connect nov 12 pdf

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Connect

Published by the Baptist Union of Scotland, 48 Speirs Wharf, Glasgow, G4 9TH, [email protected]. Charity Registration No:SC004960

November 2012

Under sunny autumn skiesand in the shadow ofDundees famous statue of

Desperate Dan, the friendly and

ever-helpful staff of the Caird

Hall flung open the doors to

welcome delegates and friendsto this years Baptist Assembly

in Scotland. For some, there was

truly an anticipation of coming

Come Home AgainParticipating in the Mission of God

home again: seeing old friends,

meeting new ones and listening

to God together. Others were

less sure of what to expect,

many coming for the first time or

returning after a number of

years, wondering if they wouldreally feel at home. However,

concerns quickly dissipated as

Assembly opened in celebratory

worship and with the first of

three challenging Bible studies

on Luke 4. The presence of

Gods Spirits was evident from

the outset, as was commented

on by many who attended,

including special guest RevTony Peck, currently serving as

General Secretary to the

European Baptist Federation:

it was exciting for me to see

how Scottish Baptists are

undergoing a renewal of their

life and direction There was a

very positive spirit in the

Assembly and a real desire to

counter all the gloom about the

decline of the Christian faith in

the UK with a renewed

emphasis on recoveringaconfidence in the Gospel and

participating wholeheartedly in

the mission of God.

Throughout Assembly,

delegates were invited to explore

the missional theme from every

possible angle: quietly in the

prayer room, corporately in

preaching and story-telling,

personally in times of response,

creatively in drama and art,

globally with presentations from

BMS World Mission, practically

out on the streets of Dundee

giving away gifts, and so the list

goes on.

Assembly is a unique

opportunity for our Baptist

family to spend time together,

and the stories shared of howGod is working throughout our

churches were exciting and

inspiring, encouraging others

not only to praise God but also

to step out in faith themselves,

to do the new things he is

showing them to do in their

location. Parish Nursing,

Workplace Chaplaincy,

Community Money Advice and

Mainly Music for toddlers were

just some examples of projects

which have been taken up byScottish Baptist churches as

tools to engage with their

communities.

As an annual event,

Assembly naturally generates

analysis of the life of our Union

in Scotland over the preceding

year, for good or bad. It was a

delight for the National Team to

present such positive reports on

all aspects of ministry, and to

begin to gather encouraging

feedback and ideas: for example,how to further develop the

youth Step Out discipleship

programme, or the desire of

Assembly to express our

solidarity and prayerful support

to the churches in Lebanon and

Syria. Healthy signs of growth

are clear, and the welcoming of

four new churches into our

Union on Thursday evening

Martin Clarke and the Assembly

praise band set the scene

Rev Tony Peck

Puppets!


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Be sure to follow us on Facebook and at www.scottishbaptist.org.uk!

was indeed a cause for

celebration. But it didnt stopthere! The next day, delegates

agreed wholeheartedly to the

setting up of a Pioneering Fund,

allocating capital of around

240,000 released by re-location

of the BUS office to be used for

pioneering, cutting edge, church

planting in Scotland.

As Karl Martin said more

than once in his talks, God is

up to something: the Baptist

family seem to be in agreement

and have pledged their support.On the third day of

Assembly, there was a

noticeable drop in the average

age of those attending! Families

with young children, teenagers

and youth leaders, all made their

way to Dundee to join in the

specially extended Super

Saturday programme. In

Central Baptist, families spread

out their picnic mats, munching

on sandwiches as Lynn

Alexander and her team,

including Acting Up

puppeteers from East MainsBaptist, took them through two

hours of family fun around the

theme of Participating in the

Mission of God, followed by a

spell-binding performance of

Saltmine Theatre Company's

production, The Book of Hope.

It was amazing to see the

different generations, parents,

grandparents, carers, children,

discovering more of God

together: children smiling as

parents tried in vain tocoordinate their limbs for action

songs, parents crying as

children touched them and

prayed a blessing on them,

adults and young ones praying

for God to move in their

schools, churches and world.

