Letter from the Manse

Every church needs reliable leaders. The New Testament teaches that in every church there should be two groups of leaders. 

Firstly, there should be elders (or pastors or overseers: these are all different labels for the same group of men).  Elders are responsible for overseeing the spiritual life of the church.  They preach and teach the Word of God; they give themselves to prayer and they guide the church in much the same way that a man governs his family.  At the present …

Anne, Jesse and I had a very happy holiday last month up in Haverigg. The weather was fine, the area is lovely and we were able to relax.  It was actually the longest complete break we’ve had since we were married.  Usually, if we go away, I combine the holiday with preaching engagements.  But on this occasion, it was a fortnight without any commitments.  And we didn’t feel we had to push ourselves to do anything. When we’ve been away on holiday in the past, …

Sunday should be the happiest day of our week. Right back at the beginning of history, God laid down the pattern by which we should live. God commanded Adam and Eve to work for six days, caring for the world he had made. They would find great happiness in doing that work and they would bring glory to God.  But every seventh day was different.  On that seventh day they should cease from the work they …

Last Friday we held our usual monthly services at the nursing-homes.  During the morning, I phoned the nursing-homes to make sure they were expecting us.  Since last month a new matron had been appointed.  She came to the phone; I explained who we are; she assured me that everything would be ready for us when we arrived.  Then she hesitated.  “There is something else you might be able to help us with,” she said.  “There have been some very strange incidents at the …

You must be aware by now of our concern about the future of Charlesworth Particular Baptist Chapel. In recent issues of the bulletin we’ve sketched out the past history of the chapel.  At times the work there has flourished.  According to the National Church Census held in 1851, the morning congregation was around 100, the afternoon around 200.  Two hundred children regularly attended the Sunday-school.  But in the present day, the work has sunk very low.  Apart from …