LinkLinkLinkLink JULY /AUGUST 2016

Making known God’s Love in Jesus Christ

Donations of craft supplies neededDonations of craft supplies neededDonations of craft supplies neededDonations of craft supplies needed

Inside this month

Like a tree page 3

Vine trust trip page 5

Jesus Light of the World

page 7

Basics bank update

page 11

Photo Gallery

page 12

- 2 -

Sunday Services 11.00 am and 6.30 pm Barclay Viewforth Church—Church Office: 0131 229 6810

Minister Rev Sam Torrens 229 6810 minister@barclayviewforth.org.uk Pastoral Associate Elaine Hogan 229 6810 Mission Facilitator Rev Iain Sutherland 07843089598 iain1864@btinternet.com

Church Administrator Julie Nicholson 229 6810 admin@barclayviewforth.org.uk Session Clerk Robert Miller 447 1339 sessionclerk@barclayviewforth.org.uk Clerk to Board Katharine Ellis 228 4136 boardclerk@barclayviewforth.org.uk Assistant Clerk Christine Wight 447 5498 Treasurers Janet Darling 447 1578 treasurer@barclayviewforth.org.uk John Ritchie 558 1381 Roll Keeper Helen Miller 449 4470 rollkeeper@barclayviewforth.org.uk Organist and Choir Andrew Robertson robbo2372@btinternet.com Master Organist Michael Bonaventure Magazine Editor Marie Renfrew 261 8060 magazine@barclayviewforth.org.uk Web Master Mike Ellis 228 4136 webmaster@barclayviewforth.org.uk Church Officer Chris Hogan 229 6810

Imitation

I have stood at the shoulder

of wise men watching them work.

I can see them still.

A turn of phrase. A look. A nod.

And there they are. In the mirror of me.

The Bard Builder

“Dad, tell me a story out of your head.”

He leans forward in his chair

drawing in the whole room,

eyes twinkle light-hearted brightness.

I see him when I saw.

He marks wood with a pencil V

from a stumpy HB.

I tuck the pencil behind my ear.

Golden Lion

Hand through hair

soft locks tumble back

perfectly parted.

He comes in the intonation

of my prayers and in my waiting.

I think about the fondness of our Abba

and being a gift to life.

I’m smiling uncontrollably.

The Jedi

Kind, deep pools

sturdy body, eyes and demeanour.

A silent interview with muscular armoury

surveying behind my ego castle walls.

He trims his speech accordingly

my archers stand down

to sail instead on the waves of a preferred

future.

He is in my merciful questions

in service of the heart.

The Monk

Friend of Aidan and Cuthbert

and a friend to me.

He opened the white house door,

and I stooped in. He is unhurried.

Profoundly present. Childlike convocation,

together with all the saints,

warming them and me with retinas,

bright coals of burning light.

He doesn’t feel the need to say much.

I hear him when I listen.

I have learnt lessons from them all

standing tall

I in them, they in me. My mentors.

Rev Howard Espie

- 3 -

Let Hope Grow! “Like a tree, planted by streams of water!”

Psalm 1:3

How are those sunflowers growing? By all accounts some of you

have seen them grow to impressive heights from within their little

papers cups and some of you have transplanted them into bigger

pots and have watched them grow even bigger! Unfortunately mine

has keeled over! Drooped with the want of water. In my defence I

took it into the jail to use for a Sunday service and left it in the

Chaplaincy Centre office thinking that the message “Let Hope Grow” would be an inspiring

one for all of us on the team. But it’s not so inspiring now! Analysing this downturn, two

things are obvious. One, the prison environment isn’t a great place for sunflowers to

flourish, nor is it a great place for hope!

There are many who have lost hope of turning their lives around and have resigned

themselves to living in despair. Secondly, it’s hard to grow a sunflower if it’s only watered

occasionally, and those occasions being one or both of the two mornings I’m normally in over

the week! And that’s when I remember! Looking at the drooping, lifeless pale shadow of a

sunflower with its dried up, brittle leaves and petals, I was ready to blame others! “Couldn’t

you have watered it in my absence?” “Shouldn’t you have seen what was happening and

used a wee bit of human initiative and done something in my absence?”

