Week One
Our team arrived in beautiful Scotland at various times and in various states of jetlag to the Glasgow airport on Tuesday, June 17. We were welcomed by Stephen McCollum and Beth Bogue who gave us a brief orientation – going over a bit of our schedule for the coming weeks, and getting the tour of Airdrie Reformed Presbyterian Church, our home away from home for the next few weeks. Although we would gradually meet more people from the congregation, we already felt their warm hospitality from the biscuits, crisps, and even cooked meals left at the church. Throughout the week, two or three of us would each join in on the various small group Bible studies called MET groups (Mutual Encouragement Times).
On Wednesday, we saw the Wishaw RP church, where there had been an active congregation for many years, and where Airdrie hopes to plant another church again in the coming years (they do weekly Bible studies and monthly church services at the Wishaw church towards that end). For that morning, we worked on cleaning up some of the grounds around the church and a bit of mold inside. In the afternoon, we went out for the first time to distribute leaflets in people’s mailboxes near the church (a good way to see the surrounding area!). We were thankful for cool temperatures and sunshine!
Thursday’s schedule was a bit more fluid as we began preparing for Holiday Bible School and tackling the “odd job” list. We were joined by some members of the Airdrie church in the evening to distribute more leaflets. These leaflets are a Parish Newsletter, which includes an article on “hope,” information about the Kid’s Club and Drop-in Café at Airdrie RP, and of course an invitation to join the worship services.
Download the parish newsletter here.
On Friday, some of us walked through the town center to ask shops to hang a poster for an evangelistic service coming up. Others stayed behind to give the church a good clean before the Lord’s Day. That afternoon, we had a prayer time with Stephen, where he encouraged us to strengthen our prayers by arguing with God from the Scriptures. It was good to spend some time praying for Airdrie and the congregation’s work here. Then we had a bit of free time, enough to stop at a bakery and bask in the sun at a park (in the midst of days averaging in the low 60s oF, 80oF feels hot!). Friday evening was Kid’s Club Party – an hour and a half of bouncy house hopping; the kids only stopped bouncing for face painting, Happy Meals, and Ice Lollies.
We were blown away on Saturday by our trip to Falkland and St. Andrews to see some Covenanter sites and hear the stories from our tour guide Jimmy (who, with his wife Helen and dog Skye, does Reformation Tours – a ministry of the Scotland RP Church). We saw the home of Richard Cameron, the castle where Andrew Melville grabbed the king’s sleeve and called him “God’s silly vassal,” the sites where Patrick Hamilton and George Wishart were martyred, the castle where John Knox was convinced to go into the ministry before being taken as a galley slave by the French for several years, Samuel Rutherford’s grave, and much more.
What I have not mentioned on each of these days are our wonderful hosts, giving up rooms in their homes for us for these three weeks; the times of team devotions led by our Team Lead, Rich Torelli; our shopping for and cooking meals together; the game nights; trying new types of biscuits; and of course, the inevitable misunderstandings between a team of Americans and our Scottish friends.
We were, as you might imagine, glad for the Lord’s Day to come. The two times of worship, meeting the rest of the Airdrie congregation, fellowship over meals and tea, and some quiet time of rest were all a great blessing. There have been several men and women who have been encouragers to us throughout all this week. One that we met on Lord’s Day evening was Airdrie’s 93-year-old elder Sam, who has trouble walking and needs to be given a ride to church. But he knew us all by sight, as he had printed out our pictures and itinerary and had been praying for us each day after looking up what we would be doing. What a joy to meet such a person and such people!
Week Two
We began the week with an encouraging day of worship and fellowship with the saints of Airdrie. The day included an abundance of nourishment, both physically and spiritually. We sang, prayed, listened to the Word read and preached, and enjoyed many different conversations over tea, coffee, biscuits, and meals. Pastor McCollum’s message in the morning, from 2 Chronicles 26-27, reminded us that pride comes before a fall. It was a helpful message to hear before heading out to try and accomplish the tasks for the week, instructing us to work for God’s glory, not our own. The evening message, “Be Holy!” from 1 Peter 1:13-25, laid a solid foundation for all of our interactions and endeavours by calling us to mental preparation and discipline and we pursue holiness, looking to Christ and His grace.
Monday morning started off with continuing the parish newsletter distribution while Christi worked at sorting through historical letters and organizing them for the church archives. The afternoon continued with work around the church and Holiday Bible Club preparations. In the evening, two of us got to join the Wishaw MET group while the rest enjoyed a cozy evening of games at Tim’s house.
Tuesday was a very similar day, with the addition of a brief time of handing out Holiday Bible Club invitations to parents at the end of the school day. The Tuesday night MET group welcomed those of us who had not been to that group yet.
