40 Days Blog - Paul's Letters From Prison

Welcome to our ‘40 Days of Prayer’ for 2026

In the last two years we have read through Mark’s Gospel, a short and punchy account of the life of Jesus and also Luke’s detailed record of the fledgling Church in the book of Acts. We have seen Jesus reveal himself as God’s Son and our Saviour, and followed the early Christians as they proclaimed this Gospel in Judea and onwards through the Roman Empire. (The readings and daily blog for 2024 and 2025 Days of Prayer, are still available on the Church website). This year we pick up the continuing effect and personal impact of this Gospel. We will explore how it affects our way of life, our thinking and our relationship with others.

Paul's Letters From Prison - An Introduction

We are taking a look at Paul’s writings while he was a prisoner. We know that Paul was imprisoned for at least four years. Following his arrest in Jerusalem he spent two years in Caesarea while awaiting a legal hearing and then transportation to Rome. He finally completed his journey to Rome under guard only to be held under house arrest for a further two years. Here, however, he was able to preach to any who came to his quarters “boldly and without hindrance” (see Acts 28).

The books of Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Philemon are held to be those written from his captivity, most likely when in Rome. During imprisonment Paul had time to think, pray and write. He made good use of his time. But there is an urgency about his writing. He needs to get across some of the profoundest truths about God. He needs to correct wrong thinking. He needs to encourage. He needs to explain. He needs to do it knowing that his own future and safety remain uncertain.

Paul already had close personal links with the churches in Ephesus and Philippi.

He had been the unintentional trigger for a riot in Ephesus when he preached about Jesus. Certainly, the Ephesian church was always close to his heart. We read in Acts 20 of how he wept with their elders on his last journey to Jerusalem.

In Philippi he had been beaten and imprisoned after healing a possessed girl - only to be miraculously freed in an earthquake. Still, a church was established.

We have no account of Paul ever visiting Colossae but he was clearly very tenderly disposed towards them. He writes:

"We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people…" Colossians 1:3-4

Paul gives solid practical advice to this group about the way they should behave in their society. His words echo down the years to us as relevant and challenging as ever. How wholehearted are we really about living for Christ and witnessing for Him in our world today?

Philemon is a personal letter to an acquaintance of Paul pleading for a fair reconciliation with an estranged slave. Here Paul addresses some of the practicalities of being a Christian in an imperfect society.

We should approach these writings with a sensitivity to the impact the Gospel has on our way of thinking and living.

As we consider Paul’s priorities, emotions and the opportunities he had while in prison, we will also reflect and pray for those who suffer captivity for their faith in the Lord today.

This year we have six different ‘voices’ writing the blog and six different readers from the congregation reading it for you should you wish to listen in. There will be six weeks of six readings with no specific reading on the Sundays. We hope that we can take the Sundays to look back (or catch up) on the week’s reading, and also meditate and pray about what these have said to us.

Enjoy!

During the 40 Days, we’ll be offering a number of opportunities for people to come together and reflect on these readings. Avendale & Drumclog Home Study Groups will be meeting on Wednesdays and Thursdays to discuss the readings and you would be welcome to join these. Please check out ‘In The Loop’ or the ‘What’s On’ website tab for dates and locations. You can also get in touch via the website Contact Us page.

We also encourage 40 Days readers to make their own arrangements to discuss their thoughts and reflections. We’re calling these Share Shapes- here’s a few suggestions below but feel free to make your own Shape to share coffee & biscuits, friendship and fellowship as you reflect on Paul’s Prison Letters.

Share Lines- Two people

Share Triangles -Three people

Share Squares- Four people

Let’s get started!

Hello and welcome to our church. If you are a new visitor, we have a page for you to get to know us and learn more about planning a visit.
Click here to see more.

Visitors click here.

Planning your Visit

A Warm Hello

The following information is specifically for those planning a visit, so that you know, beforehand, what to expect on a Sunday morning.

Where and When

The church meets every Sunday at 9.30am at Drumclog and 11am at Avendale.

Sunday worship continues to be live-streamed from Avendale each Sunday at 11am on the Avendale & Drumclog YouTube Channel.

At Drumclog we meet at:
Drumclog Memorial Kirk
Drumclog
South Lanarkshire
ML10 6QG

At Avendale we meet at:
Avendale Old Parish Church
59A Kirk Street
Strathaven
South Lanarkshire
ML10 6LB

For your first visit, we recommend arriving 10-15 minutes early to ensure you get a parking space and find somewhere to sit before the service begins. When you arrive, you should be greeted by someone on our Welcome Team.

