Each evening there are central events for all the CU’s. I am speaking on three different films – tonight was Lord of the Rings. The venue was really cool – red carpet, nice sofas, popcorn machine etc. I enjoyed speaking on it and bringing out the Gospel themes from the story. Hoping that the numbers will grow now as the week goes on. Tomorrow is Inception and thinking about guilt and then Thursday is Shawshank Redemption and the subject of freedom.

Please pray for the CU’s to get really involved and to be bold in inviting their friends along. Pray for an encouraging response that encourages them that the Gospel really does work. Please pray for my evening talks as I am still finishing the preparation and they are totally new!

The CU had been very bold in organising events where the gospel was clearly communicated, not as a ‘tack on’ but as the main attraction. Although some had wondered if this would work we saw the fruit of it as the week went by. The CU normally have about 50 people at their weekly meetings but by the Thursday night we had 150 coming to the evening cafe to heat the talk on the resurrection. Day after day we saw people coming back to hear more.

Several professed faith through the week which was really encouraging. But most staggering of all was that over 80 signed up for the follow up course. Rarely have I seen so many sign up over a week, even in much bigger CU’s. I think one of the keys was that people knew they were coming to hear a talk each day and so came ready to listen and engage with what was said. Another key was the continuity of venue and format which meant that people came back each day once they had seen what it was like.

There were so many positive reactions to what we had done. One atheist commented at the end of a lunch bar talk ‘I’m not convinced yet but I really enjoyed this event. You fed us well, the talk was really interesting and the event was the best I have ever seen organised by any society.’

It was also really good to see the CU make the most of the opportunity with international students. Each night they held an international meal with a shorter talk in simpler english. Each night good numbers came and quite a few came along to the main event after as well.

It was an exciting week – but the next few weeks could be even more so. I’m praying that there will be many more who will come to know Jesus as a result of the mission.

But please keep praying. I sense there is a battle going on and there are many that seem unmoved. We have two days left and I long to see hearts as well as minds really engaged by Jesus. Pray for increased responsiveness over these last two days of talks. Pray for those who have come already to come back. Pray especially for tomorrow lunch times talk on suffering – that people will be struck by the fact that God now only feels our pain but offers real hope. Pray also for energy – three talks a day is demanding when you want to be fresh and engaged with each one. Pray especially for energy to speak well with individuals after and to discern how best to answer their questions and point them to Jesus.

At lunch time I spoke twice on ‘Skeptical about God – does he even exist?’. About 50 came to each talk and there were good questions and discussions after. 8 people signed up to find out more.

In the early evening there is an event for international students with a meal from a different part of the world each night. My friend Julia is speaking at each of these. Pray that she can clearly and wisely explain the gospel in way that is both understood and seen to be beautiful.

Then tonight we had the first evening event in a pub function room which was decked out really nicely to make it feel like a really chilled cafe. Great music and nice food greeted people and then I spoke on ‘Myth, Man Prophet or God – Who was Jesus?’ Again the room was filled with about 50 people and there were good questions afterwards.

Please pray that the CU would grow in their confidence and the enthusiasm as the week goes by. Pray that the numbers at all the events double by the end of the week. Please pray for many to sign up for follow up and for others to clearly trust Christ.

If you want to see the events for the rest of the week check out the CU webpage here.

Last week I was in Exeter for the first mission of the year. The week was entitled ‘Jesus for skeptics’ and lots of skeptics and seekers came along to find out more. Each day the numbers grew as more and more people came back and brought their friends. The evening cafe style events were particularly encouraging with really good questions after each talk and encouraging responses. By the end of the week over 60 had signed up  for follow up and several had professed faith. Pray on for the follow up – especially the Christianity Explored course that starts this Thursday.

A particular encouragement was meeting one girl who had been to every event that I spoke at this year in Exeter. After each event she had come to ask questions and after the Wednesday night talk on the resurrection she put her trust in Jesus. It was great to see her coming right through over the course of the year and a privilege to be a part of it.

