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In this the first website pastoral letter I would like to tell you about what would happen if you were to come and visit one of our worship services. One of the most important things that we can do is gather for the public worship of God. This is where most people will meet us. What is it like to worship in St Peter’s? – what do we do? a) Singing - One of the first things that a visitor notices in our worship services is that we do not worship in what most people perceive to be the traditional way. We do not sing hymns and the large organ at the front of the church is silent. (Even if we wanted to use it we could not – unless anyone wants to donate £50,000 to repair it!). We sing scripture accapella. There are several reasons for this and perhaps one day on this website I will explain why we do this. However there are certain advantages in this practice – we know that whatever we sing is from God, it is simple and when done well, with four part harmonies, it can be really beautiful. There is also something quite appealing about singing words that are thousands of years old. We mainly sing the psalms of the Bible, although at times we do sing other parts of Scripture. We are led by precentors and we also have a worship group who are responsible for teaching us new tunes and bible songs. b) Prayer – I sometimes lead prayer, or one of the elders. In prayer we pray for the congregation, the community, the country and the spread of the gospel throughout the world. At St Peter’s we have a large international awareness and seek to uphold the work of Christ in other countries before the throne of grace. In prayer we also seek to praise God and to confess our sins. In addition we have specific prayer meetings – the regular ones being on Sunday at 6pm and Wednesday at 7:30 pm. c) Scripture reading – It is important that we listen to God speaking to us through his word. The version of the Bible that we use is the New International Version. d) Preaching – This is the explanation and the application of God’s word. I hope that this is done in a way which applies the timeless truths of the word of God to the current situations that people find themselves in. It is intended to be applicable for both believers and unbelievers – building up and bringing to faith. The preaching is usually systematic It is difficult
to describe exactly what happens in public worship in St Peter’s
– in the old Scots phrase. ‘its better felt than telt’!
On a typical Sunday you would find about 80 people at the morning service,
around 35 would be members in the congregation, 10 would be adherents,
15 children, 15 students and 5 visitors. We are a young congregation –
90% are younger than yours truly (who is a youthful 39!) and a relatively
new congregation – only five people have been here for more than
a decade. We are also a mixed congregation in terms of background –
there are people from different countries, different religious and social
backgrounds and with different gifts and abilities. All this makes St
Peter’s an interesting place to be. Pray for us, visit us and above
all pray that God would be glorified through us. May
God bless you, Yours in Christ |
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