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Word from Scotland
by Sandy Shaw
On 1May 1968 I was ordained in Cowdenbeath West Church, but by December I became drier and drier. Christmas and New Year was terrible.
In January 1969 at our local Fraternal Meeting, which was held in Kinross, a colleague who was to become a very close friend, Jim Kincaid, walked into the room and said, “I have just been baptised in the Holy Spirit.”
Well, five or six of us met with him, at the close of the Fraternal. “This is what we need.”
I always knew there was more, but I did not know what it was.
We met over these next Monday mornings. Jim took us through the Scriptures. Nothing happened.
On 16th March 1969 – 51 years ago - I came out of the pulpit. “That is it!”
I was preaching that afternoon in Edinburgh at a Crusader Rally and God wonderfully upheld. I have never reneged on a meeting.
On our way to Edinburgh I called in at Jim’s Manse. “Jim, it either happens to-night or I go to the Forth Road Bridge to-morrow and in the Name of Jesus Christ take off my collar and drop it into the water and return to Motor Insurance from whence I came”.
Around 7.30 that night, Jim came in. He prayed - spoke with me – read from the Bible – nothing. “Jim – I’ve got it all wrong – this call thing – I’ve got it all so very wrong!”
“Let me pray with you once more.”
“There are words in your mind which are not English – in the Name of Jesus speak them out.” This I did – two words – and I know what it was like to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
It was like someone putting two cycle pumps on my toes and blowing me up and the Spirit of God came up my legs and body, and I overflowed. I started to ‘speak in tongues’. I could not stop speaking in tongues – praising God in that language I had never learned. Jim got up and left – saying – “See you in the morning” – and I went over to my desk and began to write in tongues.
When we met on the Monday morning – Jim said – “Tell them – tell them what happened last night.” This I did.
Now – we always had a Prayer Time – and Jim Kincaid was a man who was always receiving visions from God. On this occasion, he saw a mountain with a source of water in the centre of it and the water was flowing down – rivulets of blessing – and his word was – wherever you go you will be a blessing.
I saw exactly the same vision – and I remember saying to myself – well if you weren’t making up speaking in tongues last night you are certainly making this up – until I heard God speak to me – “Son, look at the water.”
In my vision – in my picture – the water was flowing uphill and it was like holding up a hose and the water was sprinkling all over the place – the same consequences but a different method.
Then came the voice again – “From now on your ministry will be uphill.”
I move forward two years to Guildford University in 1971 – a superb Fountain Trust Conference. On the Saturday morning at the final meeting we were to meet in denominations. “Oh NO!” My wife, Elspeth, said, “We have been at everything - let’s go along.”
There were five Presbyterians present – but one was one of the main speakers – Rev Professor Rodman Williams from Austin, Texas.
In 1972 there was to be the first European Charismatic Leaders Conference in Germany – with five representatives from each nation and denomination. Around three months after Guildford, Rod Williams asked me to choose and lead the Scottish delegation.
There was some money available at that time and I was later informed that following the German Conference, I could travel to any part of the world and tell of what was happening in Europe!
In this interim period, Jim and Val Kincaid had gone as missionaries to South Africa. I chose to go to South Africa and a three week preaching tour was arranged which later incorporated a brief visit to Israel and a week’s teaching in Cyprus.
Germany, South Africa, Israel, Cyprus – what was happening in the life of a wee boy brought up, up a close, in Perth? Various international ministry visits followed.
In 1984, we moved north to Ardclach and Auldearn Churches. I came up north to DIE. I thought that God was putting me out to grass.
But I now had another problem. I could no longer sprinkle babies with water and call it baptism, and do so with integrity.
Events moved on until in 1991 on the Isle of Colonsay, I met a man who had a problem. He came to see me – and then I told him my problem – he said “Tell your church authorities” and that ended up in being deposed.
One more thing – going back to 1973 – I was preparing for the second European Leaders Charismatic Conference, back in Germany – when I was invited to speak at a Conference in Holland before the Conference – then the British Airways Manager phoned me and asked if I would preach in Frankfurt on the Sunday – Baptist Church in the morning – American Army Base in the afternoon and the American Air Force Base at night – I said “YES”. They each paid travelling expenses and gave a gift – and Americans pay well.
I caught the train in Frankfurt, on the Monday to go to Wurzburg and Schweinfurt and then onto Schloss Craheim. I was ‘locked’ in a compartment with David DuPlessis the Co-Chairman of the Conference and World Pentecostal Leader – people would have paid money for that privilege. I told him my problem about the money. What a reply he gave. “Pay all your expenses – buy a new suit – you have to be neat if you are up front – and whatever money is left over – put it in the offering. Never touch the gold or the glory.”
Usually, I start with Scripture, but let me close with words from the Word of God as we have it in the Bible, part of which I have read every day since the age of eight.
We have in the book of Acts the record of Paul’s life and ministry, and we have his testimony three times. He never changed. He never modified it. He never suggested that he had moved on from that, and what happened was too simplistic.
In Acts Chapter 26 Paul tells us that he was not disobedient to the vision from heaven.
In II Timothy Chapter 4 verse 7, and Chapter 3 verse 10, Paul has a word for the world and a word for the Church. Paul was faithful to the end. He fought the good fight – finished the race – and kept the faith.
If we do not keep the faith it is unlikely that we will be able to fight the good fight or finish the race.
“Loving Father – we thank You that what you did from the days of the apostles, you continue to do today. We thank You for sins forgiven. We thank you Jesus that you continue to baptise men and women in the Holy Spirit, with the same consequences as in the book of ACTS. Gracious God – we thank you for Your utter faithfulness, in Jesus Name. Amen”
Alexander 'Sandy' Shaw is pastor of Nairn Christian Fellowship in Nairn, Scotland. Nairn is 17 miles east of Inverness - on the Moray Firth Coast - not far from the Loch Ness Monster!
Gifted as a Biblical teacher, Sandy is firmly committed to making sure that his teachings are firmly grounded in the Word.
Sandy has a weekly radio talk which can be heard via the Internet on Saturday at 11:40am, New Orleans time, at wsho.com.
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