The Magazine

April 2009

Cover Photo: Wood Anenomes, taken at RHS Garden Wisley

Congratulations: to Peter and Marina Huey on the birth of their son John, on 09 April.

Date for the Diary:

10 May - Communion Service communion, David Karoon will be preaching. Anyone wanting to join the church at this time should speak to one of the elders

Forthcoming preachers:

03 May – Jamie Stewart (London City Mission)

17 May – Bob Akroyd (Edinburgh)

24 May – Rory Stott (Final year student at Free Church College)

21 and 28 June – John MacPherson

Canada Water:

Our brethren at Canada Water are planning to start English morning services in June. They will be meeting at the Hilton Hotel. This will be separate from the evening service at Rotherhithe Free Church, that will continue to be bilingual, in English and Afrikaans. Please contact Kruger for more details.

Active Kids Vouchers:

Jennifer McCullough is collecting Sainsbury’s Active Kids Vouchers (which can be used by youth groups to obtain free sports equipment), please remember to save these and give them to her. Vouchers are being handed out until 03 June, and have to be returned by the organisations by 24 July.

Southern Mission Support Project 2009

Last year the Southern Mission Support Group (SMSP) raised £4,400 for staff training at Dumisani Theological Institute. LPCP collected £1,800 towards the project and we are most grateful to all those who gave so generously.

In 2009 we are supporting the Nursery Project for Colegio San Andrés in Lima. The Nursery is an important part of the school’s plans for development, as a high proportion of pupils begin their years at Colegio San Andrés in the Nursery.

Situated in the ground floor of what used to be the flats where missionaries once were accommodated, the Nursery is now in urgent need of modernisation, refurbishment and expansion. They plan to create a second class for the 5-year-olds; to equip an activity room to stimulate motor development and physical co-ordination, and to provide a multi-use room for small groups which will also serve as an eating area. The work is projected to cost in the region of £13,000. Much of the work of refurbishment will be carried out by their own maintenance staff, saving quite a lot of expense.

Many will be aware that the school's finances have been on a knife-edge recently, and such help in restructuring projects is a real answer to prayer. We have a wonderful opportunity to present God's word to all the children who attend Colegio San Andrés – and not only to them, but to their families as well.

On Sunday 17 May Bob Akroyd from Buccleuch & Greyfriars Free Church in Edinburgh will be taking our services. Bob is also on the Foreign Mission Board and has visited Colegio San Andrés three times, the most recent visit being just four months ago.  He has agreed to speak about the ministry and opportunities of San Andrés after the congregational lunch over dessert and coffee. 

As in previous years we are going to collect funds for the project over a number of weeks in May and June asking contributors to fill in a gift aid form if they pay tax in this country. We will start our fundraising for the project at the Spring Conference on 25 April, where we shall be holding a Bring and Buy Stall. Please be thinking now about what you might contribute to the stall for others to buy (e.g. garden produce, home baking / cooking, second hand goods, crafts, etc), and/or come to the Conference prepared to buy something from the stall. We shall also make Colegio San Andrés our special focus of prayer for 2009.

Barbara Homrighausen and Bethan MacDonald

Summary of the procedure for calling a minister in the Free Church of Scotland

Seeing as LCPC is currently without a minister, and many of us have no previous experience of the Free Church process of filling a vacancy, the our Interim Moderator has provided a summary of the process that LCPC is currently going through to call a new minister. (We are currently around point 3!)

1. When a congregation becomes vacant, the Presbytery appoints an interim-moderator.

2. The Kirk Session calls a congregational meeting to elect a Vacancy Committee.

3. The Vacancy Committee invites eligible ministers to preach, taking into account suggestions put forward by members of the congregation.

4. The Vacancy Committee chooses preferably one person to recommend to the congregation, though if necessary it may ask the congregation to choose between two or even three persons.

5. The Kirk Session calls a congregational meeting for the purpose of electing a minister to fill the vacancy.

6. If there is a desire by all the members or a large majority of them to elect one specific person, a request is made to the Presbytery to moderate a closed call to that person. (To moderate a call means that Presbytery members meet with the congregation, under the chairmanship of the Presbytery Moderator, for the purpose of choosing a minister whose name will figure in a document signed by the members and adherents of the congregation.) If there is some opposition to calling that person, another person or persons being preferred, but there is nonetheless a considerable majority in favour, the request to the Presbytery is for an open call. If there is a large measure of disagreement with little hope of a harmonious outcome, the Interim-Moderator needs to return the issue to the Vacancy Committee for further discussion and action.

