Kirk Reflections 30th July 2023.

Rev. Erick du Toit brings today's reflection from Kirkliston Parish Church, Scotland.

MORE THAN CONQUERORS (ROMANS 8: 26-39)

All of us prefer winning over losing. All the world loves a winner. “There is no prize for second place” an old adage assures us. And most of us believe that without question. Once in a while, though, the world embraces a loser. Seldom did this happen more dramatically than at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada.  Some of you may remember Eddie “the Eagle” Edwards. At that time Eddie was a 25-year-old plasterer with thick glasses and a goofy grin.

He entered the Games as England’s only (and first-ever) ski jumper. But Eddie was not very skilled. He fitted the description of a born loser: someone who gets a paper-cut opening a Get Well card. Eddie looked decidedly non-athletic. In his yellow ski-jumping suit he looked more like Winnie the Pooh than the sculpted athletes we usually associate with the Olympics. Eddie’s training had been sub-standard and his equipment was second-rate. The airline lost Eddie’s luggage when he travelled to Calgary. On the day of his competition, the Olympic security agents almost did not let Eddie in at all because, they later said, the chunky man’s coke-bottle glasses had such thick lenses they were certain he was an imposter. But he did get let in eventually. He didn’t do very well. Outside magazine said that in the air, Eddie looked like an “errant slush-ball.” When it was all over, Eddie came in 56th place out of a field of 57 jumpers (but then, the 57th man had been disqualified).

But all the world loved Eddie. Johnny Carson had Eddie flown down to Burbank to appear as a guest on The Tonight Show. TV crews and newspapers from around the world clamoured to interview Eddie. Once he got back to England, he was treated like a full-blown celebrity who parlayed his fame into a tidy sum.

To state the merely obvious, Eddie was the exception, not the rule. And even with all the attention paid to him, few people would have held Eddie up as a role model. When someone is as skilled as Michael Jordan, it doesn’t take long before you hear slogans such as “Be Like Mike!” But no one would say, “Be Like Eddie.” Because mostly we identify with those who win even as we distance ourselves from those who lose. If your favourite basketball team manages to defeat a rival team in a big game, even those of us who were nowhere near the basketball court may quite happily declare, “Hooray! We won!” But when your team loses such a game, we are apt to say something like, “Shucks, they lost.” Just how is it that we win but they lose? Similarly in school a student on Monday may be glad to hold up a maths test and say “I got an A!” even as the next day she may look at a history test and say, “The teacher gave me a D.” We are quick to align ourselves with victories but equally quick to put some daylight between ourselves and defeat.

Given all that, we are glad to discover the apostle Paul’s ringing assurance at the end of Romans 8 that we are victors, winners, cosmic conquerors. In fact, in verse 37 it may very well be the case that Paul coined his own Greek word in a zestful attempt to express the enormity of everything he has written so far in this landmark chapter. In verse 37 Paul says not just that we are conquerors but he attaches the Greek prefix huper, from which we get our word “hyper.” We are not just winners, Paul explodes, we are hyper-winners. (commentary link)

So what does it mean be a hyper winner…?

Kirk Reflections 23rd July 2023.

Rev. Erick du Toit brings today's reflection from Kirkliston Parish Church, Scotland.

PARABLE OF THE WEEDS (Matthew 13: 24-30; 36-43)

What do Fat Hen, Groundsel, Goosegrass, Hairy Bittercress, Prickly Milk, Oxalis, and Bugloss have in common?
They’re all weeds!

Kirk Reflections 16th July 2023.

Rev. Erick du Toit brings today's reflection from Kirkliston Parish Church, Scotland.

SOWER, SOW, SEED(Matthew 13: 1-9)

Barbara Brown Taylor retells the story. It’s not that she improves on it necessarily, but it might just shed some fresh light on what the parable is about…

"Once upon a time a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came along and devoured them. So he put

Then he returned to his sowing, but he noticed some of the seeds were falling on rocky ground, so he put his seed pouch down again and went to fetch his wheelbarrow and shovel. A couple of hours later he had dug up the rocks and was trying to think of something useful he could do with them when he remembered his sowing and got back to it, but as soon as he did he ran right into a briar patch that was sure to strangle his little seedlings. So he put his pouch down again and looked everywhere for the weed poison but finally decided just to pull the thorns up by hand, which meant he had to go back inside and look everywhere for his gloves.

