'Our tiny church raised £16,500 - and not a penny of it was for us'

It’s tough being a small church.

When your entire congregation could squeeze into a living room, it’s tempting to believe you don’t matter. But what if that very smallness was the thing God could use?

That was our reality at LifeChurch Eccles, a tiny congregation on the edge of Manchester. Eccles doesn’t usually make the headlines for good news. If anything, it’s the kind of place most people overlook.

But then the idea came as a whisper.

Honestly, it felt ridiculous. What if our little church could become a catalyst for generosity? What if we could trigger a movement across our community? Giving ordinary people a chance to support local projects. To make this neglected town a little brighter?

We didn’t have a grand plan, just a conviction that small and fragile could still be used by God.

Hidden heroes

LifeChurch Eccles decided to launch Together for Eccles.

The concept was simple: invite any group serving the community to apply for support. No jargon, no endless paperwork — just a short form and a promise: if you’re making a difference, we want to shine a light on your work and rally others to help.

We weren’t raising money for ourselves. We had nothing to gain. No hidden agenda. Just a chance to celebrate and strengthen the people quietly serving our town.

The response surprised us.

Sports clubs for young people. Friendship groups for the elderly. Family projects offering meals to those who would otherwise go without. Safe spaces for the vulnerable. All of them were run by ordinary people who cared deeply for their neighbours.

We weren’t centre stage; we were just the spark

We asked local businesses to sponsor a project. To our amazement, many said yes. Some even visited their chosen project to offer more support. Salford Council got wind of what we were planning and promised to match every pound that came in.

On the day of the showcase, Eccles Town Hall buzzed with life. Eight community groups lined the hall with stalls. People from every corner of the community wandered between them, listening to stories, shaking hands, asking questions. It felt like a family reunion of people who had never met before.

By the end of the event, £16,500 had been given by local people toward local projects. Enough to keep doors open. Enough to put meals on tables. Enough to remind people that Eccles hadn’t been forgotten.

Lessons in love

Looking back, there were no slick strategies, no glossy fundraising drives. What unfolded came not from our strength but from our weakness. We were far too small to pull this off alone, so we had to lean on businesses, community groups and local people.

Yet it was from that very place of weakness that we discovered lessons that reshaped how we see both ourselves and our community.

1. Small sparks big

We often assume only large, well-resourced churches can shape a city. Yet in our case, it was precisely our smallness that left room for others to step in. We weren’t centre stage; we were just the spark.

2. Weakness invites strength

Instead of projecting “we’ve got this,” we admitted, “we need help.” That honesty opened doors — businesses, councillors, even the council itself felt able to come alongside.

3. Generosity is contagious

Once people saw others giving, it spread. One gift led to another. “I’ll give what I can” turned into “count me in.” Before long, the room buzzed with generosity.

4. The overlooked need champions

We uncovered projects no one had ever noticed. One group, Mature Movers, quietly offered exercise and friendship to older people. They had never received funding before. That day, they walked away resourced and celebrated.

5. A sign of the gospel

The gospel always leaves a trace. One of the clearest is selfless generosity. That’s why the projects were purposefully not church based. Jeremiah 29:7 calls us to seek the good of our city -not by standing centre stage, but by blessing what was already blooming around us.

Because when you serve with no strings attached, you create the kind of soil where faith can take root quietly, in its own time.

Dreaming the impossible

When we began, we honestly didn’t know if anyone would show up. Yet what happened reminded us of the way God so often works: taking what seems inadequate and multiplying it beyond recognition.

The impact is still unfolding. New volunteers have stepped forward. Groups who had never spoken before are now working together. A forgotten community has begun to believe in itself again.

We had nothing to gain. Just a chance to celebrate and strengthen the people quietly serving our town

This isn’t a story about Eccles being exceptional. It’s about Eccles being ordinary. Which means the same could happen anywhere.

Every town has hidden heroes. Every community has people longing for hope. And every church - no matter how small - can take a single step of courage and discover that God can do far more than we imagined.

Because sometimes all it takes is one quiet risk to spark something far bigger than us.