Do we need another Word Alive?

What’s the vision for Rising Lights? 

The vision is to gather God’s people together, to be refreshed by the Word, and grow in faith. We are passionate about seeing people return home emboldened and encouraged to serve their local church better. We are genuinely so excited about this opportunity, and it feels like the right time.

The FIEC has historically run events for families and member churches, because we think it’s important to give opportunities for people to be equipped to go and serve their local churches. We stopped doing these events after 2007, because Word Alive had grown to be very successful, so we started encouraging people to that event instead. It meant that people could gather with a broader group of people, and Word Alive really became the thing that people went to at Easter time.

When Word Alive concluded, we realised there wasn’t really an event for people in FIEC churches to attend in the Easter holidays. So, the FIEC trustees and senior staff wanted to try and fill that gap. It’s not about competition but providing an opportunity where people are feeling the lack of an Easter event.

So why did you launch Rising Lights now? 

We’ve been discussing starting a new Easter event for 18 months and spoke with a number of FIEC churches who had been supporters of Word Alive. They were all incredibly positive about the idea of a new event to fill the gap that had been left.

Practically, people we’ve spoken with have said that the Easter holidays work really well for a Christian event, as it doesn’t impact peoples’ summer holidays. And running at Easter also means we won’t clash with similar ministries like Keswick and Bible by the Beach, who are already doing good work at other points in the year.

What can people expect from the event? 

You can expect great Bible teaching, and equipping seminar tracks. We want Rising Lights to be an opportunity to do things which feel harder at a local church level. For example, having evangelism training from Glen Scrivener, or teaching on prayer from Rachel Jones. By gathering thousands of people together in one place, we enable more people to engage with experienced teachers.

Aside from this, Torquay is a lovely part of the world for people to come away and rest  alongside the teaching. There’s so much for people to do in the area, and we’ve put together a fantastic programme. We’ve got the Kingdom Bank Big Build, board games rooms, open mics, a pop-up art installation, loads of exciting stuff to see and do. There are inflatables, bouncy castles, the Kingdom Bank café, a massive exhibition space full of Christian ministry partners, and a huge 10 of Those book stall. The youth and kids work is looking very full, and loads of families are coming, so it will also be a great opportunity for children to have good teaching. We’re also running a young adults track, which UCCF are helping to contribute to. So Rising Lights isn’t only about the main Bible content, it’s also a chance for people to get away, enjoy time together, and have some fun.

And finally, do you have to be part of the FIEC to come? 

No – anyone is welcome to join us. Our range of speakers reflects this. We just want this to be an opportunity for the church to come together, learn, and worship the Lord.

There’s still time to book on to Rising Lights. Visit the FIEC website for more details.