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HAPPY SECOND BIRTHDAY MS&F!

Sunday 18th February marked the second anniversary of the union between Melville South and Inchbrayock Churches to form the new church family of Montrose South & Ferryden. It is some 15 months since my induction as the first minister of the charge so I have a lways v iewed MS&F as one church, one congregation and one church family. The u n i o n w a s f i r m l y e s t a b l i s h e d w h e n I arrived, thanks largely to the hard work of the interim moderator Alastair Morrice and the devoted work of the folk who formed the new Kirk S e s s i o n a n d Congregational Board.

We have come a long way in those two years a n d t h e r e i s a l o t happening in and around t h e c h u r c h f a m i l y . Sunday mornings are welcoming and there is a real sense of belonging a m o n g s t t h o s e w h o gather for worship. We have explored some new music with the Praise Band but also have a good smattering of more familiar hymns from the organ. There is a sense of involvement with different people participating in our worship. The nativity service has taken a participative edge in the last two years, the youth of 10:10 have led a lively engaging service and the Eldership are about to take their turn.

It is not just about Sunday worship though. Prayer Meeting, Craft n’ Cafe and 10:10 continue to thrive. Alongside those regular meetings, new events have sprung up. Two years ago, at a congregational meeting on a Saturday morning folk expressed the desire for small groups for Bible study, prayer & fellowship, for social events and for us to do more to help those in our parish who suffer from addictions, loneliness & mental health issues.

So GROW GROUPS were started to meet the need for small group study. They started by reading through Mark’s Gospel, meeting weekly to discuss what they discovered. They went on to engage in “The Prayer Course” exploring types of prayer and the value of prayer and currently they are discussing the scripture reading from the previous Sunday. That all might sound a little intense but the Grow groups are far from that. They are friendly and welcoming. There is time for coffee and a chat, there is freedom to say what you think and to share what you have discovered, and there is freedom simply to sit quietly and listen. Anyone can go to a Grow group and get to know a few folk a little better - might they be where you can find your place in the church family?

The SUMMER HOLIDAY CLUB was very well attended last year, as always, and we have made some very good connections with young Ferryden families. The celebration Sunday which followed, with accompanying sausage sizzle, was great fun. On the

back of that success a few folk dipped their toes in the water and ran a couple of social nights for young families. These have now morphed into “Family Fun Fridays” and include such things as film nights, game nights and a Scots night. They are attracting a good mix of people and it great to see folk just having fun together.

We also started PHILOS, a friendship cafe running alongside Foodbank on a Wednesday afternoon. We were surprised at just how quickly this became a regular in some folk’s diaries. There is tea, coffee & cake along with the opportunity to sit and chat, to play snooker or to

throw a few darts. There have even been pamper sessions with a nail bar, occasional music sessions and a cooking demonstration of pancake making. It is a lifeline for some folk who just need that safe space in which to chat. It is an open house so anybody can come along and enjoy a coffee and a natter.

The ALPHA Course has also been running from January and as I write, is about half way through. “Alpha” is the first letter of the Greek alphabet so the Alpha Course is an exploration of the basics of Christianity. It aims to

lead folk to an understanding of the fundamentals of faith and into an experience of the love of God. It is a great starter course for those who have no church background, and is also a good refresher course for church members. We have been really encouraged by the folk coming along and the general feedback is that they are really enjoying it.

There is also a new system of PASTORAL CARE in place with teams of visitors looking after areas within the parish and town. It is still bedding in but the visitors are slowly getting to know the folk they visit. Please do give them a warm welcome.

As with any union we had too many buildings and it was simply not possible to make use of them all, so we have had to make hard decisions about selling the Castle Street suite of buildings. We have still to reach any final decisions about our remaining buildings. The ideal solution of a new build in a central location is simply not available. We are determined to have a foothold on both sides of the river and the buildings committee, Kirk Session and Congregational Board are working hard to that end. It is all taking much longer that we would like though. We acknowledge that that in itself is unsettling, and in the lack of news, rumours abound. There is no news as there is currently nothing to tell. As soon as there is, everyone will be informed.

