Dear Friends,
Today marks the end of the working year for the College – at the close of work today we’ll put down our tools and embrace the fullness of the Christmas season 🎄🎅❄️ The photos below show some of the on-campus students enjoying their end of term service and celebration hosted at Paisley Baptist Church. In the final week of term we encouraged staff and students to embrace the joy of Christmas and wear Christmas jumpers / attire in exchange for a small donation towards Glasgow City Mission. We were pleased to be able to gift just under £200 from staff and students to GCM as a way to live out, in a small way, the gift of Christ to the world. It has been a good term at SBC with much learning taking place and a real sense of God’s presence with us over the past term. There have been ups and downs, with several students experiencing health and / or illness throughout the course of the term, but we made it to the Christmas break, and we hope that a restorative Christmas break will see our students return with enthusiasm in January.
No sooner does one term finish, but preparations begin for the next – while we’ll enjoy a Christmas break, it’s a quick turnaround into another term of teaching! Towards the end of January we have three excellent intro classes starting that can be taken as part of the degree programme or as standalone modules. Christian Worship charts the history, development, and theological foundations of worship as a way to help us shape our practices of worship. The Practice of Pastoral Care covers topics and skills such as active listening, how to have hard conversations, mental health and pastoral care, and dealing with grief and bereavement. Values of Youth and Community Ministry looks at the framework of values that underpin youth and community ministry in spaces outside of the church. You can find out a little more on each class here. All three are excellent practical modules to help equip anyone who has a ministry in any of these areas. If you or someone in your church has a passion for worship, pastoral care, or youth and community ministry, then please encourage them to join one of the classes and in the new year For more information and applications contact our Academic Director, Graham Meiklejohn, on graham.meiklejohn@uws.ac.uk
Looking ahead to 2026, there is lots to look forward to! In March, we’re hosting the Whitley lecture which is being presented by a former lecturer of SBC and good friend, Rev Dr Paulus de Jong. Paulus was a minister at St Andrews Baptist Church as well as teaching with us up until summer 2024 before moving back to his homeland in the Netherlands. He is tackling the theme of Reconciliation and looking at several biblical narratives that help to guide our thinking and practice around reconciliation. So you get up to date information and a reminder nearer the time, please register your interest via Eventbrite here. Also in September 2026 we’re hoping to get a Masters in Theology: Mission and Ministry launched. Plans are moving ahead well and subject to validation we should be recruiting for this course around Easter time. If you’re interested in more information, then please get in contact (graham.meiklejohn@uws.ac.uk).
As we look ahead to the New Year and the new opportunities and challenges that it will present, we want to thank you for your continued support and goodwill towards the College. From all at the Scottish Baptist College, we wish you a very merry and blessed Christmas, and a Happy New Year filled with all God’s blessings.
Ian Birch and the SBC Team
Prayer Points:
Please continue to remember us in prayer.
+ Pray for the Christmas Break – that it will be refreshing and revitalizing for staff and students alike.
+ Give thanks for our end of term celebrations – it was a joy-filled Christmas service and celebration enjoyed by all.
+ Pray for the new term and upcoming class – pray that we would get a new influx of students for January.
+ Give thanks for all God’s blessings in the past year – while there’s always ups and downs, we recognize God’s faithfulness through it all.
Thank you for your continued support and prayers as we continue to equip people to serve God’s Kingdom.
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