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40 Phonebox Magazine | October 2024St Peter & St PaulMichaelmasAs the days draw in, and the cold returns, and life seems bleak, and living more diffi cult, festivals and holy days bring warmth, celebration, togetherness and a reminder of God%u2019s love. Now that the harvests are in and we%u2019ve thanked God for providing for the long winter ahead, we can enjoy our great autumnal festival, the day that reminds us that we are not alone but that God has sent his angels to guard us. Sunday the twenty ninth is Michaelmas Day! Michaelmas %u2013 the season when Michaelmas daisies are in bloom, children are back at school and university students have left for the start of the Michaelmas term.Whom we are celebrating at Michaelmas is of course Michael, the archangel. The day is also known as the Feast of Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, three of the archangels mentioned in the Bible %u2013 although strictly Raphael is mentioned only in the Apocrypha. We all know Gabriel because of the angelic appearances to Joseph and Mary when Christ was born. As the name suggests, Michaelmas is particularly associated with Michael. We fi rst hear of him in the Book of Daniel, when an angel, possibly Gabriel, tells Daniel that %u2018Michael, the great prince who protects your people will arise.%u2019 In the Book of Revelation we read, in chapter 7: 7-12, that Michael cast Satan out of Heaven. So Michael fi ghts evil and protects humans. It%u2019s comforting to know that God has deployed so powerful a personage to help us, especially during the winters of our lives. And good it is, too, to remind ourselves that the name Michael means: Who is like God? In other words, there is nothing and no-one like God! Transcendent and great, God is the creator of the universe and life, who in His human form, Jesus Christ, showed how much he loves us, by dying for us, and who then rose into eternal life, proving that death was not the end, and that after every winter comes a spring. Olney author, Beryl Lavender, St Peter & St Paul. Newport Pagnell (CTNP)RenovationsOver the summer, Lovat Hall %u2013 the home of Newport Pagnell Baptist Church %u2013 has been undergoing renovations.Thanks to the kindness of those within our church family, as well as the generous grants given by UK Government, FCC Communities Fund, Milton Keynes Council and MK Community Foundation, we are blessed to be seeing a new roof, new windows and new solar panels on the building. It%u2019s great news for the many community groups who use the building, as well as the church, and we can%u2019t wait to start using it again at the start of October.It%u2019s a strange thing as a church pastor to be involved in the renovation of a building. It%u2019s great to see it come to fruition, but it can also be a huge distraction from my primary role, which is not renovations of a building, but the renovation of people%u2019s hearts.Why am I interested in that?More than anything, because that is what God is interested in %u2013 our hearts.In 1 Samuel 16:7, we read of the process to fi nd a new king. As Samuel questions God%u2019s directing to identify the appropriate heir to the throne, he hears God say to him, %u201cThe Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.%u201dThe trouble is, we all know that deep down, our hearts can be messy places. We%u2019re often more selfi sh than we%u2019d want to be. We get angry about things we don%u2019t want to do.We fi nd it hard to forgive. And we%u2019re often drawn towards watching, reading, thinking and saying things we don%u2019t want to.The Bible calls this sin, the thing that gets in the way of us having a right relationship with God.But there%u2019s good news. God wants nothing more than to renovate your heart. Whoever we are, whatever we might have done, God sees who we are and loves us unconditionally. Nowhere is this better demonstrated than in Him sending Jesus. Sent because God not only sees who we are, and still loves us, but also sees who we could be, and invites us to exchange our me-shaped hearts into something better, something eternal. This is what it means to experience renovation of the heart.One fi nal thought. Back at Lovat Hall, we could have planned all the work on the roof, organised the building contractors, and even paid them. However, if we weren%u2019t prepared to actually let them into the building, they simply couldn%u2019t do the work.It%u2019s the same with our hearts. Following Jesus and receiving the freedom and joy that comes with it, is only possible because we choose to open our hearts to Him. Are you ready for renovation?Steve Wood, Senior PastorNewport Pagnell Baptist ChurchChurches TogetherLocal Reverend Hugh Reid married Assistant Curate Francesca Vernon in September. The wedding was held at the Church of St Peter and St Paul on Saturday 7th September with over 250 guests. Presiding over the nuptials was The Right Reverend Dr Steven Croft, Bishop of Oxford with local Reverend Josephine Spray a key part of the service. Everyone at Phonebox Magazine wishes the young newlyweds a long and happy marriage.Wedding Bells for Hugh and Francesca