Two things. Firstly, occasional watering isn’t great for a sunflower’s health and growth, but

the responsibility really rested with me! I can’t expect others to water my plant. I’ve got to

take that responsibility myself. Likewise, if I want hope to grow in my life I have to take the

responsibility for its growth and not blame others, even God, for the lack of it. Secondly,

occasional watering won’t do!

The tree in Psalm 1 flourished and became strong and remained strong because it was

planted next to streams of water. It kept close proximity to, and drew daily from, the life

enhancing supply of refreshing and renewing water close to it. Likewise our faith teaches us

that God is never far from any one of us. Hope grows when we establish and maintain close

conscious contact with Him, the God of all Hope. Jesus in John 7:37,

stood up on the last day of the Feast and declared, “If anyone

thirsts, let him come to me and drink.

Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living

water will flow from within him” (By this he meant the Spirit, whom

those who believed in him were later to receive.) Our spirits need

not droop for the want of water! But we do need to come daily to

Him and drink! Let Hope rise afresh as we draw from Him!

Hopefully, Sam

- 4 -

Ends of The Earth

5th

June 2016

We had a small but wonderful gathering on the morning of Saturday 5th

June to share and pray about broad and varied

international interests, including

Sandy Sneddon gave us a really helpful update on the work of World Mission in Korea, Nepal with ‘Build a house’ and

sharing news gleaned from the General Assembly as well.

Pastor Eric had provided notes about the Chinese church which meets here in BVC which we prayed over.

Mhari gave us an update on our missionary partners in Nepal and Pakistan.

TWO key things were agreed and I share now for your prayerful support

Mission Aviation Fellowship postcard appeal - Heather Tweedie highlighted again the value of this to raise funds for MAF.

Postcards can be handed in; but there is also a fun competition, with categories to be set, for cards from exotic, unusual

and other places, all for a good cause!

Sundae Sunday is our summer alternative to Souper Sunday and will retain the thoughtful emphasis upon HIV &AIDS

whilst raising funds along with awareness, by having Ice-cream sundaes instead of soup. This will be held on the Sunday

morning of 21st

August with Jane Fucella returning to share in worship.

THE GROVE

At our recent well attended Kirk Session conference, we wandered through a pilot version

of ‘The Grove’. Taking its name from the Grove Street Mission hall from which the congregation

of Barclay church was formed, ‘The Grove’ serves both as an introduction to

our fellowship and a refresher of the history, life and vision of Barclay Viewforth Church.

It is planned that during our vision weekend in October we will organise a few timings of ‘The Grove’ which will be open to all and

anyone, so that as many people as possible from the current membership and wider afield can attend and be refreshed by our

story and vision.

Be sure to look out for the dates and sign up early to step aside into ‘The Grove’.

BVC Evening Gathering Summer “Break-Out”

During July the Evening Gathering will “Break-Out” to visit other churches.

Details of Churches and times are below.

You can either choose to meet earlier at BVC and head off as a group or meet at the venue. If you would like to do that please

contact the named staff member below and we can confirm times etc.

If there are any last minute changes (due to circumstances beyond our control) they will be posted on the Church website and/or

Facebook page, and TV screens.

Normal Gatherings will resume on Sunday 7th

August.

Iain SutherlandIain SutherlandIain SutherlandIain Sutherland

July Church Service Contact

3rd P’s & G’s 6.30pm for 7pm Iain

10th Buccleuch Free Church 5.30pm Sam

17th St Cuthberts 6pm Sam

24th Carrubers 6.30pm Iain

31st Wester Hailes 6.30pm Elaine

- 5-

Vine Trust trip - June 2016.

As the time fast approaches when the team will be

leaving to go to Tanzania with the Vine Trust this summer,

we want to take this opportunity to say a heartfelt, genuine thank you to all of those who

have supported us in our fund raising efforts, in gathering items to take to the families we

will meet and in faithful prayer.

