Dear Barn folk, here a wee update on many of the things that have been happening over the summer at the Barn. We started the summer season with a great big free car boot give away, which was so popular that nearly all the stuff was gone, only  fifteen minutes in. We needed to put an extra five coffee tables out as people were relishing the cakes and the company. Many were prayed with and felt greatly blessed as they made their way home, with great smiles on their faces. On Monday mornings we trialled Kindercraft, where kids between the ages of 2 and 6, together with their carers, made items like kaleidoscopes and cup-cakes. Many new contacts were  made and old contacts were rebirthed. Kindercraft got a 100% approval rate to do it again the next holiday. Teenagers came in on Wednesday afternoons to ‘bring it on’, and of course they did; they brought on giant marble runs, crazy quizzes and a nine hole crazy golf course (in church!) were the norm. At the end of the summer, we were all greatly blessed by God’s presence at the Buzz weekend in the Cairngorms, where 24 young people came closer to Jesus. On Thursday evenings during our summer time movies we watched some memorable movies which impacted many of us in profound ways. Personally, the movie ‘Luther’ really moved me to stand up more firmly for our Lord. We do have a small collection of DVD’s now, so if you would ever like to borrow one, please get in touch.

The first week in August we ran our Starship Discovery holiday club. It was so encouraging to see so many kids, and parents(!), amazed and exited at what we do. One of them even reported late at work, just to be able to join in. On the Friday, the Barn Day provided an ideal opportunity to be able to spend some time with many of the folks from the community we are in contact with. Over four hundred people had a wonderful time. If we do it again next year, we’ll make sure it won’t clash with Belladrum, so we can have prayer teams there on the day. It was a big investment of time and energy to connect more with those around us, but I think we are on the right track.

A massive thanks to all involved and taking part with the host of things we find ourselves in.

God told Joshua to ‘shout’ before the walls of Jericho came tumbling down. May we shout all the louder and clearer the great news Christ wants to spread around us, through our lives, our church, our words and our actions. This autumn a review group will look at all the community work we are involved in, to identify key issues and priorities for the future. That should be a really encouraging time in seeing where God leads us next.

Guess I need to start looking at the Christmas festival now!

Paul