Surge in support for independence sparks 'great deal of concern' in Buckingham Palace amid fears over Queen's role in a separate Scotland Daily Mail

  Palace aides concerned the monarch will face a constitutional crisis after poll

  Queen may appoint an Australian-style 'governor general' to rule in her name

  Experts fear independence could throw up divided loyalties for the Queen 

  In 1977 the Queen said: 'I was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom'

The growing prospect of Scotland voting to leave the United Kingdom has sparked a ‘great deal of concern’ in Buckingham Palace, sources close to the Queen have revealed.

Senior palace aides are increasingly concerned that the Queen will be thrown into the centre of a constitutional crisis in the event of a ‘Yes’ vote on September 18.

Experts have suggested she may be forced to appoint an Australian-style ‘governor general’ to rule in her name.

Prime Minister David Cameron is in Balmoral, Aberdeenshire, with the Queen today and is expected to hold talks over the crisis. Mr Cameron has travelled alone without his wife Samantha.

The Queen has not intervened in the debate on independence, but has previously publicly praised the union.

In a speech she gave to MPs on her Silver Jubilee in 1977 she said: ‘I number kings and queens of England and of Scotland, and princes of Wales among my ancestors and so I can readily understand these aspirations.

‘But I cannot forget that I was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

‘Perhaps this jubilee is a time to remind ourselves of the benefits which union has conferred, at home and in our international dealings, on the inhabitants of all parts of this United Kingdom.’

Constitutional experts fear independence could throw up divided loyalties for the Queen if there was a clash between Scotland and the rump-UK in the future.

Read more here:

Words for the Wise, Psalm 122 The Voice (VOICE)

Psalm 122

A song [of David]^[a] for those journeying to worship.

 

This is a Davidic psalm celebrating the grandeur and significance of Jerusalem and its temple. It is ironic that Jerusalem means “city of peace” since more battles have been fought over it than over any other city.

¹ I was so happy when my fellow pilgrims said,
    “Let’s go to the house of the Eternal!”
² We have made the journey, and now we are standing
    within your gates, O Jerusalem.

³ Jerusalem! What a magnificent city!
    Buildings so close together, so compact.
⁴ God’s people belong here. Every tribe of the Eternal
    makes its way to Jerusalem—
Just as God decreed for Israel
    to come together and give thanks to the Eternal.
⁵ In Jerusalem, justice is the order of the day because there sit the judges
    and kings, the descendants of David.

⁶ Ask heaven to grant peace to Jerusalem:
    “May those who love you prosper.
⁷ O Jerusalem, may His peace fill this entire city!
    May this citadel be quiet and at ease!”
⁸ It’s because of people—my family, friends, and acquaintances—
    that I say, “May peace permeate you.”
⁹ And because the house of Eternal One, our God, is here, know this:
    I will always seek your good!

Matthew Henry's Commentary

Chapter 122

This psalm seems to have been penned by David for the use of the people of Israel, when they came up to Jerusalem to worship at the three solemn feasts. It was in David’s time that Jerusalem was first chosen to be the city where God would record his name. It being a new thing, this, among other means, was used to bring the people to be in love with Jerusalem, as the holy city, though it was but the other day in the hands of the Jebusites. Observe, I. The joy with which they were to go up to Jerusalem, Ps. 122:1, 2. II. The great esteem they were to have of Jerusalem, Ps. 122:3-5. III. The great concern they were to have for Jerusalem, and the prayers they were to put up for its welfare, Ps. 122:6-9. In singing this psalm we must have an eye to the gospel church, which is called the “Jerusalem that is from above.”

The Bible Panorama

Psalm 122

V 1–2: GLAD TO GO David is glad to go to the temple in Jerusalem to praise God.

 V 3–5: TESTIMONY OF TRIBES The tribes of Israel go there to thank the Lord, who Himself is the ‘Testimony of Israel’. 

V 6–9: PRAY FOR PEACE David urges that prayer for the peace of Jerusalem be made.

Brian Wilson: Border costs post-independence, The Scotsman

SCOTTISH INDEPENDENCE: Sending a letter is just one of the many things a border will make a great deal more expensive, writes Brian Wilson

It’s an old trick to ask if a politician knows the price of a pint of milk. I tried a variation of the same theme this week while debating with a luminary of Scottish nationalism.

A questioner asked about postal charges between Scotland and England in the event of independence. As usual, the Nat response was that life would go on as before. I asked if he knew what it costs to post a letter from the UK to the Republic of Ireland, even just a few hundred yards between north and south.

He didn’t, which seemed as careless as not knowing the price of a pint of milk. The answer is that, because Ireland is treated by Royal Mail as an international destination (as Scotland would become), the cost of postage is between twice and four times greater than the cost of a first-class stamp, for delivery within five days.