We really could not do it without you and we are all enormously grateful for your generosity

and your willingness to help and encourage us in our efforts to bring much needed practical

assistance and love to some of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged people in the world.

We would ask for your continued prayer and offer these suggestions to be used in the days

leading up to and during the trip.

Prayer Points

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans

and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

James 1:27

• Please pray for the 27 members in the team heading to Tanzania from 7-24 July (and

Elaine, who will be leading the team). Give thanks for their time, talents and money which

have been given freely to help others.

• Particularly pray for the local shopkeepers (Kerrie, Mikey and Kris) and for all members

for whom this could be a first encounter with God’s love in action.

• Pray for the 4 families who will be the recipients of new homes as a result of this trip,

that they would be aware of the love that the team and our supporters in this fellowship

have for them.

• Pray for the health and safety of all in travel and particularly on the work sites.

• Pray that the men and women of faith will be like shining beacons of God’s love during

the trip.

• Give thanks for the work of Vine Trust in Peru and Tanzania and for the many lives that

God will touch as a result of team visits over the coming months.

Asante sanaAsante sanaAsante sanaAsante sana....

- 6 -

If you’ve never heard of

Celebrate Recovery, or

have no idea what it’s

about, then you’re either

new to Barclay Viewforth

Church, or you’ve been

on a long trip away to

some remote region!

Over the first few month

of 2016, the core group

from Celebrate Recovery

popped up many times during the weekly services

to tell some of their stories and let people know

what it is all about.

These stories were sometimes funny, but they all

came from the heart of the person. They were

speaking about how God had moved in their lives

through reading the book Life’s Healing Choices

and through meeting together with a group of

people on the same journey.

This journey is about looking at how God can meet

with you through dealing with your ‘hurts, hang-

ups and habits’.

Celebrate Recovery was then rolled out to the

congregation, first with an introduction about the

course, along with a shared meal. Then, each week

the people who decided to continue with the

journey (me included) got a free copy of the book

and were asked to read a chapter of the book for

the following session.

This is easier said than done, as the chapters

require you to do some work, which essentially

means some ‘soul-searching’. Then, at the

sessions, there is a helpful summary (useful for

those who have not had time to complete the

‘homework’), someone from the core group

usually shares about the topic, we have a time of

worship, and we then gather for a chat in small

groups (not forgetting the drinks and snacks).

As I write this, we are about to share choice seven

in the book: ‘Maintaining Momentum’. As I read

through the chapter, I am trying not to feel guilty

that I have got behind with my reading and still

have some of choices four and five to deal with.

Then I remember that it is not a race, and the core

group are still going back and forth with the

material. The important thing to remember is that

you have started, and that you are letting God

know that there are things that are not right in

your life, things that you need to give over to God

and allow to him to deal with.

We cannot do these things in our own strength.

Choice one in the book is admitting need –

admitting that you are powerless to change

yourself, however good your intentions. It is only

when you allow God to take over the control of

your life that you can begin to take baby steps

forward towards healing.

Julie Nicholson

After a year full of fun, laughter and a

deepening sense of God's presence, Connect

Plus came to an end for the summer with our

now customary ceilidh on Tuesday 21 June.

We were delighted to welcome several of the

congregation who had not visited us before,

and it was good to have Sarah Hogan and the

boys joining in the fun as well.

With singing, dancing, games and much good

food, a grand time was had by all. The team

has worked hard over the year in all sorts of

ways, and we are looking forward to a rest

over the summer and a chance to recharge

the batteries.

- 7-

NET Bible Studies

The NET missional community tries to have activities that are based on the IN, UP and OUT

aspects of Christian life.

On Thursday evenings, we have been running a series of studies where we meet together,

pray for each other and focus on a Bible study. These run alongside book group discussions

through the week.

