I remember the day the announcement was made that London was awarded the Olympics for 2012. It was the 6th of July 2007 and I was sitting at an Activate national executive meeting on the 15th floor of a London hotel. There was a commotion as the news filtered through and cheers rang out in the hotel. Then the Red Arrows flew across London in low flying close formation. It seemed to be all happening around and below us. The excitement was tangible.
As the Olympics creep closer, Christians in the UK have a once in a lifetime opportunity. An organisation called ‘More Than Gold’ has been established to make the most of the Olympics being on our shores and encourage Christians and churches to get personally involved. Their mission is –
To enable the UK churches to engage with the 2012 Games
Their vision is that thousands of churches will taste the excitement of reaching their community in fresh and ongoing ways in Jesus’ name.
They are doing it by –
•Helping people catch the vision for the impact that can be made and the role they can play
•Making connections between the many agencies and thousands of churches that can make it happen
•Coordinating the production of the resources and action needed
Your church is invited to one of the nationwide briefing events taking place during October and November.
These 90 minute briefings give your church the opportunity to –
•Hear how churches responded at past Games – from Atlanta to Beijing – through outreach, hospitality and service
•Learn of the tested programmes and resources for all ages, to be available through More Than Gold
•Identify the best way for your church to be involved– and dream a little of what could be done
Here are the fast approaching dates –
October
Monday 11th Birmingham,Aston Villa FC
Wednesday 13th Exeter,Exeter City FC
Thursday 14th Windsor,Dorney Lake
Friday 15th Cardiff,Cardiff City Stadium
Tuesday 19th Nottingham,Trent Bridge Cricket Club
Wednesday 20th Sheffield,Sheffield Wednesday FC
Thursday 21st Durham,Riverside Cricket Club
Friday 22nd Wigan,Wigan Rugby Club
November
Monday 1st Esher, Surrey,Sandown Racecourse
Tuesday 2nd Ely,The Lighthouse
Wednesday 3rd London,Central, Regent Hall,Oxford Street
Thursday 4th London East,Leyton Orient FC.
If you are interested then look up the organisation through the EA website or go to
www.morethangold.org.uk