Signing Off

It's Wednesday afternoon and I am busy trying to get everything sorted out before I leave for a holiday in France tomorrow evening. Funeral Directors have to be phoned with information about cover, preachers and worship leaders need to be contacted, last minute visits have to be done and a whole host of other things have to be attended to. I can see myself having to pack very late tonight!

I just wanted to say how encouraging it is to see the flow of information about life in Hilton church on the blog. I imagine that things will be a little quieter than normal over the next few weeks with people coming and going on holiday, but if you are doing something interesting or want people to know about an event that is taking place, please email Stuart, so that we can all keep in touch with Hilton happenings!

DM

Congregational Board Meeting

We had a very positive meeting last night. It is encouraging to see many of the "younger" members of the congregation taking an active part in the work of the Board. We were delighted to welcome Mike Robertson as our new church officer and we pray God's blessing on him as he undertakes his new duties. There were many issues on the agenda ranging from asbestos survey to multi media equipment. One of the issues, however, which I felt we could all help to rectify is the upkeep of the buildings and the grounds including the old manse grounds. Alan Brown is our property convener and in the near future, he will be looking for folks to help with cleaning tidying and weeding the grounds. Then in September, we would hope to get as many people as possible to clean and organise the church buildings. So listen for announcements in the church and in the bulletin for dates and times. It could be a good time of fellowship and fun for us all to get together for this. I will ensure refreshments and cake are available too!

"Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervour serving the Lord" Romans 12:11

Doda

PS - I am sure Norma will be delighted with the brand new self -defrosting fridge installed in the kitchen! Thanks to Ingrid for organising that.

I thought you'd never ask

A new survey by TEAR Fund says that three million people in the UK think they will go to Church in the future. Apparently they are just waiting to be asked...
DM

THE HILTON GOLF OPEN (TIGER'S NOT COMING!)

This years anual golf event will take place at Fairways Golf Centre on Friday, 24th August, with the first group teeing off at 5pm. The cost of the round (9 holes) is £9, with sausage and chips at £4 and fish and chips at £6. A sign up sheet will be available in the church foyer. Whatever your handicap or lack of one, you are really welcome - this is a truly open to all event!
Iain Ross

Don't dare sneer at your wife's cooking (and other marriage tips from 1913)

The title of this blog are words of wisdom for a happy marriage from nearly a century ago.
Husbands hoping for a quiet life are told not to sneer at their spouse's cooking or leave things lying around the house, while wives are warned never to utter the sanctimonious words "I told you so". The advice comes from a set of guidebooks on marriage written on the eve of the First World War which are about to be republished and are predicted to shoot to the top of the bestseller list. Click on the picture for more words of wisdom.

Colm

Puppet Ministry

Out of the Box Puppet Ministry Team were invited back to the Royal Highland Show this year as part of the Church of Scotland stand. Sunday afternoon saw Chris and Elaine Watt, Andy and Eilidh Wilson and Ingrid and Fiona Hutchison all entertaining the growing crowd around the C of S tent. We had put on two half hour shows, with our theme being 'He'll be there for us', (the title of one of our songs). We talked and sang about God being there for us in everything we do. No matter who we are or what we have done, if we ask Him, he will be there. We used a few scripts and about 8 different songs. It was a great day, apart from the weather....it was a tad wet, although when we were doing our bits the rain stayed off, which helped to attract the crowd. Hopefully we will be invited back again next year, it is a great event to be involved in.
Chris

Video Sermons

Yesterday morning at church, a dvd was shown of our youth worker, Chris Watt together with Scott MacRoberts, promoting the GOING WILD HOLIDAY CLUB. I found it funny and engaging - have a look below. This morning I have been catching up with one of my favourite blogs Emergent Kiwi and it has set a very creative thought in motion. There is no reason why all the sermons have to be from the lecturn at the front. Why not have a sermon as a video blog? This is a time , I believe, for being creative and exploring many different mediums of communication. And, what about a Shrek sermon at Hilton Church?

