The Villager - Easter 2020

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VILLAGER

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Inside this issue:

” u o y d l o r o o “P

‘Christianity, if false is of no importance, But if it is true, it is of infinite importance.

The one thing it cannot be is moderately important.’

ALL church services now online: see back page

CS Lewis, the creator of the Narnia tales

lly But do you rea irstyle or lack ofit!it!Bu lly u rea yo t do erring to my ha ref t ing no of k eth I’m lac d som or an o e – ? als tyl t irs me ha ething about me bu mysom Do you pity ? – and I’m not referr ing say ghtto o somethof alsexistence t miing meme yfor Atheists say there is no God (from Greek – without agnostics say nothing canab beou known of tthe God did, tha t me bu u pit Do ? If you God); ething ry som say l sor t feeyo gh mi t tha , did u yo If ? me for ry sor l or his nature (from Greekfee – without knowledge); Christians believe in Jesus.

Where might you find yourself? . elf urs yo u, , about yo us. That, in itself u, yourself. the death of Jes , ss out yo elf abwith its celebratine your in ns believe at, tia Th ris us.

Ch Paul wrote ‘If you confess your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and heart that God raised him from en Jes cro t of wh ho es, ath t ea de ach we the pro e, e ratdeath! At Easter tim celeb nsrat Easter fast ap aches, when Chris tiaeb cro the cel we pro ap Good msis-true, timne,sol onss r fas the dead, you will be saved’ 10adverse 9).inIfter this oureeresponse will the most important antddecision ste(Romans Ea rs,t ho Easee Atbe iction dieea ath ntr de a tco the Rorma ms rat byste eb cel cu!ted odw Go ms exe s ter on d wa in an us ion rs, Jes ict die ad ich sol ho ntr wh r n co ma Ro by means by we ever make. see , to remembeho cuted ne wi exe s ing wa nk ns ato recall theme us dri bums Jes d an w ich ad wh r by union by eating bre smm ne! , to remembe wi ing nk nsdato Cothree e an bu d driecame an ebratare ad celthe say t bre we all y rec g gh tin mi Fri ea But how do we make up our minds?

Here very different people who in very different ways to by som k’ ion sic un w mm rate d blood spilled. ‘Ho y we dabo n an Fri keCo s bro k’ some might say! waeb dy cel his believe in Jesus: d blood spilled. ‘How sicJesus was not some ‘quirk of fate’ or an n ke bro s wa dy bo his e’ or irk of fatnk t the death ofJesus was not some ‘qu ind. In the ver, believe tha of her it was the gift of God to ma atht rat debu Christians, howe ts the tha . In the ve ind lie nk be r, Zacchaeus – bold as brass. ma n, ve to me d we Go ho lou of ns, tia a vengeful act of jea risply Ch it’was the gift ray he rat t bu sim n, me s lou aw jea of en hill far ngefu a gredespised vethe ere ismost Although a Jew, he was thesim topply taxaof collector –l act the‘Th worst, collaborator with the Roman occupiers. He was, hymn away’ canno rds wo en hill tfar t tell is a grema ere ‘Th mn ow, wehim, hy the y no kn of wordshe even climbed a tree toWe however, so eager to see Jesus get ayview.

