Cultivating something precious for the kingdom takes time and patience—but it's worth it!

Olger Morales shares his testimony of how he came to work in OM full-time after participating in numerous short-term outreaches.

As far as viral beauty trends go there’s no denying that the use of charcoal-based products is still going strong from face masks and sponges to teeth whitening powders.

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE

Prudence Wade chats to self-confessed 'skincare junkie' Dominic Skinner, one of MAC's top make-up artists.

Give your skin a tasty treat and cook up your own beauty recipes, says Sandra Dick

NICOLA Sturgeon hopes to reopen IVF clinics “as quickly as possible” to stop the closure having a “devastating” impact on families’ lives during the pandemic.

THE people of Scotland have been offered a “light at the end of the tunnel” in the form of various potential relaxations to lockdown - but warned they will only get there if they double down on their compliance.

Italy has become the first European Union country to record more than 30,000 coronavirus deaths.

The nutritional and immunologic properties of human milk, along with clear evidence of dose-dependent optimal health outcomes for both mothers and infants, provide a compelling rationale to support exclusive breastfeeding. US women increasingly intend to breastfeed exclusively for 6 months. Because establishing lactation can be challenging, exclusivity is often compromised in hopes of preventing feeding-related neonatal complications, potentially affecting the continuation and duration of breastfeeding. Risk factors for impaired lactogenesis are identifiable and common. Clinicians must be able to recognize normative patterns of exclusive breastfeeding in the first week while proactively identifying potential challenges. In this review, we provide new evidence from the past 10 years on the following topics relevant to exclusive breastfeeding: milk production and transfer, neonatal weight and output assessment, management of glucose and bilirubin, immune development and the microbiome, supplementation, and health system factors. We focus on the early days of exclusive breastfeeding in healthy newborns ≥35 weeks’ gestation managed in the routine postpartum unit. With this evidence-based clinical review, we provide detailed guidance in identifying medical indications for early supplementation and can inform best practices for both birthing facilities and providers.

The flow of homes coming on to the UK market is at its weakest level in three years as "endless wrangling about Brexit" continues, according to surveyors.

THE limit for in-store card transactions by contactless-enabled cards is to increase soon.

THAT potato paratha then, being freshly made as I stand by idly at the counter, spring rain pouring from those raised shutters above and streaming onto open decking right behind. It would be miserable waiting for it out here were it not for the following.

Soda bread is a quick and simple treat to make. I think most of you will have all of these ingredients in your cupboards right now. Soda bread is traditionally made with bicarbonate soda instead of yeast. Here I have added honey and oats for a slight flavour difference.

"In order to fulfil our mandate, there are several needs we must invest in," says Stephan Bauer.

OM is known for action, not reflection; for pioneering, not reminiscing. Still, we are wise to celebrate milestones and learn from our past, whatever will serve us well for today and tomorrow.

"Indeed, the Christ-like patience which the church fathers extolled is much deeper than waiting quietly for a bus," says Arley. "Rather, it is a sacrificial and enduring compassion for others, which our Lord embodied in His life and ultimately on the cross."

According to Stephan Bauer, short-term mission teams are "less a problem to be solved, but more a tension to be managed, and the aim should be for STTs to have a credible impact on the ministry and be effective in mobilising long-term workers."

Inspired by the Good Shepherd who leaves the flock to look for the one, workers publish the Truth in Nivkh dialects though the people group is small.

Small outreach teams will share the life-changing message of the gospel with hundreds of women in brothels and on the street this Easter.

On the potholed drive home from the pub the other night, a creature ran into the beam of our lights. Long, low and lean, for a moment it looked like an otter. One has occasionally been sighted in our village, though like Loch Ness’s fabled monster this is a source of some dispute. But in another second it was clear that this beast was not from the riverbank but the woods.