DM

Yankee Doodle

As promised by Duncan, here are the words to Richard Gibbons farewell song:
(to the tune Yankee Doodle). Hope you enjoy and best wishes once more to the Gibbons.

Richard Gibbons came to town
with Ruth and Michael too
A house in Holm Burn Place they had
And not too far from school.

Refrain
The Gibbons, they are moving West;
We'd love to keep them here still.
We say to them with all our hearts,
Our loss is gain for Greenville.

Richard preached from North to South
and East to West as well - O
Lewis, Lochcarron, Inverness
They thought him a grand fellow. Refrain

Ruth, though quiet, has much to say,
she's gen'rous and hardworking,
sharpwitted, funny, but not up front
when it comes to "churching". Refrain

Michael, nearly 18 years
have passed for you in Scotland
Your love for photos, media, film
now take you to a hot land! Refrain

What will we remember here?
Well - Westerns, humour, teaching,
Stadium Praise, a Lent series
Called "Purpose driven living". Refrain

We'll think of you on Sunday morn
dressed up in robes and smiling
Singing Psalms without a lute -
O that's so beguiling! Refrain

Isabel

HIGHLAND FOOD BANK

The Highland Food Bank has distributions in Inverness and Dingwall and is available in Inverness three days per week from 12 noon until 2pm on Tuesday, Thursday & Friday. The Food Bank is run by volunteers and runs a voucher based system to provide families and individuals breathing space to provide longer term solutions to their problems. The Food bank is currently struggling to meet demand and in need of donations. Please click here to find out how you can help this important ministry.
Alistair

FAREWELL LUNCH

This morning we were saying farewell to The Gibbons Family, who are moving to Greenville, N Carolina during the summer. They will be greatly missed. We shared together in a congregational lunch for them after the service and below are a few photos from what was a very happy/sad occasion. Isabel Black wrote a very good song for them, which we will post here as soon as we have the words to hand!

DM

Postcard from...

Morag Macritchie was the speaker at our all age morning worship today. As always, Morag gave a powerful address. As a keen photographer, she showed a number of holiday photos, many of them of Lewis, a special holiday destination for the Macritchie family. She spoke of memories as a source of strength and hope, and this led to the significance of memories and remembering for God's people - remembering the God who holds us and remembering how he has been active in our lives in the past.

We sang OUR GOD IS A GREAT BIG GOD, and Morag then moved on to look at Postcards. She spoke about postcards as being a way of communicating to friends and family and colleagues, that we are thinking about them. She spoke about the Mission that God has given to us - communicating and sharing God's love. Are we sending these kinds of postcards and messages in our lives? She finished by suggesting that this summer, it would be great if folk could send back postcards to the church from all the different places they visit on holiday. We'll post them on the noticeboard for all to see.

Whether you were at the Service this morning or not, whether you are part of Hilton Church or not, we would be thrilled if you would send us a postcard from where you go this summer. HILTON CHURCH, 4 TOMATIN ROAD, IV2 4UA.

DM

ROB'S RETURN

In November, 2005, Rob Barlow was given a 6 month placement at Hilton Chuch, as part of his training for the auxiliary ministry. Last year he did a second placement, this time with Richard Gibbons, in his role as Regional Development Officer (Mission & Discipleship). During this time, Rob continued his involvement at Hilton, both in the continuing development of the Cafe Service and in a variety of initiatives within the congregation aimed at helping us to share faith in Christ more boldly. We are delighted to make it known that Rob has now been assigned to Hilton for his final 1 year placement. Rob has a particular passion for ensuring that the chuch is outward looking in its mindset, and he will be involved in a variety of initiatives aimed at nurturing that passion. We look forward to the continued involvement of Rob, and his wife Gwen, together with Rebecca and Thomas.

