Connect A warm welcome to our Interns! October 2018
God is on the move! It has been my privilege over these summer months to have visited a few different churches and to have met up with folks leading various ministries around Scotland. The encouraging thing has been the consistent story that God is on the move! From churches who have regularly seen people come to faith, some have baptised a bunch of people, to other stories of churches really connecting with their local communities throughout the year. A few quick examples: Southside Church in Ayr have a Christmas project where they raise funds to buy bikes for children in their community who otherwise couldn t afford a bike. The idea is so universally liked that people from outside the church get involved with giving toward the project. Aberdeen Christian Fellowship have planted a church in the town of Portlethen on the outskirts of Aberdeen and all reports are of great success. Cowdenbeath Baptist church ran its first holiday club ever over the summer and it was a great success. Dumfries Baptist Church opening their new building and looking to develop the many ways that they already serve the local community through their building. Portobello Baptist church partnered with 3 other local churches of different denominations to host 100 plus children for a summer holiday club. These are just a few of the remarkable stories I ve heard. I am sure there are many others. My encouragement to you is that these are not spectacular churches, they are ordinary churches all over our land serving our extraordinary God in ways that bless their neighbourhoods. Be bold for God is on the move in our land.
A new term at SBC It s hard to convey the atmosphere at the Scottish Baptist College at this time of year. It s a mix of expectation, anticipation, excitement, and nerves but even this doesn t fully capture the animation and dynamism of the community as they gather for the start of term. This year has been no different and the new intake of students, combined with the returning students, will make for an exciting year ahead. We re grateful this year for a good number of new students (in fact new students outweigh returning students) and most of our first year classes were near or at their limit and next term s classes are heading that way too! It s heartening to know there is a continuing desire for theological education and that SBC has a part to play in this. However, the theological education landscape is fragile so we re not complacent and we value every prayer, every recommendation, every retweet or Facebook like, every conversation, and all the support we get from churches and individuals Baptist and beyond. As we strive to serve our students and the wider church to the best of our ability, we ask that you d continue to support us and pray for our students as they discover and grow into their calling. As the student body grows it continues to bring an ever-increasing diversity, which enriches our learning community. The breadth of experience and background across all ages is remarkable and brings some fascinating perspectives to class discussion. If you d like to join in with this community there are a variety of ways to engage with SBC. We are running a series of afternoon seminars this term with guest speakers covering a variety of topics see our website for more details (www.scottishbaptistcollege.org); you can contact the SBC office if you d like a speaker to visit your church; or there s still time to join us for a class next term (there s Ethics, Practice of Pastoral Care, Creative Preaching, Listening to Scripture and more on offer!)
A warm welcome to our Interns! As of the 28th of August, the Baptist Union of Scotland has been piloting a new intern training programme. This year, there are 5 interns going through the one-year internship. Alpha and David are working alongside Ali Laing in the BUSYounger team in Speirs Wharf. Eilidh and Laura are working alongside Andy Craig and Mark Fyfe at Kirkintilloch Baptist Church, and Shaun is working with Rob Fraser- Binns at Stirling Baptist Church. David is originally from Leven Baptist Church and has recently moved to Denny to be part of the Church there while on the Internship. Alpha is staying at his home church of Queens Park Baptist Church, with Eilidh, Laura, and Shaun all Interning within their home churches. The internship began with two days of training in Glasgow where we heard talks from Andy Craig, Alan Ross and Kay Cathcart from Cairn. Throughout the year we will be training and learning with a group of leaders from around Scotland in our Cairn Training Hub gatherings. We will also all meet together monthly to pray, worship, train and eat as a team. As a team we are really looking forward to the challenges ahead and great time throughout this year.
The reason I am doing the internship is to grow into a deeper and more passionate relationship with Christ. I m also hoping to be help connect young Christians from within our Network to the amazing things that are going on around Scotland. -David This year, I m really hoping to develop an everyday relationship with Jesus. I think that, through the different challenges and teaching this year, I can get a clearer idea of which talents God is wanting me to work through and how to cultivate that to support young people in Scotland. -Alpha If you want to find out more about the internship then follow our journey on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @BUSyounger or email youth@scottishbaptist.org.uk Pollok BC - We praise God for growing friendships with people in the community around us, many of whom are in our building at various times in the week for different activities. Pray with us that people will come to a saving relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ. Pray for us as a church as we open a foodbank, and, probably, eventually, a Cook School. Pray that we will know clear guidance from God and unity among us. Not least as we look at becoming a SCIO and consult with architects about developing our building. Peterhead BC Please give thanks for imminent completion of phase 1 of our building work. Please pray that the Lord will reveal how He would have us use our new premises to reach out into our community more effectively. Prayer Link October European Baptist Federation We give praise for the emergence of gifted men and women as younger leaders across the EBF, especially through the EBF s TRANSFORM programme, and also for the recent appointment of Kieryn Wurts (Austria and USA) as part-time EBF Research Assistant for Religious Freedom. Please pray for the situation in occupied eastern Ukraine where believers are coming under pressure, with some churches forcibly closed. Pray also for preparations that will begin later this year for the EBF Council to be held in Scotland in September 2019, especially that the necessary UK visas will be granted. Pitlochry BC Please pray for the church fellowship in Pitlochry.