This term in our Bible studies we have been following a mini-series that explores the seven

“gifts” that Paul refers to in Romans 12. While some spiritual gifts appear more supernatural

in nature, such as the gift of tongues or healing (see 1 Corinthians 12 for example), the

Christian writer Selwyn Hughes described these Romans gifts as being more like “functions”

of Christians in the Church. These gifts are all a crucially important part of our witness as

followers of Christ in the world.

Paul uses the image of a body to help a deeply divided Church in Rome come together in

unity (there were serious tensions between the Jewish and Gentile Christians). Paul's use of

the metaphor of a body, reminds us that we need each other and while we can each reflect a

part of Christ to others, it is when we work together in love that we more fully reflect who

Christ is. This is why we have used the logo of a prism: the light of Christ shines in different

ways within the Church.

This series explores each of these seven gifts that Paul mentions and looks at both a New

Testament Church example and also how Jesus showed these gifts during his ministry. The

aim is to help each of us learn our own gifts, appreciate how God might want us to use them

and to encourage and support each other. The gifts are Prophecy, Teaching, Serving,

Encouragement, Leadership, Giving and Mercy.

If you are interested in using our studies, either for your own personal interest or to share in

your small group/missional community, please email me at davidcraigie@blueyonder.co.uk

for a free copy.

Dave CraigieDave CraigieDave CraigieDave Craigie

- 8 -

Pass It On The Welcome Team have been looking at how best to welcome people

into the congregation, from visitors coming once, to students arriving to

study in Edinburgh, to people who have decided to settle into our

congregation.

We have a great team who are at the doors Sunday by Sunday (although

more volunteers always appreciated, speak to Katharine if you would like to help), but wanted to think of

ways to help people who were staying to get to know more people and get involved.

There are Missional Communities and Ministries, and we encourage everyone to get involved in one, but we

thought that over the summer it would be good to see people getting involved with some social activities.

Rather than having events requiring a lot of organisation we are going to set up a challenge - Pass It On. We

will start by having two outings

on Sunday 17th July a walk and picnic by the canal, weather permitting.

on Sunday 24th July a coffee at a local coffee shop then either a walk or visit to the museum.

Anyone is welcome to join us on either or both for a short time or most of the afternoon.

We then ask that all those who have been on one of them invite some others to an activity of their choice

(might be asking someone you don't know so well to join you and friends for lunch, or if you are going to the

cinema seeing if others want to join you) They don't have to be a Sunday afternoon; it’s whatever suits you.

If you have facebook you can use the church page to advertise or you can just ask people.

We hope by the end of the summer everyone will have spent a little time getting to know at least one

person a little better.

Any questions speak to John Ritchie, Janet Darling or Katharine Ellis

MAF UPDATE

My name is Heather and I am 14 years

old. I have been a volunteer with MAF

for a year now; I am the representative

for my church, which is in Edinburgh.

I have been interested in flying for a while and when I

found out about MAF I thought it would be a great

opportunity to put my passion into good use to help other

people. I am a member of the air cadets and have had a

few flying lessons in the past year, and so I think that that

has influenced my desire to volunteer. When I’m older my

ambition is to be a pilot for MAF.

In the past year I have had so many amazing

opportunities to share this fabulous example of God’s

love in action. For example, I attended the annual MAF

volunteers’ conference, where it was great to meet up

with other like-minded people and see the work that is

going on right now overseas.

I also helped at Heart and Soul in Edinburgh’s Princes

Street Gardens, which is the yearly festival of the Church

of Scotland. Seeing the dismantled plane roll up and then

needing to assemble it was certainly an interesting

experience.

I loved being able to impart my knowledge of aircraft

instruments to a lot of people, both young and old. Many

of them then signed up to receive emails and updates

about MAF, just like I did last year. Trying to get the plane

parts to fit back into the trailer was definitely a logistical

challenge!

I volunteer with MAF because it can make such a huge

difference to the lives of isolated people in the world,

even though it seems so small a thing to do here in

Scotland! Seeing the work that MAF does and the way

that it transforms people’s lives is incredible.

