Hi,
Hope this finds you well.
It's a case of 'Life Goes On' in the magazine this week.
From the regular activities of church life to the special occasions of weddings we press on. But how do we press on? With thankfulness? It's difficult to fight against the growing sense of grumbling about restrictions we are all facing. I'm about to start Peter Maiden's book "
Radical Gratitude - Recalibrating your heart in an age of entitlement''. It's a good time to read a book like this with its call to live a counter cultural life. The Home Groups continue these days (of course I'm trying not to moan about the fact that it's another zoom meeting) looking at the life of Elijah - he was someone who was facing plenty of challenges too and had to keep his eye on what the Lord was saying, not what the culture around him was doing. If you are not in a group and would like to be please drop Sue a note.
It's great to have an update from Scott and Anita and we keep them in our prayers, as we do Rev George Johnston who joins us again this Sunday morning.
In fact there are two photos with Scott in them this week - Not for reproduction I'm afraid as they're copyrighted due to the stringent image rights he imposes!!
Enjoy the mag!
Magazine No.30 (31st October)
Booking for November
Booking a place for church is simple - use the link below. It just take a couple of minutes to select each Sunday in November. You might not get a place for every date you ask for so best to just choose them all and wait to see what is possible.
We will make sure everyone gets a chance to get along at some point if it's over subscribed.
You can book your space and you will be advised later if you have been successful.
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/maxwell-mearns-castle-church-sunday-morning-worship-tickets-117847381691
From the Manse
Dear Congregation,
The treatment has gone well so far. The environment and staff at the Beatson in South Lanarkshire have been truly wonderful. I doubt I could have a more pleasant experience given the nature of my visits. I thank the Lord for this.
I am now into the last quarter of my 20 daily doses of radio therapy.
I am told that it is during this last phase that the accumulation of daily therapies has greatest impact. Apparently, the radiation even continues working on your body for a number of days after treatment has ceased.
I want to thank you for the cards, email, calls and for the gifts you have sent or brought round. I (and Anita) have been hugely upheld by the Lord through you. Thank you for your prayers.
Please do pray that somehow my health situation will be for the good of the Gospel of our wonderful Saviour Jesus and the life of Maxwell Mearns Castle Church.
With warmest regards and much fondness,
In Christ
Scott
Scott and Anita taking the opportunity, while at home, to sing aloud on a Sunday morning.
SU Scotland
Lynne Hamilton has been in post as the regional worker for SU in East Renfrewshire for over a year now. If you would like to be involved in praying for the continued work of SU in East Ren then please join the prayer meeting next Tuesday. (3rd November). Login details available from Pauline or Lynne.
Scott's Leave Of Absence
Scott is on leave of absence until 16th November.
In his absence Stuart Crawford and Joe Kavanagh have kindly agreed to assist with funerals should this be necessary. If you have need to arrange a funeral please contact directly;
Rev Stuart Crawford 19th -31st Oct (Tel. 0141 239 2140 or 07912534280)
Rev Joe Kavanagh 1st – 15th Nov (Tel. 0141 384 2218 or 07508047388)
Weddings!
It’s been a strange season for weddings …
Eleanor Carvel writes : Covid has changed our lives so much in the past months. All social activities including weddings were dramatically curtailed. David and Aileen had planned a lovely summer wedding in June in St Andrews but early on in Lockdown realised this was not going to be possible. Not to worry, by October this will all be over! Not so, as we have all learned. They decided to have a very quiet ceremony on 24th October and restrictions still permitted this. It was lovely to be there, the past put behind them and finding happiness together. Perhaps we have learned our true priorities in this difficult time. A marriage is not just a big glitzy wedding but two people coming together and being united in love.
Sue writes...Charles and I were invited to a family wedding this past week … in Kent and Glasgow simultaneously! It was a strange feeling – decided we should make a proper job of it and we actually dressed up for our kitchen! Charles went the whole hog and got cold legs under his kilt …. I found a hat! We have established from the family that the overriding thing about this small intimate wedding with only 15 guests allowed, was that it is all about the love. Parents and grandparents went to the church and 50 of us from 14 countries around the world celebrated in our offices, and kitchens and sitting rooms. We found that we could still enjoy the dress, the message and the joy and that our prayers for them were no less valuable for not being in the building. And on the up side, we saved 2 air tickets!
Jack Geddes reporting on the wedding of David Geddes and Hannah Dingwall: Only 20 people were allowed in the Eglinton Arms Hotel, including the photographer. Thank goodness the minister doesn't count too! Those present wore masks throughout the ceremony and we had dozens on Zoom watching the proceedings. Some wore hats, shirts and ties, smart jackets, others more casually dressed and yet more with their cameras turned off eating lunch or lounging in their pajamas! What a strange day; what a wonderful day; what an intimate day.
John Martindale led proceedings in his usual positive and faithful way and there were some tears in eyes as Hannah made her way to meet David to take their vows. A stunning bride and a handsome groom, but I would say that wouldn't I?!
After the ceremony, outside for official photographs. No rain and even some sunshine, not bad considering the recent weather. We can't wait to see the official pictures taken in the Orry with the trees of so many colours. Then it was back in for speeches and cake cutting. Father of the bride, bridegroom, best man and sister of the bride all spoke beautifully. Love and respect to the fore, a great credit to the young couple. Speeches before dinner, why didn't we think of that 30 years ago? A lovely dinner followed as chatter flowed between the tables of two. No singing or dancing allowed but the sister of the bride had been busy planning entertainment including a video version of 'Mr & Mrs' recorded with David and Hannah. That produced a lot of laughter and comment, as you can imagine. Hot rolls came out later in the evening as we continued the chat before last orders from the bar at 9:30pm. For those not staying overnight it was out the door at 10pm and home to take off the glad rags.
