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CRE National 2022: three days where practical met creative

Local church leaders and members made the most of the last scheduled CRE at Sandown Park, Surrey (Oct 11-13), writes David Giles.

Visitors were treated to a medley of music from Two Lads and a Laptop as they awaited the opening ceremony, undertaken by Christian comedian Tim Vine (pictured above), using typically over-sized scissors to cut the ribbon. After the formalities, Vine was interviewed in the event’s arts café by Sorted magazine’s Steve Legg. Amid much wit and one-liners, the punmeister spoke of the importance of faith, family and the joy of simply having fun.

That fun was evident in a number of CRE’s stands aiming to equip Christians with tools and resources to share their faith with others in innovative ways. Vine was presented with a pair of not-quite-eponymous ‘I am the Vine’ socks at the Holy Socks stall – part of a large range of clothing sporting a subtle (or less subtle!) gospel message. Also on offer: evangelistic golf balls!

In one of the thought-provoking seminar strands, ‘Lifting the Lid’, Alan Charter (pictured below) of Global Children’s Forum and Children Matter, explored child spirituality and invited more than 80 attendees how best to serve the needs of younger churchgoers. Using a variety of techniques, the sessions focused on children and young people referred to in the Bible and provided a wealth of practical advice on enabling youngsters to find and grow in their Christian faith.

Charter shared his view that ‘children are, perhaps, more able – and have a less world-impacted radar – to tune into God’s voice than sometimes we adults do, so maybe we need to flip it and learn a little from them as well.’

‘We are innately spiritual beings,’ he continued, ‘so how do we nurture a child’s spirituality as well as our own? Let’s give every opportunity for children to encounter God in any and every way that they can.’

One of the attendees, Pauline Joyce – youth and children’s worker at St Mary’s, Speldhurst – found these sessions enormously encouraging. ‘We are doing better than we thought we are!’, she exclaimed, finding the content to be highly relevant to her congregation near Tunbridge Wells in Kent. ‘And being CRE, we’ve also come away with lots of useful resources.’

Contemporary topics from racial justice (Revd Dr Chigor Chike, Archbishop of Canterbury’s Racial Justice Commission) to the climate change emergency (Revd Dr Darrell D. Hannah, Operation Noah) were also covered in the 70-strong talks programme.

More than 160 exhibitors addressed issues as diverse as church insurance and creation care, vestments and Veggie Tales. Combined with the programme of talks and opportunities for prayer and worship, the event truly had something for all the church family.

Leigh Ides (pictured below), representing exhibitor Trinitas Church Insurance Services, explained the value of CRE: ‘Insurance is a people industry. And so is the church. For us, selling a non-tangible product, one of the real benefits of CRE is meeting people face-to-face. It helps us to explain who we are and what we do, to an engaged audience. Even if it’s not the church treasurer in attendance, the ability to offer visitors an information pack and ask them to pass it on in person is powerful. It’s about exchanging information. We get asked a lot of questions!’

Rounding off Mission Worship Wednesday in the venue’s Arts Café, Christian music executive Les Moir chaired a panel discussion with worship leaders Lou and Nathan Fellingham, Noel Robinson, Philippa Hannah and artist Helen Yousaf. He reflected on the differences between music produced for professional albums and music ministry in churches where the same level of ability and resourcing may not be available.

The producer of Graham Kendrick’s Shine Jesus Shine, Moir observed that ‘what’s important is “heart song” – that the song is in your heart. When we look at John 4, people worship God in spirit and truth. Let’s be real. Let’s be real in our worship. When we read the Psalms, we find that they are very real. We should just be honest in our worship – not pretending or putting on behaviour. And let’s not confine worship to the four walls of the church – let’s worship in the public space.’

It was a theme echoed by Helen Yousaf, champion of using visual arts in the church, who spent the middle day of CRE painting a number of bespoke pieces based on words or descriptions she felt the Holy Spirit giving her. ‘I feel like creatives are the postmen and postwomen of Jesus,’ said Yousaf. ‘When you put paint in front of children, they’re not going to sit there and decide if they’re artists or not. They’ll just pick it up and paint. I think that if we can just put more options in front of people to worship – no matter what they are – that will be beautiful as we become childlike in our worship again.’

