Yesterday was a wonderful Lord’s Day! I had a very warm reception by the DC, as well as the BC. There were well over 60 people in the morning service at DC and 16 at the BC. I am preaching a series on the personal encounters that Jesus had with individual people, in the morning service and working through The Beatitudes on Sunday night. Both churches seemed to receive the Word with warm eagerness. Morag MacLeod, the single lady that visited us with the Johnstones in San Antonio last year, drove up from Kylakin to worship in Dunvegan. I was glad that she was there to give me feedback on how she thought the service went. She was surprised by the numbers, impressed with the attentiveness and taken back by their warmth. She told me that, although she had never been in DC before, she had heard that it wasn’t a very friendly church. I told her that she was going to have to be more careful about presupposing that what people say is reality. She was very impressed with the reception given my by the DC church and left feeling relieved. She thought that this was going to be a difficult place of ministry. I am glad she was wrong.
It was qqqqquuuuiiiiittttteeeeeeee strange preaching in a box where my head is 14-15 feet above the floor. My nose started bleeding at one point I was so high up….not really . Until last evening I did not know why those things are like that. There was a family from Holland visiting D. and had come to church. We got on very well after the service and I invited them to the manse for a snack after my return from the BC. They were such a delightful family…Roel and His wifeYmkje (try to say that with crackers in your mouth) and their daughter, Tjslim, I’m not kidding, and Peter-jon. He is a Reformed pastor and his daughter and son-in-law are theology students in Cheshire…they have not found the cat yet. Anyway, Tjslim was sitting in the second row of pew on the main floor and had gotten a crick in her neck from looking up at me. Well, her father said that the reason the pastors are so high is for the benefit of those sitting in the balcony. I had never thought of that. The balcony seats are not on an incline, so that if the pastor were floor lever, he would never see those in the balcony. Well, it sounds reasonable. I always thought that it was so the pastor could always say that his parishioners “looked up to him.” Arrrr, Arrrr.
DC does not have a mid-week service (I think I have said that in another blog…since I am doing this away from the internet, I can’t ck the other blogs to see) and we will be doing a study in the book of Philippians. Originally, I thought that I would just do a more in-depth study of 1 Peter, as that is what I had already prepared for at Snizort, but the Lord impressed upon me the need to be fresh in what I am teaching. So please pray for this study. I have a feeling that since it is in a member’s home that being more informal can open some hearts for God to penetrate.
LINDA WILL BE HERE IN FIVE DAYS!! THANK YOU, LORD, FOR YOUR FAITHFULNESS IN SUSTAINING US DURING THIS ABSENCE!!! Please keep Linda in your prayers. She took a cold last week and is still fighting congestion and all that goes with that…you don’t need me to tell you about the dripping nose, hacking cough, sleepless nights…no, no need to mention that. Seriously, please pray for the Lord’s healing to be upon her. Many of you are commenting about your prayers are with me. I give God praise for each of you and your holding me up before the throne of grace that I might grace and mercy from His heart.
Well, I must be off and do some prep for tonight. Let these words of the Apostle Paul be that which establishes your walk today….
9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good.10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor;11 not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord;12 rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer,13 contributing to the needs of the saints , practicing hospitality.14 Bless those who persecute you ; bless and do not curse.15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.16 Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation.17 Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men.18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.19 Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine , I will repay," says the Lord.20 "But if your enemy is hungry , feed him, and if he is thirsty , give him a drink ; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head."21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. (Romans 12)
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Monday, August 4, 2008
I'm Here...in Dunvegan, That Is
August 2, 2008
I have now nestled in to the manse at Dunvegan. It is hard not to compare the two manses, but I would have to say that Snizort did a much better job of preparing for my arrival. Everything was very clean, food stuffs had been put in the cabinets and the manse itself is somewhat newer. On the other hand, however, Dunvegan does have a phone and a cordless extension. I will not have an internet connection here, either. However, just down the street from the manse, a lady in the church has offered me the use of her computer during the day. She is gone all day and so I will take advantage of that, as long as she is not there. I had supper with her and her husband last night and she allowed me on while they were finishing up preparations for the meal. The computer is much faster than in Portree and there is no 30 minute time limits…thank you, Lord.
The actual typing of this is being done in the manse and I will download it on Monday morning.
The manse’s bedrooms are quite small and there is no ensuite bathroom. It is just fine right now, but when Linda’s family arrives…well, it will be fun. It has a small full bath and a powder room. I wonder whether the men or the women will get the half-bath? Duhhhhhh! Two major benefits of this manse as opposed to Snizort is that this manse has a huge living area with two sofas and it also has a dining table, as well as a kitchen table. Either of the two tables will easily facilitate 6 people. It is not that big a deal, anyway, because the six of us will only be in this house for six days. No biggie.
The two churches I will pastor in this parish are light years apart in many ways. Dunvegan’s congregation (DC) is in this huge church. They will have anywhere between 60 and 90 people on any given Sunday. Dunvegan is a large tourist attraction with a couple of hotels and many bed and breakfasts in the town, which will cause the attendance to fluctuate even more. The church building was refurbished in 1983. I have seen the pictures of it and it was quite a project. It is very old church style with an elevated pulpit. I don’t know if it was elevated to make it harder for people to reach the parson with rotten fruit on a bad preaching day or what. But, for me, I see the advantage as being, if Jesus comes back while I am in the pulpit, I will have about a 15ft. head start on everyone else in the pews.
