We look forward to seeing you there

You are welcome to join us for our midweek meet-up (coffee, chat, prayer) each Thursday led by Val and Andy from 10.00-12.00 (in the quiet room). All Welcome

If you wish to submit a name of someone in need of prayer support from our intercessory prayer group, please contact Val or Mary.

Reflection on Remembrance Sunday

From The Church of Scotland

Not long before the First World War, a French poet, who was to be one of the earliest casualties of that conflict, wrote that ‘everything begins with mysticism and ends with politics’. Is he saying that every human story starts with vision and hope and love and deteriorates into conflict and compromise? Or is he saying that we have to move on from fine words and ideals and change things for the better in the ‘real’ world?

Today, the men and women of our Armed Forces continue to serve with distinction. Who would have thought that in 2022 and in 2023 we would see war again on the European continent. And if and when our Armed Forces are called to put their lives on the line, the families at home wait, with the pain and confusions of war itself, with the ultimate fear of an officer and a Chaplain knocking the door. No amount of talking about ideals makes this easier; they know the cost in a unique way.

But as we look out at a still uncertain landscape, with regional and international powers vying for power and control, as we bring to mind those who have died or been injured over the last decade or so, both military and civilian, we have to acknowledge that moral vision is harder to convert into reality than we would like.

Today, on Remembrance Sunday, one of our main tasks is simply to pause in the presence of God. We give thanks for many lives of skill and bravery – the lives of the servicemen and women whom we remember; and the lives too of peacemakers and community builders of all kinds; and those who bore the cost without choosing or volunteering, those swept up in the unplanned death and terror that all conflict brings.

But we can use this pause in God’s presence to think a little about what it means to turn vision into reality. This is part of what we owe to the dead, part of the honour we give to those who struggled and sacrificed.

We are not promised safety or peace, we are not promised an easy conscience. What we are promised is an anchorage in our God. Nothing can break this secure line to a God of goodness and love. There may be terrible risk and suffering; there may be the sense of failure; there may be immense personal grief and loss, but the relationship with our God remains, silently feeding us so that we are able to go on putting one foot in front of the other, by faith, finding what needs to be done and doing it well.