REPORT OF THE 2017 GAULBY FESTIVAL OF GRACE

2017 GAULBY FESTIVAL OF GRACE

 

The 18th Gaulby Festival of Grace was held at St Peter’s Parish Church, Gaulby, Leicestershire on Saturday 9th September 2017. Gaulby Reformed Evangelical Anglican Fellowship upholds the doctrines of the English reformers, subscribes to the Thirty Nine Articles of the Church of England and uses the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.

 

The event was inaugurated to proclaim and celebrate the gospel of grace, build up believers in their holy faith and encourage them in their Christian walk. It has become one of the most significant rural parish events in the county. The subject this year was ‘The Importance of prayer in the life of Christians’ with around seventy five folk present who were blessed with excellent ministry and warm fellowship.

 

Our first speaker, Alec Taylor, is the retired pastor of Chelmsley Wood Reformed Baptist Church in Birmingham and author of the Pilgrim Bible Notes. The subject of Alec’s address was 'The Importance of Bible Reading' and he gave us sound reasons why all Christians need to have a time of personal Bible reading and prayer. He began by reminding us that Jesus testified to the fact that the Scriptures spoke of Him (Luke 24:13-35).

 

We were exhorted to read our Bible regularly because it is the inspired word of God, is vital for our spiritual well-being, it strengthens us to resist temptation and Scripture exhorts us to be obedient to God’s word. Alec dealt with hindrances we will encounter and gave practical advice to make our time more profitable. We were encouraged to meditate biblically and read expectantly that God will speak to us through His word. In so doing we will cultivate a living relationship with our heavenly Father.

 

Our second speaker, Roland Burrows, is the minister at Ebenezer Baptist Chapel, Old Hill (near Dudley) and been instrumental in establishing The Christian Heritage Centre in Rowley Regis.

 

The subject of Roland’s address was ‘Martin Luther - His Life and Legacy’. We were given a fascinating account of the life of Luther and how, at a time when the Roman Catholic Church was going astray, God called a humble, obscure monk to change world history. Luther was a pious man who sought to follow the practices of the Roman church but could never find peace with God. It was when he was reading Scripture that he understood that Christians are justified by faith alone (Romans 1:17).

 

Seeing that the Bible and not the Roman Catholic Church has final authority brought Luther into conflict with the might of Rome but God sovereignly preserved and protected him as he came before the religious authorities. In 1521 when he was called to the assembly at Worms, Germany he came to utter his famous words ‘Here I stand, I can do no other’. Under God, Luther’s legacy still remains in the church and society today.

 

Our final speaker, Rev John Thackway, is the minister at Holywell Evangelical Church in North Wales, Vice-Chairman of the General Committee of the Trinitarian Bible Society, lecturer at the London Reformed Baptist Seminary and editor of Bible League Quarterly. John’s spoke from Colossians 4:2-4 on the subject of 'How to persevere in prayer' where it says that we should ‘continue in prayer’ and that we should ‘watch’.

 

John reminded us that prayer is something that all Christians should practice regularly, they should look for answers to prayer, they need to keep going when obstacles come to hinder us and not be distracted or discouraged, and they should pray with a pure heart and watch against wrong motives. We were also encouraged to remember to offer thanksgiving when God answers our prayers and that prayer is the life and vital breath of Christians.

 

Finally we were reminded of that wonderful and inspiring promise that in heaven prayer will give way to praise and thanksgiving for ever and ever.

 

The event concluded by singing ‘Great is the Gospel of our glorious God’ and there was an opportunity to visit the bookstalls where a new book Quiet Time for Christians by Adrian Freer was launched. A delicious buffet tea followed which gave an opportunity for fellowship and to share what God is doing in the lives of His people.

 

We were encouraged to read our Bibles daily, persist in prayer, and be stimulated by seeing the way in which God uses ordinary people to accomplish His purposes. We left motivated to be better servants of Jesus Christ and living witnesses to His saving grace. We look forward to meeting once again at the 2018 Gaulby Festival of Grace on Saturday 8th September 2018 (God willing).