Consider the plea of a local politician in County Tyrone who paid £2.38 for a stamp that would have cost, at most, 62p if the letter had stayed within the UK. “It’s crazy,” she complained. “It is very expensive and nobody can understand it”. To which one might reasonably have replied: “It’s the border, stupid”.

In more rational times, quadrupled postal charges would represent quite an important issue and also an illustration of an under-stated truth – that borders are indeed very expensive and the costs are paid in money and jobs. I am not naïve enough to expect this to concern Nationalists but those who would be forced to pay their price might take note.

Read more here:

Oswald Chambers, My Uttermost for His Highest

The Far-Reaching Rivers of Life

He who believes in Me . . . out of his heart will flow rivers of living water —John 7:38

A river reaches places which its source never knows. And Jesus said that, if we have received His fullness, “rivers of living water” will flow out of us, reaching in blessing even “to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8) regardless of how small the visible effects of our lives may appear to be. We have nothing to do with the outflow— “This is the work of God, that you believe. . .” (John 6:29). God rarely allows a person to see how great a blessing he is to others.

Read more here:

 John 7:38-40 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From [a]his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” 39 But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Acts 1:8 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

John 6:26-30 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Words to the People

26 Jesus answered them and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27 Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal.” 28 Therefore they said to Him, “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” 30 So they said to Him, “What then do You do for a sign, so that we may see, and believe You? What work do You perform?

Gordon Brown vows to lead Scottish campaign to win more powers for Edinburgh if voters reject independence. Daily Mail

Gordon Brown today vowed to lead the campaign for more powers for Scotland if it rejects independence in this month’s referendum.

The former prime minister, signalling his return to front line politics, said he
would push for further devolution within weeks of the September 18 vote.

Mr Brown is among senior Labour figures being deployed in a final push by the party to prevent its supporters being won over by the Scottish National Party.

With polls suggesting a late swing towards the Yes camp, Mr Brown urged voters not to ‘abandon’ the huge value to Scotland of pooling resources with the rest of the UK in areas such as pensions and healthcare.

He told an audience of activists and politicians at Westminster that he had asked Speaker John Bercow to allow him to lead a debate when the Commons resumes business in October to galvanise cross-party support for reforms.

A pledge of extra tax and legal powers for Holyrood in the event of a rejection of independence in the popular vote has been signed by the leaders of all three main Westminster parties.

Read more here:

Canada can show David Cameron how to rescue our United Kingdom. Daily Telegraph

Almost 20 years ago, Britain looked on in amazement as it seemed that Canada was about to come apart. Just two weeks before the Quebec referendum, the “no” opinion poll lead had collapsed from 20 points to just 4 points and momentum lay with the mainly French-speaking separatists. Canada’s prime minister, Jean Chrétien, who had kept a low profile given his unpopularity with the Québécois, decided he had no choice but to intervene.

The overdue panic saved the country – just. The “yes” vote was 49.4 per cent.

Now, it is Britain’s turn to be two weeks from a referendum and Canada’s turn to be aghast. Earlier this week, I met Stephen Harper, its current prime minister, who seemed unable to believe that things had come this far. Canada’s struggle involved a French-speaking province with a different religion and history from the rest of the country. But where is Britain’s cultural chasm? “Canada is a country of many, many cultures,” Harper told me, but “the idea of separating English people from Scottish people in Canada is almost inconceivable.”

From abroad, the idea of Scots being so separate from the English as to necessitate the partition of the country must seem absurd. We have the same culture, the same two main languages (English and Polish) and the same world view. If anything, England should have the bigger gripe. A century ago, The Spectator was bemoaning the influence of Scots in London (a problem that persists) but this underscored an important point. The British state is not something foreign, but something Scotland helps to mould. Our country, its achievements and the world wars won together ought to have left something indivisible.

Read more here:

Oswald Chambers, My Uttermost for His Highest

Watching With Jesus

Stay here and watch with Me —Matthew 26:38

Watch with Me.” Jesus was saying, in effect, “Watch with no private point of view at all, but watch solely and entirely with Me.” In the early stages of our Christian life, we do not watch with Jesus, we watch for Him. We do not watch with Him through the revealed truth of the Bible even in the circumstances of our own lives. Our Lord is trying to introduce us to identification with Himself through a particular “Gethsemane” experience of our own. But we refuse to go, saying, “No, Lord, I can’t see the meaning of this, and besides, it’s very painful.” And how can we possibly watch with Someone who is so incomprehensible? How are we going to understand Jesus sufficiently to watch with Him in His Gethsemane, when we don’t even know why He is suffering? We don’t know how to watch with Him— we are only used to the idea of Jesus watching with us.

Read more here: