Is it just me, or is Advent all over the internet this year in a way it hasn’t been in the past? If online resources nourish your spirituality, there are plenty of them out there. Here are some of the best things I’ve found over the last week or so. Let me know if any […]
If there are kids in your life, and you’re keen on celebrating Advent at home, then you’re probably pretty set by now. Calendars or candles are on the go, and maybe the pile of Christmas picture books is being devoured. Now it’s the adults’ turn. And it’s time to move from Pinterest and To Do […]
Yay! Advent is my favourite season in the church calendar, and it’s almost here! Actually, Lent was pretty cool this year, too, with our superduper Lent with Kids series, but the inspiration for that came from all the fun and surprisingly helpful things we did at home during Advent. So here we are! I […]
Advent in Art is a project of World Vision New Zealand for the spiritual nurture of staff. Mark Pierson and Alison Squires curate and produce beautiful sets of cards with reproductions of paintings, Scripture readings, questions for reflection and a ritual to perform. This year Advent in Art features the art of Wayne Forte, reproduced […]
A little visitor came to our house for the first time recently. This was the conversation between the visitor and my four-year-old son, SBJ: Visitor: Whose bike is that? SBJ: Mine! V: It can’t be yours. It’s pink. Pink is a girl colour. SBJ: No, colours are for everyone. Pink is one of my favourite colours. […]
In 2023, Lent begins Wednesday, 22 February We’re spoilt by the church calendar at this time of year! We’ve just had four weeks of candle-lighting at Advent, culminating, in our household, with this delightful moment on Christmas Day: Now we’re coming to the end of the two-week Christmas season, and then it’s only a month […]
One of my very favourite places in Melbourne is Sandridge Bridge, home to the Travellers sculptural installation. Enormous steel figures fan out along the bridge (they used to move out at sunrise and in at sunset) representing the indigenous people, and then nine successive waves of migrants. The bridge also hosts 128 panels for Melbourne residents’ […]
From Rudolf and Santa to Slinky Malinki and the proverbial Pukeko in a Punga Tree, there’s a Christmas picture book for everyone. In most bookshops, though, Baby Jesus is hidden behind Grinches, trains and elves. If you’re in the market for Christmas books for kids that tell the story of God coming into the world as […]
St Paul’s Church in Auckland is famous for the impossibly cuuuuute nativity videos they produce each year, starring their kids. This year they have also released this compelling short film for adults, reminding us that Jesus was a Palestinian. There are several parts where my eyes widened. Watch for the shepherd (who has an accounting degree) talking about […]
Today is Kent’s birthday and I miss him. Here are some words I spoke at his funeral in January, after he died far too young. If we could all be a bit more like Kent from today onwards, the world would be much improved. I’d like to invite you to look at a picture of […]