The Quiet Power of Small Places
Last week, I had the privilege of writing a blog post for Stewardship - https://www.stewardship.org.uk/blogs/quiet-power-generosity-rural-places , which you can find here. I thought I would share a similar thought with you all this week.
In many conversations I’ve had over the past year, one refrain keeps emerging: “we’re the little church in a small place, what difference can we really make?”
It’s a question born of humility, real-life pressures, shrinking budgets, and fewer paid staff. But I believe it’s also a question that God delights to answer, in small places, with small people, doing faithful things.
Why small really matters
In rural communities, the church often has a unique vantage point. You’re visible, you’re part of the fabric, you know the fields, the farms, the petrol pump that never closes, the school with twenty pupils, the café that doubles as the hub for all kinds of conversations.
You’re not just reaching people on Sundays, but you’re inhabiting the middle of “real life”, the drips and drabs of everyday living, the open doors of the village hall, the mum in the tractor, the teenager working in a café while dreaming of the city.
These are places where the gospel can have a tangible impact, where faith isn’t just a Sunday talk but a Monday-morning cup of tea in the village kitchen. Where the mission doesn’t have to happen in “big programmes” but in one conversation, one invite, one moment of presence.
How we at Rural Missions see it
That’s why at Rural Missions we emphasise tailor-made work. We aren’t off-the-shelf solutions. We come alongside you, listen, help you imagine, plan, resource and sustain your local engagement. We bring together missional toolkits, training, networks and chaplaincy that are shaped by the realities of rural ministry, the rural school, the small church, the dispersed community.
But here’s the thing: we can only do this together. Your church, your volunteers, your community, and your partners (that’s where you come in) all matter.
Where support makes the difference
When you support Rural Missions, you’re not giving to “head office” sitting in isolation. You’re giving into practical, hands-on, local change.
You help fund the needs assessment we carry out in villages so that local churches know what their community needs and how to respond
You help resource the training we provide for rural ministry, so that the isolated church leader doesn’t feel forgotten, the volunteer doesn’t feel out of their depth, and the mission doesn’t stall for lack of capacity.
You help us build and distribute resources (like our “Top Tips” videos or “Farmer John’s Farm” object-lessons) that are contextualised for rural settings, because we know rural ministry is different, and it needs different support.
You help keep alive the networks: our rural practitioners connecting with one another, sharing stories, mutual encouragement. Because none of us is an island, even out in the countryside.
A call to partner
Today, I invite you to partner with us, not simply as a donor, but as a mission ally. Here are three ways you might engage:
Pray for the rural churches in your region. Pray for renewal, for presence, for the spaces where the gospel touches everyday life.
Give — whether it’s a single donation, a monthly gift, or a legacy pledge. Every pound helps us sustain the support that rural ministry needs.
Share the story. Tell your networks that rural ministry matters. Encourage your church, group, and friends to consider the hidden mission fields in villages, hamlets, farms, and moors.
Final word
If you’ve ever wondered whether small places can make a difference, let me assure you: they can. And when you support Rural Missions, you make that difference happen. You enable the gospel to be lived out in those quiet corners, you enable small churches to remain faithful in their place, and you allow rural communities to know that God hasn’t forgotten them.
Thank you for believing in the small and enabling the big impact that small things can bring.
With gratitude,
Bob