Prayer Link October October 7th Baptist Union of Wales Motherwell Baptist Church Mull Baptist Church Nairn Baptist Church New Prestwick Baptist Church October 14th Irish Baptist Networks Newton Mearns Baptist Church Oban Baptist Church Paisley Central Baptist Church Peebles Baptist Church October 21st BMS World Mission Perth Baptist Church Peterhead Baptist Church Pitlochry Baptist Church October 28th European Baptist Federation Pollok Baptist Church Portobello Baptist Church Queen s Park Baptist Church Paisley Central BC Please pray for the church fellowship in Paisley. Motherwell BC Please pray for our community: we have been awakened to our surroundings during our prayer walks and our heartfelt awareness of Jesus filling the dry hearts of the Well to an overflowing fountain. Pray also for us to build relationships, and evaluate where we are in God s plan, and seeing the value of people though Jesus eyes. We give thanks for modern technology - WhatsApp groups keeps us in touch through the week - try it you will be blessed when least expected! Baptist Union of Wales - Praise God for connections with the wider Baptist family and for the Baptist Union of Wales BMS Insight Visit to Nepal earlier this year. Pray that those links will continue to bear fruit. Please pray for the new Action Wales Team currently on placement in Bangor, North Wales; that they will be a source of encouragement to local churches and hope to the schools, colleges and university as they share Jesus over the coming months. Queen s Park BC - We give thanks for a number of young leaders who have stepped up in the past few months and for those who have joined the congregation at our Partick Campus. Please pray as we continue to discern the next steps for our staff team. Nairn BC We give thanks to God for many answered prayers across the life of our church family, and for progress in working out the three key words in our church logo... Believe, Belong and Bless. We miss a number of our young people now attending universities across Scotland - please pray for them, and for a number of our older members experiencing changing life circumstances. God is faithful. New Prestwick BC - We give God thanks for the growing work among the young people of our congregation and local community, carried out by our youth worker Craig Morris, and a good group of volunteers. Pray with us for greater inroads for the gospel into the 750 plus homes that surround our church home, through children s club, toddlers group and lunchtime café.
Portobello BC After seven years as pastor, Andy Scarcliffe is retiring. The week after Andy finishes, Glenn Innes will be inducted as our new pastor. We are grateful that there will be no vacancy, and that the vision for reaching the community will be carried on as Glenn starts work. Over the past seven years we have grown from 15 people - no children or young people, to the present day with 50 to 60 meeting each Sunday. The age profile has been reduced by 20 years. We are ready for the next stage of our journey. Pray for us. Oban BC - We give thanks to God for all that He has done to grow and establish OBC, and for the privilege of serving our local community during the week through our premises and people. We are about to embark upon a whole-church Alpha to equip and prepare us for mission and evangelism over the coming months, and we pray that all will be richly encouraged during this journey. We also pray for our proposed building redevelopment that we would be led by God s voice, and that His purpose for the church and His heart for the community of Oban would be central to all that we do. Newton Mearns BC Pray for the Spirit s wisdom as NMBC develops new patterns of Sunday gatherings. We have three services on a Sunday 8:40am 10:45 and 7pm with monthly Messy Church on the 3rd Sunday. Pray for courage and vision for all leaders as Newton Mearns continues to develop and expand. Give thanks for the fruit we see around our development of a discipleship vision for each person in the church to be discipled well. BMS World Mission Please pray for the ongoing work of BMS World Mission in many parts of the world. Pray in particular for the BMS Harvest Appeal, Life s First Cry which focusses on the thousands of mothers and babies in Afghanistan struggle to survive childbirth. Give thanks that the good news of Jesus is being made known in some of the most challenging places as BMS workers serve in a variety of different projects around the world. Mull BC Please pray for the church fellowship in Mull. Perth BC We praise God for exciting things that have happened over the summer, including some initiatives helping us to engage with those in our local community. Seeing a number of our young people make commitments to following Christ recently has been especially thrilling! We are currently in the process of looking for a new church pastor. Please join us in asking for God to clearly guide us in this important decision. Irish Baptist Networks - Pray for More openness of heart and mind in Irish Baptists towards closer fellowship with our brothers and sisters across Europe and beyond. EBF leaders visit between 9-11 November - to share fresh insights into what God is doing in these days. Our plans to launch a refreshed website soon. We praise God for useful informal discussions with leaders of the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland.
FEARLESS BAPTIST ASSEMBLY IN SCOTLAND 25th-26th October 2018 Motherwell Concert Hall Book online now at SCOTTISHBAPTIST.COM/ASSEMBLY Registered Scottish Charity SCO04960