standing together
The yawning gap
Graham Nicholls
Date posted: 1 Aug 2017
‘Sending missionaries abroad is boring.
‘It belongs to a bygone pioneering age. It’s part of cultural imperialism. It’s no longer necessary. It’s not a priority.’
Alternative Synod?
Peter Sanlon
Date posted: 1 Aug 2017
One year ago the Daily Telegraph announced on its front page the new ‘Anglican Partnership Synod’.
Nicknamed a ‘shadow synod’, it marked a new form of partnership between Anglican churches in Kent and Sussex.
news in brief
Proud?
Buses and Underground signs were wrapped in rainbow flags by Transport For London as part of London’s Pride week, in early July.
50 Santander bikes (formerly Boris bikes) were adorned with the same symbol. Skittles, the sweets known for their ‘rainbow colours’ were produced in totally white packets as ‘only one rainbow deserves to be the centre of attention’. Facebook now issue a rainbow flag as one of seven standard emojis to use to ‘like’ a status.
China: a personal report
Source protected for security reasons
Date posted: 1 Aug 2017
A question to start: Is our God still working in China?
The short answer is Yes! It is however important to fully understand the current attitude and freedom permitted by the Chinese authorities regarding religious practice. China’s policy on religion states that ‘the Chinese people are free to choose and express their religious beliefs as well as demonstrate their religious status’.
Narrow way
Karen Soole
Date posted: 1 Aug 2017
Book Review
TO BE A PILGRIM:
40 days with The Pilgrim’s Progress
Read review
Hearing God in the Old Testament
Keswick Ministries
Date posted: 1 Aug 2017
I asked my wife, Bridget, for her thoughts on where to go with this article. She laughed and said: ‘Why do you ask me? You’re the one who’s taught the Old Testament!’ Then she added: ‘But I do keep hearing people saying, “I find the Old Testament really hard.”’
I’ve heard that many times, too. So I want to do three things here: acknowledge some of the challenges; ground our view of the Old Testament as God’s Word; give one pointer as to how to hear God’s Word in the Old Testament (OT).
EMA 2017: fruit amid the battle
JEB
Date posted: 1 Aug 2017
It wasn’t easy to find the Barbican Centre
for
this
year’s
Evangelical Ministry
Assembly (EMA) amid London’s burgeoning road and building works. But it was
worth the tricky navigation for Tuesday –
Thursday, 27–29 June.
The conference theme was ‘Bearing Fruit
and Growing’, with the morning Bible readings coming
from Ephesians. These were
given by Andy Gemmill of
the Cornhill
Training Course in Scotland and reminded
those there that, amid the spiritual battle,
‘your church is what Christ’s rule looks like
now.’ We need to ‘do church’ (I’m not sure I
like
that phrase) by
faith, not by
sight,
because for all its present flaws the church
displays God’s wisdom to the astonishment
of the heavenly powers.
Durham’s purple patch
UCCF
Date posted: 1 Aug 2017
Durham Christian Union won an award for
‘Best Society Event’ at the National Society
Awards on 19 May.
Hosted by the National Union of Students
and Red Oak Roller, the evening celebrated
university
societies
around
the United
Kingdom and what they contribute to their
members, their campuses and to the wider
community.
Wye Jesus
Evangelical Movement of Wales
Date posted: 1 Aug 2017
Bethesda Evangelical Church (Hay-on-Wye)
and EMW, with Show Jesus, an evangelistic
enterprise, supporting, spent four days seeking to share the wonderful news of Jesus and
his
love
with
folk
attending
the
International
Hay-on-Wye
Literature
Festival in late May.
Following the theme – ‘LIFE - what’s your
question?’ the gospel was shared through artistic skills including pottery, storytelling, poetry and through preaching. Michael Ots spoke on
suffering
linked
to
the
tragic Manchester
bombing. Local author and church member
Ollie Balch led a guided tour around Hay.
Radical inclusion?
Rob Munro
Date posted: 1 Aug 2017
Superficially we did the usual things: passing obscure legal provisions.
For example, there was giving official permission not to have to wear robes at main services (which I realise you all have done faithfully up until now); the valiant effort to put something to do with mission on the agenda. We even had the obligatory ‘current affairs’ motion, this time from the Archbishops following the surprises at the General Election, generally calling for more prayer and appropriate lobbying.
Cult hero
Association of Evangelists
Date posted: 1 Aug 2017
In June it was announced that Tony Brown would be joining the team of the Association of Evangelists.
As a former Jehovah’s Witness, his special interest is outreach to the cults, as well as teaching churches how to reach people caught up in cults.
