Find out the latest happenings in and around Hill Street by reading our most recent Bits & Pieces Newsletter. Bits & Pieces, our twice yearly publication includes stories about issues affecting the church, our members and their efforts locally, nationally and internationally. Click below to view it in fullscreen.

Confident in Christ by Nigel McCollough
Bits & Pieces Lead Article, September 2010

In mid August around 800 delegates from Presbyterian congregations all over Ireland gathered at Coleraine University for a conference entitled 'Confident in Christ'. Myself, Peter Wright, Lloyd McIlwaine and Dan Corr represented Hill Street at various points through the three days of conference. The main speaker was Ajith Fernando from Sri Lanka. He has been involved in Youth for Christ in Sri Lanka and is a widely published author and speaker. Stafford Carson, David Bruce and John Woodside spoke in the mornings and there were also a number of seminars. One of the things that was most encouraging was to see the centrality of the historic gospel message being affirmed in our denomination. The whole thrust of the conference was to renew our confidence in Christ and in his message for the nations.

Ajith comes from a setting where the church is growing rapidly but he had some perceptive and relevant things to say to us in the west. He detected that we are often discouraged by falling numbers and an apathetic society. We perhaps question if God is at work. He pointed out however that this may well be God preparing us for a new day for the church. If this is the case it will mean us embracing a theology of suffering. In the west we have acted as if we can have Christ and a comfortable life. This is not the experience of the vast majority of our brothers and sisters across the world but as they have suffered the church has grown. It is almost always that way – blessing comes on the other side of suffering.

On one of the evenings the work of two church planting ministers was highlighted. Dario Leal is working in North Belfast. Dario, originally from Chile, does not have a church building but meets with a small number of people in his living room and together they are seeking to reach out to those in the difficult area of North Belfast. Andy Carrol is working to plant a church in Donabate, near Dublin Airport. He is working with about 20 families from Malahide Presbyterian (which is full) and they are going to start meeting on Sundays in Donabate in September. These are fantastically exciting works and it is great that our church is encouraging these sorts of innovations (although we see it in Acts!). As I listened to these young men telling their stories of working in situations so very different from ours I was struck by their determination to reach others with the gospel. They were uncompromising on the message but were willing to try anything to communicate it to others. We need that same determination even though how that looks in Lurgan will be very different.

There were many encouragements through the week. Ajith pointed out that while many are naturally hostile to the gospel it nevertheless finds a deep resonance within the human heart - we 'know' it is true. We are therefore bringing a message to people that meets their deepest need and 'fits' them in a way nothing else does. He also made the point that the central message of the gospel – the sacrifice of Jesus for us – finds deep correlations in nature and experience. Love inevitably sacrifices and we should not find it strange therefore that the greatest lover of all (God) should make the greatest of sacrifices.

Sri Lanka is a land that has known terrible bloodshed in recent years with thousands losing their lives in a bitter civil war. Ajith had some very challenging stories of those who had reached across the divide for the sake of the gospel and had seen great blessing as a result. Again that was a poignant message in the light of our Province's recent history.

All in all it was a most encouraging few days and if the challenges and lessons from it are applied across the church I have no doubt that we can expect blessings ahead.