Susan Greengrass
Member of St Peter and St Paul’s at Burgh Castle
 
I recently attended the first Norwich Anglican Bible Conference which took place at Holy Trinity Church in Norwich.  Holy Trinity is tucked away in the back streets of Norwich and is a real gem.  It has been sensitively and imaginatively altered so that it is an ideal location for training & events (such as this conference) whilst also retaining the heart of the church for worship.  The church has a beautiful wooden altar pieces depicting the last supper.


The conference was organised by a committee of local clergy who were “seeking to bring depth to the ministry of Biblical teaching”.  The speaker for the day was the Reverend Jonathan Fletcher.  Jonathan is a founding trustee of the Proclamation Trust (an evangelical Christian association) and he has recently retired after 30 years as Vicar of Emmanuel Church, Wimbledon.
The conference was a fascinating event which included four teaching sessions along with prayer and praise throughout the day.  Our praise was led by a group of very accomplished musicians with an amazing flautist. The prayers were led by different members of the clergy including Rev. Martin Young from St Andrews Church, Norwich.


Jonathan’s talks were so very interesting and thought-provoking, each session was different and yet the common theme throughout was the joy of spreading the word of God. He also injected a little humour at times however, he never deviated from inspiring us with his words, his teaching and his passionate faith.
Each table of 6+ attendees was encouraged to discuss and debate after each session and our table was blessed with Simon (from Holy Trinity Church) who led us with some very deep questioning.  We were also very fortunate to have the author Dr John Clements sat with us.
The sessions were:
 

1. The Bible Teacher Holds the Keys – Ephesians 4

• The keys are unity, maturity, evangelism and holiness ensuring we empower others with our ministry. 

2. The Bible Teacher has Great Ambition – Malachi 2

• Every teacher must listen to the voice of God, spend quiet times with the Lord, pray, read & study the bible, always remembering to honour and glorify God’s name.

3. The Bible Teacher has Supreme Motivations – 2 Corinthians

• Teaching preparation eg what is the passage saying?, why is it saying it in this way? etc.

4. The Bible Teacher faces Real Challenges – 2 Timothy

• Explaining, evangelism, equipping people for life, guarding & being faithful to the gospel (remember the devil murders with lies!). Remembering Jesus “dead is the soul that has ceased to be amazed by his death at Calvary” and never forgetting that God is faithful and he will restore us.

I left the conference feeling that I had gained & learnt a great deal and am sure my fellow attendees felt the same. 


There is a saying we are never too old to learn, and as we continue our journey with Christ I am sure we can all continue to learn and take great joy in the word of the Lord.