The most frequently asked question we get is, “What do ya’ll do in Scotland?” The short (one-sentence) answer we give is this:  We host and facilitate missions for both our U.S. and Scottish Partners. Yep, that’s a pretty vague answer. But let’s be honest, that’s a pretty vague question. The reality is that what we “do” in Scotland is quite complex.  

 

Depending on the research you trust, Scotland is somewhere between 1-5% evangelical Christian. That hasn’t always been the case. As a matter of fact, once known as the “land of the book,” Scotland sent out more missionaries than any other country in the world. And that was only a few generations back.  

 

Scotland does have a strong community of true believers. Their faith is immense, and it is inspiring. The percentage happens to be small. There is no “safety” in numbers there. This is part of the reason we feel drawn to Scotland. To come alongside these believers and offer encouragement and support. The irony is that most times they are the ones encouraging and lifting us up. It’s actually incredible. But we can help.  

 

We can offer to come alongside them. To partner with them. To listen to what they need and get a sense of what God is calling them to do for their own country. And when they ask, we can offer our services. Our resources. Our expertise. Our experience. As the body of Christ, we can help shoulder the burdens of a post-Christian society. The weight of that can only be felt on Scottish soil. And the burden of that can only be lifted by our faith in Jesus Christ. 

 

You’re still probably wondering:  So what exactly are ya’ll doing?  We thought you’d never ask!

 

The two main ways we will serve Scotland is through partnerships with local Scottish churches and mission trips with our American Church partners.  Early on in the process, we knew we were being led to have an impact locally, within the community that we would call home.  We also knew we were being asked to serve outside of that community, in other areas, to help those local churches spread the good news of Jesus Christ.  

 

Throughout this process, Rebecca has developed a framework to help bridge the gap between the needs requested by our Scottish church partners and the resources offered by their American counterparts. Through church profiles, she has been able to link specific churches in Scotland with a church in the U.S. who can offer the services and resources that Scottish church has requested.  That varies from church to church. The needs are great and some of these include: leadership development, internships, student ministry, evangelism and outreach, pastoral care, discipleship, apologetics, facilities maintenance, and most importantly --the end goal of church planting. There’s are undeniable mutual benefit to U.S. churches in this reciprocal relationship as well. It’s not like America isn’t headed down a similar path. Plus, these churches in Scotland have many things they are doing incredibly well. 

 

Mission teams play a vital role in this process.  When a particular church need in Scotland has been identified, the work begins to find a team from one of our American partners to come and serve.  To help meet the need, our teams spend seven days on the ground working alongside our Scottish partners. As the host partner, we take care of every detail for those teams from the moment they land in Scotland until their final drop-off back at the airport.  And where do our teams call home for the week… you guessed it…. the Red Lion Inn.  

 

There are other areas that we are exploring for ministry.  The Lord has opened so many doors that it has truly blown us away. We will continue to hold on loosely to the ideas He has given us, as we seek to navigate His plan and His call  to share the good news of Jesus with everyone we meet.