Christmas 2018 Update

CC York

Hello friends!  England is getting chilly, wet and dark so Christmas must be on the way.  York is lit up and festive, which balances out the gloominess this time of year.  It’s a great blessing to be a part of Calvary in York where there are so many people from different backgrounds but united in the love of Christ.  We have ministries that reach out to every age group, from moms with tots to care home residents.  Last Sunday we sang Christmas carols in a local care home.

Bible College

Yet another Bible College semester is wrapping up quickly.  Graduation is this Friday.  It’s been a great semester with a very sincere group of students representing England, Ireland, USA, Canada, Israel and Germany.  I’ve been blessed with the privilege of teaching through the gospel of John and it’s been a wonderful journey.  Next semester Lord willing I will be teaching through Acts and the gospel of Mark.

Prison Ministry

We are still doing our monthly service in HMP Humber prison.  Tomorrow (12/9) we will be having our Christmas service and I will be leading Christmas carols for the prisoners.  With staff and chaplaincy changes in the prison, we are praying about what the future holds and also looking into some opportunities to minister in other prisons (all in Yorkshire).  Please pray for the Lord’s will regarding this.

Hull Outreach/Bible Study

We have consistently been doing street worship and evangelism in Hull on Friday evenings.  One of the remarkable things is that we have never gotten rained out, which is purely God’s grace given how much it usually rains in the north of England.  Many times it has been raining in the car on the way over but by the time we get to the city center it stops and then sometimes it starts again just as we are finishing.

Hull City Center Fountains

     We’ve had some really great conversations with atheists, agnostics, Muslims, nominal Christians and a few strong Christians as well.  Hull is a bit of an immigrant destination with people from all over the European Union as well as Africa and the Middle East.  Sometimes the enemy would have us believe that no one is interested in hearing about the gospel but we have learned that many are open to at least listen.  We sow the seed and entrust the results to the Lord.

Busking Sign

The “No Money” sign pictured to the right is part of the gear I take with me when doing street worship.  Busking (playing music on the streets for money) is a common and accepted practice in the UK and throughout Europe.  The sign helps to clarify our motives and facilitates our presenting the simple gospel with no strings attached.  The sign has also turned out to be a great conversation starter.  Every week people come up and ask why we are not collecting money, and it turns into a great opportunity to share the message of the Gospel.

     In other news, over the past few months I have been getting together to pray with a group of ministers in Hull who recognize the spiritual needs of the city and want to see new churches planted in various parts of the city.  This group has been welcoming and encouraging for which I am thankful.

Prayer Requests

Please pray regarding my involvement with a pro-life group in York (abortion became legal in England in 1967).  Back in the fall some of us from various churches went into the York city center and manned a display the purpose of which was to present the realities of what abortion is.  We engaged people in a Spirit led loving way as best as we were able (speaking the truth in love).  It was an emotionally intense experience but some of us feel a strong leading of the Spirit that He wants us to be involved concerning this issue in an ongoing way but we are waiting and praying for the specifics and timing.

Please pray for the ongoing uncertainties surrounding Brexit.  Parliament is set to vote on December 11 regarding Theresa May’s recently negotiated agreement with the EU.  Uncertain times are ahead; please pray that the Lord would use this to touch many lost souls and that the Holy Spirit would be poured out in the UK.   

I will be in New Jersey from Dec. 15-Jan 8 and hope to connect as the Lord leads.  Many thanks and may the Lord bless you!

August 27, 2018

CC York

Hello friends!  It’s been another super-fast summer here in the UK.  The weather was actually quite nice for most of the summer with many consecutive warm, sunny days although the more typical overcast weather has returned.  They’re all days that the Lord has made.  I’m so thankful that the Lord has allowed me to be a part of the body of Christ here in York.  I’ve had the opportunity to teach at the church a few times this summer and am also still in the worship leading rotation.

We were blessed to host the annual CCUK Pastors & Leaders conference in June.  It’s always great to hear what the Lord is doing in other parts of the UK and to connect with different ministries and fellowship around massive barbecues.  The Bible College semester starts this coming Monday so the students will begin trickling in later this week.  I will be teaching the Gospel of John.  This will be my sixth semester serving at the Bible College and it’s always interesting to see the group of students that the Lord puts together for the journey.

Prison Ministry

Please keep our prison ministry in prayer.  There have been quite a few internal changes with staff and policy lately so the future isn’t exactly clear but we know that the Lord is sovereign.  They are now more strictly limiting visitors from the outside, but on the positive side I have received a 5-year security clearance to continue going in.  I would like to do a weekly evening Bible study with some of the guys who have accepted the Lord over the past few months but it needs to be approved first by the powers that be so please pray along those lines.

Hull Friday Night Street Worship

We’ve been doing street worship and evangelism pretty much all summer on Friday evenings.  I have a portable amp and we set up in King Edward Square right in the center of Hull and we flick the switch and just start worshiping the Lord and something happens.  

Worship music has a way of changing the atmosphere. It discomfits the enemies of God (Jehoshaphat set the worship band ahead of the army in 2 Chron. 20).  It gives Christians hope that something spiritual is happening in the city.  It’s also a testimony that there is another kingdom.  We give out tracts and talk with people who stop and it has been a very fruitful time.

Steel Pan Drum Band from Trinidad

A few weeks ago we had a steel pan drum band from Trinidad that was in the UK for Creation Fest and they came over and helped with our outreach.  It was quite a novelty for Hull!  After street worship, we still do our weekly Bible study at Victoria Dock where we are going through 2 Corinthians.  We would really like to find a location in the city center where the people are so please pray for the Lord’s will regarding this. 