CRE attendee Ginny Milns, a member of the worship team at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Four Marks, Hampshire, agreed. ‘What inspired me? The creative and artistic options, definitely. I can be quite creative not just musically but through crafts, and CRE has inspired me to develop that part of my identity. I hope my creative expression in serving God can flourish.’

The next Christian Resources Exhibition will be held at Cranmore Park, Birmingham 8-9 November 2023 (pictured).

‘We are not abandoning the south east for good!’ said CRE owner Steve Goddard. ‘However, there are many other cities sending us a “Macedonian call” – come over and help us! We begin in Birmingham in November 2023.’

• For stand enquiries at CRE Midlands 2023 (8/9 Nov 2023) please contact our sales team:

Carol Malpass: 0161 250 2467 or carol@creonline.co.uk
James Batterbee: 0161 250 2306 or james@creonline.co.uk

• Click here for the official CRE Midlands 2023 brochure, floor plan and price list

After Liverpool disappointment, encouraging lift off for CRE Midlands 2023

Following Liverpool’s winning bid for Eurovision 2023, the hall booked for CRE North 2023 (3-4 May) was requisitioned by Liverpool City Council for the contest.

As a result, the next exhibition will be CRE Midlands, held at Cranmore Park, Birmingham 8-9 Nov 2023.

‘We hope to return to the north west but cannot say when,’ said CRE owner Steve Goddard.

Even before news broke of Liverpool’s bid for Eurovision 2023, CRE Midlands had been confirmed in the autumn slot usually reserved for CRE National at Sandown Park.

‘Our exhibitors want us to take the exhibition to new venues where they can make fresh contacts,’ said Steve. ‘We’re delighted to respond with the first-ever CRE at Cranmore Park, a friendly, relaxed venue, conveniently located near the motorway network in the heart of England.

‘At other nearby centres parking can prove prohibitively expensive for exhibitor and visitor alike – but Cranmore Park has space for hundreds of vehicles. And it’s free!’

CRE’s last visit to the Midlands, in March 2020, coincided with the onset of Covid-19.

‘We’re returning in double-quick time to make sure churches throughout Greater Birmingham and beyond benefit from the goods and services offered by an expected 140 organisations on the exhibition floor,’ said Steve.

Response has been overwhelmingly positive with more than 50 per cent of space sold or reserved within two weeks.

‘This is well beyond expectations and while it doesn’t make up for the disappointment of losing a much-anticipated exhibition in Liverpool, we are heartened by the commitment of our valued exhibitors,’ said Steve.

• For stand enquiries at CRE Midlands 2023 (8/9 Nov 2023) please contact our sales team:

Carol Malpass: 0161 250 2467 or carol@creonline.co.uk
James Batterbee: 0161 250 2306 or james@creonline.co.uk

• Click here for the official CRE Midlands 2023 brochure, floor plan and price list

‘Like words from heaven’: listed church rejoices at sound advice

A churchwarden in Gloucestershire has invented a new game – spot the loudspeakers.

‘When visitors come into our building I challenge them to see if they can see where we’ve located them,’ said Nigel Robbins of the Church of St John Baptist, Cirencester and former mayor of the town. ‘When they give up, I smile and say: “From heaven!”’

It follows a massive overhaul of the sound system by CRE National exhibitors Novum AV. St John Baptist is a Grade 1 listed building which includes architectural styles from the 12th century. Novum used special look-alike material for the loudspeakers – successfully camouflaging them from the impressive surroundings of what is one of the largest parish churches in England.

In fact, the company removed a dozen boxed speakers from the medieval limestone columns in the church and more than 300 metres of unsightly cabling before installing the tall, slim, speakers, designed to blend into the environment – each one colour-matched and positioned discretely. The speakers improve building architecture and aesthetics.

‘The specialist system we used means that sound waves are digitally steered direct to the congregation, focussing on the listening area and directing sound away from hard, reflective surfaces,’ said Tim Jacques, the head of Novum AV. ‘This avoids the problem of reverberation in large buildings – particularly with a lot of stonework. The high controlled coverage also means that the words spoken can be much more intelligible.’