DM

SECOND MORNING SERVICE

For a considerable period of time, we have been planning towards the launch of a second morning service. The matter was discussed at the Kirk Session on Tuesday evening, and it was agreed that we would begin having 2 services from Sunday 4th November, 2007. A number of significant details including the timings of the Services have yet to be finalised. Jamie Grant and Rob Barlow have taken on responsibility for leading these services together with Duncan. It is our expectation that the themes and the speaker at both services will be the same. We hope that this new development will lead to growth, both numerically and in the opportunity for new people to lead and share in worship. It is our prayer that on Sunday morning, we will have two vibrant congregations sharing together in worship, growing in faith and making disciples. The Kirk Session will meet again in August and a much fuller report to the congregation will follow soon thereafter.

DM

A Big Thumbs Up

Greetings from the Milton Housegroup. We thought we would share with you this picture taken tonight (20th June) at the last night of our Housegroup till the Autumn. As you see its a "thumbs up" from us for all we have learnt in this session. We have, over many years, met as a group and through supporting and helping each other we have grown in our understanding and love for Gods word and teachings.
Blessings from us all.
Margaret Johnston, Wilma Robertson, Helen and Rebecca Wilson, Avril Shand, Caroline Barbour and Ann Lamont

Gadgetvicar--a real breath of fresh air.

I think an event like this could be organised. Reminded me of the Community Days we had a few years ago. These were held in September and the church was packed. We certainly have enough people who could cater for the kind of activities listed on the Gadget vicar blackboard and yes the beginning of December or even late November sounds a good time before people get swept away in the Christmas frenzy.
Doda

It's summer but Advent is coming!

It's just the middle of the summer, but at Hilton we are already planning for Advent. It reminds me of an Advent Service we recorded for Grampian TV in June, 2000. It seemed a bit unreal to be thinking of Advent on a Saturday afternoon in June. This coming Advent we are going to have a special weekend to celebrate its beginning, (1-3rd December) and our guest speaker will be Jim Gordon, Principal of the Scottish Baptist College. He has a very stimulating blog called Living Wittily. I have just read his blog on the programme Modern Britain with Andrew Marr which finished tonight. He's a very clear thinker, and I look forward to having him sharing at Hilton in December.

DM

Hector to walk the West Highland Way

The Highland Theological College in Dingwall has grown rapidly since its establishment in 1994. At last year's General Assembly, it became a recognised College for the training of Church of Scotland ministers. Two members of its staff, Hector Morrsion and Jamie Grant , together with their families, are very involved in the life of Hilton Church. We have just received information about a major undertaking which Hector is taking on, along with two other members of staff. Begiining on 9th July, Hector is going to walk The West Highland Way in aid of two African Theological Colleges: Dumisani Theological Institute & Bible School and Zomba Theological College. Alistair Wilson, former HTC lecturer in New Testament, is Principal of Dumisani Theological Institute. Alistair, is a brother of Andrew Wilson, who is also a member at Hilton Church. You can find out more information about how you can sponsor Hector by clicking here.

DM

A Breath of Fresh Air

I saw this piece in Gadgetvicar today. Is this the sort of event that we could perhaps put on at Hilton? What do you think Evangelism Team? We are currently planning a special weekend for the congregation at the beginning of Advent. Would an event like this work in Hilton at the beginning of December?

DM

Ruth Bell Graham

Ruth Bell Graham, beloved wife of Billy Graham has died. He has said, "Ruth was my life partner, and we were called by God as a team. No one else could have borne the load that she carried. She was a vital and integral part of our ministry, and my work through the years would have been impossible without her encouragement and support."
Take a look at the following clips in which Dr Graham interacts wonderfully with another 20th century great. Proverbs 31 v10.

blog to the world

The other day, I read the following quote which has really got me thinking.

"I recently stood in front of a series of very gifted street preachers in a Canadian city. Hardly a person stopped. The street is no longer the public forum; the Web has provided the new marketplace for the exchange of ideas."
Eddie Gibbs

Many churches have unseen congregations amounting to thousands every week as people around the world view via the Internet. I was especially struck recently by the following blog from Tall Skinny Kiwi, an emerging church leader living in Orkney. In a short space of time, he has had over 1 million hits on his blog pages, and all this while working from a remote Island community. I can't help thinking, that if the Apostle Paul was around today, he would be investing a great deal of his energies in this vehicle of communication.

