No.80      28th February, 2026

Hi, 
Hope this finds you well. 

I mentioned last week that I'm often struck by how things tie in so well in terms of what God is trying to teach us through the week. Last Sunday evening at the Joint Evening Service we had an International focus with different cultures and languages being used to remind us of how God has brought a people together from every tribe and tongue and nation. In the morning Scott K had pointed out that Bartimaeus was not someone who would be valued or be given a voice in his society and yet Jesus stopped and called him by name to himself. If we really believe the Gospel then we mustn't judge or treat people according to their social class, what we believe they can offer us, or their skin colour! - there is no place for that thinking in the Church of Jesus Christ because of his death and resurrection, and you can read more of that in '50 reasons for the Cross' below.

Lots in the magazine this week, from our own activities, to those around Glasgow and beyond...Easter events are also coming up...take a look and see how you can help, or be involved.

Enjoy the mag.

MB

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Sunday 1st March

Morning service - 10.30am
Zechariah ch9  - Mark ch11


...are on Sunday evening and during the week.

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 The Wednesday mid week prayer meeting
7.15-8.15pm
This week we are at the McNicols' in Eaglesham
"A prayer meeting is a time in which a local church prays to God together, yet it is also a time in which the church teaches one another how to pray. If you struggle with knowing how to pray, be sure to attend the church’s prayer meeting, listen to the ways others pray, and imitate what they do well. They are your tutors."  Tim Challies

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IT'S NOT TOO LATE!
We are planning to run the 321 evangelistic course - starting tomorrow Sunday  1st March.
3-2-1 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.
 See more about the video host Glen below in the Tea Break suggestion...

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SATURDAY - 14th  MARCH

9am - 10am at the Smiths', Eaglesham

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Letter from the Manse

Dear Church Family,
At Mearns Free, we are very familiar with the expressions "church" and "family." Astonishingly, when we are called to faith in Jesus Christ, God becomes—in a special and intimate way—our Heavenly Father, and Jesus becomes our brother and each of us brothers and sisters in Christ (John 1:12, Romans 8:14–16, Hebrews 2:11)
You walk into a church far from home while on holiday and you feel an immediate bond with the people. Why? By the grace of God and the work of His Spirit we are united to Jesus and one another.
It is worth pausing in prayer simply to praise Him for these Spirit-birthed relationships.

The Meaning of "Church": We are however also "The Church." The Bible uses many images for the church: a body, the bride of Christ, a temple, and a flock and so on. The church is essentially the worshipping community of God who have been bought by the blood of Jesus.From the beginning, humanity was created to worship God with one another. Though this relationship with God was broken in the Fall, God’s covenant of grace nevertheless continued to draw to God a people in obedient faith.
Abraham's family were later formalized as a nation to worship God. Gathering His people together at Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments, the assembly was called in Hebrew a qahal. The Greek version of the Old Testament would translate this most frequently ekklesia—translated with our English word, "church."
Jesus says in Matthew 16, "I will build my church (ekklesia)."
He is describing a people who will be "called out" from the world to God and "called together" to worship and serve God through Jesus. We see this church grow at Pentecost (Acts 2:39–44) and expand across the world.

Local and Universal:  Jesus is building one universal Church, yet it is manifested in innumerable local places like Corinth, Thessalonica, Ephesus and Newton Mearns. It is clear from the New Testament that multiple churches often existed in one geographical area like the island of Crete; Paul instructed Titus to appoint elders in "every town" across Crete (Titus 1). Clearly, the island was too large for just one gathering.Newton Mearns is too large for just one gathering and as Mearns Free Church, we are a local expression of His universal church. We serve alongside other churches in our area.

