Older News
December 18
Looking forward to 2010
The CMT Board took some time out from Christmas shopping last Saturday to consider several strategic issues for 2010 and how best we encourage and equip men for Christ and in evangelism to Scotland. Please keep us in prayer as we seek to implement these plans over the course of the year.
We were joined also by Derek Wood from theCommission. It was exciting to hear that tickets for next year's event plus the Robin Mark concert are almost sold out already!
If we don't see you before theCommission, have a merry Christmas from all at Christian Men Together.
December 6
Quarterly day of prayer - Monday 7 December
The next quarterly day of prayer for men in Scotland takes place on Monday 7 December. For suggestions on what to pray for, see the Prayer section. With thankful and expectant hearts, lets make prayer our priority.
November 28
Releasing the handbrake on the Great Commission early bird ticket price
Yet more early booking discounts! Book yourself onto this well-worthwhile evangelism workshop with Tony Antony before January 16 and save. Full information and booking forms for more.
November 22
theCommission early bird ticket price - 1 week left
You've got less than a week to book your discounted tickets to theCommission2010 - Scotland's day of encouragement and challenge for men. Until Monday 30 November, you can book tickets at just £18; from December, the normal price of £22 will be in place. And with over a fifth of tickets gone already, don't be left disappointed. See theCommission website for more.
November 7
A plan to save the world
A thought from the Chairman: "I was interested to read an article in the September issue of Newsweek, when travelling recently, entitled 'My Plan to save the World' by Gordon Brown. It reminded me of a verse I encountered in my daily Bible reading from Prov 19:21 'Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails'.
"It's great to plan, but sometimes these plans are thwarted through no fault of our own, as our national bard Robert Burns reminded us 'The best laid schemes o' mice an' men gang aft a-gley'. Essential then to seek God's guidance as we plan, and also to remind ourselves that His plans for the world, for our lives and our ministry are the best. So lets ask Him to reveal those to us through His word and by His Spirit so that we can keep walking in step with Him". Matthew.
October 28
Hitting the airwaves tonight
Allan Robertson, CMT's Scottish Manager will be interviewed on Revival Radio tonight from 9.30pm. Listen in West Central Scotland on 100.8 FM or everywhere else at www.revival.fm.
October 17
theCommission 2010 tickets on sale now
We are delighted to announce that tickets for theCommission 2010 event are now on sale. Last year was a sell out with many having to do without so don't be disappointed, book today. There's even an early bird discount if you do so by the end of November.
theCommission, working in partnership with Christian Men Together, is Scotland's day of challenge and encouragement for men and this year's theme is 'Working it Out: Called, Challenged, Commissioned'. Ian Coffey is the main speaker whilst Robin Mark and band will lead worship. The event takes place at Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall on 6 February 2010.
Robin Mark will also be in concert in the evening - an additional event and one for the whole family - at the same venue.
Full information can be found on theCommission website.
October 10
Follow CMT on Twitter
You can now stay up-to-date on all the latest developments at CMT by following us on Twitter. As soon as we have breaking news, we'll send a tweet to let you know. And if you want to comment, you can send us a reply. It's a great way to stay in touch.
Follow us on twitter here.
October 9
theCommission 2010
theCommission, Scotland's annual day of challenge and encouragement for men, takes place on Saturday 6 February 2010 at Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall. Put the date in your diary now. In partnership with CMT, Ian Coffey will be the main speaker and worship will be led by Robin Mark.
More details to follow including how to obtain tickets will be published shortly.
October 9
Quarterly day of prayer - Monday 12 October
The next quarterly day of prayer for men in Scotland takes place on Monday 12 October. For suggestions on what to pray for, see the Prayer section. May we never underestimate the power of prayer.
October 1
New Wild at Heart Course for men - starts October 19
CMT are delighted to announce a new eight week small group course based around John Eldredge’s book Wild at Heart.
This exciting course explores what it is to be a man and a Christian. Each night will feature a DVD presentation, followed by small group discussions. This is the first time that we know it has been in Scotland. Come and join us on this adventure with God and each other.
