Around 150 members of the Crieff Fellowship gathered at Crieff Hydro over three days in January to benefit from the ministries of Dr Liam Goligher and Neil Powell.
Liam Goligher gave four powerful and profoundly insightful addresses from the book of Psalms (with, against the backdrop of Psalm 8, a detour in the second address into Proverbs 8) which stretched the minds and warmed the hearts of those privileged to be present, enabling us to ‘fix our eyes on Jesus’.
Spirit and scholarship
Quite apart from the rich fare served up in the content, the manner of his ministry was itself a compelling reminder to all of the need that the preacher has to be marked by both a painstaking scholarship and the anointing of the Spirit. Neither on its own is sufficient in ministering God’s Word, and Liam’s ministry was perhaps, apart from anything else, a timely reminder of the need for that Spirit-empowered depth to the preaching of the Word.
Neil Powell led two sessions on the theme of Gospel Partnership. Over two significant sessions, and in a thoroughly practical way, he worked through with us the Why, What and How of gospel partnership. He underlined the necessary core values of compassion, generosity and humility, each seen supremely in Jesus himself, and he helpfully explained different levels of gospel partnership before offering some guidelines as to how such partnerships can be created.
Challenge to ‘tribalism’
In a day when increasingly such partnership in gospel work is finding expression along theological rather than denominational lines, the sessions he led were both a great encouragement and at the same time a significant challenge to an evangelicalism in Scotland which has often been marked by a certain ‘tribalism’.
Beyond the input of these two men, there was the very real blessing of renewed friendship and fellowship over the three days – for all of which thanks is given to the Lord.
