This afternoon I ended up in Asda for a few thing for work. I was awed by the choice. Just for rice there is a whole aisle! I have never noticed that before. (see facebook photo) I began to notice more:
A child screaming wanting what it wasn’t allowed. A lady looking at several bags of potatoes before making a choice. Another lady picks up a pineapple and goes back for one more. Buy one get one free. Three for Two. A crowd round the reduced section. Even as I get served I asked the guy how his day had been “crazy” he said ” Why I got myself 3 jobs I will never know.” I looked at him and responded “You are lucky then. Some people have none” (Poor man)
What was supposed to be a quick trip to the shops messed with my head.

This 5 days was just meant to be something to do to support Tearfund. It is already, for me, becoming way more than that. By this point you are probably desperate to know more about Tearfund and how you can support them right? Well please go to their website at http://www.tearfund.org/ and ‘See for Yourself’ what they do.

Hungry? Oh yes. I am so thankful for Dave doing this too otherwise I may have not managed But we are two days down. My plan for this evening is to go to sleep as soon as possible to pass the time until breakfast! I will leave you with Dave’s comments….

Day 2 and the novelty’s wearing off quickly!

Spent last evening / night / this morning with a thumping headache. Whether it’s hunger or spreading from the toothache I’ve got I couldn’t be sure but it hurt all the same!

Being basically very lazy, I thought I’d just go to work this morning and sort something out (we have a big canteen).
Breakfast – 1 scoop of porridge into a take-away tub that would hold probably 4 scoops, yummy!
Lunch – had a good scout around but couldn’t find anything that I could call suitably bland and uninteresting, that’ll teach me to be lazy!
Dinner – 60g brown rice (too lazy to soak any beans last night)

Lesson learned today…. be better prepared tomorrow or at least get more porridge and save half for lunchtime! I’ve already got some portions of beans soaking ready for tomorrow, might cook them tonight and take to work in a very small Tupperware container.

Things I’ve noticed today -
Everyone around me seems to be constantly gorging themselves on fruit, crisps, chocolate and cake!
It doesn’t matter how hard I think, I can’t make hot water taste like coffee!
It’s very difficult to think about anything but food when your hungry.
I’m glad I’ve got an office job and I’m not expected to put in a day’s hard manual graft on those portions.
Disappointingly, I’ve not spent much time thinking about starving people around the globe, I’ve been too busy thinking about the starving office worker in Dyce!

Never mind, this time tomorrow we’ll be more than half-way through!

So far the biggest thing for me has been other people’s reactions to this challenge.  I spoke a little in church this morning about it (In a very tongue tied, probably un-informative way!) and some comments afterwards really surprised me. For me this is all about sacrifice. Today I have already thought about those who live this way, prayed for them and prayed for the work of tearfund more than I probably ever have in one day. For me this is a big deal. I want to be the type of person who is compassionate and who is generous and who is thoughtful and caring. I realise I won’t achieve all of this in 5 days of a challenge but if I even come closer that is good enough for me.

I have realised a lot about myself just in today, how much I nibble on things for no other reason than just because. How much I LOVE fruit and seem to ‘need’ it as part of my day. That with the power of the brain you can make a hot cup of water taste like tea!! I am sure this week will hold a lot more lessons for me, less shallow than these.

So I will leave you now with Dave’s take on the day and will speak to you all tomorrow!

Linda

We’ve started then!
Day one and I’ve survived so far.
First some good news – I went to Asda today and stocked up on rice and beans – brown rice, red kidney beans, butter beans and black-eyed beans – total price for my week’s food £4.75…..result!

So what have I had to eat today?
Breakfast 30g porridge, made with water, no salt.
Lunch 60g brown rice.
Dinner 30g brown rice, 30g butter beans
The back of the rice packet suggests 75g as a single serving accompaniment to a main course so to have 60g as the only food on a plate made it look just a little lost!

Already missing not having any coffee, Diet Coke or chewing gum

Am I hungry? of course I am, but that’s the whole point though. I’m not on a diet, I’m trying to experience what it’s like to have just enough food to keep you going. I do recognise that at any time I can raid the cupboard / fridge / freezer or phone up and get a takeaway delivered, millions of people don’t have that option open to them.