The Marks of a Healthy Church: Since the Reformation and the Scots Confession of 1560, three "marks" have defined a True Church:

The true preaching of the Word of God, where He reveals Himself through the Scriptures of Old and New Testaments. (John Calvin would later add that this mark include right hearing of the Word also – Institutes Book 4, Chapter 1, Section 9).
The right administration of the Sacraments, which seal God's promises in our hearts.
Church discipline, uprightly ministered to repress vice and nourish virtue.While these marks remain foundational to every church and especially Mearns Free Church, I wonder that we should also ask a question: If these marks define a "true" church, what makes a true church "healthy"?
Over the coming months, our Kirk Session will be praying through and trying to articulate a "vision" for a healthy Mearns Free Church. At its most basic level, a healthy true church must look in three directions:

• Upward: In the worship of God (Hebrews 12.28).
• Inward: Caring for one another in the church and equipping each other for service (Ephesians 4:11–16, Galatians 6.2, 1 John 3.17-18).
• Outward: Seeking the lost with the Good News of Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:18–20, Romans 10.14-15, 1 Peter 3.15).Please pray for the Session as we reflect on what it means to be a healthy, true church in a concrete way at this time and place.

Warmest regards,
Scott K

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AGM

The Church's Annual General Meeting is on Friday, 20th March at 7-8pm.
We will gather for our Annual General Meeting. 2025 accounts will be presented with discussion on our MFC life and time for prayer. Six Finance Committee members will be elected. These will also serve as OSCR Trustees for 2026/27. The existing Finance Committee members are willing to stand for re-election: Catherine MacKay, Daniel Clarke, Lawrence Renn, Lorna Hamilton, Margo McNicol, and Tom Brown. Other nominations are welcome. Please send additional nominations to Scott K at minister@mearnsfree.org before 20th March so that an election process can be worked out.  Please ensure all nominations have agreed to stand.
Please ensure you come along to the AGM.

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Meet the Church - Thanks!

It was good to see so many people helping out in various ways on Sunday for our Meet the Church service- arriving early to organise lunch and sort out badges...leaving later to help with clear up....and everything in between.

BEING PART OF MEARNS FREE CHURCH
Some of you will have noticed the video on the screen of Liam Moonwalking while sweeping up at church...of course, the clip was totally AI generated so, we're sorry to tell you, that Liam wasn't really moonwalking while sweeping ...although it is true that previously he and the two Daniels have attempted to perform the Slosh while stacking chairs.  Anyway, the point of the video (yes, there was a point!) was to show that there are all sorts of ways to joyfully serve at MFC and this Sunday proved that once again...could you be involved - maybe you have an idea? Speak with Margo and see what is possible.

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2 bits of news from Pauline with her SU Scotland hat on...

Barrhead Local Ministry Hub

MONDAY 2nd MARCH
I know some of us in our congregation live and/or work in Barrhead and so wanted to share info about our first Local Ministry Hub meeting happening on Monday.
This will be an opportunity mainly to pray for the development and growth of schools ministry in Barrhead which has been tricky recently.
If you can't make gathering but would like to know more and be involved in future Hub meetings please let me know either in person or email me pauline.forster@suscotland.org.uk

Baking for teachers

This coming Thursday (5th March) will be our final Bible Alive session in Mearns Primary this term and we would like to provide some home baking for the staff to say thank you. If you would be able to help contribute to this then please let me know asap.  We did this at Crookfur last month with baking provided by NMBC bakers and it was really well received by the teachers. 

Pauline Forster ​​​​
Regional Worker, East Renfrewshire, Renfrewshire and Inverclyde

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Any Shape Will Do

We have a connection with Govan Free Church's Food Bank and an obvious way to support them is donating some food.
This week there was a bit of a lack of Pasta  - any shape!! Big bags are split into smaller ones. Can you help? TIns of soup etc also welcome.
There is a bag at the back of the hall on a Sunday morning. Speak to Sue A or Martin B for more info.

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Centre for Rural Ministries Conference
Saturday 7th March - Lochgilphead
We will have a small involvement in this conference as we are trying to support the rural ministry of Lochgilphead.
Scott Kirkland will be attending and possibly some elders.
We can try and travel together. Please book in using this link and let Scott K know if you are planning to attend and want to travel together.

