Auchterarder Parish Church_

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1 Registered Charity SC Magazine July - September 2014 Auchterarder Parish Church_ Kidsteam Here we are at the beginning of another term. The children are back at school and the holidays now a bit of a distant memory. We finished off the summer term just before the school holidays with a service led by the whole of the Kidsteam. We changed the church around, laid it out with tables and chairs that we all sat around together, and brought the work we do in the centre in to share it with the adults. We even let some of them cut out! We taught the grownups a couple of new songs and did lots of actions!!! Surprise, surprise! The theme was prayer, and we thought about how we should pray and related it to the fingers in our hands. We made a 'tree' out of hands with some lovely prayers written on them - have a look the next time you're in church cos they might still be there. So who knows what we'll get up to next! In fact, THIS is exactly what we got up to! We had a great teddy bears' picnic at the end of the holidays when we all brought our teddies - and all sorts of other odd toys to church (George brought a dinosaur!!!) - and headed off after Talktime down to the grass at the primary school for games and a picnic. Who knows, we might even invite the rest of the congregation to join us next time! We hope to continue to grow in number this term - both children and helpers - and look forward to involving the children more actively in all of Sunday worship: joining with the Welcome Team; helping with the offering; playing in the band; leading in prayer and reading from the Bible; sometimes singing in the choir... and anything else we can think of! If there are any children or young people you know who you think would enjoy coming to Kirk on a Sunday, please bring them along and introduce them to one of the leaders. They will be made very welcome. Sandra and the Kidsteam Leaders Page 1: Page 2: Page 3: Page 4: Kidsteam Future Plans Thank You The Church Big Event - May Fayre Art Exhibition 50/50 Lunch Group The Guild Occupationally correct Hymns Easyfundraising Magazine Includes Page 5 Page 6: Page 7: Page 8: Detroit Methodist Chorale Service Christmas Tree Festival Pennies for Heaven Small Steps Diary of Events Have your magazine in colour Congregational Roll Changes Church Website Useful Contacts 1

2 Future Plans? We worship a God who said to his people many generations ago I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11). If that is the case it seems to me that we have a future and a hope, and we should reach out for it! That future must surely be shaped around our relationships, our ministry and of course the buildings and resources we have. With regards the buildings; at the start of this year we set about a programme of work that would see many necessary repairs undertaken; we have new church boilers, the disabled access ramp has been renewed, the leaking side aisle roof has been repaired, essential repairs to stonework on the tower and north face of the church have been done and further work will see that completed during September. We have been working on the church centre administration and organisation to bring it fully in line with 2014 regulations so that we may start to promote its use more widely. We have a new web site, an online booking system for each of the rooms, we have a desktop PC linking to that system ready to go. We have a large team of volunteers ready to receive training in kitchen hygiene, and we have a new oven installed to replace the old one that kept falling apart. We are almost ready to take the next steps to increase our connection to the community around us and increase the income from the centre, which by the way is already substantial! In terms of the church sanctuary; we do need to improve the existing audio-visual facilities which do tend to squeak and squawk at times. I would also like to explore the possibility that the area at the back of church, which used to house the kitchen facilities, might be converted into a small glass walled chapel area. I am also hopeful that we might have the church open on some occasions during the week for people to just visit and rest awhile. In terms of praise on Sunday s; Stephen Miller is looking for new choir members of all ages, and musicians to build on what we have already to lead us and inspire us as we worship God through song and music. In terms of involving other people in the service I am glad that we have Anne Stewart (Attached Reader) to help lead worship, and I will continue to try and involve others in leading prayers and the sermon too. However, I am also starting to have dialogue with the elders about how and when we might start building the ministry team here at Auchterarder. We already have some funds put aside for a Youth worker and I am investigating whether we might get some external support to enable us to start writing up a job description and recruit either Youth worker or Associate Minister. These are just some of the more obvious issues we have addressed and will be addressing. Some are actually quite big steps in my mind, but these are all a part of looking at ways in which we might build our church community. Finally I would have to add a word of