Newsletter, January 2016

Greetings to you all at the beginning of a new year 2016 and an update of news from OBM.

(This newsletter can also be downloaded as a PDF file for printing.) 

Briefly looking back, the Convocation last November at St Columba’s House in Woking provided an opportunity to meet up with folk from different parts of the country. For the sixteen folk who attended it was a refreshing time, neither a Retreat or a Conference, but space to be with each other around a theme of ‘Words and Pictures’. There was a sense of being at ease with one another and living something of what OBM makes possible. Next year’s Convocation will be at St Columba’s House, Woking again, the dates are 16-17 November 2016, so please make a note of the dates in your diary if you would like to attend – more details later. The annual Convocation is an important moment in the life of OBM. We would like to encourage as many members as possible to attend – a small bursary fund is available to anyone for whom the cost of attending or travel might pose a problem.

The next event in the OBM calendar is the Community Day which is being held at Christ Church, Stantonbury, Milton Keynes on the 14th March 2016. Coffee and tea will be provided but please bring a packed lunch. The Community Day is an opportunity through listening to the OBM story, saying the Offices together, listing to one another in a small group setting, to experience something of what OBM seeks to offer and make possible. The Day is advertised on the website, open to all and geared particularly to those who want to see if OBM is for them.

The website continues to be the place to access OBM resources. There are now a range of Offices available to download, both full and shorter versions reflecting the Christian year, all written by OBM members. The Offices are available to be used in different settings whilst remaining central to the life of OBM members, both for personal use and use in Cell Groups. also on the website is the Dream document, central to who OBM is and seeks to be, as well as questions to ask of ourselves in ministry.

There are currently nine Cell Groups meeting around the country. Apart from the groups that were established when OBM formed, the pattern of new groups forming seems to be a more informal connecting with Ministers who feel OBM might be for them and would like to explore establishing a local Cell. We still have a small number of Ministers who have expressed interest in joining a Cell and who are looking for someone in their area with whom to meet. It is our hope and prayer that as we move through 2016 new Cells will begin to form.

A final note, if you no longer wish to be on the OBM mailing list, please let me know and conversely if you know of folk who would like to be included in OBM mailings, please also let me know.

Grace and peace,

Brian