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If a holiday cottage could write, it would fill many a book.

Visitors come and go and the cottage is woven into the tapestry of life. More often than not, the cottage forms the centrepiece of the annual holiday highlight. It offers four walls of protection from the hustle and bustle of the daily slog, a much-needed haven. Depending on its setting, it will also serve as a door into another world, a world of beauty and escape.

South Park Chapel in Ilford appointed Shenazzer Ephraim as evangelist and disciple maker at a service on 26 January.

The chapel was founded in 1906 and has been seeking to make Jesus known ever since. Times have changed and the demographic has changed but the gospel is still the same and is still the power of God to save people.

The only evidence of a church in the central Bounds Green area is a plaque commemorating a Church of England building torn down in the 1990s which was replaced with flats.

An area just over a mile up the road from Wood Green, Bounds Green has its own local culture, a Piccadilly Line underground rail station, a national rail station, shops, cafés, barbers, a small but popular monthly street market, and thousands of residents.

At the first London Gospel Partnership Conference, on 2 February, leaders gathered from a diverse range of churches to be encouraged in biblical ministry across the capital.

Kevin De Young gave two outstanding talks at East London Tabernacle on the theme of God’s Message by God’s Means for London. His first address on 1 Thessalonians 2 highlighted the centrality and importance of God’s word for God’s work in gospel churches. His second talk (The Big God of Small Things and Small People, Zechariah 4) was a magnificent encouragement to trust in God’s power even as we are so conscious of our own great weaknesses.

The EasyEnglish New Testament smart-phone app was judged by the Premier Digital Awards 2018 as one of the best launched in 2018.

It’s available free of charge and has already been downloaded in 150 countries around the world. The EasyEnglish Bible is a new version of Scripture using a limited vocabulary of just 1,200 words and simple syntax, and was devised by a small team of Mission Assist volunteers.

‘When the servant’s wish and the master’s call coalesce, it will happen.’ This was the glorious and timely assurance ministered by David Campbell to the 600 or so who attended this year’s Grace Baptist Mission Annual Mission Day on 27 October.

David’s message, which closed the day conference at the Renewal Centre, Solihull, was not one of triumphalism. Rather, skilfully and gently, taking Acts 23.11 as his text against the backdrop of Paul’s desire to preach the gospel in Rome and the journey there, David reminded us that God’s plans always come to fruition and yet so often happen very differently from how we expect.

In November, the Christian Unions of Cardiff held their annual city-wide events week.

Christian students on six different campuses across three different universities, as well as an international outreach team, stepped out to ask questions of their peers, illustrated stories, answered questions and proclaimed the good news.

A report in late September identified prayer and responding to local needs as two of the most important factors in seeing youth mis-sional objectives met.

The study found that prayer makes a significant difference to a mission’s success, identifying clear links between teams that met their mission objectives and those who dedicated time to prayer for the work. Alongside the obvious benefits of God answering prayers, respondents also reported the positive psychological impact of knowing others were supportive of the work. Prayer was also cited as an effective way of increasing support for the mission, providing involvement opportunities for those who couldn’t help practically.

On 13 October, Grace Baptist Church, Hitchin held a welcome service for their new pastor Tom Forryan.

Around 200 people gathered in The Priory School, Hitchin as friends of the family and former church members joined the 20 or so existing members. Ashkan Sarmadi, current pastor of Derby Road Baptist Church, Watford spoke warmly of Tom’s previous ministry. Richard Lambert, Elder, explained the challenges of their three-year search for a pastor, mentioning in particular a ‘somewhat sombre’ evening gathering of church officers when they seemed to be out of options. In the providence of God, a few days later a phone call suggesting Tom for consideration was received.

Around 45 people (including 35 church leaders) gathered together at Jubilee Central church in Hull on 9 October for the launch of Hull 2030.

Hull 2030 is a new movement to pray for, facilitate and encourage the planting of 20 new gospel-centred churches in Hull by the year 2030. It came about through a partnership between the Anglican ReNew and New Frontiers churches of Hull because of the massive need for new gospel-centred churches to reach those currently unreached, and therefore the need to work together wherever possible.

In August it was announced that the Railway Mission has invested in the chaplaincy service and increased the support to the railway industry to help staff through the recent industrial problems faced by many of the train operating companies.

As well as the addition of five new full-time chaplains to the chaplaincy team, the hours of some of the part time chaplains has also been increased.

The Welsh National Eisteddfod held in the first week of August in Cardiff gave an opportunity for Christian mission by the Evangelical Movement of Wales.

Footfall past the stand in Cardiff was heavy, and good conversations were had each day. As part of a questionnaire pass-ers-by could fill in, people were asked to rate four sentences from 1-10:

How much do people in Britain today know about God, the Bible, or Jesus Christ?

And what about within the church – do evangelicals think clearly about theological issues, or does confusion abound? The State of Theology survey, commissioned by Ligonier Ministries, has uncovered what people in the UK are actually thinking.

An Association AGM is usually a duty that must be done and no more. But that of the Association of Grace Baptists in the South East on 6 October, at St Giles’ Mission, North London, turned into a real joy.

Four new churches joined the group, from Chelmsford, Hythe, Streatham and Ebbsfleet. The new book Pure Church, show-ing the biblical basis for the Association’s ecclesiology, was launched. Graham Nicholls, the director of Affinity, to which the Association belongs, articulated the aims of his work for wider fellowship.

Huntingdon is a market town about 20 miles to the north-west of Cambridge with a population of about 24,000. Being situated where the River Great Ouse meets the Roman Ermine Street (from London to York), Huntingdon has always been situated on a crossroads.

Although there are a number of small churches from various denominations, the rapidly growing population of Huntingdon and the surrounding area means that there is a huge need to proclaim the good news of Jesus’ salvation to the many who currently have no church connection.

The government opened a consultation¹ in July (closing on 7 November) on Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education, seeking views on the draft regulations and statutory guidance to schools.

This is already part of the curriculum in most schools as PHSE, but is due to become compulsory. Many parents, including Christians, are abdicating their responsibility to teach sex and relationships to their own children. Aware of this, the government has taken the chance to construct a curriculum which includes some helpful elements, but also some unhelpful teaching about sex and family life.