thanks to all of you at Auchterarder. Not only have Gwen and I been made very welcome in our first year here, installed in a brand new manse, and the first crop of potatoes harvested. but we have already seen so many signs of new life. We see some past members returning, new members arriving, people moving into the area and the numbers of young people beginning to swell. The place seems to buzz more and more on a Sunday! We can plant the seeds, but it is only God that can give the growth! Let s give him thanks and praise for what we have already seen but even more so, let s keep reaching out for that future that we believe he has in mind.. plans to prosper us and not to harm us. Rob Barlow, Minister. A Big Thank you! to so many people that make our church what it is; welcome team, garden team, cleaners, beadles, bible readers, musicians, choir, breakfast team, the guild, 50:50, children s workers, 10:10, finance team, stewardship team, elders, facilities management team, pastoral care team, print shop, technical team, the team who decorate the church every week and everyone else old and young alike, visitors included, who help us to be what we want to be the body of Christ here in Auchterarder. Praise God indeed. 2

3 The Church Big Event May Fayre! On Saturday 31 May we held our May Fayre event in the Church Community Centre and Church grounds. What a fabulous occasion we had. The sun shone, people turned out in large numbers and we had just a fantastic day. The event was designed to bring a bit of fun and frivolity to events and groups associated within our Church family. It was designed to bring all of our flock together to celebrate fellowship and allow for some social interaction. And yes, of course it was able to help us raise some funds for some of the many important projects we need to take care of with the upkeep of our church buildings. After all the hard work was done and all the pennies had been counted and gift aided, we managed to accumulate a total of just over 6,000. That money has now been placed into our Fabric fund and is being used to repair the external facings on the Church building. Many of you may have noticed that the general condition of our church building is not as good as it could be. We had a fairly urgent need to deal with the pointing on the external facade of the church building. This is now being done! We do however have some other real challenges and more about those to come later. So, what was it all about then? We had numerous stalls, activities, auctions (silent!), teas, coffees, cakes, sweets, car washing, books, jewellery, treasure hunt, home produce, bottle stall, nearly new bric-a-brac, BBQ, old LP records, the list goes on. There was an abundance of people helping out with big smiling faces and even more people getting involved with even bigger smiles! The sunshine obviously helps to put a smile on people s faces, but you should have seen some of the smiles on the faces of those who were throwing wet sponges at the Minister! Especially his own grand children! Add to those the people who took full advantage of throwing stuff at the other volunteers and the only remark left to make is how much pocket money does young Harry get? We also had a night time party! We had the Bald Eagles and a fantastic Barber s Shop Choir from Perth. Everyone had a super time and once again the happy faces made the event a real celebration and occasion to remember. Special mention to the Sword dancer who managed to steal the limelight! All in all though, this was an important event as it allowed us to make a very valuable contribution to the upkeep of the church. Everyone had a great day and it only leaves me to give a resounding thank you on behalf of the Stewardship team to all who contributed and took part, either before or on the day itself. Given the success of the occasion you can be assured that we will be repeating the event in the future. See you all in church - Keith Allan Stewardship Convenor 3

4 AUCHTERARDER PARISH GUILD A WORLD TO SERVE September is here and time draws closer for the start of our Guild Autumn session. We hope to have an interesting and fun syllabus ahead of us. DATES FOR YOUR DIARY 14th SEPTEMBER 18th SEPTEMBER 20th SEPTEMBER Art Exhibition 2014 Auchterarder Community Church Centre on Friday 26th Sept - 10am to 7pm Saturday 27th Sept - 10am to 4pm Catalogue and Refreshments 2, children free. Preview Evening Thursday 25th Sept - 7pm to 10pm Tickets 12, includes fork super, wine and catalogue Contact John Boyd jh.gmboyd@btinternet.com RE-DEDICATION SERVICE IN OUR CHURCH FIRST MEETING OF OUR SESSION WITH REV ROB BARLOW COFFEE MORNING AND SALE OF WORK A SNEAK PREVIEW OF WHATS TO COME BEFORE CHRISTMAS A talk regarding our Comfort Rwanda project My Jute Journey, a very hilarious talk from Sandra Thomson The Golden Age..watch this space. Think Pink cancer project, a joint meeting with the wider Church community Stirling Male Voice Choir with our friend, the Rev. Ray Gaston And of course Our Christmas Party. Your Guild Committee look forward to seeing and welcoming you all once again this session. Occupationally correct Hymns? Here are some examples. Can you think of some more? Bakers; Christ the Lord is risen today Builders; The Church's one foundation Dentists; Crown him with many crowns Electricians; I sing the mighty power of God Geologists; Rock of ages Hair Dressers; For the beauty of the earth House Painters; We are climbing Jacob's ladder Lawyers; Almost persuaded Map Makers; In Christ there is no east or west Weather Forecasters; There shall be showers of blessing Opticians; Open my eyes that I may see Fishermen; Lord, I come to the seashore Seamen; Will your anchor hold Farmers; We plough the fields Soldiers; Fight the good fight Politicians; Standing on the promises 4 THE 50/50 LUNCH GROUP The group meets mostly on the fourth Tuesday of each month at in the Church Centre to which all members of the Church and community are welcome. 