Let’s see what tomorrow brings.
Dave

For the last 6 years, since Linda and I got married, I’ve been employed in full-time Christian Youth Ministry. It’s been….an experience. Plenty of highs and lows, unfortunatley more lows than highs. But thats chat for another post, tonight I’m focusing on the new thing God is doing with Linda and I.

7 years ago, at CLAN Gathering I was prophesied over, the prophecy was that I was going to serve God with my hands. At the time, I was still planning on having a long career in youth ministry, with a focus on sports ministry – so I assumed the hands was to do with American Football! Then, 4.5 years ago, January 2007, Linda bought me my first digital camera, a Fujifilm S8000. She bought me it at a point in my life where I was starting to struggle with depression, a struggle that hasn’t long ended. It was during this time that I threw myself into photography, it was an escape, a way for me to block out everything. Within a couple of years, I progressed from my Bridge camera onto a DSLR. As each day has passed, and passes still, I fall more in love with photography. I grow in my understanding and technical ability, I grow in how much I understand how little I know and still need to learn! I’ve gotten to the point where all I can imagine doing is photography. I’m always dreaming up new projects to do, new places to go. Always reading about new techniques, new challenges, new ways to do things. I’m sure I drive my friends and family nuts at times talking about and constantly taking photos! One hing that has emerged from it all, that is very apparent to both myself and Linda, is that I have a passion for Humanitarian photography, for photography that tells the story of real people’s lives and moves others to react to it. Photography that is powerful, meaningful, striking, beautiful, challenging, heart-breaking and intimate. Photography that will make a difference.

That’s the abridged version of the last 6 years, which brings us to the point of this post.

Hoskins Gallery.

In April this year, Hoskins Gallery was created. Linda and I had both gotten to the point where the stress, depression and dissatisfaction I was facing in my various roles in Youth Ministry was just entirely too consuming. It was time for me to move on, I was burnt out, nothing left to give. We’d been contemplating opening a business together for a while, and we got a good kick in the right direction. Linda still had a few months to go at Uni and that was without doubt the most important thing to be focused on, but at the same time, we felt it was time to take a step of Faith and venture into the unknown.

Hoskins Gallery is a photography and fine art business. Obviously, I am the main photographer. Linda is the creative director. As well as producing prints (she has a degree in printmaking from Gray’s school of art) Linda plays a vital role in the photography side of things, helping to arrange poses/ props etc so that I can have my eye on the shutter the whole time to make sure I don’t miss the moments or the light.

As we start out, our main focus is on wedding and portrait photography, primarily based in Aberdeen and the surrounding area, although more than willing to travel! These two areas are where the biggest market is and where we think it is right for us to start to get our name known. Currently, we are a purely mobile service. Based online at www.hoskinsgallery.com we have a portable studio that fits in almost any house. The dream, however, is to, as a business, own a property where we would have a studio for portrait and lifestyle photograhy as well as a studio for Linda to create her artwork from. We would also like a gallery space within our premises, where we can have exhibitions of our work, the work of peers in the photography and art world as well as up and coming artists/ photographers. One area of photography we, I, are very keen to expand into is the Humanitarian field. I don’t think I could have picked a harder area of photography to aim for. An area where you need to take exceptional photographs (I have a way to go yet) but you also need nerves of steel, on top of a compassionate heart, to be able to focus on and process the realisities of human life you will invariably come across. I anticipate it to take around 5 years, if not longer, to break into this field. Partly because of the growth I need to do to be better enabled to work in this field, but mostly because of how long it will take to buld a good portfolio in this area. That being said, my first trip where my role is that of a Humanitarian photographer starts on Monday. On Monday, I leave for Pakistan for 11 days with a small group from the Church of Scotland World Mission Council. It’s my first trip in this role, butnby no means the first step on the journey.