Here is an outline of the conference:
The Centre for Rural Ministry
This promises to be an interesting and enjoyable day filled with fellowship, teaching, and discussion. Lunch is included, but please let us know ASAP if you have any dietary requirements. Rev. Rodger Crooks will open the Word for us, and then we will consider the Quiet Revival and Evangelism. After our lunch break, we will move into Seminar Groups, covering a wide range of topics. With a 9:30 for 10 start, we will finish around 3/3:30. We would love for you to join us! 

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Letter from the Other Manse

Hello church family!
On Thursday night of this past week, ten young adults from the church family met to study the first seventeen verses of Romans. This the beginning of what I hope to be a series of studies for us as we work through the first eight chapters of Romans before the summer.
We met for some food, studied these verses for around an hour and a quarter, and then finished the evening off with some cake. I was really encouraged by the numbers, by the conversation, and by our shared desire to speak the truth of the gospel into one another’s lives. It feels like the nucleus of a group that could really kick on and grow spiritually over time. There are a few more we hope will come along in due course.

Paul’s letter to Titus commands older believers to encourage and disciple younger believes. This is a really important part of our corporate life together. If you’re an older believer, you have so much wisdom to pass on to younger believers, especially those of us who are heading into newer stages of our lives. However, alongside that, there is a huge advantage to meeting up with those at our own age and stage, in order to encourage and support one another in our own particular contexts.
This is where a young adults Bible study comes in. We read last night that one of Paul’s desires is to see the church in Rome to mutually encourage one another in their faith. Paul describes that as a “spiritual gift”. This resonated with us last night, that when we see one another, we sharpen one another, even just as a physical reminder that we’re not alone in our walk with the Lord.
Paul wants to unite the church in Rome, across Jewish and Gentile lines, to give them the same mind for mission and ministry that Paul has. He’s going to tell the church in Rome that all of us have turned away from God, that we’re all without excuse, but the explosive power of the gospel is that all can be saved, regardless of our spiritual heritage and history.

Please keep on praying for these young adults (and if you are one, pray for us as a group!), that these times together, sharing food and God’s Word, will be nourishing for us in every way; spiritually, relationally, physically, and emotionally. Satan will hate that we gather together. We are battling the spiritual forces of a culture that is, at times, hostile to the truth of the gospel.
Wonderfully, we saw the way that the gospel not only saves us all but unites us all in such a way that no earthly division could separate. Pray for that unity amongst the young adults, but also more widely, as we try and encourage that gospel unity between the generations and the rows of seats on a Sunday.

See you at church!
Scott H

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Last Sunday morning we looked at Mark Ch10 and how, as with Bartimaeus, when we come to Jesus just to get Jesus, by God's grace our previous dreams, plans and priorities will change, and become in line with God's.

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50 Reasons for the Cross

As we head towards Easter there are a number of daily devotional books available to focus our minds on the meaning of what Jesus would accomplish in His death.
John Piper's book 50 Reasons for the Cross is available as a FREE download which you can access easily here.
So for example, to show the breadth and depth of how the Biblical writers understand the Cross here are just some of the headings (each 'reason' is only 2 pages long). Read one each day?:
To Absorb the Wrath of God
To Please His Heavenly Father
To Learn Obedience and Be Perfected
To Achieve His Own Resurrection from the Dead
To Show the Wealth of God’s Love and Grace for Sinners
To Show His Own Love for Us
To Cancel the Legal Demands of the Law  Against Us

To Ransom People from Every Tribe and Language and People and Nation
Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. Revelation 5:9

The scene is heaven. The apostle John has been given a glimpse of the future in the hand of God. “I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll . . . sealed with seven seals” (Revelation 5:1). Opening the scroll signifies the unfolding of world history in the future. John weeps that there seems to be no one to open the scroll. Then one of the heavenly beings says, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll” (5:5). This is a reference to Jesus Christ, the Messiah. He had conquered by his death and resurrection. Then John sees him: “I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain” (5:6).
Then the heavenly beings around the throne fall down and worship Christ. They sing a new song. Amazingly, the song announces that it is the death of Christ that makes him worthy to open the scroll of history. The implication is that Christ’s death was necessary to accomplish God’s global purposes in history. “They sang a new song, saying, ‘Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation’” (5:9).