By designing a system with a small number of specialised loudspeakers, the budget was directed towards buying high quality units. Providing extra speakers would have involved more installation labour and other materials.

‘We had been bedevilled by a sound system for the spoken voice which frequently let us down,’ said Nigel Robbins. ‘The new speakers perform magnificently, the human voice suffering no distortion through dispersion such as reverberation. The softest sound comes through clearly from over 70 yards away. Hard-of hearing people declare they no longer require the old loop system!’

The new speakers actually enhance the appearance of the atmospheric church, making it easier to lease the space to local organisations – both a community benefit and a commercial opportunity for the church.

• Novum will be on stand T12 at CRE National 2022

Photos: Hiding in plain sight: the new sound system at the Church of St John the Baptist, Cirencester

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Why an ancient church went underground

An underfloor heating system fed by air source heat pumps will hugely reduce one ancient church’s carbon footprint per hour of use.

St Mary’s Church in Ely began a major building transformation and turned to longstanding CRE exhibitor Church Build UK for help and advice. That advice played a huge part in the £950k revamp of the 800-year-old, Grade 1 Listed building – to give it a wider local ministry and a long-term positive impact on the health of the building.

Priest in charge, Rev. Chris Hill, said: ‘We’re looking forward to returning to a renewed and transformed space which can be used by the church community – 16 hours a day, seven days a week. It will be wonderful.’

Nigel Walter, the visionary who set up Church Build and is founding director of Archangel Architects, said: ‘Knowing where to start in tackling our climate emergency is challenging. We are on hand to help with advice and guidance. We can suggest actions that nearly all churches can benefit from, even low occupancy places of worship used only on a Sunday. These actions are relatively easy, with relatively fast pay back.’

Church Build produce a checklist suitable for anyone considering a church build project and needing support and inspiration. Representatives will be at CRE National to offer advice. The Church Build UK Facebook group is open to anyone considering a church build project and looking for inspiration from others who have ‘been there and done that’.

‘Come and join the conversation,’ said Nigel. ‘Together we can make a difference!’

• Church Build are on stand I7 at CRE National 2022

Photo: St Mary’s, Ely

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Rosehill: so patient while we pondered

We were grateful you were patient while we pondered over the pews!

That was what the administrator at Elmwood Church, Salford, told Rosehill Furnishings after church members deliberated on design and colour.

‘Big thanks to Rosehill for keeping in touch and sending out samples while we made up our minds,’ he said. ‘Our pews were dated and we wanted to update the seating to make it more contemporary. We love our new chairs!’

For more than 30 years Rosehill have supplied products for all kinds of situations. Churches swapping pews for stylish, modern multi-purpose chairs have found they give greater flexibility – with the same area utilised in a variety of ways. Their lightweight seats are also available in various wipe-clean finishes.

But it isn’t just replacing pews where Rosehill have been able to make church spaces more appealing.

‘We have a wide selection of stacking chairs for community halls, meeting rooms and dining areas,’ explained director Elliot Brierley. ‘For the entrance hall or a quiet area where informal seating is preferred, we can supply sofas and lounge chairs to suit all budgets.’

The company also has a range of children’s chairs, suitable for all age groups, trolleys or cupboards and lockers for storage. Their acoustic screens help separate different spaces and allow privacy. These are made to order in a wide range of fabric types and colours, to fit in with the decor. Then there are their tables, including folding options which can be moved and stored on trolleys. For areas where the tables are left out, the pedestal tables in their ranges include a huge choice of shapes, sizes and colours.

All Rosehill’s products are contract quality, fire retardant and tested to British or European standards, making them suitable for public and commercial buildings.

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From Detroit to Ukraine: casting bread on the waters

From a daily thought recorded at a radio station in Detroit to a worldwide provider of Bible notes, Our Daily Bread Ministries has made great inroads over the past 80 years.

‘We have always been committed to making the word of God understandable and accessible to everyone, and this is still our spiritual foundation,’ said Steve Mitchell (pictured), chief executive officer of the ministry based in Carnforth, Lancashire.

Today more than 600 people in 35 countries create resources distributed to more than 150 countries around the world in 58 languages.