DM

A PICTURE SPEAKS A 1000 WORDS

Artists and Cartoonists have the wonderful ability of summing up complex issues in very simple picture. Todays sermon is:

2 pictures

DM

KINMYLIES CHURCH - YOUTH PASTOR POSITION

We have received an email from Peter Humphris at Kinmylies Church about a new post of Youth Pastor. You can read the advert here. They advertised the post in February, and to date, have been unsuccessful in attracting a suitable candidate. If you know of anyone who might be suitable for the post, please pass on the information to them, and pray that they will be able to find the right person in due course. At Hilton Church we have been really blessed in the Youth Workers we have had over the years, but in our experience we have often had to wait for a considerable period of time for the right person to come along.

DM

A GOOD NEWS STORY WORTHY OF A BLOG

Dear Duncan,

A few weeks ago David and Martha Brown visited Hilton Church while they were in Inverness and experienced a very warm welcome. They very much enjoyed the service and the fellowship at the church. When they came back they were so enthused that the minister Ken Froude asked them to say a few words in our service on Sunday morning. I was able to take information and pictures from your website to include in our service which helped the congregation visualise the church. We are now encouraging people to visit other churches during their summer holidays, to extend greetings from St Bryce Kirk to the local congregation and bring back news from around the world.

This has been taken up by our congregation and on Sunday we enjoyed hearing about a visit to a church in Fuengirola in Spain. I know that others have already taken the opportunity to visit churches and we are now looking forward to this becoming a regular part of our service on Sundays.

Could you please pass on our greetings from St Bryce Kirk to the congregation at Hilton and to thank them for the warm welcome that David and Martha received. Please let us know any news from your church, if you produce a newsletter we would be glad to receive it.

God Bless


Hilary Marshall
Administrator

Our Man in the States

Richard Gibbons is currently in the United States and on Sunday he preached his first sermon at 1st Presbyterian Church, Greenville, where he is to become Senior Pastor in August. You can hear his first sermon here. On Saturday, Richard opened the Greater Greenville Scottish Games and Highland Festival!

DM

Our Man in China

Recently, Jamie Grant visited China to deliver a series of lectures. Click on the picture to find out more about this exciting trip.
JG

OUR GOD IS A GREAT BIG GOD

We had a first, at our evening service last night, in that I can't remember hearing a sermon before, whose text was a childrens chorus - OUR GOD IS A GREAT BIG GOD!

Jamie Grant preached on the simple, but profound nature of this song, linking it to the Psalms and Pauls' letter to the Ephesians.

Towards the end of his sermon he quoted William Carey who famously said, "Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God."

This quote encouraged me to take a closer look at Carey's life curtsy of WIKIPEDIA. What a remarkable pioneer he was in terms of world mission. He taught himself 5 languages while he was still working as a shoemaker and founded the Baptist Missionary Society before spending 41 years as a missionary in India.

Carey had his flaws, and most of the biographies highlight his shortcomings as a husband and as a parent. Whatever his shortcomings were, his achievements were quite monumental.

When he died at 73 (1834), he had seen the Scriptures translated and printed into forty languages, he had been a college professor, and had founded a college at Serampore. He had seen India open its doors to missionaries, he had seen the edict passed prohibiting sati (burning widows on the funeral pyres of their dead husbands), and he had seen converts for Christ.
DM

the three billion project

Hilton Church is no different from many churches in terms of having a concern to be supportive of young people within the congregation and the wider community. I found a very interesting post by Mark Oestreicher in which he expresses the view that Asia rather than The United States or Europe will be the leader in terms of establishing trends for young people in the future. You can see a very interesting video here created by the three billion project. 61% of the world's three billion youth live in Asia.
DM

Around the world in 80 minutes

I have just been to Inverness Royal Academy's Summer Concert - this is the school which most of the children from the Hilton area attend. What a magnificent performance by all the pupils and the staff of the music department. We were transported to every corner of the globe with songs and poetry and dance. The concert built to a very powerful climax with a piper playing Highland Cathedral, followed by a moving rendition of "I wish" by The Lighthouse Family. It is a wonderful song and a fitting prayer to close the day with. Well done Inverness Royal Academy.

