Welcome to Wokingham Methodist Church

We are now part of the Blackwater Valley Methodist Circuit, formed by the merger of our previous circuit, the Berkshire Surrey Borders Circuit, with the circuit to the south of us, the Hants-Surrey Border Circuit, effective from 1 September 2025.

Our previous minister, Revd Catherine Bowstead, has retired.  We welcome her replacement Rev Wes Hampton, from 1 September 2025.

Starting on Sunday 21^st September, evening service (with Holy Communion) will resume on the third Sunday of each month at the new time of 6.15 pm (new time chosen so you can park in the Rose Street car park without having to pay both an afternoon fee and an evening fee).

We now aim to open Little Fishes every Thursday throughout the year when Café Mosaic is open - including school holidays, but not Christmas/New Year.

Future worship and recorded services are on this page.

10.30am Holy Communion - Rev Wes Hampton

This was our Easter Cross decorated on Easter Day 5 April 2026

from Malcolm Ray-Smith

Dear friends

Seed time and harvest shall not cease - Genesis 6:22

Every year a task I perform is to sort out my stock of seeds to check which are likely to be fertile and reject any that are past their “use by” date. Then I make a list of items I wish to grow so that I can buy seeds or plants to suit my plans.

Seeds come in a great variety of shapes and sizes but they each have potential to produce plants to feed jus or to provide flowers to please us by their scent and beauty. I still marvel that so much potential is hidden in something that appears lifeless until it is planted in conditions that meet its needs. We have to rely on the skill of nursery men in packing seeds that come true to their description on each packet.

Warmth and moisture are important to encourage the seed to form roots and shoots, but the baby plants may need protection from frosts and food to promote development so that the full potential of each plant is encouraged. Gardening uses skills and perseverance to bring crops to maturity. The patience and dedication that the gardener applies to his plot brings rewards in fresh foods to harvest and the satisfaction that colourful gardens provide and flowers and plants to display indoors.

Judging how many plants of each variety is helpful in avoiding disappointments but can also be affected by the impact of weather or the onset of attacks by insects and other visitors.  It is also a matter of pleasing those who cook our food and wish to avoid waste.

Some trees and shrubs take years to grow to their full potential and some can have very precise needs for shelter and or climate. Selecting specimens that are appropriate to our plot is sometimes essential for success.

The bible reminds us that the marvellous variety of plant life is an important part of God’s plan to meet our needs, because he promises that seed time and harvest will not cease.

Malcolm Ray-Smith

from Rev Wes Hampton

Dear Friends,

Has the moon got nearer to us?  Physically, we can say that it has, because this morning the moon is at its perigee, the closest point in this lunar month to Earth (a mere 224,707 miles away).  More significantly, the Artemis II mission has reignited interest in space exploration.  The apparent success of Artemis II has emboldened NASA in its ambition to send humans to walk on the moon again as their Artemis IV mission within the next two years, and then again from Artemis V later in 2028.

By speaking and planning in this way, we draw the moon closer in our collective consciousness.  We recognize, however, that this is a change only in our perception, caused by the media coverage of one giant scientific experiment.  For those who are or have been part of the Artemis project, planning for the recent lunar flyby has been going on for years, and the nine days of its flight are a small tip on an enormous iceberg.  The reality of what has happened is far greater than most of us will ever understand.  Again, our perception and the empirical reality are very different.

The journey into space, which has captivated so many, has fallen around Easter, which for Christians is the greatest event, changing both the reality of life before God, and our perception of it.  We proclaim that Christ is risen, knowing that the empty tomb is the iceberg’s tip.  The resurrection, with its promise of new life, and assurance that death does not have the last word, may be unseen below the water for many people.  For us, however, it is a reality that changes our perceptions and encourages us to live with different, ambitious expectations.  Once again Easter gives us the courage “to boldly go” on our mission with God.

Wes

Some previous Pastoral Letters are available here.