Evangelicals Now
Christian news worldwide
magnifying glass Search archives
home Home check the archives Archives Subscribe Subscriptions Advertising Information & booking of classifieds Adverts Find a local evangelical Church Find a church for the search engines and extremely curious! About us Contact us Site Map
Printable
Version

The Third Degree

The Word in the Welsh sunshine

What’s the slowest thing on six legs? Three Christians trying to get through a door — they all keep saying ‘No, no! After you!’

Such was the mood at week one of New Word Alive at Pwllheli. Surrounded by Christians in an atmosphere of unity, celebration, and enjoyment we basked in the Welsh sun (believe it or not) and sat under God’s Word. Vaughan Roberts’s Bible Readings from 1 Corinthians set the tone each day before guests poured into various seminars, training tracks, and leisure activities.

Home and away

The student programme was full and varied, with opportunity for teaching and training in quite an array of areas. New Word Alive is known for its Bible Overviews, this year conducted by John Risbridger of Above Bar Church, who gave a chronological overview. William Taylor of St. Helen’s Bishopsgate led a track on Bible handling concentrating on the Gospels. These were, as ever, extremely popular with students who were getting stuck into these issues first thing in the morning! Student seminar tracks included ‘Responding to the Challenge of Islam’ with Andy Bannister, a relationships track with a selection of UCCF staff, the practicalities of social action with Dewi Hughes, evangelism training with Graham Daniels and Pete Nicholas of Christians in Sport, and apologetics with Jim Paul and Ellis Potter of L’Abri.

A ‘Just Looking’ course ran for those exploring Christianity, or young in their faith. Ramzi Adcock of Jesmond Parish Church ran an international students track, which catered specifically for overseas friends whose first language was not English. Dick Dowsett was the dedicated speaker for this contingent, and small groups ran daily following his talks in Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Japanese, Spanish, Portuguese, and Arabic!

Impact groups

I had the privilege of being part of the student team, which is primarily about enriching the input given in talks and seminars. On a week so packed and exciting as New Word Alive, there is a need to carefully process what one has heard, digest it, and work out what response is required. Over the years, New Word Alive has developed a system of ‘impact groups’ where a group of students can get together with someone a little older and talk about what the Lord has been saying to them, and how this will touch their lives going onwards. So each day, I met with 11 lads in the Lakeside Inn before dinner to talk and pray together. It was great to build friendships with them all through the week, hearing how they were being challenged by the Word of God, and praying with them by way of response. Their comments speak for themselves: ‘I’ve had a period where God hasn’t been at the centre of my life, and after this week I really want him to be there again’, ‘This week has made me think about full time ministry’, ‘I understand justification by faith now!’

Outreach to theologians

At Wednesday lunchtime, Mike Reeves and I had the privilege of meeting with a handful of theology students. These were undergraduates studying theology and Religious Studies (RS) in very disparate theology faculties ranging from the essentially secular to the all-out pagan: their situations are often frustrating, sometimes personally difficult. Yet I was so encouraged to see evident passion for the gospel, love for Christ, and a clear desire to see their course mates engaging with the gospel. We spoke about putting on evangelistic events, dealing with theologians who imagine they are above the gospel, and surviving in departments that are rabidly anti-Christian. Conversation was so fruitful and interesting that we were eventually kicked out of the venue so that the next event could begin. Please pray for this little army in theology and RS faculties around the country — they really are standing for Christ in very challenging environments.

Training and equipping

One of the great values of New Word Alive is that it seeks to train and equip the church (and that includes CUs). At the heart of the philosophy behind the conference is that the church of Jesus is a stronger force in the world when it is standing on the Scriptures, sure of its doctrine, and confident in its proclamation of the gospel. There is, therefore, a real emphasis on teaching and learning. Students are genuinely out on the coal-face of mission with their Christian Unions, and the underlying conviction behind all this investment is that when students know and love the Word of Christ, they will more enthusiastically live and speak for him.

The impact of New Word Alive will be felt for years to come as young people open their Bibles with non-Christian friends, bring new resources to their CUs, and help enthuse new generations of ‘freshers’. In fact, the ripples of one week of intense training will still be spreading when some of these students will be the ones leading seminars, organising church groups, and leading worship.

Daniel Hames,
UCCF