Thanksgiving at Louth
On Saturday 15 May, the renovated Louth Evangelical Church building hosted its thanksgiving and anniversary service.
The wooden building was full to capacity with prayer partners, plus many voluntary workers and financial encouragers from churches across Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire and Hull.
It was a wonderful outpouring of thanks, a celebration of the Lord’s faithfulness and providence to the former ‘People’s mission’, now Louth Evangelical Church, over 57 years.
It was a scene too of our praise for the guiding and refreshing of the Lord’s witness here, for his convicting, leading and strengthening in the renovation work on our old wooden building. The work was carried out over several months by faithful folk from as far afield as Surrey.
The building had previously been used for prisoners of war – now it is set aside for ‘prisoners of Christ’, and for the things of his kingdom. Our testimony is that the Lord is our motivation and strength, and his is all the glory.
The warm day meant that our windows were opened and, if the renovated building and overflowing car park were not witness enough to casual neighbours, then the sound of many voices lifted in praise to God surely was. ‘Oh, for a thousand tongues’ was one of the hymns chosen by Roger Hitchings of East Leake, Leicestershire, who led all three weekend meetings. The scripture passage for all three services was John 2:1-12.
The sermons explored Christ in his first miracle laying down a marker of the way God deals with man; and Christ’s work in quickening and drawing us through the miracle of the new birth worked in our hearts. It defies our understanding, yet blesses us with abundance if we trust these words: ‘All that [Jesus] says to you, do it’.
Brian Charnock