The course will take place in Cathcart Trinity Church, Clarkston Road, Glasgow for eight Monday evenings beginning October 19. The total cost for the course is £20.
Email Mark Cameron for more information or CMT's Allan Robertson.
Download a flyer (.pdf) for your church or men's group.
September 25
£3,000 raised from white water rafting
£3,000 has already been raised from the white water rafting for our two projects. Congratulations to everyone who has helped raise funds! Remember it isn't too late to do something in your area. The fund will remain open until the end of the year so why not get some men in your church involved in doing something in the next few months? See Donate for more information.
September 23
Commissioning Service for CMT Scottish Manager
The Commissioning Service to mark the appointment of Allan Robertson as our first full time Scottish Manager took place in his home church, Netherauldhouse Evangelical Church last Saturday. Around 180 people were present for what turned out to be a tremendous evening. There was a real sense of God's Spirit present throughout as Father's Song led the praise and Sandy Roger provided a challenging message from God's Word. Please continue to pray for Allan as he settles in to his role and seeks to move forward the work of CMT.
September 15
Do you want to be a world record breaker?
Now is your chance! Join other churches and hold a men's breakfast at 9am on Saturday 10 October and you could help set a world record. This event is organised by the Baptist Men's Movement but is open to all churches (not just Baptist) to participate. See Bigger Breakfast for further details.
August 30
White water rafting success
Yesterday's rafting event was a great success. Over 50 men took on the River Tummel rapids and had a great time into the bargain. You can see photos of the event here and here.
August 26
News digest
New contacts made
During the summer months several good opportunities arose to let people know about the work of CMT. At the end of July, James Milner-Smith led a seminar on men's ministry at Clan Gathering. There were about 70 men present and James was able to explain what CMT was seeking to achieve. As a result of contacts made a number of men present signed up with CMT so that they’ll receive information by e-mail. Some were also interested in being involved more directly with the work of CMT and these enquiries are being followed up.
In early August, Matthew McKinnon and Allan Robertson were at Keswick in Buckie for the annual convention where a number of useful contacts were made. These have led to an invitation to speak at a Men's breakfast at the end of this month in Nairn. Several other men were interested in becoming involved with CMT as area coordinator/prayer partner.
Commissioning Service
There will be a commissioning service for our new Scottish manager – Allan Robertson – on 19 September at 7.30pm at his home church, Netherauldhouse Evangelical Church, Glasgow. All are welcome to come along to give thanks for how God has worked already through CMT and that the work will grow through the appointment of Allan as full-time Scottish Manager. Father’s Song will lead the praise and Sandy Roger will provide a Bible message. There will be a light supper after the service.
Tony Anthony tour
Publicity for Tony Antony's tour (February 2010) will be published later this month. This tour will be a real opportunity to invite folks along to hear Tony’s amazing story.
Taming the Tummel
This weekend's white water rafting trip is all set to go. Churches at Orchardhill, Netherauldhouse, Cartsbridge, Cumbernauld and Greenview plus a family crew have committed 48 people to tame the river Tummel. The total amount of money raised plus pictures of the event will be published next week. If you were keen to raft but have missed out on a place this year, book the date in your diary next year and email Ross Hutchison know. Pray for a fun and safe day to be had to by all.
July 4
News digest
News from CMT’s new Scottish Manager
Allan has been working part-time for CMT now for three weeks and thoroughly enjoying it. He reports there aren't enough hours in the day to do everything but things have still been moving along! Remember to keep him in your prayers as CMT embarks on this significant new chapter.
Awareness Raising Evening (Edinburgh) - June
Graeme Henderson, CMT area coordinator in Edinburgh & Lothians, has been working very hard at contacting local churches. Combined with contacts made after theCommission 2009, we held an awareness-raising evening on Tuesday 23 June in St Thomas' Scottish Episcopal Church. Fifteen churches had been contacted and on the evening there were representatives from five of them present. A few had replied to express an interest but they could not send anyone on that date. Graeme explained his role and what he was trying to achieve in men's ministry in his own church. Matthew McKinnon then spoke about the vision behind CMT and plans for its expansion. Ross Hutchison, our Projects Manager, outlined the projects which CMT were supporting this year and mentioned how we hoped to raise money through a white-water rafting sponsored event on Saturday 29 August. He also mentioned plans for a fishing competition to be held on 19 September.
