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In this Letter: Spring report What's a Christian DVD Difficult Questions CDs Forty Three Family news
What's a Christian? We are pleased to report that for the first time the 30-minute presentation of the Gospel 'What's a Christian?" is now available on DVD. This simple explanation of what it means to be a Christian and how to become one is available from the office at £7.00 (Inc P & P)
New CDs During a Mission a few years ago, I was asked to speak each lunchtime on the most difficult questions I am asked as a Christian. We dealt with, among others, 'Why Suffering?', 'Do all roads lead to God?' and 'Why did Jesus have to die on a Cross?' It proved so popular that I was encouraged to record all ten talks (30 mins each) for general use. These have now been transferred on to CD and are available from the office for £15 (Inc P & P)
Forty Three Family News Congratulations to Di Newhouse's daughter Carol as she marries Ian Last on August 23. Please pray that it will be a really special day. Mark and Emma Greenwood's baby is due sometime in the middle of May. Please pray for a safe delivery and for a smooth transition in to family life.
In the next Letter Reports from • Bury Mission • Malvern Mission • Gelding Mission • Doncaster Outreach • Barnsley Weekend News on • Mark Greenwood • Kenya: December '05
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Spring 2005 Our dear praying friend, We had enjoyed a really good morning service. The organist had led the worship well and now it was time for a cup of coffee before going home. He came over to me, this same organist, with big tears in his eyes, gave me a warm handshake and said, without any preliminaries, "I've been trying to come to Jesus for sixty years. You have moved me very much and I have come to Him today." Hello! I'm so pleased to be able to share with you our joys and sorrows here in the 40:3 Trust, with that lovely story to start. A PRIVILEGE We do count it a great privilege that you are part of our team. We were overjoyed with the number of Christmas cards - is it that long ago? - letters and emails assuring us of love and prayers. Several spoke of "praying for you every day", which means so much. One card, in particular, said, "from an ever-grateful prayer partner for putting 'life' back into my life"! Thank you for your prayers 'between the lines' when extra bookings come in late and you pray on a day when you don't know what is happening. There have been a considerable number recently and no doubt there will be after you've got this letter. We are glad you pray for the office team. We have been sad to say 'Goodbye' to Julie, who felt God's call to work with our Coventry Diocese. We have been glad to welcome Lisa in her place, joining Sue at the hub of the administration. Darren continues to make long journeys on busy roads to enter into sometimes tricky negotiations to get meetings to happen. He and his wife Ondy, plus Sue and Lisa, are glad you pray. It has been a privilege to be part of Trans World Radio. My programmes continue to be aired, as the broadcast schedule shows. A vicar told me he had been trying to help two rape victims and someone else who had suffered sexual abuse, not knowing what to do or say. He 'happened' to tune into TWR at the moment I was reading the chapter from my book 'Bereaved' dealing with those subjects. He said that, after listening, he felt confident to help all three people and was so blessed that God had given him this particular help at exactly the time he needed it. Although I am now stepping down from the TWR Board and have no plans for new programmes, the current ones will be repeated for some time to come. The story at the beginning happened since I last wrote and is deliberately anonymous, as are these two, so as not to identify the particular people, but still to share with you how God has been answering your recent prayers. A young man who is entering the ordained ministry came up to me after a service and said, "I lost Jesus about four years ago. He has been beside me, but not deep in my heart. Today He's come back in." In a similar way, a man asked for a leaflet to indicate his response. The minister of the church told me afterwards that the man was the church treasurer, who had come over to the minister and cried on his shoulder for five minutes, such was the depth of his emotion in responding to Christ. A PAINFUL TIME In all our joys, the tragedy of my brother's sudden death has been extremely painful. I was just able to add a short paragraph in the last letter as we went to print and very many have assured our family - and especially Martin's wife Janet and their children Phil, Debbie and Stephen - of their support and prayers. I am now seeing a specialist - Martin was not the first in the family to suffer from an aortic aneurism, which I also have. Subsequent events have proved the power of God in using tragedies for His glory and the blessing of many. In my own church in Coventry, preaching the day after Martin's death, many said how moved they were as I testified to the mercy of God. A meeting had been planned for three days after his death at Martin's church and, again, very many were helped. At Studley, the following Sunday, ten people responded as I spoke of Jesus being the light in our darkness. On Remembrance Day, November 11, I spoke to over 600 at Martin's funeral, with a call to trust Christ. There was a great response, including fellow lawyers of Martin's and those in his church saying they would carry on the Christian work my brother had been doing. One remarkable 'extra' was the cancellation of the Mission in Disley because of internal problems in the church there. This freed me to speak at my brother's church again and at a neighbouring church, with both events being singularly blessed. So we praise God that, in the midst of our pain, He has been glorified. A PASSION As you will have realised, Africa is a passion with us! Sylvia's time at the Women's Convention in Lira, Northern Uganda, was outstanding. She spoke to 23,000 people at the Convention, training and equipping the Christians, and saw over 1100 give their lives to Jesus for the first time. Sylvia was the only white woman there and she says that "it was very humbling to think that Jesus spoke to crowds like these - the very poorest of the poor". She visited projects helping those suffering physically and emotionally as a result of their being child soldiers and sex-slaves rescued from the rebel army. Sylvia also saw a huge U.N. refugee camp in this war-torn area. We rejoice with Sylvia that she was kept safe and well and saw such blessing. Many healings took place and the Spirit of God was mightily at work. Praise the Lord!
At the same time, John Price and I were back in Niger, this country which is only 1½% Christian and yet so responsive to the Good News of Jesus. The primary reason for our visit was to open two new churches, paid for by the generosity of friends of the 40:3 Trust. We know these will be real beacons of light in their neighbourhoods in Niamey and Dogondoutchi.
We had a wonderful evangelistic and teaching tour in the south of Niger, visiting villages we knew and new areas, too. One village had about six Christians when we first went in 1993: now over half the village is Christian. When I made an appeal, a mother hen and her eight tiny chicks strolled into the area for response before anyone could move - the joy of open airpreaching! At the end, one after another among the Christians came for prayer to ask that they might become stronger evangelists.
With the King of Kara Kara A POTENTIAL My part of the diary is smaller because, for the first time in my life, the Trustees have awarded me a sabbatical! The summer is always quieter in our Diary, so I am having three months to paint, enjoy music, garden and catch my breath. It will be a 'proper' sabbatical, not 'study leave'. Do pray for the office in my absence. The potential for the future is very exciting, with a very busy Autumn and a major development in our work: all will be revealed in the next letter. With recent international disasters, please don't forget our work as you give. So that's us! After a bunch of Sweet 'Ps' (check the headings), the final P is a Prize - for the best caption to the picture of me and a "friend" in Niger (see picture below): email or write yours and win our new set of CDs on "The most difficult questions". God bless you for being alongside us. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! With love from us all,
Captions please! Home | About The 40:3 Trust | Evangelism Diary | Evangelism Prayer Letter | How Can We Help You? | How Can You Help The 40:3 Trust | Contact Us | Evangelism Products
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To see dozens of people coming forward openly to trust Christ is both moving and challenging: such courage in front of neighbours and family. In one place the King of the area himself was with me. His people got up in front of him - some 80 in all - to respond to the call of King Jesus. In the end we saw several hundred respond during our visit.