Noticing Jesus t tell invited himself to his house. no can we , ow kn t r, no bea to ma d We ha at pains heand wh Zacchaeus’ response to Jesus was to give away half of his possessions repay to us debts, generously. Jesus observed forr,his pains sbea wh e itdwa ievha belhe buatt we us for s wa it that, ‘Today, salvation has come to your house’. e iev beland suffered there. t we buhe hung and suffered there. ng hu any differencetoto he ll this gift makean Nicodemus – timid and unsure. en if it is true,wiwi y difference ev d an ke e ma t tru gif it s is t thi ll bu ce’ true, itdissom en if of. ev That sounds ‘ni d pro an e e tru it ha is t we bu if , ce’ say who told him ‘unless s ‘ni A powerful religious politician, he?sou came night enquire of tJesus a man be born again, he cannot th e migh at som Th proof. ght,to mi ll itby Wend me ght say, if we had somelieve that Jesus’ story did not end wi e mi ght, som ? Well it mi be enter the Kingdom of God’. His however, took almost 3 years, when he went to the Roman Governor, Pilate, with d wi ns meresponse, tia t ende ris no , we do! Ch adth us’esto the t Jes tha from happens thatwe ckdid lieldvetha bary be ns it just so cam tia ris he t Well,crucified Ch ! do , ver he ad t is de it tha a friend, and asked him for Jesus’ body so that they might bury Him. n, s the en xio m pp cifi fro ha ck cru so ba t his e ne jus er it cam uld aft ll, he ys wo t t We da form tha uld never is held tha xio. n, his death. Threeda cifiles tion’ was in afor crucip his dis er his Thitis ‘resurrec that wo a tiom ath. Three ys aftth ers is speincta wa n’ tio rec n for his follow sur ‘re is Paul – a revolutionary. hisbode dily - he even atewiwi Th . ex les e Th cip y. is re dis tor ers his his th n low fol ma ate hu his in en for ev im n he cla tio sha e ll y cta wi iqu dil pe un bo ex him y e y.anTh totall mit to tor hision nect again - aearly who sub ma se hu in tho d im re cla sha e ll He was a Jewish Zealot who die persecuted Christians.

He was confronted by Jesus in a vision when on his way to wi iqu un urr him y totsall this res - awa ainus die those who submit to the ‘first fruit’ofofthi ion and Jes t He urrectChrist’s thaag res s it’ fru Damascus to round up Christians. was changed completely and became ambassador to Jew and non-Jew all st ‘fir Jesus was the tha thits hope themselves. form of his the way from Jerusalem to Rome. en Jesus in thefor hisous this hope themselves. , what hope! – the company of the ris m of titi the in us Jes risen of the yhim e – what joy conclusion. an wever, if it is fic Ho mp is trulife-changing r. co fte the If this one rea – ! he pe ho Three starting points; three routes; ous at th titi wi wh fic at joy life lived – wh wever, if it is truw,e an e 19 (NIV) r. Ho s isno fte thiirit IfSp an,ticipation oflife rea hen d the him th 1 Corinthians: chapter 15 vers (NIV) wi n’ ed me liv all of tha n re tio 19 e mo ipa vers tic pitI ied chapter 15 on. d ,the ‘to be How about you? What do you think?

Are you stillan undecided?

Then may urge you to resolve Time marches nthians: an w, n’ 1 Cori methis? irit ristians are Sp Ch we ve’ lie e be akno ‘m be pitied more than all your view of Easter! are ‘to23) ns verse tia ris Ch we , ve’ Jesus said, ‘whoever is not with me is against me.

(Luke 11 He also said, “Whoever comes to me, I will never on lie s be nd e pe ‘mak ? Well, it all de rejoice with me s on your view of Easter! nd pe de all it ll, Do you pity meororrej We ? drive away.” (John 6:37) me oice with Do you pity me

ge arge What can we do to help you igigelelBBar NNdecide?

Nigel Barge

Inside this issue: Can you be a young person and be a Christian? • Musical Notes Inside this issue: Can you be a young person and be a Christian? • Musical Notes

Inside this issue: Easter Services Go Online • Community News • Panto Report

Easter 2020

Easter 2020 s have already been suspended.

As we write, some church gatheringa result of Government decisions, as Other future events may change tch our website. so please wa

us and what to For helpful information on the vir

Anne was delighted to be home again at the beginning of December for two months. It was great to see her and catch up on what has been happening in Makululu.

