Dear Cornerstone Family,
Thanks to all of you who attended The Praying Life Seminar last weekend with Rev. Dax Gibson from Oak Mountain Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, AL. It was a wonderfully rich time of instruction and prayer practice based on Paul Miller’s excellent work, A Praying Life. If you missed the seminar, do not despair! There will be several opportunities over the next few months to glean the foundational teachings from the seminar and the book.
On that note, please pop by the Cornerstone Bookshelf in the Fellowship Hall this morning—there are copies of A Praying Life for purchase. In addition, there are quite a few new titles available, including several seasonal offerings like Tim Chester’s Our Radiant Redeemer and Jonathan Gibson’s O Sacred Head, Now Wounded. Don’t leave today without adding to your library!
Speaking of guest speakers, it was a treasure to have my dear friend and one of our supported church planters, Rev. Andy Young, with us this past Wednesday night. In 2018, Rev. Young was called by the Evangelical Presbyterian Church of England and Wales (EPCEW) to begin the work of planting Oxford Presbyterian Church in England. The Lord has slowly but surely—and certainly more significantly over the last three years—grown the work of ministry. Today, Oxford Presbyterian Church has well over a hundred worshippers on any given Sunday, including upwards of 60 university students who meet for their college student fellowship meeting during the week.
In 2023, Oxford Pres. Church secured a long-term lease (a very hard thing to do) on the North Gate Hall on St. Michael’s St. right at the center of the city. Originally a Methodist chapel built in 1871, the building was used for nearly 60 years as the Oxford Intercollegiate Christian Union before becoming a community center and later a pub. It’s a beautiful sight to see this lovely old church building restored to its original purpose under the ministry Rev. Young and Oxford Presbyterian Church.
Please pray for Rev. Young and for Oxford Presbyterian and for the UK more generally. The UK is showing signs of spiritual renewal. Having been there three years ago, I can testify firsthand to the growing spiritual hunger in the UK—especially among the younger generation. Oxford Pres. is strategically positioned to make a strong impact for the gospel in a place where the greatest minds from all over the world come to study. Which means that to make an impact for Christ in Oxford is to make an impact for Christ on the world.
As we pray for the gospel to spread in the UK and all over the world, don’t forget to pray for the ministry right here at Cornerstone. Pray even right now for this worship service—that the gospel would go forth with clarity and power. Pray that, by God’s grace, today would be the day of salvation for someone, maybe many, in this room, in overflow, and through the livestream.
Until Christ becomes the praise of all the earth!
Your servant,