DM

COMPASSION

I've been an advocate for Compassion for 2 years now. It basically is volunteering to promote the organisation whenever there is an opportunity. I have been very impressed with the way Compassion works as an organisation through local churches in needy areas, and I've seen 2 Compassion projects first hand in Rwanda. I try and encourage individuals and groups to hear about Compassion and helped last year at the stall at CLAN Gathering. This weekend I'm helping at the stall at Frenzy - the Christian music event at RHS Edinburgh.
Compassion is:
Christ centred, child focused, and church based.

INGRID HUTCHISON

A celebration of St Columba's legacy

This day is the anniversary of the death of St Columba in 597. As part of the Highland 2007 celebrations, we invite all congregations from all denominations to take part in a demonstration of thanksgiving by walking for His Word and His messenger Columba, from Kinmylies Church of Scotland (click on poster to view more details), up the hill to the site of the fort on top of Craig Phadrig. We would like this to be a very public celebration and look to congregations to make the day one of joy with colourful banners, music, drama, and friendship. Following a time of praise and worship, it is hoped that people will enjoy their picnic lunches, and a time of Christian fellowship. This is an opportunity for people to ask their friends and neighbours to join in an event that allows us all to witness beyond the walls of our church buildings. Please encourage all your church organisations to contribute to making this a truly memorable occasion to celebrate the Bible and its contribution to Highland culture.

Frenzy 07 here we come.........

Myself and Amy Acton are taking five young folk (Eilidh, Kerri, Ruth, Gosia and Louise) down to Edinburgh on Saturday for the Christian music extravaganza that is Frenzy.

Frenzy is a huge event. Around 10000 people attended last year and they are hoping for even more this year. Bands like the Newsboys, Leeland, Starfield and All Star United are in the line up. I'm sure most of you reading this will never had heard of any of these bands...to be honest neither have I but don't tell anyone that.

All seven of us will be leaving from the church early Saturday morning, 8.45am....for me that is very early on a Saturday morning. The great thing is though that I get to drive. Here is why I'm looking forward to the drive...our local friendly car dealership have very kindly sponsored our trip to Edinburgh by giving us the use of a brand new Renault Espace...woohoo.

We will arrive at Frenzy around 12pm ish, then spend the next five hours or so jumping, singing, eating, talking, jumping, screaming (the girls will scream), more jumping then head back home. Hoping to be home around 10pm. It should be a great day. We are all looking forward to it.

Please pray for us.

Chris

Beware: The Bible

Scott McRoberts was preaching at Hilton Church yesterday morning from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. At Hilton, we are very keen to let a wide variety of people with preaching gifts share in our worship services. Scott is one of our youngest and newest preachers and it was great to pick up on his enthusiasm and energy. We are really blessed to have someone of Scott's calibre working for SU in the Highlands. I was struck afresh by the clarity and the uncompromising nature of Jesus' teaching. It made me think of the following quote by Soren Kierkegaard:
“The matter is quite simple. The Bible is very easy to understand. But we Christians are a bunch of scheming swindlers. We pretend to be unable to understand it because we know very well that the minute we understand we are obliged to act accordingly. Take any words in the New Testament and forget everything except pledging yourself to act accordingly. ‘My God,’ you will say, ‘if I do that my whole life will be ruined. How would I ever get on in the world?’ Herein lies the real place of Christian scholarship. Christian scholarship is the church’s prodigious invention to defend itself against the Bible, to ensure that we can continue to be good Christians without the Bible coming too close. Oh, priceless scholarship, what would we do without you? Dreadful it is to fall into the hands of the living God. Yes, it is even dreadful to be alone with the New Testament.”
DM