Anne was very excited about a new development: For some time now the policeman from ASASA, the Victims’ Unit at the local hospital, had been begging Anne to open another Safe House as the number of girls who pass through his care is very high and most have nowhere to go. Just before she left Zambia it was agreed that she should start a second Safe House for girls. A local church is providing the premises which are big enough to include a part where Anne will be able to live as well. The right staff have to be

Friendship Lunch A lovely lunch for all retired folk, with delicious puddings on the first Tuesday of the month at 1pm in the church. There is a varied after-lunch programme rounded off with a cup of tea and a biscuit, finishing about 3pm. We enjoyed: February: From the tiny tots in the Nursery class, to the fine choral singing, the great variety of poems from the different age groups, the skills of the young musicians and the P 7’s as they recited Tam o’Shanter or Addressed the Haggis, we were constantly amused and delighted. Thank you Torrance Primary School.

March: We watched the expert Bearsden Scottish Country dancers as they set our toes a-tapping. We even joined in some dances and sang some Scottish songs.

The Friendship Lunch is designed for the vulnerable age group. For their protection, it is cancelled till further notice.

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Do you need to use the Food Bank?

do go to www.nhsinform.scot

found and the house furnished and equipped before anyone can move in. The January donations at Fridays’ Winter Warmers will provide beds and mosquito nets.

She thanks all the kind people in Scotland who donated to the scholarship programme.

72 kids have been sent to school and 10 new pre-school students will be ready for grade 1 next year. They send them all to Zamda Ireland Stables School for vulnerable children run by an Irish charity. They now need to feed the 82 children at Mercy House, our day care centre.

On her return at the end of January Anne was planning a few days to catch up on paperwork and think and pray about future plans before going back to the work at Mercy House. This came to an abrupt end when one evening she found a new-born baby on the doorstep and the new mother running away!

Unusually for Zambia, there has been a period of unrest and upheaval with looting and rioting which also led to vigilante justice.

The girls from the first safe house had to be evacuated to the second one. Of particular concern were the ‘gassers’, people using chemical substances to spray people and property. Recently the cook at Mercy House was attacked and gassed. Mercy House had to close for a while.

It is now re-opening as the situation has calmed down a bit.

Community Café

The ‘Winter Warmer’ Fridays proved very popular and many varieties of soup were enjoyed. A big thank you to all who came along and so generously supported the different charity each month – Scripture Union, Caldwell Halls, Anne’s new Rescue House, the Emma Cameron Foundation and the Girl’s Brigade. At time of writing, the amazing sum of over £2,400 has already been raised.

Many from the vulnerable groups enjoy the café. For their protection, the Community Cafe is closed till further notice.

Cinderella as you have never seen her before!

Bigger and better! The 2019 pantomime ran for three performances in December. The Torrance ‘twist’, the inventive names for the characters, the humour, the skills of the young actors and the amazing costumes, sound and lighting effects kept the audience hooked from beginning to end.

Many thanks again to Sean, the actors and all the team who helped in any way. A special ‘thank you’ to you, the audience, who helped to raise an amazing £3098.86 for the East Dunbartonshire Foodbank, which is based in Kirkintilloch, and also has an outlet in Lennoxtown.

The Bible Course The Bible is the world’s bestseller with over 400 million copies sold or distributed each year, plus millions of downloads. It’s been translated into over 3,000 languages. It covers hundreds of controversial subjects and yet it has a harmony and continuity from the beginning (Genesis) to the end (Revelation).

The Bible is BIG! So we need to see the big picture of how the two parts together form one story that centres on Jesus. The Bible Course helped us to do just that as young teens to senior citizens made up the large group of participants who attended over eight Sunday evenings from January to March.

Delicious puddings and coffee set the scene for some lively videos and chat together as we explored how the key events, books and characters fit together to give the big picture of God’s big plan for humankind.

Making sense of the Bible

As part of TPC’s service to the community we are happy to offer you a free taxi service to the Food Bank and home again. This service is entirely confidential. If you need a lift or know someone who does, please phone 07585597087 and we will be delighted to help.

