St George's-Tillydrone Church of Scotland

Church Magazine - 169 Oct/Nov 1998

Dear Friends - From the Minister
Church News...
Forthcoming Services
Around Aberdeen
We are one in the spirit.... or are we?
Hello! - from Helen McDougall
Friendship Hour
The Guild
Open Door - Points for Prayer
In Brief - News of People

The theme of Celebration is very much in our thoughts. On Sept 6^th, St George's celebrated its 30^th anniversary with a special Thanksgiving service conducted by Rev. Andrew Stevenson, who was one of the Assessor Elders in 1968. After the service, we enjoyed a special cake baked by Alan Duncan and cut by Elsie McGregor. The previous week, we also had a special service when we welcomed about 60 officers of the Girls' Brigade companies in the area, and had as our guest, Rev Stewart Jeffrey, our former minister. For that service we had the beautiful new 30^th Anniversary Banner which was made by members under the guidance of Carol Marples and Alan Duncan.

It was interesting that one of the Bible Passages chosen by Andrew Stevenson on Sept 6 was also read at another very significant celebration on Sept 16^th: the dedication of the magnificent Bridge of Don Oldmachar Church Centre. The passage was 2 Chronicles 6: 12-21, Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the temple in Jerusalem. In it, he poured out his longing for God to hear, to forgive and to bless His people. He continued "May the Lord our God be with us, as He was with our ancestors; may He never leave us, or abandon us; may He make us obedient to Him so that we will always live as He wants us to live ..... and so all the nations of the world will know that the Lord alone is God - there is no other." As we, together with our brothers and sisters in Bridge of Don Old Machar, celebrate God's goodness, we remember that much will be required of those to whom much has been given.

We also rejoice in answered prayer for another Careforce worker. Helen McDougall joined us on Sept 13^th and introduces herself elsewhere in this issue. Please pray for Helen to settle quickly and to be strengthened to use her gifts in God's service in Tillydrone and beyond.

With loving greetings,

Shirley A. Fraser

This week of outreach to P4-7 children in Tillydrone was postponed from Sept till Oct 19-23. It will be held from 4.00 - 5.30 pm in the Church. Helen McDougall will be masterminding this important event. Anyone who wishes to be involved should speak to Helen or Shirley.

Following the Chattabox Week, we want to begin a new club for Primary children on a Saturday morning from 11.00 am - 12.30 pm. We intend to give the children a snack (for we know many do not get breakfast) and then have a mixture of fun time and Bible teaching. If you would like to help with the Club (even if you would not be free every Saturday), please speak to Shirley.

Accomodation required...

Accommodation required immediately for Christian female Church worker, to share with another Christian female in the periphery of Tillydrone, Aberdeen. contact Rev Shirley Fraser e-mail safraser@btinternet.com

Several of our Church teenagers are being prepared for baptism. Their Church tradition is one of baptism by immersion on profession of faith. The service will be held on Sat 31^st Oct and St George's folk are invited to unite with the members of the Afro-Caribbean Fellowship in this joyful event.

It is hoped to have a service of Admission to Membership in St George's before Christmas, and so anyone considering that should speak to Shirley as soon as possible. St George's also offers Associate Membership to any, especially students, who want to retain their membership in their home church, but be clearly associated with us in their time in Aberdeen. More information is available from Willie Philip.

Shirley will be on holiday from Nov 10-16. Willie is on holiday from Oct 10-24

NE Scotland Youth for Christ are sponsoring a Robin Mark Concert on Saturday 17th October 1998 at 7:30pm in Gerrard Street Baptist Church. Robin Mark was one of the worship leaders at the recent Spring Harvest, so we look forward to a super evening of worship and praise. It would be good if we could use the event to promote the work of Yfc and meet members of Powerpoint and Sonrise. Tickets cost £6.00 and can be got from CLC or Wesley Owen. YFC are also running a series of events for teenagers (Powerpoint) and young adults (Sonrise) this autumn

Mrs Pearl Corstorphine of Nigg in Aberdeen has written asking us to intimate the meetings of the Lamp Associates who meet on the third Monday of each month in the North Church of St Andrew, Queen Street, Aberdeen between 7.30 pm and 9.00 pm. Details of the activities of the Lamp Associates are sketchy but apparently they have a varied programme of speakers, demonstrations etc.

Aberdeen University's Centre for Continuing Educations are running several course this coming semester as part of their Certificate and Diploma in Christian Studies. Individual courses on topics such as "Hymns seeking understanding", "Health and Healing" and "St Matthews Gospel" are on offer.

Contact us for more details on any of the above.

We are one in the spirit.... or are we?

