Goathurst church offers support to young families

Until recently Goathurst, a small village of about 75 households, most of the residents were elderly. A few years ago there were few young people or families living in the village. At the same time the church of St Edward, King and Martyr was in interregnum, and the church community were struggling to see how they could grow their church. 

Faced with this difficulty, a group from St Edward’s began to pray for young families to come to the village. Brenda Smith, Churchwarden at Goathurst was one of them, she said, “Gradually over the next few years God answered our prayers. Some elderly residents moved away and their homes went up for sale and 14 new young families moved in.

“As new families came to the village, we reached out to welcome them. We delivered Easter eggs and created nativity activities and our Curate Revd Nicki Bradford took charge of reigniting the children and young families’ ministry, which we aptly named ‘Kids @ Goathurst.’”

The church team started by setting up weekly ‘Stay and Play,’ session for those under school age. They offered toys for the children and tea and coffee for the adults. Brenda said of the sessions, “Even if attended by only one family occasionally, it provides valuable one-to-one interactions. We have Bible story time, songs, a simple ‘thank you’ prayer and we always end with a goodbye song that names each child and reminds them that God loves them.”

Expanding their outreach, the church next engaged school-age children, offering a monthly ‘Kids’ Night’ in the village hall. Brenda says, “From the outset we have always had double figure attendance. Initially we thought parents might drop their kids off, but they have always stayed, and enjoyed the chance to sit and chat together whilst the children are busy.

“It’s been wonderful to see how the relationships across the group and with us have developed and we now have a Kids @ Goathurst WhatsApp Group.”

The church’s warm welcome has spilled into other avenues. Some fathers have volunteered to help with churchyard maintenance, special events, like the outdoor Crib Service and a successful BBQ fundraiser for the church’s toilet/kitchenette project, brought together people of all ages, fostering a sense of unity and support for the church.

Brenda says, “This is just the beginning. As we have sought to build relationships and come alongside our children and young families, we can see other ways of developing our ministry. We’re looking at using the outdoor environment and we also want to explore ways of including a more Christian focus at Kids’ Nights. There is also scope to join in with neighbouring villages.

“We firmly believe that God’s hand has been on this initiative, He went before us and is guiding our journey as we seek to do His will.”