I dimly remember a time when the subject of keeping a house warm would have left me cold. In a previous existence, my brother-in law would visit in the depths of winter and complain about how chilly the place was. The problem was not our thermostat, however, but that he chose to sit in a bay window overlooking the Firth of Forth, through which the wind would find him in his short-sleeved shirt.

A young American dressed for the hills wandered past our cottage last week with the air of someone lost. Alan who, since we moved here, has found his calling as a human Google map, asked if she was looking for something. “Yeah,” she said, “a Diet Coke.” He told her that, despite our community’s many attractions, a shop wasn’t one of them. Pointing her in the other direction, towards a village two miles away, he said she’d find what she needed there.

Are you frightened of your garden? Terrified of killing your plants and overwhelmed by the sheer choice of species?

Location: Littleferry, Sutherland

HOLIDAYS may be temporarily on hold, but planning magical trips is still possible. Spontaneity shapes thrilling travel escapades, but there's also a case for careful, methodical planning. Often, the preparation – deciding on a route, reading up about a destination – can be just as enjoyable as the trip itself.

Mercy Teams International and a local church in Phnom Penh bring an Easter celebration to parents and children living in the slum.

Mercy Teams International (MTI) strives to see local workers in each ministry field trained and equipped as leaders. MTI Cambodia is one example.

AN ENERGY-HARNESSING wave machine is set to begin sea trials later this year.

NEATEBOX, the Scottish technology firm which specialises in improving accessibility for people with disabilities, has been accepted into an accelerator programme run by Royal Bank of Scotland.

A BIOTECH veteran has hailed a Glasgow firm that claims to have discovered two separate potential treatments for Covid-19 patients for use before they are put on ventilators.

A 53-year-old man has been arrested in connection with smuggling firearms into the country.

Police have charged a man after a spate of poisonings killed birds of prey over a two-year period.

Scotland's crime levels have dropped by around 25% since lockdown measures were introduced.

PRISON governors have been handed the power to veto prisoners they have concerns over being released early - as plans are pushed forward for up to 450 prisoners to be freed to allow inmates to socially distance in cells.

St Kilda

Clachan Bridge

YESTERDAY would have been your birthday. January 24. Six months older than me for six months, I’d remind you. Normally I would have spent the weeks between Christmas and now trying to think of something original to buy you. And then, at the last moment, I’d just buy you another book.

It was an evening that began like any other night shift. Firefighters handed over at 6pm to start what they thought would have been a fairly routine night.

IT was a sombre appraisal, but the sense of relief was self-evident. “The war in Europe has ended at the last more suddenly than we sometimes dared to hope”, began the Glasgow Herald’s leading article on the morning of Tuesday, May 8, 1945.

IT was on board a supply ship which had docked in the port of Marseille that Barney Roberts learned the news that the war was over.

WHETHER through shrewd planning, good fortune or a bit of both, Edinburgh managed to complete the bulk of their business for next season before rugby came grinding to a halt. When precisely play resumes is, of course, unknown and out of their control, but they are at least confident that they will be in good shape to hit the ground running.

DAVE Rennie believes that Leinster deserve to be awarded the PRO14 title, and is convinced that such a solution would be better for player welfare and the integrity of the competition than dragging this season on into late summer or autumn.

British Olympic Association chairman Sir Hugh Robertson has been selected to lead an independent governance review of World Rugby.

THE SRU would be “very happy” to host the Scottish Cup semi-final between Heart of Midlothian and Hibernian at BT Murrayfield, the governing body’s Chief Operating Officer revealed yesterday.

A SCOTTISH clean energy company has secured a key part in a six-figure contract for a hydrogen fuel project in Northern Ireland.

It is a tiny spit of land that lies in the Firth of Clyde two miles off the coast of Troon where colonies of seabirds have made their homes for centuries.

Celtic Connections

Celtic Connections

THE Celtic Connections music festival last night lifted the curtain on next year’s line up – and revealed it will be kicking off the 700th celebrations of the Declaration of Arbroath.