REPORT OF THE 2019 GAULBY FESTIVAL OF GRACE

2019 GAULBY FESTIVAL OF GRACE

 

 The twentieth Gaulby Festival of Grace was held on Saturday 14th September 2019 at Countesthorpe Baptist Church in Leicestershire as Gaulby Church was unavailable due to renovation work. The 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 in 2000 to proclaim and celebrate the gospel of grace, build up believers in their holy faith and encourage them in their Christian walk. It is now one of the most significant church events in Leicestershire. The theme was ‘A closer walk with God’ and around sixty folk were blessed with excellent ministry.

 

The speakers were Dr Kevin Bidwell of Sheffield Presbyterian Church and Alec Taylor, retired minister of Chelmsley Wood Baptist Church and author of Pilgrim Bible Notes.

 

After the introductions by Martin Hall, Kevin Bidwell gave his first address when he outlined the work of Sheffield Presbyterian Church and their vision to promote confessional Presbyterianism in Sheffield and through church plants in Salford (Manchester) and Berlin. A further church plant in Lincoln is in the planning stage. Kevin next described the work of the Sheffield Pregnancy Advice Centre. Every life is precious and in the UK where 200,000 abortions are performed every year the centre offers advice and support to those seeking guidance. The centre possesses the latest ultrasound equipment and we saw models of the development of babies following conception.

 

In our second talk Alec Taylor gave a biography of the life of William Cowper (1731-1800). Cowper had no interest in the legal profession chosen for him by his father but rather he preferred to study literature and in due course became one of England’s best-loved poets and hymn writers. He was an emotionally fragile individual who, sadly, suffered severe depression and mental illness throughout his life. He moved to Olney in 1768 to be under the ministry of John Newton, the former slave trader and author of Amazing Grace, and the two men became close friends and regularly met for fellowship and prayer. Cowper moved to Norfolk in 1795 where he died in 1800, although his legacy still lives on in his poetry and beautiful hymns.

 

In the final session Kevin Bidwell addressed the subject of having ‘A closer walk with God’ by looking at the Servant Song in Isaiah 50:4-11, a portrait of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. He reminded us that Jesus was a disciple of the Word (v4); was obedient to the Word (v5); faced suffering through His obedience (vv6-7); was vindicated in the midst of His suffering (vv8-9); and trusted and leaned on His heavenly Father (vv10-11). Kevin urged us all to spend more time alone with God, not just reading His Word but by meditating deeply upon it.

 

The event concluded by singing William Cowper’s glorious hymn, O for a closer walk with God. After the benediction there was the opportunity to visit the bookstalls, enjoy a delicious buffet tea and share fellowship. The occasion saw the launch of the English translation from the Slovak of The True Stories of the Little Princes and Princesses by Jozef Kováč, an account of the transformed lives of children trusting Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour and the power of faithful preaching of the gospel.

 

Despite the spiritual darkness around us we were encouraged that God is adding to His church and believers are growing in grace in these perilous times. Those present were motivated to have ‘a closer walk with God’ and so become better servants of Jesus Christ. 

Alec Taylor

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