The Bracadale Church (BC) is about 45 minutes from the manse. It is only about 25 miles away, but, because the road is so winding, your average speed is somewhere around 40-45 miles per hour. The BC will have between 14 and 20 in attendance on any given Sunday. The BC meets only at night and DC meets on Sunday morning. The BC does not have a “crow’s nest” and is very informal.
I was quite warmly received in D. by the MacLeod’s (pron. McCloud), Donald and Rosemary. He was a member of the British Foreign Diplomatic Service for 30 years. Everyone told me that he was a rather formal chap, but I found him to be very down to earth. I would love to listen to him talk about his many travels with included, Burma, Indonesia, Singapore, Germany, Switzerland and Rumania. His wife is a charming, gracious and hospitable person. They had me over for supper on Thursday evening…fresh halibut, green veggies, leeks, potatoes and a fruit dessert. We talked about our relationships to the Lord and I found them to be people of deep faith and have many opportunities to live it out among their unsaved acquaintances.
Last night, I had supper with the lady and her husband, who are giving me access to their computer. Their names are Anne and Peter MacAskill. She is the church clerk and is the secretary of a building contractor, who also employs one of the elders from the Snizort Parish, Archie MacDonald. Archie and his wife, Jan, were away on vacation most of the time that I was in Snizort, but he and his wife were two of the most vocal and expressive in the services showing strong acceptance with my preaching. Well, not taking anything away from Anne’s warm reception of me, as to her being that kind of person, but I don’t think it hurt that Archie had prepared her for my coming by saying to her, “You are really going to like him. I wish we weren’t losing him to the DC.”
Tomorrow will be my first Sunday at Dunvegan Parish. I am just about ready, but I am closing now to finish up work on my pm service. I am excited about the coming two months of ministry. Please continue in your prayers for me. I have felt them and appreciate your remembering me before the Father. “Peace to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with a love incorruptible.” (Eph. 6:23,24) Cheerio!
I have now nestled in to the manse at Dunvegan. It is hard not to compare the two manses, but I would have to say that Snizort did a much better job of preparing for my arrival. Everything was very clean, food stuffs had been put in the cabinets and the manse itself is somewhat newer. On the other hand, however, Dunvegan does have a phone and a cordless extension. I will not have an internet connection here, either. However, just down the street from the manse, a lady in the church has offered me the use of her computer during the day. She is gone all day and so I will take advantage of that, as long as she is not there. I had supper with her and her husband last night and she allowed me on while they were finishing up preparations for the meal. The computer is much faster than in Portree and there is no 30 minute time limits…thank you, Lord.
The actual typing of this is being done in the manse and I will download it on Monday morning.The manse’s bedrooms are quite small and there is no ensuite bathroom. It is just fine right now, but when Linda’s family arrives…well, it will be fun. It has a small full bath and a powder room. I wonder whether the men or the women will get the half-bath? Duhhhhhh! Two major benefits of this manse as opposed to Snizort is that this manse has a huge living area with two sofas and it also has a dining table, as well as a kitchen table. Either of the two tables will easily facilitate 6 people. It is not that big a deal, anyway, because the six of us will only be in this house for six days. No biggie.
The two churches I will pastor in this parish are light years apart in many ways. Dunvegan’s congregation (DC) is in this huge church. They will have anywhere between 60 and 90 people on any given Sunday. Dunvegan is a large tourist attraction with a couple of hotels and many bed and breakfasts in the town, which will cause the attendance to fluctuate even more. The church building was refurbished in 1983. I have seen the pictures of it and it was quite a project. It is very old church style with an elevated pulpit. I don’t know if it was elevated to make it harder for people to reach the parson with rotten fruit on a bad preaching day or what. But, for me, I see the advantage as being, if Jesus comes back while I am in the pulpit, I will have about a 15ft. head start on everyone else in the pews.
The Bracadale Church (BC) is about 45 minutes from the manse. It is only about 25 miles away, but, because the road is so winding, your average speed is somewhere around 40-45 miles per hour. The BC will have between 14 and 20 in attendance on any given Sunday. The BC meets only at night and DC meets on Sunday morning. The BC does not have a “crow’s nest” and is very informal.
I was quite warmly received in D. by the MacLeod’s (pron. McCloud), Donald and Rosemary. He was a member of the British Foreign Diplomatic Service for 30 years. Everyone told me that he was a rather formal chap, but I found him to be very down to earth. I would love to listen to him talk about his many travels with included, Burma, Indonesia, Singapore, Germany, Switzerland and Rumania. His wife is a charming, gracious and hospitable person. They had me over for supper on Thursday evening…fresh halibut, green veggies, leeks, potatoes and a fruit dessert. We talked about our relationships to the Lord and I found them to be people of deep faith and have many opportunities to live it out among their unsaved acquaintances.Last night, I had supper with the lady and her husband, who are giving me access to their computer. Their names are Anne and Peter MacAskill. She is the church clerk and is the secretary of a building contractor, who also employs one of the elders from the Snizort Parish, Archie MacDonald. Archie and his wife, Jan, were away on vacation most of the time that I was in Snizort, but he and his wife were two of the most vocal and expressive in the services showing strong acceptance with my preaching. Well, not taking anything away from Anne’s warm reception of me, as to her being that kind of person, but I don’t think it hurt that Archie had prepared her for my coming by saying to her, “You are really going to like him. I wish we weren’t losing him to the DC.”
Tomorrow will be my first Sunday at Dunvegan Parish. I am just about ready, but I am closing now to finish up work on my pm service. I am excited about the coming two months of ministry. Please continue in your prayers for me. I have felt them and appreciate your remembering me before the Father. “Peace to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with a love incorruptible.” (Eph. 6:23,24) Cheerio!
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