From Darkness to Light
J H Alexander

Publisher:   Gospel Tidings Trust Publications
Format:   Paperback, 86pp
Code:   1449
ISBN:  0 904435 56 3
List Price:  £1.50

The Book on the Window-Sill
‘Damaris’         *CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT* 

Publisher:   Gospel Tidings Trust Publications
Format:   Paperback, 95pp
Code:   2558
ISBN:  0 904435 50 4
List Price:  £2.95

The author of More Than Notion has also compiled this interesting account of the conversion of Charlotte Elizabeth Browne, an accomplished writer of the early 19th Century. It is further enhanced by the subsequent story of her protégé Jack, a deaf and dumb Irish boy, the awakening of his soul, and the progress of his spiritual understanding. 

The stories in this book were gathered and written by Dr Lydia Houghton, fitting this in to her very busy life as a family doctor in an inner city practice in Bristol.  She wrote under the pen-name ’Damaris’ for the Young People’s Page in the Gospel Magazine for over 30 years.  All the stories are true, illustrating God’s mercy and grace in spiritual and temporal blessings. The first in a series of three.

A Link in the Chain
‘Damaris’         *CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT*

Publisher:   Gospel Tidings Trust Publications
Format:   Paperback, 93pp
Code:   1334
ISBN:  0 904435 54 7
List Price:  £2.95

Andrew’s Prayer
‘Damaris’

Publisher:   CBO Publications
Format:   Paperback, 103pp
Code:   2736
ISBN:  1 901918 07 6
List Price:  £3.75

The second in the ‘Damaris’ series - 3 books comprised of short stories originally written by Dr Lydia Houghton for the Young People’s Page of the Gospel Magazine.  All are true stories, and make for good wholesome reading.  Sometimes current events or everyday occurrences are used to build an instructive message.

The third and final book in the ‘Damaris’ series brings a further selection of 26 short stories for young people. Some are set in historical events, but with a contemporary style. Once again the variety of stories and topics covered are designed to simply illustrate ‘the length and the breadth and the depth and height of the love of God’.

Changes for the Better, Volumes 1 & 2
Grace M Alexander  

Publisher:   Gospel Tidings Trust Publications
Format:   Hardback, 139pp / 140pp
Code:   0438 / 0439
ISBN:  0 904435 12 1 / 0 904435 19 9
List Price:  £ 3.00 each

More than Notion
J H Alexander  

Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Paperback, 283pp
Code:   0538
ISBN:  0 904435 79 2
List Price:  £ 4.95

Each volume contains 20 sketches on subjects and personalities of Puritan days. The books abound in interest and instruction, excitement and exhilaration, and can be read to profit by young and old alike who are interested in the history of Christianity in Britain. The topography is made easy by the specially drawn maps, the chronology is made fascinating by the time charts, and there are profuse and relevant illustrations throughout.

An extract from the foreward by Dr D M Lloyd-Jones:
“There are some books of which it can be said that to read them is an experience, and one is never the same again.  The extracts out of the lives of these various people who came in varied ways to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ are, at one and the same time, convicting and encouraging.  Some were poor and ignorant, others well placed socially, and learned and cultured; but all came to the same glorious experience.  In reading about them one is shown the vital difference between a head knowledge of the Christian faith and a true heart experience.”

Marion Veitch
Kenneth W H Howard

Publisher:   Gospel Tidings Trust Publications
Format:   Hardback, 593pp plus appendices
Code:   2220
ISBN:  0 904435 95 4
List Price:  £ 37.50

Autobiography
John Kershaw

Publisher:   Gospel Tidings Trust Publications
Format:   Hardback, 385pp
Code:   2372
ISBN:  0 904435 68 7
List Price:  £ 9.95

It has been noted that the religious literature of Scotland is rich in books of Christian autobiography.  According to Alexander Whyte ‘quite worthy to stand beside those full and finished works’ are the memoirs of women involved in the covenanting period.  One of the foremost was Marion Veitch (1639-1722), wife of the famous William Veitch.  Her spiritual journal is complemented by the more practical ones of her husband.  But this book is far more than a collection of anecdotes, it is set in the context and culture of those times with a massive input of original research.  It is scholarly yet fascinating.  Includes many illustrations and appendices, including 2 sermons by William Veitch.

