Being asked to write a short history of my ministry for this website I felt moved to begin with how I was first guided by God to write Christian books. It was August 1972 and my vivacious and gifted mother Ruth Amelia Bingham had recently died. My father Fred who served the Lord as a devoted evangelist and soul -winner died when I was seven.
Moved by my mother’s inspiring Christian faith which constantly encouraged me to serve Christ with whatever gifts he had given me, I decided after her death to leave teaching English at Lurgan College, Co Armagh to give myself to teaching and preaching God’s Word across the world. Through the kindness of a friend I went to stay for a week at the Abbeyglen Hotel in Clifden, Co Galway. Interestingly, Clifden is famous for being near the crash-landing site of the first non-stop trans-Atlantic flight by Alcock and Brown in June 1919. Set between the Atlantic Ocean and the 12 Ben mountains and surrounded by the wider unspoilt beauty of Connemara, I wrote solidly for seven days. It became a little devotional commentary on the book of Ruth entitled Amidst Alien Corn.
I was intrigued by the fact that Ruth, the poverty-stricken, gleaning Moabitess ‘happened’ to turn into that part of a field in Bethlehem that belonged to a man called Boaz. This seeming coincidence led to romance and marriage. Ruth’s great grandson was King David-arguably the greatest poet who ever lived. From that Royal line came the Messiah, who was called David’s Greater Son. Jesus was, of course, born in Bethlehem. All this turned, through God’s care of detail, on Ruth’s going into one part of a field in Bethlehem instead of another around nine hundred years previously. I have always been fascinated by the fact that in life incredibly small beginnings can lead to incredible endings in the good hand of God. The Devil is not in the detail, God is! I have since that seminal writing experience been privileged to write twenty-four books and to preach and teach God’s word around the corner and over the hills and far, far away.
Spiritually and carefully approached by the leadership of the Crescent Church in the University district of South Belfast, I was privileged to begin to teach a weekly Bible Class there in February 1977. What I was not to know was that as each year progressed it was to continue to prove to be a time of unbelievable civil strife. Through it all tens of thousands of people from all walks of life came through that Bible Class. All kinds of people got converted to Christ, even during the singing of hymns. Other people were called to the mission fields of the world and others were to be called as elders and ministers of churches; young people met in the class, fell in love, married and established Christian homes. Even the media picked up on what was going on and took it to a wider audience. Tens of thousands of recordings of the teaching went across the world.
It was my privilege to teach God’s Word over 800 and more Tuesday evenings until 1998. I was staggered at the power of taught Scripture to lead a suffering people to faith in the Lord Jesus, the living Word and to see the transforming power of the Holy Spirit in so many lives. Since being diagnosed with leukemia I have received a virtual avalanche of mail speaking of what God did in lives during those incredible nights. I have literally proved the truth of Scripture that if you go forth weeping (and, yes, it did cause me literal tears), bearing precious seed, you will doubtless come again bringing your sheaves with you. Across eleven of those years I was also highly privileged to teach a monthly Bible Class in Glasgow and later in Edinburgh where the teaching of the Word of God continued to bring eternal fruit.
Inspired after writing the biography of the Ulster philanthropist and entrepreneur DR.TBF Thompson in 1985 I began writing free booklets for what is now the TBF and KL Thompson Trust. These have sought to see in the culture an opportunity for the Gospel. They have been particularly owned of God and I can truthfully say that they have given me the greatest opportunity so far to reach widely diverse people with the best news on earth. Almost daily someone applies for copies from somewhere in the world.
Moving on to join Christchurch, Belfast in 1998, I served as teaching pastor for ten years with a wide responsibility to apply the Scriptures into my own and wider communities. This led not only to teaching the Scriptures at Christchurch but to some deeply inspiring research for further authoring of books as well as filming and radio outreach. Opportunities came to serve the Lord from Tokyo to Tobermore and a lot of places in between! Last year ChristChurch established a team - teaching approach to the church’s Bible teaching programme and I served as part of that team up until my illness this year.
Where to now that my strength is limited and I am under a year’s Chemo treatment? I have felt clearly guided to step down from the teaching team at ChristChurch and to give myself particularly to writing. I am so grateful to the Lord for my church’s support in all I’ve been through and look forward to this amazing opportunity to communicate across the world with writing on this website. Do pray that the Lord will bless it wherever it turns up.
To say that Margaret my wife has been a luxury to love and has been the patient and wise centre of my life and ministry is more than true; it is a reality. Billy Graham once told the story on television of how his wife Ruth had been asked whether, as a Christian, she had ever contemplated divorce. She said ‘No, I’ve never thought of divorce all these 35yers of marriage but I did think of murder a few times!’ Margaret must have often wondered if she had married a public meeting or a bent back over a writing desk but if she has, she has not yet said so! (As the ever inspiring Rev Jim Rea once famously said of his wife Carol -‘when the roll is called up yonder, Carol will be buttering it!’ ).My three daughters Kathryn, Kerrie and Claire have also always stood by me at whatever cost in life and in Christian ministry and I am an extremely fortunate and grateful husband and father.
My grandchildren Jamie and Sophie gloriously get me away from my writing to explore all kind of corners these days and they bring me more joy than they will ever realize.
Currently an Adjunct Professor of English Literature at John Brown University I teach the Irish Literature course to the Irish Studies Semester. Young people come to Northern Ireland from this outstanding American Christian University (see US News and World Report/Best Colleges/Sept 3rd 2009) for a semester and it is my pleasure to look at the moral and spiritual values raised by Irish authors in the light of Kingdom values. My, the times we have together, especially in studying Irish poetry. I begin my 2009 classes on Sept 17th, DV.
