Beside The Burn
This week we continue week 3 of the Journey of Lent, a journey of 40 days through the Wilderness with Jesus Christ towards Easter. We will discover that Wilderness is a much more positive experience than we might imagine and we pray that we will be drawn into a deeper relationship with Jesus.

J.John
In this episode, J.John talks to Thea Muir about the promises God has spoken over us. Thea is the the founder of 'I Am So Many Things'.

Glen Scrivener
“Reading Between The Lines” a series working through the bible looking at the well known phrases.
Fear Not

FILM CHOICE
This week I am going to suggest a film each day. These videos are free to watch but may take a little longer to fully appreciate.


The Welsh Revival 1904-1905 (1 hour video)
This is an in-depth look at the 1904–1905 Welsh Revival which was the largest Christian revival in Wales during the 20th century. While by no means the best known of revivals, it was one of the most dramatic in terms of its effect on the population and triggered revivals in several other countries. "The movement kept the churches of Wales filled for many years to come, seats being placed in the aisles in Mount Pleasant Baptist Church in Swansea for twenty years or so, for example. Meanwhile, the Awakening swept the rest of Britain, Scandinavia, parts of Europe, North America, the mission fields of India and the Orient, Africa and Latin America."

Jigsaw
The times for yesterday’s Jigsaw

Jean 10:49
Derek 12:49

Play the "Salmon House Monday" puzzle!
https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc=play&pid=0aeea4d7ec36

Beside The Burn
This week we begin the Journey of Lent, a journey of 40 days through the Wilderness with Jesus Christ towards Easter. We will discover that Wilderness is a much more positive experience than we might imagine and we pray that we will be drawn into a deeper relationship with Jesus.

Glen Scrivener
“Reading Between The Lines” a series working through the bible looking at the well known phrases.
Babel

PCI Podcast with PW (40 minute audio)
Presbyterian Women have been taking part in this twenty ninth episode of PCI's Podcasts.
It is entitled,  STORIES OF GOD’S WAYS AMONG US . 
The creativity and courage of congregations and individuals is encouraging in stories of life and witness from across PCI including recipe books, a drive-in cinema and the hope of sunflowers. These are some of the examples told by Neil Harrison and Pauline Kennedy along with guests Flo Houston (Conor) and Andrew Dawson (Second Dromara), as we hear good news stories of God’s ways among us, near and far, throughout the pandemic. Click on the link to Listen Now ?: 
​
https://audioboom.com/posts/7807625-029-stories-of-god-s-ways-among-us

Jigsaw
The times for yesterday’s Jigsaw

​Derek 3:00
Jean 3:00

Play the "Christmas Tree Thursday" puzzle!
https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc=play&pid=1b6028742cf3

Beside The Burn
This week we begin the Journey of Lent, a journey of 40 days through the Wilderness with Jesus Christ towards Easter. We will discover that Wilderness is a much more positive experience than we might imagine and we pray that we will be drawn into a deeper relationship with Jesus.

Glen Scrivener
“Reading Between The Lines” a series working through the bible looking at the well known phrases.
Abraham

“Hope is borrowing the joy of tomorrow, today.”
I heard this quote this week and thought it deserves some thought to appreciate the depth.
Jason Cook delivered a message at The Gospel Coalition Carolinas Regional Conference called “Groaning til Glory.” From Romans 8:18–25, Cook addressed the manner in which Christians must anchor themselves through storms and suffering, building from the thesis, “Suffering exists as a divine tool to wean us off the lower pleasures of this world and to encourage us to persevere, because we have hope.”
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/podcasts/tgc-podcast/future-liberation-present-pain/

Chasing The Dragon
Many of you may have read Jackie Pullinger’s hard hitting book, Chasing the Dragon (first published in 1980). In this video Nicky Gumbel (HTB at Home, Alpha Course) is with Jackie Pullinger MBE, author of 'Chasing the Dragon', who has been working in Hong Kong for over 50 years and has seen God bring real change to families and communities. 
*Please note, this interview discusses issues related to substance use and sexual exploitation which some people may find distressing.

Covid-19
Portstewart has the 5th lowest number of cases of Covid-19 in Ireland this week.