During his lifetime the name and ministry of John Kershaw were known  far beyond his home town of Rochdale, where he had a pastorate of over 50 years.  His name has often been linked with that of William Gadsby in a ministry which led to the establishment of many Strict Baptist Chapels in Northern England in the 19th Century.  He was from the working classes, and in his inimitable rugged style, Kershaw recounts the story of his own life and the events he witnessed.  There is much, too, of the experience of doctrinal truth in these pages which is of great importance and value.

John Winzer
Samuel Newnam

Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Hardback, 96pp
Code:   0537
ISBN:  0 904435 07 5
List Price:  £ 2.50

North Devon in the early 19th Century was a miserably superstitious and poorly educated rural community, in contrast with its natural beauty.  Here John Winzer was born, born again and became one of the despised ‘Anabaptists’. Not a preacher, but an earnest prayerful farmer, he was central to the work of God in the area which brought spiritual light and led to the establishment of several chapels.  If true zeal for God is to be measured, this book will put many 21st Century Christians to shame.

Apples of Gold Volume 1
Various 

Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Hardback, 292pp
Code:   0106
ISBN:  0 904435 04 0
List Price:  £ 6.00

Heart Surgery
Robert Bolton
(1)
Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Booklet, 16 pp
Code:   0543 (7)
ISBN:  0 904435 02 4
List Price:  £ 1.00

This anthology of Puritan writings mainly represents the smaller and less well known of them. They are precious gleanings from an immense literary output.  The content has been updated slightly for easier reading.  The volume is comprised of bound copies of 8 reprinted booklets, some not now available individually. A second bound volume is sadly now out of print.  Hence the Apples of Gold booklets listed below give an indication in brackets of which volume they belong to.  Each booklet has a full colour cover and also a brief biographical sketch of the author.

Robert Bolton (1572-1631) once heard the famous William Perkins preach and called him ‘a barren empty fellow’. Yet later he was converted and became one of the despised Puritans himself.  At age 36 he was presented with the living of Broughton in Northamptonshire, where he remained preaching and publishing the truth till the end of his life.  Heart Surgery is a sermon on Acts 2:37 ‘Now when they heard this they were pricked in their heart…’

Sinfulness and Cure of Thoughts
Stephen Charnock
(2)
Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Booklet, 24 pp
Code:   0543 (13)
ISBN:  0 904435 42 3
List Price:  £ 1.00

Christ’s Pre-eminence
Tobias Crisp
(1)
Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Booklet, 28 pp
Code:   0543 (8)
ISBN:  0 904435 03 2
List Price:  £ 1.00

Stephen Charnock (1628-1680) needs no introduction to lovers of Puritan writings.  He is justly renowned for his work on the Existence and Attributes of God, which are really only the beginning of a Body of Divinity which he desired to give to the world.  Sinfulness and Cure of Thoughts, most of which is here reprinted, was the only work actually published during his lifetime.  It is based upon Genesis 6:5 ‘...every imagination of the thoughts...only evil continually’.

Tobias Crisp (1600-1642), Rector at Brinkworth, Wiltshire was a well loved preacher of free grace. Inscribed on his pulpit in this village church can still be read ‘Woe be unto me if I preach not the gospel’.  It is a fitting motto for all preachers to be reminded of, and Crisp certainly acted upon it.  The material in this booklet originally appeared as two sermons, and has been edited.  The text is from Colossians 1:18 ‘… that in all things he might have the pre-eminence’.

The Christian on Watch
Thomas Gataker
(1)
Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Booklet, 48pp
Code:   0543 (6)
ISBN:  0 904435 01 6
List Price:  £ 1.00

Mason’s Sayings
John Mason
(1)
Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Booklet, 32pp
Code:   0543 (1)
ISBN:  None
List Price:  £ 1.00

Thomas Gataker (1574-1654), Rector at Rotherhithe, published a total of 48 works and contributed the notes on Isaiah - Lamentations in connection with the KJV Bible translation project. This is an abridgement of The Spiritual Watch on the subject of Mark 13:37 ‘And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.’

John Mason (1646-1694) has been termed ‘a light in the pulpit and a pattern out of it’.  His Sayings show the emphasis of his ministry was truly evangelical. He was the first to mould and popularise the English hymn, and in 1683 published his Spiritual Songs which were highly esteemed by Isaac Watts.  This reprint comprises of a collection of sayings, both devout and practical, classified under useful headings.  Also included are 2 of his hymns.

