Praise and Trust

‘Tis Jesus the First and the Last
Whose Spirit shall guide us safe home 
We’ll praise Him for all that is past
And trust Him for all that’s to come’

Many of you will be aware that the past few days have been a bit of a roller coaster for us in Falkirk. We have been letting people know that The Almond Tree will be closing at the end of the year as it is no longer possible to sustain it as a business. This decision is not without its pain and sadness, but we have no doubt the decision is the right one. Our shop has been open for almost 20 years and the church is much better known in Falkirk as a result of its presence. Many lives have been touched, souls have been saved and people have been baptised in the Spirit. For all of this we praise and thank God!

But we see this as the end of an era, not the end of a work. The building is a wonderful resource and there is already the sense that we can continue to use it in future days for outreach ventures to take the gospel beyond the walls of our church.

As I thought about it this morning the words of the above hymn came to mind. My English teacher background (!) came to me as it struck me that the line

 ‘Whose Spirit shall guide us safe home’

uses the emphatic form of the verb ‘to be’ in the word ‘shall’ - underlining the certainty that it will be so. God has guided us, as a Church, thus far and as we lean heavily on our Beloved (... echoes of the livestream on Sunday night!) He surely will continue to lead us in the days to come until our journey is complete. And so, as we praise Him for all that is past, let’s trust Him for all that’s to come. He is well able to carry us through all the uncertainties in the world at this present time. Our God is much bigger than that!

Onward and upward!
​
Jennifer