Zambia to Abingdon
Jim Sayers
Date posted: 1 Apr 2023
Abbey Baptist Church
in Abingdon has
a new pastor – from Zambia! Chris and
Helen Hawthorne enjoyed many years of
ministry in St John’s Wood in London, and
have spent three and a half years serving
with Grace Baptist Mission at Proclamation
Institute Zambia (PIZ). Chris was inducted
as pastor in Abingdon on 18 February, with
Richard Underwood from FIEC preaching.
Chris said Zambia has been a great gospel
opportunity. People want to speak about
Christ,
supermarkets play Matt Redman
songs, and Christians are welcomed at many
doors. ‘One day at PIZ, we were doing some
text work and the passage clearly convicted
everybody
in
the classroom. The whole
class went quiet. The following day we were
talking about preaching, and the way God
worked the previous day made it clear that
the power is not in the presentation (like
the big show often seen in Zambia), but
in being clear with the gospel. Our time
in Zambia further convinced me that the
heart of church ministry
is
teaching
the
Bible
really clearly and prayerfully, and
making
sure people understand what
it
means for their lives. There are some great
Zambian churches doing
just
that, and
seeing significant fruit.’