Foreward by Gregg Haslan, Senior Minister

Westminster Chapel, Buckingham Gate, London SW1E 6BS

Gregg Haslan Westminster Chapel, London.

Below I’ve added what I’d like to say to commend your book if its not already to late for it appear in a brand new edition:

“David Clarke tells the story of his troubled violent past and his extraordinary life, in such a way that it re-tells the story of Jesus’ love that’s available for us all. Christ has the power to renew and reclaim anyone’s wasted years, no matter what we’ve done, or how deep our shame. He can re-launch our lives on a brand new future that we could never have planned for ourselves.”

Hope this helps!

Your friend,

Greg--

February 2013

Tel: 020 7834 1731

Website: www.westminsterchapel.org.uk

Dear David,

My overall view was that it was a great story that truly honours Christ and the power of the Gospel. Strangely, as you recorded your early years in Lancashire, with vivid descriptions of life in the 1950’s in rough neighbourhoods, it brought back many scenes in my childhood and teenage years growing up in a very disadvantaged and violent area of Liverpool called Bootle (‘Where they play ‘tic’ with hatchets!’).

Both of our church and school experiences were remarkably similar. I came from a broken home, where my mother fled from my father’s violence, and divorced him in 1959. So we lived in a single parent family until she met and married my stepfather some years later. Wonderfully, I got saved through the witness of two friends, one of whom invited me to hear Billy Graham in 1967. My life was radically turned around, and has been ever since!

So it was fascinating to read your story. I do hope you can bring out another edition, but I would strongly urge you to try and find a good editor who can correct spellings and even tidy up many sentences for greater flow and clarity. There are many improvements that could be simply adjusted, that would greatly enhance the text so that it is free of these typos, spelling mistakes, and some clumsy expressions. Other than this, I thought the book was very powerful as a testimony to Jesus, and proof of the total life-change He can effect by His grace.

Your early opportunities to preach, vividly brought back to me the first chances I had to do this after hearing John Stott at the Keswick Convention in four hour-long ‘Bible Reading’ preaches he gave on 2 Timothy in 1969. I trace my call to preach to those ‘magic’ hours listening to his teaching on Paul and Timothy that week. Soon after, I started preaching aged 17yrs, as a Baptist. I did this both in my home church, and in little Independent Methodist churches in the Wigan area, after we’d moved out from Liverpool due to the demolition of our ‘slum’ (as the Council called it), and I’ve been preaching ever since. I’ll soon be 60 yrs old.

So thank you for your story. It greatly encouraged me.

Rev. Greg Haslam