British Autumn Conference
by Breda Sunderland

A thread that ran through the British October Conference was the significance of the detail in God’s plan. That began to emerge soon after we gathered together at Hothorpe Hall in Leicestershire.

On Friday evening friends–new and old–from the U.K., the U.S. and Ireland-shared testimony.

Later those who had personally met Norman Grubb shared their memories with those of us who know him through his writings and through those who faithfully share his insight into the truth of "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Coll :27).

Brett Burrowes’ teaching sessions–one on Saturday and another on Sunday morning–were most revealing. Having made the point of how ordered creation was and how exactly Genesis 1 records God’s precise boundaries within His creation, Brett continued by explicating the Fall, recorded in Genesis 3. He emphasised how after Adam and Eve fell for the lie of independent self-"you will be like God" (Gen. 3:5)-that in God’s wrath was His mercy. God exposed Adam and Eve to themselves and though they feared that exposure (embodied so powerfully in their realisation of their nakedness) God in His mercy covered their nakedness, by sacrificing animals for their skins. Realising God’s grace in exposing our sin-so that through repentance and the Cross we may be freed from it-was a very central part of the weekend.

Although Brett’s main focus was on Paul’s letter to the Romans, he again reiterated the orderliness in the detail of God’s creation when he explored Leviticus 10 and reminded us that with-out the honest confession of sin (i.e. honesty in the detail), Christ’s blood is ineffective in an individual’s life.

Our refusal to confess our sins honestly is in fact a determination to continue in them.

During the weekend we witnessed the freedom that comes through the blood of Christ when there is honest confession of and repentance from particular sin. Saturday evening’s study of Norman’s The Key to Everything was a timely opportunity to re-affirm the joyous truth of our spirit union with Jesus Christ.

On Saturday afternoon we visited the nearby village of Weedon–the home of a number of quaint little antique shops. At this point, suffice it to say that some purchases were made-at bargain prices-before we headed for afternoon tea! Next day we visited the home of Jim and Meryl Langley in Northampton. Their house embodies the difference that attention to detail makes. The decor, furnishings and accessorising of 11 Jackson Close-the inspiration of Page Prewitt-is a wonderful expression of the fruits of the Spirit. The antiques purchased on the previous day tastefully enhanced the evolving beauty of the fellowship home. At Jackson Close perfection is manifestly in the detail.

The weekend conference encompassed so much more. The youth programme focused on peer pressure and the solid biblical teaching of Romans 12:2, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."

Many of us came seeking input and Christ’s light through His vessels on current situations as diverse as changing job and moving house to children’s education. In all of these situations Christ through his vessels took the time to look at the "nitty-gritty" details of individual situations. There was support and encouragement for a daughter who is standing in the gap for her dying father and the testimony of a death-bed con-version from one whose intercession for her sister has recently been completed. No doubt these unfolding situations will be testimonies to the rich tapestry of our lives in Christ.