The Filling Stations are a network of meetings across the country which meet in places like village halls and cafés. When Andy went to the North East Fife Filling Station, it was one of their first in –person meetings for a while. First, Covid had prevented them meeting, and then a lot of people had decided that they’d still rather meet online in the cold Winter months and delay their proper re-opening until the Spring! So Andy went to the village of Letham in Fife, to speak at the Village Hall to the 40 or so people who gathered there. The NE Fife Filling Station is led by Charles and Sarah Warren. Charles is well-known to a lot of people as he is Senior Lecturer in Geography at St Andrews University, where he specialises in Environmental Management and Sustainable Development.
Charles describes the Fillins Station as “A network of meetings across the UK and overseas which exist to support and encourage local Christians in their faith. They are aimed especially at those who do not have regular access to worship, teaching and prayer ministry – but all are welcome!”
Andy has known Charles for many years, as they met at the ‘Refuel’ festival in the North of Scotland. During lockdown, Charles read Andy’s book, “Do Christians and Muslims Worship the Same God?” and invited Andy to speak about that at the Filling Station.
Andy spoke about one particular key aspect of the book – that is ‘the character of God’. He looked at the way that God is relational, knowable, love and suffered with us in Christ. That obviously is in direct contrast with the Islamic vision of Allah, which rejects all four of those things. So Andy explored those differences and how Christians should respond to them.
As usual in meetings where Andy speaks, there was plenty of time for Q&A. He said, “Although this was ostensibly a meeting for Christians, a few of the questions came from people who were agnostic, or seeking, as they had a definite ‘bite’ to them!” Inevitably, these were the questions that he enjoyed engaging with the most!
Charles Warren added, “After some lively praise and worship, Andy gave a typically clear and engaging talk on the question ‘Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God?’, drawing on his recent book. This led into an extended Q&A session with wide-ranging questions, all of which Andy handled superbly. It was a fascinating, encouraging and faith-building evening.”
