Left to right: Robert, Margaret, Laura, John
Yesterday was an encouraging day for the leaders of Kairos Church. We went to visit the venue we will renting to host Sun morning worship services for Kairos Church. The sun was shining, the venue was perfect, and the person showing us around was very friendly and warm. Robert, one of our leaders said, “This feels like home.” The venue is the Stirling Boys Club:
36 St John St, Stirling FK8 1EA
The venue is right up at the top of the town, across from the Old Jail House, next to the Church of the Holy Rude, and just below Stirling Castle. The street level access is perfect for accessibility.
Street level access.
There is also a ramp which makes it ideal for wheelchair access and for parents and carers with children in prams or buggies.
Ramp leading from street entrance to main hall.
Initially, during ongoing Covid restrictions, we will have use of the hall and the kitchen. Once the restrictions lift, there will be another room we can access for a crèche/children’s area.
Main Hall
Another perk of the location is parking. There is free street parking all around, there is free parking at the old jail house, and there is free parking up at the castle.
Car park at the old jail house.
We believe this is a crucial next step in our journey as a church plant. We started in Stirling but Lockdown moved us online, and then into Braco for a season. Now that society is opening up, we sense it’s important to stay focused on the vision.
Whilst we gathered outside the location for photos to be taken this van drove past. We had a chuckle because it had the words REVIVAL on it. That’s our heart. We don’t just want to see a local church planted, we want to see revival in the nation.
On our way back to our cars, we walked up to the castle car park where there is a great view of Stirling. We spent a few moments praying over the city and asking God to pour out his Spirit.
We are encouraged to see what God will do. We are still in the early stages of our church plant. The best is yet to be. Longer term we hope to secure a commercial Lease or even buy a property. We have launched a Just Giving Page to help raise funds towards this longer term goal. The aim would be to have a central hub we can use as a base for discipleship, training and mission.
The plans to move back into Stirling has invoked a few different responses. Some are excited about a fresh work, others are more critical. One local Christian business man said to me that what we are doing is a waste of time. (He thinks all the churches in Scotland are a waste of time.) “What are you offering that’s different?” My response was simple. We are not competing with other churches. We are not setting up in Stirling because we think we can do it better. No one church can reach all of Stirling. Each local church needs to be faithful to what God has called them to do.
There are many great churches in Stirling doing many great things. We bless and honour what God is doing through them. For us, we simply desire to see a New Testament church established in the city. Currently we are the only “Apostolic” church in the region (The nearest being in Glasgow and Bo’ness). There aren’t even really many other Pentecostal churches— other than an AoG which is in the process of re-planting. Stirling has a population of around ninety four thousand people. A city of that kind of population doesn’t need less churches, it needs more. No one church can reach all of Stirling. By God’s grace, we hope to take our place in our corner of the vineyard and see a church raised up that has a strong emphasis on expository preaching, the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and worship that ushers in the presence of God.
Pastor John Caldwell.