With all that is now happening, it can be all too easy for some folk to feel disconnected and out of touch with what is going on. The move has been from two

Cont. P3

CONTENTS

P2. Happy Second Birthday

P3. ALPHA And so what’s been happening? 1

P4. Hidden Books of the BibleChristian MindfulnessGrow Groups

P5. Inchbrayock Picture Quiz

P6. And so what’s been happening? 2

P7. “The Lord Will Provide”Hidden Books - AnswersMy Time at Compass

P8. MS&F FellowshipMy Time at Compass (cont.)Church CalendarContacts

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Cont. from P.2 smallish congregations where I expect most folk knew everything, to one slightly larger congregation with a whirlwind of new things in which it may feel as if you are now out of the know. The best place to keep informed is probably at church on Sunday morning, since that is where news of any developments will first be announced. Apart from that, the big things will be distributed by newsletter and the like, as the need arises. The other way is simply to roll up your sleeves and get involved and if you are simply unsure of the direction of travel speak to myself or one of the Session Clerks… I don’t think any of us bite!

For now though, it is Happy Birthday to MS&F… a time to celebrate and a time to give thanks.

Blessings - Geoff Redmayne

AND SO, WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING? - 1

If you read the last copy of Bridge (no doubt carefully filed away!), you will have seen an article about plans for the things we wanted to do. What progress have we made?

We said that we felt we wanted to get to know each other better. Apart from all the activities where we meet and work together, we had two special name badge Sundays where everyone was provided with a stick-on name badge and an opportunity during the service to mingle and speak to others, particularly those they didn’t know so well. It really worked. It’s amazing how quickly self reserve and reticence were overcome.

We said that we wanted to make sure that all the jobs needed to keep the church running were covered. A list of all the jobs was drawn up with those who were doing their jobs named against them. There were still a few blanks but now, thanks to a number of new volunteers, nearly everything has been covered . We said that we wanted to see small groups, prayer and Bible reading at the centre of church life. Grow Groups, where people meet in houses to discuss what the Bible says, have been running successfully and in addition to the prayer meeting, there has been a Saturday morning of prayer. One important small group, just started, is the Alpha group where around a dozen guests, with the help of a team of eight leaders, are exploring what it means to be a Christian.

We said that we would like to try having monthly themes for our services and that was done in September, October and November. In September the theme was prayer, in October it was thanksgiving and in November, service. This idea was well received and will be repeated in future as Geoff feels it is appropriate.

We said we wanted a strategy for children and young people, and that has taken off. For the last few months, in addition to the normal Sunday activities and 10:10, there have been ‘Friday family nights. Since Christmas, there have been two events, a film night and then a Scots night.

A good start, but just a start.

A large amount of work has been needed to get all of this done. This is a good place to recognise all the time and effort expended by many of the congregation to put all of these things in place, and to thank them for it.

What next? What other things are planned? • The Family Friday Nights will continue, roughly once

a month. • We’re going to celebrate all the good things in the

church – and the fact that the church has been around here for around 775 years! We’ve already made a start, the church’s young people conducting a whole morning service to celebrate the Year of Young People 2018. It was very well received.

• On Saturday May 12th, we’re going to have a celebration of all things done by the organisations in the church. Each organisation will have a display and information about what they do and there will be some fun activities, like a treasure hunt.

• After the summer, we’re going to have a good look at our history in the area.

…. and there will be more! Alan Fraser

The Alpha Course is an exploration of the Christian faith. This continuation of our outreach began on 10 January 2018, with the Launch event and introductory meal.

Wednesday 17th January was the first evening of Alpha, with weekly meetings following on till the 21st March. Additionally, we held an away day, when we travelled through to St.Andrews Church in Arbroath on 24th February.

We have a good group of challenging enquirers, (some of whom have come from Philos Cafe), and they are keeping us on our toes, so your support and prayers are greatly needed for this to be a successful part of our church’s Gospel outreach.

Huge thanks also go to Jean Rose and her team of Marthas who have supported us so well by setting up the hall each evening, feeding us so well, and then quietly clearing up after us.

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GROW GROUPS

These are small groups of folk (8 - 10) generally meeting in homes to explore life in Jesus and to grow in faith and friendship.

We meet in various locations, and at different times, around the town.