7. A closed call means that only the name of the person elected at the congregational meeting can be included in the call to be signed at the meeting with the Presbytery. No other name can be put forward at that meeting, though absent members may signify their agreement with the proposal by signing mandates to that effect, which are handed in at the meeting. Clearly, unanimity leading to a closed call is a very satisfactory outcome for the congregation and is often an encouragement for the minister being called as he seeks to discern the Lord’s will in what can often be a difficult decision.

8. An open call means that when the Presbytery meets with the congregation, it begins the meeting by conducting another election when different names may be proposed by members of the congregation and voted on. If this results in a reasonably harmonious choice, the Presbytery will proceed with the moderation of a call; if not, it should delay the matter, seeking advice from the superior court (Synod or Assembly). In the case of an open call, it is not possible for absent members to sign mandates, since they do not know beforehand who may be proposed at the congregational meeting.

9. Once a call is signed, the Presbytery must decide whether to sustain (approve) it, taking into consideration the number of members who have signed it in relation to the total number on the communion roll. If there are important dissents or if a significant number have declined to sign the call, the Presbytery may refuse to sustain it. But if, as usually happens, the whole congregation or a large majority have expressed their agreement, the Presbytery sustains the call.

10. Although the call is signed by communicant members, adherents and regular attenders (aged 16 and over) who wish to do so are encouraged to sign a form of concurrence with the call being addressed by the communicant members to the elected minister.

11. If the minister called is not currently serving as a Free Church minister, the call is sent (or handed) directly to him for his response. If he is serving in a Free Church congregation, the call is sent to his Presbytery, along with reasons explaining why a minister is needed and why this person is considered an appropriate choice.

12. The Presbytery which receives the call usually tables it, appointing a date to dispose of it. This gives the congregation of the minister being called the opportunity to prepare their reasons for opposing the call or for indicating their willingness to accept, even if reluctantly, whatever the minister and Presbytery decide.

13. Once the representatives of the calling congregation and the home congregation of the minister being called have said what they want to say, the minister is asked to indicate his response. If he says that he believes he should accept the call, the Presbytery in most circumstances agrees with his decision. In exceptional circumstances it can, however, refuse to place the call in the minister’s hands, e.g. if the Presbytery has a large number of vacancies, or if the minister has been a very short time in his present charge. In such cases, the calling Presbytery has the right of appeal.

14. If the call is agreed, the calling Presbytery is free to arrange a date for the induction of the new minister, in consultation with him and his new congregation.

Doing our Father’s Will

The 35^th chapter of Jeremiah takes us along a curious little byway leading off the main highway of Israelite history. Since it tells us about a bunch of teetotallers who turned their backs on city life, it might seem highly irrelevant to any of us, but in actual fact it goes to the heart of what it means to be committed Christians.

The Rechabites were a branch of the Kenites, a nomadic Midianite tribe from which Moses’ father-in-law came. Their strange customs meant that they never integrated fully into Israelite life, perhaps a bit like the Amish in modern-day America. But what stands out in the incident is that they were men of conviction, and the elements of this conviction certainly challenge us in our Christian lives.

Sacrifice (6-7) Their life was undeniably one of self-denial – living only in tents, never touching wine, never growing their own food. Of course, it’s nowhere stated that the things they did or didn’t do were good or bad in themselves. Their non-cultivation of the vine was because they had to be nomadic and couldn’t hang around to harvest the grapes. It’s certainly not a call to total abstinence, even though the Bible has plenty warnings against the folly and sin of drunkenness. But what their way of life does say loud and clear to us as Christians is that we must always be willing to forgo rightful things for the sake of our convictions. Think of Paul not marrying (1 Cor 9:5,12) so that he would be freer to serve as a pioneer missionary in remote areas. Or Christians in Corinth urged to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols so as not to hurt the conscience of weaker brothers (1 Cor 8). You may have a hobby or special interest that is perfectly legitimate, but it is taking up so much of your time and emotional energy that you have very little left to offer help to needy or lonely people. Holidays as a necessary means of relaxation are good, but you may be regularly spending so much on them that you have only modest amounts available to further the cause of Christ through your local church and further afield. If the Rechabites had been around when Jesus uttered his clarion call to his would-be disciples, they would have understood and responded with enthusiasm: “If anyone wants to be my disciple, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me”