Heather Tweedie

Kitchen Notes

Summer seems to

have decided to visit

and the weather

was lovely for the

Church BBQ. As a result of this I have found

myself flicking through the more summery

based cookery books and stumbled across this

recipe for Naan bread.

I started making bread about 14 years ago

when I was bought a bread machine. Since

then I have expanded my repertoire and when

I have the time enjoy making bread entirely

by hand. I tend to use the easy bake yeast as

you don’t need to pre-soak it, just add it with

the flour.

I’ve never had much success in making these

look like the shop bought ones, but if you

make them more circular they make a nice

change for burger buns! The official cooking

instructions say to cook one side on the

griddle and then place under a hot grill to do

the second side, I tend to just cook them on

the griddle.

Naan Bread

1 tsp easy bake yeast

1tsp sugar

50ml warm milk

250g plain flour

½ tsp salt

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 egg (beaten)

4 tbsp ( ¼ cup) natural yogurt

Sift the flour and salt and sugar together, stir

in the dried yeast.

Gradually add the wet ingredients to form the

dough into a soft ball.

Turn onto a floured surface and knead for

approx. 10 mins until smooth.

Place into an oiled bowl, cover and leave

somewhere warm to rise.

Knead briefly to remove the air and split into

4 – 8 pieces and roll out to about 1cm thick

tear shaped for naan, round for burgers).

Place on an oiled baking sheet and leave to

rise for 25 mins.

Cook on a griddle pan (or frying pan) for 3 – 4

minutes on each side.

Linda GarsideLinda GarsideLinda GarsideLinda Garside

- 9 -

ISOBEL GLASS

It is with great sadness that we record the death of Isobel Glass , one of our senior elders, at the

age of 93 on 22 May 2016. Isobel was one of the first lady elders ordained in Barclay- Bruntsfield

Church in 1975 but her membership of Barclay Bruntsfield Church and its predecessor Bruntsfield

Church went back a further twenty years.

Isobel and her late husband Jimmy were actively involved in the affairs of Barclay Church and its predecessors and

the wider Church of Scotland throughout their lives. Isobel was a committed elder, a staunch supporter of the

Women’s Guild and a familiar face at the General Assembly.

Isobel had a deep and vibrant Christian faith. Over the years she welcomed generations of folk to the church and

extended kindness and hospitality to many of them. In recent years when ill-health prevented her attending church

she retained a lively interest in all the church activities. Our condolences at this time are extended to her daughters

Anne, Rhona and Helen, and her son Alan and their families.

Robert Miller, Session Clerk

- 10 -

BBBB ASIC BANK UPDATE

First of all, thank you so much for the donation from tea and coffee money in 2015. We were absolutely de-

lighted to be able to buy new fridges and a freezer for the Basics Bank as our old ones were on their very last

legs. The freezer was a chest freezer and we did sometimes lose things in the bottom of it!

Here are the new ones – we so appreciate having the extra space for chilled and frozen produce, and it’s so

much easier to see what we have available, and to access it.

The Basics Bank had gone through a quiet period in early 2015, but we are now seeing many more referrals

and we may see up to 14 clients, represented up to 25 individuals in households. Our stocks, which used to

be overflowing, are now depleted and we would encourage people to bring an item or two for the Basics

Bank. You can leave things in the boxes in the Pillar Hall.

In particular, we need the following:

Jam; rice pudding/custard; coffee; sugar; long-life milk; packets of pasta and sauce; juice (squash)

On behalf of our clients, thank you!

Fiona Tweedie

FORTH BRIDGE CROSSFORTH BRIDGE CROSSFORTH BRIDGE CROSSFORTH BRIDGE CROSS

Well done Joyce Bruce, Mike Ellis, Fiona Kennedy, Laura McLeod and Anne and Hugh Paterson who

raised £757.35 for Christian Aid on this year walk across the Bridge.

A big thank you to everyone who sponsored them .

Ray Torrance

May I say a HUGE THANK YOU to all my friends at Barclay Viewforth for all their kind wishes, cards

and gifts I have received over the past few weeks? I have received over 60 cards with only one

duplicate – it feels like Christmas has come early!

