As the Church of Scotland in Bellshill we extend a warm welcome to any of our activities. People have been coming to this building to worship God for over a hundred years. While our town has journeyed through many changes over those years, the constancy of the witness of the “Church at 346 Main Street” has remained uninterrupted. The mission of any Church is to reflect through its presence, its music, its fellowship and its beauty the greatness of God, and we seek to do that here in all that we share.
We hope that everyone who enters these doors will find an encouraging, friendly group of people. While we are far from perfect, we are regularly discovering truths that are changing us individually and enriching our lives as a church community. As we worship together, learn from the Bible, and pray for one another, we are strengthened in our commitment to Jesus Christ as well as to each other. If this is your first time here, we welcome you, and invite you to share the joy that we have found.
Our lesson today is found in 1 Corinthians 13. [verses 1-2] Paul is writing this letter to the Church at Corinth. Paul talks about love and it is a good reminder for us as every day. Paul begins by saying that if you do not have love, you are like a clanging cymbal!
You know that a banging cymbal is Loud and annoying! And Paul says that isn’t love. He said that it doesn’t matter how wise you are… if you don’t have love, then you don’t have anything.
1.Patient & Kind: Paul said even if he gave everything he has to feed the poor, there would not be a profit (an advantage or reward) without love. (vs. 3-4)Paul is saying to share and give with the right heart and with love. He wants you to give freely and not resent what you are giving.
2. Jealous: Love does not envy, does not parade itself and is not puffed up. Love isn’t jealous of what others have, and if you have things that others want, you shouldn’t make your friends jealous because you have it.
3. Boast: Love is not proud or big headed. That also means boasting or bragging. Accept what you have, what God has given you. Be happy, not “I want this and that”.
4. Not Rude or Mean: Love does not behave rudely. Love is not impolite or mean. Love doesn’t do things that we’ll regret or be ashamed of later. Discussbeing mean. (vs. 5)
5. Care About Others: Love does not seek it’s own. Love doesn’t look out for their own interests or just themselves. That also includes grabbing things from people. Or interrupting when someone is talking. Love cares about other people’s needs.
6. Controls Temper: Love is not provoked. That means that Love doesn’t become angry easily. Love is forgiving. Take time to let your temper cool down. Don’t hold grudges.Love thinks no evil. Discuss anger and what angers the students and what they can do to control it.
7. Good Thoughts: Does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth. Iniquity is sin, or doing sinful things that God doesn’t like. And, just the opposite is to be happy to do what is right. (vs. 6)
8. Love bears all things. (Love accepts and protects.)Love believes all things. (Love trusts)Love hopes all things. (Love always has hope.)Love never fails. (Love puts up with things and never gives up.) If you love someone or something, you never stop trying. Love is patient, willing to listen and take the time to pay attention. (vs. 7-8)
9. Look at today’s Bible verse 13. There’s faith, hope and love;Faith is believing in Jesus and knowing that He will do what’s best for us.Hope is knowing that we will be with Jesus in Heaven.And God is love! Love never ends. We have faith in what Jesus taught us, and we know that if we do everything He commands, we will go to Heaven with Him.
10. Greatest is Love: BUT the greatest of these is love. Why? Finally, the Bible tells us that love keeps no record of wrongs. You have a piece of paper in front of you. Pretend that this is a list you’ve been making of things that bother you about other people. Let’s tear it up. Rip it to little pieces! Now there’s nothing standing in the way of you loving others.Love thinks good things, and if you are thinking good things, you will do good things. Slow down and see if there’s something you can do to help someone … You show your love by how you act and treat others.
Bible Verse: And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NKJV)
Bellshill’s Central Church (your Church of Scotland Congregation at 346 Main Street) is very much alive and busy being involved in the community which is at our heart during these unprecedented times. Our doors facing out onto Main Street may be temporarily closed, but the church is it’s people not just the buildings. Please know that our Minister, Rev Kevin de Beer, is very much available for spiritual help and support to the good people in Bellshill and Mossend. As the Central Church and your Parish Church we are here for everyone, that is our calling and ethos. Please get in touch with Revd. de Beer if you need to, he’ll be more than happy to assist. We’ve been proclaiming the Good News for over 147 years from our place in Bellshill’s Main Street and the Church is more than ever helping where it can.
Sunday worship is continuing, albeit in an online format. This coming Sunday, we have worship taking place online for the community. Please visit our website at http://www.bellshillcentral.church/watch-live to take part. The broadcasts begin at 1045am and the service itself usually starts at around 11am. From 10.45am we share in some news and songs as we gather in our houses as the church. The services are available at any time thereafter on our YouTube channel. This Sunday is our celebration of young people, prizegiving for young church and prayers for fathers day. It’s going to be a busy service. Kevin hascan all age talk that features a DRAGON!
