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Star on our front cover! #whyilovechurch We love church! We think the Church is good news for our friends, our communities and our nation. We think Jesus is passionate about the Church. And we think we need to celebrate it. Up and down the country in villages, towns and cities, vibrant churches are bringing hope and life and good things to their communities. They are feeding the hungry, counselling the bereaved, sharing the gospel, giving advice to those in dire need of help with their finances. They are also the places where Christians gather to do life together, to mark births, deaths and marriages – to learn about the God we serve and what He has called us to be and to do. The Evangelical Alliance is so proud to have an amazing group of individuals, churches and organisations who are genuinely being salt and light where they are. We think we should celebrate all of this. Here’s where you come in. Are you a budding photographer? Are you able to capture some of the aspects of church
In February couples from across the UK will reaffirm their marriage vows. As part of the BIG Promise on 8 February 2014, churches are being asked to take part in the centre piece of Marriage Week. It’s an opportunity for married couples, both in the congregation and wider community, to recall the promises they made to one another. No matter how long you’ve been married, reaffirming your vows is a great way to witness to the importance of marriage. IDEA MAGAZINE / 6
life in all its vibrancy and poignancy in a single snapshot? Would you like to see your work featured in idea magazine – one of the country’s best-loved Christian magazines? We are on the lookout for an amazing image to feature on the front cover of our March/April edition church special in which we’ll be celebrating our member churches. As well as the front cover being up for grabs, we’ll also be featuring a range of different images you have taken throughout the magazine. How to enter: • Send your high-res (5 MB or less) images of church life with the subject line: ‘Why I love church competition’ to idea@eauk.org • Tweet @EAUKnews or @idea_mag with your image and the hashtag: #whyilovechurch
The BIG Promise also aims to break the world record for the number of couples reaffirming their vows simultaneously; it’s currently 1,087. It can be as part of a service, a dinner, a party, the beginning of a marriage course, as long as the vows are reaffirmed at 5.15pm. To register your interest and find out more go to the website. bigpromise.org.uk
• Deadline: Friday, 10 January Entering the competition means you are giving consent for your images to be used by the Alliance across its platforms. This competition is open to those who attend member churches of the Evangelical Alliance. Is your church not a member? Whyever not? Find out more about joining the Evangelical Alliance: eauk.org/joinus
ALLIANCE HELPS AWARD £20K IN STUDENT BURSARIES Since 1994 the Alliance has administered a bursary scheme on behalf of the Jerusalem Trust. Each year the principals of Bible colleges which are either Alliance members or members of the Association of Bible College Principals are invited to submit applications on behalf of students with special financial needs. The students must be in training for lay pastoral ministry in the UK and Ireland. This includes courses with a focus on lay pastoral ministry, evangelism, youth work, counselling or music and worship under the auspices of a local church or charity. For the academic year 2013-14 15 grants totalling £20,000 were awarded to students representing nine different colleges. When the students have completed their studies for the year, the college principals submit a report on how the bursary has benefited them. Several students would not have been able to complete their studies without the extra funding. The Jerusalem Trust is encouraged by the number of people this initiative has prepared for lay ministry.