Lord's Day June 1 2014

I am happy to say that I am now officially off the sick list. I am not preaching yet, however, as I had already arranged to have a sabbatical from yesterday. Yesterday was the Lord's Day, of course, and our preacher was Dr Robert Oliver the retired pastor of Bradford on Avon in Wiltshire. We had an excellent say with him and I was only sorry there were not more of us to hear him with at least four families away and others absent. As it was Ascension Day recently he chose to preach on the ascension in the morning and on repentance (Acts 11:18) in the evening. I particularly appreciated Dr Oliver's prayers. We began the day with communion led by one of our deacons, as it is a new month. It is always a privilege to be with God's people.

June over so soon

June sort of slipped by rather quickly and I missed some things that I wanted to mention.

At the end of May I was preaching in Tollington Park Baptist, currently without a pastor and a little on the small side but with a lovely new building and eager to lap up the word. An added bonus was having lunch and tea with a fellow Cwmbraner and her husband. She grew up in the same fellowship as me.

On June 1 I was up in Stapleford helping lay plans for the next Westminster Conference. Papers due (as already flagged up) are on Rewriting the Reformation, Puritan attitudes to Rome, the AV of 1611, Preaching repentance, Edinburgh Missionary Conference of 1910 and Andrew Bonar. That was half term week and most of the family were in Wales so I was more or less on my own, though Dylan was at home - a good excuse to send out for pizza. There were also committee meetings in connection with the Grace Assembly (next one May 24-26 2011, Swanwick, speakers include Stuart Olyott) and LIP (sorry to miss their recent baptism). I also spoke on parenting up at the Welwyn ladies coffee morning. The other things (such as the Evangelical Library Lecture, John Owen Centre TSG, LTS end of term and my trip to Bristol) I've mentioned. There has also been the regular preaching on Mark and Romans plus Titus midweek in Childs Hill as well as work with the elderly and children. The clubs are now over for the summer.