Books – Page 2 – Matthew McKinnon's Blog

So what will 2024 bring?

After all the preparations, all the travelling, after all the children’s parties, family get-togethers and Christmas and New Year celebrations, after too many extravagent dinners with sweets and drinks, it is all back to ‘auld claes and purridge‘ as my mother would have said!

January 1st – Late afternoon in Newlands Park, Glasgow

Still, it would be a shame to forget all the joys and blessings of the festive season before moving on, so here are some of my memories in pictures.

Christmas at Church
Choir Concert and Carol Service

Of course we also got out and about in spite of some very changeable weather, and spent a few relaxing days on the Clyde Coast with my son and his wife at their home.

With our grand-daughter and great grandchildren at the local park

And finally some pics of our changeable weather.

So now we look forward to another season in the garden and greenhouse, and today I was buying the seeds I need for the greenhouse at ‘Dobbies’ half price sale. Holidays were also discussed this week and some tentative plans were made for early summer. Amongst my friends I hear of similar plans, and for some it’s a year for marriage, for others a new school, a university degree, or a new job, not to mention the upgrade of houses, cars, computers, phones and gardens etc.

However I detect some nervousness and hesitancy, not just amongst my acquintances but in our national psyche as folks survey the international, national and local scene. We are continually bombarded with updates on wars and rumours of wars, (too many to detail) In the middle of last year it was reported that 110 million people were displaced including 36.4 million refugees, as nations struggle and fight to solve the ‘refugee crisis’. Nationally and individually, borrowing is going through the roof, with some folks and economies struggling to survive. In the UK local government is complaining of underfunding, and speaking of the need to cut services. Nationwide workers are on strike, from ‘civil servants’ to doctors and nurses, train drivers and teachers, … all asking for more money. Of course the weather ‘crisis’ or ‘global warming’ continues to dominate much of the news, along with the explosion in ‘Artificial Intelligence’ and its human implications, so people are genuinely fearful of all the gloomy predictions continually being proffered. No wonder the BBC’s viewers are rapidly declining, with a reported two million having stopped paying their TV licence. Have our news bulletins become too much of a burden one might ask? Twenty twenty four however, has been dubbed ‘The Super Election Year’ as general elections are planned in nations all around the globe, including here in the UK and in the USA. So can we expect great things? Mmm.. let’s wait and see!

It was wonderful being at the Messiah on the 2nd of January, not just to hear the stupendous music and singers, but to listen to a different narrative! The good news contained in the Jesus story, which the ‘Messiah’ so powerfully tells. King George II in 1743 during the Messiah Premier in London, stood during the singing of the ‘Hallelujah Chorus’, which has become a tradition observed until this day.

“Hallelujah: for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth. The Kingdom of this world is become the Kingdom of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever. King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Hallelujah“

The coming of the King of Kings is the great hope of the Christian Church. People are asking these days, ‘what are you hoping for in 2024’? There are a miriad of answers to that question, but I heard one woman, within the last few days, immediateely respond to the question with ‘I’m looking forward to the coming again of Jesus.’ How do you respond to such a thought? Does it sound like a message of gloom? a message of hope and rejoicing? or do your scoff at the idea as just some religious nonsense?

Just as the Apostle Peter said, we do hear people today scoff at such a possibility and say ‘Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation. …….But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. Are you ready if Christ came today?

I enjoyed listening to Max Lucado give a short talk on the subject recently, he describes it just as we were taught as young folks. If you think it too fantastical, perhaps you need to to rethink your concept of God. It’s well worth a listen, you can hear him here:

The psalmist David in Psalm 20 prayed this prayer for his people who trusted in God. May it be your experience in 2024. If ‘knowing God’ is an idea alien to you, may you come to know Him in 2024 through His Son Jesus, the Saviour of the world.

May the LORD answer you when you are in distress;
may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.
May he send you help from the sanctuary
and grant you support from Zion.
May he remember all your sacrifices
and accept your burnt offerings.
May he give you the desire of your heart
and make all your plans succeed.
May we shout for joy over your victory
and lift up our banners in the name of our God.
May the LORD grant all your requests.

Thank you for visiting my blog – Matthew

Border Country – a visit to Dawyck!

Driving in the Scottish Borders

The Royal Botanical Gardren in Edinburgh, also cares for three other botanical gardens in Scotland. One in Dunoon (Benmore B.G.) one in Dumfries and Galloway (Logan B.G.) and this one at Dawyck in the Scottish Borders. So with this visit we have now completed a visit to all four. It’s a while since we have been to the Edinburgh one, so a return visit is now overdue!

