meta http-equiv=”refresh” content=”0;URL=’http://www.wellfieldchurch.com/'” / wellfield church: Why the Big Week Out was better with fewer…

Pages

Why the Big Week Out was better with fewer…

Hope you all enjoyed the ‘Big Week Out’! We had four really nice mornings out (to Astley Park, White Coppice, Worden Park and Ainsdale Beach), where we had games and a little bible story for the kids, and a chance to hang out together. Slightly fewer people came along than in the previous couple of years. We are aware of some of the reasons for that. But there can be much greater value in a small group on an outing than a massive ‘holiday club’, which some of us have done in the past. Here’s a few of the benefits …


First, we really get to know people as families. In our experience, the big ‘holiday club’ is used by many people as a free or cheap baby-sitting service. People are glad to send their kids to church for a week, where they have lots of fun, so they can carry on with work without having to pay for child care. There is no doubt value in teaching the gospel to the children in this way; but we have the greater ambition of spending time with parents, too.

Second, the larger the number of people, the less opportunity there is to get to know any well. We have been learning the value of a smaller church in many ways over the last few years, and it is perhaps seen most during a week like this. The gospel is communicated through relationships. And there is no substitute for spending plenty of time with people. That is how we build one another up, and introduce others to the church.

Third, the Big Week Out is so repeatable. A bigger operation needs a huge amount of preparation and a massive workforce to run it. The hoped-for returns of that are perhaps that a few might be better disposed towards the church, and maybe even one or two will start attending off the back of it. Our Big Week Out involved plenty of people from church - at least praying, and offering car spaces. But it needed very little preparation or money. It is the sort of thing we can be doing all the time - days out with friends, with perhaps a little chat about Jesus along the way. What could be more valuable, and with so little hassle?


So - Wellfield Church - keep those days out happening!