In spite of the differences between Doric speaking folk from the Moray coast and Southerners from Tennessee we are finding much in common with our Christian brothers and sisters here. I find the celebration of the Lord's Table to be especially meaningful in this setting. I am bound to these Scots by the blood of Christ even though we are different in many ways. We have grown to respect many of them, especially the Jappy's, Browns, and Gardiners. Les Jappy and Bernie Brown are elders who lovingly serve the congregation. Once we arrived they invited me to lead a Sunday evening Bible study (They haven't had an evening service in some time). I decided to present a five week study of Genesis and was surprised at both the attendance and the positive repsonse. One young lady who attends is not a believer. She is very bright and struggles with many issues that I am able to address - especially in Gen. 1-11. I always enjoy teaching Genesis to non-Christians because the text answers so many essential questions. I'm hoping it makes an impact.
A few weeks ago a lady named Karen made a confession of faith. She is a delightful person who has recently overcome cancer. I've met with her to discuss baptism and hope she will take that next step soon.
I've been working with a young man named Andrew who hopes to plant a new church in the area. He has a lot of potential, but has his hands full with a full time job and family. It is wonderful to see his enthusiam and spend time studying with him. He is like a sponge when we meet to discuss preaching from the OT.
Nearly all of the churches in Buckie are in decline. Our flat is actually in an old church that closed a few years ago. Most of the congregations do not have a full time minister. The vast majority of people have no interest in Christianity. Drugs and alcoholism are big problems. There are no congregations of over 100 in a town of 10,000. The handful of active congregations average 50 or less. On Mondays I meet with an interdenominational men's Bible study. They are a good group of men, but are all saddened by the decline of their congregations.
On Thusday evenings I sometimes help with a young adult group called the BOW group. They are mostly twenty somethings. Many of them have made a commitment to Christ, but don't attend church regularly. They can't seem to connect with the traditional worship, so they find community in other ways. As far as I can tell there are no contemporary worship services nearby. The congregation we work with is more cutting edge than most in Buckie, but would be considered very traditional in the States.
As some of you know we are transitional ministers for the church in Buckie. Tom and Nancy Helmik will arrive in July (if all goes well with their paperwork). We are trying to prepare the way for them. Even though the congregation is small I am optimistic about their future. The Buckie Church of Christ is one of the more active congregations in town. They have good people, and God can do some wonderful things through them. We are so thankful that God has allowed us to encourage the folks and in turn be blessed by their faithfulness and love.
A few weeks ago a lady named Karen made a confession of faith. She is a delightful person who has recently overcome cancer. I've met with her to discuss baptism and hope she will take that next step soon.
I've been working with a young man named Andrew who hopes to plant a new church in the area. He has a lot of potential, but has his hands full with a full time job and family. It is wonderful to see his enthusiam and spend time studying with him. He is like a sponge when we meet to discuss preaching from the OT.
Nearly all of the churches in Buckie are in decline. Our flat is actually in an old church that closed a few years ago. Most of the congregations do not have a full time minister. The vast majority of people have no interest in Christianity. Drugs and alcoholism are big problems. There are no congregations of over 100 in a town of 10,000. The handful of active congregations average 50 or less. On Mondays I meet with an interdenominational men's Bible study. They are a good group of men, but are all saddened by the decline of their congregations.
On Thusday evenings I sometimes help with a young adult group called the BOW group. They are mostly twenty somethings. Many of them have made a commitment to Christ, but don't attend church regularly. They can't seem to connect with the traditional worship, so they find community in other ways. As far as I can tell there are no contemporary worship services nearby. The congregation we work with is more cutting edge than most in Buckie, but would be considered very traditional in the States.
As some of you know we are transitional ministers for the church in Buckie. Tom and Nancy Helmik will arrive in July (if all goes well with their paperwork). We are trying to prepare the way for them. Even though the congregation is small I am optimistic about their future. The Buckie Church of Christ is one of the more active congregations in town. They have good people, and God can do some wonderful things through them. We are so thankful that God has allowed us to encourage the folks and in turn be blessed by their faithfulness and love.
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