28 Aug 2026, 08:51SEC CommunicationsBracknell, Bracknell Forest, England, United Kingdom
SEC Camp Meeting 2026 Day 2: Mission Becomes Personal
The second day of the South England Conference (SEC) Camp Meeting 2026 continued on Thursday, 27 August at Newbold College, beginning with morning exercise before a programme of worship, Bible study and practical workshops that repeatedly returned to one central challenge: mission begins with each individual believer.
During Morning Renewal, Dr Marleena Debrough, Pastor of Willow Grove Seventh-day Adventist Church in Pennsylvania and Director of Women’s Ministries and Prayer Ministries for the Allegheny East Conference, delivered a message entitled ‘When the Church Cares’. Drawing from the story of blind Bartimaeus, she challenged the Church to ensure that it leads people towards Jesus rather than becoming an obstacle to those seeking Him.
Debrough warned against becoming so occupied with church programmes, departments, budgets and agendas that people in need are overlooked. Emphasising that “nobody should be deemed insignificant,” she encouraged members to recognise and respond to those who may be hurting around them.
Bible Study was led by Dr Laszlo Gallusz, Principal Lecturer in New Testament at Newbold College, who explored the apparent delay of the Second Coming and its implications for Adventist faith and mission. He encouraged members to avoid sensationalism around world events and instead live expectantly, focusing on serving, witnessing and embodying the love of Christ while awaiting His return.
During the Word Encounter, Dr Daniel K. Bediako, Associate Director of the Biblical Research Institute at the General Conference, moved from biblical teaching to personal responsibility. He stressed that sharing the gospel cannot simply be left to pastors or church organisations, but is the responsibility of individual believers.
Addressing the challenges of sharing faith in an increasingly secular society, Bediako acknowledged the difficulty while pointing to a greater source of power. “We will not deny the difficulty. But we cannot doubt the possibility,” he said. “What is secularism compared to the power of the Holy Spirit?”
Practical mission was also explored through three concurrent workshops. Personal Ministries Director Pastor Kwadwo Kwarteng-Ampofo led One on One Voice 27, while Sabbath School and Community Ministries Director Pastor Nerrine Barrett presented a workshop on Community Ministries. A third workshop was led by Thembie Mapingire, CCS Coordinator.
Mission in action was highlighted during the evening programme through a report on outreach among Chinese communities. A leader from the Chinese Union Mission shared examples of growing Chinese congregations in European cities and highlighted continuing opportunities for reaching Chinese communities in London and elsewhere in Britain.
That testimony provided a natural introduction to the evening Commitment Service message from Pastor John Bradshaw, President of It Is Written, who argued that being inspired for mission must begin with a personal experience of the gospel.
“For us to be inspired for mission, we must be prepared for mission,” Bradshaw said. “In order to share the gospel, we must possess the gospel.” Taking the congregation through the opening chapters of Romans, he explored the gospel as the power of God for salvation, the reality of sin and the transforming work of Christ in the life of the believer.
Bradshaw also placed the Three Angels’ Messages within that gospel framework, presenting the judgement not as something those in Christ should fear, but as good news because of the pardon and everlasting life found in Jesus. He urged pastors to preach the message clearly and challenged members to allow the gospel to move beyond doctrine into a lived experience of salvation and spiritual growth.
At the heart of that experience, he said, is the Cross. “Somebody had to lift us up out of sin. Somebody had to break the chains. And only Jesus could. And only Jesus did.” Bradshaw pointed to Christ’s sacrifice at Calvary as both the means of salvation and the motivation for sharing it with others.
Bringing the message back to the Camp Meeting theme, Bradshaw stressed that mission must flow from personally experiencing the gospel. Looking ahead to what that could mean beyond Camp Meeting, he declared: “The South England Conference is going to glow with the light that shines from Calvary’s cross… But it’s got to start with us. It has to start with me.”
The second day of the South England Conference (SEC) Camp Meeting 2026 continued on Thursday, 27 August at Newbold College, beginning with morning exercise before a programme of worship, Bible study and practical workshops that repeatedly returned to one central challenge: mission begins with each individual believer.
During Morning Renewal, Dr Marleena Debrough, Pastor of Willow Grove Seventh-day Adventist Church in Pennsylvania and Director of Women’s Ministries and Prayer Ministries for the Allegheny East Conference, delivered a message entitled ‘When the Church Cares’. Drawing from the story of blind Bartimaeus, she challenged the Church to ensure that it leads people towards Jesus rather than becoming an obstacle to those seeking Him.
Debrough warned against becoming so occupied with church programmes, departments, budgets and agendas that people in need are overlooked. Emphasising that “nobody should be deemed insignificant,” she encouraged members to recognise and respond to those who may be hurting around them.
Bible Study was led by Dr Laszlo Gallusz, Principal Lecturer in New Testament at Newbold College, who explored the apparent delay of the Second Coming and its implications for Adventist faith and mission. He encouraged members to avoid sensationalism around world events and instead live expectantly, focusing on serving, witnessing and embodying the love of Christ while awaiting His return.
During the Word Encounter, Dr Daniel K. Bediako, Associate Director of the Biblical Research Institute at the General Conference, moved from biblical teaching to personal responsibility. He stressed that sharing the gospel cannot simply be left to pastors or church organisations, but is the responsibility of individual believers.
Addressing the challenges of sharing faith in an increasingly secular society, Bediako acknowledged the difficulty while pointing to a greater source of power. “We will not deny the difficulty. But we cannot doubt the possibility,” he said. “What is secularism compared to the power of the Holy Spirit?”
Practical mission was also explored through three concurrent workshops. Personal Ministries Director Pastor Kwadwo Kwarteng-Ampofo led One on One Voice 27, while Sabbath School and Community Ministries Director Pastor Nerrine Barrett presented a workshop on Community Ministries. A third workshop was led by Thembie Mapingire, CCS Coordinator.
Mission in action was highlighted during the evening programme through a report on outreach among Chinese communities. A leader from the Chinese Union Mission shared examples of growing Chinese congregations in European cities and highlighted continuing opportunities for reaching Chinese communities in London and elsewhere in Britain.
That testimony provided a natural introduction to the evening Commitment Service message from Pastor John Bradshaw, President of It Is Written, who argued that being inspired for mission must begin with a personal experience of the gospel.
“For us to be inspired for mission, we must be prepared for mission,” Bradshaw said. “In order to share the gospel, we must possess the gospel.” Taking the congregation through the opening chapters of Romans, he explored the gospel as the power of God for salvation, the reality of sin and the transforming work of Christ in the life of the believer.
Bradshaw also placed the Three Angels’ Messages within that gospel framework, presenting the judgement not as something those in Christ should fear, but as good news because of the pardon and everlasting life found in Jesus. He urged pastors to preach the message clearly and challenged members to allow the gospel to move beyond doctrine into a lived experience of salvation and spiritual growth.
At the heart of that experience, he said, is the Cross. “Somebody had to lift us up out of sin. Somebody had to break the chains. And only Jesus could. And only Jesus did.” Bradshaw pointed to Christ’s sacrifice at Calvary as both the means of salvation and the motivation for sharing it with others.
Bringing the message back to the Camp Meeting theme, Bradshaw stressed that mission must flow from personally experiencing the gospel. Looking ahead to what that could mean beyond Camp Meeting, he declared: “The South England Conference is going to glow with the light that shines from Calvary’s cross… But it’s got to start with us. It has to start with me.”
