World Assembly

A team of intrepid travellers from AFES has journeyed to Canada for the IFES World Assembly, a major event held every four years involving representatives from all the IFES groups around the world. They're pictured left, doing a little bit of sight-seeing at Niagara Falls before the World Assembly started - from left to right that's Trish Spencer, Howard Spencer, Tim Thorburn, Richard Chin, Chris Rowe and Tracey Gowing.

Howard has been keeping us up to date with some very encouraging reports, so I thought I'd share them with you over the next couple of days. Please keep the team and the World Assembly in your prayers. It continues this week and wraps up on July 19.

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Day 1
There are so many heavy names here. Samuel Escobar, Lindsay Brown, the General Secretaries from movements all around the world, a video message from John Stott and many others. I think there are about 700 here but some are still trying to get visas to enter Canada. An Australian passport is such a major advantage that we just so easily take for granted.

The opening session had a brilliant DVD which showed all the countries by name as they joined IFES with the year accompanied to music. AFES came up first with our logo large and bold. It was a bit of a shock to be first! Then as the years went by more and more countries joined. It was very humbling to see how God has been working among the nations with the gospel taking root in each country to the ends of the earth. When it got to 2007 and the names of those affiliating this year there was spontaneous applause. Very moving and brought tears of thankfulness to God for his great mission in our world.

We had the usual welcome speeches and Lindsay Brown (outgoing General Secretary) gave a short Bible exposition. We closed by singing How Great Thou Art in English, then French then Spanish and finally finished with everyone singing the chorus in their own language at the same time. It was very moving to be all singing to our great God in all the tongues of the earth. What a mighty God we serve!

Howard Spencer