I only expected to be in hospital for one week but the nursing care and food was so good I stayed for four weeks!

Hopefully I am now on the mend and, although I tire easily I am getting there.

I do appreciate having such good friends and a very loving and caring family.

Hopefully it will not be too long before I am back amongst you all.

Love from Moira Bain

- 11-

Book Review

A Long Obedience in the Same

Direction

Discipleship in an Instant Society

By Eugene Peterson

A good friend put this book into my hand recently,

and at first I was a little dismayed by the rather

clunky title. However, on delving further, I

discovered I was drawn in completely.

In this work, first published twenty years ago and

now revised and expanded, Peterson looks at the

fifteen "Songs of Ascents" (Psalms 120 to 134), in his

own translation "The Message". Identifying each by a

separate theme, he explores the many facets of the

path of discipleship.

I discovered a completely fresh and up to date

relevance in these psalms as he brings them to life.

Beginning with repentance, the psalms follow the

journey of faith, unpacking worship, hope and joy,

help and security, happiness and perseverance, to

name a few of the chapter titles.

Peterson draws on his own experiences and the

writings of others in his studies of these Psalms,

which are accessible and readily absorbed. To quote

Michael Card, "Into a world that does its best to

deceive us into believing that everything changes,

God speaks his unchanging Word. Ours is a time and

a world that needs to hear in fresh ways all that that

Word might mean if we would only listen. Eugene

has listened.” ER

Meadows Festival

A small team blessed the local community on Saturday 4 June with a

stall at the annual Meadows Festival.

We offered biscuit decorating ,beat the goalie ,balloon animal making

and free hugs. We had very positive connections with in excess of 500

people: 200 biscuits were iced and decorated with sweets.

Elaine Hogan had positive discussions about our congregation with a number of visitors and handed out in-

formation leaflets. We even managed to give away some of the small wooden chairs from the halls (still

some left if you are interested).

Many of those participating could not believe that we were doing it for free !

If we as a congregation believe in ministry this should be a priority in our annual calendar. It would be great

next year to have a larger team of volunteers . Ideally we need a team to set up , volunteers to cover spe-

cific time slots and a tidy up team. If the event is not resourced it is not viable and it would be a real pity to

forego the opportunity to spread the love of Jesus at this event.

Thanks to everyone who helped on the day.

ED BAIN

Barbecue

We were fortunate to have enjoyed

excellent weather for the BV Barbecue at

Vogrie Country Park at the end of May.

Nearly 80 people enjoyed a fine lunch,

including hamburgers and sausages, together with lots of

salad and fried onions.

Comment should be made about the laughter and tears

involved in getting the onions to the table: tears for

Isobel when preparing them, and laughter for Mike in his

passion for cooking them on the barbecue!

The assembled multitude then spent the afternoon

exploring the surroundings, enjoying games and catching

up with friends old and new. We all joined together again

for afternoon tea before heading home.

Our thanks go to all those who made the day a success,

including friends who were new to the team this year.

Whether in purchasing, preparing, cooking and serving

the food, clearing up, providing first aid, sharing their

cars, or in one of many other ways, it all came together

on the day. Thanks again to our local butcher, John

Saunderson, for their excellent products and support.

Finally, our thanks to all of you who came to enjoy the

day.

The Ministries TeamThe Ministries TeamThe Ministries TeamThe Ministries Team

Items for inclusion in the September Link Magazine should be submitted

to the Editor by Tuesday 13 August

Edinburgh Barclay Viewforth Church of Scotland Registered Scottish Charity No. SC014757 1 Wright’s Houses, Edinburgh EH10 4HR Tel: 0131 229 6810

CELEBRATE RECOVERY SESSION

MEADOWS FESTIVAL

Queensferry crossing

Afternoon Fellowship

Queen’s birthday tea

Barclay Viewforth BBQ

Julie Nicholson, our new administrator

from 1 August