The Bookcase – it’s dangerous to go there!

I confess that looking in my bookcase is not something I do very often these days, as I now find it easier reading from my ‘Kindle’ due to print size, back lighting, and the ability to carry your whole library around with you. However I was searching in my bookcase yesterday for a particular book, and in the process was distracted by two other books that caught my eye! Books have power 🙂

One of the books I picked up and browsed was Tom Lennie’s ‘Land of Many Revivals’ – Scotland’s extraordinary Legacy of Christian revivals over four centuries 1527 – 1857, published in 2015.  What an amazing amount of research has gone into this book.  Many people will know, and have read of the Lewis Revival (1949-52) and perhaps have heard people speak about it at an event or on TV or You Tube.  But I guess most Scots are oblivious to the fact that this whole phenomena of Christian revival goes a long way back in Scottish history. 

Being a Glasgow boy I looked for ‘Glasgow’ in the index, and read with interest of George Whitefield’s visit in 1741 and of his subsequent visits. Even by 1751 Whitefield recorded that he was speaking to ten thousand souls every day, with people leaving their homes early in the morning to walk into the city to hear him. Countless numbers of people came to put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ, claiming Him to be their Saviour and Lord.

Pictures of Tiree

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Since my ancestors came from the Isle of Tiree, that was where I next looked. I was interested to read that revival commenced there in the Congregational Church at the end of 1839, and spread to the Baptist Church. In the late 1830’s the Baptist pastor there, a Duncan MacDougal lamented – ‘sunk too much into formality, and we almost despair of prosperity’. By the end of 1840 MacDougal was exclaiming ’Our winter is past, the rain is over and gone, the time of the singing of birds has come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land’! There were frequent baptisms, one in April 1840 records 300-400 people on the edge of the loch witnessing the baptism of another six candidates. As I read that I wondered, was one of my ancestors among them? 

The other book that ‘caught my eye’ was ‘Covenanting Pilgrimages and Studies ‘ by A B Todd published in 1911. It was a kind of ‘Eureka’ moment when I put my hands on it. I had forgotten that I had it, and in recent months we have been visiting some of the many Covenanter monuments that are scattered around this area of East Renfrewshire, and throughout the South West of Scotland.  In fact I recently made a short video on this subject, (see below).         As an aside, the book is special because it originally was given to James Wands as a Bible Class prize in Glasgow. Jim Wands was one of my leaders as a teenager at our Christian Youth Centre, and later became my friend. I received the book from his library on his death.

Today it seems that in society at large, much of Scotland’s Christian heritage is ignored and set aside.  But it’s also encouraging to read of the many exciting things happening within churches of various denominations up and down the land, and the impact many are making in their communities.   My own Church is always packed out on a Sunday, and every day throughout the week a busy programme is in operation. 

Perhaps it is time to start praying again for ‘Revival’, as our nation and world seem in such chaos, and many individual lives are broken and in despair! May God again bless the people of Scotland!

And yes, I eventually found the book I was looking for!