Click here to see photos from the Pharoahtastic day

The following extract of a blog post by Mike Casper on thegospelcoalition.org was included on the reverse of the May Calendar

The March calendar included this fascinating piece from TheSolaPanel blog on the language William Tyndale used in his Bible translation and how the King James version was not always an improvement.

The undoubted highlight of the last month was the Confirmation Service on 20 March at which 5 members of the church family publicly declared their faith in Jesus. Each one gave a short talk explaining what their faith in Jesus means to them and the difference Jesus makes in their lives. It was immensely moving, encouraging and challenging. You can listen to what they said by downloading their testimonies from the Bible talks section of the website. (But please note – the first talk did not record as clearly as the remaining four – the microphone was in the wrong position!)

The Not Ashamed campaign has been launched to help Christians respond to various challenges to the Christian foundation of our society, by being visible and vocal about our confidence in Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ – good news for our society

Looking back, Jesus Christ has influenced the shape of our society more than any other person. The values that flow from Him have been embedded in our culture, our laws and our social institutions and have brought great benefit to our nation.

Looking forward, it remains the case that Christians have a very positive vision for our society and that ultimately only Jesus Christ can provide a solid foundation and a robust fabric for our nation.

Recent challenges

Yet the truths, values and behaviour consistent with that foundation are under attack, to the detriment of the whole of society. There is mounting pressure to exclude Jesus Christ from the public domain, consigning Him instead to the realm of the ‘private and personal’. Increasingly, Christians are encountering attempts to restrict their freedom to speak and live in accordance with biblical teaching in the workplace and in public life.

Standing together and speaking up

In light of all this, it would be easy for the Church to shut herself behind closed doors and for her voice to the nation to fall silent. In many quarters, such a crisis of confidence has already taken root and for that we must repent and seek mercy from the LORD.

In these times of change and challenge, it is important that Christians stand together and speak clearly of Jesus Christ as ‘good news’ not only for individuals but for society as a whole. It is vital that the Church regain her confidence that Jesus Christ is the only hope for our nation and that she speak with clarity, compassion and courage of the life to be found in Him alone – for His sake and for the sake of a society that so greatly needs Him.

It is this conviction that Jesus Christ is good news for all and the desire that our nation would receive Him rather than reject Him that has given rise to the Not Ashamed campaign.

Click here to read Lord Carey’s article reprinted in our December Briefing

Read Philip’s comments about the Pope’s recent visit (from the October Briefing) here

Click here to read the November News from Fowey Parish Church

Follow this link to see photos of our recent ‘ONE and ALL’ church weekend at Boconnoc: http://gallery.me.com/degreywarter/100593