Equally exciting and

surprising was what the

teenagers (and their leaders!)

learned and practised with Chris

Duffet, 2012 President of the

Baptist Union of Great Britain,

whose recent book "Big

Hearted" is full of simple yetastounding ways to love people

with the love of Jesus! Here are

some of his own reflections after

the event:

"One highlight for me in my

role at the Assembly was

taking young people 'out there'

amongst those who wouldn't

have a clue about Jesus, let

alone what it means to be a

Baptist!

We did the classic free fruit

(of the Spirit) giveaways.Teams also had freedom to be

creative. One of the teams I sent

out decided to give away

chocolates. I watched how they

got on and they soon attracted

a bunch of people around their

generous act. One guy got

talking to me and pulled out

beneath his jumper a cross he

had bought recently. He told

me how his friends had been

teasing him about having a

'stupid cross.' I asked him if be

had been thinking of becoming

a Christian. He shared that hehad been and wondered what

it meant to be one. A thought

crossed my mind that I should

offer him the New Testament I

had in my pocket He was so

chuffed. As we left he thanked

me for the gift of the Bible. He

looked so happy."

If you were with us for all or

part of Assembly, then hopefully

as you read this, you are

prompted again to go and take

that step which God's Spiritchallenged you about as your

participation in the mission of

God. If you were unable to join

us this year, why not listen to

the talks as they become

available online, chat to others

in your church about how God

spoke to them at Assembly, and

perhaps even plan now to Come

Home Again next year for

Assembly 2013.

Ruth Donaldson

Chris Duffett

Annie from Saltmine

TheatreCompany

Bible Study leader

Glen Marshall


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November 2012

An appreciative client!

Dave Bookless

PLEASE NOTE: The events metioned in our publications or on our website or social media can cover the wider Christian scene in Scotland and

do not necessarily reflect the involvement or endorsement of Baptist Union staff nor any specific knowledge about content.

The Son and The SunI have noticed several different

posters displayed in the notice

board at the side of the church and

upon noticing them, have thought to

myself how clever and eye-catching

they were. I made the assumption

that these posters were bought from

wherever posters are bought fromand found myself imagining this

huge warehouse full of clever,

thought provoking posters.

How wrong I was!

On Sunday 15th July, I was

relaxing at home in the afternoon

when a phone call came from the

reporter based in Aberdeen, for the

Scottish Sun. Stuart the reporters

name had been passing by CTBC

and noticed the current poster The

Born Supremacy. To say he was

excited about it would be a major

understatement. Stuart was amazed

at the cleverness and eye-catching

nature of this poster. He regaled me,

at length, about how clever it was

and what an unusual way to catch

peoples attention.

Stuart asked me for the

background on the poster and I

found myself on a journey of

discovery. I now know that Lindsay

Donald has all the ideas for the

posters that appear in this notice

board and her son Gavin designs and

produces the posters.I felt extremely humbled that

such a brilliant partnership is

providing an amazing means of

outreach to our local community

and nationally, since the Sun

reporter noticed them!

A few years ago, Mark Halliday

had an article in the Baptist Times

detailing what was necessary to

make newcomers to church feel

welcome. One of the main points he

made was the fact that we shouldnt

make any assumptions about the

way we relate to people who are

not used to being in a worshipservice. We should be careful not to

alienate visitors by speaking in a

secret language or behaving in a

churchy way.

The brilliant thing about The

Born Supremacy poster is that it is

instantly recognisable to anyone

passing by the church and will

attract their attention.

On returning from my summer

holiday and collecting books from

church, I observed two guys

walking down Windmill Lane and

having a laugh upon noticing the

poster. They spent a good few

minutes looking at it and

commenting upon it. Who knows

what that encounter may grow into

sometime in the future?

