About Us

Grace Church Orkney is an independent evangelical church.

We began meeting for nearly two years informally in home settings before coming together formally for public services in the old Stromness Gospel Hall in November 2018.

We love God and want to make His name known throughout the world, starting in Stromness!

Meet our Staff & Leadership

Get to know the individuals who are passionate about serving our church and community.

Mez McConnell

Pastor

Mervyn Sandison

Elder

Tony Wilkinson

Elder

Gavin Scott

Treasurer

Miriam McConnell

Women’s Ministry

Andrew Huffmier

Pastoral Assistant

Silas Dowdy

Children’s Worker

Matt Kuhlmann

Gospel Worker

Celia Kuhlmann

Gospel Worker

Jason Cruickshank

Intern

What We Believe

1. God

There is one God, who exists eternally in three distinct but equal persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. God is unchangeable in his holiness, justice, wisdom and love. He is the almighty Creator; Saviour and Judge who sustains and governs all things according to his sovereign will for his own glory.

2. The Bible

3. The Human Race

All men and women, being created in the image of God, have inherent and equal dignity and worth. Their greatest purpose is to obey, worship and love God. As a result of the fall of our first parents, every aspect of human nature has been corrupted and all men and women are without spiritual life, guilty sinners and hostile to God. Every person is therefore under the just condemnation of God and needs to be born again, forgiven and reconciled to God in order to know and please him.

4. The Lord Jesus Christ

The Lord Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, and lived a sinless life in obedience to the Father. He taught with authority and all his words are true. On the cross he died in the place of sinners, bearing God’s punishment for their sin, redeeming them by his blood. He rose from the dead and in his resurrection body ascended into heaven where he is exalted as Lord of all. He intercedes for his people in the presence of the Father.

5. Salvation

6. The Holy Spirit

7. The Church

The universal Church is the body of which Christ is the head and to which all who are saved belong. It is made visible in local churches, which are congregations of believers who are committed to each other for the worship of God, the preaching of the Word, the administering of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper; for pastoral care and discipline, and for evangelism. The unity of the body of Christ is expressed within and between churches by mutual love, care and encouragement. True fellowship between churches exists only where they are faithful to the gospel.

8. Baptism and the Lord’s Supper

9. The Future

Our Vision

To seek strength for believers and salvation for unbelievers to the glory of God in all of Orkney.

We will do this by preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the power of the Spirit and praying earnestly and relentlessly that God will advance the Gospel here.

We confess our need to seek God with vigour and expectation. His power is made perfect in our weakness. His power to change people is infinite.

We pray that God would transform the Islands starting with us. We pray for personal holiness and a congregational commitment to loving others and speaking the truth in love.

We know that the harvest is plentiful but the labourers are few. We pray for more gospel labourers to be sent out into God’s harvest field and for the fruit of saved souls for those who already labour.

We will seek to be a church that plants other churches around Orkney. To this end we will partner with other like-minded churches in Orkney and beyond.

We will pray daily for these matters.