Through your prayers and giving, you are our partners in proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ. Pray that we would continue to do so with all boldness and without hindrance!
On the East coast of Great Britain, nestled between the rivers Orwell and Stour before they pour into the North Sea, lies the Shotley Peninsula. This rural farming area of Suffolk is surrounded by a number of well-known towns, including Felixstowe, Harwich and Ipswich, but is itself dotted with several villages, hamlets, and settlements with an overall population of around 10,000 people. That is likely to grow, and a couple of new developments are presently underway. There is a strong sense of community between the villages, and residents take pride in the Peninsula’s natural beauty, quality of life, and its literary and historical heritage. While all of this is very nice, the spiritual life of the Peninsula is less vibrant. As is typical of many rural communities in England, spiritual interest is mainly nominal, primarily tied to the village Anglican churches and Anglican schools in the area. It is likely that local evangelical Christians travel further afield to worship.
Over a decade ago, the newly formed Grace Baptist Partnership of churches saw a gospel witness replanted in the village of Chelmondiston, and in 2011 the newly constituted church called David Kelland to be their pastor. After almost a decade of service, David laid down the pastorate at the end of 2020, giving the congregation - now called Peninsula Baptist Church - an opportunity to think about their future and to prayerfully consider a way forward. Though hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic and without a pastor, the small church now has the exciting opportunity to reset for a fresh start to gospel work on the Peninsula.
GBP trustee Jonathan Armstrong, pastor of Diss Baptist Church, has been asked to give oversight to continuing evangelism efforts on the Peninsula and securing pastoral leadership for the work. Given present limitations, the church’s weekly meeting is held on Sunday evenings at 6 pm over Zoom, and is led by Jonathan, and two additional men from the church at Diss. There are already encouragements, including contact from a man and his family who have recently moved to Chelmondiston and are interested in serving the Lord and the work of the church.
Praise God for the resilience of the gospel work on the Peninsula over the past decade, and give thanks for the ministry of David Kelland during that time.
Pray for Jonathan Armstrong and others from Diss Baptist Church who are seeking to support the work of evangelism on the Peninsula and the pastoral care of Peninsula Baptist Church.
Pray for the revitalisation of Peninsula Baptist Church in gathered worship and gospel witness. Pray that local likeminded Christians will commit to this local church and that it will go boldly forward into a new phase of congregational life and ministry.
Pray for the people of Shotley Peninsula to have open hearts to receive the message of Jesus Christ with gladness.
You can make a gift to Grace Baptist Partnership and the ongoing work of leadership training, church planting and revitalisation, using this link: Donate | Grace Baptist Partnership.
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