“Many crowd the Saviour’s kingdom, Few receive his cross;

Many seek his consolation, Few will suffer loss,

For the dear sake of the Master counting all but loss.” (Author unknown)

Steadfastness (6) The Rechabites were commended for their steadfast obedience to their ancestor, rather than for the specific practices they followed (16). It’s worth noting that they were not pig-headed fanatics: when their circumstances changed, they were prepared to come and live in Jerusalem, in the very houses that they would normally have avoided like the plague (11). Once again there is a clear Christian parallel – some of our conscientious practices may be changed when our circumstances alter. Think of Paul, working with his hands in order to be self-supporting as a preacher of the Gospel, since to do otherwise would have been interpreted by some of the fault-finding Corinthians as self-serving hypocrisy. Yet Paul knew very well that Christian preachers and missionaries should expect to be financially supported by the church, and he not only urged that for others but willingly accepted such support himself (1 Cor 9: Phil 4:14-17).

One congregation may decide to change its cherished pattern of church services, seeing that 11.00 and 6.30 are no longer appropriate. Another may abolish its central prayer meeting, and institute prayer groups all over its town or city. Yet another may completely revamp its church building, even though its long hallowed pews breathe history and have often been an arena of blessing.

But while all that is true, the Rechabites remind us that there are some fundamental principles that must never change, even though in their case, it seemed that a very prophet of God was urging them to do so (5). Prayer was Daniel’s life, official of a pagan government though he was, and he steadfastly prayed to Almighty God, though it could well have cost him his life (Daniel 6). As the people of God in the heart of secular London, we cannot budge on God’s moral law, even though it calls down on us the opprobrium of our relativistic society. Heterosexual marriage is God’s pattern for family. The Christian Sabbath is still to be observed, even though some of the circumstances of its observation need to be modified in our modern society. The Bible is the inspired and infallible Word of God. Jesus Christ as the only Saviour must be proclaimed to everyone. Does that make us an odd set of cranks? I suppose that’s what people said about the Rechabites in their day, but don’t forget that they were the ones who received God’s wholehearted commendation and blessing (18).

Shame (14) Their obedience was a source of shame to Israel, since they obeyed the instructions of their father Jonadab, though he was long dead. The Israelites, on the other hand, rejected cavalierly the commands of their Father God, though he was very much alive. This speaks very directly to two groups of people. The first are those, some of them in our churches, who have often heard God’s voice, but have never heeded it. They know who Jesus is, why he died, what he calls them to, but they resist the call to repentance and faith. What a rebuke comes to them from people like the Rechabites! They were outsiders, without the privileges of the covenant people. Probably many Israelites sneered at them on account of their crazy customs. But they obeyed their father’s voice and God blessed them. Jesus applies this to the people of his own time and to us: “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but tax collectors and prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.” (Mat 21:32). All over the world today there are people for whom the Gospel is new, but they are accepting it. Don’t be like many in our traditional Christian nations who have turned their back on blessings received. From this perspective it’s far better to be a Rechabite outsider than an Israelite or supposedly Christian insider.

The other group who are put to shame by the Rechabites are Christians like ourselves who know so much of God’s Word and God’s will, who have had great experiences of his grace, but who somehow have lost the cutting edge of their Christian life and witness. The sects can be so zealous, though for wrong reasons. Political activists can give up so much to forward their cause. Special interest groups, whether opposed to fox hunting or genetically modified crops or nuclear energy, can be so willing to sacrifice their comforts, their job prospects or their savings in order to fight for their convictions. What about us? We’re not called to be fanatical extremists, but we are surely called to be zealous for our Master who loves us and has commissioned us to serve him wholeheartedly. Whatever you might have said about the Rechabites, you couldn’t ever have accused them of lukewarmness in carrying out their father’s wishes. But Christ sadly says that very thing about too many of his followers (Rev 2;4; 3:16). Not, I hope and pray, about us or about LCPC, all of us so favoured and called with so high a calling!

John M MacPherson

Introducing……. Yoseup

Where are you from?

South Korea

What are you doing in London?
Studying Philosophy and Religious Studies at Birkbeck.

Can you tell us a little bit more about that…..?

In Philosophy, topics like Aristotle’s ethics and philosophy of religion are covered. In religious studies, topics like Christology, creeds, revelation, systematic theology, etc are covered. Let us not go further than that!

