Magazine SEPTEMBER 2006

Minister's letter

Mrs Anne Howland

Carstairs and Carstairs Junction Guilds

Bag 2 School

Web Site

Coffee Afternoons

1st Carstairs Boys Brigade

The Nominating Committee Report

Weekly Freewill Offering Scheme

Carstairs Flower Calendar

Quarterly Prayer Guide

Meeting for Prayer

Minister's letter

Dear Friends, by the time this edition of our Magazine is in your hands, the summer - for most of us will be over! I hope that you have been able to enjoy and find some rest and relaxation whatever you have done.

The Church, of course, does not go on holiday! The work and the worship continues throughout the months of summer. However, the pace of activity and the number of meetings usually slackens a bit because so many people are away at different times over July and August. By September everything is getting under way - activities are starting again, and people are around to attend the meetings that are important to help us find the way ahead.

These next few months are critically important.

1 The search for a new minister continues and the Nomination Committee -who have put in a report on another of these pages - asks for your prayers in its work.

2 The Pastoral Care Group - which includes Bereavement Care and Circle of Friends, the Exploring Worship Group, and the Publicity Group are at the stage now of planning ahead and seeking to consolidate the work which has been done already. These groups too need your prayers.

3 The Kirk Session and the Congregational Board carry a huge weight of responsibility for the on going life of the congregation, and once again they need all the support you can give - prayer support and practical support, too.

One of the best ways of giving support to the church is to be part of it - or more specifically to be part of the worshipping church. Our worship on a Sunday is not the only thing the church is about, but it certainly is central to what we do. I want to encourage you to come to worship if that is something you have been unable to do for a while. Not only does coming to worship help each of us as individuals in the circumstances of our own lives, not only doe sit help us think through our faith, it helps the life and work of the church as a whole. I believe it is one of the things that can lift spirits, bring hope and create a real sense of excitement. It does us good to be in church with lots of other people enjoying the fun, the friendship and the sense of praise that can be there. And wherever there are people enjoying themselves, others will be encouraged to join in. If we seriously want to secure the future of the church in our parish, if we want to see it grow and develop, then being in church at worship is one of the most important things we can do. Let me encourage you to come, and let me encourage you to encourage others to come! The future is in our hands - let's grasp and make the most of it.

Every blessing

Iain Back to top

Mrs Anne Howland

Continuing our series of interviews with members of the congregation, we spoke to Ann Howland, a church member for over 50 years, ordained as elder in October, 2005.

Ann was born in 1937 and was brought up in Carstairs Junction. Her parents were church members, and she remembers that her father, Bob Crawford, used to cut the grass at the Junction church, and her mother Bunty was on the Congregational Board. Her grandfather was a ?manager? in the church, similar to an elder today. Ann attended Sunday School during Mr. McGill?s ministry, joined the church when she was around 16-17 years of age, and taught in the Sunday School during Mr. Craig?s ministry.

Educated at the Junction Primary School, Lanark Grammar School, and Coatbridge Technical College, her first job was in a paper merchant?s office in Glasgow. At the job interview Ann was asked when she could start work. ?Anytime? she replied. ?Can you just start right now then?? she was asked. And that?s exactly what Ann did!

When she was 20 she married Bill and they set-up home in the railway houses opposite the church. She recalls that there were lots of church weddings in those days and living opposite meant that she could easily go to see the wedding parties arriving and leaving the church - which, she says, meant that she was included in the background of rather a lot of people?s wedding photographs! Ann and Bill had five children, three sons and two daughters. Bill worked shifts on the railway and when the children were young, family responsibilities meant she did not get to church every week, but when the children were older they all attended Sunday School. Ann also found time to work, for a 5-year period as hall keeper at the Junction hall, and then at the station with the post office mail bags, which were no light weight to lift and move around.

