It apparently takes just 120 seconds to consume a cream egg… and this weekend thousands of people will be getting their teeth stuck into the yummy treats courtesy of two local youth groups.

Young people from churches in north Belfast and Granshaw have spent months collecting cream eggs en masse, in preparation for handing them out as free gifts over the Easter weekend.  Fellow youth group leaders and best friends Steve Caldwell and Mark Houston are behind this sweet-toothed enterprise, and they’re excited to see it in action…

“The cream egg project started one day in a busy coffee shop,” Steve explains. “I had my ipod in listening to worship music and to song after song about God’s gift at Easter.  It hit me that no-one in that coffee shop was hearing this message, they weren’t hearing the hope of it.”

From that light-bulb moment Steve had the idea of sharing some love at Easter by mobilising people in his church to go out into the local communities of Comber, Dundonald and Carryduff, armed with cream eggs.  This is the second year teams from the church will take part in the Good Friday project and Steve is feeling hopeful about it.

“It’s our prayer that people would know that grace has a face; that as each creme egg falls into the hands of businessmen, teachers, doctors, shop owners they might capture grace.”

Similarly 50 young people from Immanuel Presbyterian will take time out of their Easter weekend to hand out over 2000 cream eggs in Castlewellan Forest Park.  They took part in a similar venture last year, but this time round it’s on a much bigger scale.

Youth leader Mark Houston says he loves seeing people’s reaction when they’re handed the free gift: “Last year we saw a whole spectrum of reactions from total surprise, appreciation, confusion through to ‘happy days’ and ‘can I take one for my mate…’

“It’s our hope that people will get over the skepticism of receiving a free gift and see Jesus behind it.”

And for Mark the response of the church to the initiative has been special: “We’ve been blown away by the response. From our faithful granny supporters giving a 12 pack per week to a 4 year old kid running up to the growing pile with a 3 pack in hand.

“Our young people are excited by the thought that each Creme Egg may create the potential for God to change someone’s life forever - now that’s EGGCITING!!