Prayer Requests:

Please pray for our upcoming men’s retreat in September and also the Bible college semester.  Also there is a Franklin Graham Festival of Hope coming up September 21-23 in Blackpool, Lancashire where I have family.  The festival is being opposed by a vocal minority; please pray that the Lord would touch many lost souls and that the Holy Spirit would be poured out in the UK.   Many thanks and may the Lord bless you!

Spring 2018

Salt and Light

Jesus made a few interesting statements concerning our relationship to the world.  In John 8:12 He said that “I am the light of the world”.  But then in Matthew 5:14 He said to His disciples that they were “the light of the world” and also the “salt of the earth” (5:13).  I used to do some camping back in the day and it was indispensable to have a source of light so I used a propane lantern (before the days of extremely efficient LED lighting).  It’s interesting how a lantern works.  The mantle, which produces light as the gas burns, is basically a silk sack that has been impregnated with a variety of oxides.  The first time a new mantle is used, it is lit and the silk burns away leaving behind a shell of oxides.  It is this shell then that produces light as the gas burns.  No light is produced if the mantle is not connected to the fuel source. 

     When we come to Christ, there is in a sense a burning away as the old man dies and is buried in baptism with Christ and raised to new life (Col. 2:12).  When we are born again, we all of a sudden become this new thing in Christ where we are able to manifest His light and love to others.  We have become mantles that will produce light as long as we are connected to Him.  We alone as Christians have this ability, and not of ourselves, but because we have been born again (cf. 2 Cor. 2:16; 4:7).  To be salt and light on His behalf is a wonderful thing.

     Since moving to the UK a few years ago, the Lord has given me many opportunities to share the Gospel with people in a supernaturally natural sort of way.  It’s really quite a simple message, that we’re all broken on the inside as a result of the sin that entered the human race through Adam and Eve but that because God loved the world He sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross as the atoning sacrifice for our sin.  Because Jesus was the sinless Son of God, He rose from the dead after three days and now anyone who believes and calls upon His name will be saved.  It’s a simple message and to some it appears to be foolishness, “but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Cor. 1:18).  It’s the greatest message in all the world and one worth sharing!

CC Bible College York

We’ve got a great group of students this semester representing England, America, Israel, Spain, and Finland.  This weekend we will be taking some of them to the British Museum and also to the British Library in London to see some of the biblical artifacts and manuscripts held there.

     This is my fifth semester and each one has a different vibe to it.  I am teaching the Book of Acts and it has been a great blessing.  This past week was speaker’s week where the whole Bible College went to the Yorkshire Dales for a time of seeking the Lord and hearing His voice.  Along this theme, I recently read a great biography of Oswald Chambers (McCasland, David.  Oswald Chambers: Abandoned to God.  Grand Rapids: Discovery House, 1993).  Chambers had a Bible College that operated in London from 1911-15, deciding to close it down shortly after the outbreak of the First World War in order to minister to soldiers in North Africa.  The biography describes a time where Chambers along with his family and students from the Bible College went to Askrigg in the Yorkshire Dales for a time of refreshing.  It’s interesting that we’re doing the same sort of thing in the same place (Redmire is about 7 miles from Askrigg) about a hundred years later.  Seven students were baptized in the Ure River at the end of the week.  

Baptism in the River Ure

Prison Ministry

I have been involved in prison ministry since I arrived in the UK a few years ago.  I recently went through the application process for a paid chaplaincy position which had become available in HMP Humber prison.  I did not get the position but during the interview process I gave a sermon before a panel which included the governor of the prison and the managing chaplain who is a Muslim imam.  In the sermon I gave a clear presentation of the gospel.  I felt like the Lord wanted me to go through the process with my best foot forward and leave the outcome with Him, so that’s what I did.  I still go into the prison monthly with our CC York team and usually either lead worship or teach.  There are some regulars who come to our service every month so we have been able to establish good relationships with them.  The Lord is doing a good work in the lives of some of these prisoners so please keep them lifted up in prayer.

CC York

It’s a tremendous blessing to be a part of the body of Christ here in York.  The church is an interesting blend of Bible College students, university students, and congregants from various parts of Yorkshire.  I’ve had a few opportunities to teach on Sundays this semester and am also involved in leading worship which is one of my favorite things to do.  Some things on the horizon are the CCUK Youth retreat at the end of May followed by the Pastors and Leaders conference.  Pastor Dave is also interesting in doing outreaches this summer in some of the coastal areas.

Hull Outreach

We continue to do outreach in Hull every Friday evening followed by a Bible study.  We are currently studying through I Corinthians.  The Bible study is still small but we’ve had the opportunity to share the message of the Gospel with many people on the streets over the past few years.  Please pray that the Lord would bring increase in His timing from the seed that has been sown.  We plan on outreaching with music again as the weather is warming up.

Bible Study at Victoria Dock, Hull

Prayer Requests

Please pray for our upcoming Pastors and Leaders conference at CC York; the Lord’s blessing on the Bible College and church; our service in HMP Humber prison this Sunday; for the Holy Spirit to be poured out in the UK!  Also, I have been able to connect with my cousins and aunt who live about 2 hours from York; please pray that the Lord would touch their lives!  Many thanks and may the Lord bless you!

About me:

I am currently serving at Calvary Chapel York, England where I teach at the Bible College and serve at the church.  In addition to serving in York, the Lord opened the door in July 2016 to begin a weekly outreach Bible study in the city of Hull, about an hour drive from York.  If you'd like to follow my journey more closely, I have a blog (www.pfgoodwin.blogspot.com) that I've maintained over the past few years since setting out from New Jersey.

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