Ann has always been involved in other areas of the community in the Junction. She was a maid in the Gala while at primary school. She collected for the Earl Haig Poppy Fund each November for 17 years, and for the Red Cross each May, for many years. She was in the Rural until it had to discontinue, and for the past 9 years has been involved with the afternoon club, during 6 of those years serving as Chairperson/Secretary, organising meetings, trips, meals, panto visits and other events.

On the Congregational Board, Ann has been on several committees, including property; social and fund-raising; finance; and publicity. When Bill died in October 1999, she says that keeping busy within the church, the Guild, and the afternoon club, helped her to cope with bereavement and gave her a purpose. Her recent ordination as elder has brought new responsibilities. In April of this year, Ann went into hospital to have a triple heart bypass operation. However, when she came round from the anaesthetic, she was told that a quadruple heart bypass had been carried out! Thankfully she is recovering well, although she admits she tires easily and there are still a number of activities she must avoid for a good while yet.

It is a well-known fact that Ann enjoys travelling. So comprehensive is her knowledge of bus and train times from the Junction to just about anywhere that many people (including railway workers themselves) telephone Ann on a regular basis to make enquiries - usually receiving better information than the official railway enquiries helpline could provide! Another of her hobbies is letter-writing. Over the years Ann has written to many people who have left the Junction to live elsewhere, keeping them up to date with events locally. She even wrote to folks who went on extended visits to relatives in South Africa and Australia, making sure they didn?t miss out on anything during their absence. All of Ann?s family are now married, and four of them live nearby. Her daughter, Lorna, lives in Canada and Ann writes to her too - and, of course, a daughter in Canada provides another good reason to go travelling from time to time! As one of the Guild?s appointed Guildlink correspondents, Ann also writes regularly to the members of Springburn Parish Church Guild in Glasgow, telling them all the Guild news - and much more besides. On a recent visit to Springburn the ladies there talked about the enjoyment they get when Ann?s letters are read out at their meetings.

When asked about changes she has observed within the church, she said it was rather ?stuffy? years ago in church, but now things are much more relaxed and friendly. It is a pleasure to go to church and meet up with others and chat to them, sometimes meeting local people who only come together at a church meeting or at Sunday worship. Thinking ahead to the future, Ann hopes the Union will be successful, resulting in growth within the congregation, and she looks forward to continuing to serve in the best way she can.

There is a saying ?if you want something done, ask a busy person?. Ann certainly is a busy person, yet she is always willing do whatever she can when asked. Just as she readily accepted the challenge of starting work on the day of her interview all those years ago, she has continued throughout her life, within the church and the local community, living out her faith by accepting each challenge to serve others. Back to top

Carstairs and Carstairs Junction Guilds

The 2005/2006 session of the Guild ended with the Summer rally on Friday 2nd June 2006 in Carnwath Parish Church. The Guest Speaker was the Rev. Bryan Kerr form Douglas Valley. Rev. Kerr spoke and showed slides about The Big Saturday held in Glasgow in September 2005.

The Guild theme for the new Session 2006/2007 is Lets Live: Body , Mind and Soul. In the first year of the Lets Live programme, we focus on Honouring the body.

The new Syllabus for 2006/2007 is more or less complete and we look forward to an exciting time ahead. Details of Meetings and Speakers will be intimated in Church and will also appear in the Gazette.

This year, the Church of Scotland Guild Annual Meeting 2006 will be held in the Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow, on Saturday 2nd September. Four Representatives: Christine Baird, Anne Howland, Barbara Kay and Alix Muir from Carstairs and Carstairs Junction Guild will attend this meeting, together with other Guild Members from all over Scotland. The video of the Annual Meeting will be shown at our meeting on November 9th.

The Dedication Service of Carstairs and Carstairs Junction Guild will take place on Thursday 21st September 2006 in Carstairs Junction Church at 7.30pm. An Invitation has been extended to the Ladies of the Carnwath Guild, so please come along and join us. Everyone will be made very welcome.

