Great Time at Youth Weekend with Bethesda Free Church
On Friday morning, Grant and I left Derry for Belfast. We flew from Belfast to Newcastle, England. Alan Campbell, a Bible college student and good friend of ours, collected us from the airport. After spending some time in Halgarth Mission Hall studying and resting, we left with the young people for a large manor house called Blaithwaite, which is located in NW England between Carlisele and Keswick. We had a good meeting that evening and then went to bed.
On Saturday, we had a service and then went into Keswick for a hill walk and time of shopping in the town of Keswick. The town is very nice and has some amazing views around it. The view from the top of the hill we climbed was superb. We came back on Saturday night, had another service, and then a night of group games.
Today, we have had one service, a walk, lunch, and are getting ready to head back to Sunderland in about 15 minutes. It has been a phenomenal time. I have really enjoyed spending time and getting to know people from the group. It is exciting to see what God is doing in the lives of all the young people. There is a very dedicated group of young leaders and workers, and it is a blessing to see God using them. The meals have been phenomenal, and the hospitality has been amazing.
It has been nice to have Grant along with me. It is good to spend some father/son time together. I am thankful for God’s goodness. I preached four messages through the book of 1 John. We look at “Knowing God through Jesus Christ” from 1 John 1:1-3, “Dealing with Sin in the Believer’s Life” from 1 John 1:4-2:6, “Loving the Right Things” from 1 John 2:7-17, and “Believing the Right Spirit” from 1 John 2:18-29.
Please pray for this church here, for the young work and youth leaders, and for God to work in lives. England is in desperate need of gospel preaching, Bible teaching, and the Lord working. Very few churches really preach the Bible. Many churches are closing their doors, compromising, or dying. Most people know nothing about true salvation. Many Christians are very weak and very little Bible teaching. This land that one had some much of the truth has very little now. Will you please pray about what you can do to send the light of the gospel back to the land that sent it to the far ends of the earth?
Tonight, we will go to a service at Bethesda Free Church, stay the night, and then head back to Northern Ireland tomorrow. Please pray for safety and guidance.