How long are you planning to stay in London?

Till end of June. It’s already March… time certainly flies!

What is you favourite place in London?

Regent’s Park of course, I live right next to it! Though I’ve been only once.

What couldn’t you survive in London without (e.g. the A-Z)
Oh dear. Here comes my A-Z list of essentials; A- Air, B - Bible, C-Church, … D - Do I really need to continue? If I were two pick two, it would be God and my Laptop.

How long have you been a Christian?
My grandparents were devoted Presbyterians so I did grow up, more or less, influenced by them and I had always considered myself as a Christian, but, to be frank, that really didn’t mean anything at all. My “re-birth” as a “true” Christian came about two years ago. This proves that there is no such thing as a “born to be a Christian” factor – Salvation is a very individual matter, whether one was raised from a Christian background or not.

Can you tell us a little more about how you became a Christian?

Three years ago, my application to read Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Oxford was rejected. (Rejection of any sort is always not too pleasant!) To make matters worse, my personal circumstance wasn’t good at the time either and consequently I had to go through so many things…it was then I rediscovered Jesus and I’m so grateful that God indeed did open my heart to rediscover Him at the right time. I’ve remained grateful ever since.

US Senator Mike Huckabee, who was running for a Republican President candidate for Presidential election in 2008, captures the essence of rediscovering Jesus so well, once saying something like “All we need is Jesus. But we (often) don’t realise that till all we’ve got is Jesus.” Cannot agree more.

How did you come to be worshiping at LCPC?
Prayer and Google.
Google keywords were “London” and “Presbyterian church” by the way.

Can you tell us one thing that you think LCPC does well ……

There, surely, is more than just one thing!
It appears to me fellowship at LCPC is very active and well-bonded.
Also, ‘sampling’ different styles of sermons of various ‘rotating’ ministers is a great experience too.(Was it Dr Wright who visited LCPC once and in the prayer he said that LCPC members were like sheep without a shepherd…that was very depressing, but let us look it from a ‘brighter’ side.)
Finally, LCPC keeps active updates on its web.

And one thing that you think we could improve……
There isn’t any I could think of. However, if there had to be something, then there is something that really applies to all the churches. And that is being spiritually prepared and awakened in the world grown hostile and cynical to Christianity. Keeping that alertness, awareness and being able to filter ‘ungodly’ and ‘worldly’ things when we have to. A good reminder for us all.

Introducing…….Moira Stone

Where are you from?

Genetically it’s much simpler…half Scottish half Irish

Born Zimbabwe, lived in a lot of places since.

Consider myself a Kiwi.

How do you feel about living in London?

I absolutely love London. That’s not to say that in every moment of every day I feel that way but of all the places I’ve lived, this city is the most vibrant and diverse. It’s a giant pain at times and very expensive – but often rewarding in totally unexpected ways.

How long are you planning to stay in London? Until the coffee runs out!

What is you favourite place in London?

I have loads of favourite places….

· Finsbury Circus in Moorgate for pure parky bandstand bliss.

· The Orangery in Kensington gardens for a relaxed high tea.

· Camden market when you haven’t been for a while and want to get some tasty food and unexpected entertainment.

· Greenwich Park for after work ultimate Frisbee.

· Selfridges for killing time and window shopping.

· Little French restaurant in Clapham common – opposite the cinema – really cool atmosphere, funny old glasses and really yummy fish soup.

What couldn’t you survive in London without? COFFEE! And friends of course.

How long have you been a Christian? All my life.

What are some of the things that have influenced you as a Christian? Sunday school, bible camp….long absence form actively going to church until recently when I found LCPC.

How did you come to be worshiping at LCPC? Found you on the internet.

Can you tell us one thing that you think LCPC does well ……

One thing! You do lots well. I felt extremely welcomed by everyone. Not in an overbearing sense either, which I know would have spooked me. I’m a little bit guarded. It’s clear everyone cares about each other and is actively connected through God’s love. I really like that and feel blessed to have found you. I thought the weekend away was great as well as the many lunches I’ve been invited to and enjoyed. I would add the house groups to this list but I’ve only made one of these!

And one thing that you think we could improve……

I don’t’ really know how I would answer this. I’m still taking in all the things that you do well.

Would you like to feature in a future edition of the magazine? We are looking for volunteers, and it doesn’t matter whether you are new to LCPC or have been coming for years. Please get in touch with Ruth MacDonald to volunteer.