All in all, despite the weekly uncertainties, this is an incredibly exciting time for Linda and I. We hope that we can rely on you for your prayers and support (perhaps your business too!?). And I look forward to sharing more of this journey with you on my personal blog here, and our busness blog on our business website.

Peace Out

I’m really looking forward to the day, I haven’t been to the Youth Assembly since 2009, after which I became too old to go as a delegate. I do miss the asembly, it’s been a huge part of my life for the last 11 years. My first experience at the assembly was in April 2000, when I was 16. It was at this assembly that I decided that I wanted to follow Jesus and gave my life to him. Since then I have seen many changes in the structure, focus and feel of the assembly. I’ve met more people than I can remember, made some amazing friends, experienced things I could never had imagined, had so many incredible experiences it would take ages to list the all, let alone describe them!

I’m glad that I can use my skills and now my business to give back to the assembly. Although most, if not all, of the people who were involved when I first went are no longer involved, the event still means a lot to me. I know firsthand what involvement in the event and this community can be, can mean when you become a part of it.

One thing I love each time I go back to the assembly, whether for a weekend or a day, is the number of people I don’t know. Although the assembly has a group of dedicated attendees, it also has a healthy rate of turnover. It needs to, if it didn’t, the assemblym the community, would soon stagnate and wither.

Once I’m back in Aberdeen, I’ll post a few sample pictures up here from the day, along with a few links to other blogs etc that are talking about the assembly.

Peace Out

I’ve been very, very inactive on here over the last wee while, something I”m not happy at all about!

I’m not sure why I have been inactive, I’m certainly not short of things to write about – CLAN Gathering, Tearfund, World Mission Council, Canada, Cyprus, Hoskins Gallery, Starting a business, Pakistan…..if these things don’t make sense, that’s because I’ve not been keeping this up-to-date!

I’m hoping to remedy this over the next while, if I am fighting against writers block then the only way to deal with that is to write!!

Anytime I write on here, I’m a wee bit nervous about how it will be recieved, so it’s definitely not fear of how I write or what I say being the issue! Although, at some point, I do want to have the courage/ strength to blog about my experiences over the last few years!

I’ll leave it there just now, other than to say, one of the things that’s been keeping my so busy recently is that my wife, Linda, and I have started our own photography and art business, Hoskins Gallery, you can check it out at www.hoskinsgallery.com

Suffice to say, we’re very excited about it!!!

Peace Out

Challenging statement: “The World Mission Council is a waste of the Church’s time & money. We have more than enough to do in Scotland.”

Responses:
- The Gospel is Global, being insular is not an option.

- Being Involved in the world Church helps us keep things in perspective.

- It is right to utilise our gifts and experience for the benefit of the Worldwide Church.

- It emphasises the relational nature of God and hence the relational nature of the Church.

- It shows obediance to Matthew 28: 19 &20 – The Great Commission.

- Scotland is part of the World….

- God is a God of compassion and justice, we should mirror Him to the whole World.

- It helps the Church to support minority Christians around the World.

- We are a part of the one holy catholic Church (as in the universality and wholeness of the World Church, not necesarily the Roman Catholic Church).

- One God is Worshipped by One Church, which has One Mission to One World.

Peace Out

I’ve been interested in the work of this council since I first became aware of its existence in 2000. I suppose it all boils down to the fact that, when I was younger my mind was captured by adventure, explorers like Marco Polo, Livingstone, Captain Scott, Amundsen, Alexander MacKenzie, James Cook, Shackleton, Edmund Hillary, George Vancouver, to name but a few. When I first heard of World Mission, I still had this romanticised idea of exploration and adventure in my head, and World Mission slotted perfectly into that notion of mine beginning 11 years of interest. I’ve since been able to move past that romanticised notion and recognise the work of World Mission for the great, real, work that it is. The Remit of the council is as follows:

The World Mission Council is the channel through which the Church of Scotland responds to the command of Jesus: “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation” (Mark 16:15). We work in countries around the world, usually on the basis of partnership with local churches and institutions, and always with a view to involving church members in Scotland. The cultivation of two-way partnerships between congregations overseas and congregations in Scotland not only creates friendships but expands horizons.