Jephthah’s Vow
Thomas Taylor
(2)
Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Booklet, 27pp
Code:   0543 (10)
ISBN:  0 904435 14 8
List Price:  £ 1.00

Immanuel
James Usher
(2)
Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Booklet, 37pp
Code:   0543 (12)
ISBN:  0 904435 16 4
List Price:  £ 1.00

Thomas Taylor (1576-1632) was called to preach whilst at Christ’s College, Cambridge.  However as a non-conformist he was ‘silenced’ by his Bishop on a number of occasions for offending remarks.  He is more famous for his Commentary on Titus, but this individual sermon on Judges 11:35 is a well rounded study of Jephthah, and a warning against rash vows.

James Usher (1581-1656) the famous Bible chronologist was converted at 10 years of age and became the youngest student at the newly opened Trinity College, Dublin when only 13. He went on to become Archbishop of Armagh but spent his last years in England, enjoying friendship with men like Sibbes and Preston.  This short work studies a most vital subject, needful in days of liberal theology, of the person of Christ, the God-man.

Praying Always Parts 1 & 2
Nathaniel Vincent
(2)
Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Booklets, 40pp / 38pp
Code:   0543 (14) / 0543 (15)
ISBN:  0 904435 41 5 / 0 904435 40 7
List Price:  £ 1.00 each

Honey out of the Rock
Thomas Willcox
(1)
Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Booklet, 16 pp
Code:   0543 (4)
ISBN:    None
List Price:  £ 1.00

Nathaniel Vincent (1638-1697) a curate of Langley Marish, Buckinghamshire suffered under the great ejection of 1662, and as a practising non-conformist was arrested and imprisoned for a period during 1670.  He lived however to see freedom under William and Mary in 1688. This work is based on Ephesians 1:18 ‘Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit…’ and addresses the topic under various headings such as secret prayer, family prayer and public prayer.  It has been divided between 2 booklets because of its (relative) length.

Thomas Willcox (1621-1687) was a Particular Baptist pastor in Southwark, London.  This tract, written before the Great Fire of London, originally appeared under the full title, A Choice Drop of Honey from the Rock Christ, or, A Short Word of Advice to all Saints and Sinners, and was recommended by William Romaine in his day.  Based on Psalm 81:16, it has proved valuable over the years and has been translated.  It was a force for good in Finland in the 19th Century, where it sparked off a revival under the blessing of the Holy Spirit.

Churches Warned and Encouraged
Kenneth W H Howard 

Publisher:   Gospel Tidings Trust Publications
Format:   Paperback, 104pp
Code:   3016
ISBN:   0 904435 78 4
List Price:  £4.95

Preaching to the Glory of God
Kenneth W H Howard 

Publisher:   Gospel Tidings Trust Publications
Format:   Hardback, 172pp
Code:   3142
ISBN:   0 904435 82 2
List Price:  £12.00

A Spurgeon’s College graduate, Kenneth Howard held various pastorates in Baptist Churches in England.  His last and longest was at Union Chapel, Bethersden, Kent. These sermons on the letters to the 7 churches of Asia were first published individually in the Gospel Tidings magazine. They are characterised by a deeply held conviction that the Word of God must have absolute authority in all aspects of the individual lives of believers, and of the corporate life of the church.

This book is comprised of 23 miscellaneous sermons preached by Kenneth Howard (d. 1992), together with an appreciation of his life by Dr P M Rowell, editor of the Gospel Tidings magazine.  They exhibit expository preaching with subjects varying from children’s instruction to the ministry of angels!  This is traditional reformed theology expressed in a clear modern sermon style.

The Nonsuch Professor
William Secker 

Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Hardback, 150pp
Code:   0535
ISBN:  None
List Price:  £ 2.50

William Secker has left very few personal details to posterity, but as he himself puts it in the Introduction ‘the design of this piece is not the ostentation of the author, but the edification of the reader’.  It was first printed in London in 1660, and is a rare puritan sermon.  Although the title is perhaps not the most illuminating, the subtitle is clearer - the singular actions of sanctified Christians.  Based on Matthew 5:47, it pithily sets out Why a Christian should do more than others, and, What a Christian does more than others.

Poems
Mary Ann Chaplin 

Publisher:   Zoar Publications
Format:   Booklet, 43pp
Code:   0536
ISBN:  None
List Price:  £ 1.00

Mary Ann Chaplin (1844-1922) was of Huguenot descent.  She wrote her first published poetry when only 11 years old, and continued throughout her life, by which time her published works ran to about 12,000 copies.  There is great variety in this selection of her poetry.  Thoughts on Socialism and Biblical Criticism mingle with others on Scriptural Lessons and Christian Experience.  Her style was never flowery, but joined vigour with tenderness.  Children and adults will all find something to suit them here.