Wednesday started bright and early so that we could make it to the train station and head to North Edinburgh for the day. We were greeted by Archie and Pastor Peter when we arrived. First on the agenda was distributing leaflets with the church’s relatively new location on it. Not only had the church moved from a school to a community centre, but there were also brand new flats that had gone up very recently to which we distributed leaflets. Then, we headed into Edinburgh for the afternoon. Pizza was the first stop after all the walking! Then we drank in as much of Edinburgh as we could before heading back to the manse for a time of sharing and prayer with some of the saints from the North Edinburgh RP Church. That evening of fellowship was definitely a highlight!
Thursday we were off again! This time we got to venture out with Beth and the McCollums as our guides. We enjoyed a gorgeous drive to Wigtown, where Stephen shared the sobering story of the Margarets and their faith. After a picnic lunch, we all meandered in and out of bookshops (Wigtown is Scotland’s book town!), some collecting more books than others (we’ll let you be the judge of who was wiser). We then spent the evening in Stranraer, hearing an update on that congregation from Pastor Steele and then sharing a meal with the Steeles and other families from the church. Sometimes the Lord’s work seems very uphill! But He has given those saints a lot of joy and courage as they wait on Him to act.
Friday was a much needed slower start. After a “roll and sausage” breakfast from Greggs, we did a few hours of manual labour around the Wishaw church building and handed out posters with information about upcoming services in Wishaw for shops to hang in their windows. Beth cooked us tacos for dinner – YUM.
A family from church cooked us a “full Scottish breakfast” on Saturday – sausage, bacon, eggs, rolls, mushrooms and tomatoes, and more – all piled together and smelling delicious. That fuelled us for doing a bit of evangelism in the town centre afterwards. We split into groups and tried to engage people in conversation and invite them to an evangelistic service on the following day. While there were some interesting conversations, it was a bit depressing to see the amount of sheer apathy so many had towards things regarding their souls. But we were bolstered by a time of prayer after we had arrived back at the church.
On the Lord’s Day, we unexpectedly had a couple from Singapore join for worship. They were relatively new to the Reformed faith and were a delight to fellowship with for the afternoon. That evening, at the evangelistic worship service (The Road to Redemption: Is It for Me?), the Lord was faithful to bring some visitors to the service, although none that we had spoken to in the city centre. We followed the service with a Psalm sing and hoarse voices, a sweet end to the day.
Week Three
Our third and final week of the mission trip looked a bit different from the first two as we helped run the church’s Holiday Bible Club (HBC). Two hours with 10-20 kids was at times chaotic and loud, but we were glad for the noise, as it meant that kids were coming! It was a good challenge for our team to find ways to creatively but (hopefully) clearly share some of the stories from Elisha’s life, and to show how those stories point us to Christ and the gospel. Having our mornings so full really made the week fly by!
Our afternoons involved more cooking and HBC prep, as well as some babysitting and campfire songs with the McCollum kids, and work at the Wishaw building. A family from church made us dinner one evening, so we had time for competitive game of Spot It.
On Thursday, an elder of the church, Ian Shaw, organized an outing for us all to go to Loch Katrine – one of the bigger lochs in Scotland (and the setting of Sir Walter Scott’s poem, The Lady of the Lake). We took a ride on a 125-yr-old steamboat – named the Sir Walter Scott, of course – a thoroughly enjoyable time of talking, walking around, and enjoying the views. The driech (it’s Scottish; look it up) weather made it even more beautiful. As Michael said, “Scotland looks good in grey.” Ian also treated us to a High Tea involving soup, sandwiches, scones with clotted cream and jam, and other desserts! Pretty spoiled, for a mission team.
Friday, our British hosts accommodated their American guests by celebrating the 4th of July (and the end of HBC) with a church cookout (actually, a cook-in, since it rained) – burgers, sausages, and American-ish sides and desserts that we had made that afternoon. At the end of day, we had to say goodbye to Elise, who had to leave early Saturday morning for another commitment back home.
Our hosts had a lovely outing planned for out last free day – a trip up into the highlands, where we saw Loch Lomond (think of the song), walked around Glencoe, and hiked around the “Three Sisters” peaks. Again, the foggy weather made for gorgeous scenery. At our dinner of fish and chips, Stephen had us all try some mystery food: Black Pudding and Haggis. When in Scotland…
The Lord’s Day was just a really sweet time of reflecting and fellowshipping. It felt fitting for Stephen to preach on 2 Chronicles 29, where the Lord brings about a sudden and unexpected reformation through Hezekiah. We ought to pray for such a thing in our own time! And in the evening, 1 Corinthians 3, where we are taught that though some plant and others water, growth comes from the Lord. May he be pleased to cause growth in the church in Scotland!
Tori Sturm & Elise Mann