Monday evenings (weekly) 7.30 pm at Hudson Square: Di Millar & Jean Rose

Tuesday evenings(weekly) 7.30 pm at Barns of Craig: Ann & Douglas Craig, Alan Fraser

Thursday mornings (fortnightly) 10.30 am at High Croft, Usan: Edith Fraser & Anne Tulley

Thursday evenings 7.30 pm at Eider Close: Elizabeth Anderson, Allan Duncan and Mike Close

During ALPHA, Edith’s and Elizabeth’s groups will continue to meet. Full details available on website

To take part, or for more information, contact Geoff Redmayne or any of the group leaders or hosts.

‘Hidden Books of the Bible’ Quiz

Thanks to Norma Macmillan for the following brain teaser In the following paragraph there are 22 books of the Bible. Find them.

“The Bible books number sixty-six in the King James Version and form a most remarkable library. The impact of the Bible, whose ancient writings and truth still apply, has been dynamic. A hard-to-ignore fact is the quality of its teaching. Most of the Old Testament was written in Hebrew, somewhere east of Suez, rather close to Judea. Accounts such as

these are interesting, but the main job is to find the Bible book names in this paragraph. All may compete. Respond by underlining each book as you find it. It usually takes but a few minutes to judge several sentences for such names.

There is the danger of seeking so hurriedly one will overlook names in going from answer to answer. This is just a fluke of eyesight. Though twenty-two books are here concealed, it is hard to say what score is normal. A child may find certain books whereas adults will overlook them. At the worst, one should find a few. As a matter of fact, some are

obvious in a humorous sort of way. “

To see just how well you have done, go to page 7.

CHRISTIAN MINDFULNESS

On Saturday 3rd February, four ladies from MS&F church went to West Church in Banchory to a workshop on Christian Mindfulness. The reformed church tradition tends to be strong on theology and the study of God but this can at times be at the expense of taking time to be still in God’s presence and engage ‘heart to Heart’ with Him.

Christian Mindfulness was founded by Richard H. H. Johnston who facilitated the workshop we attended.

On his website he says of his own experience:

‘The peace and stillness of coming to God in silence is often like a soothing balm to the soul, shifting our focus away from turmoil and unhelpful rumination. I gradually turned towards God’s promise and invitation to find a

place of rest in Him (Psalm 62). This practice of centring down and gathering ourselves together into a place of focus is central to what many are now describing as mindfulness’.

The practice of self-awareness and contemplative prayer is not new to the Christian faith. Richard goes on to say:

‘The founding father of the reformation movement, John Calvin, was very much aware of the value of self-awareness. In his Institutes of Christian Religion, he goes as far to say that "the knowledge of God and that of ourselves are connected. Without knowledge of self, there is no knowledge of God. Without knowledge of God there is no knowledge of self”. According to Calvin self-awareness is not to be shied away from but faced together with the knowledge of God.’

Those of us attending the workshop found the content to be both challenging and thought provoking and benefitted from the opportunity to take part in contemplative prayer and meditation on the day.

If you wish to find out more about this I would recommend you visit the website

christianmindfulness.co.uk

Once registered, you can access some of the free meditations if this is something you would like to explore for yourself. Meg Cowan

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INCHBRAYOCK PICTURE QUIZ

All the pictures are connected, with the key being the plaque, found on the north facing wall of the sanctuary of Inchbrayock Church.

The plaque (Pic.1) commemorates the life of Rev. Dr. James Brewster (Pic.2) minister of the parish for 43 years, initially of Craig Church (pic.3) then after the Disruption in 1843 (Pic.4), of Ferryden Church, originally based in a small hall in Rossie Square, before being moved to its present location in Church Road, on land donated, ironically, by Horatio Ross.

The disruption of the Church of Scotland was caused by ministers, and their congregations, who believed that landowners, in this case Horatio Ross (pic.5), should not have the right to choose their parish minister. 450 evangelical ministers met in Edinburgh on 23 May 1843 and then withdrew from the established church, (along with many of their congregations) giving up their manses and income.

When James Brewster died, he was buried in a beautiful small graveyard overlooking Elephant Rock (Pic.6) at Usan, where his inscription can still just be deciphered.

Pic.7 shows Dorward House, completed in 1838 and designed by his architect son James.