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Bag 2 School

Elizabeth Brown would like to thank everyone who kindly donated unwanted clothing etc. This year a cheque for £488.00 was received, and over that last three years (not counting the collections at Carstairs Junction) a total of £1255.00 has been raised for the Fabric Fund. Back to top

Web Site

Some of you may not know that our church now has our very own web site. For the sake of the people who don't have computers and would like to know more of what a web site is, here is a little explanation. A web site is a bit like having an advertising space where we can place information about what's going on in our church. WWW means WORLD WIDE WEB this allows people from all over the world to access the place where the information is held. When we type in www.carstairschurches.ik.com (our web site address) and search, this will take you to our home page, a bit like the index page on a book and from this page you will be able to view other pages.


Our web site at the moment contains the following information:-
1 OUR PARISH PROFILE
2 LABYRINTH & LENTEN JOURNEY- Photos & info
3 CHURCH MAGAZINE
4 CALENDAR- What's going on and when. E.g. Holiday Club, Guild, prayer meetings etc
5 PHOTO GALLERY Photos of both churches, Youth group, Banners, and a recent wedding.
6 GUEST BOOK - A page where anyone visiting the site can leave a message
7 ENQUIRY - A place where people can request information about the churches or congregation and we will do our best to find out for them. An e-mail is sent with an enquiry and is not placed on the website for everyone to see.
8 WEBSITE - On this page you will find a link to other websites, e.g. Church Of Scotland, Carstairs Village & Carstairs Junction. A click of a button will lead you to lots of local information.

You will also find times of our morning services, praise evenings, a bible reading and a report from our young people on the things they are doing.

For all of you who do have a computer or will visit our website, we would love it if you left a little message in our guest book.

All groups involved in the church, this is a great opportunity to let people know what's going on and of any future events. Please e-mail me at cookielizw@msn.com or pass me a note. It would be great if anyone has any photos past or present we could borrow and we will try our best to put them on to the site.

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Coffee Afternoons

The monthly coffee afternoons will resume on Tuesday 29th August 2006, from 1.30pm - 3.30pm in Carstairs Community Centre. Future dates of coffee afternoons are as follows:

26th September 31st October 28th November Back to top

1st Carstairs Boys Brigade

The following letter was issued to all parent of the 1st Carstairs Boys Brigade:

For the last 31 years Mr Ian Brown has been Captain of the 1st Carstairs Boys Brigade Company. After so many years of committed service to the young people of the community, Ian has decided it is time to retire.

I want to take this opportunity of expressing the thanks of the Church and of the members of the Company past and present who have benefited from the Boys' Brigade and from the years of service that Ian Brown has given.

With Ian's retiral, the future of the Company is very uncertain. Elizabeth Brown is willing to help over the next year, but she too, has been with the Company for a very long time, and wishes to gradually withdraw. Unless we can find more helpers and find someone willing to take over as Captain of the Company, then the whole Company, including the Anchor Boys, will not be able to continue - and we believe that would be a huge loss to the boys and to the community. I am sure you would agree that the BB has been of value to your son and I wonder if there is any help that you would be willing to give? It would be marvellous if we were able to get sufficient help and support to enable this organisation in Carstairs to continue the work which has been of so much value to so many over the years.

If you would be willing to give of your time or to help in anyway at all, please feel free to contact me, Rev. Ian Goring. It would be my sincere hope that we can make this work for the benefit of the boys who are at such an important stage in their lives.

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The Nominating Committee Report

The Nominating Committee Report, July 30th 2006

The Nominating Committee has the responsibility of finding a new minister and bringing the name of that person to the congregation as their nominee. There are elements of the work of the Nominating Committee which inevitably are confidential. When you are dealing with the names of individuals that is information which clearly cannot be shared. However, we wanted to update you as much as we can on what we have done so far. The election of the Nominating Committee took place, as you know, on Sunday 7th May. The congregation elected as its representatives the following people:
Margaret Aitken, Ian Brown (Jnr), Ruth Campbell, Susan Carruthers, Jim Hardie, Jennifer McInnes, Alix Muir, Alex Nelson, Daniel Stewart, Keith Whitton and Irene Williams.

