Young Adults/Students
The St. Columba’s Young Adult Groupis open to anyone who has outgrown the church’s youth programme, but still consider themselves young. We meet irregularly for both social & spiritual gatherings.See contact details below if you want more info.
"Young" Adults Bennachie Walk
(for access to all the photos click on the photo above)
What's worse than a stiff hill climb, young people with incredibly fit legs and an absolute compulsion to reach the top? All of the above in the sweltering heat! One cannot say one was not warned. Billed as a young adults walk with a Bible study thrown in for free, and part of a series running throughout the summer, the walk was thrown open to anyone and three verging on middle aged wannabe hillwalkers (that's a joke - we are middle aged) joined the group. Treated with great kindness by the younger members (Natalie, Paul, Alison, Diane and Jenna) - offered slabs of chocolate, strawberries, chocolate muffins and frequent stops, Neil, Brian and Janice trudged onwards and frequently upwards. The views were stunning - vistas of gentle rolling farmlands, the distant sea and the grins of those already descending informing us that we were nearly there - well we were sort of - but it's all relative!
There's a steep way up Bennachie and a relatively easy way up Bennachie but why not go for a bit of adventure! In reality, it was fantastic fun - plenty of gab, plenty of chocolate and a lunch location second to none right at the top. Suitably fortified, the group gathered on the grass in the rocky lee of the Mither Tap for an impromptu bible study - well impromptu for most of us, Jenna had prepared it in advance. We discussed how God's love for us should translate into love for others and had a particularly deep and meaningful about how to love people we didn't actually like much. Is such a thing possible? Yes it is, but it's harder than if you like them. Still, if we persisted in acting lovingly, in the end the group concluded we might end up liking them too - bonus!
It would be best to draw a veil over the agony of the descent though it gave one a whole new perspective on " strengthen the feeble hands and steady the knees" of Isaiah 35 v 3. Descending the shale near the top was highly precarious made worse when one of the group pointed out the man made steps leading off the summit which we (I mean Paul) had missed! Still, Alison had made chocolate mallow slices and those who made it all the way were promised one in the car park if they kept going - childlike but very effective - well, it worked for me.
Well what can one say? The weather was stunning, the views incomparable, the fellowship genuinely enriching and the next walk is on the flat so we'll see you there.
Janice Montgomery
Dates for Your Diaries
20th Sept |
Bible Study Walk – Patience (Dunnottar nr Stonehaven) |
28th Sept |
Welcome lunch at Dennis & Christine’s |
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4th Oct |
Bible Study Walk – Kindness (The Bin Forest nr Huntly) |
12th Oct |
Young Adult Lunch at Paul & Natalie’s
Bible Study – Goodness |
24-26th Oct
1st Nov
9th Nov
23rd Nov
7th Dec |
Young Adults Weekend Away – Nethy Bridge
Bible Study Walk – Faithfulness (Duthie Park)
Young Adult Lunch at Bob Noble's
Bible Study – Gentleness
Young Adult Lunch at Neil & Janice Montgomery's
Bible Study – Self-Control
Young Adults Christmas Lunch at church |
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A look ahead to 2008/09
Last year the Young Adults got up to lots of fun stuff, and learned lots of spiritual stuff too. Here’s for more of the same, and something different too.
As you can see from the dates above we hope to continue having some Church Bible Study Walks, completing our series on the Fruit of the Spirit. The ever popular Young Adult Lunches will continue too – with thanks to our kind hosts. However this year they will take a new format. Along with the important feeding and fellowship, we will also spend some time studying God’s word. Initially we will work on the Fruit of the Spirit series, with something different in 2009.
The Weekend Away – 24 to 26th October 2008! The 7th Annual Young Adults Weekend Away is currently in the planning stages. So far we have a venue – Nethy House in Nethy Bridge (somewhere between Granton-on-Spey and Aviemore). It holds up to 65 folk, so numbers for once are not an issue. The weekend as ever will be filled with fun, fellowship & food. Nethy Bridge is in a beautiful part of the world, and we will (weather permitting) have an opportunity to spend some time enjoying God’s creation. We will focus on a theme/book from the Bible during a series of Studies over the weekend. More details when I know them! Please pray for the planning! IT’S GONNA BE GREAT!!!
Mentors – last year it was suggested that there was a pool of ‘Older & Wiser’ members of the congregation to whom we were paired. These would be people we could turn to both when we are in spiritual need or just in need of a chat or advice on where to take your parents for dinner. Kind of an adopted family away from home – if you’d be interested in this please let me know.
House Groups – St Columba’s has a number of House Groups which meet each week. It would be great if Young Adults were able to join one of these groups.
They provide an excellent opportunity to learn more about living our lives for Christ in a small group setting.
The different House Groups at the church go about this in slightly different ways, and we’d recommend speaking to members of the groups to see which one you’d be best suited to! For more information about House Groups speak to either the church administrator or myself.
A look back at 2007/08
The highlight of the year was the annual weekend away, in Granton-on-Spey. Along with eating lots of fine food (thanks Ruth & Shona) and having lots of fun and games (note the boys won at Trivial Pursuit) we took a stroll in the beautiful Scottish countryside.
Oh yes and we also studied the book of Amos during 3 group bible studies. It was a great opportunity to see the relevance of one of the Old Testament books in today’s society. We also had a chance to look at ways we can change our own lives to be more Christ like in our behaviour and outlook.
Food – thanks to the generosity of Dennis & Christine Mackie, Neil & Janice Montgomery, Derek & Norma Moore & Robert Noble the Young Adults have enjoyed a number of fellowship lunches. These lunches are a great way of getting to know the hosts a little better, and getting to know each other better.
I feel that the Young Adults Group has certainly got to know one another better in 2007. This has led to lots of impromptu lunches after church on Sundays – long may that continue. We also enjoyed a Christmas Dinner in the church between services one Sunday afternoon. While some folk helpfully did the peeling and cooking – others took to the streets delivering the church Christmas cards around the community – in the rain (well done guys!).
When the weather got a little warmer we began a series of Bible Study walks. Initially aimed at just the Young Adults in the congregation, we quickly realised this was a great opportunity to have fellowship with ‘older / younger’ members of the church. On our first walk we welcomed Sam & Rosie Thomson, and on our second Neil, Brian & Janice. With more walks scheduled for the autumn we look forward to welcoming many others to join us (see dates for your diaries).
If you do not receive the Young Adult update e-mails, but would like to – please let Paul know!
For more information about the group, and when it’s next meeting contact Paul Treon at youngadultgroup@stcolumbaschurch.org.uk.
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