CLAN - Emphasis on Mercy and Compassion
Yesterday I paid a visit to the CLAN Gathering in St Andrew's Fife. Kenny Borthwick the Minister of the Church of Scotland in Wester Hailes Edinburgh was one of the founding members of this Christian Event. In 1999 it started with 400 people today around 8000 people from all over the UK attend. I was there because I was invited to the Church Leaders Lunch, I also got the opportunity to share for a short time something of the vision of the CWW Gathering 2008.In the evening I listened to a an inspiring talk by Mark Stibbes the Vicar of St Andrew's Chorleywood. It was an address that I could say Amen to, mainly because he was talking about the importance of revival being understood in terms of process rather than always being instant. I could identify with the emphasis of his address. He used the text from Ezekiel, where the Son of man is invited to step into the water. He talked about a different kind of missional church one that had mercy and compassion at the very heart of its mission. He called people forward to receive mercy and to pray for compassion. Later on in the evening I was speaking to Maggie Lane. Someone had asked her why so many people had gone forward. She said to them it is because the church is full of people seeking compassion mercy and understanding and too often it is seldom experienced in our churches.I think this an important challenge to all of us within the church, to live in such a way that we go to lift up the fallen and the hurt and the down trodden. I felt it was a really encouraging message for us as we prepare to go to India in the next few days.
