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

Sunday 5 October 2025

Is it really October already!? Fairtrade Fortnight and our Harvest celebrations draw to a close and the Autumn sets in (storms and all). The last fruits of Summer are jammed, canned, frozen and stored in preparation for Winter.

Harvesting is hard work physically. Buying ethically is hard work both mentally and financially. Being prepared is not the easy option – hard work mentally (planning) and physically (processing)! Otherwise we would all be thoughtful shoppers, careful gardeners and conscientious storers.

God calls us to be thoughtful, careful and conscientious citizens of earth. Not just as stewards of creation, but as neighbours of our fellow human beings – wherever they are.

That is hard work.

Our ancestors had no option – harvest and store or starve. We have options, perhaps too many! We don’t even have to go to the shops anymore – they come to us online and by road. We needn’t leave our cosy warm homes and risk bumping into anyone! As we approach the colder months we should be more alert to our neighbours and the need to interact with others. Are you keeping an eye out for those around you? Isolation can be a real issue for many in our communities, especially during the dark months. Thankfully up and down our valley there are many activities and opportunities to meet others, interact, catch up and check up. We have some great options.

Join us as we try to follow God’s options for our lives … even if it seems hard work.

God Bless,

Mark

 

PRAYERS for FAIRTRADE FORTNIGHT:          (Verses from familiar hymns …)

We are not creatures yet to come: we’re called to choose right now;

dependent on the bees, the trees, the soil we tend and plough.

We won’t infest, no: we’ll invest our love, our wisdom deep,

in hope beyond horizons bleak: sustaining-Christ’s bequest!

David Coleman

 

All that kills abundant living, let it from the earth be banned;

pride of status, race, or schooling, dogmas that obscure Your plan.

In our common quest for justice may we hallow life’s brief span.

Fred Kaan

 

In the just reward of labour, God’s will is done;

in the help we give our neighbour, God’s will is done;

in our world-wide task of caring for the hungry and despairing,

in the harvest we are sharing, God’s will is done.

Frederick Pratt Green

 

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