Christ died to save a great diversity of peoples. Sin is no respecter of cultures. All peoples have sinned. Every race and culture needs to be reconciled to God. As the disease of sin is global, so the remedy is global. Jesus saw the agony of the cross coming and spoke boldly about the scope of his purpose: “I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (John 12:32). As he planned his death, he embraced the world.
Christianity began in the East. Over the centuries there was a major shift to the West. But increasingly now, Christianity is not a Western religion. This is no surprise to Christ. Already in the Old Testament his global impact was foretold: “All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you” (Psalm 22:27). “Let the nations be glad and sing for joy” (Psalm 67:4). So when Jesus came to the end of his ministry on earth, he made his mission clear: “that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations” (Luke 24:46-47). The command to his disciples was unmistakable: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19).

Jesus Christ is not a tribal deity. He does not belong to one culture or one ethnic group. He is “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). “There is no distinction between Jew and Greek [or any other group]; the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved’” (Romans 10:12-13). Call on him now, and join the great global band of the redeemed.

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TUESDAYS 2 - 3.30pm

in Newton Mearns Baptist Church

A great opportunnity to meet friends, and enjoy some tea, coffee and home baking.

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Last week the prayer Scott gave us (using the Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF) as a framework) looked at society and how it is ordered by God with political and legal structures...this week the focus is on another key essence of how our society works and brings it nearer to home - it is for prayer for Marriage and Divorce. This is a painful area for some and also something which needs prayer as there are dozens of decisions made each week in the home as we take seriously the last line in the prayer - "Be honoured and glorified in our homes and our marriages, we pray." How grateful we are to our Heavenly Father for His love and patience with us each day. Read it here.

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Finance Officer Vacancy

Free Church of Scotland Central Office Team
The Free Church of Scotland is looking for a capable Accountant to join our team of committed staff in the Central Office to help with specific projects and to support the regular financial work of the charity and denomination. This is a new part-time opportunity on an initial fixed-term contract, with the possibility of extension. The Finance Officer will have strong accounting skills, be experienced in financial reporting, highly organised and self-motivated, and a desire to manage Church finances well. This is an exciting opportunity for someone to use their professional skills in a vocational Christian role. 
More information, a full job description and an application form can be obtained from the Free Church website or by emailing Fiona Russell (fiona.russell@freechurch.org).

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Put this outreach event  in your diary - who could you bring along to hear about the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus from the dead?
Palm Sunday evening at Belmont School.

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Ladybird Book of Mearns Free Church

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Our Easter family funday will be on 
Saturday 28th March, 11-2pm
and is an ideal opportunity to bring together friends and families within our community.
You can see on the flyer a selection of what will be going on.

If you would be able to help with this event please get in touch with Fiona Waugh on 07795361752.

We would also be grateful for any donations towards various stalls and competitions:

Pre-loved Toy Stall

At the Easter Extravaganza on Saturday 28th March we will be having a pre-loved toy stall. This is your chance to clear out and de-clutter! We are looking for toy donations in very good condition and with all the relevant parts present. We will accept your donations by bringing them to Belmont school on Sunday 15th March and Sunday 22nd March. Please get in touch with  Susan Little, if you have any questions. Thank you! 

Home Baking - all donations will be greatly appreciated and we will give you a date nearer the time for donations to be handed in.
Various Prizes - any unwanted gifts you may have received but will not use eg. toiletries, chocolates, sweets etc There will be a bag at the hall entrance on Sundays for any donations.
DO YOU HAVE ANY GIFT BAGS WE COULD HAVE - we would like to be able to put the prizes in nice bags. 

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Glen Scrivener's videos are a key part of opening the discussions in our 3-2-1 Course.

You can see the engaging way Glen approaches things here in these 90 sec videos. egclick here 'What do Christians believe? 
or 'Is faith the enemy of science?' 
If you want more then look at how he took on athiest comedian Ricky Gervais - watch it here.
 

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‘Left to Their Own Devices’
- A Care for the Family Meeting

Parenting support event to Glasgow on the 19 May,
Newton Mearns Baptist Church at 7.30pm.
great event for parents of children aged 8+

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