Mission
Our congregation, Portree Parish Church, is being challenged through teaching from the Bible to reach out and show the love of God to those in need.
Both the Old and New Testaments emphasise that we worship a God of love, and we are encouraged to show compassion and kindness, especially towards those who are in most need.
Jesus makes it clear that those who believe in Him are expected to act as He did by feeding the hungry and thirsty, helping the sick, and providing shelter and support for people who need it.
How can we do this here in Portree?
Daily we see reports of great need in many places throughout our world, including in our own country, and the extent of poverty and distress can seem overwhelming.
Jesus does not expect or require us all to do great things in response to these huge challenges.
On the contrary, He encourages us to do what we can, making it clear that exercising the smallest amount of faith, even as little as a tiny grain of mustard seed, can achieve more that we might imagine (Matthew 17v20).
On this page we’ll be posting information about some of the initiatives that members of our congregation are involved in, with details of how anyone who is interested can contribute or participate.
Compassion UK
Compassion UK is a Christian charity based on child sponsorship which is Christ centred, Church driven and Child focused.
It works through sponsorship of individual children that enables them to join a programme run in partnership with a local church.
The charity started in 1952 and now has 16 fundraising offices globally, including one in the UK.
It works In 29 countries with children living in poverty.
Sponsorship of individual children gives them access to a programme providing nutritious food, access to education, health checks and support from the local church.
This not only benefits the child but also the child’s family, and can even result in bringing resources into the local community such as a well for fresh water.
Sponsors have regular contact with their sponsored child through letters, assuring them of their prayers and encouraging them.
This helps to build the child’s self-confidence and affirm their worth in Christ.
The emphasis on raising the child’s self esteem and aspirations is a key feature of Compassion’s work and videos on the website emphasise how much it means to a child to have contact with a sponsor from another country who can help them access support, education and healthcare that they otherwise would not have.
The Community Foodbank
Skye and Lochalsh
The Community Foodbank – Skye and Lochalsh is an independent voluntary organisation. The demand for food has increased over the years. We are run entirely by volunteers with each having a specific part to play.
Food is collected from several drop-off points in Skye and stored in a local church. We have collection points in Uig, Waternish, Staffin, our local Co-operative, and the health food shop in Portree. We collect food donations from local churches and other points in more outlying communities.
A prayer for Lebanon and the Middle East
The Moderator, Rt Rev Dr Shaw Paterson, writes with news from leaders of churches in Lebanon, about the impact of the current crisis in the Middle East on people living there. The Church of Scotland partners with the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon (NESSL). Please remember the situation in your prayers and you […]
Community Foodbank Skye & Lochalsh Update September 2024
We have these words in Revelation 7 verse 16, “Never again will they hunger, never again will they thirst”. We look forward to a future where God’s original vision is restored in new creation – when hunger and thirst are no longer part of our broken world but where everyone’s needs are met in God’s […]
Soup and Pudding Lunch Sunday 8 September 2024
Portree Parish Church Sunday School is starting with sponsoring a child so they can write to the child, sharing information about their daily lives and getting to know about the child’s life, family and community. Our child is a 10 year old boy called Illiassa, from Burkina Faso in West Africa. More information about Compassion, […]
BLYTHSWOOD CARE
Information about the 2024 Shoebox appeal can be found on this link: https://blythswood.org/shoeboxappeal/