Now by the time he had the briars cleared it was getting dark, so the sower picked up his pouch and his tools and decided to call it a day. That night he fell asleep in his chair reading a seed catalogue, and when he woke the next morning he walked out into this field and found a big crow sitting on his fake owl. He found rocks he had not found the day before and he found new little leaves on the roots of the briars that had broken off in his hands. The sower considered all this, pushing his cap back on his head, and then he did a strange thing: He began to laugh, just a chuckle at first and then a full-fledged guffaw that turned into a

Still laughing and wheezing he went after his seed pouch and began flinging seeds everywhere: into the roots of trees, onto the roof of his house, across all his fences and into his neighbours’ fields. He shook seeds at his cows and offered a handful to the dog; he even tossed a fistful into the creek, thinking they might take root downstream somewhere. The more he sowed, the more he seemed to have. None of it made any sense to him, but for once that did not seem to matter, and he had to admit that he had never been happier in all his life."

Kirk Reflections 9th July 2023.

Rev. Erick du Toit brings today's reflection from Kirkliston Parish Church, Scotland.

REST(Matthew 11: 25-30)

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest.

Jesus invites us to come to him. Why? Becasue only He can give us real contentment and rest for our souls. His yoke is easy and his burden is light.
So how come I feel so overwhelmed and exhausted most of the time? Am I doing something wrong? And if so... how can I fix it?

Kirk Reflections 2nd July 2023.

Rev. Erick du Toit brings today's reflection from Kirkliston Parish Church, Scotland.

GOD PROVIDES(Genesis 22: 1-19)

We're dealing with some really difficult passges: what would you have done if you were instructed to offer your only son?
Where's the justice in that?
How come Abraham showed no resistance when God gave the orders?
What does this say about God's character and being?
we discuss some of these questions.

Kirk Reflections 25th June 2023.

Rev. Erick du Toit brings today's reflection from Kirkliston Parish Church, Scotland.

LEMONADE OUT OF LEMONS (Genesis 21: 8-21)

In Chicken Soup for the Couple’s Soul there is a story that is very

Edward worked hard, obtaining a moderate income. But he was lonely as he yearned for his sweetheart, Ingrid, whom he left behind. Their two families were good friends and he secretly hoped to make her his wife. A

Edward prepared for the arrival of his beloved Ingrid. The day came, and when the train arrived Edward’s heart beat with eager anticipation. When the train stopped and the passengers disembarked, his heart stopped with a sinking thud. It wasn’t Ingrid who got off the train but Marta, her older sister. Dumfounded and perplexed Edward managed to say the words,

Mr. Henderson, Marta’s and Ingrid’s father was right. Marta did have a

A few days later , a telegraph came announcing the arrival of the two

Marta then told Edward that she loved him but all she wanted was his

I do not believe in forced marriages, nor am I saying we always do the

None of us has any idea what the future can bring. We do, however have the assurance of God that when we act in faith, we will be blessed.

Kirk Reflections 18th June 2023.

John McPhee brings this week's reflection from Kirkliston Parish Church, Scotland.

HE UNFAIRNESS OF GRACE

Bitter about life and toward Christianity because of his circumstances, He began his downward spiral into degradation. When he learned that the Herwick was preparing to embark on a five-year voyage around the world, he tried to desert. However, a few sailors spotted him, dragged him back to the ship, flogged him, and demoted him. He lost his status as an officer in training and was forced to travel around the globe. Without hope in the world, He considered suicide. Nothing except an act of the Almighty God Himself could intervene in his life.

Kirk Reflections 11th June 2023.

Marion Donald brings this week's reflection from Kirkliston Parish Church, Scotland.

Kirk Reflections 4th June 2023.

Rev. Erick du Toit brings today's reflection from Kirkliston Parish Church, Scotland.

THE GREAT COMMISSION

Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshipped him; but some

(MATTHEW 28:16-20)

Why are we here?
What's our purpose?
And what does is entail to 'be sent'? 

Kirk Reflections 28th May 2023.

Rev. Adriaan van Tonder brings today's reflection from Kirkliston Parish Church, Scotland

Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.And by him we cry, “Abba,Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

[ROMANS 8:12-17]

Identity is important.

As followers of Jesus, our DNA is rooted in the saving grace of salvation. According to this passage it has remarkable consequences for us:

- We are co-hears with Christ

- We are citizens of Heaven

- We are sons and daughters of the living King

To name but a few!

We're delighted to welcome Rev. Adriaan van Tonder who explores further what it means to recognise where we fit into all of this!