No.75      24th January 2026

Hi, 
Hope this finds you well.

Below you will find lots of news about what is going on in the church and events run by Christian organisations. Some may seem quite far off but they need some thinking about just now. eg look out for the Easter event details,  and the 321 course we are running in March really requires you to start planning and praying to see if someone you know (or maybe just you) can get along. 
The 321 material is led by Glen Scrivener (if you want to  hear his surname pronounced incorrectly speak with Margo - it's quite entertaining) and they have a number of videos online where they show how the Gospel message can go toe to toe with the other loud voices in our culture at the moment. (I've included one in the Teabreak below).

Finally, I need to publicly apologise to Chisholm for a comment made in last week's introduction regarding him having lobbied for a Fashion supplement to be part of the magazine - It seems I was too ambigious in what was written and he has asked me to make it clear that it wasn't for him to be reading about fashion but that it would be Chisholm himself who would be the main contributor...very much a leader and not a follower is how he wishes to be viewed.

Enjoy the Mag,
MB

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Sunday 25th January

Morning service - 10.30am
Rev Scott Kirkland
Mark ch9:30-50

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 The Wednesday mid week prayer meeting
meets in the Coopers this month.
7.15-8.15pm 

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Be still my soul the Lord is on thy side
Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain
Leave to thy God to order and provide
In every change He faithful will remain
Be still my soul thy best, thy heavenly friend
Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end

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Letter from the Manse

Dear Church Family,

As some of you will be aware, in each magazine I have reworked the wisdom of the Westminster Confession of Faith into prayers. This magazine prays through the wisdom of Chapter Nineteen of the Confession (see the article below). Can I encourage you to use this prayer (and all past and future prayers) in your devotions? They are certainly "meaty" because the Westminster Confession of Faith is meaty. They are also rich in content because I have not only summarised the themes of each chapter but attempted to include the actual words of the Confession. Linger in each prayer during the week. Let the truth contained in each prayer soak in and shape you as well as your prayers. Particularly, perhaps as you reflect on these words before God, you can make each prayer truly your own. You can find the previous prayers in past magazines.

On a different matter…every Friday evening we transport Audio Visual equipment from two storage locations (The McPhails' garage and the Clarks' home) to Belmont. A team then set up the AV for Sunday. We are indebted to those who undertake this task for us so diligently. We are also indebted to Tom & Janette and Barrie & Janet for storing the equipment. Many thank assist in packing back up on a Sunday and assist in loading the cars to take the kit back to their storage points.

One of the most wonderful sights on a Sunday morning is how many of you, without being asked, assist in returning to chairs to the storage cupboard and even take the extra chairs back up to classrooms. We return the chairs to the cupboard in columns of twelve. Do feel free to assist in these tasks and please be aware that all you do in these regards are hugely appreciated. The clearing of the hall so often happens so quickly and smoothly. I rarely get involved in this process, it is a joy to watch!
For the last two years Margaret and Martin have set-up the chairs for worship on the Friday night as the AV team assemble the equipment. For this coming season this will change to Sunday mornings before worship. We grateful to M&M for these last two years and also their commitment to this new plan for Sunday mornings.

However, it occurs to me that a number of you arrive early for worship. If arrangement of the chairs has not yet been completed when you arrive, you are welcome to assist in this task. We shall likely begin arranging the chairs from about 9.45am onwards. We use two layouts for the chairs in worship.

• On the last Sunday of each month we celebrate communion during worship. To assist in this we have two sitting areas with a centre aisle.
• On the other weeks in the month, we create three sitting areas with two aisles.

You can see the overview here.

Profession of Faith: We had hoped to have a service of profession of faith and the welcoming of new members this Sunday. However, we have postponed this service presently. Does a service of this nature hold significance for you?

Has the Lord drawn you to repentance and faith, and is He now calling you to make a public profession of that faith? Alternatively, if you have been a member of a church elsewhere but have been worshipping with us regularly and believe the Lord wants you to commit to His church family at Mearns Free Church please speak with Scott Hamilton or myself.

Overseas Mission Conference February 7th: We are seeking God in how MFC can better serve the Lord in global missions. Please consider attending the UFM Conference at Chalmers Church, Edinburgh on 7th February. I know several of us are planning to be there. We already have a long-standing relationship with UFM. The current lead in Scotland is a Free Church minister from East Kilbride, our own Catherine A is a UFM missionary and Mary Robertson is one of the organisers of this particular conference. Lots of good reasons to attend!