‘Our UK office was established in 1987 due to the increasing demand in Europe for English language-based Our Daily Bread bible reading notes and Discovery Series booklets,’ said Steve. ‘We’ll introduce CRE visitors to our notes and a selection of our other literature – all free to pick up at our stand or you can order them to be sent to you.

‘For those churches helping Ukrainian refugees at this very difficult time we’ll have a limited supply of Our Daily Bread resources in the Ukrainian language to help them as they face life in a new country.’

Yana, director of Our Daily Bread Ministries’ Ukraine, was forced to close the office in Kiev and flee her home along with millions of others.

‘It’s not a situation we can solve,’ she said. ‘People are so worried and stressed. We need the Lord to lead us.’

• Our Daily Bread are on stand F3 at CRE National 2022

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‘Miserly’ Chris is the wizard of warm

Soaring energy prices are set to hit churches everywhere – but Chris Dunphy (pictured), founder and MD of ChurchEcoMiser, believes he can help.

‘Electricity is at the forefront of renewable energy and, as a company, we have moved away from dependence on fossil fuels to specialise only in all-electric heating systems,’ said Chris who has spent 45 years heating churches the length and breadth of Britain. ‘Our system looks and operates in a similar way to a traditional radiator system but without the need for a boiler or obtrusive pipework. With a range of sizes and colours available, radiators can be discreetly sited almost anywhere.’

Chris visits churches personally to provide a bespoke option, exclusively prepared to their requirements. The system was devised for what Chris thought would be the ideal system for remote country churches where gas was either unavailable or expensive to install – ‘but it proved a popular option for all churches.’

Over the years he has designed and installed more than 1,000 heating systems in churches and church buildings and, because many are Victorian or medieval buildings, protecting the fabric has always been as important as heating the congregation. He will be at CRE National 2022 to chat about your church heating system and make a date to visit the premises.

He does not have any connection or affiliation to any other heating company – so if it is a genuine ChurchEcoMiser system you are interested in, or it is Chris that you wish to meet, make contact with Chris personally.

• ChurchEcoMiser are on stand J1 at CRE National 2022

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The day Helen asked for a house – and was offered two

Helen Syrop read a news article about homelessness and wanted to do something in Bradford.

She rang CRE National 2022 exhibitor Green Pastures and asked if they could buy a house to help her. She was asked: ‘What if we buy you two?’ 

‘Housing the homeless is an extremely rewarding job,’ said Helen. ‘It’s very beautiful to work and walk with people through the ups and downs of their lives.

Vaslef (above), for example, had no home and was sleeping in a Bradford park. He had one set of clothes and no jacket and decided to end his life. However, through the partnership of Green Pastures and Hope Housing, he was given a home and support. He calls Helen ‘an angel.’ 

‘It’s me every day, a very big thank you – thank you God!’ said Vaslef.

Solicitor Richard Norridge believes truly ethical investments are very hard to come by – but the one set up by Green Pastures is the best he has come across.

The fund was set up 11 years ago and now works with more than 75 churches and Christian charities to provide homes and support for 1,100 people who had been homeless.

The Green Pastures Community Benefit Society Limited (CBS) is an Exempt Charity registered with the Financial Conduct Authority. Through this vehicle, the CBS issues loan stock to investors.

Subscriptions for loan stock inject cash into the CBS which uses the money to purchase and build property, often in conjunction with other sources of finance. Investors select an interest rate in the range of 0 to 4 per cent p.a. for investments of 1 to 4 years, or in the range of 0 to 5 per cent p.a. for terms of five years and over.

For every £15,000 invested, one person is housed and supported. By selecting less than the maximum return, more homeless people are helped. 

Green Pastures began when Pastor Pete Cunningham found people sleeping under the Southport pier. He felt challenged by the Lord to put his hand in his own pocket and cashed in his small pension. Church member Vicki Woodley re-mortgaged and together they put a deposit on two flats to house two people. Green Pastures was born. 

The vision grew greater than they ever imagined.  Twenty years later, the same passion to release churches to eradicate local homelessness burns brightly.

Green Pastures are on stand Y1 at CRE National 2022

Book your tickets to CRE National 2022 for as little as £3 (£8 on the door)

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