Sunday 21st December

All our latest events, information and prayer needs

Our Vision: "We are a people being transformed by the unconditional love of God; seeking to bless our community, and longing for all to experience the hope we have in Jesus."

Saturday 20th December

9am - Men’s Breakfast

Sunday 21st December

The Fourth Sunday of Advent

9am - Holy Communion– Advent 4 (Matthew 1:1,18-25) – Ben Williams

10.05am - Prayer Meeting – in Room 4 for approx. 20 minutes

10.30am - Morning Worship – As above

*The 10.30am service will be livestreamed via the Christ Church Bedford YouTube channel*

7pm - Carols by Candlelight – David Thomas

*This service will be livestreamed via the Christ Church Bedford YouTube channel*

Services in the coming week

Wednesday 24th December - Christmas Eve

10am - Carols in the Warm with Holy Communion – Martin Harris - followed by refreshments

4pm - Carols on the Lawn - David Thomas - followed by refreshments

11.15pm - Christmas Eve Midnight Communion - Ben Williams

Thursday 25th December - Christmas Day

10am - Christmas Day Communion Service - David Thomas

(This service will be livestreamed)

Sunday 28th December

9am - Morning Worship – First Sunday of Christmas (Matthew 2:13-23) – Ben Williams

10.05am - Prayer Meeting – in Room 4 for approx. 20 minutes

10.30am - Holy Communion – As above

[No Evening Service today]

Church Family News

Our giving at Christmas this year is going to: HopeWorks (formerly King’s Arms Project) Bedford Winter Night Shelter. All giving in person, cash or via the card reader from 21st-28th December inclusive will be allocated to the project and you can also give via bank transfer (Account name: Christ Church PCC Bedford; Sort code: 40-52-40; Account No: 00020562 Reference: Christmas) or online via the giving page on our website. More details about this work can be found here

Please note: -

1. On Christmas Day our service is at 10am

2. On 28th December we will have services at 9am and 10.30am.

3. The Church Office is closed between Christmas & New Year, re-opening on 5th Jan.

Car parking: Thanks to Castle Newnham School, the south site school playground is open for car parking Sunday mornings (9.30am to 1pm). In addition, we have arranged for the school playground to be available for parking for Carols by Candlelight from 6pm and on Christmas Day from 9.15am (Don’t forget the Christmas Day service is at 10am). To bless our neighbours, please use this or the church car park (Dudley Street) rather than parking on the narrow side streets and please always park with due care and consideration for others, not on the yellow lines.

Thoughts from the Vicar

Over the coming days, in so many different ways, we will join with millions of people throughout the world, celebrating the gift that is the birth of Jesus. God with us, Emmanuel. A child is an amazing gift, this child is the most amazing gift.

I wonder what it might be like if we spent a few moments meditating upon this amazing gift. It is so easy to get wrapped up in the hustle and bustle of the season that we forget to pay attention to the reason. It's all about Jesus, or at least, that's what we say.

My plan, is to find five minutes every day over the coming week, to meditate (think about, get lost in wonder!) over a different aspect of Jesus. From the wonder of his birth, to the way he lived his life, to the miracles which he performed, his death and resurrection. Perhaps you might join me and who knows what might happen!

For your prayers this week

The Fourth Sunday of Advent: Eternal God as Mary waited for the birth of your Son, so we wait for his coming in glory; bring us through the birth pangs of this present age to see, with her, our great salvation in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

Prayer for Christmas Eve: Almighty God, as we prepare with joy to celebrate the gift of the Christ-child, embrace the earth with your glory and be for us a living hope in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

Prayer for Christmas Day: Lord Jesus Christ, your birth at Bethlehem draws us to kneel in wonder at heaven touching earth: accept our heartfelt praise as we worship you, our Saviour and our eternal God. Amen

Please pray for:

Jewish Communities around the world, following the terrorist attack in Bondi Beach.
Hope Works Night Shelter.
Those will find Christmas to be a time of loneliness and pain.
The persecuted church.

Children's Ministry and Events

THIS SUNDAY: 21st December

FOR ADVENT:

Red and green Christmas colouring sheet

For more information about our regular groups please look on our website here or contact Ruth using: children@ccbedford.org or 07554 537757

Youth Ministry and Events

Youth Blog

We have started a youth blog! Once a month we will give you an insight into our youth ministry. You will be able to read what we are getting up to and the fun we're having. So far we have blogged about our youth weekend away and what our youth alpha looks like in our Friday Nights Small Groups.

Find all our blogs on the church website in the 'youth ministry' section in 'connect' or follow this link: https://ccbedford.org/Groups/452353/Youth_Blog.aspx

Happy Reading! :)

Satellites 2026: We have announced that, next summer in 2026, we are taking our young people to a youth festival, satellites, down at the Bath & West showground in Somerset. This is an amazing opportunity for them to experience faith alongside so many other young people their age. If you wish your young person to come along, please book as soon as possible to access the standard ticket that they offer (price goes up on 27th February). For any more information about travel or prices, please feel free to contact the youth team: email either Hannah Applegarth or Sorcha Brown.

For more information about our regular groups please look on our website here or contact Hannah using: youth@ccbedford.org or 07384 295757

What is happening at Christ Church and beyond

Vicar's Discretionary Fund (VDF): For the last few years Christ Church has been providing Christmas hampers to vulnerable families from Castle Newnham school via the VDF. The hampers include food for a Christmas dinner as well as a few goodies with the help of Bedford Foodbank. This obviously comes at a financial cost (estimated £250-300 this year) and so we wondered if any members of the congregation would be able to donate financially to support this. If so, you can donate via bank transfer with "VDF" as a reference or bring in cash donations to the office in an envelope labelled "Christmas hampers/VDF". Any extra donations will be used to help those in need in 2026. Thank you!

