FIRST IMPRESSIONS FROM MATT AND ABBY 

Matt and AbbyHello!  We’re new to St Mary’s, having moved to Sale in early December.  We moved from the rural village of Delph in Saddleworth, and from the small church in the village, so living in Sale and worshipping at St Mary’s is quite different!  There are 5 of us in the family – Matt and Abby, and our 3 kids: Eleanor, Isaac and Timothy.
 
Our first Sunday after we moved was the 15th December.  We walked down the road to St Mary’s for the 9.30am service, excited to see what our local church was like.  When we arrived we discovered this was the carol service.  The first thing that struck us was that the church felt vibrant, energetic and God-centred.  We especially loved the ribbon and snowflake decorations and the lighting, and the sung worship.
 
After the service finished, Helen Jarvis, who was sitting in front of us, turned around and said hello and after a couple of minutes had gone to find Steve to introduce us to him.  We met Steve, and then Outi, and then Julie Loynd, Chris Tower, and several other people.  Everyone was lovely and we felt very welcome indeed.
 
Abby and Eleanor then returned for the 7pm service, which was ‘in the round’, and quite different.  This was a completely new and different take on a nativity, in the round, and was really refreshing and challenging.
 
The following week we returned for the 9.30am service, to be greeted at the door by Outi and Steve with a big smile!  This time, the kids went into their groups and we went into church for the service.  The fact that our kids all felt comfortable to stay in their groups on their first time, is testimony itself to the welcome that they received in these groups, putting them at ease immediately.  After the service, they all said how much they’d enjoyed them.
 
We came back again on Christmas Eve for the Christingle Service.  To get 900+ people through these three services is amazing.  We loved the service. The quality and God-focus of everything done shone through, and it provided well for an all-age congregation.
 
So, thank you!  We have felt thoroughly welcomed and have now committed to coming to St Mary’s regularly, and are looking forward to getting stuck in as God leads us.  We look forward to getting to know everyone, but please forgive us if we forget your names for a while – it’s nothing personal, we’re just rubbish at remembering names!
 
Matt and Abby Brunton


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