Manse musings: hospitality, welcome, and Christmas...

[from our resurrected parish magazine - December issue 2016 - 
date of writing was earlier, due to publishing schedules, hence the October ref.]

This time, exactly a year ago [29 October] I was in the old manse surrounded by boxes and preparing to head out to the church for the evening to be both ordained and inducted as the parish minister of Upper Clyde. It’s been possibly the quickest year of my life. Right from the outset, it was all go: my very first Sunday included a baptism, the second was Remembrance Sunday, and the third was another baptism. Thereafter, it was the whirlwind that was Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany, during which, the church sanctuary became a life-sized stable complete with donkey, manger, bales of hay, and a shining [LED] Star of Bethlehem.  I have a strong suspicion that we might not have seen the last of the stable...[thanks to the construction crew!] In the midst of this, I had a ‘moving experience’ as I relocated down the road to the new manse and began to finally unpack boxes and settle in.

Right from the beginning of my time here - actually, even before I officially started - I’ve been made to feel so welcome by people both in and out of the church. From Wiston to Wanlockhead, there’s a huge depth of hospitality and generosity among the people of this parish which is quite humbling for this ‘townie’ minister to see and experience. Thanks for making it so incredibly easy to fit in and settle into my job and my new home. Over the course of time, relationships have been built, and many conversations have been had - at the school gates, in village halls or stores, in homes, church, or even the occasional field. Sometimes the conversations have touched on the raw stuff of life, as well as the joyful, or the weather; through them all, I count it an immense privilege when people have shared their stories with me. Regardless of whether you’re a ‘member’ or not of the Kirk, if I can be of help with a listening ear, please don’t hesitate.     

I’m also very grateful to the Kirk Session of Upper Clyde for their kindness and support to this new minister; I’ve very much appreciated their wise counsel, their wide range of skills and gifts, and the depth of understanding of the parish that they serve in as elders. It has also been a joy to welcome and ordain three of our church members into the eldership this year: Ursula Baillie, Teresa Brasier, and Aileen Gemmel.  Along with the Session, I’d also like to thank the members of the congregation for your encouragement, and your willingness to share a vast array of gifts: from hospitality and home-baking, to reading, or singing in the monthly choir, to arranging flowers and magicking up the occasional cup of tea for a thirsty minister - and also for your quiet patience and bemused smiles on those Sundays when I’ve inadvertently had a service with more than one new hymn! I’m gradually getting to know what you do and don’t know, so a big thank you for your bearing with me, and a big thank you to our three organists who try to keep us all ‘singing from the same hymn book’! 

Hospitality, welcome, and building relationships are also themes that loom large through Advent and Christmas.  The story of what happened in a stable over 2 000 years ago in Bethlehem is very much a story of hospitality and welcome: God, all-powerful becoming God, all vulnerable - dependent upon the hospitality of the human heart to take him in.  As each of us prepare to mark the coming season in our many different ways, as we enjoy time spent with family and friends, as well as remember loved ones no longer with us, may all of our homes be places of welcome and warmth, and may we know the peace and the joy of the Christ child, this Christmas. 

Thanks for taking me in as your minister this year,

Nikki...