See the whole play later at Ashby Baptist Church at 7.00pm. This is a (free) ticket only event. Please contact info@ashbybaptist.co.uk or see Rachael if you would like a ticket.

April 3rd 2026
Good Friday – 11.00 at Ashby Baptist Church and after at St Helen’s and Holy Trinity.

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The week will look like this:

• On Monday to Friday, we’ll be gathering to pray every day at 10am at the church for 45 mins to an hour. When groups are in the building, this will be upstairs, otherwise it will be down in the coffee lounge.

• On Thursday evening at 7:30 we’ll gather together in the evening, starting at church, to go out and pray for our town.

• Starting on Friday at 9am, we invite you to take part in our 24 hours of prayer. Pray wherever you are, whenever you can. The 24 hours of prayer will end with our regular monthly prayer gathering on the morning of Saturday 1st November at 9:15.

We are thankful for all God is doing in our midst, and expectant and hopeful for all He will do in the future.

Blessings,

Mat

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During ‘Holy week’ (April 13th-20th this year), Christians both re-live and re-tell the stories of that momentous week, starting on Palm Sunday with Jesus entry into Jerusalem, going through and reflecting his confrontation in the temple (Monday), his teaching on the mount of olives (Tuesday), his last supper with the disciples (Thursday), and on ‘Good’ Friday we grieve at His trial, His crucifixion, and His death. On Easter Sunday itself we celebrate together the empty tomb, from which Jesus rose from the dead, and share the joy of the disciples recognising his appearances to them over the course of that first Easter Day. We recognise that this event echoes through history in the lives of all those who are called by Christ to follow Him, be is at private devotional at home, or meeting together with other Christians.

He is risen. 

He is risen indeed!

While each Christian tradition celebrates and recognises this week, marking it in different ways and in different places, we remain one in our witness to this event as definitive for what it means to follow Jesus. It is, rightly, a rollercoaster of emotions, and it is for good reason these stories are referred to as Christ’s ‘Passions’. Easter Sunday especially, for Christians, is a time of earnest celebration and joy. 

On Good Friday we meet at 3pm, the traditional time of Jesus’ death, and mourn together, reflecting on the pain He experienced in crucifixion, and the profound love that led him there. It is a service of remembrance, of stillness, and of sadness, as we place ourselves at the foot of the cross. 

On Easter Sunday, in deliberate contrast, we hold a full day of services.

At 7:30am we hold a not-quite-dawn service, and remember those early hours meetings in the Garden, when Jesus first revealed himself to the women, and the later breakfast on the beach.  This short service is held outdoors, weather permitting, on the cross immediately outside the church, and is followed by bacon sandwiches. (45mins)

At 10:30am we host our morning celebration and worship service. (90mins).

At 3pm we have our afternoon semi-formal communion, sharing the bread and wine together.  (60mins)

And at 6pm we have an ‘Emmaus Road’ service, ending our day the same way that first Easter day did, reflecting on Jesus revealing himself on the road to two weary disciples.(60mins)

There is certainly no expectation for people to come to every service, but the invitation is open to any and all, from all churches in the town and from none. We would love to have you join and celebrate with us. 

Easter Blessings,

Mat and the Congregation here at Ashby Baptist Church. 

The post Easter 2025 first appeared on Ashby Baptist Church.

As Christians we believe that Christ is the central figure of our faith, the one who is both fully man and yet also fully God. The ancient creeds attest and assert to this strange union of the divine and humanity, and while Christianity has many variations and differences across the world, in both theology and in practice, the answer to the question “Who is Jesus?” remains the central, non-negotiable doctrinal confession that unites all Christians.  

Yet we so often struggle to talk about this with other people, or to explain why this is so important. The world today has many distorted ideas about Jesus, questions that demand answers, and we need to be ready and prepared to give them. Too often, we sell ourselves short.

For the next three Tuesdays (18th March, 25th March & 1st April) we will be exploring these under the headings of the Humanity of Christ, the Divinity of Christ and the Reign of Christ. For the first two evenings we will be asking the question of why it matters that these things need to be held together, how we do that, and what we risk when we don’t. The third evening will look at the more practical question of how this relates to the life of the church today in both faith and in practice. 

The intent is that these evenings are designed to explore and open up these questions, and to get us used to thinking and talking about them with a view to our own evangelism and mission. This is not ‘pie-in-the-sky’ theology, but the real, practical, meat of Christianity.  

The evening is open to all those looking to explore and go deeper in their understanding. You do not to be a super-theologian to attend, or a Baptist, and the invite is open to any Christians from across the town. 

We look forward to seeing you there.

Mat Sheffield

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