Last Sunday’s attendance at worship was not good. The congregation I serve still has a good number of people who come to church, and so when the attendance drops it can seem quite dramatic. May is a month when the numbers begin to drop as families begin their summer activities and as the retired begin to take their holidays.

However on this occasion, while those two elements were part of it, the lack of attendance was significantly boosted by a 5k happening elsewhere in the locale.

The thing about 5k walks for charity is that they attract people from churches. Many of those involved in church life are involved in charitable activity as Parton their Christian service. So it is a natural extension of their faith to get involved.

Of course 5k walks always seem to happen at times when there is a belief that people will be available. And in a world where church attendance as not seen as a priority then the free time seems to be a Sunday morning.

I could rant and rave about how I think worship is important and it frustrates me that people treat so casually the time they could spend building a relationship with God and others, but I won’t. Instead I’m thinking about turning the negative into a positive. So on the day of the Moonwalk, as I know I am about to lose a sizeable number as they will only just be finishing as worship starts, maybe I need to encourage the congregation to have an evening service for the walkers and supporters. But more than that, if people want to walk 5k, maybe we need to organise our own somewhere in the parish. I’ve a code of possible green spaces, so I’m thinking and will start to look at the possibilities as next week begins its wander into life.