Welcome

Glencairn & Moniaive Parish Church is a linked charge with Dunscore Parish Church and is within the Presbytery of The South West.

The parish of Glencairn & Moniaive is located at the northern end of the scenic Cairn Valley in mid-Nithsdale, which is part of the Dumfries & Galloway region of South West Scotland.

The community is centred around the village of Moniaive.

We aim to play an active part in the community we serve, reaching out with the love and joy of Jesus Christ.

Our vision is ‘To convince all people of God’s love for them’.

 

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Message from our Minister

December 2025

As we pass the Solstice (earliest sunset and shortest day) and move towards Mid-Winter’s Day (latest sunrise and Christmas Eve) we enter the darkest time of the year. We wait for the light to overtake the darkness … and it starts on Christmas Day. Maybe only a few minutes at each end of the day, but, nevertheless, it starts on 25^th December.

So why not make Christmas Day the day of your new start? Sure, the calendar says that the New Year starts on 1^st January, but the light begins to bring change from Christmas Day. Perhaps if we set ourselves Christmas resolutions they would work better!?

For over two thousand years people across the world have found a new start as they have found the light of Christ and let Him into their lives. Not just on Christmas Day, not just as a New Year resolution, but every single day around the world people find the new start they need with Jesus.

As we approach 2026, with all that’s going on in the world, we need to find the light to guide us, as the Magi did all those years ago. We need to find the Hope, Peace, Joy and Love we have celebrated in Advent to strengthen our hearts and lives for whatever comes next.

At risk of a cliché: Jesus is for life, not just for Christmas!

On Christmas morning give thanks for the victory of light over darkness and open your hearts to Jesus. Just as the innkeeper opened his shed – despite it not being perfect – not ashamed of what lay inside, just willing to welcome the new life brought by God through Jesus. Celebrate as the shepherds did – without holding back – sharing the Love and Light of Christ with those around us. Start a new journey in faith as the Magi did – heading into the unknown, trusting the guiding light and the testimony of the star – looking for something new.

Let this Christmas be your New Start as you step into the Light of Christ and receive the Love of God shown through the baby born to die. I hope that the Christmas celebrations and services will help you unwrap the greatest gift of all – Jesus and His Love for you. Hear the angels in the Carols. See the star in the bright displays. Find the Christ-child in the familiar story. Only you can open this gift for yourself, no-one else can do it for you.

Have a happy Christmas and may God Bless you in your New start!

 

A PRAYER for Christmas:            

God of Wisdom and Wonder,

we praise You for Your gift of Hope

as we greet Jesus, the Christ-child;

we praise You for Your gift of Peace

as we greet Jesus, the Prince of Peace;

we praise You for Your gift of Joy

as we greet Jesus, the Light of the World;

we praise You for Your gift of Love

as we greet Jesus, the King of Love;

we praise You for past blessings

as we greet a New Year and await Jesus’ return.

 

Autumn Arrives … Autumn Leaves!?

As Autumn kicks in, it makes me reflect on the changes it brings and the cycle of the seasons. The annual pattern of nature can teach us a lot. It also makes me look ahead as planning for a certain mid-winter festival starts in earnest.

Autumn is the season of getting ready. Ready for what is to come. Ensuring that we have the resources needed to cope with the lean times. Whilst the modern world is not so tied to the seasonal availability of fruit and veg, the darkening evenings and changing weather still impact our physical and mental health.

Jams and preserves are bubbling, vegetables are canned and frozen, logs are split and stockpiled.

Why?

Simply put it is about being ready. Ready for anything. Ready for the unforeseen and the unplanned. Not in an apocalyptic survivalist way but in a basic make-it-through-the-winter way. Summer’s harvest is prepared and stored away, giving some semblance of certainty to provisions once 2026 starts.

So what does being ready look like? Colourful jars of jams, chutneys, preserves on a shelf? Freezers groaning with fruit, vegetables, meat? So our diet is assured.

What about other aspects of life? Physical health, mental health, and spiritual health? Do we pay the same attention to those?

The main feature of Autumn is the changing colours of the leaves in the trees. And that can tell us a lot. The trees withdraw nutrients from the leaves and send them back to their roots, to be saved for next spring. Energy is stored below ground, waiting for the demand of new growth. The branches look naked, as if the tree is dead, yet it is simply getting ready and waiting. Dormant, not dead. Preparing, not flagging. Ready, not past. We do not see the readiness or the stores of energy, simply the upper shell battling the winter winds and storms.

Lots to learn from the trees …

The roots ask us whether we, too, have hidden inner reserves stored away for the right time? For a time of need? Just in case?

The roots remind us that what is deep down is what will keep us secure for the future, whatever it holds. Our inner reserves, physically, mentally, spiritually, are vital in times of crisis and need.

The branches ask us whether we are slimmed-down to cope with the buffeting of life? Removing the unnecessary baggage and surfaces which catch every breeze and amplify it to breaking point?

The branches remind us to make sure we are clear of anything which can weigh us down or exaggerate the damage of life’s storms. Are we able to ride out the winds, stand firm in the storms?

The leaves ask us whether we have strength and energy which needs re-directing to better help us in the future. Things which would be better stored for the time of need.

The leaves remind us to shed what is no longer needed, reducing our vulnerability to the slightest breeze. Removing what is not needed so that the whole may be more healthy.

Quite a challenge. Being ‘Winter ready’ in all aspects of our lives – physical, mental and spiritual.

How are your roots?

Join us to strengthen your roots, shed damaging baggage, or simply meet with Jesus.

May God Bless you,

Mark RS Smith