A large congregation attended the thanksgiving service for David Gilbert on Saturday February 2.
It was held at the new premises of Light and Life church in Helston, in order to accommodate all who wanted to be there to honour a beloved brother in the Lord. His two sons, Tim and Nathan, spoke warmly of their father – of both his strong faith and sense of fun. Brian Watters, fellow elder at Helston Baptist Church, remembered David’s wonderful leadership and Pastor Alan Burns preached a heart-warming gospel message which David himself would have deeply appreciated. David had borne his final illness of pancreatic cancer with great grace.
David Gilbert was one of God’s true gentlemen; always gracious, yet never afraid to be direct; open to all believers, yet firmly committed to the truth of God’s Word; a good speaker, yet a marvellous listener and confidant to many younger men in the ministry.
He was the local Union representative for British Telecom for many years, after a message at a Carey Conference challenged believers to be salt and light in the workplace, and he worked for many years at Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station, near the Lizard.
Church planting
People often talk about church planting but David did it when it was less fashionable, certainly in West Cornwall, and then continued to serve faithfully in the deep west for decades.
He was part of a group that left Redruth Baptist in 1970 to plant Tuckingmill Reformed Baptist. Then he held a house group for a few years, which became Helston Baptist where he served as a wise and capable elder. He also helped people organise work in other locations to ensure gospel fellowships started and thrived.
David could hold together meetings of varied evangelical men with humour and affection. He was instrumental in forming the West Cornwall Evangelical Network meeting for leaders and held the West Cornwall Convention together. One of his greatest contributions was the annual youth camp at Little Trevease, Constantine. Many ex campers were present at the service.
