In Depth:  new life

Nicola Laver

Three prisoners have been baptised at HMP Chelmsford after attending weekly Bible studies run by Daylight Christian Prison Trust.

“It was a very emotional service, and other prisoners attending were clearly moved,” said CEO Gaius Phillingham. Alex, Douglas and Hugh shared how God had worked in their hearts and lives.

Emily Pollok

Church leader David Sims is taking back ground for the gospel on social media – sending Bibles to strangers and seeing people find faith.

“We’ve got to reclaim this back for the Lord,” said the Walsall minister, who hosts live TikTok church on the platform each week. “I think we should be using it and take every opportunity to give reason for the hope that we have.”

It has been a season of vibrant, missional events weeks for Christian Unions. With around 100 CUs taking part, the gospel message has been heard by thousands of students, and hundreds are exploring further.

Students in the University of Warwick Christian Union were some of the first to hold their events week this year, which was centred on the theme of “Hope”. Halfway through the week, Ben (name changed), a CU member’s housemate, decided to attend an event. His curiosity had been piqued after he heard the events week was taking place and he arrived with questions. Interested, but by no means certain of the truth of what he had heard, he said to CU members afterwards: “I don’t know why God loves us”.

Emily Pollok

Just before he received his last prison sentence in 2019, Lewis Gibson was living in a homeless hostel. He’d been warned that he would end up in jail again if he continued on his drug-fuelled lifestyle.

‘I was in despair, because I knew I was going back to prison,’ Lewis explained. At a crisis point, Gibson turned to a United Christian Broadcasters (UCB) devotional he’d picked up during a previous stint in prison. In it, he read Romans 10:13: ‘Whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.’

Milla Ling-Davies

Just under 30,000 people have accessed the evangelistic 321 course since it was launched last year – with many committing their life to Christ as a result.

The 321 course was launched by evangelistic organisation Speak Life in October 2023. Uniquely, their series of video-based sessions considering the core beliefs of Christianity can be experienced online as well as in person. In the last year 16,000 participants signed up digitally, while a further 5,000 attended at their local church (over 350 churches ran the course).

The most recent Annual Population Survey found 1.25 million followers of Islam in London – that’s one in eight Londoners.

If, by God’s grace, the gospel is to flourish among these people – Bangladeshis in East London, Arab-speakers in West London, and Turkish and Iranian communities – it will be due to ordinary Christians faithfully and patiently building relationships, breaking down misconceptions, living and speaking the teaching of Jesus.

Thirty people have gathered to witness the constitution of Grace Church Walthamstow in North East London, and the induction of ’Wale Akinrogunde as the pastor.

Formerly known as Church Hill Baptist Church, the original church was founded in 1633 and stood as the oldest Reformed Baptist Church in London, but sadly closed down in 2014. It was agreed that efforts should be made to replant a church in the same building.