On July 8, the Lodi-English Oaks church held a church ministries fair. At the conclusion of Pastor Wayne Young’s two-part series on partnership in the gospel which focused on discipleship and spiritual gifts, the congregation was encouraged to examine the booths that had been set up by various local ministries. “Quite a few people signed up at a lot of the booths that they would be interested in being part of the ministries,” said Janis Effenberg, the outreach and vespers ministries leader.

There were 36 ministries represented at the fair, which was the first of its kind at the English Oaks church. Each participating ministry set up a booth in the sanctuary foyer and main hallway. The booths displayed pictures, posters and other items that explained the goals of each particular ministry, which ranged from a care package ministry for soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan to a local Christian radio station. “Ministry leaders put a lot of time and creativity into making the booths,” said Young.

Almost all of the booths were representing ministries sponsored by the local church, but there were a few ministries present that were solely run by individual members. “We encourage our members to get involved,” said Young. “If they don’t find a ministry to become involved with that the church is sponsoring, then they can start a special ministry for which they have gifts. They do not wait for the church to come up with something.”

The fair was quite successful. “A lot of people are still talking about it, and there is a lot of encouragement to do it again next year,” said Young, who is already starting to plan next year’s event.

It will not be during the summer next year, since many people are on vacation. Also, the booths will remain up for at least two weeks to allow people more time to think about the different ministries. “The people really enjoyed the fair,” said Effenberg. “They wished it had been longer.”