Reports of Gospel Work and Other Assembly Activities

Be not now negligent: for the Lord hath chosen you to stand before Him, to serve Him.2 Chron. 29. 11.

I have put My words in thy mouth, and X have covered thee in the shadow of Mine hand.Isa. 51. 1

He that hath My word, let him speak My word faithfully. Jer. 23. 28.

He not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace ; for 1 am with thee.Acts 18. 9, 10.

And now. Lord, … grant unto Thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak Thy word.Acts 4. 29.

The report from Teignmouth will encourage the many open-air workers who know what it means to carry on without a visible audience, in the hope that their messages are being listened to by unseen hearers. It also reminds us that the particular service in which we are engaged at any time may occupy an essential part in the much wider pattern than is known to us of God’s way of bringing a soul into blessing.

(A. C. H.) N.K. SCOTLANDJ.H.BathgateandD.McKcnzie Miller had a gospel effort in the hootdee Gospel Hall for a month at the end of 1953. The meetings were well attended and there are tokens of blessing.

The Lord’s people deeply appreciated a fortnight’s ministry on John’s Gospel by F. McCorinell in Holburn Hall, Aberdeen.

Mention was made in the last report of week-night children’s meetings conducted on the post-war housing estates at Aberdeen. School-halls have now been secured for this purpose in two other areas.(C. XL T.; M. S. R. B.)

NORTHERN IRELAND MostoftheassembliesinNorthern Ireland have at least one series of special gospel-meetings in the course of the year.

Such campaigns last for four or five weeks in succession ; frequently, if there appears to be genuine interest on the part of the unsaved, they may continue for eight or nine weeks–or even longer,

A five weeks’ gospel campaign was held in Ballyhackamore Gospel flail, Belfast, in the autumn. The speaker was Samuel Thompson of Ncwtownards. Special prayer-meetings were held in the fori night preceding the campaign and many hundreds of printed invitations were distributed systematically to the people of the neighbourhood. During the campaign, our brother made a point of visiting every home and of giving a personal invitation to the people. He received a favourable reception in almost every case and many expressed an interest in spiritual matters. The meetings were quite well attended ; on Sunday evenings the hall was packed to capacity. Real liberty was fell in the preaching of the gospel story, the messages being delivered with spiritual power and telling simplicity. Although the local brethren had hoped and prayed for an abundant harvest, only a few sheaves were gathered in. How ever, the success of a campaign is to be judged not in numerical terms but by the quality of the conversions. Even yet the Good Seed sown will assuredly bring forth plentiful results. (J. F.)

LONDONA week’s special gospel effort was held in Hope Hall, Kilburn Lane, in November under the care of Metcalfe Collier. In spite of much apathy in the district where the assembly is situated, some 23 complete strangers attended the meetings, in addition to many Christians, and God helped our brother in the presentation and appeal of the gospel. One young man was deeply affected and it is believed a work of grace has begun in his heart. The assembly itself was greatly cheered and blessed and are hoping that fruit may yet abound to the glory of God and the salvation of those strangers who attended upon the witness of the gospel. (S. II. S.)

S.W. LONDON EVANGELISTIC MOBILEUNIT The excellent work in connection withthis Unit of many brethren from the S.W.London assemblies continues, andthese brethren have experienced much blessing in realizing the Lord’s presence with them in preaching from place to place.They have visited numerous outside areas in Surrey, and several of the smaller assemblies have been greatly encouraged by the visit of the Unit to their districts and to their meetings.Many a struggling meeting has been spiritually uplifted by the presence of a team of warm-hearted young men, full of desire to win the lost for Christ. From this village visitation to people and to the local meeting much good results and it is pleasing to these workers to see the expression of joy on the faces of many of the saints when welcoming them.

The work in London (Town Work, as it is called) has proved very effective. Large crowds of listeners are always there. In some parts there is opposition, especially in the West End, from those who are called “ barrow boys “ ; but, against this, the Police arc always very co-operative and sympathetic, which is of great encouragement to the Unit workers. Many of the hearers step forward upon invitation and personally request a copy of the Gospels and promise to read them. Quite recently a young fellow, after listening very intently to the messages, surrendered his heart to Christ. This has proved a work of grace, for he has now been baptized and is linked up with the assembly in the area where he resides.

This grand work of witness is not confined to the S.W. London Unit. Several more are similarly engaged around London and other big cities. (S. H. S.)