Admiral Horatio Nelson (Pic.8) was godfather to Horatio Ross, having been a great friend of his father Hercules Ross, while he was based in Jamaica with the West Indies Squadron of the Royal Navy.

Pic.9 shows the ruins of Rossie Castle, near Balgove, built by Hercules Ross on his return from Jamaica, with wealth acquired from his sugar plantations.

The castle eventually fell into disuse, eventually even being used as a piggery by the Ogilvie family, before it was finally blown up by the Army as a training exercise in 1954.

And Pic. 10? This is a kaleidoscope, invented by Prof. David Brewster, of St. Andrews University, and James’ brother. Douglas Craig

21 5

4 7

8 9

6

10

3

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AND SO, WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING? - 2.

I t ’ s u n d e r s t a n d a b l e t h a t , w i t h m o s t f o l k ’ s preoccupation with the seemingly never-ending buildings dilemma, that we have lost track of all that has taken place in the church in the past two years

Church Road Action Group (CRAG) On Wednesday 8 November 2017, a group of interested members of the congregation met with Geoff at the Church Road building to carry out a “walk-through” and make a wish list of changes they would like to make in the building, in order to improve the physical surroundings of our worship area. Pete Cowan, as note taker, then divided these identified tasks into -

Easy low cost, DIY options which were all able to be undertaken by ourselves. One example was to brighten up the foyer by removing the dreary dark wallpaper from the alcove, painting it, and creating a n e w M S & F w e l c o m i n g banner.

A huge clear out throughout the church is still ongoing. The back hall (where we have tea/coffee after the service) has been radically cleared with the removal of all out of date posters, leaflets, cassette and video tapes in order to create more circulation space before and after services.

The Sanctuary itself has seen a new T-loop system installed for our harder-of-hearing members.

An old keyboard instrument previously donated by Jim Calder has been removed, and an extension to the Platform has been created for our expanding Praise Band. Geoff’s proposal that the Vestry should also be cleared and decorated to make a much brighter venue for the Sunday Club children (note the new name) is in hand.

However, an upstairs room, identified as suitable for older children has now been redecorated and carpeted. It is looking gorgeous and is open and ready for use.

Expect a plea for strong folk (not just men, since we are some equal opportunities church) to help relocate the massive safe from the Vestry. (hopefully not upstairs?)

Investigations are ongoing into the potential for reinstating ringing of the church bell before Sunday morning services. Specialists have been booked to survey the bell and bell tower in the next few months and make recommendations regarding the feasibility of proceeding.

10:10 An improvement in the Ferryden Hall, was the makeover last summer, of the YOUNGE, (Youth Lounge) decorated by and for the teens of 10:10 and 10:10 PLUS.This was

the smaller, upper hall, and is now a venue for our own Superheroes.

Younge

It was a great joy to be present in church on Sunday 28th to see a service taken by the 10:10 Youth Group, the highlight of which was the joining of the congregation by Heather Cobb and Chloe Gaskin, which was preceded by Chloe’s baptism. This was a great step forward for the church. Another development has been the location of a braille printing service - which has already enabled Binnie to lead a prayer from the lectern for the first time on Youth Sunday.

Praise Band The group can now call on ten members to help lead Sunday worship. There has been much talent lurking in the background, which is now coming to the fore. It is particularly exciting to see Allan “Animal” Duncan back behind the drums.

If you have a musical talent, please let us know, especially as there is currently a vacancy for a solo glockenspiel.

Foodbank / Philos / Xaver Over the winter Grace has organised some challenging evening sessions, including meetings with our local Penumbra (mental health) team and with our local Social Care Officers, who just blew us away with their enthusiasm for their clients, who are often just surviving their life circumstances.

There will be a screening of the film “I, Daniel Blake”, on Tuesday 27th February. This film is a searing indictment of our current Social Welfare system, and so is highly relevant to several of our regular clients.

It is a “MUST SEE” event.

Pat Tweedie demonstrating how to make a romantic Belgian pancake at Philos Cafe on

Valentine’s Day.

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‘HIDDEN BOOKS OF THE BIBLE’ QUIZ

Here are the hidden 22 books of the Bible.