Accessibility: There is wheelchair access, and a sound loop for anyone who needs it at both Avendale & Drumclog. Please let one of the Welcome Team know on your arrival and they will help you to get set up and show you where the disabled toilet is located if required.

Our Service - Drumclog Memorial Kirk

Drumclog

At Drumclog, the service begins at 9.30am with a warm welcome from our Minister, or the person leading the service. During the service we usually sing 2 or 3 songs/hymns. The Minister or a member of the Worship Team will usually read aloud from the Bible and lead the congregation in prayer. This might seem strange the first time you hear it but it’s all part of our connecting with God. The Minister, or person leading the service, will then give a sermon that is Bible based and that we can apply to our everyday life. We then share news and notices, usually about what’s going on in the life of the church.

The service lasts approximately 45 minutes. Sometimes there is an opportunity to receive prayer at the end of the service. After the service we serve refreshments (tea, coffee and biscuits) in our church hall. This is a great way to meet people and enjoy fellowship together. We would love to chat to you there!

Our Service - Avendale Old Parish Church

Avendale Wide

At Avendale, the service begins at 11am with a warm welcome from our Minister, or the person leading the service. Before the service begins, we will show a loop of news and notices on the screens in the church. This is a good way to find out what's going on in the life of the church. During the service we usually sing 3 or 4 songs/hymns, often led by our church praise band 'The Elastic Band'. The Minister or a member of the Worship Team will usually read aloud from the Bible and lead the congregation in prayer. This might seem strange the first time you hear it but it's all part of our connecting with God. The Minister, or person leading the service, will then give a sermon that is Bible based and that we can apply to our everyday life. Throughout the service, we may also show videos on the screens in the church to help us reflect on what is being shared during worship or in the sermon. We then share news and notices, usually about what's going on in the life of the church.

The service last approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes. After the service we serve refreshments (tea, coffee and biscuits) in our church hall. This is a great way to meet people and enjoy fellowship together. We would love to chat to you there!

images: Services

What about my kids?

At Avendale, we have a great programme lined up for kids of all ages:

Creche (0 months to 4 years). Children under 6 months are welcome but must be accompanied by their parent/carer at all times.
His Kids (5-10 years)
Yoof (11-18 years)

Children stay with their parent or carer at the start of the service for the welcome, songs and short Children's Talk. We really value worshipping God all together as a family. At the end of the Children's Talk, someone will announce that it’s time for the younger members to go to their various groups. You will need to go with your children to their groups and register them as part of our child safety policy the first time you come along to church.

The kids group activities vary depending on the age but usually there is a friendly welcome, Bible stories, testimonies, praying, music, craft, drama, fun games and free play. Please pick your children up as soon as the service finishes.

For more information about what happens in the children's and youth work please visit the Children's Ministry page and/or the Youth Ministry page.

N.B. - there is no children's programme or youth programme during the service at Drumclog.

Getting Connected

Home Groups

While Sundays are a great way to meet new people, it is often in smaller gatherings that you can really get to know someone. Being part of one of our Home Groups allows you to make new friends, share together and support each other. We have a variety of groups that meet throughout the week, some afternoons and some evenings. Check out our Home Groups page and see if there’s one that you could join, or we can put you in touch with a Home Group leader who will be more than happy to invite you along to their group. If you would like us to put you in touch with a Home Group leader, please let us know via our Contact Us page.

Serving and Volunteering

If you want to get involved in the life of the church and help us make Sundays run smoothly, you can sign up to serve on a team here.

Other Ministries

We also run the following ministries:

Other Groups in the Avendale & Drumclog Community

The following groups are also part of the life of our church:

Get in touch with us to plan your visit

If you would like to come and visit the church beforehand you are more than welcome! Get in touch and we can arrange a time that suits you.

Name:

Telephone:

Email Address:
Comments / Questions or anything you would like to say?

Next, we will contact you by email to say hello and help arrange anything necessary for your visit.

Leadership


Rev Calum Stark - Minister		David Moreland - Session Clerk

To find out more about our staff and leaders, please visit our Staff & Leadership page.
We hope that whoever you are, you will feel at home at our church.

Best Wishes

Calum Stark - Minister