Taking the first steps towards connecting with people in different countries can be the beginning of an exciting and life-changing relationship. Discover challenges people face every day; experience their heart and resilience; share in the joy of giving and receiving.

The Council report is available for download here. I’ll let you read it for yourself, it makes for interesting reading, but I will share with you here the proposed deliverance:

1. Receive the report.
2. Give thanks for the life and witness of Mission Partners who have died, acknowledge with gratitude those who have
completed their period of service overseas, and uphold in prayer all who continue to serve.
3. Urge members of the Church to visit, meet and support the Christian community in the Middle East.
4. Encourage members to pray for the Presbyterian and other churches in Egypt and the work of the Coptic Evangelical
Organisation for Social Services (CEOSS) amongst the least in the society.
5. Encourage members to pray for the witness of the Presbyterian and other Churches in Lebanon and Syria.
6. Commend the Kairos Palestine document to the whole church.
7. Give thanks for Jewish, Christian and Muslim cooperation in upholding the rights of the poor and oppressed in the
Middle East and beyond.
8. Appreciate the work of the Council in developing its Centres to support the Council’s work in the pursuit of justice,
peace and reconciliation.
9. Commend the Council for seeking to engage every member of the Church of Scotland in support of peacemaking
in Israel and Palestine.
10. Give thanks for the renewed co-operation between the Council and congregations of the Church of Scotland with
Christian Aid, and urge all members to support Christian Aid in expressing solidarity with the world church.
11. Thank the Guild for their keen interest and support for the Council’s work around the world.
12. Encourage congregations to join in twinning relationships.
13. Encourage members to offer for service as Mission Partners.
14. Encourage members to volunteer as Ecumenical Accompaniers.
15. Give thanks for the peaceful emergence of South Sudan as a new country and encourage the Council to continue
to support the Christian communities in North and South Sudan.
16. Urge the Government of Pakistan to release and pardon Ms. Asia Bibi and to ensure that she and her family are
protected.
17. Urge the Government of Pakistan to repeal the Blasphemy Law.
18. Urge congregations to be involved in advocacy activities in support of minority Christian communities.
19. Give thanks for the HIV Programme and the work of our partners at home and overseas, and re-commit the Church
of Scotland to playing its part in response to the pandemic.
20. Thank congregations for their enthusiastic support for Souper Sunday and encourage them to continue to support
the HIV Programme in prayer, action and giving.

I don’t want to preempt the debate this afternoon, but I am especially interested to see what might be said on the floor about sections 3, 12, 13 and 17.

My interest in the Council was boosted over the last few years due to 2 trips I was privileged to participate in. In 2008 I was part of a trip to the holy Land with the Mission and Discipleship council, you can read more about it here. Last year I was part of a faithshare visit to Nepal to spend time with the South Asia Christian Youth Network, you can read more about that here. These trips did more than I can vocalise to re-ignite my interest and passion for the work of World Mission. The people I met and the things I saw galvanised something in me, a desire to get more involved and see if I can’t help in someway, to see if i have something worthwhile to offer in this area. I’ve been nominated to join the Council this year, which I’m very excited about, which means I’ll be blogging more about World Mission.

In the meantime, here are 6 blogs from World Mission mission partners around the world:

• Joel Githinji in Nepal http://joelgithinji.blogspot.com
• Colin Johnston in Israel / Palestine http://colinintiberias.blogspot.com
• David & Rebecca Morton in Malawi davidrebeccamorton.wordpress.com
• George Shand in Israel / Palestine http://georgeshand.wordpress.com
• Ida and Keith Waddell in Zambia http://idaandkeith.blogspot.com
• Tabeetha School in Jaffa has a blog at: http://tabeethaschool.blogspot.com

Enjoy the Debate!