YEOVIL, SOMERSET . From its earliest days the Yeovil assembly has been associated with the teaching profession- such names as Miiller, Payne, Bcnnet and latterly the Park School. The usual assembly activities take place, certain departments being particularly encouraging. The gospel-meeting on Sunday evenings is well-attended and amongst the large numbers a good proportion of unsaved are found. Pupils from the Park School are eagerly encouraged to attend. Sound gospel messages and the evangelical influences of the school have resulted in the salvation of many of the pupils who have, in turn. been baptized and brought into assembly fellowship. After crippling circumstances arising from war-time bombing, the Sunday School is gradually gaining ground again. The Children’s Meetings during the week are well attended, chiefly by children not in the Sunday School.

The Annual Yeovil Conference, so well-known, takes place every September and has continued almost without a break for about a century. (G. H. M.)

TEIGNMOUTH, DEVON Awet summereveningontheDen S,Promenadefoundafaithfulgroupof workers together for open-air testimony. Apparently there was no one about to hear the gospel message, and when the workers dispersed they felt that the effort had somewhat ‘ mis-fired.’ Some time later a letter was received by a local brother from a professor telling that, as an unseen listener at that open-air meeting, he heard the words “ I am the Way, the Truth and the Life “ being quoted, which took him back in thought to his childhood days and his godly mother.The outcome was that he yielded to Christ. Futhcr inquiry revealed I hat more lay behind the scenes for, at about the same time as the open-air meeting, six men were laying hold of the Throne of Grace for this man at the request of his mother; and the place where they were praying was on the other side of the world–Hobart in Tasmania.(G. H. M.)

WALESTreforest assembly saw further evidences of the Lord’s gracious workings in some being saved during the visit of Jeffrey Harrison in December. His meetings in Ynysybwl and Cardiff were also much appreciated. During the past twelve months a short service has been conducted on Ix>rd’s-day evenings by believers, mainly from Ynysybwl, in a Tuberculosis Hospital, near Pontypridd. The patients welcome this and readily accept gospel literature. Similar services are carried on in Homes for Elderly People at Pcnarth and Dinas Powis, Glam. Saints at Fforestfach and Dunvant have recently had the joy of seeing some young believers baptized, and are grateful to the Lord for His workings amongst them.

Annual New Year Meetings were hold in the Adamsdown Hall, Cardiff, and the Word was ministered by J. B. Hewitt, W. McAlonan and W. A. Norris. Numbers present were larger than usual. Meetings were also held in the Heath Hall on Boxing Day when A. G. Anstiee and W. McAlonan ministered the Word. (H. T.)

SHREWSBURY, A Sunday School teacher’s exercise con- SHROPSHIRE cerning old scholars of the school led to Special efforts being made to bring them again under the sound of the gospel message–with very encouraging results. Individual letters of invitation to a special meeting were sent to all whose addresses were known, and advertisements were inserted in the local Press in an attempt to reach others. The invitation was made as wide as possible and included not only old scholars, but parents of present-day scholars and their friends. Following meetings for prayer the first special meeting was held in November, 1952, at the time of the normal Lord’s-day evening gospel-meeting. Old Sunday School hymns were chosen and several of the brethren, representative of the older and younger teachers in the school, took part. A word of welcome was given by a former Superintendent and a sound and compelling gospel address delivered by a local brother. The response to the invitation was very good, in spite of bad weather, and the congrega-tion was more than double its normal size. There was one known case of conversion. Increased interest was subsequently shown in the gospel-meetings and some who came for the special meeting continued to attend.

The arrangements for the second meeting in November, 1953, followed the same pattern and again there was a very good response, some having conic fairly long distances in order to be present. This time the address was given by an old scholar of the school who had recently returned to Shrewsbury after some years’ absence.No known cases of conversion have resulted from this latter meeting but, as on the previous occasion, some who were present have con-tinued at the regular gospel-meetings.

CHADDESDEN,As a result of Sunday School work and DERBY gospel activity on a large housing estate, a local assembly commenced to meet in a brother’s home in September, 1951. In the course of the next two years some 15 souls were saved, baptized, and added to the assembly. After being assured of the Lord’s leading, a site for a Gospel Hall was purchased early in 1952 and before the end of the year a wooden building had been erected, all the work having been undertaken by the local brethren themselves. This building is now too small lor the gospel service and our brethren are hoping that the way will be opened for a permanent building to be constructed. A day-school is hired to accommodate a Sunday School of over 320 children.