Please note: You need a token to be able to use the Food Bank. You can obtain this from the Jobcentre, Citizen’s Advice, your GP or Social Services.

150th Anniversary Celebrations Community Ceilidh

Despite the weather, it was a pack-out for this fun event in February. There was something for all ages from games to competitions and dancing to the excellent Foy Ceilidh Band and the great supper to replenish energy. In the background throughout the evening the screen was showing photos of TPC folk and events through the years.

Thank you to all who came or helped in anyway.

We are delighted to be able to give over £700 to Torrance Primary School PTA.

If you’d like to know more, we are having a ‘Hearing the Word’ course after Easter.

Who for? - Those with church connection or

none. Novice or expert. Secondary school to 80+!

When? - Sunday evenings. 6.30pm for puddings

& coffee. 6.45 -7.45pm – programme What? - Interactive. Learn a method. Try it out.

Talk with a couple of friends.

How long? - 4 weeks, starting 26th April.

Come along and try it out!

The special Service planned for Sunday 10 May, with David Stewart as our guest preacher, has been postponed until further notice.

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Easter 2020

Easter 2020

Torrance Parish Church Still Going, Still Growing at 150

(TPC)

It’s not possible to talk to people who were here when the church started in 1869! Instead we talked to some members who are around today about their connection with TPC and how God has used that in their lives.

‘Springboard to the world’ ‘I’m fourth generation Torrance. My great-grandfather moved here in 1916. My gran, Cathy Davidson, was well known in the village. Visitors loved her Creamola Foam!

I was involved in the youth group run by Peter and Catherine but when I became a teenager, I told God to get lost and the partying lifestyle took over. I was a wild, troublesome lassie but God didn’t give up on me and TPC folk kept praying for me. Things began to change when I was invited to an Alpha Course and clearly realised God was saying, “I’m real, I exist. Do you want to choose me or carry on without me?”

After a while Nigel invited me to work with young people alongside Bert and Geoff and on Saturdays with Catherine and Margaret Lollipop. I think I was the first drummer at TPC services!!

Dorothy Beaton took me to Hungary for two weeks working with Scripture Union and I remember being amazed at how someone like me could be on a mission trip.

When St Rollox was flooded with asylum-seekers I joined Catherine to help at the Sunday School there.

I met many different nationalities and gradually began to wonder if God was calling me to go further afield.

I heard Operation Mobilisation folk speak about

India and the needs of the low caste groups. TPC and St Rollox kindly sponsored me to go there for a two weeks’ trip. I asked OM if I could work with them in India or on the Logos ship, and they sent me to Africa! God knew what he was doing.

In 2014 I went to South Africa for training. Since 2015 I have been working in Makululu shanty town near Kabwe in Zambia – read more about it in the p2 articles.

Over the years I have known the love of Jesus through so many supportive folk in TPC and thank them for all their help. TPC has been my “springboard to the world.”

Love from Big Anne

Minister in the 1980’s Coming to Torrance in 1983 was a new venture for the Church and myself, as it was newly linked with Park Church, Kirkintilloch. There was a sense of excitement and purpose. We realised we needed a new building, but the time was not right. Despite new heating the church remained cold and draughty. In winter Tom, the organist, played in fingerless gloves! As the congregation grew, the additional body heat helped to warm the building!

The small group of people who met every Wednesday for prayer provided the spiritual basis for the growth of the church; there was a real sense of God moving. Sunday School expanded to the Community Centre as well. Just before I came, Bert Cooke started a B.B company. My

Faithful God I have lived in Torrance since my parents brought me here as a baby. TPC has been part of my life ever since. I particularly remember when, at 16, I joined

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abiding memory is of boys vaulting the horse and wondering if any of the taller ones would hit the hall ceiling.

It’s people I remember most. I can’t name them all – The old saints who had stuck with the church in the good times and when things were difficult.

They worked and prayed and kept the church alive.

The people new to the village who committed to the church. Some had been elders elsewhere and brought a wealth of experience and talent.