For any relationship to take roots and thrive well there must be an agreement between the two or more parties involved. To succeed there must be agreement, unity and oneness of purpose. The importance of agreement and its positive effect on our relationship with one another and with our God was emphasised by our Lord Jesus Christ in Matt. 18.19. Jesus said "Whenever two of you on earth agree on anything you pray for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven". This passage further shows that our prayers will produce effective results if we agree with one another. The sky will not even be our limit because we shall penetrate into the high heavens if we stand on the same "pedestal table" in prayer with one another. We shall receive answers to our corporate requests. The words that read "we can do anything" (Gen. 11.6 and Matt.18.19) can only be realised when there is agreement with one another, when there is unity or oneness of purpose with one another in our families, in our churches and fellowships.

Jesus said if only TWO of us can agree on anything we pray for, we shall receive the answer. This assurance could be much more when THREE or FOUR or FIVE, etc. etc. agree to pray on something. Better still, think of the effect of the whole fellowship or church agreeing to pray for something; the whole church of Christ in the whole of Scotland, UK, Europe or even the whole world agreeing to pray for something. We could be right to conclude that one of the reasons for the lack of answers to our prayers is because of disagreement or lack of oneness of purpose in our families, fellowships or churches. For if we exercise doubts, our prayers will not be answered. James 1.6 says "when you pray you must believe and not doubt at all".....for such a person will not receive anything at all from the Lord. It is no wonder that the Bible emphasises that as Christians we must agree with one another to be able to be able to receive answers to our prayers.

Let us take time to reflect on our attitudes to one another at home, or at Church. The Bible asks an important question; "Can two walk together, except they agreed?" (Amos 3.3). The last prayer of Jesus (John 17. 1-26) for the apostles and the entire church was.... 'that they may be one, just as we are one' (John 17.11). Unity is therefore important because it further proves the presence of the Lord in the daily lives of the Christians (the church). Every fellowship, be it of marriage, family or church needs this oneness. The wall of division/disagreement amongst Christians has been broken down by Christ himself so as to unite us ...irrespective of race, intellect, status, etc. etc. (Eph. 2.14-18). The hostility amongst us Christians has been destroyed by Christ himself ('The Lion of Judah'). We are now ONE. It is this oneness that is the foundation of peace in our churches and the assurance that our corporate prayers will be answered when we approach the throne of Mercy; Grace and Love. Let us therefore, agree not to disagree in our families, churches and fellowships so that we can receive answers to our corporate requests; amen.

Bro. Philip M. Dawuda

Hello from Helen McDougall

Well, hello everyone. My name is Helen McDougall and I am the new Careforce worker. It is great to be here at last. The past few weeks have been hectic with packing and moving. When I discovered I was coming to Aberdeen my father told me this joke:

This, however, I believe is just a myth! In my own experience of meeting people here, they have been very kind and warm. I'll give you a brief outline of myself. I am the youngest of three. I have a sister and a brother. I was born and raised in a housing scheme on the outskirts of Glasgow, very much like Tillydrone. Neither of my parents attended church but encouraged us to attend. I enjoyed going to Sunday school and leaning new songs. I remembered that Noah had a big boat and Jesus "fished for men".

As I grew older I drifted in and out of church. I got bored as none of my friends attended and it was the same old routine each week. I remember thinking that if this was being a Christian and following God then they can keep it. However, six years ago while working in Texas (USA) I hit a difficult time in my life and had no-one to turn to. I said "If you are there God, you need to help me". I went and got my Bible and opened it at John 3.16 and heard God saying that he loved me ..... I realised what Jesus had done for me. I asked God to forgive me, and made a new commitment to Him.

For the past two years I have been studying for my Social Work Diploma at University of Strathclyde. At the beginning of the year I decided I wanted to take time out to give me time to find out what God would call me to do. As I shared my thoughts with friends they kept on talking about an organisation called Careforce. One of my friends had spent a year with them previously and said how much se had enjoyed it. I sent off my application form and forgot all about it. Then I got the call saying that they were sending my papers to Aberdeen. I felt excited about this as I had previously been to Aberdeen (Bridge of Don) for a holiday when I was fourteen and fell in love with the beauty.

When I visited the church I felt this was the place I should be for the year. My long term goal is to work with street children and young people in Brazil. However, I would like to do a year in theological study to hive me a good foundation in God's word. This year I hope to grow in my relationship with God and to reach out to others in whatever possible way. I look forward to getting to know everyone and being part of the team at St George's Tillydrone.

The next session of the Guild is to start on Monday 19^th October, 1998. It will meet fortnightly thereafter at 7.30 pm

We look forward to welcoming old friends and we would like to take this opportunity of inviting new friends to come along and join us. You can rest assured that you will get a very warm welcome from the existing members and there will be no pressure on you to do anything other than have a pleasant evening in good company.

On our first evening we will be showing the video of the Guild Celebration of 1997.