Peace Out

I attended the General Assembly 6 times as a youth rep: 2001, 2002, 2o03, 2005, 2008, 2009 and this issue came up every year! It was rarely brought up by a Youth Rep, it was more often brought up by a commissioner to the assembly who appreciated the input of the Youth Reps and wanted to see that input given further weight. The argument against has been consistent since I first attended, Youth Reps are not allowed to vote because of 2 reasons: There is the issue of ordination, most Youth Reps are not ordained; The other issue is that Youth Reps, ordained or not, are not commissioned to assembly. For Youth Reps to be allowed to vote would require, in my opinion, fulfillment across the board on both of these issues, which would then of course require an overhaul of how Youth Reps are chosen to attend the assembly and an overhaul of who/ how the Church of Scotland Ordains people.

I have not always been against the vote, when I first attended the General Assembly I couldn’t understand why the Church wouldn’t just let Youth Reps vote. It made no sense to me, it seemed to me that they were just being awkward, mean perhaps! I blame that on the fire of youth (I was 17 with a full head of hair after all!). I’m now 10 years older and able to better channel my passion into avenues that have an opportunity to bear fruit. I understand the nuances better than I did when I was an inexperienced, naive 17 year old. Now, before you all get mad that I’m labeling all youth Reps (and others) who support Youth Reps getting the vote as naive, inexperienced, young, stupid or anything like that, I’m not. I’m only pointing out that when I was 17 I often spoke/ acted before I thought, I didn’t always understand what I was talking about (i’m not sure that last point has moved on much TBH!).

Youth Reps at the assembly are an incredible force, they speak with passion, with power with pride, with emotion, with eloquence (ok, that last one isn’t always true, some Youth reps have been known to mumble or even inform the assembly that they possess “mind-boggling expertise”). The pint is, Youth Reps are always a welcomed part of the assembly, a celebrated part of the assembly. They are not scared to speak (30-40 people having your back tends to boost you confidence!), they are not scared to challenge, to ask questions (even awkward or stupid ones!). So is it really that big a deal if Youth Reps never get to vote? Youth Reps still make a valued input, still do and say enough to change the assemblies mind and influence them.

I’ll leave you with a quote from my friend Lynsey on twitter: “Hoping the youth that don’t think we have a vote were represented. We don’t all think the same. We’re all pals though….beautiful”

They disagree, but they love each other anyway…….

Peace Out

Before I launch into my ramble, here are the relevant sections from the report and deliverance (before any addendums/ amendments from the floor). the report can be downloaded from the Church of Scotland website here (titled: The involvement of young people and decision-making in the Church)

The relevant section of the pre-debated deliverance is as follows:

Young People and Decision Making (See Section 8 of the Church and Society Council Report)
8. Commend this report to Kirk Sessions, Presbyteries, Councils, Committees and groups associated with the life of the
Church of Scotland for study and action.
9. Urge every Presbytery and national Council and Committee to appoint a named person to champion young
peoples’ involvement in their decision-making, whose role will be to work with the established structures and to
develop new and appropriate ways for young people to be involved.
10. Instruct the Church and Society Council, the Mission and Discipleship Council and the National Youth Assembly
to prepare a report to the General Assembly in 2013 and every two years thereafter, evaluating progress and
suggesting further ways in which the Church of Scotland can make a difference in this area.
11. Encourage all Presbyteries to take seriously their responsibility for nominating a Youth Representative to the
General Assembly and encourage all congregations and Presbyteries to support their young people in attending
the National Youth Assembly.

12. Affirm the work of Young Scot, the Scottish Youth Parliament and the Children’s Commissioner and urge every
Presbytery and national Council and Committee of the Church of Scotland to consider the need to work with them
to develop new ways of engaging with young people and supporting their participation in decision-making within
the Church.
13. Commend the Presbytery of Europe for its initiative in convening the first ever Youth Presbytery for 18-25 year olds
and encourage other Presbyteries to consider how they might adapt this model for their own context.
14. Invite the Nomination Committee of the Church of Scotland to include in its reports a record of the number of
young people (aged 18-25) who have been nominated and the number appointed each year.
15. Encourage Kirk Sessions and Presbyteries to reflect on the appointment of young Elders (aged 18-25) and young
Commissioners to the General Assembly.
16. Invite every Presbytery and national Council and Committee to consider the timing and format of meetings to
allow young people to participate in decision-making.

