Greetings,
    The GA of the Church of Scotland concluded this
evening with the customary worship, recognitions, speeches and
ritual.  The closing worship included remembering the clergy who
have gone to be with the Lord this year.  In one of my favorite
moments, and one I found very moving, the assembly sang “How can I keep
from Singing” in the form that used the five verses and the
chorus.  The first four verses were sung beautifully by the female
soloist with the assembly joining on the chorus and the last
verse.  I set aside my work briefly and cranked the volumn on the
webcast.

    Following the speeches by the moderator and the lord
high commissioner the GA was dissolved to convene again in a year with
a blessing the moderator has used regularly throughout the assembly:

Love the Lord and serve the people
Serve the Lord and love the people

PS.  There is something ironic or coincidental that as I type this
the correct question for an answer on Jeopardy is “Who is John
Knox?”  I do believe that God has a sense of humor.