At the first meeting of the Committee on 11th May 2006, Iain Goring, as the Interim Moderator, was appointed as Convener, and Irene Williams as Clerk. This meeting was also attended by two members of the Presbytery Advisory Group, Rev Anne McIvor and Mrs Fiona Sandeman. In our discussions we spoke about the need for confidentiality, the kind of minister we needed, and also about practical matters such as the advert and the parish profile which outlined information about the charge. We agreed that the advert should be placed in a newsletter called Minister?s Forum which goes to every minister in the Church of Scotland. The advert is printed over for your information:





The United Parish of Carstairs & Carstairs Junction
Unrestricted Call
Our previously linked congregations were united in March 2006. Both villages have retained their churches as places of worship. Following a period of successful Interim Ministry, we now face the challenge of building on the progress already made. Applications are invited from ministers willing to take us forward with the spiritual and practical leadership we require.
For a copy of the Parish Profile contact Mrs Irene Williams, Killara, 13 Hagholm Road, Cleghorn, ML11 7SG to whom applications including CV and the names of two referees can be sent. Informal enquiries can be made to the Interim Moderator, Rev Iain M Goring, 80 Lanark Road, Carstairs, Lanark, ML11 8QH, Tel 01555 870250. The Parish Profile can also be viewed on our web site: www.carstairschurches.ik.com

We noted that our vacancy is on the list of vacant charges which every minister receives, a list which is also available on the Church of Scotland web site. We were informed that we would receive a list of the Probationers available to look for a charge and we agreed to write to new Probationers with a copy of the Parish Profile when we received that list.

At our second meeting on 28th May 2006, we agreed the procedure we would follow when any application was received. The application would be acknowledged, a meeting of the Committee would be called and if we wished to take an application further we would arrange for an interview. The interview would be followed, if desired, by hearing a candidate preach.

Our third meeting was on 11th June 2006 and on this occasion we began to collate the questions which we felt we might want to ask a candidate at interview. At our fourth meeting we finalized the list of questions.

The main question for the Committee at our fifth meeting was, ?How do we respond to an applicant if we are asked what is our vision for the congregation?? We believe that part of our vision is that: a) all who come to worship feel at ease and valued; b) we be Christ centred, seeking God?s will; c) as a church family we need nurturing; d) the life of the congregation is developed and built up; e) as a new congregation we are looking for a vision, so part of our vision is to develop one. This was a very valuable and interesting discussion! This meeting took place on 23rd July, and since we had received no applications, we agreed that we should put an advert in the September issue of Life and Work.

The Nominating Committee is determined to keep moving ahead trusting that we will find the right person to work with us. We would ask you to continue to remember the work of the Committee in your prayers, and to pray that we will indeed find the person who is right. Back to top

Weekly Freewill Offering Scheme

Anyone who would like the Weekly Freewill Offering Envelopes, please contact either John Gauld (F.W.O. Treasurer) or Robert Cowan (Deputy Treasurer). Back to top

Carstairs Flower Calendar

03.09.06 Mrs J Brown & Mrs E Crawford
10.09.06 Mrs Wallace
17.09.06 Mrs Broadfoot
24.09.06 Mrs C Baird & Mrs E Stirling

01.10.06 Mrs M Morris
08.10.06 Mrs M Finlay
15.10.06 Mrs Wallace
22.10.06 Mrs J T Orr
29.10.06 Mrs Anderson & Jean

05.11.06 Mr Trevor Mee
12.11.06 Mrs Jean Nelson
19.11.06 Mrs I Jarvie
26.11.06 Mrs A Flockhart

03.12.06 Mrs Gordon & Mrs Spence
10.12.06 Mrs Wallace
17.12.06 Mrs M Inglis
24.12.06 Mrs L Lauder
31.12.06 Ms G Robley

Carstairs Junction Flower Calendar

03.09.06 Miss E McInnes
10.09.06 Miss H Ferguson
17.09.06 Mrs J McClymont
24.09.06 Mrs I Milne & Miss P Little

01.10.06 Miss M Madill & Mrs A Bruce
08.10.06 Mrs I Milne & Miss P Little
15.10.06 Mrs S Grainger
22.10.06 Misses A & J McInnes
29.10.06 Mrs H Owen