Win Armstrong
President

• Give thanks for Helen McDougall, our new Careforce Worker and pray that she will find suitable accommodation and settle quickly into working and living here in Tillydrone.
• Pray for the Children's Mission now to be held October 19-23. Pray that the children will want to come and enjoy this week. Pray also for enough leaders to come and help.
• Pray for those who are ill, either in hospital or at home. Remember those who have been bereaved recently, and pray that they will know God's comfort and strength.
• Pray for the minister and congregation of Old Machar Church. Give thanks that they now have their own church building and pray that they will be richly blessed as they worship there and witness in the community.
• Continue to pray for our missionary partner, Cathy Aberdour as she works with the Apurina Indians in Brazil. Pray too for Rhona Cruickshank as she settles in to a new term of studies after the summer break.
• Pray for the vacancy committee at Northfield Church that they will be given discernment and wisdom in choosing a minister.
• Pray for Karel Matejka, a theology student from Prague. He has been linked with our church and we pray that he will feel at home amongst us.

Muriel Collie

We welcome several new folk into the life of St George's, praying that they will feel very much at home with us. Helen McDougall writes introducing herself elsewhere in this issue. We also welcome Karel Matejka from Prague in Czechoslovakia. Karel is a final year theology student, and he is supported as a bursar by the Board of World Mission of the Church of Scotland. He will be part of our Church Fellowship whilst here and he can be contacted at Room 7, Flat A8, Linksfield Hall, 9-11 Linksfield Road.

Congratulations to Willie and Rebecca Philip on the birth of Joanna Mary Moffat Philip on August 12^th. Also to Bill and Julia Mullen on the birth of Claire on August 20, a sister for Zoë and Christopher. We also congratulate Pam Ewen and Simon Barker on their engagement, the wedding being planned for March 20 in Kings. Sometimes personal circumstances mean that we lose members of our congregation who have to move away. Earlier this year Mrs Gladys Mundie went to live in sheltered housing in Mintlaw and sadly her sister died shortly afterwards. More recently our esteemed senior Assessor Elder from St Machar's Cathedral, Jim Hay, had to move into Abbeyfield accommodation in Edinburgh, near to his son Dennis. We send warm good wishes to Jim as he settles in; his address is 26 Colinton Road, Edinburgh EH10 5EQ

We were sad to lose another elderly member, who was formerly in St George's in the West Church. Harry Martin died in Morningfield Hospital after a period of increasing frailty

Kathleen Holland, the Pastoral Assistant in Gort Road has had to give up distributing the Church flowers to sick and bereaved fold. Many have expressed their warm appreciation of Kathleen's unassuming, gentle manner as she visited. Any offers from car drivers to help with flower distribution would be most welcome.

Our very first Careforce volunteer, Jonathan Gower, wrote a few months ago with the news that he is moving schools in September. He will be senior teacher in his new school. He is also on his Church's PCC (like our Kirk Session) and continues to write for S.U. He has taken on an allotment and wrote that he was eagerly awaiting his first crop!

Our first summer assistant, Betty Smith, follows the news of St George's with interest. She is minister in St Mark's Drumchapel in Glasgow, and has heard that her congregation and that of South Carntyre will share and SU urban worker.

Jane Howitt was back in Scotland from Latvia for a few weeks this summer. By now she will be very busy with writing notes for SU and continuing to train nationals in the Baltics and beyond. Pray for her minister colleague, Edgars and for the staffing needs of SU in the Baltic States.

After her lovely break in Malaysia and Hong Kong with her parents, Rhona Cruickshank is back at University for Chinese language study.

Sheila Kendall, who was with OMF in Forth Thailand has decided to resign in order to be on hand for her family in Aberdeen.

Ian and Fay Kirby in Bishkek ask for prayer as they have lecture notes to prepare weekly in Russian (for the Bible College)

Paul and Hilary Gunning who were in St George's in July, when Paul conducted the morning service, have returned to the Bible College in Namibia.

On Sept 30^th Rev David Hutchison will demit the charge of Torry St Fitticks on the grounds of ill health. Please pray for David, his wife Hazel and their daughter Carrie as they adjust to this. We are glad to hear they will be living quite near to us in University Road.

Remember Willie and Rebecca Philip as the end of the probationary period is in sight, that they may know God's clear leading for the next step.

Church Telephone Directory
The church magazine in print includes a list of telephone numbers of contact persons within the church. We do not intend publishing this on our web site - however if you would like a copy, please e-mail George and we will gladly send you one.

From the editor...
Many of you submit articles which you have typed on computers. You then print them off and give them to me. I then type them in again. It would make my job much easier if you could give me the disks (in any pc format) and the paper. I'm quite happy to return disks later.

St George's-Tillydrone magazine is edited by Alan Duncan. The church web site is at http://www.ifb.co.uk/~tillybin/stgeorge. Submissions are welcome by email, on disk or on paper (in that order of preference). Contributions may be edited. Copy date for the next magazine is 15 Nov 1998. Thanks to Ray Hepburn, Dorothy Irvine and Jackie Hamilton, for regular help with photocopying, folding etc. Web site mastered by George McLeod at Tillybin.