WEBVTT

00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:13.679
 Hi and welcome to Pastoral Update number 5 on Friday the 17th of April. It's good that

00:00:13.679 --> 00:00:23.879
 you can join us for this. Some of you may know that I'm a Hib supporter and I have been

00:00:23.879 --> 00:00:31.960
 on my own all my life, well as far as I can remember. It's strange because in these days

00:00:31.960 --> 00:00:39.399
 of lockdown you do things that you don't normally do and things are provided that are not normally

00:00:39.399 --> 00:00:44.679
 provided and one of the things this week or last week was there was a Scottish football

00:00:44.679 --> 00:00:53.679
 quiz online, thousands of people took part and as we did a family gathered around the computer

00:00:53.679 --> 00:01:00.640
 and it took part. Now one of the questions, and it was very embarrassing for a Hib supporter,

00:01:00.640 --> 00:01:16.280
 it was how many cup finals had Hibs lost over the period of their existence? Eight, ten or fourteen

00:01:16.280 --> 00:01:24.840
 Scottish Cup finals and the answer was ten, ten Scottish Cup finals. Now of course that particular

00:01:24.840 --> 00:01:38.520
 record came to an end in 2016 with a glorious Scottish Cup win and it was against a minor team

00:01:38.520 --> 00:01:46.320
 from a higher league than Hibs at the time but it was a great event for at least half the population

00:01:46.319 --> 00:01:59.639
 of Edinburgh. But from that event the Hibs supporters developed a logo or a kind of anthem

00:01:59.639 --> 00:02:07.119
 as it were called Persevere or Perseveread and as a Hibs supporter you have to persevere,

00:02:07.119 --> 00:02:12.599
 you have to persevere through a lot of failure, a lot of defeat and wait a very long time

00:02:12.599 --> 00:02:21.439
 for silverware. But it's a great word Persevere, it's about sticking with it when things are

00:02:21.439 --> 00:02:27.079
 difficult and tough and interestingly I think it's a great word to think about for today

00:02:27.079 --> 00:02:35.159
 and it's an attribute as Christians that we want to develop through this particular crisis

00:02:35.159 --> 00:02:40.000
 and I feel that going into week four of the lockdown there's a bit more of a sense of need

00:02:40.000 --> 00:02:45.800
 to persevere. It's interesting, it's one of the great characteristics that's mentioned by Paul

00:02:45.800 --> 00:02:53.199
 to the Corinthians when he describes, take my big pulpit Bible up, my preacher's Bible about love,

00:02:53.199 --> 00:02:59.280
 it always protects, always trusts, always hopes and always perseveres. So I want to encourage you

00:02:59.280 --> 00:03:07.639
 this week to persevere, to persevere in your Bible reading and your prayer, persevere in contacting

00:03:07.639 --> 00:03:14.759
 people, building relationships, doing the basics and remember this will pass, it will pass, just

00:03:14.759 --> 00:03:21.000
 keep going. Now also my daughter Amy sent me something on my phone today from one of the

00:03:21.000 --> 00:03:27.759
 Bible apps, she created a lovely image from a verse and it's a verse from John 16 and verse 33

00:03:27.759 --> 00:03:33.719
 and it spoke very powerfully to me as well where Jesus after talking to disciples about battles

00:03:33.719 --> 00:03:39.280
 and struggles said I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace, in this world

00:03:39.280 --> 00:03:46.439
 you will have trouble but take heart, I have overcome the world. So take heart today and remember

00:03:46.439 --> 00:03:52.199
 these things. So join with us will you on Sunday and invite your friends again, it was great to

00:03:52.199 --> 00:03:57.919
 know that lots of friends were with us on Sunday, livestreams at 11 a.m. and then following that

00:03:57.919 --> 00:04:06.639
 there's the service at 5.30 p.m. and Thomas will be leading that this week in the evening. Also in

00:04:06.639 --> 00:04:15.519
 Sunday morning I'll be launching our seven days of prayer just by really advertising it at the

00:04:15.519 --> 00:04:22.159
 service and then from Monday morning at 8 a.m. there will be a time of prayer together online

00:04:22.160 --> 00:04:28.560
 for seven days. There's a great need for prayer so let's keep on praying and you'll get an email

00:04:28.560 --> 00:04:35.800
 before the weekend's out with details about seven days of prayer so let's pray and let's

00:04:35.800 --> 00:04:42.360
 pray together and let's persevere and let's be at peace and remember that Jesus has overcome these

00:04:42.360 --> 00:04:54.600
 things. Thank you.