Green pastures is more than just a bookshop
There has been a gradual loss of Christian bookshops on high streets around the country. Green Pastures is one of the few remaining in the East and it continues to trade and offers pop up shops around the county.
Green Pastures is a Christian bookshop in Dereham. Since the closure of Revelation in Norwich last year, the team have been trying their best to fill the void by running pop up shops at various locations and events. There is a regular pop up shop at St Mary's Church in Bury St Edmunds on the first Wednesday of the month and in Norwich at the Salvation Army Citadel, on the last Thursday of the month. Both 10am to 2pm.
Green Pastures will also attend events and conferences across the county with relevant resources. The team feel that having a Christian presence on the high street is important, and the specialist knowledge about the books and resources is something that is missed by impersonal online shopping. A report in the Times at the weekend showed a surge in interest of gen z - those aged between 13 and 28 - in reading the Bible, proving they are a generation open to faith.
Helen and Irene comment: "We always say we are more than just a bookshop - ministry is so much part of what we do here. We want to see our community grow in faith and so love to put good books into people's hands. Selling Bibles is especially important to us; we always display them in the central area in our shop, right, bang in the middle. People can pick them up, feel them in their hands, look at the text size and talk to us about the different translations. We even pray with people about what they've bought; maybe it's a gift to encourage someone in their faith, so we send them out with prayer backup - something you don't get online!"
A customer who appreciates Green Pastures is Mark Watkins, who, along with his wife Debra, volunteers for Samaritans Purse in Norfolk. Mark said, "We have lived in Norfolk for close to 36 years. In that time, we've have seen the gradual loss of Christian bookshops; we had been building up a link with Revelation resource centre in Norwich and was saddened when this valuable resource had to close. We have found the support of Green Pastures encouraging, with a warm welcome. Please pray and support this resource as best as possible. Keeping this resource is all about making available Christian support, to those with faith and those searching.”
Contact Green Pastures on 01362 697953 shop@greenpasturesdereham.org.uk
Pictured above: Irene and Shiela, from Green Pastures and Mark from Samaritans Purse/ Operation Christmas Child.