Community

During the last couple of years there has been a desire in many folks hearts for a more meaningful 'community'. Some expressed it in terms of 'covenant' or 'commitment'. The term used at one get together was 'Simple Church'. As we ask questions about how we can grow and be more effective without folk burning out, these ideas and questions struggle to find their way into being. We are too busy. We struggle to create this simplicity of life.....perhaps we are too reluctant to let go of whatever we feel is important in our lives. Anyway I'm starting to preach!!
What I wanted to share was an interview that I read in a magazine recently. An Army Brigadier had returned to his home village to retire.
He was asked about the changes he had seen in the village over the years. He replied that it had been a quiet Crofting community, enclosed, comfortable. Filled with characters and 'families ancient' in the place. 'But today', he said, 'it is a good place to live: young, vibrant, cosmopolitan and neighbourly.'
'So the changes are for the better', he was asked. 'Yes, a community is an organic, living thing which must develop and expand.'
When asked what he thought was the most important thing about the village, he said, 'It is the continuing sense of community, the care for others, the co-operation and the sense of fun among those who live there.'
'What is the special appeal of the village for you?' 'It is the sense of belonging, being accepted, feeling at home. I feel close to those who have been there before me and are with me now, with all their joys and sorrows.'

I hope that resonates with a few hearts in Hilton!

Barry

Reflections on John Drane

At the end of a busy week, I was in two minds whether to go along to St John's Church a week last Friday, but I am so glad I did.
I arrived early, was invited in to share in a sit down meal, beautifully prepared and presented. I thought what a civilised way to start an evening! The meal was followed by an inspirational talk by John Drane.
His opening sentence was "Britain is showing the world how religion in Great Britain can die."
The 2001 census showed that 65% of people in Scotland consider themselves Christian. However many people in Scotland are angry with the church, much more so than in England. Our politicians see any kind of faith as problematic and are uncertain how to deal with it. Voting SNP into power means that Scotland is ready to change. There are great challenges and opportunites for the church if Christians are up for change - a new age is dawning in Scotland. John Drane looked back, quoting an ancient Chinese proverb, " Those who don't know the village they have come from won't know what village they are looking for." He reflected on the change in lifestyle over the last 4/5 decades in Scotland
The Agricultural background was one where worship reflected the life of the community -everybody knew each other.
The Industrial age - mines, factories and shipyards where worship reflected what workers thought of their bosses.
The IT age -lifestyle became globalized in the 80s -the 24/7 age where thinking was more valued than physical strength.
The conceptual age - NOW - when everybody is looking for meaning and imagination. We have so much that self-storage places are being widely used because people don't have the room to store possesssions in their own homes. WE HAVE IT ALL so WHAT NEXT? This age is leading to huge personal insecurity. Being young carries a high risk of being anxious, depressed, suicidal and under medication.
There is a mammoth spiritual hunger in our age. The few books which are displayed in Starbucks have spiritual titles eg " In a spiritual style" and the Body Shop advertise products to soothe body, mind and spirit.
Something is going on in our culture and the church mustn't miss it.
IS THIS NOT A NEW OPPORTUNITY for Christians to connect with culture - a Kairos moment - a space that God has made for the nation for Christians to occupy. A space that might not be repeated for a long time.
People are looking for a better way to live - the whole world is lost and looking to what to do next. They are not against God.
John Drane concluded his talk with 2 stories. One of a time when he prayed for his hairdresser anointing her with shampoo since there was no oil in sight, whilst her colleagues and clients looked on in amazement. She now prays for and anoints her whole family with oil every Saturday evening. Who knows what God is doing in their lives? Another story about an elderly lady [a blue-rinse lady] who took the risk of setting up a prayer stall at a psychic fair where the queue was so long she had to start praying long before the time advertised. She is now well in her seventies with prayer networks at psychic fairs in many towns in England. She believes God has prolonged her life because of this work.
The evening finished with discussion and questions.
I came away with excitement in my heart, realising that church is so much more than meeting in a building on a Sunday, and a determination to take the Good News to the places and people I encounter in my every day life.
Doda

re-emergent Kiwi

Last week, I bloggd about some of the most imaginative church leaders being in Australia and New Zealand. This mornings blog from Steve Taylor is a case in point. May God help us to make creative connections between our faith and our work.

