We had a most interesting meeting tonight at Alpha in the Inchyra Hotel. We were considering the topic of prayer. We all agreed that we'd try and support each other over the next two weeks as we explore the purpose and meaning of prayer in our personal lives. The group will not meet next week so we hope to keep in touch through this blog. So where does one start if you want to develop a prayer life? I've found that the Psalms in the Bible often act as a kind of...
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Here is a simple little prayer I wrote earlier this week for the service tomorrow evening. At Sanctuary First our aim is to try and lead those who attend into a deeper experience of worship. The video clip was put together by Rae Manger who works as a staff member in our creative media team. Take time to see the close connection between words and music and how we have used the idea that less often can mean more. Broken1.mov Creating a worshipful atmosphere is...
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I wrote about structures a few weeks ago. I think we need to realise that changing the structures alone, will not change the church. Tomorrow night at Kirk Session will be quite an important evening. The Kirk Session re-structing group will be reporting back. The plan is that they will give out the papers for the future structure and we will agree a date when we can meet in conference to discuss the implications. We need to allow the Holy Spirit to fire us up so that...
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We had our second 'Alpha Night' at the Inchyra last night. There was a good mix of people from different backgrounds and I'm sure its going to be once again an interesting life changing experience for a number of people. Our theme last night asked the question" Why did Jesus die?" It is an opportunity to talk about the central theme of Christianity namely, "Forgiveness" it seems to me that this is one of the central issues that faces all of humanity. All over the...
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Later on today hundreds of people will be descending upon our little town for the "Father's Heart Conference". Ken Whitelaw the local Apostolic Church Pastor has worked hard to bring this event to the town. I wish him well and hope that the whole day is a great success. Last year I visited the Clan Gathering in St Andrew's and heard Dr Mark Stibbe, the day before I took a group from the church over to India to visit our partner churches. He is an excellent communicator...
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