Next Celebrating Calling event announced

Very Rev Dr Martin Fair writes about resisting your calling and invites you to the next 'Celebrating Calling' event on Saturday 8 March at Fullarton Connexions in Irvine.

When you hear the word ‘resisting' one of the things you might think of – especially if you're fond of crime drama – is resisting arrest!

But when talking in Christian terms, it might well be about resisting the call of God. The much-loved Christian writer, C.S. Lewis wrote:

"I had a notion that somehow, besides questing, I was being pursued…night after night, feeling whenever my mind lifted even for a second from my work, the steady, unrelenting approach of Him whom I so earnestly desired not to meet. I gave in, and admitted that God was God, and knelt and prayed: perhaps, that night, the most dejected and reluctant convert in all of England."

In Lewis's case, this was how it felt to him when reflecting upon that moment of becoming a Christian.

But that resisting can take on other forms. The Church of Scotland's People and Training Team has met countless numbers of people who have told us, "I've sensed God's calling for years and years but I've always tried to ignore it. I didn't think it was the right time or that I was the right person."

Our own Rev Dr Marjory MacLean gives voice to some of this in her recently-published book, ‘Oh all right then' – that eventual acceptance that she should respond to God's calling.

Thankfully, many like Marjory are now in ministry, having eventually given up resisting! But often they tell us that they wished they'd responded sooner.

On Saturday 8 March 2025, from 1-4pm, the People and Training Team will be hosting the next in its series of Celebrating Calling events, this time in the south west, at Irvine's Fullerton Connexions Church.

This is for anyone who has even the faintest inkling that God might be calling them to serve, generally or in the specific ministries of the Church. And so too it's for anyone who has been resisting or, just as much, who has only very recently begun to sense that call.

There will be practical information about what is involved in terms of pursuing the sense of call as well as plenty of inspiration concerning what modern-day ministry is all about – the challenges and the joys. Some of that will come from men and women who are relatively new to ministry and who can share their experiences of both their sense of calling and the training process that followed.

The event will begin with a light lunch, will be relaxed and informal throughout and is free of charge to participants. You can register to attend by dropping an email to ministry@churchofscotland.org.uk or by calling 0131 225 5722 and asking for the People and Training Team.

Is this your moment?

Venue: Fullerton Connexions, Irvine, South West Presbytery
Date: Saturday 8 March, 1-4pm