The roots of Newfrontiers – a personal reflection pt 6. A Team is born

Baptism of the Spirit, Coastlands, David Holden, Downs Bible Week, Newfrontiers, News, Team, Terry Virgo
Wise counsel One of our speakers at the first two Downs Bible Weeks in 1979 and 1980 was Bryn Jones, visionary and apostolic leader of Harvestime, later to become Covenant Ministries International (CMI). He had pioneered much through the ’70s and had taken a lot of ‘flack’ for his stance on the baptism of the Spirit, teaching about the five-fold ministries of Ephesians 4 being relevant for today, and so on. To some extent we were caught up in his slipstream.   During Downs 80 Bryn told Terry how he had been observing his ministry and was concerned on two fronts: first that he was in danger of ‘burning out’ and second that he needed complementary gifting around him to share the burden of ministry. He advised him to follow what…
Read More

The roots of Newfrontiers – a personal reflection pt 5. Bible Weeks

Dales Bible Week, Downs Bible Week, Newfrontiers, News
Gathering momentum Something was happening across the nation. The ‘charismatic movement’, which rooted back to the early sixties in the UK, was now gathering momentum and house churches were springing up in many places. Through the seventies a new phenomenon was taking place in the UK, summer Bible Weeks. The Keswick Convention had, of course, been blessing people for many decades but now something fresh was happening in the charismatic wing of the church. This new phenomenon drew hundreds of people to gather with tents and caravans on some large tract of land – an agricultural showground or a racecourse perhaps – and meet daily in marquees for a week’s teaching. Personally, we attended the Capel Bible Week (successor to the Abinger Convention), on the land of the Elim Bible College, from…
Read More

A new website for Newfrontiers

Books, David Devenish, David Holden, Downs Bible Week, Guy Miller, New Ground, Newfrontiers, News, Regions Beyond, Steve Oliver, Terry Virgo
Gains and losses In recent weeks I have sought to give an overview of some of the apostolic spheres. The feedback has been very encouraging. People clearly seem to enjoy catching up with other members of the Newfrontiers family. So I was particularly delighted to learn recently that a new website has been launched. The transition five years ago was essentially positive – to see Terry Virgo’s reflections on this go to my last blog – but it did also have some negative aspects. Particularly, ‘decentralisation’ and the necessary closure of the Magazine resulted in easy access to news from around the world substantially evaporating. A hunger for news This desire for information from across the spheres still existed in the hearts of many people who have enjoyed the international fellowship. So,…
Read More

The excitement of déjà vu!

Commission, Downs Bible Week, Newday, News
Our history In 1979 the first Downs Bible Week was launched at Plumpton Racecourse in Sussex, UK. There were 2900 who camped there on that occasion. Over the next ten years this grew to 8,500 until, in 1988, God told us to close the Bible Week and ‘take the Downs to the nation’. This resulted in the Enjoying God’s Grace tour (fondly called the EGG tour!) with a weekend conference in 16 cities. Meanwhile, for two years a youth event was held at Plumpton, More than Conquerors, the forerunner of Newday. In 1991 the Stoneleigh Bible Week was launched in the heart of the UK, near Coventry. Starting with 8,500 this grew to 28,000 over eleven years. Then God told us to ‘Go!’, a commission that has taken us from…
Read More

Moving on – some reflections. Part 2 – Entering Full time ministry

Clarendon Church, Downs Bible Week, News, Terry Virgo
I believe that full time ministry is more a function of practicalities than a calling. It is not a status or promotion, but a necessity when it is not possible to carry out what God has called us to without devoting more time than is possible while pursuing a secular job. Twice God had spoken to me about being in ‘full time ministry’; once when I was 9 years old and again in 1974 while leading a research team in a paediatric hospital. I mentioned this to Terry in 1978 in a crowded context. He did not respond so I assumed that he had not heard and I did not repeat myself. However, I was later to discover that it had registered, as we shall see! Downs Bible Week  In 1979…
Read More