50/50 has nothing to do with age but all to do with how we spend our time together eg 50% fellowship and 50% reflection. Numbers are usually between 40 and 50. A light lunch of soup, a sweet and coffee or tea, is followed by a short Reflection and then some form of entertainment or interesting talks. Transport can be arranged by calling Gill on We will start our new season on TUESDAY, 23rd SEPTEMBER when we will have The Strathearn Choir to entertain us. If you would like to become involved with the group in any way - to help, entertain, attend - or want more information, please call Sheila on sheilawiltour@aol.com Easyfundraising is a way to raise money for good causes such as churches, schools, charities, sports clubs, community groups and more, simply by shopping online and Auchterarder Parish Church are signing up just in time for Christmas shopping! Over 2700 top retailers such as Boots, B&Q, Next, John Lewis, Waterstones, Tesco and many more donate to your chosen cause every time you shop with them online. More details will be forthcoming soon and so keep an eye on your intimation sheets or speak to me, Gwen, or send me an at gwen@miragemedia.co.uk

5 Detroit Methodist Chorale Auchterarder Parish Church The Detroit Methodist Chorale from Michigan USA stopped off at Auchterarder Parish Church on their concert tour of Scotland and Northern England on Wed. 2nd July. The choir, under the direction of Mr. Christopher Hall, was made up of 35 adults, mostly Methodists, who serve as singers, ringers and musicians in their local churches. Their repertoire of light religious songs delighted the small, but appreciative, audience who were asked to leave a small donation, which their conductor promptly handed over to OUR church funds. A gift of 100 was added to that sum from the choir. I cannot speak highly enough of their talented accompanist, who happens to be the wife of the conductor, and also a highly qualified, professional in her own right. She tackled some really intricate piano accompaniments. A light-hearted programme, performed with such rich variety of mood and dynamics, held the interest to the end. A wonderful concert!! Such a pity there weren't more in the audience to enjoy it. Sheila and Millar Long caught up with the Detroit Methodist Chorale at the Grand Central Hotel in Glasgow on their second last day in Scotland before flying back to USA. The Church wished to thank them for their generosity, and to present them with a full music version of our own CH4. They had been searching for hymns with Scottish tunes, and we were only too happy to oblige. They were delighted with the gift and promised to keep in touch. Visit the Church of Scotland website for everything you want to know about the national church. There are pages of Worship, The General Assembly, CrossReach, and the latest developments in different aspects of the Church s life & witness, including emerging ministries. 5 Service The gardens look wonderful The hanging baskets have been beautiful The church flowers have graced the church each Sunday Service by a few but enjoyed by all The centre business is growing Manned by a few of the congregation s men Whose other concern is the fabric of the church To ensure our church is kept in good condition (was about to say in good nick..but) Service by a few to benefit all Breakfasts are busier and buzzing Ladies start early to prepare and serve Teas each Sunday enable time for a chat Monthly Coffee morning offers more time for talking All great opportunities to welcome both old (not aged ---never) and new people Service to encourage fellowship Welcome at the door Sets the scene for the morning worship And important for first impressions Service again The church is busier and buzzing All of above enhance the ambiance Visitors are saying how welcome they have felt Sundays are busy with different groups meeting People are really telling us that they love coming to church And hate to miss the Sunday morning scene And this is due to the Minister and wife s service to us Thank you Rob and Gwen And thank you all for every little and big thing you do too Service is being given by a growing number of people Do you wish to be part of the service? The choir makes singers most welcome The orchestra would be greater with you playing The centre would appreciate your support 50/50, the Guild, 10/10, Prayer Group, Mission Group, Youth and children s group Would love you to join them When many churches sadly are failing We are experiencing growth and we Praise the Lord Your service is important to support this growth Are you willing to serve? Renee Riddell

