Category: Ministry

Deputation 2011, Final Day

The Scottish weather was glorious for this final day. It was warm and sunny. We enjoyed the last few hours in Pitlochry by worshiping God with the folks who had stayed behind. It was a real privilege to meet these people. Their prayerfulness is humbling. After lunch, we drove back to Kilmacolm, near Glasgow where Iain lives. We didn’t have much time before the evening service. Just enough for a cuppa. Iain led the service and I preached.

The church here is celebrating Easter with a series of services each evening this week. They have been doing a lot of work, inviting people to come along. It really makes Easter special. They will also have services in the local prison, twice a day from Monday to Thursday, as well as a meeting with the senior management in the same prison.

It was my very last meeting. Good to have finished. I am now looking forward to see my family.

Deputation, day 13 — UFM Scottish Conference

It is almost the end of this deputation trip, and I am looking forward to go home. One more speaking engagement, Sunday Night in Kilmacolm, near Glasgow, before flying home on Monday.

It has been a great day in Pitlochry. The sun was shining, and it was quite mild. A lot of people came up for the day, and there was a genuine interest in the work of the mission. Most of these visitors have been long term supporters of the work of UFM. There were a few former missionaries as well. Bryn Jones, a UFM council member and former missionary to Brazil spoke well. He talked about the privileges of the Christian life, from Romans 8. He will speak one more time tomorrow morning.

in the afternoon, Iain took me on a quick trip in the car to show me the area. Pitlochry is on the border with the Cairgorm National Park. It is a beautiful area, especially when the sun is shinning. Now for a quick cuppa before heading for bed.

Deputation, day 11 — Leicester to Glasgow

It was a long trip From Leicester to Glasgow, going through Derby and Crewe. The train from crew was packed and hot. But there was free wifi. The lady sitting next to me said it was probably a problem with their server because it is not usually free. I was tired and didn’t do much, browsing and wasting time really.

I al now in Kilmacolm, near Glasgow with my friend Iain Cameron and his wife Fiona. Iain came to Brittany with the summer team in 2009, and I travelled with him to Shetland in September 2009. It is good to relax and catch up with the news.

Banner of Truth, final morning

It was a good conference. Less people than usual though. Some people thought the main reason was that it was school holidays in England. We still had a warm fellowship, good singing, and good speakers. The conference finished with two addresses.

Martin Holdt spoke first on the Holy Spirit and preaching. We need the anointing of the Holy Spirit. It is essential that we should seek it until we get it. Then, Iain Murray gave the last address, on John 17:25-26. He spoke about The Lord’s message.

The highlights of the conference were the talks given by Martin Holdt. They were simple, yet convicting. The second highlight was Phil Arthur on William Tyndale. It was inspiring, and humbling to consider this giant of the faith and what he suffered because of his love for Christ and the English people.

I am now on the train to Glasgow, making the most of the free Wifi.

Banner of truth, day 3 — Wednesday

Time is flying, and the conference is finishing tomorrow. It has been another blessed day.

It started off with Iain Hamilton trying to convince us to buy Charles Hodge’s biography (published by the Banner). He was followed by Martin Holdt who once again convicted us that we need more of the presence of the Spirit, looking especially at sermon preparation. Lewis Allen turned our eyes to our great hope: the second coming of our Lord.

I had a quick nap in the afternoon, and Skyped my family. I had a good conversation over coffee with a man who had tried to recruit me to help training Pastors in French speaking Africa. I declined the offer, but gave the names of some people who may be of help to him.

The 5 o’clock session was a the question session to the panel. There were a lot of questions on Archibald Brown, and many also on the Holy Spirit. Another hepful one was about how to start reforming a church. Two points came out of that: Preach the Word with great care, and show your people that you love them. Geoff Thomas closed the sessions with 5 lessons he’d learned (and we could learn), from Lloyd Jones ministry/ They were:

  1. The beauty of a righteous life.
  2. The importance of Evangelistic preaching.
  3. The importance of church history to inspire and enrich our lives.
  4. We should never loose confidence in preaching.
  5. We should not absolutise one man as our role model for preachers.

The day closed with a great lecture by Phil Arthur on William Tyndale, an amazing man who translated the NT in English and was martyred in October 1536. He gave his life out of Love for Christ, the Scriptures and the English people.

Tomorrow is the last morning, with one more session on the Holy Spirit in preaching by Martin Holdt, and a session by Iain Murray.

Banner of Truth, Day 2 — Tuesday

The day started with Geoff Thomas who gave a short talk from Luke 13:34-35 on the Free offer of the Gospel. Martin Holdt from South Africa followed, urging us to be filled with the Holy Spirit, and explaining what it meant. The morning finished with Lewis Allen on loving Christ and what it means.

I had a quiet afternoon, falling asleep on my bed, and skyping Esther.

At 5pm, we had a news session. It was thrilling to hear from different brothers telling us about the gospel in Places like Pakistan, the jungles of Brazil, Myanmar, India, England… It was humbling to hear about the dedication, faith and perseverance of believers who are persecuted  for their faith.

For the Last Session of the day, Iain Murray introduced us to Archibald Brown, an Englishman who ministered in various churches in London and made an amazing impact on the East End of London in the second half of the 19th Century and beginning of the 20th Century, but has been forgotten since. At the beginning of the session, we celebrated Iain Murray’s 80th birthday which is next week.

It was a good day, it is nice to meet new people and catch up with Friends.