Good news people in a bad news world
Mark Greenwood introduces the heartbeat behind this year’s Elim Evangelism Conference
Turn on the television, open a news app, scroll through social media, everywhere we look, the headlines feel heavy. War, division, anxiety, injustice, disaster, money pressures, to name just a few. We live in what often feels like a bad news world. The stories that travel fastest are the ones that shock, anger, or alarm us. It is easy to feel overwhelmed. Easy to feel small. Easy to feel silent.
And yet, into that noise comes a different announcement. Not a denial of pain. Not a naïve optimism. But a deeper, truer message. Christians have always been, at our best, carriers of good news.
That is the heartbeat behind the Elim Evangelism Conference on Saturday, 19 September 2026 in Coventry. Under the bold and timely theme Good News People, the day will gather believers who are asking a simple but searching question: what does it mean to embody hope in a culture shaped by fear?
Evangelism can sometimes feel intimidating in a sceptical age. Many Christians quietly wonder whether the word itself has become part of the ‘bad news’ vocabulary. But this conference reframes the conversation. Evangelism is not about pressure or performance; it is about presence. It is about remembering that the message we carry is, at its core, breathtakingly good.
The speaker line-up reflects that richness and depth. This year we have partnered with the Evangelical Alliance who have a whole range of excellent speakers who will bring insights and passion around our theme for the day. We are so thrilled that Phil Knox, Rachel Heffer and Catherine Brown will be with us on the day. Phil is Evangelism and Missiology senior specialist and is a thoughtful and creative missiologist. He has authored impactful books, most notably around friendship. His passion is contagious.
Rachel is Head of Mission and is passionate about evangelism, mission and church unity. She is fantastic at helping the church know what the cultural moment is and how we can respond and help people find Jesus.
Catherine Brown is the Being Human Engagement Lead and feels called to equip the church around cultural issues, including sexuality and relationships.
Together, these voices will help attendees rediscover confidence in the gospel, not as an argument to win, but as a story to inhabit.
Because here is the truth: Christians do not deny that the world is broken. We see it clearly. The good news only makes sense against that backdrop. The message of Jesus speaks precisely into suffering, injustice, loneliness, and fear. It does not minimise them; it meets them.
To be ‘good news people’ is therefore not about forced cheerfulness. It is about rooted hope. It is about believing that love is stronger than hate, grace stronger than guilt, and resurrection stronger than despair. It is about living in such a way that others glimpse something different, steadiness, a generosity, a peace that cannot be manufactured. In a bad news world, outrage is easy. Cynicism is fashionable. Despair is understandable. But good news people choose another way. We choose prayer over panic. We choose conversation over condemnation. We choose courage over silence.
September’s Elim Evangelism Conference is more than a date in the diary. It is an invitation. An invitation to remember who we are. An invitation to be equipped. An invitation to step back into our homes, workplaces, schools, and streets carrying something the world desperately needs.
We may not control the headlines. But we do carry a better story.
This article first appeared in Direction Magazine. For further details, please click here.