Keswick in Buckie - August
Matthew McKinnon, CMT’s Chairman will be there for the whole week and Allan hopes to join him for a part of it. CMT will have a stall at the Ministries Exhibition and may get the opportunities to speak to a number of church leaders and others interested in men's ministry.
Commissioning Service for Scottish Manager - September
There will be invitations coming out next month to attend this event on the evening of Saturday 19 September in Netherauldhouse Evangelical Church on the south side of Glasgow. It will mark the significant step taken by CMT to appoint a full-time worker and an opportunity given to my home church to commend me to this work. I'm delighted that Father Song has been booked to sing and Sandy Roger to speak at the service. The evening will start at 7.30 p.m. and there will be a supper at the end.
Tony Antony visit (February 2010)
A number of folks have been working hard to finalise the itinerary for Tony Antony's visit next year. There are plans to hold evangelism training days on Saturday 20 February (in Glasgow) and Saturday 27 February (in Edinburgh). So far venues have been fixed in Airdrie, Glasgow, Inverness and Ayr. There are ongoing discussions with representatives of churches in four other venues. We hope to have these finalised by early September.
Contacts
A number of other churches have been in touch about CMT coming to speak to them about the work of CMT and several dates are now in the diary for the autumn. If you know of any churches which would like CMT to come along and share with them about the work then please contact Allan Robertson.
Update on white-water rafting event (29 August)
There is still time to sign up for this sponsored event. You can either get six folks together for a raft or get two/three folks to sign up and they'll be put on a raft with others. So far almost fifty folks have indicated that they'll take part but there is room for many more. Don't wait until the end of the summer because that will be too late. Don't delay - sign up today!
May 2 2009
CMT appoints full-time Scottish Manager
We are very pleased to announce that Allan Robertson has been appointed as CMT's first full time Scottish Manager.
Allan is no stranger to the work of CMT and is currently our National Volunteers Co-ordinator. He also co-ordinates the work of CMT in Glasgow's south-side. Over the last few years Allan has successfully brought together men from many different churches, for various events, including twice yearly dinners, which have consistently seen more than one hundred men meeting together. He first became involved in men’s ministry about five years ago in his own church, and then with CMT.
This new post marks an exciting new chapter for CMT. Allan will work closely will our existing area co-ordinators and the CMT Board to develop men’s ministry and increase CMT’s presence across Scotland.
Allan says "I am really excited at the prospect of working for Christian Men Together as their first Scottish Manager. I am looking forward to developing our network across the country and am convinced that God will do great things in Scotland through Christian men if we are prepared to rise to the challenge. I am conscious, however, that mere human effort and organisation is never enough. Please pray, therefore, for me in my new role and pray also that Christian men throughout Scotland will feel God's touch on their lives so that together we will reach out to other men with His love. I really believe that God has plans to bless us and to amaze us in the months ahead."
Allan is married to Mary and has two school-aged daughters. He is a man of many talents, having worked for 30 years in Further Education, latterly as Head of School for Communication, Languages and Social Sciences at Falkirk College. After leaving full-time work, he was until now employed part-time as a Staff Elder in Netherauldhouse Church in the south-side of Glasgow. He also continued working part-time in colleges and as an external verifier for the Scottish Qualifications Authority.
Let's pray for Allan during this time of transition and support him in whatever way we can as he starts this new and challenging chapter in his life.
April 23
CMT launch 2009/2010 fundraising projects
Kick Pitch is an exciting initiative that sees Youth For Christ work in partnership with local Christian Communities. The portable football pitch is ideal to be used as part of an ongoing ministry and engages with young people on the street where they’re at. It creates a great environment for young people to burn off energy and also has a positive impact on the local community.
YFC’s mission statement is ‘taking the good news relevantly to every young person in Britain'. The Kick Pitch is a great resource to build relationships and share faith.