The Bible books number sixty-six in the King James Version and form a most remarkable library. The impact of the Bible, whose ancient writings and truth still apply, has been dynamic. A hard-to-ignore fact is the quality of its teaching. Most of the Old Testament was written in Hebrew, somewhere east of Suez, rather close to Judea. Accounts such as these are interesting, but the main job is to find the Bible book names in this paragraph. All may compete. Respond by underlining

each book as you find it. It usually takes but a few minutes to judge several sentences for such names. There is the danger of seeking so hurriedly one will overlook names in going from answer to answer. This is just a fluke of eyesight.

Though twenty-two books are here concealed, it is hard to say what score is normal. A child may find certain books whereas adults will overlook them. At the worst, one should find a few. As a matter of fact, some are obvious in a

humorous sort of way.

Thanks Norma for testing our brains.

JEHOVAH-JIREH-THE LORD WILL PROVIDE

As a member of the buildings group I’m aware that things seem to be moving very slowly as far as our premises are concerned. I thought it might be an encouragement to share some of my recent experiences. As most of you know, my life has changed a lot since May 2015 when Mike died suddenly. God’s loving care and the prayers and kindness of everyone around me meant that I was able to face the unknown with confidence.

As a couple, we had been thinking of moving to Montrose for some time, so the decision was made for me and I set about putting our home in order. It was some months later whilst I was still working on clearing the house and making it ready for sale that I saw a property which seemed to be ideal, but which needed a lot of work. I prayed hard about it, because it was vital to move where God wanted me, and whether I thought the house was right wasn’t the issue - it was whether He thought it was right. I looked at others but none of them was as suitable or appealed as much. In the current market, properties in the country don’t sell very quickly but in Montrose they sometimes do so I wasn’t sure if it would still be available - I didn’t intend to put my house on the market until the following spring. Once I was ready, there were several viewings but the family that I liked chose another location. I kept trusting God because I knew He had my best interests at heart and amazingly, the house I had in mind was still available. Then my estate agents told me that my favourite family had not been successful in their first-choice purchase and now wanted to buy my home. Things went through quite quickly and my offer on the Montrose cottage was accepted. God didn’t just find me the home I loved at the right time, He found me the right place to stay while the work was being carried out, the right team of workmen to do the renovations and almost everything was accomplished without any great stress or difficulty, because God was with me all the time, guiding and supporting. In the week before Christmas it all became fraught because the work looked as though it wouldn’t be finished, and the removal was already booked for that Thursday. The difficulties seemed insurmountable and for the first time in the process I was overwhelmed. I can remember praying ‘Lord you’ll just have to sort this out because I can’t do it!’ At that moment, I felt His peace and then I was able to negotiate with the different tradesmen to get the boiler fitted, the decorating finished, and the carpets laid the evening before my furniture arrived from store.

The congregation of Montrose South and Ferryden has gone through a lot recently and it has felt like a bereavement, firstly losing long-standing members of the congregation and now a building which has meant so much to many of us; but I know from my own experience that God doesn’t let us down. He loves us and if we are listening to Him and trusting Him, at the right time He will show us the way ahead and provide the very best for us. We will find a new home - the right home for us and it will be better than we could have imagined. So, don’t lose heart or wonder why nothing is happening - leave it with Him. Keep praying, keep trusting, keep serving, keep rejoicing. It is His work we are doing and He will provide what we need.

Di Millar

In logical, human terms, no solution was readily apparent, but Di relied on God, as He ask us to do, and He provided very clearly, and generously for her.

My Time at Compass (…..so far)

I’ve now been at Compass for eight months, having started at the end of June 2017. My work varies, depending on if there are groups in or not. When there is a group in, a typical day will start with a 7:30 start in the kitchen either making the group’s breakfast or preparing the dining room and kitchen for the guests getting up.

Once the group are in for breakfast we serve them their meal and go back into the kitchen and start on the dishes. This usually takes us to 9:30 where all the staff meet in the staff room for morning thought, a time to reflect over a Bible passage and pray for the day, the guests, and the Centre. This is a really great way to start the day in God’s presence. After this, it’s daily clean, or lunch preparation. This involves cleaning the house, guests’ bathroom, and public areas, or being in the kitchen setting up the dining room for lunch and assisting the cook. We’re given a half an hour lunch break and it’s back in the kitchen cleaning the dishes.

