what is mum space
Welcome
Thank you for coming to this site. I hope you enjoy what you read and you will be inspired to set up your own Mum Space.
It has been wonderful to see Mums from outside church, coming inside, and experiencing love, support and parenting advice. The best bit has been to see non-existent faith and/or faith as small as mustard seeds begin to grow. Mum Space has proven, in my church, to provide an amazing space for these opportunities to happen.
This is why I have written this programme, my hope is to see many groups established, so that, ultimately, more mothers can hear and know Christ. And then pass it on to their children and partner.
Mum Space is a mums’ support group reflecting Christ’s love, through care, support, friendship, parenting advice and opportunity to show what the Christian faith is all about. Not forgetting the very popular provision of a creche for much needed ‘mum’ space and calm.
The Aim
1. To provide a relaxing space for mums to build friendship with us and each other, to support them as a mum and to teach parenting topics with time to discuss and personalise. All the sessions will also bring in God and the Bible in small ways.
We do this through the use of Bible verses/ truths/values of God where it is relevant to the topics. We can also be testament to God’s faithfulness and wisdom in our discussion groups through the experiences of Christian mums and through termly evangelistic events. Our greatest witness however is our genuine care and love for the mums we have the privilege and honour to meet.
2. ‘He (Jesus) saw the crowds and had compassion on them because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field’ Matthew 9v36-38.
Jesus had compassion because the people were harassed- that is a great description of many mums, including us! Our empathy creates a bridge of relationship with the mums.
Helpless- another apt description of many mums. Sometimes we just don’t know what to do with our children. As well as the relevant parenting advice, there is a Shepherd, to whom we can point. We are also helpless in dealing with our sin and we need a Saviour Shepherd.
‘The harvest is plentiful’ - through experience of running this group for many years, there really are many women who are ready to hear seeds of hope and truth coming from the Gospel and after time and building of trust, a willingness to investigate Christianity through Bible studies or simply conversation.
Jesus sometimes met peoples’ felt needs before anything else and this broke down barriers. We can do this too, in part, by providing support in their parenting- this is why they come. We must be genuine in this and not use it as a disguise for evangelism but genuinely seek to help the mums and it is then through this that we can show them Christ.
‘the workers are few. Ask the Lord…- pray for a good team of older and younger mums, it takes a lot of commitment to the mums that come, time, friendship, prayer, preparation, yet it is utterly worth it.
3. ‘A gentle answer turns away wrath….the tongue of the wise commends knowledge….a gentle tongue is a tree of life’ Proverbs15v1-4
Christianity gets bad press and is often seen as narrow-minded, bigoted, judgemental, hypocritical, restrictive and the list goes on…therefore we have a difficult job on our hands….
However through Mum Space we will have opportunities with gentle answers to turn away wrath (anger), to break down barriers and preconceived ideas through our witness and discussion.
The use of Bible verses, principles and values enables mums’ eyes to be opened to the relevance and truth of the Bible. One mum said ‘I never realised the relevance of the Bible’- this is one small step/seed sown.
Mum Space is a bridge-building ministry, which are those small steps or seeds sown that break down barriers, melt away hostility and prepare the soil (or mind) for growth of faith.
It is a slow relational work, genuine, honest, and we have to be vulnerable and real ourselves, willing to share our struggles as we empathise with them, sometimes holding out the hope of Christ in the midst.
It is also a joyful satisfying work, with hope, fruit and flowering. I wish you all the best. I would love to encourage you so please get in touch with me, it would be a great honour.
Get in touch with me if you have any questions, ideas, encouragements, prayer requests or want me to come and chat to members of your church who might be interested in setting up a group.
With my love and prayers,
Cid Sparks