Let’s attend and pray how this conference might equip us in discovering how we as a local church can participate in the Lord's global mission.The conference is free but you have to sign up.
You can sign up here.

Further details can be found in the article below.
Warmest Regards,
Scott

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Congratulations

Welcome to Alice

- new grandaughter - a healthy 8lbs 11oz ! -  to Eric and Mary Robertson.

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THANKS!

 "We are so grateful for all the expressions of love in the birth of Freddie and Maliah. 
Thanks for the cards, gifts (which included Theo) and all your prayers."
Priscilla and Sarah (Kirkland)

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We want to support the Govan Free Church Food Bank and one obvious way to do that is dontae things that can be taken down to Govan each week.
There will be a bag at the back of the hall where you can donate foodstuffs for taking to the Food Bank. We will have details of the sort of goods which are looked for most of all. Typically cans of soup, or pasta etc are popular. Bags of rice and dry pasta. Sugar, coffee and tea bags are opened and split into smaller bags so if you see deals on larger quantities that can still be used.
Speak with Sue A or Martin B for more details.

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Could you explain the Gospel?

Over the last couple of weeks we have been askingn the question 'Would yoube able to explain the Gospel to someone?'  What would you want to include, what would you want to focus on...and where to start? The young people are working through the 2 Ways to Live Gospel outline in order to know what the central truths of the Gospel are, so they can know these truths for themselves and respond to the King they meet in the Gospel...and also spot false gospels.

IMAGE 2
Last week we looked at how God is the loving ruler of this world he created it, and how he made us in his image to rule the world...
But we have said 'No' to God - everything that is wrong in our lives and in the world stems from the fateful choice humanity made when we didn’t (and still don't) want God to be our ruler. In various ways in rebelling against God we have wanted to move away from being under God's rightful authority.

• We all reject God as our ruler by running our own lives our own way.
• By rebelling against God’s way, we damage ourselves, each other, and the world.
• The question is: what will God do about our rebellion against him?

(If you want to read more about this image and the rest of the  2 Ways to Live course  take a look here)

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Last week's magazine encouraged us all to follow the Youth Programme and learn the Two Ways to Live outline - with the drawings and what they each represent.

What was intended as being a bit of light humour regarding Spot Checks being carried out to see if the youth had done their 2WTL homework our Session Clerk has seen as too good an opportuntiy to miss, here seen checking on the understanding of Genesis 1 in relation to John ch1, and taking their views on whether the days in Genesis were 24 hour periods.

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Starts again - Tue 27th January
The Cafe is a really popular weekly meeting for lots of older people in the church - why not join us if you haven't been before.
If you need more information (or need transport) speak with Elizabeth S.

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Thanks to all who have volunteered to cover the evening sessions from the 2nd February. I am sure you will enjoy it as will the service users.

Practical Items

It would be nice as a congregation to support this ministry further, and GCM have put out this request.

Practical items are always incredibly welcome. Having access to essentials such as socks, boxer shorts, and toiletries is a huge blessing for our guests. We have showers and laundry facilities on-site, and being able to offer someone fresh underwear or toiletries truly makes a difference to their dignity and wellbeing.
Some churches also collect everyday items we use in our food Drop-Ins, such as diluting juice, tea, and sugar, all of which help us serve our guests throughout the year.
I would be happy to collate any donations and Charles can deliver them on the night he is there.
Thank you
Sue Amery-Behr

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28th March may seem a long way off but this event will be a great way of reaching out into our community and will have something for everyone.
Please put it in the diary.
More details to follow in weeks to come but having donations organised asap helps a lot.
Speak with Fiona or Brian Waugh if you can contribute in any way.

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SU Day of PrayerOur Day of Prayer is on Wednesday 28 January 2026 and we’d love your support!

Why a day of prayer? Setting aside a specific day helps us all, as the SU family, to focus on God, celebrate and praise him for who he is and what he has done, and bring him our petitions and intercessions for SU ministry in the year ahead.
Our Bible focus this year is 2 Chronicles 7:14. Click here to get our guide in what to pray for as you pray personally.

We also provide opportunities to pray with others.