Firstly, it is impossible to predict quite how a week will go. That’s one of the adventures of mission. Sometimes a week will surpass expectations and other times it will be the opposite. However, there were several factors that I think did make a difference, but the biggest was this:

Expectation

At both Bath and Cardiff there was a real sense of expectation for what the Lord could and would do. I often share with the CU from the end of Acts 17 and look at the kind of response that we could expect to see – some reject the gospel (but don’t give up!), some need to hear more (so put on follow up) but some will believe (so be ready to disciple them!). I think often the expectation for people to believe has often been lost. So we pitch all our mission efforts and prayer into simply trying to get people to explore further. This means that we don’t pray for conversions. But it also means that often we don’t plan a mission in such a way that people could respond – the talks are too short and tacked on at the end of the evening. They are aimed at simply generating interest not drawing people to Christ and to repentance and faith. So with both Bath and Cardiff we spent time building some Biblical expectations for what we would see happen rather that just presuming that it had to be the same as the year before. Then started to plan and pray accordingly.

Diligent Planning

Both CU’s appointed mission planning teams and worked hard to cover all the details. There was an attention to detail and a diligence in the preparations that really made a difference. There is no short cut here. Good missions take serious effort. Planning meetings may not be the most exciting meetings in the world  but they lead to exciting missions as a result! I have written a mission planning document that goes through all the details of what will need to happen. This is being produced by UCCF or you can get an electronic version from me in the meantime.

Expectant Prayer

Cardiff spent a week in prayer in the build up to their mission. Both CU’s packed out the early morning prayer meeting. Everything else flowed from this. I have never seen a fruitful mission where the prayer meetings were badly attended. It has two benefits – firstly – God answers prayer – so when we pray God works. But also it motivates the CU – if you can get them praying at 7:30 in the morning then there is much more chance that they will put legs to their prayers and bring people to events and invite their friends.

Great CU Guests

At both places we had a big team of CU guests made up of relay workers, church workers and students and IFES staff from other countries. These were a real blessing and help to have around for the week and really made a difference.

Events where the talk is central

At all the events, while there was often food and music the central place was given to the talk. So each event had at least 20 -  40 minutes of the gospel being communicated. I find that events where people know they are coming to hear a talk are much more fruitful than when the talk is tacked on the side. It also takes time to communicate the gospel well. It is not suprising that if we only give people 5 or 10 minutes they are not in a position to respond to the gospel. They need time to understand it and for the objections to be dealt with as well. It is ironic that in a generation that is less biblically literate than many previous ones, we respond by giving people less time to hear the gospel – when they actually need more!

Keeping talks central didn’t mean the events were boring – the venues looked great, the food tasty and the music top quality. But people knew they were coming to hear a talk and everything else served that purpose.

Talks where Jesus is preached and an opportunity to respond is given

We worked on talk titles that would legitimately allow us to really get to the heart of the gospel and speak about Jesus. Some talks, for instance on the subject of science, are interesting but aren’t the best for a mission week event. They are better to deal with in the weeks before.

After nearly every talk we gave a three-fold challenge. To the atheist and sceptic we challenged them to read a gospel for themselves. For the unconvinced we got them to sign up for a follow up course starting the week after. But for those who were ready we gave the opportunity to respond by giving a prayer of response that we invited people to join in. We then encouraged them to indicate that they had done so on the feedback so we could plug them into another course that would get them started in the Christian life. Sometimes we don’t see response because we never give people the opportunity to do it! Follow up courses are great but Jesus command was not to go to another follow up course but to repent and believe. Even for those who were not ready to do so, the prayer modelled the kind of response that is ultimately required.

After the great start things just continued to build as the week went on. The lunch time talks were packed out each day and the evenings similarly grew. We blew the budget on the food with so many coming along but the Lord provided in incredible ways with cheques being dropped in to the prayer meetings to more than cover the increased cost!

