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Website
In the June Magazine, I told you of the lady from New Zealand who contacted us via the Church's website. Since then, a gentleman working with a company in Indonesia has also been in touch along with another gentleman from Belgium. All these folks were carrying out research into their ancestry and Holytown featured in both their family trees and they contacted us to see if we could help in their search. Another lady left a message in our guest book but unfortunately did not leave her contact details.
It never ceases to amaze me how much communication has changed during the course of all our lives. At Holytown primary (when it was in the Main Street) as part of our education we were given turns at going into the secretary's office and phoning in the order for school dinners each day.
This was considered quite a novelty and it involved using a phone that had to be dialled putting your finger in a wee hole next to the number and turning the dial back to the beginning then letting it go back to where it was and repeating this action for each number. In my house, I was in my mid teens before my parents had a phone in the house. All handsets at this time always had a cable attached.
(As an aside to what Stewart has just written, in my time at Holytown Primary we had to phone the numbers for the school dinners from the Schoolhouse. At that time no dialling was possible. We had to lift the receiver and wait for an operator to ask us the number we wished. We then waited until the operator had connected us. On at least one occasion someone did not wait to speak to the appropriate person and asked the operator to supply ??? School dinners. The operator did pass on the message so disaster was avoided. The Editor)
A friend of mine bought one of the first mobile phones that came out. It weighed a ton, was extremely temperamental and looked like something you would see in an old war film.
How things have changed. It's common to see primary school children with their mobile phones and apart from calling whoever they need to call, they can also communicate with text messages. They make texting look really easy (personally it takes me forever). One of my friends has one of the new l-phones which even allows you to get internet access on from your mobile.
When I'm walking along a street or through my local supermarket, I see folks making or taking calls on their cell phones and I wonder what they can be talking about and how they managed before all this technology became readily available.
As things stand at the moment, I work at two different locations, have two different extension numbers, a home phone, a works mobile and a personal mobile. I can also be contacted by e-mail at work and have another e-mail at home. I can even use my phones as alarm clocks and to remind me where I should be at a given time. Where will it all end?
Despite all this progress, the frustration of not being able to contact someone who you really need to get in touch with can, if anything, be even more frustrating than it was before all these options were available to us.
I suppose then that we are truly blessed because, through prayer we can get in touch with God at any time of the day or night. I wonder if the same is true when God tries to get in touch with us?
New Bible
I bought a new Bible a wee while ago in a sale at the GLO centre in Motherwell. It took me ages to select the one I wanted because like so many situations nowadays, there was so much to choose from. Finally I settled for "A Life Application Study Bible, in the new living translation". Apart from the scriptures being presented in modern language, it offers observations on each passage and provides maps, background etc to give the reader greater understanding of the various books in the old and new testaments.
In Deuteronomy 33:6-25, God gives different types of blessing to each of the tribes of Israel and I felt that the note that went along with the chapter was worthy of sharing with you. It said: 'Note the difference in blessings God gave each tribe. To one he gave the best land. To another strength, to another safety. Too often, we see someone with a particular blessing and think that God must love that person more than others. Think rather that God draws out in all people their unique talents. All these gifts are needed to complete his plan. Don't be envious of the gifts others have. Instead, look for the gifts God has given you and resolve to do the tasks he has uniquely qualified you to do.
The various groups and organisations within our Church will be starting shortly so, if you have not done so before, why not consider participating in one or more of these and utilise the abilities and talents that God has given you?
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