Suffice to say that Lindsay and

Gavin are doing a fantastic job in

their month by month commitment

to keeping the notice board relevant

and eye-catching. I think we, as a

church, should make clear our

gratitude to them for this excellent

work and support them by takingnote of each poster as it appears

and letting them know that this

small job is of huge importance.

Nobody told me that my duties

as joint Church Secretary would

include an appearance in The Sun!Donna Minto

Crown Terrace Baptist Church finds outthat their notice board is getting noticed...

Westray Baptists - Doing it Themselves!

Having got a new roof seven

years ago and a new mansefour years ago, the folks of

Westray Baptist Church

decided to overhaul the main

sanctuary of their building.

They decided to do the bulk

of the work themselves to

keep costs down, using thelocal builder from time to

time. Then, when underway,

they decided to continue and

completely renovate the

entire building. Now its got a

new sanctuary, quiet room,

kitchen, church hall, Sunday

school rooms and toilets!

During the 20 months of the

refurbishment the church met

in the local school for morning

services and with their friends

at the Church of Scotland for

the united evening services.

Sunday, 16th September

saw the official opening of the

new building, with over 160

folks there to celebrate

together. Pastor Gavin Hunter

led the service of thanksgiving,at which John Greenshields

preached on the words of

Jesus I will build my

church.

A thank-offering at the morning

service realised the sum

required to pay the final bills

for all the work done, so all

costs have now been met.

- Praise be to God!

Pastor Gavin Hunter


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Notice

BoardFestive DecorationsThis mid-week holiday, with a time

of worship and reflection built into

the programme, has been organised

by the Atholl Centre in Pitlochry.

It will run from 13th to 15th

November and be led by Maggie

Robertson, who has a BA in

Education and Design and has a

craft company teaching a range of

craft skills, especially textiles.

These days are for beginner and

intermediate crafters. Project packs

will be available to buy or you can

bring your own materials.

For more info contact Iain at theAtholl Centre on 01796 473044 or

see www.athollcentre.org.uk

Lewis Misselbrook Many of us remember Rev LewisMisselbrook who, along with his

late wife Molly, worked among our

churches, preaching, speaking and

assisting with consultancies, as part

of ourScotreach mission

programme in the early 1980s.

After a long and activeretirement, Lewis died on 1st

October at the age of 91. A service

of celebration and thanksgiving was

held on 10th October. His sons

Kris, Peter and David encourage

anyone wishing to mark his passing

to make a donation in his memory

to Crisis Centre Ministries,

Carpenter House, 32 Stapleton

Road, Bristol, BS5 0QY.

BMS Womens Link

Winter Programme

November 7th:

Jean Somerville on her return visit

to Nigeria.

December 5th:

Christmas Celebration.

2013 - February 3rd:

Scottish Baptist Womens

Fellowship Presidential Memories,

with Andrea Voysey

March 6th:

Bangladesh Update with Bill Baxter.

April 4th:

BMS Update with Rev Judy White

and AGM

BMS West of Scotland Women's

Link meets from 10.15am in

Adelaide Place Baptist Church,Glasgow. Further details from Mrs

Jan Watson on 01294 822594.

Wanted : Mission PraiseMull Baptist Church would be grateful for offers of Complete Mission

Praise hymn books which are now surplus to requirements. If you can

help, please contact Elvyn Blomfield on 01681 700398.

Fifteen months ago, after fouryears as BUS Mission Advisor,Andy Scarcliffe was called topastor the small church atPortobello. Sunday morningssaw around 15-20, mostly retiredpeople attending, with a handfulat the midweek Bible study. Thefaithful core of people weretrusting that God would turnthings around. Within the firstyear, attendance doubled on aSunday morning.

The format of the midweek

SomeSomeSomeSomeSomething is Happening in Pthing is Happening in Pthing is Happening in Pthing is Happening in Pthing is Happening in Pororororortttttobello...obello...obello...obello...obello...

meeting, held in the church cafe,changed. The buzz of excitementattracted new people, sometimesseeing 16 to 18 people getting togrips with what it means tofollow Christ. You would findthem drinking coffee, watchingvideo clips, and breaking into

small groups for discussion andprayer. There are also now, thebeginnings of a Sunday School.

