Trial by fire
John Skinner
Date posted: 1 Jan 2007
In the early hours of August 23 1989, St. Leonard’s Anglican Church in Exeter was ablaze. But the arsonist’s fire brought the blessings of God. Here John Skinner, the Rector at that time, tells the story . . .
So why was the fire so significant? It was mainly because of the years of frustration that preceded it. What was the cause of this growing frustration?
God will open many doors
EN: What is IFES? Could you explain something of its nature, history and objectives?
LB: IFES is a network of evangelical student ministries in 150 countries. In 1947 leaders of ten national student ministries met in Harvard with a vision to see a witness to Christ among students in every country. The largest movement is in Nigeria where close to 40,000 students meet in small group Bible studies.
Hope for our world
Three full days of great Bible teaching plus entertainment for all ages, mixed in with fun, resources, sport and relaxation are all on offer at the first ever Cheltenham Bible Festival which runs from Thursday to Sunday August 9-11.
‘In the autumn, we held a preview day for church leaders and team members’, says Andrew Nicholson of FIEC, the sponsors of the festival.
Notes to Growing Christians
Reclaiming the mission of the church
David Jackman
Date posted: 1 Jun 2006
THE GREAT GIVEAWAY
Reclaiming the Mission of the Church
By David E Fitch. Baker Books. 263 pages. £5.41 (Amazon)
ISBN 0 80106 483 X
Written out of frustration with the North American church scene, the thesis of this book is that evangelicalism has ‘given away being the church in North America’.
Uniting churches for social action
Jeremy Ravn
Date posted: 1 Dec 2006
Matt and Debbie* and their three children are in crisis. They are crippled by debt, and Matt has just lost his job. His benefits will take time to be paid and even these will not service his debts. Where on earth are they going to find money to eat?
This is a true and oft-repeated story. There are still 12.4 million people living in poverty in the UK and increasing consumerism and debt is dividing the nation. Almost every community has its areas of social exclusion and deprivation. The church’s response to local poverty has been patchy, and often uncoordinated. Social action was once central to church mission but most find Jesus’s words in Matthew 25.35-40 a difficult challenge.
Flowering in Scotland
Andrew Quigley
Date posted: 1 Dec 2006
Twelve years ago the Airdrie Reformed Presbyterian (RP) Church in Scotland was, like many small churches in the UK, drifting its way out of existence.
Caught in a devastating self-preservation mode, church life consisted of a one-hour service for the 20+ ‘faithful’ on a Sunday morning. The prospect was bleak — with an average age in the 70s, the writing was more than just on the wall.
Passionate
Roger Fawcett
Date posted: 1 Jan 2007
Book Review
HOW TO SET YOUR HEART ON FIRE
(and not just on Sundays)
Read review
Anniversaries in 2007
Joy Horn
Date posted: 1 Jan 2007
Famous books
The Geneva New Testament was published in English (the first English New Testament printed in Roman type, with verse divisions) in 1557.
Richard Baxter’s A Call to the Unconverted was published in 1657.
Monthly arts column
Eleanor Margesson
Date posted: 1 Nov 2006
Monday nights have just got more thrilling. Eleanor Margesson watches as the fifth series of Spooks unfolds on BBC1.
Imagine you are a spy. Your mission: to bug the house of a terror suspect in order to gain intelligence about their imminent bombing campaign. As you enter the empty house on a rainy night, a cat escapes past you into the dark. What do you do?
Crucial questions for evangelicals
In 2005, New York Times columnist David Brooks wrote that if evangelicals chose a Pope, they would be likely to select John Stott.
Stott, who is 85, has been at the heart of evangelical renewal in the UK. His books and biblical sermons have transfixed millions throughout the world, and he has been involved in many important world councils and dialogues, not least as chair of the committee that drafted the Lausanne Covenant (1974) and the Manila Manifesto (1989), defining statements for evangelicals.
W B Forsyth 100 years - a lifetime of ministry
Roy Dumphreys
Date posted: 1 Nov 2006
It is 1932 and we are in the North East of Brazil. A young missionary is facing a very hostile crowd which has been summoned by the Roman Catholic priest to stop him preaching.
The priest calls out: ‘What bishop ordained the preacher?’ The firm reply comes back: ‘The Lord Jesus Christ who said, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel”, it was the Lord Jesus Christ who ordained me’. This is provocation enough for the priest and the stones begin to fly in response, forcing the missionary, together with his Brazilian colleagues, to leave town.
The buried treasure of the church
Louise Morse
Date posted: 1 Dec 2006
There is a lot to be said for the value of older Christians, that is, those over the age of 55.
They buy more books than anyone else and, generally speaking, have sorted out their lives and are ‘more together’ than their younger counterparts. They have battled temptations and been through the deep waters and, when tapped, are springs of faith and encouragement.
Gilbert Kirby, 1914-2006
The Rev. Gilbert Kirby died aged 92 on October 15.
He led a very active life which included being the Principal of London Bible College (now London School of Theology) and General Secretary of the Evangelical Alliance.
The Third Degree
Daniel Hames
Date posted: 1 Dec 2006
Historically, the most exciting and strategic times of the gospel’s advance have been marked by fierce opposition and resistance from those who find its message offensive and foolish.
In Acts, we read of Paul’s encounter with Alexander the metalworker who did him ‘a great deal of harm’. In the 1780s, Charles Simeon, curate at Trinity Church, Cambridge, preached for ten years to a congregation locked out of their pews by angry churchwardens. Opposition is part and parcel of Christ’s call to mission.
Workers for the harvest field
Vaughan Roberts
Date posted: 1 Dec 2006
Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples: ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’ (Matthew 9.35-38)
People today are no different from those Jesus met in the first century; they are ‘harassed and helpless’. Can we see them as they really are, in all their desperate need? We are surrounded by those who are lost, separated from God and facing eternity without him, ‘like sheep without a shepherd’. Do we have compassion on them?
Good News on track
Over recent months God has intervened in the life of one local church and a national mission organisation to cause them both great happiness.
Their problem
What seemed to be an impossible situation for the Railway Mission (RM) and Calvary Evangelical Church (CEC) in Brighton proved eventually to be no problem to God.
How to become a colour-blind Christian
Alan Sharp
Date posted: 1 Oct 2006
‘Half the world lives on less than two dollars a day’ (George Bush, June 2001).
They are poor because we have taken their money. 20% of the world receives 87% of its income while 80% of the world lives on 13% of its income. In 1820, income per person in developed countries was three times income per person in underdeveloped countries: by 1992, income per person in developed countries was 72 times income per person in underdeveloped countries.1
