Cockermouth Show - August 2025

Tom O'Donnell and Robert McGibbon

Today was brilliant. The weather was glorious and the conversations we had were good. We were using the gazebo for our base again. The conversations seemed to follow one after the other so quickly so there was no time to write the occasional memo to remind us later.

One family had come to Cockermouth from Canada to look up relations. The show was the right place to look up old friends too. The show brings out the farming families from deep in the valleys, to enter their sheep and cattle in the competitions.

Most teenage farmers daughters long for a pony or even a horse and they enter competitions for dressage and show jumping. Tom  walked over to the show jumping ring armed with about a hundred tracts which  have pictures of horses on the front. Incidentally these were left over from the Appleby horse Fair. Just the job for those surrounding the ring.  His pockets were empty when he came back   he reckoned he could have used even more.

Meanwhile Robert stayed at the stand and talked with two teenage girls. One of them  wanted to be a vet and the other was into music.  One seemed keen to find story out more so she was given a  New Testament which she promised she would read.

Next a group of lads came along and tried the guessing box.  Then by asking for a Bible story connected to their discoveries in the box.  It was clear that their knowledge was slim so we impressed on them how much the Lord loved them, enough to die in their place . Tom used his cards that have an optical illusion on them. These have the 10 commandments printed on the back so it’s a good to be reminded of Gods Law and failing to keep Gods Law  is sin, the very sin Jesus took upon himself to die on the cross in our place.

We had so many children trying the guessing box and even the “Splat the Rat “ game. We gave out lots of dog tracts to the dog lovers who seemed to  increase in numbers each year.

We were pleased to have a new banner hung above the gazebo so all could read who we were and what we stood for.  Robert met so many that he knew from years back but there were lots more to tell the gospel message or to give them a tract which they can read in private.  Please pray for all these wandering along forgetting our Lord and Creator. So many haven’t even been inside a church where they might hear this message. Pray for us that we will deliver that word in season.