One of the new people hadthe idea of using the church'spurpose-built cafe one Saturday

to raise money for Christian Aid.From 6am, a team made soup,baked cakes, and brewed coffee.Over lunch they were packedout, giving the homemade fareon a donation basis to theintrigued people of Portobello."What's going on here?"one

said, "I thought this place wasderelict!" They raised 300 forChristian Aid and subsequentcafe days raised 400 for theBMS "Thirsty" appeal, and 200for TEAR Fund.

The cafe sits right next to thePortobello Bar, where the churchhas a good relationship with thestaff. At last year's carol service,one of the barmaids led somecustomers in to see the displayof candles and hear the bandrehearsing for the event. One or

two have even stumbled in tothe midweek discussion, joinedin, and even been prayed for! Carols by Candlelight itselfwas a great success. Andy said,"We weren't quite sure howmany to expect, but we packed

the place out with over 150 folksinging praise to God, stayingfor mulled wine and mince pies".

He continued, "Most whocame were invited by peoplefrom the church. Some werefamily members who had notbeen there since they were inSunday School. The localcouncillor was invited andjoined in enthusiastically.

One major landmark is therecent refurbishment of the cafe& church frontage which sits inthe centre of Portobello HighStreet. There is a buzz in thewider community as people seethe signs of new life, hope andconfidence. The sanctuaryitself in a previous life has beenthe Town Hall, a dance hall, anda cinema. When the old signabove the cafe was pulleddown, it was just possible tosee on one side "Music

Saloon", and on the other,"Adolph's Bar". Who knowswhat the premises were used forin the past...and God knowswhat they will be used for in thefuture. Please pray!

The Cafe in Action


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November 2012

Engagement Diaryfor November

2 Alan Donaldson is at the pre-launch ofMore

Than Gold. Judy White is at the Forfar church.

3 Our Public Issues and Social Action Group

meets today.8 The National Team have their Strategy Day.

10 Those on the joint BUS/SBCInitiate

training course meet today.

11 John Greenshields preaches in Pitlochry

Baptist Church.

12 Until 14th, Alan Donaldson attends the

BUGB Council. The Board of Ministry meets

over today and tomorrow. The Scottish

Baptist Womens Fellowship leaders meet.

15 Scottish Baptist College Committee.

16 This is the Step OutReunion Weekend.

18 John Greenshields preaches in Easterhouse

Baptist Church, Glasgow. Forfar Community

Church opens (see below).20 John Greenshields attends the National

Settlement Team in Didcot. Our Union

Trustees meet today.

22 The National Team meets. The Mission

Forum meets today and tomorrow.

23 Judy White spends the weekend with our

Shetland churches.

25 Alan Donaldson preaches in Portobello

27 The National Strategy Group meets..

28 John Greenshields speaks at Auchlochan

Retirement Village.

29 Alan Donaldson attends a meeting of

Church leaders. The Joint Assembly Planning

Group meets.

Q:Q:Q:Q:Q: What do you get if you mix

washing-up liquid, bicarbonate of soda,

vinegar, ketchup and brown sauce with

a few drops of red food colouring?

A:A:A:A:A: Excited shrieks from a group of

small boys ignoring our risk

assessments and trying to stand onchairs to get a better view!

It's not just the paint and the glue and

the glitter and the icing sugar that

gives Messy Church its name - Messy

Church is about the "messy" edges of

our church communities - families for

whom a Sunday church service is not

always practical or relevant.

For us in Lochgilphead, Messy

Church started at Easter 2011 when

we had been searching for a way to

develop our engagement with the

families who regularly attended our

weekly parent and toddler group and

sent their primary-age children to our

annual Holiday Clubs.