Email Pauline pauline.forster@suscotland.org.uk for the Zoom link for our regional prayer gatheringWednesday 28th January 1.30pm

Wherever you are, whoever you are, however little or much you know about SU Scotland – we’d love you to join in. Thank you!For more information and links to other prayer gatherings visit the webpage 

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Costumes for Bible Alive

We are looking for a couple of basic easy to put on Bible times tunic style outfits which will better fit P5/6 pupils. Our current outfits are either far too small or far too giant. We almost lost a pupil inside one last week!
Is anyone handy with a sewing machine and could make something and does anyone have any plain coloured material (preferably not white/cream) that could be used?
Pauline

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Speak Life are the team that have produced the 321 material we will be using in March.
They have a number of interesting videos available - often it is Glen Scrivener who presents the material but in this recent interview he introduces journalist Ross Douthat who is interviewing a well known athiest Sam Harris - it's 20 mins but very interesting, and typical of the way Speak Life want to engage with people in a way which challenges views and also opens up ways to understanding who Jesus is and why the Bible can be trusted.
An interesing watch, find it here!

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Israel Tour

Donald Martin is an old friend of several of us in MFC and has sent news of the tour running to Israel in May  - details in the link below.
JOIN US FOR A LIFE-CHANGING 10-day Israel Tour
19 – 28 May, 2026
‘Where the Bible comes to life’
Journey in the footsteps of Jesus, Old Testament Prophets and Kings.
Details for the 2026 Israel Tour, 19th – 28th May for 10 days are here.

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DATE FOR THE DIARY

Actually, it's FOUR dates for the diary!


We are planning to run the 321 evangelistic course - starting on 1st March.
321 is a four-week course that invites you to see life the way Jesus does.
Inspired by Jesus’ vision of reality, 321 is designed to help you think about God, the world and yourself through immersive videos and thoughtful illustrations.
It’s great for someone new to Christian things - no prior knowledge is needed and you’ll be helped to think through some of the big questions of life in a simple and easy to understand way.
Here is a taster VIDEO - more details to follow.

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Local Church, Global Mission

– Edinburgh

How can members and leaders of the local church be more effective in serving and reaching the nations?
Join us for Local Church, Global Mission, a half-day conference with inspiring teaching, discussion and prayer.

Saturday, 7 February 2026
Time: 9.15 for 9.30 start (refreshments included).
We will finish at approx. 14.00.
Venue: Chalmers Church
Free
Keynote speaker: John McLernon, Mission Director at Crosslinks – a global mission society with ministries in 35 countries across five continents.
Programme details and booking link is here.
For more details look at the page or speak with Mary Robertson...  she writes:
"It’s a conference for everyone because God’s call to all believers is to share the gospel with nations. We’re hoping people involved in children’s and youth work will come along to a seminar tailored to them. We’re praying for church leaders and members to be stimulated to think more about the role God has for them in his global plan. We trust some will be called to go overseas too"

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World Watch List 2026 has been launched!
Discover the impossible faith of the persecuted church. The World Watch List Top 50 is your must-have prayer guide to the world of the persecuted church. Features in-depth information and prayer points for all top 50 countries, as well as inspiring stories and helpful background features.

Find out more about their resources here.

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If you read Scott's letter above you will see the thinking behind his using of the Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF) as a framework for prayer - helping us to pray through the great truths contained there... This week's focus is on the Law of God. It ties in well with the 2 ways to Live image for this week which acknowledges that from Adam onwards there is a tendency in us to say No to God and to put ourselves on the throne as it were. 
You can read it here.

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Rehearsal days and dates are on the PG webpage here
Glasgow rehearsals are Monday evening at Clincarthill Church

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SU regional primary weekend
There are still spaces remaining for the Renfrewshire, East Renfrewshire and Inverclyde weekend for P5-P7 pupils. 
6 - 8 Feb, Gowanbank , for P5 - P7 children,  £105.00
Pauline and Lynne Hamilton are leading this weekend and it should be filled with fun activities, good food and exploring the Bible together. Book here. 

SU Holidays - Easter, Summer and October
Bookings are underway for 2026 SU Holidays.
What a great gift for kids and grandchildren! There are also new camper discount for those who haven't been to an event that's longer than 3 days before - enter the code NEWCAMPER26 at checkout and there is a refer a friend scheme too. Browse all the holidays available here or pick up a flyer at church on Sunday. 

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  Ladybird Book of Mearns Free

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Safeguarding Training

NEXT SESSION -  MONDAY 26th!

Everyone who has PVG certification through Mearns Free Church must undergo safeguarding training (or refresher training) every 3 years. Some have still to undertake this training. The Free Church provides excellent online safeguarding training (places can be booked through the following link: Safeguarding Training Booking – Free Church of Scotland). The next training sessions are on:
Monday 26th January – 19.30
Thursday 26th March – 19.30
Tuesday 28th April – 19.30
Monday 25th May – 19.30