The renowned public speaker who has shared the gospel message at conferences, churches and stadiums across the globe, celebrated 40 years of ministry on Monday.

Reflecting on his years of service he said he was filled with “gratitude and surprise” at how God has used him.

Writing on his blog, he said: “There is so much to be thankful for. No Christian – and certainly no one who is publicly engaged in proclaiming the good news of Jesus – can take such a period for granted.

“Somehow, in spite of myself, God has been gracious not just over days or even years but decades!”

In 1998, J. John received a Lambeth MA from the former Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey, in recognition of Church Growth and Evangelism.

Carey said he regarded J. John as a speaker of “national and international repute.”

In 2017, J. John hosted the first JustOne event, a conference focused on proclaiming the gospel, at Emirates Stadium in London.

Speaking to Premier before the event, J. John said “When I was speaking at Winchester Cathedral I felt the Lord say, ‘It’s time to preach my good news in the football stadiums again.'”

The event, which church-goers were encouraged to fill with their non-Christians friends, was attended by over 23,000 people and was watched by 250,000 online.

Portsmouth churches and ministries will be partnering with J. John for another JustOne event at Guildhall in April…

The event is seen as a rival gathering to the Lambeth Conference which Justin Welby will host next year.

While all Anglican bishops have been invited to the Lambeth Conference on 27th July – 1st August 2020, some have suggested they won’t attend in protest at what they perceive as a move towards a more liberal position on sexuality within the Anglican Communion.

In a statement announcing the GAFCON event, leaders said: “On the one hand, we have no interest in attempting to rival Lambeth 2020. On the other hand, we do not want our bishops to be deprived of faithful fellowship while we wait for order in the Communion to be restored.

“Therefore, we have decided to call together a meeting of bishops of the Anglican Communion in June of 2020. The conference will be primarily designed for those who will not be attending Lambeth, but all bishops of the Anglican Communion who subscribe to the Jerusalem Declaration and Lambeth Resolution I.10 are invited to join in this time of teaching, worship, and fellowship.”

In a question to Dame Caroline Spelman, who represents the Church in Parliament, Tory MP Sir John Hayes asked whether Justin Welby plans to join the meeting in Rwanda.

In her response, she said: “At previous meetings of the Global Anglican Future Conference the Archbishop of Canterbury has been represented by a diocesan bishop of the Church of England.

“No decision has yet been taken by the Archbishop of…

Caroline Spelman, who liaises between the Church of England and Parliament, will stand down at the next general election.

The Conservative MP for Meriden has held her seat in the West Midlands since 1997 and has also been the Secretary of State for Environment and had many shadow ministerial roles.

Explaining her reasons for stepping down on Premier’s News Hour, she said: “I’ve been a member of parliament for 22 years and I’ve never really noticed a period quite like what we’ve been through over the last couple of years, it’s been very difficult.

“One of the main reasons I’ve given is that I have suffered a lot of abuse – online, in writing, verbally, and it’s been directed at me and my family and my staff and I really think it’s got to stop.

“I’ve worked hard to try to avoid a no deal Brexit because I saw the evidence of the impact it would have on the area where I live, because the West Midlands is the major exporting region to the EU, but that drew a lot of very, very abusive emails and I just feel we’ve had enough.

“I feel I’ve made the right decision, I’ve put the national interest first.”

Dame Caroline Spelman voted with the government throughout Theresa May’s battle over Brexit with the Commons and was the author of an amendment on giving expression to the majority of parliament.

She voted with Boris Johnson’s government on Tuesday night, when several of her…

The Canadian singer, who became famous when he was 13, shot to fame quickly after being discovered and, despite huge popularity, also got much media criticism for the mistakes he made in his youth.

He acknowledged in his post that he had a lot of money, clothes, cars and awards but says he was not satisfied and felt an enormous burden, saying: “when you add the pressure of stardom it does something quite unexplainable to you”.

He described how his world was “flipped on its head” and he was being “praised left and right by the world with millions saying how much they loved me and how great I was”.

However, he admitted that he started doing drugs at 19 and “abused all of my relationships…became resentful, disrespectful to women, and angry.”

The celebrity, who now attends a Hillsong church and is married to model Hailey Baldwin, added: “It’s taken me years to bounce back from all of these terrible decisions, fix broken relationships, and change relationship habits. Luckily god blessed me with extraordinary people who love me for me.

“Now I am navigating the best season of my life MARRIAGE!!” which he said was teaching him “patience, trust, commitment, kindness, humility and all the things it looks like to be a good man”.

He concluded: “even when the odds are against you keep fighting. Jesus loves you…LOVE PEOPLE TODAY NOT BY YOUR STANDARDS BUT BY GOD’S PERFECT…

Last year the Christian singer won a case against the BBC for its live coverage of a raid on his property in Sunningdale, Berkshire in 2014 when police were investigating an alleged historical sex offence.

The performer, who always denied any wrongdoing, was never arrested or charged. He described the last four years of his life as “murderous”.

In July, the High Court awarded Sir Cliff £210,000 in damages after ruling that the corporation had infringed upon his privacy in a “serious and sensationalist way”.

However, the singer has said he is still “substantially out of pocket”, after spending around £4.5m to clear his name.

A spokesman for Sir Cliff released a statement saying: “Sir Cliff incurred these costs over a five-year period as a direct result of the actions of the BBC and South Yorkshire Police.

“He is of course glad that an agreement about costs has now been reached. Ultimately, however, Sir Cliff is substantially out of pocket (a seven figure sum), not least because there are costs that he has not sought to recover from the parties.”

The BBC has paid a further £315,000 to South Yorkshire Police to cover their legal costs.

New legal precedents were established as a result of the case, to deter news outlets from naming individuals who are under investigation but have not yet been charged.

As a result of the events, Sir Cliff launched a campaign for an Anonymity Bill, to make it illegal to publicly name alleged perpetrators before charges have…

Nine fire crews were called to St Mary the Virgin in Wimbotsham, near Downham Market after the blaze coming from the church roof was reported at 6:00am Wednesday morning.

Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service put the fire out by 10am, part of the building was saved, but a spokesperson from the fire service said the majority had been “100 percent damaged”.

Station manager Terry Pinto said: “We have been able to save some of the building through early intervention but it is a very sad day.

“Unfortunately the majority of the church is 100 percent damaged.”

Wimbotsham parish councillor Anne Smith, whose mother is buried at the church, said it was very important to the village.

She said: “It is so sad, the church is really, really important to the village. Everybody has tried to pull together to make sure it stays here but now we have had this fire. It is just dreadful.”

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