Messy Church is a "fresh expression"

of church where folk of ALL ages are

welcomed, share in a variety of craft

activities all relating to a central theme,

come together in a simple act of

worship (usually a song, story and

Getting Messy at Lochgilphead Baptist

prayer) and share a meal together.

Each craft table is led by a volunteer

from our "regular" congregation and the

table leader encourages conversation

relating to the theme along with

expressing genuine interest in the lives

of the families attending and simply

getting to know people better anddemonstrating the love of Jesus.

Our experience of Messy Church has

been a blessing to both those who

attend and those who help. We have

had fun, we have learned the hard way

which activities are just TOO messy and

we have shared the excitement of

Bible stories with those who have

never heard them before.

On occasions, our Messy Church has

a congregation as large as the Sunday

congregation and the families who

come really do view it as church. We

sometimes struggle to accommodate

the seven or eight different craft

tables, the act of worship and the

meal without getting glue on the guitar

and sequins in the spaghetti, but we

are looking forward with anticipation to

our church extension which we hope

will give us even more space to be

even messier!

Alison Hay

If youd like more general information about Messy Church

see www.messychurch.org.uk

Please remember in your prayers

the formal opening of the

churchs building, and the start of

the Community Week, on

Saturday 10th November.Open days over the next week

will culminate in a Service of

Dedication, at which Rev Alan

Donaldson will preach and to

which all are invited.

For fuller information see

www.forfarcommunitychurch.org.uk

The Forfar Files...


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Prayer Linkfor November

Sunday 4th

Adam Plenderleith: Chaplain, Glasgow

Royal Infirmary. My prayer request is simply

that my walk with Christ would be so real that it

would be evident in all of my interactions.

Chaplaincy in a hospital setting is often

viewed as having become so affected by

syncretism with secular society that it has lost

its first love. On the contrary my calling to

Hospital Chaplaincy is totally dependent on my

having Christ in me. My preaching is in my

listening to, caring for and journeying with

individuals in an alien land. Please pray that I

have my gift of listening so enhanced that I hearwhat is being said, unhindered by my biases and

preconceived ideas of right and wrong.

For the wider ministry of Hospital

Chaplaincy please pray that it is recognised as

an equal partner in health care at a time when all

NHS employees need to be able to demonstrate

their cost effectiveness.

Jim Simpson: Royal Cornhill Hospital,

Aberdeen. Please pray for all chaplains working

for the NHS in Scotland. We are employed at an

exciting time of change when local issues

interface with a National agenda. The healthboard is dealing with financial constraints and

this puts pressure on the whole system and

especially the management of people resources.

For the past two years chaplains across the

country have experienced the joys and challenges

of value based reflective practice which causes

us to look at issues such as capacity and

identity.

Please pray for all the staff and patients in

mental health. We still have a long way to go in

tackling such things as stigma. When a person is

feeling unwell the last thing they need is added

pressure through a judgemental attitude. Please

pray for me as I seek to engage with patients,

carers and staff over spiritual and religious care.

The challenge is to be alongside individuals and

the institution enabling them to respond in a

creative way to difficult times.

Sunday 11th

Mull. Mull Baptist has only 6 members and no

minister. We would be glad of prayers for church

growth and God`s guidance on how to reach out

to our community. We need preachers to come,

and thank God for the church caravan which

enables preachers to have a cheap holiday and

lead worship, then relax and be refreshed. We are

blessed with many holiday visitors, some of

whom come every year. Our Church lunch

following the service is also a blessing, being a

great time of fellowship and link with the world-

wide church family.

Musselburgh: Please pray for the church and

its pastors Revs Andy Dalrymple and Graeme

Shearer.