We are then given the afternoon off as it’s back in the kitchen for 17:00 preparing the dining again, serving the meal and finishing all the dishes. This usually takes us around two hours so at 19:00 we can finally eat our dinner! On the day of the group’s departure we’ll changeover the whole house ready for the next group coming in.

On days where there are no groups in we work a normal cont.P8.

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CONTACTS Minister Rev. Geoff Redmayne 01674 675634 gnredmayne@gmail.com Session Clerk Alan Fraser 01674 671879 alan.fraser12@gmail.com Session Clerk Roy Nelson 01674 672873 Roy.Nelson@talktalk.net Clerk to Board Douglas Craig 01674 958285 hornblower7@btinternet.com Bridge Editors Alan Fraser, Douglas Craig OASIS Elizabeth Anderson 01674 672029 eanderson1000@btinternet.com

PHILOS Grace Linton 07801 592045 carunalinton@hotmail.co.uk XAVER Geoff Redmayne 01674 675634 gnredmayne@gmail.com

FOODBANK Grace Linton 07801 592045 carunalinton@hotmail.co.uk

CRAFT N’CAFE Jean Rose 07955760460 sjrose007@btinternet.com

10 : 10 CLUB Meg Cowan 07902 485443 meg.cowan@icloud.com

MS&F FELLOWSHIP Anne Tulley 01674 677997 anne.tulley@btinternet.com

CALENDAR Jamie Livingston 0777 232 9600 jamielivingston1489@gmail.com www.montrosesouthandferryden.com

www.facebook.com/montrosesouthandferryden/

MONTROSE SOUTH AND FERRYDEN CHURCH FELLOWSHIP

The Fellowship have had a good and varied programme of meetings over the winter months. We started off in October with a devotional talk by Graeme Bruce in which he told us something of his journey to becoming minister at UF Church in Montrose and Ferryden.

In November Steve and Margaret Coles talked about the Montrose Festival Chaplains, of which they are members. This was a very interesting subject as most of us knew very little about the work of the Chaplains.

December saw Ken Linton come to tell us about the work of the Food Bank and his involvement in it. Ken gave a very interesting talk and was able to answer the many questions!

Later in December we had a Christmas party in the Church Hall, the numbers now being too many to be accommodated in Edith and Alan Fraser's house as had previously happened. We had our usual turkey meal and played party games!

Coming to the New Year, in January Geoff and Sharon Redmayne gave a talk with pictures on Kenya including an insight into Sharon's life there and how she and Geoff came to meet!

At the beginning of February we had our Scottish night, when we were entertained by Joe Wishart. He gave us a Scottish history lesson in his usual amusing style and then entertained us with songs associated with Kenneth McKellar and Andy Stewart. To keep with the Scottish theme the refreshments were broth, oatcakes and cheese followed by shorties!

To conclude our programme in March our speaker will be Sybil Semple who will speak on Myanmar.

Anne Tulley

CHURCH CALENDAR

A calendar of activities has now been set up on the MS&F website, and can be found by clicking on the icon as displayed here.

All leaders of church teams should provide Jamie Livingston with details of forthcoming events which you might wish to be

published.

First come- first served. Events already on the calendar will have priority over later

entries, if there is likely to be a clash.

So, don’t delay, send to Jamie today.

jamielivingston1489@gmail.com

Cont. from P.7 9-5 day where we’ll all do either small maintenance jobs, grounds jobs, or deep cleaning jobs. These can be very wide spread from putting up fences to scrubbing every inch of the lounges. During the winter months we have fewer groups in, meaning we can get larger projects done. This past winter we managed to repaint the climbing room and redecorate the staff room.

Days off can hold very different things. We have occasional staff day outings to places like Dundee or Perth and next weekend we’re going to Stirling. Other days I’ll stay on site, as staff members have full use of all facilities and activities. The climbing room is my personal favourite. Days off are also very good for keeping the caravan clean!

Seeing and being a part of God’s ongoing work at Compass is the greatest opportunity I could have asked for and am incredibly blessed in my work. Your ongoing prayers are extremely important to us all here at Compass!

Fraser Linton

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