Broomhill Church is situated in the West End of Glasgow in a busy parish of some 1700 households. Founded in 1899 as Broomhill UF Church, the congregation numbers around 600.
Our minister is the Rev. Bill Ferguson. Bill is the sixth minister in the history of Broomhill Church. With two Sunday services and a full programme of weekly activities Broomhill has a lot to offer the local community. Officebearers and organisation leaders are always willing to provide more information about the Church.
March 2010
Sunday 7 11.00 am Scarament of Communion: Rev Bill Ferguson
6.30 pm Evening Worship with Sacrament of Communion:
Rev Bill Ferguson
Sunday 14 11.00 am Morning Worship : Rev Ada MacLeod 6.30 pm Evening Worship : Rev Ada MacLeod
Sunday 21 11.00 am Morning Worship : Rev Bill Ferguson
6.30 pm Evening Worship : Rev Bill Ferguson
Sunday 28 11.00 am Morning Worship : Rev Bill Ferguson
Dear Friend, Though my wife freely admits to being a notorious ‘back-seat driver’, to her enormous credit she is a wonderful navigator and reader of road maps. On our many car trips abroad Marian’s directions have brought us safe and sound to our far-flung destinations. We used to travel in convoy with another family and they would insist that ‘the Fergusons go in front’. We still laugh when we recall the occasions when our friend took the lead and we invariably ended up lost and late! Our friend, however, never admitted to having taken the wrong turn. In his words, he’d simply taken us ‘by the scenic route’! We always laughed afterwards but at the time when we were ‘lost’ the atmosphere in our car could be fraught and tense. On the continent, late at night, not knowing where we were in the pitch dark, driving on the other side of the road increased tension and provoked foul temper!
I’ve been recalling these incidents while reading through a very difficult theological book entitled, The Solace of Fierce Landscapes. The American author investigates how Christians over many centuries have been drawn to lonely places like deserts and mountains and in locations which many have described as ‘Godforsaken’, there others have encountered God in all his glory. That author reminds us how in Matthew’s Gospel Jesus frequently took his closest friends up mountains to withdraw from the crowds and be alone and there together – as in no other place at a lower level – they sensed the nearness of the presence of God. In Mark’s Gospel, for these special moments Jesus took the disciples into a desert location and once again – far from the busy cities and villages – God’s presence was most keenly felt. In Biblical times, mountains and deserts were considered to be ‘scarey’ places – particularly at night. In lonely faraway territories Jesus repeatedly led his friends into hostile landscapes, away from society and its conventions, to invite them to consider who he was. The Gospel writers mention how awkward and ill-at-ease the disciples became at such moments. Afterwards, however, they realised the privilege offered to them and told Jesus openly that it had been good for them to be there.
Fifteen months ago in Egypt we travelled by coach early one morning out into the desert en route to Mount Sinai where Moses saw the burning bush. The sight of both desert and mountain was awesome and made us feel mere specks in the landscape. God often let people feel their inadequacy and in such moments He helped these same people feel the power of his grip on them. In this season of Lent may we take in God’s strength and help.
Bill Ferguson
Verse of The Day
“But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,” (1 Peter 3:15)