Sunday 18th

Nairn: Rev Tim Power. The language of `The

Wind of The Spirit is Blowing' abounds in Nairn

at the moment. For an age some mission fields

have been `off limits' to anyone, other than a

very few clerics. The stifling effect of moribund

ministries have held the evangelists at bay for a

long time and prevented access to places such as

primary schools. Recently, however, collegial

chaplaincy access has been granted to all three

Nairnshire Primary Schools with NBCs pastor

delivering first time ever assemblies to over 800

pupils across three schools in October alone.Please pray that these new connections with the

young people of our town will bear fruit,

similarly for the mission to young people via

the PWAMM Challenger bus which visits our

area for two weeks at the beginning of

November. The local high school is welcoming

more meaningful relationships with local

ministers and welcoming our pastor, in his role

as senior school chaplain, to bring lectures on

Christian ethics - such as the sanctity of life - to

Highers students.

The beginning of October saw the ladies of

Nairn Baptist Churchs Knitting and Craft grouphave a week long knitting session in the local

library. Many women from the community

talked to them and a good number joined in. The

local press even turned up to take pictures and

produce an article. The group meet in a local

caf, one week knitting, the next a gentle Bible

study and discussion group. Interest in joining

the group has been phenomenal. Please pray for

this seed sowing, or (is it sewing?) ministry.

There is much more, and we dont escape the

trials that come with such work - but no more

space here. Please pray for us that we do indeed

catch the wind of the Spirit and let God take usin the direction he would have our church go.

New Prestwick: Rev Kenneth Ross. New

Prestwick Baptist Church sits halfway between

Ayr and Prestwick and for almost 125 years has

had a Gospel witness within the immediate

community known as Heathfield. As a

worshipping congregation, our members and

adherents gather from the local area, and further

afield throughout Ayrshire; as a witnessing

people, we reach out to the homes and families

in the community round about us. Our outreach

to local families begins with a busy Mums andToddlers group, a Bible club called

Kidzone@192 for primary school age kids (the

largest primary school in South Ayrshire is just

round the corner), and a Youth Fellowship with

a good mix of kids from church families, and

others with no family church connection. In

September, we had an excellent childrens

mission, with Graeme Hewitson ofEikon Bible

Arts coming back to work with us once again.

Men and women are catered for too, with a

variety of meetings and Bible studies for ladies,

to some of which a number of unsaved come

along, and also a mens group.Recent years have seen a broad cross-section

of the congregation become involved in

ministries such as Wheels in Motion (a soup bus

ministry) andBroken Chains, a gathering for

singing, testimony, gospel message and food.

These missional opportunities reach out to

adults with chaotic lifestyles, including quite a

few who are trapped in various forms of

addiction. Many of these people now count us

as their friends, and a good number regularly

attend our evening service.

In Gods grace, we have seen folks believe

and be baptised - and it was a particular joy forour Pastor, Kenneth Ross, to recently baptise

his daughter Sarah. We have also recently

commenced a monthly afternoon service in a

large new local nursing home, with many

of the residents gathering for a time of singing

and a message from Gods word.

Please give thanks with us in the

opportunities we have to reach families

through their children, and also many adults at

their point of need.

Give thanks too for all the busy folks who

give freely of their time to serve within these

various activities and ministries. Regardless ofthe work, we need the Lords strength.

Pray with us for a real breakthrough in

reaching the 750 homes in the square mile that

has New Prestwick Baptist at its centre.

Sunday 25th

Newburgh. Please pray for this small church in

Fife which is currently without a pastor.

Newton Mearns, Glasgow: Rev Brian More.

We continue to be very grateful for numerous

opportunities to engage with the community. Inparticular we are partnering with local schools in

a number of initiatives across the Autumn to

raise funds for Glasgow City Mission and to do

so in ways that also encourage local children to

have a better awareness of the needs of others

less fortunate than themselves.

In discussions across the membership we are

currently exploring afresh God's vision for the

role of a local church and the implications for our

own life and ministry together. Please pray for a

clear awareness of God's leading and direction as

these discussions unfold. The church is also

actively seeking to appoint a second pastorwhose responsibilities would include a specific

focus on ministries involving children and

families. Please prayerfully support our Search

Group as they seek to discern God's guidance in

what we have sensed for some time is a key

appointment for our ongoing work and witness.

connect nov 12 pdf

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