The new Mr and Mrs Geddes wanted as many friends and family as possible to attend and they hope all 150 that would have been there in normal times can come together next October at the same venue. Who knows what the coming year will bring but their wedding day will stand out as something very special and positive in these Covid-19 times, a day none of us will forget.
Sarah Kir...Whyte writes...
Calum and I got married on the 15th of August, obviously it wasn’t the day we had imagined it would be but it ended up being absolutely perfect! It was so special being able to have such an intimate and intense day surrounded by those we love the most. The ceremony itself was actually the most special as Calum and I were able to be so present in the moment with everything we were experiencing without worrying about hundreds of eyes on our back! We were able to really take in every moment of the day and properly celebrate the event more so than we might have done at a regular wedding where we would have been rushed off our feet. We were able to actually have genuine conversations with our guests without feeling the pressure to move on and greet another! It honestly was an incredible day and surprised us at how huge and special it was! We loved it and are so thankful that God blessed us with something that we would never have chosen for ourselves. Despite all the disappointment God was so good to us and provided us with something way greater than our expectations!
Statement About Role of Church Officer
The Congregational Board is saddened to announce that it has concluded that the Church cannot continue employing a Church Officer.
As a result of the imminent withdrawal of the Job Retention Scheme, next year’s forecast financial position and changing needs of the church which can be met in a more cost-effective way, the Board has taken the difficult decision to discontinue the role of Church Officer. Consequently, Stewart Falconer’s employment is coming to an end as at 31 October 2020, albeit he has been given dispensation to remain in the church-owned flat until 31 March 2021 at the latest.
The Board asks for the congregation’s prayer for Stewart, Claire and the boys as they make arrangements for a new job for Stewart and new accommodation.
A Harvest of Hizkidz
Could that be the name for a collective of Hizkidz?! Last week as part of our Harvest service our Hizkidz were thinking of how to be generous. We thought some more about the story of the poor widow. Each family was given a packet of love hearts and pumpkin chocolates and challenged to use them in ways to be a light to others and be generous in a week which, for our children and community, is full of Hallowe'en activities. One family made biscuits decorated with love hearts to share with a family who are having to isolate, another are making cupcakes to share and gift bags for friends.
Each of our Hizkidz was also given a jigsaw piece to reflect the God's story video and encouraged to write on it ways that they can be generous and be a part of the big picture of God's story. They also made thankfulness pumpkins -writing on each strip of paper something they are thankful for and acrostic harvest prayers!
Pauline Forster
Off Grid After School
The Kirkhill group is up and running in the Maxwell Mearns woodland. These primary school children attend either Kirkhill or St Claire's.
The kids have spent the first school term creating and developing their play space on site. The kids and staff have all settled in really well and have established great friendships already! We are looking forward to finding out what fun we can have as the dark nights creep in.
Quotable
To realize the heart of our problem is also to realize the heart of God’s solution. But it’s not what we might first imagine. We might suppose that our Lord, seeing us struggle with false worship and its manifold fruits in our life, pumps strength into our hearts so we fight free of our attachment to lies. Or that he’s like a life coach who teaches us how to rid ourselves of hurtful practices so we can begin to live to his glory. The fatal flaw? Both these views of how God works are only slight amendments of the fiction that we’re capable of redeeming our lives, no matter how bad things become.
All that’s different is we’ve added “with God’s help.” With God’s help, we will overcome our hearts. With God’s help, we will conquer our obstacles. With God’s help, we will redeem any tragedy our lives become.
God, however, is not here to help us. He is not our assistant, our coach, or our motivator. He is here to do for us what we cannot, and will not, do for ourselves. Part of how he does this is by launching a full-scale assault against the temple of our hearts. The exact form of this attack varies from person to person. But rest assured of one thing: it will hurt. God’s destruction of our false deities will leave us bitter, likely bewildered, and always ready to fight God to get our god(s) back. This is no playground spat between two rivals. This is the Lord of heaven and earth warring with the deeply entrenched evil within us.
From 'Night Driving - notes from a prodigal soul' by Chad Bird
Christmas Cards
If you are buying Christmas cards you might want to consider supporting the Lodging House Mission. order form
The Lodging House Mission has over 100 years experience in helping disadvantaged people get their lives back on the right track.
They are a Christian organisation with a mission to provide care and support to those in need regardless of religion, race, ethnicity or gender. With more and more men and women becoming homeless due to the current economic downturn, they have a dedicated team of Support Workers and Volunteers who work together towards one common goal - making a positive difference in people's lives.
The Kirk Session has been encouraging us to build into our lives a desire to share the Gospel in a simple way with friends and family. To this end, we are being encouraged to use “The Word One To One” material.
Let’s all try and find one person to open John’s Gospel with. Remember to share online by zoom or by some other platform, you can download the exact same booklet. Simply go to our website; www.maxwellmearns.org and press the “Church Life” tab > then press the “Reaching Out” tab and scroll to the bottom of the page. You see all 11 booklets listed and available for download.
Speak to Margo McN if you would like to see a copy of a booklet.
Did you know Maxwell has a You Tube channel.
Please subscribe to our Youtube channel as we will soon be moving more content onto that platform.
It's totally free, and there is no annoying follow up (except here on the magazine if we don't get enough subscribers.)
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