And there were others, such as Andy. His first contact was coming to the Prayer Meeting. He was a bit unsure at first but quickly started to pray. He developed a strong faith which supported him when he became ill with Motor Neurone Disease. It was a privilege to be invited

the church i.e. professed my faith in the Lord Jesus. and have ‘never looked back’ since.

At a later time, after a difficult period in my life, I remember praying regularly, asking God to help me to do the right thing in a particular situation. I did

back to share in his funeral.

In 1989, it became clear Torrance needed its own full-time minister. It was with a sad heart I left to become minister of Trinity St. Paul’s, Cambuslang. Many seeds had been planted and with Nigel’s coming, a new era started for the church.

David Stewart

not want to act without his blessing. One Sunday in church I was praying earnestly when the sense of the presence of God was so vivid I felt his hand on my arm. I went home “walking on air” and with a renewed confidence in God and his faithfulness.

The Amaryllis

Driving through Torrance one Sunday morning in 1991 I heard the church bell ringing and decided to pop in and sit at the back. Nigel was preaching on The Parable of the Sower. He had an amaryllis bulb ready to plant. He said he was looking for some good soil to plant seeds of the gospel. I wasn’t feeling much like good soil at that time. So I didn’t come back until three months later!

To my surprise, Nigel had brought his Amaryllis again. He had forgotten to bring it the previous week when it had bloomed and now the flower was looking bedraggled. He said it didn’t matter what it looked like on the outside, it was what is in the bulb that’s important. My faith was still

there but I was struggling, as my mother had just gone into care because of her dementia. I could identify with the withered flower! I started coming along regularly and came to live in the village not long after. I was encouraged and nurtured week by week.

Twelve years on I felt God leading me to Kyrgyzstan. I am so grateful for the care and support that TPC gave me during the 10 years I spent there. They took to heart the projects in the ladies prison, the boys remand centre, the old folks home and the homeless shelter, prayed constantly and gave so generously. Folks even came out to visit: Aileen spent a summer helping

Support and encouragement My grandparents Bob and Bessie Rigby came to Torrance after the first World War to help in Aunt Bessie McTaggart’s shop in the village. My Mum, Emma, was born in the close next to the Caldwell Halls. She met my Dad, David Findlay, at a dance in the Caldwell Halls and they were married in TPC in 1946. My earliest memories include going to the afternoon Sunday School and later on Bible Class and Youth Fellowship. We enjoyed watching brides, like my cousin Anne (Rigby) Nisbett going through the church gate on the corner.

Over the years God has used people in TPC to help and support me like Nessie Macdonald who encouraged me to be more involved. After our youngest, Fraser, was

born I went to the group run by David Stewart for those interested in professing their faith.

When I had my hands full with young children, it was great to have TPC folk regularly dropping in on my parents who had poor health. Similarly Margaret Young and Margaret Gibson stepped in to babysit when Gordon and I occasionally managed a night out together.

Isabel Coupland and Susan Cameron invited me to a Bible Study group which I found welcoming and inclusive and I felt at home in it. It is so encouraging to have people praying for me.

I hope others find TPC to be a caring and supportive church for them too.

Liz Capie

Sense of belonging In 1984, I moved to Torrance with my husband Willie and our two young daughters. One day, a man knocked our door. It was Tom Barr, the organist at TPC, and he invited us to the church.

He was a lovely man and persistent, so after a while the girls and I decided to give it a try. The girls attended Sunday school with some of their friends and enjoyed this and the church social events that took place.

By 1991, after attending a Billy Graham Mission, I felt different and strongly believed God was at work in my life and I professed faith later that year. Our new minister Nigel Barge had arrived and there was a sense of new beginnings all round.

