Last winter, churches across the diocese took part in the Warm Welcome campaign. The churches opened their doors to provide a warm welcome for those struggling to heat their homes. The Church of the Risen Christ, Wyken found their warm welcome to be so successful in not just providing people with physical warmth but also combatting loneliness by providing people with companionship, that they adapted it so they could continue to offer a welcome in the warmer months.
The church ran their warm spaces from January to April this year. They opened a community café once a week, offering warm food and drinks, and also gave out hot chocolates on the lawn to children and families passing by after school (they have a number of primary and secondary schools near the church). The team loved connecting with people in the community, hearing their stories and being a blessing to them.
After the Easter school holidays, they decided to run a bible journaling group to follow on from the community café. As they were already in a pattern of meeting with people on Monday afternoons and there was interest, they decided to use the time to explore the bible and begin the journey of praying together with people. The church has seen God work in wonderful ways in this small group as he draws people to him.
As the weather warmed up, they decided to change from serving hot chocolates on the lawn to serving milkshakes with cream. The children going home from school were delighted! The team love connecting with the children and their parents/guardians. They serve about 60 milkshakes every Monday after school, and this has been another great way to bless and get to know our local community.
With the weather slowly cooling down, many churches will be thinking about offering a warm welcome. You can find out more about the campaign here and register for the launch event on the 4th October.