WOE IS ME

After our visit to Bedford we made our way to friends of ours near Ipswich and "camped" on their drive. They welcomed us with their accustomed warm hospitality, and we were able to worship with them in  Walsham-le-Willows on the Lord's Day

They took us to see an old church in Helmingham, Suffolk.

The list of Rectors dates from 1307 and one name especially was of interest to us: John Charles Ryle, who was in this church from 1844 -1861.

Ryle was one of the leaders in the Evangelical Wing of the Anglican Church in the 2nd half of the 19th century. He disapproved of much of the ritual in the Church of England worship. He had every conceivable space of the walls of this church covered in Biblical texts.

The test above the pulpit is especially solemn; a continual reminder to himself and any other preacher to preach the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and nothing else.

Ryle became Bishop of Liverpool. He has left tracts, books and written sermons, many dealing with relevant issues of the time and all direct and challenging.

BEDFORD

Recently, on our way South to a wedding, we stayed overnight in our camper van just outside the town of Bedford. Next morning we visited the handsome Bunyan Meeting Free Church, built in 1850, replacing an older one built in 1707. Before that, in 1672 stood an old barn in an orchard, which was bought and converted into the first meeting place of Bunyan and his congregation.

The inside is beautiful. On 2 sides of the church, there are stained glass windows illustrating scenes from Bunyan's celebrated book, Pilgrim's Progress.

Beside the Meeting House there is a very interesting museum, depicting the life and times of this man, whose book, Pilgrim's Progress has been translated into 200 languages.

In the town on a corner of St. Peter's Green there is a statue which was erected in his honour in  1874.

John Bunyan (1628-1688) was born into a poor family. As a child and young man he was unruly. Swearing, cursing and lying became second nature to him.  However, after he became a Christian there was a radical change in him. He became a preacher and author, and in those times when those who wished to uphold the teaching of the Bible in all matters of worship and way of life, he was imprisoned for his stand. He used his time of deprivation in prison to do some of his best and most influential writing.

RIVERS

"Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream"

Isaiah 66:12

"He who believes in me, as the scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."

John 7:38

"And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb."

Revelation 22:1

PHOTOGRAPHER AT WORK IN THE ROCKIES

We had 2 very enjoyable days in the the Rockies just over the border in British Columbia

EURO-TRIP 17 England!

Our ferry took us in to Plymouth and we planned to worship in Barnstaple on the Lord's Day. The congregation were having a lunch together and we were invited to join them. It was good to meet visitors from other congregations as well.

We enjoyed being with Pastor David Kay and his wife, too.

The journey home to Scotland was smooth and uneventful. We were so thankful to God that we were safely home after travelling 5,090 miles. We continue to pray for the people we met and trust that they will know the Lord's grace and mercy in their hearts and lives.

EURO-TRIP 15: People

On our trip we struck up a conversation with different folk. At one of the lighthouses in Portugal we passed the time of day with a young man, who later, came by our van, looking for, it seemed to us, some conversation. He is French and his name is Alec. He is wandering arround Europe and confessed to be "lost". He asked questions about Jesus and what it meant to be a pastor. Bill had described himself as a pastor and Jesus as "the Good Shepherd" His English was fairly good and Bill gave him a copy of Rev. Douglas MacMillan's book on Psalm 23. May the Lord bless it to him.

You can see Bill making himself at home among some of the locals in a very poor village in Portugal. The allocated parking place was in the centre of the village, and nearby were families of, we think, gypsies. We felt for this village where there seemed no gospel presence or influence.

In Galicia, at one of our stops, a man parked next to us then passed at the back of our van carrying a case. A few minutes later we heard the sounds of the bag-pipes! You can see he and Bill got on like old friends. Indeed the people from Galicia, along with Asturias and Brittany in France are Celtic like we Scots and welcome any contact with people with the same roots as themselves.

We were very interested, some days later to visit a bag-pipe museum, and see exhibits of old instruments from many different parts of the world.

