need to get something written down to
share with you. It has been a hard and
busy time for me since the beginning
of December. I expected things would
slow down during January, but I was hit
pretty hard in the face with things to do.
I enjoy all that I do as the minister of St
Fergus Parish Church. But I am also the
lone full-time minister among the four
Church of Scotland congregations of the Peterhead Grouping.
Peterhead is the big town just three miles
down the road from St Fergus. St Fergus
is a village of 700 or so people; Peterhead
is a large town of 16,000 people. It is the
white fish capital of the European Union.
St Fergus Parish Church is a Church of Scotland Congregation. There are three
Church of Scotland congregations in Peterhead. The St Fergus Parish Church
has always been the smallest of the four Parish Grouping churches. Now all three town congregations are without a minister. Only tiny rural St Fergus has their own minis-
ter: me. Only one of the four congregations, one of the congregations in town, has experienced any growth during the last five years.
A year and a half ago, the elders of the four churches of the Peterhead Grouping met to
look into uniting the three Peterhead congregations. An overwhelming majority voted
to take the initial steps to joining three congregations into one. For over a year a com-
mittee has been meeting to work through that process. As the minister of St Fergus, I
have been a part of that committee even though St Fergus Parish Church is not a part
of the three other congregations coming together. As you might have imagined,
the committee has has had to make its way through countless obstacles, difficulties,
and challenges.
It is within this context that Proverbs 3:5-6 comes to mind. It has been an important
lighthouse in my life for over forty years. These verses cut right to the heart of the mat-
ter as I seek to work out God's will in my life. As I and my colleagues deal with these
critical issues of uniting three congregations into one, Proverbs 3:5-6 shows me the
way: trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understand-
ing. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths. I do
not have any indication of the road ahead. I and my colleagues assigned the task of
preparing for union of the three Peterhead congregations do so by focusing on Jesus
and His kingdom and committing our way to the Lord, trusting in Him.
It is important to me that I get this posted today. I have many other things that I need
to do. It is necessary that I get this posted because it has been a long time since I did a
posting. As much as I seek to avoid maintaining a blog, it is something I firmly believe
the Lord has called me to do. I am again recognising that it is a matter of obedience to
the Lord. I submit this now and look forward to preparing the next posing that is
more timely.
Blessings to you and yours,
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