Wednesday was a real breakthrough. There were some concerns after Tuesday and some people had felt discouraged for a number of reasons. We were also worried that national strikes would effect the numbers coming along to the events. During the CU guest meeting in the morning we felt moved to pray more than usual and sensed the Lord with us in a special way. That lunch time not only did the numbers stay up but we also saw six people profess faith after the talk. That evening the church was packed and a number came to faith including the housemate of my host for the week. It was incredible to see the change in him from the start to the end of the week. The gospel really does change lives! If you had asked me at the start of the week who was least likely to respond to the gospel I would have picked him!

By Friday morning we were simply left reeling in all the Lord had done. 60+ signed up for follow up. 25 indicated they had trusted Christ. What a week! What a gospel! Thanks for being a part of it!

Last night we had the first central evening event. After the initial venue fell through with only a week to go Highfields Church had kindly allowed there building to be transformed for the week into a jazz cafe. We had drama, films clips, music, food, a testimony and Michael Green spoke on ‘Convinced Jesus was just an average guy?’ After about 7 or 8 indicated that they had professed faith and others signed up to find out more.

Tonight we’ll be looking  at the crucifixion and then tomorrow at the resurrection both at the lunch bar and the evening event. It’s really clear that the Lord is at work… the numbers coming along and the response so far is unprecedented. Keep praying!

Yesterday I preached at the wedding of my good friend, Pete Yates. it was great to be with him and Colleen for the big day and a privilege to speak at the service. I herd some really encouraging comments from those who didn’t know Jesus but who were really struck by what they heard.

Tonight I arrived in Cardiff ready for the big joint universities mission ‘ Convinced?’

There will be events across all the Cardiff Universities and colleges. I will speak each lunch time at the Cardiff University lunch time talks and on Monday and Thursday at the international student meals. Michael Green will speak each night Monday – Thursday at the main evening events hosted at Highfields Church – but for the week it will be transformed into a very cool cafe. There is a big team of CU guests from across Wales, the rest of the UK and as far away as Serbia.

Do pray for the week that we would see the Lord at work in the lives of many people. Please pray for energy and freshness for me as my energy levels are already quite but I am very encouraged and excited to get going.

It’s been a very encouraging week so far. Each morning the chaplaincy has been packed with CU members meeting to pray for the day and for their friends. This really is the powerhouse of the mission. I’ve never seen a fruitful mission without a well attended prayer meeting.

Lunch bars and evening events have been packed out. We had people crammed into every square inch of the room on Monday for the pudding party. More chairs were needed for today as lunch time talk and every table in the church was commandeered for the quiz as more than expected turned up.

Students have been bold and courageous in their evangelism – many of them inviting friends and hall mates for dinner and then getting a CU guest to share the gospel and answer questions.

We have had a great team of CU guests – 16 in all – from different parts of the UK and the world (Canada and Bulgaria). The Bulgarians were excited to meet a whole group of students from their own country and have organised to meet up for meals so they can talk more about Jesus.

Best of all, we have seen students professing faith each day. Others have grown in there interest and have signed up for the follow up while others have come back day after day to find out more. One girl that we had specifically prayed for came back tonight. Another guy I chatted to last night came back again this evening and was very close to trusting Jesus. Another guy came back even though his Christian friends couldn’t come because he had been so impressed by what he had heard.

Tomorrow we have a lunch time talk on the subject of hell and on Friday on the cross. Tomorrow night is the last main evening event, a curry night in town. So far we have 250 down to come and more may well turn up – a fantastic opportunity. Apparently there are more than they can get into one room so the talk will be relayed with a video link to the other rooms (bit like a Billy Graham mission!).

Thanks so much for your prayers. Hope you are encouraged at being a part of what the Lord is doing here. I know I am. Keep praying for an even more fruitful last two days.