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During the week beginning 13 May, the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland held its annual assembly meetings in Lisburn.

The 118 churches across the island work together in evangelism, church planting, mission, training, women’s and youth work. The assembly kicked off with ‘Association Sunday’, when churches are encouraged to engage in pulpit swaps and joint services.

A mission in the tradition of Billy Graham, with his grandson Will Graham preaching, took place in the Falkirk Stadium during June.

Central Scotland Will Graham Celebration of Hope was advertised as ‘not just an evangelistic event; it is a process of prayer, training, outreach, and follow-up that takes place over a 12-month period – and it begins and ends with the local church’. Around 9,500 people attended over the weekend, with 31,000 watching on mobile devices from 87 countries across the world. 65% of the spiritual responses to the event came from those under the age of 35. Will Graham preached with clarity and conviction: about the prodigal son; time; and the thief on the cross at the finale on Sunday.

Between 8 August and 11 November, The Soldiers’ and Airmen’s Scripture Readers is asking churches, Association (SASRA) join a to individuals small groups and Prayer Event called 100days.

SASRA shares the gospel with serving personnel in the Army and the RAF. It is able to go ‘behind the wire’ where local churches can’t, with 16 uniformed Scripture Readers, all of whom have served in the Military.

The Pastor Training International (PTI) and Christian Books Worldwide (CBW) supporter’s day on 12 May was inspiring.

With reports from across the globe showing how the work of PTI and CBW has grown, a highlight was Pastor Andrew, from Myanmar, sharing how PTI’s training benefits local pastors. Many new churches have been planted in the rural Buddhist country. Congregations have grown, with many new converts, but pastors need training in how to disciple and feed them. PTI encourages pastors to read the text carefully, to interpret its true meaning, then preach and apply it.

Some 60 Christian coders, designers and entrepreneurs completed an intensive weekend of computer programming to help the church and charitable projects, in the early Autumn.

The event, held at the Innovation Warehouse in central London, started with short project pitches. Teams were then formed to work on the different ideas. Projects included one to aid people struggling with depression or addiction to get help right when they need it from trusted family or friends.

James Seddon’s challenging hymn ‘Go Forth and Tell’ was the title for The Open-Air Mission’s training day held on 14 April in Bromsgrove.

160 people interested in open-air evangelism attended from different parts of the country. After the hymn, which set the tone for the day, Mike Mellor tackled the subject ‘How do we keep going?’ We were exhorted to persevere in our service for the Lord. What motivated the apostle Paul in his gospel endeavours should also motivate us to continue.

The purchase of an historic church building in Lancaster in recent months provided Moorlands Church with the opportunity for more gospel growth.

Thirteen years ago, Moorlands Church Lancaster had a fresh start. Originally founded as a Brethren Assembly in 1940, the congregation had dwindled to the point of closure when it was revitalised by a team of people moving into the area, including the church’s first full-time pastor, Danny Rurlander. The church resolved to prioritise the proclamation of the Word of God in the city, trusting Paul’s words in Colossians that it is the gospel which brings the growth.

‘Questions for Life’ is a new initiative which will allow many office workers across Central London to hear about Jesus Christ from their own Christian colleagues.

Across the month of March, individual Christians, workplace Christian groups, and the ‘Gospel at Work’ Lunchtime Talks network are making a special effort to take Jesus Christ’s answers to life’s biggest questions into their workplaces.

Over a hundred gathered for this year’s ‘Connected’ leadership conference at Dewsbury Evangelical Church, drawing in (mostly) men from the North of England.

In a period of profound changes in our culture, the theme of this year’s conference was ‘Things we dare not forget’. John Benton was the main speaker, giving two papers and sharing an afternoon Q & A platform with Luke Jenner (Pastor, Grace Baptist Church Halifax). There was also an informative and encouraging church reports session with six ‘messengers’ from across the footprint of the conference.

‘The Christian Union should be banned from having a freshers’ stand.’

This was the unilateral announcement last October (2017) of two rogue members of Oxford’s Balliol College Junior Common Room Committee. This was to make the Balliol freshers’ fair a ‘safe, secular space’. This decision was subsequently overturned by an irate student body, but the incident caught the attention of the national media.

Christian Witness to Israel [CWI], one of the world’s oldest missions bringing the good news of Jesus to Jewish people, marked its 175th anniversary with a special event at St Aldate’s, Oxford on 27 January.

The event featured a number of missionaries including Igal Vender, who works with Jewish homeless people and drug addicts, and Aviel Sela, talking about his work with Holocaust survivors.

Nine men were ordained on 6 December as the first deacons and priests of the Anglican Mission in England (AMiE), the breakaway conservative evangelical movement that seeks to plant Anglican churches in England but outside the Church of England.

The nine were ordained by the Rt Revd Andy Lines at a service at a Baptist church, the East London Tabernacle.

On 16 December, 1867 Amy Carmichael was born in Millisle in Northern Ireland and, 150 years later, on 16 December, a beautiful sculpture of her as a ten-year-old girl was unveiled outside Hamilton Road Presbyterian Church in Bangor. The church is home to the annual Worldwide Missionary Convention.

The sculpture was the idea of Derek Bingham, ten years ago. It was created by Christian artist and sculptor, Ross Wilson. It portrays a determined girl, holding in her hand a notebook – her diary of grace, containing God’s plans for her life – looking out to the world.

Amongst the Israelites, old age was held in high regard and respect for the elderly was obligatory. Proverbs 16.31 tells us that, ‘grey hair is the crown of glory.’ As a follicularly challenged minister in his 30s it is easy to subtly downplay the truth of such verses. Unquestionably, modern Western society does not honour old age to the extent to which it once did.

Perhaps it is unsurprising, then, that 1.2 million elderly people in England would describe themselves as chronically lonely, with almost half of those going without seeing anyone for five days out of every week (Age UK). The astounding nature of such statistics is only furthered when one considers that by 2035 almost half of the adult population will be over 65 (Office for National Statistics). While many churches are unquestionably working hard amongst an aging population, Christian resources aimed at the elderly are comparatively sparse.

The Grange Baptist Church in Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire, welcomed Adam Robertson as the assistant pastor on 19 November.

Adam, who studied at Moorelands, worked at Hillview Church in Hucclecote, Gloucester prior to the move to Letchworth. Pastor Mark Sewall welcomed Adam and his wife Iuliana into membership of the church. Their young daughter Ava won the hearts of the fellowship when they met her earlier in the year.

On 9 September, over 150 people gathered for the induction of Peter Sherwood as evangelist at Welcome Hall Evangelical Church (WHEC), Bromsgrove.

Pastor Brooks explained how the elders had been seeking the Lord’s will over the appointment of a second full-time worker for over a year, and were increasingly convinced that the role should be that of an evangelist. In March, Peter Sherwood was put in touch with Pastor Brooks by a mutual contact, and after an extended period of prayerful consideration, was called by WHEC in July.