In 2009, I became the Church Secretary – a big change from advertising sales in The Herald and Evening Times! My job is the administration

for the whole church including the set up for Sunday and other services. I also volunteer for the Summer Holiday Club, the Villager Magazine and ‘Thank You for The Music’. I find all of this spiritually uplifting and like to think I am working for God! At TPC, there is a sense of belonging, everyone is so friendly, and I feel quite contented. I rarely go through the village without waving or chatting to someone! It’s good to ‘Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.’ Psalm 100:3

Linda McEwan

with children’s camps and Sheila returned for extended stays to help a palliative care team. The study groups that met in my home each week were a highlight for me and challenged me as we grew together in faith. It was an amazing experience and I will not forget how I encountered God’s love and faithfulness especially through the church family here in Torrance.

Dorothy Beaton

Vacuuming the carpet?

Our early memories of TPC in the late seventies are of a small but friendly congregation. The stalwarts then were Bill Frew, Andrew McLennan, Andrew and Isa McIlwain, Bill Taylor, Peggy Morrison and Ena Hart; all great characters and fine Christians.

Many of them were influenced in their youth by the gospel preaching of then minister, Angus Jack, and went on to become pivotal members of the church.

We were very privileged to have Tom Barr as our organist – in his younger days he played in cinemas for the silent movies!

During the vacancy after Murdo McLeod’s death a Concern for Scotland prayer meeting was started. Many from the church attended the Luis Palau Crusade in the Kelvin Hall in Glasgow.

Growth continued under our new minister, David Stewart. Youth work flourished with nearly ninety youngsters in Sunday School and Bible Class.

We remember the consternation one Sunday morning when, during Nigel’s talk to the children, Brian Buist got up and started vacuuming the carpet! We didn’t realise that Nigel had arranged this to help to illustrate his point, “The right thing at the wrong time is the wrong thing.”

As part of TPC’s support for St Rollox and their work with asylum seekers we went to help with English lessons and in the Sunday School.

We have greatly enjoyed being part of this partnership.

Peter and Catherine Nicolson

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Easter 2020

Easter 2020

Who’d have thought World War

Church at the heart of the community My connections with TPC go back nearly 100 years. In the 1920’s and 30’s my Sutherland grandparents brought my Dad and his two brothers to the Church. Grandpa was an elder in the days when top hats were worn to Communion! When Mum and Dad married in 1959, they came to live in Balmore and Mum transferred to TPC, so she has been a member here for over 60 years. Christine and I were both christened in the Church, and Mark and I were one of the last couples to be married in the old building.

TPC has played a major part in my family’s life and has been very much a constant when other things have changed. One of my earliest memories is going to afternoon Sunday School, then up to Granny and Grandpa’s at Ferguslea for our walk along some of the now forgotten rights of way that exist around the village! As a teenager I was a Sunday School teacher and it’s such a privilege now to see the impact some of my class from then are having in the world. I pray some of the children I currently support in Sunday School will also go on to great things.

Some of the happiest and saddest times in my life have been centred around TPC. Torrance has been a wonderful place to grow up and live and is still a real community where you can always call on your neighbours for help, and the Church is very much at the heart of that.

Dorothy McCarthy

Finding answers to big questions

Vital and exciting

When I was about 11, a school friend invited me to Sunday School at TPC. My sister, brother and I were welcomed and made to feel part of the church family.

As I grew older, I began to be faced with questions like ‘What subjects are you going to choose?’

‘What career will you choose?’ I felt quite overwhelmed making such decisions at a young age. However, it also led me to consider the bigger questions in life - what is life all about, what is our purpose here, and what happens after we die?

I didn’t really have a ‘plan’ for my life and what I was going to do, but I learned through church that God had a plan, and this was so reassuring to me.

Becoming a Christian was really a process over a couple of years, rather than all of a sudden.

Sunday School, Youth Fellowship, church weekends away and the support of the church family all helped me to find answers to the ‘big’ questions. My two siblings became Christians at

We moved to Torrance in 1989 when I was 8 years old. Lots of my friends and classmates went to church so I decided to go too. It helped that my two older sisters were also going. Early memories include Sandy Walker preaching; Sunday School and Bible Class with the sword drills and the sweets for a correct answer; the caring Sunday School teachers who had a big impact on me.