The Scottish Borders

Dawyck is a one and a half hour drive from Glasgow, heading south down the M74, before turning off at Abington. It’s a very pleasant drive after you get outside the greater Glasgow area, but becomes particularly beautiful once you leave Abington. The low rolling lush green hills, with rivers meandering through the valleys, the quiet roads, and the sheep and cattle grazing in the fields are very pleasing to one’s senses. We came home thinking ‘we should really visit this area more often.’ You can judge for yourself from the photographs above.

Dawyck Botanical Gardens

The purpose of our visit to the area was however to have a walk in the gardens and to see the variety of trees, flowers and plants growing there. We picked the perfect day and throughly enjoyed the drive and the gardens. Entrance fee for ‘seniors’ is £7.00 per head, and there is a lovely tea room, exhibition area and shop, with modern clean rest rooms.

It is difficult to say which one of the gardens we have most preferred, for whilst they all have their similarities, they also have their unique locations and features. It also depends on what time of the year you visit, but I’m going to say Logan Botanical Gardens in Dumfries and Galloway. We loved being there in the Spring and enjoyed the pond areas and the Spring flowers and the singing of the birds, but why not visit the gardens and decide for yourself? You won’t be disappointed!

We also made a short return visit in June back to Benmore Gardens near Dunoon. It was nice to see the gardens in summer. Above are a few photographs.

One thing I have noticed as we have explored these botanical gardens is that the majority of visitors are certainly in the 50+ age group (perhaps even the 60+ age group). I have often asked myself why that should be? I expect that one answer at least, will be the fact that as you get older you tend to enjoy more times of peace and quiet, and a walk in the garden seems to perfectly fit the bill!

My recent reading!

Coinciding with our recent visits to the botanical gardens I have been reading the above two books. The first one received as a birthday present a few months ago. The biography of John Bunyan by Peter Morden is a fascinating read. John was born in Elstow, Bedfordshire in 1628 during the reign of Charles I. However I guess most folks today have never heard of John Bunyan, even although his book ‘The Pilgrim’s Progress’ was until the middle of the 20th Century, only second to the world’s best seller The Bible in numbers published, and has been continuously published up until today from its first printing in 1678. It is considered a world classic!

Peter Morden paints the picture well, of a swearing ‘tinker’ boy who grew up to follow in his father’s footsteps. On the outbreak of the Civil war between the King and Parliament, John became a soldier in the army of the parliamentarians. Later in life he became a Christian, a husband and father, a popular preacher, a pastor, a prisoner in Bedford jail and a prolific author. Bunyan spent 12 years in Bedford jail, and his crime? He was a preacher of the Bible drawing large crowds to follow him. The Scots had already rebelled at the introduction of the Church of England Prayer book (you may know the Jenny Geddes story) and now non-conformists and desenters were growing in number south of the border too! It was while in a dank prison cell that he wrote his book The Pilgrim’s Progress.

Pilgrim’s Progress is written as an allegory which takes place in a dream. here’s a summary from ‘Goodreads’:

“Pilgrim’s Progress is a famous story of man’s progress through life in search of salvation and remains one of the most entertaining allegories of faith ever written. Set against realistic backdrops of town and country, the powerful drama of the pilgrim’s trials and temptations follows him in his harrowing journey to the Celestial City. Along a road filled with monsters and spiritual terrors, Christian confronts such emblematic characters as Worldly Wiseman, Giant Despair, Talkative, Ignorance, and the demons of the Valley of the Shadow of Death. But he is also joined by Hopeful and Faithful.“

After completing the biography I decided to read the book again. I smiled at the names given to the characters that Pilgrim meets, I’ve met them all I believe, and from time to time have seen myself described in them. Below are two quotations from the book as Pilgrim approaches the end of his journey, which seemed to relate well to our walks in the gardens.

In Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress, the Land of Beulah is a pleasant and fertile country within sight of the Heavenly City.

I should say however, that The Pilgrim’s Progress is a book very close to my heart, as this was the book that started me on my own Christian pilgrimage. And in particular the paragraph from the book quoted below.

Here at the Cross of Christ Pilgrims burden of sin falls from his back.

Here’s a song about Beulah land that we used to sing at church, which I’m sure you will enjoy

I hope you enjoyed the photographs and the read. Perhaps you’ll be intrigued enough to download one of the world’s best selling books The Pilgrim’s Progress and have a read for yourself.

I hope you enjoy what remains of the summer if you are here in Europe, but wherever you are I wish you every blessing!

Matthew

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