CMT's overseas project this year focuses on UFM Worldwide, an interdenominational mission sending missionaries to places in need around the world. Sue Trenier is helping to educate health workers on the dangers of HIV/AIDS in Papua, Indonesia. Due to a lack of education, there has been a sharp increase of HIV/AIDS infection. Unsafe sexual behaviour, particularly amongst younger people, and a growing sex trade is responsible for over 90% of HIV/AIDS infections in Papua.
To find out more or to get involved, including details of a white water rafting challenge, see the donate page.
April 15
CARE's Evaluate Programme
We have been encouraged to hear from CARE that the recent contribution of £1,000 from CMT is going to be of real benefit for the work of the Evaluate Project in Scotland. They are planning a Scottish Training session for new presenters during the summer, probably in the Inverness area, as there has been a recent surge of interest in this aspect of their work. They are also looking at producing better promotional material to publicise more effectively the availability of Evaluate. We praise the Lord for this move to help more young teenagers in Scotland make wise decisions on major life issues. If you would like to know more, email Bill Baird.
February 28
Need help in organising a Men's Curry and Quiz Night?
If you are interested in holding a Men's Curry and Quiz night with an after dinner speaker but need help with running the quiz, Douglas Kenney and friends from Woodhill Evangelical, Bishopbriggs would be happy to either advise, or to come and conduct the quiz, if suitable arrangements can be made. They have already helped groups at Newmilns and Greenock. They can bring the whole package, questions on PowerPoint, answer sheets, pens, scoreboard, prizes.... Email Douglas.
If you need help with an after dinner speaker check out who others are inviting on the events pages, or email admin@christianmentogether.com for assistance.
February 28
Father's Song Choir looking for new members
If you think you're in good voice, Father's Song are actively looking for new members to sing with them from September onwards and would welcome enquiries. Email Ian Watson.
See January 10 article below for more information on the group.
Father's Song are holding a number of events in March. See Events for more information.
February 18
Recommended reading list published
A list of recommended books highlighted at this year's theCommission event has now been published on the Resources page. Check it out for your equipping and encouragement.
February 10
CMT donate £2,000 to fundraising projects
A gift of £1,000, raised by Christian Men Together for Scotland, has been passed to Mission Aviation Fellowship at their Glasgow Office.
The total was reached through individual gifts at CMT men's dinners and via the website. Netherauldhouse Evangelical Church, Glasgow, men's group also supported the cause with a barbeque.
Graeme Scott, MAF's Manager for Scotland, writes: "This is a wonderful encouragement to us all. Please pass on our sincere thanks to everyone involved ... your kindness will act as the seed fund for the proposed borehole at the compound in Juba and will go a long way to ensuring that that the people in that difficult part of the world receive fresh water".
A further gift of £1,000 has been passed to Care for Scotland for their 'Evaluate Project.'
This project has been established to help teenagers in Scottish schools make positive choices about their lives and lifestyles.
Bill Baird, Manager for Care for Scotland, writes: "We are so grateful to all the men who, in a variety of ways, have worked to collect this magnificent sum. Thank you to all at Christian Men Together for your support and encouragement."
Let's pray that our teenagers in Scotland will make wise choices as a result of this project.
January 27
theCommission - sold out
Stuart Townend evening event still available
We are delighted, yet saddened, to announce that theCommission 2009 event has now sold out. Delighted as we’ll be joining with 500 men across Scotland for an excellent day of praise and teaching. Saddened as we know not everyone will have managed to get tickets in time and so will be unable to attend.
For those unable to attend, be encouraged that the separate evening event with Stuart Townend still has tickets available priced at £10. The evening event takes place in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, 7.30pm - 9.30pm and is open to both men and women of all ages.
CDs from theCommission 2009 event along with previous years will be available as usual from theCommission online shop.
For those who managed to get tickets for theCommission 2009 in time, registration opens 9.30am sharp.
January 26
Update from the Rendille
Back in August, we announced that we had successfully raised £3000 for a new motorcycle for work amongst the Rendille tribe in Northern Kenya. Nick Swanepoel, who leads the AIM project there has now sent us a picture of the new motorcycle and Jeremiah Intiimo, the man who will use it. Jeremiah is the local Chief and a committed Christian.
