Partnership Update 26th July 2011

Dear Partner in the Gospel

Generally speaking these partnership updates focus on updating you on the various projects in which we are involved. This time, however, we want to focus on the partnership aspect of our work. These are some of the ways we have sought to serve the churches in partnership with others the past year or so.

Local Churches
Grace Baptist Partnership exists to help churches plant churches. I have been privileged to preach in dozens of Grace Baptist churches throughout the country the past 18 months. In these churches (large and small) I have sought to exalt the Lord Jesus Christ and to encourage active involvement in evangelism and church planting. As invitations continue to be received it looks as though the next couple of years will allow me to visit even more of our churches. I must admit, however, there is still no place like home and no joy like preaching to the friends at Wood Green.

Local Associations
The local church I serve is a member of the Association of Grace Baptist Churches (South East). Here I serve on the Association main committee, the Association executive committee, the Home mission subcommittee, the Gateway project team and as secretary for the Central District churches. It is a real joy to participate in such an active group of churches. It is through the Association in general and Home mission in particular that we have been able to be involved in the work at Thamesmead and Grays. Additionally, I have preached at the 2010 Annual meetings for the Association of Grace Baptist Churches (West Anglia) and the 2010 Association of Grace Baptist Churches (East Anglia) 2010 Home Mission Annual meetings. Though there is no association of Grace Baptist churches in the North a number of our churches are part of the West Lancashire Reformed Fellowship to which I spoke this Spring.

Grace Baptist Assembly
I thank God for Grace Baptist Assembly. I have been able to preach at the last two Assemblies and this year was able to give a presentation about Grace Baptist Partnership after the Tuesday evening session. I look forward to next year’s Assembly.

Grace Baptist Magazine
I have been able to write two articles for Grace Magazine which the Lord has used to stimulate the thinking of people about church planting. The editor, Stan Evers, took two sessions at one of our training days in Wood Green recently. He wrote, “Thank you for the opportunity to lecture to the church planters group last Saturday. I was so encouraged to see over forty men, most of them 40 or under, who want to learn how to preach or how to improve their preaching abilities. They don’t want to learn how to dance, act, play with puppets or juggle etc etc but preach. I came home very encouraged.”

Grace Baptist Mission
The friends at Grace Baptist Mission have been a source of encouragement to Grace Baptist Partnership from the beginning. I have taken a seminar at the last two annual meetings, visited the UK consultative committee on a regular basis and earlier this month addressed the full mission council at Highbury. Additionally, my wife serves on mission council. Earlier in the year three of us went to visit a GBM-related church planter in Poland to assist with his work. We trust the churches we are helping plant will provide the next generation of men for international church planting endeavours through GBM.

Grace Baptist Trust Corporation
We thank God for the assistance of the Corporation in the financial administration of Grace Baptist Partnership. We also value their fellowship in the church planting works at Halstead and Edlesborough. I look forward (God willing) to preaching at their 2012 annual meetings.

To say nothing of …
Mentoring students and lecturing at London Theological Seminary. Delivering a lecture at the Evangelical Library. Speaking at the annual meetings of the London Inreach Project. Speaking at the Carey Conference. Writing for Evangelicals Now. The bottom line is that Grace Baptist Partnership is not standing alone but in meaningful partnership with others who share our passion for growing leaders, planting churches and reaching nations. Please support these efforts with your prayers and financial gifts.

Warm regards in Christ
Barry King