6 Auchterarder Christmas Tree Festival 2014 Following on from the outstanding success last year, a Christmas tree Festival is again being organised by Auchterarder Bloom Association in the Parish Church. We hope to have even more trees this year around the inside of the church. Each tree is sponsored and decorated by a business or organisation. The tree decorations are themed to the business or organisation or to convey a message, so we are looking forward to imaginative decorations. The aim of this initiative is to bring the Community and the Churches together at Christmas time and to return the support given by the various businesses and organisations sponsoring the trees. The event will run for two weeks prior to Christmas from 8th to 24th December. There will be a programme of events which will be announced later. Of particular interest to the young children is the telling of The First Christmas Story using soft toys and puppets which were made by the Banner Group of the Parish Church. The story is for nursery and P1 children, but parents are permitted to watch. A number of musical events are planned. Other items on the programme will include a seasonal visual display and some readings of Christmas stories. The opening of the festival will be at 2pm on Monday 8th December. We look forward to a large attendance. Admission to the Festival is free but we request donations from visitors to cover the cost of holding the event. A programme is available on entry to the Festival and you can return to the festival as many times as you wish. We hope you will return with friends and family to enjoy this novel community celebration of Advent and Christmas. This is a Community event for everyone to enjoy. John Boyd, Auchterarder Bloom Association, Project Co-ordinator Pennies for Heaven How many pennies do we need to make a line from Auchterarder to Perth? We reckon 800,000 pennies to cover the distance of 16,000 metres. As part of our fundraising effort for the new church centre we are looking for your pennies (and any lose change). We will give half of it to Tearfund and half to Auchterarder Community Church Centre. A big black bucket makes its appearance every Sunday and a map at the back of the church will show our progress. Tearfund A further 600 was sent to Tearfund in August. Their share of the Pennies from Heaven bucket now amounts to over 3,000 with the Church benefiting to the same extent. As you will observe from the weekly intimations our journey to Perth has only 2382 metres to go which relates to 1191 in cash terms. Keep donating your pennies. Pennies for Heaven Total Collected as at 24th August 2014 is 50p/metre that is 13,618 metres i.e. 2,382 metres to go!!!! Please keep going Is it possible? We think so. Please support this unique effort. Pennies for Heaven Congratulations - we are nearly there! Keep up the good work See church web site for all the up to date information w w w. a u chterarderparish.org 6

7 Small steps There was an occasion about 10 years ago when our whole family had gathered for Christmas and we decided to all go for a walk one afternoon, since it was a bright and beautiful day. Yet as we prepared to all go off for the walk, with brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, I suddenly became aware that we were about to embark on a fairly serious walk to Eathie Hill with Gwen s father who was at that time already in his 80 s and seemingly not that strong. He seemed not in the least concerned about a walk down a zig-zag path descending around 300ft to the sea and then returning back up the cliff to the cars, but I decided I should have a word with him. His response was simply to say Rob, it is not a 300ft descent and return it is simply one step in front of the other! He then duly walked with us and we had a very memorable afternoon. I have always remembered that simple example and every time I sing this well-known Christian song I remember his words; One more step along the world I go, one more step along the world I go; from the old things to the new keep me travelling along with you: Refrain: And it's from the old I travel to the new; keep me travelling along with you. The song was written some decades ago and although this is considered very much a children s song it has a powerful meaning, for surely we are all travelling from the old things to the new? We travel through the seasons of life and onto new seasons, whether we like it or not. Certainly some things can remain with us and offer a familiarity and continuity but the major things of life change within us and around us as we journey. It is this simple realisation that I believe is important for us to keep before us as we travel as God s family together in Auchterarder. Keep me travelling along with you, the song says, and the you is of course Jesus Christ the risen Saviour. As the good shepherd, he promises to guide us as we journey through life, both collectively and as individuals. This guidance is the outworking of our faith and ultimately translates into how we go about doing church our worship, our prayers, teaching, giving and serving. We have a busy church here with many different activities and often when I am about to start the Sunday morning service I cannot help but just stop and listen to the buzz of conversations and take in the