The fate of fetes.

It was the church fete today. As exciting as one would expect. There was the bric-a-brac stall, here the cake stall and over there the sweet stall. Tea and biscuits for sale in the church centre and in a nod to modernity a Wii was set up in the church itself.

Now this got my mind to thinking. Today was all about raising money for Christian Aid and every pound we raised was going to be trebled by the EU. What I was wondering is why do we keep on with the same old things (quite apart from the fact that I am stunned that the £17,000 spent on the new sound system could have become £68,000 for Christian Aid). Each year we try things and each year it seems they become less and less successful. When we review it seems that we will say oh well it'll be better next year.

Will it though? Must we keep on doing the same old things? Perhaps it is time to step out and think of something new.

Imagine a church year without the summer fete and the winter one too. Imagine a church where we sought to raise funds in a way which not only glorifies God but that interacts with a community that isn't shying away from our building. I wonder what ideas we can come up with!