You can read more (Word) about this remarkable man and his travels through wild and dangerous places, sharing the love of Christ in word and deed. Lets pray for him and the Christians living in the desert of Northern Kenya.
January 10 2009
Father's Song affiliates with Christian Men Together for Scotland
Father's Song is a vocal band of Christian men who have been singing together in venues around Glasgow for more than two years now. Their increasing popularity meant for a busy schedule of singing engagements in the lead-up to Christmas and New Year which some of you may have heard and undoubtedly found uplifting and inspiring. Their growing repertoire of songs shared in recent engagements demonstrates the commitment and hard work of the members towards excellence.
There are just over thirty men in the group, drawn from a number of different churches in the Glasgow and Lanarkshire areas, and most of the engagements Father's Song undertake give them opportunities to share what God has been doing in their personal lives. CMT are encouraged to see so many young men in the group.
Father's Song in many ways encapsulates what Christian Men Together for Scotland is all about. This ministry encourages men in their faith and walk with God, and provides openings for them to share their faith with others. It would be good to see other men's singing groups springing up around the country.
Father's Song now promotes Christian Men Together for Scotland at their engagements, and we are grateful for their partnership in sharing the good news of Jesus in Scotland.
Please pray for Father's Song and in particular Ian Watson and Clifford Haxton who lead this band of Christian singing men!
December 22 2008
Wise Men still seek Jesus
Matthew McKinnon, Chairman for Christian Men Together, pens his Christmas Message: Wise Men still seek Jesus (Word)
From all at CMT, may you have a very merry Christmas and know the Lord's joy and peace.
October 14
Sharing the Vision
Saturday saw men from across Scotland gather for CMT’s annual ’Sharing the Vision’ day: a day of encouragement and equipping.
The CMT team shared their view of how 2009 would shape up with many exciting developments and opportunities in store.
Updates were shared describing activities taking place in men’s groups around the country: many to rejoice in and give thanks, other areas requiring support and encouragement.
The afternoon saw Brian Lowrie of MAD Ministries (Making a Difference in Scotland) share in a powerful and challenging evangelism training seminar.
If you were unable to attend and would like to know more, please get in touch with Matthew McKinnon.
October 11
New website live
We are delighted at long last to unveil the new CMT website.
Aside from the obvious visual makeover, it is hoped that users will benefit from clearer information, easier navigation and news from around the country. Discover how to get involved with our fundraising projects, post prayer requests and find all the contact details you could need.
We are particularly keen to grow our online resources section. We start small but over the coming months, we plan to expand with more helpful online tools, good book reviews, downloadable bible studies and small group material, plus listen to our pick of some of the web’s great online sermons.
But we're keen to hear what you think. Drop the webmaster an email with your thoughts on our site, good or bad. webmaster@christianmentogether.com.
August 28
£3,000 raised in Kenyan motorcycle appeal
Good News! We have reached our £3,000 target to enable the purchase of a new mission motorcycle for the Christian Rendille Chief who serves the Rendille Tribe in Northern Kenya.
The bikes are used daily in very difficult terrain and have become a lifeline for getting around the area effectively.
We are grateful in particular to Greenview Evangelical Men's group, Glasgow for all their enthusiasm and hard work.
We still need your support for the other two projects - Mission Aviation Fellowship’s well in Sudan, and CARE for Scotland’s ’Evaluate’ programme. Can your group help?
Ross Hutchison, Projects Manager, will be glad to give you support on this. See the Donate page for full info.
August 12 2008
CMT Team expands
We’re delighted to announce Graeme Henderson as our new Area Co-ordinator in Edinburgh. Graeme is from Kirkliston and has a real passion for work amongst men.
Meanwhile Ross Hutchison is our new projects manager and Graham Steven joins as our new Web Manager.
It’s good to have these three young men, with a heart for seeing men in Scotland become disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ, joining our team. Please pray for them as they take on their new responsibilities.