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‘SOWING SEEDS’ AT REGIONAL CHRISTIAN RESOURCES EXHIBITION
By BUC News | January 24, 2013
"If we don't sow a seed it can't grow!" exclaimed Pastor Mick Smart. He was at the Seventh-day Adventist Church stall at the Christian Resources Exhibition West (CRE West), Bristol, on Wednesday 23 January.
Since November 2012, Albert Gardiner, Shiloh Harmitt and Grace Mason, from the Gloucester, Bristol and Weston-Super-Mare churches, planned for an Adventist stall at this two-day, Christian event that attracts around 3,500 people. Â With support from pastors in their area, they gathered materials and put together a display ready to interact with as many attendees as possible from 23-24 January.
"We wanted to make sure that the Seventh-day Adventist Church had a presence amongst all the other Christian leaders that would be present", explained Grace Mason. Â "While a Christian myself, I have only been an Adventist for the last five years. Â I knew about the CRE and felt we needed to be here and show people that we are indeed Christians and that our main difference is that we worship on Saturday, the Sabbath, not Sunday."
The CRE West is a regional exhibition that brings together various denominations and Christian companies, from architecture, to media, to clothing companies. Â This year is the first time it has been held in Bristol and the venue, inside the University of West England, was bustling despite the heavy snow falling outside.
Supplied with materials from organisations such as the Adventist Discovery Centre, the British Union Conference, Stanborough Press and the South England Conference, the stall was stacked with literature, DVDs and other resources that were given away for free in branded, Seventh-day Adventist bags.
Halfway through the first day of the exhibition, Pastor Smart commented, "It's been fantastic so far, we've had lots of conversations with people wanting to know about the Church, what we stand for, who we are. Â They're all Christian folks and they're coming and meeting Adventists, finding out a bit about us, why we keep the Sabbath, why we baptise by immersion. Â Meeting and talking with people in this way is what we hoped would happen from the start."
The upcoming CRE International, at Sandown Park, will see around 10,000 attendees and the Adventist Discovery Centre already has a stand booked for the four-day exhibition, from 14-17 May. Adventists have had a presence at the Sandown Park event and at other regional exhibitions on numerous occasions in recent years. To sign up for and explore the CRE International please visit <www.creonline.co.uk>.
[Katie
Ramharacksingh]
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