In a church the size of Carrubbers it’s sometimes hard to get to know one another. The “Getting to know you” series of blogposts aims to help us have a wee insight into each other’s lives so that we can be better at connecting with one another when we do meet up in church or at women to women.
This month, we’d like you to meet Eilidh
Hi Eilidh, tell us a little about what you do when you’re not around Carrubbers.
At the moment I’m adjusting to life as a full time worker and not a student with the luxury of plenty time during the week to decide how it is spent! I do enjoy my work though, I’ve just started working as a physiotherapist. At the moment I work with medical outpatients and elderly rehab patients in a day hospital.
How does adjusting to working life affect your relationship with God?
I find at the moment I try and get up early to spend time with God and do my bible reading while I’m having breakfast otherwise it’s very easy to go through the rest of the day and be too tired by the time I get to bed at night.
I love reading and I try to always have a book on the go, but when life gets busy it tends to be one of the things that gets shelved! Recently I read a really good book called ‘To Live is Christ’ by Beth Moore. It takes you through the life of Paul and the letters he wrote. It was really encouraging taking a closer look at Paul and to see how God used his faults and failings as well as his strengths and gifts to glorify him. The book helped to bring some of the passages from the Bible alive and it encouraged my enthusiasm to live my life for Christ and allow him to use me. I would love to serve God with the same passion that Paul did! I also would love to pray more like Paul with his example in Ephesians 3 v 14 – 20. Sometimes it’s so easy to get distracted praying for circumstances that people are in, but I’d love to get into the habit of praying that most importantly people would come to know the fullness of God and His love through the Holy Spirit dwelling in them. We often pray that God will help us grow, but then as soon as he puts us in a difficult situation where we will learn to trust him more, the first thing we often do is pray that he’ll take us out of that situation!
What would your favourite verse in the bible be?
These verses from Philippians and Proverbs seem to be verses that I keep coming back to through various times and situations in my life. I love how the verses in Philippians are such a comfort to know that we can bring everything to God in prayer and I don’t have to be anxious, but I also like how the verses are a challenge to remind me to commit everything to God in prayer and to rejoice in God at all times even when things aren’t going the way I maybe imagined or hoped.
"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." Phil 4 v 4-9
You’re not originally from Edinburgh are you? But where would you say you’re favourite place to be is?
My favourite place to spend time has to be outside by the sea! Preferably at home in Shetland. I actually love watching the sea any day, whether it’s calm or rough, I love wrapping up warm and heading out for a walk on a wild day and watching the power of the waves! I just love admiring God’s creation, so I do like to get out of the city for a good walk every now and then, but even in the city you get some gorgeous skies and scenery to admire.
I also really love spending time with friends and family. I love Christmas time where we seem to make more time to spend with people just catching up, eating with each other and playing board games. And I always love a good Fri/Sat night in with friends chilling, playing games or watching a film together!
Where would you like to be in 5 years time?
I hope that in 5 years time that, wherever I am and whatever I am doing, I will have grown in my walk with God. I pray that I won’t shy away from the chiselling and re-shaping God does in my heart through the situations and circumstances he has me in. The song Purify My Heart has the line in it which says ‘refiners fire, my hearts one desire’ and it just highlights to me that, although God has saved me and I’ve been given Jesus’s righteousness, there is so much work to be done by the Holy Spirit to sanctify me and help me to become more like Jesus. It’s actually a really challenging song, refiners fire won’t be pleasant at the time but the outcome of that work is so worth it.