Theatre and Cinema Group: I just wanted to share that I have set up a very unofficial WhatsApp group for going to the theatre and cinema. Local plays and films are put on the group chat and you just reply if interested. So if you would like to be added to the group please see me after a church service or via Church Suite. If you are not on WhatsApp you can be kept informed via telephone or email. Collette Denley-Currie

Church Walk: Sunday 21st December. Meet at Christ Church at 2.30pm for a local walk followed by refreshments by the fire, at 56 Howbury Street.

Christmas Eve: Please join us on Christmas Eve at 10am for a service of Holy Communion with carols and/or 4pm outside church for a short service of Carols and Readings, followed by refreshments in the halls and/or our Midnight Communion Service at 11.15pm.

Christmas Day: At 10am we are holding a Christmas Day Holy Communion service for everyone.

The King of Kings (PG): Bedford's Vue cinema Riverside Square, MK40 1AS is showing this film daily at 10am from Boxing Day until New Year's Day. Tickets are from just £2.49 when booked online (£1 extra at box office) The trailer can be seen here and a helpful review can be found here.

Come Together: Saturday 3rd January at 10.30am. Joint event for all, including bacon butties and other refreshments: youth and youth leaders share their stories.

Ladies Bible Study: Ladies, if you have ever felt you would like to explore the Bible more deeply, you are welcome to join our Ladies Bible Study. We meet weekly during term time on Monday mornings 8:45am-10am in Room 6, Christ Church. Led by members of the group, with the help of Bible commentaries, we study books of God’s Word in depth together. New members are always welcome.

Come to our social at 9.00am January 5th 2026 for hot drinks, biscuits and cake. Or join us to recommence our study of Ezra at 8.45am January 12th. Both meetings will be in Room 6 at Christ Church. For more information, contact Rachel Bennett, email rach_bennett@icloud.com

Bedford Foodbank Shopping List: The most needed items at the moment are: tinned potatoes/veg/fruit/custard, jars of coffee, cup a soup, long-life fruit juice bars of chocolate, biscuits, laundry tablets & deodorant. Thank you for your donations.

The last Foodbank distribution at Christ Church in 2025 is on Tuesday 23rd December.

Hello and welcome to our church. If you are a new visitor, we have a page for you to get to know us and learn more about planning a visit.
Click here to see more.

Visitors click here

Planning your Visit

A Warm Hello

The following information is specifically for those planning a visit, so that you know, beforehand, what to expect on a Sunday morning. When you arrive, you should be greeted by someone on our Welcome Team.

Our 9:00am service is traditional in style and lasts about 45 minutes.

Our main Sunday family service starts at 10:30am and runs for about 75 minutes, everyone gathers together at the beginning of the service. After a short time of worship together, we divide into different teaching and worship groups as children up to school year 11 leave.

At our all-age services (60 minutes), everyone stays together for the whole service. Our weekly notice-sheet gives details of all important events happening in the near future and some guidance on topics for prayer.

Tea, coffee and biscuits are served after the service where there is plenty of time to meet new people and ask more questions. We are proud to be a certified Fair Trade Church.

Our 7:00pm Sunday evening service runs for about 75 minutes and adopts a more contemporary style with a focus on deeper worship and teaching.

What happens to the kids at church?

We have a fantastic programme for the kids at the Church on Sunday mornings during our 10.30am service:

Imagine - Our weekly group for babies to 3 year olds, parents are welcome to stay with their child, if they like. They meet in the main hall
Wonder - Our weekly group for those in school years R-3. They meet in Rooms 2-3
Marvel - Our weekly group for those in school years 4-6. They meet in Room 5 (upstairs)
Youth - Our weekly group for those in school years 7-13. They meet in Room 7 (upstairs). Please register at the desk in the hub

The children and youth stay with their parents at the start of the service as we worship together for the first part of the morning. Someone will announce when the children and youth should go to their groups. You will need to go with your children and register them, the first time they attend.

For more information about what is currently happening in the children's work please visit the Children's Ministry page and for the youth work please visit the Youth Ministry page.

What about accessibility?

There are parking spaces next to the church halls but for the 10:30am service a larger car park is available at Castle Newman School (south site) just a few yards along Goldington Road. We have step free access from both Denmark street and Dudley street and there is space for buggies and wheelchairs in the Hub area of the new halls. There are baby changing and accessible toilet facilities and a lift to the first floor. Our sound system incorporates a hearing loop.

Getting Connected

Small Groups

While Sundays are a great way to meet new people, it is often in smaller gatherings that you can really get to know someone. Being part of one of our small groups allows you to make new friends, share together and support each other. We have a variety of groups that meet throughout the week, some afternoons and some evenings. Check out Small Groups and see if there’s one that you could join, or we can put you in touch with a small group leader who will be more than happy to invite you along to their group.

Serving and Volunteering

If you want to get involved in the life of the church and help us make Sundays run smoothly, you can sign up to serve on a team.

Other Ministries

We also run the following ministries:

Men's Ministry
Women's Ministry
Students' Ministry
Seniors' Ministry
Foodbank (in partnership with Bedford Foodbank)