smiling, sometimes intense, faces across the church. It is a good place to be. However, as we recognise that we are travelling from the old to the new (whether we like it or not) we need wisdom to recognise what we have around us that we can leave alone, and what things the good Shepherd is suggesting we change. We must not make change for its own sake but try to recognise what is ultimately to become old and what is to be new. The area of church life in which this is most challenging is in our Sunday worship because we have a wide variety of ages and experiences in worship, and in particular we, like other churches, are not engaging teenagers and younger families as well as we would wish to. Yet I sense that we have a collective desire to journey as one church, reflecting the different age groups, experiences and styles of worship, within a spirit of mutual love, trust and respect. In taking small steps we are much more likely to find ourselves staying together and growing together. In taking small steps it is easier to make a course correction. In taking small steps we will continue to journey and I believe that everyone will be able to manage along the way. That witness of togetherness will, in itself, surely cause us to shine as a bright light. Amen, Lord make it so! Rob Barlow: Minister 7

8 Diary of Events Please note Sunday Worship Starts at am (followed by communion, last Sunday in the month) September 2014 Sun 14 Guild Re-Dedication Service - see page 4 Thurs 18 Guild - with Rev Rob Barlow - see page 4 Sat 20 Guild Coffee Morning - see page 4 Tues 23 50/50 Lunch - see page 4 Thurs 25 Art Exhibition preview - see page 4 Fri 26 - Sat 27 Art Exhibition - see page 4 December 2014 Mon 8 - Wed 24 Christmas Tree Festival - see page 6 Last Saturday of every month Coffee Morning 10am-12noon The Church flowers, Baskets and Gardens If you stroll past, through and around the Church, and down the Centre drive-way, you will see the superb efforts of John Mills and his garden group of volunteers. Grass cut with sharp edges, bushes trimmed and grounds tidy, some of John's pressed gang, completed earlier this year, the ground covering of stones down the Centre driveway which with everywhere else is constantly checked, for pesky weeds. John is looking to have more plants put in now that most of the grounds are under control. The 16 hanging baskets at the front of the Church and one at the Centre door, went up earlier and have provided a colourful display, our grateful thanks to those members who donated to cover the cost. Thanks also to Rosemary who filled the tubs and pots around the Church. Then there is the water rota again "thank you" to all who have taken a turn to water and feed the baskets and flowers we are hopeful to achieve first prize!!! In our class. Throughout the year members arrange flowers in the Church for Sunday worship and onwards to the care homes or to members who are not at Church through illness, there are still a few Sundays for names towards the end of the year. Please speak to Barry Thom for instructions and assistance. It is always a pleasure to see the flowers and plants in and around our Church. Useful Contacts Church Office 24 High Street, PH3 1DF admin@auchterarderparish.org Minister Rev Dr Rob Barlow rob@miragemedia.co.uk Session Clerk Renee Riddell reneeriddell@btinternet.com Worship Team Stephen Miller Finance Team Ken MacKay Property Team Alastair Ramage Stewardship Team Keith Allan Kids Team Sander Miller FWO Envelopes Alan Mordaunt Gift Aid Convener Susan McIntosh Guild Secretary Rosemary Lennox Roll Keeper Susan Ross Magazine Editor Sylvia Elsmere Flower Convenor Barrie Thom Home Group Stewart Robertson Life & Work Magazine Iris Lough Reader Anne Stewart Church web site Roll Keeper s Report August, 6th 2014 Changes to the roll since last report on 6th May, 2014 Deaths Mrs Catherine Miller 13 Abbotsfield Terrace Mr Alex McCallum 45 The feus Mrs Margaret Harris-Burland 4 Gallowhill Place Mr Robert Ferguson 217 High Street. Change of address Mrs Gray of Milton Crescent has moved to Glencairn Mrs McIntosh of Abbey Park is now in Murray Hospital Current Roll 600 (-1) Dormant Postal 37 (-1) Address Unknown 22 (+2) Supplimentary 123 unchanged Have your magazine in colour! We are trying to reduce our costs for the publication of the magazine and we would like to be able to send the magazine to you in an as a pdf file, or you can view the magazine yourself by logging onto and click on the link for the magazine. When you view the magazine as a pdf or view it on the web the magazine will be in colour and you can still print off any page you want to keep. I would be most grateful if you could let me know if you would rather have a pdf file by or if you wish to view the magazine yourself on the web please let Sylvia know, by ing sylvia.elsmere@hotmail.co.uk Church Website For all the latest news, magazine and events taking place in Auchterarder Parish Church and the Community Church Centre. The deadline for the next edition of the magazine is Sunday 15 November Articles, photographs and artwork are all welcome. Material can be ed to Sylvia Elsmere, sylvia.elsmere@hotmail.co.uk, or handed in to the church office. Contact Church Office if you want to advertise your local business. Each edition goes out to 600 local homes.