September Prayer Link

Sunday 4th

Ayr: Rev Mark Bentham. Give thanks for a successful mission for Primary age children recently run by our YF, under the guidance of our temporary youth worker, Ross Gilfillan. Apart from running a Holiday Club, this was also a training event for our YF and a 'dummy run-through' of material used by our same YF on a Mission in New Cumnock Baptist early in August. Pray for our ongoing work there, as some older YF'rs run a Friday Night Children’s event.
     From 5th to 7th August was the weekend of Ayr Flower Show and, once again, we had a stand at it displaying banners on biblical themes and giving away Christian literature, balloons etc. Please pray for contacts made. This year, in recognition of our frequency at Ayr Flower Show and our contribution to the local community, the organisers gave us a massively discounted stand (they grant 4 per year to local charities).
      On Sunday 14th August the 'first' person from our Community Lunch outreach was baptised. 'Billy' has had a real experience of faith and has been nurtured by a couple of folks in church. He now believes it is right for him to be baptised and we give God grateful thanks.
      On Sat 21st August we had our “Fort Fun Day” - a new venture for the residents of the immediate area. We have been organising this for months now, together with the local Councillor and some local residents. Pray that it bears fruit. It is a relational event for the community, not for the church (although they're free to attend!) and will include bouncy castles, climbing wall, tennis tournament etc,. On the Sunday we will hold a 'messy church' event in the middle of the day on the same site.
Please pray for the church during the Pastor's sabbatical (Sept to Nov 2011) for the Pastor and his family.

Barnton, Edinburgh: Rev Keith Short. Please Pray:- that we may find a building within the community where most of the congregation actually live; for the church weekend at Gartmore House (16-18 September) where the church is coming together to, among other things, seek God for our vision over the next 5 years; for the start of the new Alpha course, in partnership with Emmanuel Episcopal Church. This starts on September 20th, in the “Two Bridges” in South Queensferry. Two other local churches have asked for tables on the course; for the church as we seek to reach out to young families in the community - possibly in partnership with the local Library service. Thank you.

Sunday 11th

Bathgate: Pastor Harry Sprange. Praise God for the return of one of our members, James Palmer, who has been in London for three years, training with Ichthus. He started working with us as Community Evangelist at the start of August, while he does the "Invest" Church -planting course this year. Pray for him as he re-adjusts to Scottish life and culture.
Praise God for a trickle of new folk coming to our meetings and for enquiries about membership.
      Pray for mature Christian families to join us: folk who can provide stability and examples of Christian homes to our young people. A few decent wage earners would be helpful too in supporting the work!
      Pray for wisdom and vision this autumn as the new Community Centre opens in town. For 10 years the old one has been the base for our youth work, but a new beginning gives the opportunity for a new launch of our youth programme and the chance to make it more intentionally missional.
      Pray for wisdom in how to maintain contact with the hundreds of young adults in the town who are now too old for our youth work but with whom relationships have been built.
      Finally, please help us pray for guidance over the issue of premises. We are very grateful for the use of the URC Hall for evening worship, but we are beginning to think of the need for our own premises to provide both clear identity and an
expansion of what we can offer the community.
      We thank you for your prayers and also take this opportunity of thanking the denomination for many expressions of interest and goodwill following our reception into BUS membership at last year's Assembly.

Bearsden: Rev John Craib. We have much to thank God for within the church this past year. We have also been encouraged and stretched by growing involvement in various forms of mission in the wider area, e.g. Street Pastors, Glasgow City Mission and Prison Fellowship. We have just completed our annual children's holiday club, using the SU Mission Rescue material, with 130 kids from local primary schools attending and a terrific team of leaders, many of them young people. Please pray for the ongoing contact with the children (all but 10 were from outside our church) and also their families.
     We also give thanks for Graham Kinloch, and his wife Elaine, who has just finished 3 1/2 years of ministry with us as Youth Pastor. During that time we have seen real growth among our young people. Pray God's blessing on this young couple as Graham now takes up full time pastoral ministry in Cowdenbeath Baptist Church.

Sunday 18th

Bellshill. Pray for the fellowship at this time of Pastoral vacancy, praising God for the faithful preachers who have filled the pulpit over the last year. Please pray for God’s guidance for the Diaconate and Search Committee as they meet. Please also remember the various outreaches which include the Cafe and the Children’s work (Story Keepers & Pathfinders). Please pray too for other outreach opportunities

Bo'ness: Rev Stuart Murdoch. We give thanks for the hard work of our Mums’ & Tots’ Group reaching out to 60 families within our town. Our waiting list continues to grow and, as a result, we have decided to open up this service for a third day. Pray that we continue to draw alongside those who come and that they would see God's love embodied in the lives of the staff.
Chaplaincy work with Bo'ness Fire Station continues. We give thanks that contact with Work Base Chaplaincy Scotland has let discussions on developing further opportunities take place with Central Scotland Fire & Rescue service.
Pray for us as we seek God in how best to reach out to our community with the Gospel of Christ in a way that would impact lives for good.

Sunday 25th

Bourtreehill, Irvine. Please pray for the church and its pastor Rev David Wotherspoon.

Brae: Pastor Gwyn Stoyle. Spiritually we are in good heart, though numbers are small, and with two members in a care home and two awaiting operations they are often very low at worship on Sundays. Others too have health problems which limit attendance at meetings. Not that we are discouraged - the Lord is in control.
     Visitors over the summer months and contact from people picking up our services from the web page encourage us greatly.
Having no building of our own we go to homes for our mid-week bible studies, usually two a week. Scattered as we are, its over 20 miles between the furthest apart homes so this enables some who have difficulty getting out to still enjoy fellowship.
One particular item for prayer is for a musician to come to help lead us in our praise time. Our "music box" lets us down sometimes, making the singing a little hard going. Pray also for those who are curious about faith matters to “get off the fence” and come along to meet the Lord and get to know Him.
     Blessings from Brae, the most Northerly UK baptist Church.