Inland from the coast there are old villages built of beautiful local stone, clinging to steep slopes. In a gift shop we were told about a Scottish lady, who lived in the area. We tracked her down and she turned out to be, not Scottish, but Peruvian. Her husband is from Newcastle. They lived near Carlisle for some years. Her brother attended the Free Church of Scotland school in Lima and she remembered one of the teachers - a John MacPherson who hails from Isobel's home village! They have now moved to this beautiful area and are building their own house in a village that has been unoccupied for some years. The local people were very sceptical about the project, but have warmed to the idea now they see the loving care that he is taking to use the traditional building material and methods of the area. What he is doing has encouraged other people who have had family living here in the past to think about doing the same. The roads linking these small villages are incredibly narrow and twisty.

EURO-TRIP 14: Mountains or Sea?

Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding.
Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest?
Or who hath stretched the line upon it?
Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened?
Or who laid the corner stone thereof?
When the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for Joy?....
Job 38:4-7

We loved being in the mountains - these were in the north of Portugal.

But the call of the sea is also strong! We looked at the map for a headland with a lighthouse (there is always a road to a lighthouse) and headed there. Look! That's us down there!!

There we are again! This is where Bill fell into a gorse bush while taking a photo of a small vivid blue flower. He got the picture but extricated himself from the bush with difficulty, and returned to the 'van with prickles all over him! What a good job he has a sense of humour! (The photo of the flower is lovely!)

This is a proper campsite in the north of Spain, near to the sea, where we enjoyed the friendliness of the staff.

The sea right across the road from our pleasant campsite.

EURO-TRIP 13: The lilies of the field

"... consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
And yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall He not more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
Therefore take no thought, saying,
What shall we eat?
or, what shall we drink?
or, wherewithal shall we be clothed?.....

But, seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you." Matthew 6:28-33

It was interesting to see the different use made of the land as we drove through France, Spain and Portugal. In some parts it was cherry-picking time, and there were acres of cherry trees apparent.

Then in some areas the slopes and terraces were covered in vines. Olive trees also were cultivated in abundance.

The wild flowers were a delight, especially the poppies, which sometimes grew in large swathes.

Eventually we guessed what these were:- cork-oak trees which grow mostly towards the south. We passed people who were busy stripping the outer bark off and laying the strips in piles ready to be uplifted on to a lorry.

On more than one occasion we were entertained by flocks of goats, herded by their master and on one occasion their mistress.

We kept on seeing strange little "houses", always above ground level. Our imaginations ran away with us; were they for coffins?? Well mostly they are for drying the corn on the cob. But there are some very large ones that you can store clothes in as well. They are well-designed to keep out any marauding little animals!

EURO-TRIP 12: Road Blocks!!

EURO-TRIP 11: LISBON

Parking beside the River Tejo, we took the boat over to Lisbon.

Then we opted for the easy way to get a flavour of the city - the Tourist Bus!

In 1755 the beautiful city of Lisbon was struck by one of the deadliest earthquakes ever. The city was mostly destroyed and 10,000 - 100,000 people lost their lives. Some people went out in boats for safety and perished in the tsunami that followed. Quakes were felt as far away as Italy and Morocco. Morocco, Spain, Portugal, France and the British Isles were affected to a greater or lesser extent by the tsunami.

However despite the desolation, this Roman viaduct survived!

EURO-TRIP 10

We turned up at the home of Pastor Paul Nunes and his wife Cristina, so that they could guide us to their place of worship. The only thing was, we were an hour too early! We had forgotten that Portuguese time was the same as in Britain and not an hour later as in Spain! No wonder they looked surprised!

You can see that their church building faces directly on to the street, not uncommon for churches on the continent.

There was a good mix of all ages. They met first in different age groups for bible-study and then they all stayed for the service. In between times they were chatting excitedly and loudly among themselves! We were invited back for lunch to Paul and Cristina's home. You can tell how exuberant they are!!

Below is Pastor Jose Rodrigues and his wife. Their congregation worship not too far away. It was encouraging to be with another group where there were all ages worshipping together.