We also have a permanent local rate phone number where you can listen to Kevin’s weekly message and prayers. Just call 01698 533211 and you’ll be part of our “Dial in Congregation” this is ideal for those folks with no access to the internet, so please share this as widely as possible – and also our online watch live and catch up services.
To support our online services we are producing a weekly E-News with information that will help you in our online worship and also some pieces of news and information in and around the Church.
ALL BELLSHILL CENTRAL MEMBERS AND FRIENDS – We are looking for your help! Over the next few weeks if you are having a BBQ, since the weather has to be not too bad, we want to see your pictures and VIDEOS. Please send your videos to bellshillcentral@gmail.com
ARE YOU BELLSHILL’S ANSWER TO MARY BERRY OR PAUL HOLLYWOOD? We are organising the Bellshill Central Bake Off, for our church members and wider community. During these lock down weeks there have been shortages of flour, eggs, sugar, caster sugar, icing sugar and much much more! We can only assume that everyone has been busily practicing their winning recipes and decorating skills for the Great Bellshill Central Bake Off! ENTRY PROCESS ENTRY £5 CLOSING DATE FOR ENTRIES IS TUESDAY 30TH JUNE – ENTRIES MUST BE SUBMITTED BY 5PM Send your pictures and videos to either the church email address bellshillcentral@gmail.com, send as a direct message to our Facebook Page or Twitter Account, or direct message Alan via WhatsApp (don’t use the Church Chat). Please remember to tell us what your entry is, as we are not able to taste your entries in this occasion Entries will be judged on all aspects of the process – preparation, mixing, baking, decorating, finished product Visit for full details. https://bellshillcentral.church/2020/06/10/the-bellshill-central-bake-off/
We’ve set up a Bellshill Central WhatsApp group so that we can keep up the friendship and fellowship which very much is Bellshill Central Parish Church. We have nearing 50 people part of this who enjoy a good morning message to start the day, funny stories and video clips, sometimes a quiz of places in and around Bellshill and just generally a welcoming and safe forum for us to keep in touch. If your part of our Church Family, formally or informally, and would like to join this group please get in touch via the website or email mailto:bellshillcentral@gmail.com
KEEPING IN TOUCH
LOCKDOWN CHRONICLE – we haven’t been able to produce our usual June Church magazine, but have instead our Lockdown Chronicle available online. Please visit https://bellshillcentral.church/2020/05/31/lockdown-chronicle/ If you need a paper copy please get in touch and we will get one delivered. Our minister has contributed, we have news from our linked schools (Mossend and Lawmuir Primaries), info about Communities Together project, The Guild and more. We hope you enjoy reading and finding out what we’ve been up to.
WEEKLY ONLINE YOUNG CHURCH TIME – via the church website we are sharing something suitable for young folks and adults on Wednesdays at mid-day. These usually consists of a video message and a bible reading. Look out for these posts on the website, Facebook and twitter. You can catch up with them at any time, and might be an ideal thing to watch on the sofa all together.
THE ORGANIST ENTERTAINS – Due to the need to help people keep as physically connected to their church building we have a new ministry which is now flourishing. Whilst checking on the maintenance of the pipe organ, is recording requested hymns and songs and compiling them into a ½ hour video, introducing them and sharing who has requested them. There has been a request to explain just what the organ is and how it works, so Alan has added a tour of the organ as well, The videos are available on our church’s YouTube channel. They premiere on Sundays and Wednesdays at 8pm, but are available to catch up with at any time.
TIME OF PRAYER We have a prayer routine at Bellshill Central Parish Church and invite everyone to take part. Sundays at 7pm we join churches across the UK in a time of prayer and reflection. These have been lead our Moderator Rev Colin Sinclair, but from this coming Sunday the new moderator, Rev Martin Fair will lead the prayers online. On Sundays at 8pm we are encouraging an initiative from Rev Robbie Hamilton in Airdrie to pause and reflect and simply stand on your door steps for a minute – it’s called Minute to Remember. Each other night Monday to Saturday at 8pm we ask all of our members, friends and wider community to pause and pray and light a candle for the crisis we find ourselves in. Pause and pray for ourselves, our families, our minister, the leaders and the keyworkers who are keeping the vulnerable safe and protected.