Jigsaw
The times for yesterday’s Jigsaw

​Jean 2:44
​Derek 3:00

A little bit tricky for the end of the week.
Play the "Sunset Friday" puzzle!
https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc=play&pid=1c49ed771ab8

Beside The Burn
This week we begin the Journey of Lent, a journey of 40 days through the Wilderness with Jesus Christ towards Easter. We will discover that Wilderness is a much more positive experience than we might imagine and we pray that we will be drawn into a deeper relationship with Jesus.

You Lead Us Through the Wilderness
This is the song from the service on Sunday, if you want to listen again.

THE LATEST INFORMATION ON THE CLOSURE OF CHURCH BUILDING FOR WORSHIP
This information was received in an email from the Moderator and the Clerk of the General Assembly at 9:00am this morning.

In-person gatherings for worship in Northern Ireland
 
Following on from the Northern Ireland Executive’s decision to extend the current Covid restrictions to Thursday 1st April 2021, the Clerk of Assembly and senior leaders from other churches met again on Monday 22nd February with Ministers from the Executive Office, the Minister of Health and the Chief Medical Officer (CMO). At that meeting the CMO stressed that it would make a significant difference, and be of huge public benefit, if churches were willing to continue at this time not to gather in person for services and other meetings.
 
In the light of the Executive’s extension of the current restrictions, and on the basis of the clear and unequivocal public health advice that people should continue to stay at home, the General Council Standing Committee, acting with the delegated authority of the General Council and General Assembly, has directed that all in-person Sunday gatherings for worship, along with all other in person church gatherings, should remain suspended in all PCI congregations in Northern Ireland until Thursday 1st April 2021 - with the exception of weddings, funerals, arrangements for recording and/or live-streaming, drive-in services and private prayer (as permitted by regulations). 
 
The Standing Committee also decided that it would further assess the situation immediately after the next NI Executive review on Thursday 18thMarch 2021, in the cautious anticipation that, from Friday 2nd April (Good Friday) onwards, Presbyterian congregations in Northern Ireland could begin to meet again for in-person gatherings for worship, with all necessary precautions and mitigations in place. This recognises the importance of Easter, which was acknowledged by both the Ministers and the CMO at Monday’s meeting.

We again welcome that this same approach is also being taken by the Methodist Church, the Church of Ireland and, in a slightly different form, by the Roman Catholic Church.
 
Vaccinations
 
At its meeting, the General Council Standing Committee also considered the issue of vaccination. The Committee were aware that a few groups are actively discouraging the take-up of vaccines and were informed that this is a significant cause of concern to the public health authorities. Following discussion the Standing Commission authorised the following statement for distribution to all active ministers in Northern Ireland and in Ireland, with the request that this be shared with our congregations:
 
The Presbyterian Church in Ireland (PCI) encourages all of its members to actively consider receiving vaccination against Covid-19 when it is offered to them. While recognising that this is ultimately a matter of personal judgement, PCI neither discourages its members from taking up the vaccine offer nor is it supportive of those who seek to discourage the take-up of the vaccine.
 

We continue to hold all of our PCI congregations in our thoughts and prayers, asking God to graciously bless the ongoing life and witness of His people in these challenging times. We live in the hope that comes through the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus - a hope that is sure and steadfast and which we look forward to celebrating in the Easter season which lies ahead.
 
Yours in His Service,
Rt Rev Dr David Bruce  (Moderator or the General Assembly)
Rev Trevor Gribben  (Clerk of the General Assembly)

24/7 Prayer Course
This week we continue the 24/7 Prayer Course with Pete Greig - a course which we took part in a couple of years ago on Wednesday evenings. The videos have been re-recorded and a couple more sessions have been added since then so even if you attended the course they are well worth watching. Here is a link to the week 3 resource guide.
https://prayercourse.org/session/petition/

Open Doors - World Watch List
Open Doors has released the World Watch List. The list of countries where it is most dangerous to be a Christian in 2021. 
The full list can be found here
https://www.opendoorsuk.org/persecution/world-watch-list/

This week the focus is on Eritrea the sixth most dangerous country in the world to be a Christian. Read about Eritrea here 
https://www.opendoorsuk.org/persecution/world-watch-list/eritrea/

Glen Scrivener
“Reading Between The Lines” a series working through the bible looking at the well known phrases.
Rainbow

Jigsaw
The times for yesterday’s Jigsaw​

Jean 2:14
Derek 2:42
​
Play the "Big Fish Wednesday" puzzle!
https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc=play&pid=3f39ed9a04a6