I should add that this is not to be thought of as the Round Church Prayer Group, just as the Alpha Course should not be thought of as Church of Scotland. We said from the beginning that all were welcome, little realising that another outcome would be to forge such strong relationships with local Baptists. In an island situation a prayer group reflecting Christian concerns of all kinds must transcend denominations and this Prayer Group does that.
Since our arrival on Islay we have been more and more blessed by developing links with the Baptists here. Last Septemeber we moved our childrens work out of the Bowmore Hall to use the much better facilities of the Baptist Church, and our Alpha Courses have been held in Baptist church facilities, both in Bowmore and Port Ellen. The reality is of course is that we are just sharing with fellow Christians and I am sure the timing of the Prayer Group starting is no accident, because it coincides with the arrival of the new Baptist Minister and his wife, Jim and Riona MacNulty. I was priviliged to speak at his induction and we look forward to working together in the years to come.
Jesus said 'You shall know them by their fruits' Matthew 7:16. That's my prayer too, that people will begin to see that God's people are fruitful in all kinds of ways.
I am delighted to learn of the establishment of the Prayer Group and note with interest the observation that "this is not to be thought of as the Round Church Prayer group".........."another outcome would be to forge such strong relationships with local Baptists"......"In an Island situation a prayer group reflecting Christian concerns of all kinds must transcend denominations and this Prayer Group does that". With these statements and, indeed, the whole sentiment expressed in the above posting, I wholeheartedly, unreservedly and enthusiastically agree but am left wondering that, whilst it must transcend denominations, it should also be allowed to transcend geographical boundaries! Here, I must be careful because I want the blog to be a medium for sharing information and pray that it becomes an active and interactive forum, so posting the info here I must view as something positive, but I am nevertheless left with a feeling of disappointment that the formation of the Prayer Group, and the fact that it will meet regularly, was not intimated at St John's on Sunday..........to the best of my recollection.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment Iain and for the support. With regards geography I am confident that the Bowmore Prayer Group has no geographical boundaries per se and all will be made welcome. However, I have been here long enough to know that some would not want Bowmore to become the 'spiritual' centre of Islay, and neither would I. Alpha Course's rarely just stop and leave life as it was before. In Bowmore then it seems that a Prayer Group may become witness to a former Alpha Course, but in Port Ellen we have yet to see what might come. Will a prayer group start, or a home group start? I don't yet know, but even if folk from St.Johns join in the Prayer Group at Bowmore I still hope that Port Ellen will have its own local spiritual focus, other than Sunday church, of some kind starting this year.
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