some
clothes in it and came back a while later to discover they had changed
colour!
Like many households, we
always seem to ‘have a load ‘in the washing machine. My biggest
confusion came because of the numerous options that appear for wool,
synthetics, colours, fast colours, non fast colours, boil and everything
in between. If I could only find the right button, there may even be a
setting that picks the dirty washing off the floor for you!
Being male, I decided life
would be easier if I stuck to just one setting. I don’t care what goes
in the machine. It all gets done on the one setting. Woe betide anyone
who changes my setting!
When difficult times come in
life we all tend to stick on a very human setting of fear and anxiety.
The good news is that we can change that setting to "peace" by trusting
in God.
We can trust God to be with
us. In His word He promises to never leave us or forsake us
(Joshua 1 vs. 5) We can trust Him to be with us every step of the way.
We can trust that God will
lead us in His pathways (Psalm 16 vs. 11). What may look impossible to
us can, in God’s hands, become a new opportunity.
We can trust God to give us
the strength we need (Isaiah 40 vs. 31). When we are struggling with
pressure and problems, life can feel exhausting. However, God gives
strength to those who trust Him.
If your life setting needs
to change, then why not begin today by asking God to step into your
situation… and if you’ll excuse me, my mixed load of red and whites is
about ready to come out!
God bless,
Sean
Our Mission Statement
 Our fellowship here in Clacton has a Mission Statement,
which summarizes what we stand for. It says that... Our Purpose
Is:
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To celebrate God's presence
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To communicate God's Word
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To educate God's people
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To demonstrate God's love
We have broken this down to explain it. Our
purpose is:
to celebrate God’s presence.
We do this whenever we meet for worship – mainly on Sundays at 10:30am &
6:00pm – but also at other times when we praise and worship God together.
It says we are here to communicate
God’s Word. We strongly believe in mission – both locally and
internationally, and we support all kinds of mission work, involving
practical caring as well as evangelism.
It says we aim to educate God’s
people. This we do through various youth and children's’
activities, through Bible study and House groups, and through our Sunday
teaching programme.
And it says we exist to
demonstrate God’s love. We truly want our Church to be a family, in
which Christian love is shared between every member, and through which
God’s love is shown to the local community and the world.
These are the principles we stand for, and we welcome
all who love the Lord Jesus Christ, and who share these aims, to join us
in serving God in Clacton.
As Baptists, we are part of the universal Church of
Jesus Christ – but we have our own distinctive practices too. Our name
comes from our belief that baptism is for 'believers' not babies. We
baptise those who profess a personal faith in Christ, and we do this by
'immersion' in water – not sprinkling. We also believe that each local
Church (fellowship) is independent, and we do not have bishops or a 'national' Church.
The committed members of each local Church have full responsibility to
support and finance its work.
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