Minister’s Message 8 June
Dear Friends
Pentecost is the third of the great festivals of the Church (after Christmas and Easter) although it is very different from the others not only because it has escaped the secular spin that has squeezed the message of the birth, death and resurrection of Christ out of the former two at least in wider society, but also (perhaps more significantly) because Pentecost is much more of a mystery even to church members. At Pentecost we mark the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the first disciples which led to the first great expansion of Christ's Church from Jerusalem into Judea and Samaria and from there to the ends of the earth. We also celebrate that the Holy Spirit is God's gift to us in our time too, and so I ask you to be open to what God may wish to do in you as an individual and amongst us as the people of God in Kinross-shire in these days. God is at work among us in ways that we cannot always see – perhaps that is what makes it hard for us to grasp the significance of Pentecost and of the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Ask God today for eyes and ears of faith and discernment and pray for a new outpouring of the Spirit in these days that we may rejoice as the early Church did in the spread of the Gospel message.
Let me also take this opportunity to pass on news of our most recent special collections. The quarterly collection at the Spring Communion in March realised £1381.91 for the work of Mercy Ships, and this year's collection for Christian Aid in May was £1906.05 (of which £1325 was gift-aided and will benefit from an additional 20%). The Summer Communion collection (for Scotland's Charity Air Ambulance) which was open last week as we gathered at the Lord's Table in Kinross will remain open for a week or two so please consider contributing to this if you are able. It is right and good that a proportion of our Christian giving is given away from the local church and I commend the practice to your generosity.
Blessings!
Alan
Rev A D Reid