I’ll let you make your won opinions about the report and section of the deliverance. Needless to say, there was substantial debate in the assembly hall, as well as on twitter, around the topic. Basically, the Church and Society Council are trying to advocate for young people to become more involved in all areas and levels of the Church. There wasn’t really any arguing against this idea (didn’t expect there to be!). there was a lot of debating around sections 9&11, the idea of getting Kirk Sessions and Presbyteries to ensure that they have young people involved. Again, no arguing against the idea, but many people standing up and saying that they couldn’t do so because they just don’t have young people to do so. It seemed that they were more fixated on lamenting the lack of young people involved in the Church where they are than on the challenge to them put forth by the fact that they needed new/ different ways (perhaps just plain better ways!) to engage with the young people who live in their area. I feel confident that I can guarantee there are no Kirk Sessions or Presbyteries who have no young people within their boundaries!

Kim Wood, one of the youth reps (also the current National Youth Assembly Moderator) made a very eloquent, passionate speech about how young people are involved in the Church, they are passionate about the Church, and they want to be more so!

There were many things said today that I thought were spot on, many things that I thought were moot points and some I disagreed with, I’m not going to go into it all. I think it’s enough to say that here, today, we have a council of the Church other than Mission and Discipleship (who have been long-running supporters, advocates, encouragers, role-models and inspirational figures to young people within the Church of Scotland) encouraging the Church to engage more with young people and for young people to become more engaged and passionate about the Church. I thinks that superb, outstanding. The passion of the young people in the assembly hall today was beautiful to listen to, to watch. The youth Reps at the assembly really do represent the young people involved in the wider Church. Perhaps not necessarily in belief and opinion, but without a doubt in passion and drive for the work of the Church, for God’s Kingdom. A phrase used yesterday and many years before in the assembly is that there is more that unites us than there is that separates us. I believe that, within the Church, this is never more apparent than when we look towards the young adults attending the Youth Assembly and at the General Assembly as Youth reps. So many differing opinions, beliefs, backgrounds. And yet when they (we, even though I’m now too old!)get together, we don’t let our differences drive a wedge between us. We argue, we debate, we disagree, but we respect, we all know that we are aiming for the same ultimate goal, and that unites us more powerfully than our disagreements, our differences ever could!

There were a few interesting points floating around twitter. My friend Stewart pointed out that there was not any discussion on involving children and young people who are under 18.

Peace Out (hope it wasn’t too rambly!)

First, the official Church of Scotland media:

twitter: @generalassembly

Live video stream: webcast

Life and Work, the Church of Scotland magazine are also tweeting and posting regular notes on Facebook:

twitter: @cofslifeandwork

facebook: Life and Work

There is also an official hashtag on twitter where you can follow what is being said about the assembly: #GA11

There are also a number of individual twitter users who are regularly tweeting about the assembly:

Shuna Dicks: @shunad

Stewart Cutler: @stewartcutler

Niall MacKenzie: @rawxing

Lynsey Martin: @lynsey1889

Bryan Kerr: @revbk

Alistair Vannet: @Vdawg

Church of Scotland Youth: @cosy_nya

Fiona Fidgin: @Fidge

Mary Haddow: @WeeRant

Rev Marc Kenton: @kirkofscotland

GA_Junkie: @ga_junkie

A few blogs that are worth keeping an eye on this week too:

Bryan Kerr,  a Minister in Lanark: http://www.lanarkgreyfriars.com/bryans-blog/

COSY Blog, a blog set up to talk about various Church of Scotland Youth endeavours, this week featuring the youth Representatives to the assembly: http://cosyblog.wordpress.com/

GA Junkie, a blog by Steve Salyard following the politics of presbyterianism: http://blog.gajunkie.com/

John Orr, a probationer Minister with the Chuch of Scotland, and my old YF leader!: http://johnorr.me.uk/

Of course, this is not an exhaustive list, I’m bound to have missed some people given that I don’t follow everyone! If you do see someone that I have missed, please add them in the comments below this post!

Peace Out