05.11.06 Mrs B Kay
12.11.06 Miss H Ferguson
19.11.06 Mrs P Duncan
26.11.06 Miss P Little & Mrs I Milne

03.12.06 Mrs H Owen
10.12.06 -
17.12.06 -
24.12.06 Mrs S Grainger
31.12.06 Mrs F Cheeseman Back to top

Quarterly Prayer Guide

September Theme: The Groups starting-up again

The summer months are always a little quieter but now several groups are starting-up again; the Guild, the Sunday School, the Bible Class and the Boy?s Brigade. The latter is facing an uncertain future. They urgently require new people to come forward to lead them, and with many boys waiting to come along, it is essential that we ask God to help us. Pray that the right people will be moved to come forward if this group is to continue. The Guild start their new session, working together as a completely new Guild group. The Housegroup for Bible Study and discussion is an important opportunity to learn and grow together in a more relaxed and informal setting. Pray that this group will see new people coming along. Harvest Services will take place in both churches on Sunday 8th October. Pray for a good attendance at both places.
Week beginning
2nd September The Guild
9th September The Sunday School and Bible Class
16th September The Boy?s Brigade
23rd September The Housegroup
30th September The Harvest Services




October Theme: Way Ahead Groups

The Publicity Group will be preparing to inform everyone about Christmas Services etc., and the Exploring Worship Group will be busy planning activities for Christmas. The Pastoral Care Group will be visiting people who have been recently bereaved and others who enjoy a visit and a chat. We also bring the church website as a topic for prayer, operated for us by Liz Warnock. Containing the Parish Profile, excerpts from this magazine and information on events which have taken place and are yet to come, we pray it will be blessed as a point of contact for many. (www.carstairschurches.ik.com)
Week beginning
7th October Publicity Group
14th October Exploring Worship Group
21st October Pastoral Care Group
28th October The Church Website

November Theme: Services of Worship; Outreach
Remembrance Day Services will be held in both churches on Sunday 12th November. Contact with the Schools has been firmly established recently, pray that it will continue in the future. Services at Monteith House have also been regular over recent months, pray that they also will continue. Pray for the Youth Group as they prepare a Mission Praise Night on Communion Sunday, 3rd December.




Week beginning

4th November Remembrance Day Services
11th November Both Primary Schools and Lanark Grammar
18th November Monteith House, residents and staff
25th November Mission Praise Evening

The work of the Nominating Committee is commended to all congregation members as a regular ongoing topic for prayer. It is important that they follow God?s leading and guidance as they seek the right person to take us forward in his service.


Future Quarterly Prayer Guides
We would like to know if you have any suggestions for prayer topics for future issues of the magazine. If you are a group leader and you would like the prayer support of the whole congregation, at a particular time, and for a particular project you are planning, then we invite you to let us know about it and it can be included in future Quarterly Prayer Guides. (Details can be passed to Mary Cowan or Margaret Aitken).

Remember, our prayers are very important in the life of the congregation. It was Jesus who taught his disciples to pray, and the Bible tells us of the promises he made that our prayers would be heard and answered. One such promise is in Matthew chapter 21 verse 22 ?If you believe,you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer?. Back to top

Meeting for Prayer

The Meeting for Prayer is for anyone who would like to come along and is held every 2nd Wednesday, 6.30 - 7 pm in Carstairs Church Library. Our meetings during the next quarter are as follows: August 30th; September 13th, 27th; October 11th, 25th; November 8th, 22nd. It is a very quiet time spent in prayer, silent and spoken, just whatever people feel comfortable with, and it is a time to leave the stresses and cares of life aside and be at peace for half an hour. You are invited to come on any of the above dates. Back to top