Via our church website and Facebook/twitter pages we are sharing daily Psalms for the Day. If you subscribe to the website you will receive these automatically by email. You can of course browse the website or our Facebook/twitter pages and find them just as easy. We also share inspirational images from around the world to remind everyone that there is hope, love and security in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and God the Father. Our website is http://www.bellshillcentral.church and the social media channels are http://www.facebook.com/bellshillcentralchurch & http://www.twitter.com/bellshillchurch
BELLSHILL’S HEARTS OF HOPE We encouraged people to help brighten up our Main Street starting at the Church at 346 Main Street – Bellshill’s Central Church, to craft a sign of colourful hope and tie it to our railings. This has been very well supported and also popping up at the Co-op Funeral Care site on Hamilton Road. We hope you agree that these show signs of hope and light in this difficult and challenging time. All we need is one person to start and we could see a wash of colour streaming down Main Street towards the Cross at St Andrew’s Church. If you are our for your daily exercise, just pass by Bellshill Central Church and tie your colourful symbol to our gates and railings. We want to see wonderful images of community involvement touching the hearts of everyone.
PRAYER RIBBONS As we move forward prayer is more important than ever. We want our community to pull together and pray for sense and patience as we progress through our phases to bring us back to normal life. Each time you pray, tie a piece of ribbon to our gates. Each ribbon represents a prayer offered. The more ribbons means the more prayers offered. A visible sign of our combined prayer.
SUPPORTING YOUR LOCAL PARISH CHURCH.
For Church Members – Please keep up to date with your financial giving to your Church. Please continue with your standing orders and direct debits. If you give by way of envelopes/donations save these and bring to Church when we re-open. If you would like to change to direct bank giving please let us know and we can give you the necessary information. There will be a significant impact on our Church finances over these weeks so your continued generosity will be particularly important and very much appreciated.
For our community – we are financially supported by our members. This is part of our vows when we join the church. We cannot directly ask the community for financial aid, this is simply not how we work. We as members support the church, so that the Church can support you – the local community! However, if you would like to support us by giving a one off donation or even something more regularly you can simply get in touch and we will let you know how to do this. Or visit the church website and use the online donation option. What would be more than wonderful is that you come along to church the first Sunday we can gather together in the beautiful building at 346 Main Street and support us by your presence as we rejoice in coming together. So, we hope you can come along when that day happens. If you want to donate just now or when you come along either would be graciously accepted.
Our motto is simple – Central to Bellshill, Central to You and Central to Christ. Be part of the church family
To the choirmaster: according to Do Not Destroy. A Miktam of David, when Saul sent men to watch his house in order to kill him.
59 Deliver me from my enemies, O my God; protect me from those who rise up against me; 2 deliver me from those who work evil, and save me from bloodthirsty men.
3 For behold, they lie in wait for my life; fierce men stir up strife against me. For no transgression or sin of mine, O Lord, 4 for no fault of mine, they run and make ready. Awake, come to meet me, and see! 5 You, Lord God of hosts, are God of Israel. Rouse yourself to punish all the nations; spare none of those who treacherously plot evil. Selah
6 Each evening they come back, howling like dogs and prowling about the city. 7 There they are, bellowing with their mouths with swords in their lips— for “Who,” they think, “will hear us?”
8 But you, O Lord, laugh at them; you hold all the nations in derision. 9 O my Strength, I will watch for you, for you, O God, are my fortress. 10 My God in his steadfast love will meet me; God will let me look in triumph on my enemies.
11 Kill them not, lest my people forget; make them totter by your power and bring them down, O Lord, our shield! 12 For the sin of their mouths, the words of their lips, let them be trapped in their pride. For the cursing and lies that they utter, 13 consume them in wrath; consume them till they are no more, that they may know that God rules over Jacob to the ends of the earth. Selah
14 Each evening they come back, howling like dogs and prowling about the city. 15 They wander about for food and growl if they do not get their fill.
16 But I will sing of your strength; I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning. For you have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of my distress. 17 O my Strength, I will sing praises to you, for you, O God, are my fortress, the God who shows me steadfast love.
58 1-2 Justice? You high and mighty politicians don’t even know the meaning of the word! Fairness? Which of you has any left? Not one! All your dealings are crooked: you give “justice” in exchange for bribes. 3 These men are born sinners, lying from their earliest words! 4-5 They are poisonous as deadly snakes, cobras that close their ears to the most expert of charmers.
6 O God, break off their fangs. Tear out the teeth of these young lions, Lord. 7 Let them disappear like water into thirsty ground. Make their weapons useless in their hands. 8 Let them be as snails that dissolve into slime and as those who die at birth, who never see the sun. 9 God will sweep away both old and young. He will destroy them more quickly than a cooking pot can feel the blazing fire of thorns beneath it.
10 The godly shall rejoice in the triumph of right; they shall walk the bloodstained fields of slaughtered, wicked men. 11 Then at last everyone will know that good is rewarded, and that there is a God who judges justly here on earth.
BELLSHILL: CENTRAL PARISH CHURCH OF SCOTLAND 