DM

A Workers Communion

As we move to communion, you will notice that it is being served on 3 working communion tables: a kitchen sink, a work bench and an office desk.
And so this table is not a Baptist table. It's a workers table. It's for anyone who wants to remember.
So come Holy Spirit,

Help us remember that God is a worker,

Help us remember that Jesus was a carpenter,

Help us remember that when the bread was broken,

When Jesus said "This is my body, Take, eat, do this in memory of me, This cup means a new covenant in my blood, whenever you drink it, all of you"
Help us to remember that this meal of memory, this first communion, did not happen on a special table with a white lacey tablecloth.
But it happened on a kitchen table in an everyday house,

So come let's eat and drink, in memory of God the worker, at work in our lives, and at our everyday worktables.

Guild Outing

To anyone who is interested, there is still some spare seats left on the bus, for the Guild's Outing to Cromarty on the 14th June. Price of this is £17 .50 which includes a High Tea at The Chieftian Hotel in Inverness at about 5.30pm.
Please contact Rebecca Wilson on 239529 by Sunday 10th June if you are interested in joining us.
Rebecca

More about Hyphop

What a great turn out at the Hyphop BBQ last night. Up to 200 people swarmed into the church garden for a BBQ. There were infants, children, teenagers, mums with prams, dads, grannies and granpas - the whole age spectrum and I only identified three people I had ever seen in church. Chris took them all into the large hall before serving the food. He sang some songs with the kids, explained to the grown ups what Hyphop was all about and he made no secret of the fact that the purpose was to tell the kids about God's love. He then prayed before the food was served. Everybody had a great time, the sun shone and God was blessed. I found it rather frustrating that because of all the practicalities, I couldn't spend more time interacting with the real Hiltonites. Well done, Chris. Your witness to these people was clear and non-compromising. My question now is "How can we build on this now-rather than leaving it till the next Hyphop BBQ?"
Doda

Hyphop BBQ.

At 5.50pm on friday night I was standing over a BBQ cooking the burgers and sausages I had bought from our local friendly butcher accross the road from the church. I looked at the box of meat and thought to myself "I think we are going to have a lot of left overs, I hope we can use it elsewhere". I had bought 80 burgers and 80 sausages....it was a lot of food.

At 6.05pm, Murray and Fiona were now on the BBQ, when I came running over to them shouting "cook it all, cook it all"...around 140 people had arrived...at one point Elaine had counted 80 children, then there were babies, mums, dads, grannie's, grandpa's, aunt's and uncle's...it was amazing. After me thinking there would be left over food, we ended up not having enough...well not enough for seconds anyway, everybody managed to get something to eat.

We sang the song 'God loves me, I'm gonna shout it out', gave thanks for the food, eat some food, bounced on the bouncy castle, played some circle games, chatted with folks, enjoyed the wonderful weather, had some chocolate, advertised Holiday Club and then thanked everybody for coming. It was a great night.

I just want to thank everybody who came along and especially to those who helped out...you know who you are...so thanks.

Chris Watt

THE CONGO!

Last September, a team of five of us from Hilton Church spent a week with a group of Churches in Charlotte, North Carolina. I was linked to a wonderful couple, Randy & Barbara Walker from Myers Park Presbyterian Church. I was amazed to learn from Barbara that she had recently been to the Congo on a Mission trip. From a British perspective, The Congo seems like a very dangerous place to go, and don't Americans stay at home at the first sign of any trouble! Don't believe all the stereotypes. The Congo remains a very dangerous place to visit, but Barbara is off there again! Read about it here. All of us who spent time in Charlotte were enriched by the friendships that we made that week. Hopefully, we will be able to welcome them to Hilton Church some day.

DM

Project Inverter

The total from our recent collection for Laurence & Mairi’s “inverter” project, including Gift Aid, as far as I know, is £1669.20. There is probably also a bit more given anonymously. The target was £1600 if we were to completely cover the costs of the project.

The final Missions Group meeting before the summer will be Mon 18th June at 8pm at Glenburn Drive.

Ken