Prayer Points & Latest News – July 2019

“Today I choose to stand in this place you have called me to,
And I declare that You are a Mighty God, the Creator of Heaven and Earth.
Your Kingdom shall endure and will never be shaken.
Open the windows of Heaven and pour out Your promised blessings in this generation.
Revive us, restore us and heal our land.
Thank you for going before us to open the way and remove all obstacles.
Increase our Faith, stir up Hope and keep us grounded and walking in Love.
Thank you that You are creating a dwelling place for God and man here; in Sannox, on Arran, for the nations.
Amen”

We continue to say this prayer together so that the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, might be glorified and His light, love, peace, forgiveness and power might sweep through the Isle of Arran, the rest of Scotland, the United Kingdom and the nations of the world.

1.     Prayer Gatherings – In Edinburgh we will gather on Monday 1 July 2019 at the home of George and Fiona Hazel starting at 8 pm prompt. We will be joined by folks on Arran and across the UK and abroad. Please join with us in prayer and thanksgiving for what God is doing at Sannox.
2.     Encounter Events – Please pray for these events and for people to come:

 5-6 July – Shaped for Significance – a discovery of identity, purpose and anointing

·         One of the most important aspects of our faith journey is knowing our identity, purpose and anointing. Sometimes we don’t see ourselves as God sees us and are not sure of our purpose and anointing for the Kingdom. When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he was hiding in the wine press, afraid and unsure. However, the angel said to him “The Lord is with you mighty man of valour!” (Judges 6 v12). Gideon was known in heaven as a mighty man of valour and God had a purpose and an anointing for him.

·         The event will start on the Friday evening with a time of worship and introduction from Andy. This will coincide with the 6 pm ferry from Ardrossan, so we will start around 7.30/7.45.

·         On Saturday there will be times of worship and teaching ending in time for people to get the 4.40 ferry. Of course, if you want to stay on until the later 7.20 ferry, or are from the island, we will continue together in worship and sharing. Guests can stay over for the Sunday to rest and reflect but need to book accommodation.

·         Over the Friday evening and Saturday Andy Hall will lead us in an exploration of our identity, purpose and anointing – how we are known to God. George will lead worship.

Please consider joining us for this Encounter weekend and contact Heidi to book and get further details. Also encourage others to come. Email admin@sannox.org for more information and to book accommodation.

2-5 August – Arran Open Studios – Moira Shirreff is once more organizing SCC as a venue for Arran Open Studios. This year we are doing something different with more of a focus on workshops. Work on the restoration of the church is going well and we are hopeful that these will be held in the church. The bell tower is completed and working, the roof is on and the windows and concrete floor are being fitted as we speak. We are also building a new kitchen and toilets to service the church with volunteers in July. Every year we get over 100 people visiting us and have had many conversations about SCC and what happens here. Moira needs volunteers to be present for the event to meet and greet people, show them around SCC and, if you feel able, to lead the rhythm of prayer times. You don’t have to be an artist to do this! For more information and to let Moira know you can help email her on moira.shirreff@hotmail.co.uk. It is always a wonderful time. 

6-7 September – Song writing workshop led by Jim Farrell, Francis McFaul, Adam Walsh and George Hazel. A weekend of worship through music releasing new songs from Sannox for the Kingdom. There will be a separate e mail about this in the near future. Email admin@sannox.org for more information and to book.

Future Events – At the last Directors meeting the Directors discussed future events at SCC. After prayer and discussion it was decided to explore offering various packages to be held in Dundarroch Cottage and the church.

·         Alpha weekends, hosted by SCC or self-hosted.

·         Christian leaders and workers retreat offered 3 or 4 times a year as mid-week events.

·         “Blessing Weeks” – teaching on blessing, as this is part of SCC values.

·         Weekend events with worship and rest and restoration.

Please pray for us as we develop these ideas for next year.

The refurbishment of the church is continuing at pace with the new roof going on followed by the new windows and concrete floor. As highlighted in our last prayer news we have made an application for funding to Stewardship for funds that will allow us to finish the church restoration. We hope to hear about this by the end of this week. If Stewardship make us an offer, and the Directors accept, then the church could be completely finished and ready for use by the beginning of October. If this is the case, then we are discussing plans to have a rededication weekend at the end of October – from the 31 October to the 3 November. This event would start with 48 hours of “24/7” worship in the church culminating in a rededication service on Saturday afternoon to which all the ministers in the area plus the communities would be invited. We would also make it an Open Day on the Saturday. We may also have a time of worship on Sunday. Plans are at an early stage, and depend on funding, but reserve the dates in your diary for this potentially significant event.

Please pray that Stewardship and the Directors are guided by God in all of this and if an offer of funds is made the Directors will make the right decision regarding the offer and the rededication plans for the church.

As indicated last month we are putting together a work party of volunteers for the 13 to 20 July. At present we have about 6/7 people for the building work and 2 for the painting work. We want to clean the outside walls of the church, removing mildew and fungus to prepare for painting later. We will also be building the temporary kitchen and toilets to service the church. The materials for the kitchen and toilets will cost around £7,000.

Please pray for the release of funds to cover this expense. If you can come for the week or a few days email Heidi at admin@sannox.org.

In addition to the Stewardship application, we are working with Geraldine, who is a professional fund raiser. The story behind Geraldine and her husband arriving at Sannox is amazing and she has offered her services on a volunteer basis to look at potential funds for the centre. She has already been a great blessing to us and we thank God for this provision.

Please pray for Geraldine and George as they research and prepare funding applications for Trusts and other grant awarding bodies.

As part of the finance plan and the general desire to attract more people to SCC we have been busy updating the web site – www.sannox.org . Please go on line, test it and give us feedback – admin@sannox.org.

We are also strengthening links with other organisations, such as SU and Pray for Scotland. We are also keen to forge links with churches so if you are interested in a link with SCC and/or want one of the team to come to your church to tell the story of Sannox then please email Heidi at admin@sannox.org.

We bless you, in the name of Jesus, to receive all that the Father has for you and thank you for your continuing support of His work at SCC. May we see more and more people being rested, restored and revived at Sannox in 2019.