When Nigel arrived as minister it was an exciting time in the church as we saw God at work. When two morning services started, I played guitar with Graham and Douglas Murray (Graham later became my brother-in-law!). Other things stick in my mind from around then - the Youth Fellowship at the Nicolson’s house, the growing Wednesday prayer meeting, Summer Mission, the Young Adults Group (YAG) and much more.

In 1998 I felt God begin to call me to the Ministry.

I spoke to Nigel and amazingly he was brave enough to let me explore this call and preach when I was only 17. I’m sure it was a painful experience for those who were listening!!

I always appreciated Nigel’s willingness to develop people’s gifts and talents and to take risks, seeing God’s hand at work. As a minister, I hope I have learned from that. After training I was called to the church in West Kilbride in 2008. My family, wife Anna, sons John and Alasdair, and I are still here.

TPC had a key role in developing my faith and call. It showed me that faith and a relationship with God is not dry and boring, but real, vital and exciting! I have much to be thankful for!

this time too; it was another example of God teaching me he does have a plan for each of us.

I felt God leading me into nursing and have now spent nearly 20 years in a career I love. I am so glad to have Jesus in my life. He has been with me through all the good and not so good times, and I know I can trust him completely, and I am truly grateful to him for that.

TPC remains an important part of my life. There is so much going on there, something for all ages and walks of life, and I would recommend it to anyone seeking answers to the bigger questions in life.

Sarah Murray

Margaret Lollipop I have been a member of TPC for almost 30 years.

During that time, I also greatly enjoyed my day time job as ‘Margaret Lollipop” where I met so many folk on their way to the school.

Presently I serve as an elder and pastoral team leader. It is such a privilege to visit and pray for the sick, vulnerable and grieving in our community. We take great delight in celebrating and thanking God in the good times too. I am also a member of the prayer ministry team and have personally experienced their support in past traumatic times in my life.

Two years ago my friend Marion, her husband Iain and I were led to start a dementia friendly

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singalong, ‘Thank you for the Music’.

It has been a great blessing to the volunteers and all who come along - “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.”

I thank God for putting me here in TPC, and for the people he has placed in my life. It is wonderful to be part of God’s family, we laugh together, we cry together, and we share together.

Margaret Neil

James McNay

Three would be against a Virus?!

CoronaVirus Disease - 2019 (CoViD-19) comes from a virus that doesn’t care about our nationality, politics or religion – it just wants to invade our human cells.

Then it sneakily uses our healthy cells to multiply itself, careless of our illness.

While Scientists search for cure and vaccine, the rest of us resort to good old-fashioned soap and water to combat the enemy.

This virus is a ‘self-assembled nanoparticle’. Its weakest layer includes fatty lipids. Spread by coughs and sneezes, it can stay active for hours on surfaces. When we touch the surface then our face, it’s only a short step to our respiratory tract - and infection.

Alcohol-based products work better than water alone to wash the virus from our hands. But nothing beats soap – it competes with the fat that holds the virus particles together. In soapy water, the virus detaches from our skin and falls apart.

Trust soap and water. So simple. If only we all did it!

The human race faces another common enemy. We all detest scam phone calls and emails that try to rob us – but don’t we ourselves sometimes verge on deception? There is evil inside all of us.

It started in the Garden of Eden, when the Accuser told Eve, ‘you will not die’ [if you eat this fruit]. And she believed the lie. Disobedience drove a wedge between God and humanity: the couple hid from God. Mind you, God came looking for them. ‘Adam, where are you?’

Christians believe God is still looking to befriend folk who are separate from Him because they have disobeyed him.

Entering our world as a genuine human being, Jesus lived the perfect life expected of us, then died our death, the death deserved by all who come short of God’s perfect standard. To show the price was fully paid, God raised Jesus back to life.

