June 2007 - updated on 27 Sep 2008
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Norman writes:
Since our last prayer letter I have conducted the
‘introduction to Islam seminar in Great Missenden and for the C.U. at the
Chilterns University and both went very well. On the 23rd July I am conducting
the seminar again for Greyfriars Church in Reading.
I was also the speaker at a special service in Beaconsfield—God in the life
of…,’ followed by supper with the Leadership Team and that was a brilliant
evening. It’s also brilliant that Ricky is reading the Bible he requested
more—he has it under the counter in his shop and he reads it when he’s not
serving. He also wants to chat about spiritual things when I spend time in the
shop. (A challenge for you—find and befriend an Asian shopkeeper and share your
faith in Christ with them—it will definitely bear fruit).
As many of you will know, the month of May was a sabbatical break for Denise and
I—it was an amazingly God-blessed time. Being ‘out of ministry’ was a real gift.
The student body took us to their hearts very quickly and it was a joy to share
their lives for a month. All Nations is still a very wonderful place and 23
years on from when we left, they are still preparing quality people for mission
service in many parts of our world. When we were there as students a good number
were from Africa, Asia and Europe, but now there are an increased number from
Korea, Hong Kong and Singapore. The countries they are preparing for has also
changed, with more students going to places like Laos, Vietnam, China and the ex
Russian states like Kazakhstan. We were very impressed at the courage some
students showed in accepting God’s call to very difficult and dangerous
situations. I found that a great challenge. Hannah Buxton a member of the family
who gave Easneye as a missionary training college, prayed that it would in every
generation be a ‘fountain of blessing to the church and to the world,’—God
continues to answer her prayer.
The times of worship were wonderful and the tutor group we were assigned to were
very encouraging. The lectures and the library were a great source of
inspiration—there’s one of our 10th anniversary booklets in the Library. Denise
studied leadership and I studied ‘post-modernism’, which I found enthralling and
came to the conclusion that the ‘post-modern world’, although making it a harder
place for Christians, actually presents us with a greater opportunity for the
Good News of Jesus since the days of the early church. Yes it will be harder as
we will have to make sure that what we profess is borne out by the lives we
lead, but with people leading increasingly fragmented and dysfunctional lives,
Christ is the only One who can fulfil what they are looking for, which is PEACE.
( I believe that unless we begin to really understand post-modernism, its affect
on the world and how we can relevantly proclaim Christ and live out the Gospel,
then we will lose this generation or maybe every generation. God is giving us
this opportunity, but will we/the church take it?) I feel that I would like to
further study how we can relate the Gospel to a post-modern world and I could do
that at All Nations, so in time I will explore this possibility.
I realised that God had guided us to take the sabbatical at All Nations, the
place we had gone out into mission from. Being back there really impressed upon
me, that after 23 years of working cross-culturally—which at times feels like
being an overseas missionary— the time is coming for me to return to my own
culture. Please pray for me in this, that God will continue to guide and that I
would not miss His leading and guiding. The Management Group are incredibly
supportive of me and are encouraging me to talk with ‘experienced’ people who
can walk through this with me. They have also set aside funds for this process.
I have returned from sabbatical with great thankfulness to God, refreshed,
renewed and with a possibly greater desire to proclaim Christ in this generation
than during my 28 years as a Christian. Thank you for all your encouragements
and support.
Denise continues:
“The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness
thereof”. How blessed we are to have the opportunity of R and R during our
Sabbatical month. What an opportunity for reflection, which was always an
encouragement whether the Lord had things for us/me to understand about myself
and my drivers, or things to learn about what He makes of my/our small efforts
over the years for Him.
We both left All Nations with a deep sense that whatever direction we choose for
the future, then He will bless us. He has called us ‘friends’ and of course,
friends know what the other wants. We both love our Lord more than anything else
– one thing back into perspective is that He has called us into relationship
with each other as husband and wife and that after Him, we belong to each other
before the ministry. Perhaps that had got a little out of focus with two busy
ministries on the go! We long to work together again and feel that this is going
to be the outworking of our future in some wonderful way. Please pray that this
will work itself out.
The Lord continues to bless Lacey Green and surrounding villages. Please pray
for giving to come into focus and for us as a church to honour God and give
accordingly for His mission to go forward in this place. We were in deficit last
year and the parish share takes us up even higher this year. The Lord’s will be
done in this place. Pray for that, more than anything else! Continue to pray for
blessing and knowledge of His love to pour itself out among the post modern
communities I/we serve among – in the schools and in the villages.
Thank you so much for your faithfulness over so many years. Without our working
together in mission we would be worth nothing. Pray also for us that a door will
open for mission opportunity beyond the natural – that His supernatural power
will be poured out to call and to save many here.
My love as always xxxxxDenisexxxx
Norman and Denise Critchell.