Bridgeley Church of Christ was blessed with a vision to run a program called MOPS (Mums Of Pre-Schoolers) for all mothers in our community. This program has been running since 2014, and numbers have been continuing to grow each year. Entering our third year, we have registered 25 mums, 5 of which are new to MOPS, and 32 MOPPETS. How awesome is that.

MOPS is a time for all our mums to spend quality time together, sharing with each other the journey of motherhood, including all the highs and lows, and to support each other through all of that. The mission for MOPS is to encourage and equip mums of young children to realise their potential as mothers, women and leaders, in relationship with Jesus, and in partnership with the local church.

MOPS welcomes ALL mothers of preschoolers regardless of age, marital status, religion or national origin. MOPS is a wonderfully diverse group of women, making it a completely unique system of support. Over the two hour sessions, the babies and kids are looked after in the MOPPETS crèche by grandparents or mums who have older children in school. This gives our mums the opportunity to have quality time together, start AND finish a hot cuppa with cake, share stories and struggles, and enjoy a small craft activity.

Bridgeley MOPS wouldn’t be able to run without the amazing volunteers who take on the carer’s role to look after the babies and kids. There have been times we have had to implement a waiting list, as we have not been able to accommodate the growing numbers. What a problem to have! With Bridgeley MOPS spreading further through the community, we are putting plans in place to accommodate ALL mums who come through our doors.

As Christian leaders, we are encouraged and blessed by our diverse group of mothers, for most of these mums, they will hear about the gospel for the first time. We have the opportunity to share with them our stories and about God’s love for them. I would like to think the blessing for us, as leaders, is that they keep coming back!