To be ‘washed clean’ of our rebellion, we only have to trust the risen Jesus. We say sorry for our sins, thank him for dying in our place, ask for his pardon and invite him to be our Lord.

When Jesus enters our lives, it is not to abuse our hospitality like a virus, but to enhance every part of life - with love.

Boys’ Brigade A bigger shelf?

It’s been a bumper year, with the boys coming first in the Battalion Elementary Drill, Squad Drill, Vaulting and PT competitions.

Four first place trophies, I think we are going to need a bigger shelf! Well done boys.

John Hair Captain

Collage and Alpha Once again the girls have brought home the Collage Cup for their success in making collages out of scraps. The Theme this year was Olympics 2020

Many will be familiar with the Alpha Course but did you know that there is a version for young people?

This year the Brigaders and friends have been using P.M. Trust Jesus. So simple. If only we all did it! this fabulous resource to explore the Christian faith in a safe, supportive and very engaging way. Film clips featuring young adults are used to introduce topics in a thought-provoking and fun way and these are followed up by discussions exploring Thank you questions like ‘Why do you think Jesus is so for the music This monthly event for all in p7 to S3 had an exciting famous?’ and ‘What does forgiveness mean to you?’

To protect our regulars from the vulnerable groups, programme lined up for the next few months: At the time of writing we are preparing for our day we will not meet till further notice.

A Film Making Workshop, BBQ at Mugdock Park and away at Colzieum House in Kilsyth and are eagerly Crossover Challenge Cup Rematch. waiting to see what God will do with our amazing But it is now suspended! Sorry. group of girls!

Over £700 from the annual Taylor’s Clothes Sale has been given to support Empower – a local project [ opt run by Unity Enterprises ] that helps adults with learning disabilities A growing number of mostly older Please look out for the box outside the people are now enjoying visits from our ‘Visiting to become more church. We invite you to write out a prayer Friends’ volunteers. They chat together, share a independent. game or other activity, help with a short outing. request at home and put it into the box.

This project was precious to the late It will just be telephone contact in the meantime.

It will be a privilege for the Prayer Team to pray for you, your family or friends, especially Lyn Walker.’ 40 or 45 For more information, please call words instad of 58 in these difficult times.

Dorothy on 07790306084.

Crossover

Visiting Friends

Prayer Box

7

First Importance What I (Paul) received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,

that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve.

After that, he appeared to more than five hundred

of his followers at once.

… last of all he appeared to me also.

Christ has indeed been raised from the dead,

the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

For since death came through a man,

The resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.

For as in Adam all die,

so in Christ all will be made alive.

But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits;

then, when he comes, those who belong to him.

1 Corinthians 15:3-8, 20-23 (NIV)

All church services are now on-line On 17 March 2020, all church gatherings were suspended till further notice.

Instead, each Sunday, we will conduct one pared-down service at 10.30am and stream it ‘live’ from 10.25 on the church website. Go there beforehand, in case you need to download any free apps.

www.torranceparishchurch.org.uk Click on ‘Listen Live’.

And click just below that, to see on your screen anything being shown on the church screen, e.g. hymn words, Bible reading, etc.

All the above is already in operation. We hope to develop other ideas.

Please allow us to gain experience in this provision.

Christ is risen! Celebrate on-line Good Friday 10 April at 7pm Easter Day 12 April at 10.30am

Situated in church car park.

Has instructions on how to gain access.

TPC Social Media www.torranceparishchurch.org.uk Rev. Nigel Barge | 01360 622 379 Torrance Church | 01360 620 970 | office@tpc.org.uk Torrance Parish Church of Scotland is a Scottish Charity No. SC016058

If you want to keep up with all the latest news, events and sermons - and let us have your views too - then join us on: Twitter: @torrancechurch Facebook: www.facebook.com/torrancechurch

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At other times, click on ‘Word of God’ then ‘New Sermons’ to hear and see previous broadcasts in the current series studying Deuteronomy.