The fridge door is the message bank of most kitchens, where the whole family communicate about their lives. Therefore, a Lent Calendar ‘countdown’ to Easter seems a good way for families to remember that Lent is more than giving up some food or activity, it is a time of reflection and repentance, a time to study God’s word, live simply and explore Lent traditions that have helped… Continue reading

Many families these days find it difficult to sit together at the dining table for a meal; there are television shows to watch, mum or dad might have to work late, the children have commitments, things are busy. Why not during Lent make the commitment to have one meal together at the dining table each week. During this time talk together as a family of your concerns, things you are thankful… Continue reading

For a few years I had read about Messy Church. In 2010, as part of my study leave looking at Fresh Expressions of Christian community in the UK, I visited several churches that had a thriving Messy Church to see for myself how Messy Church ‘worked’ in different contexts, including its birthplace, St Wilfrid’s, in Cowplain, near Portsmouth. A double-bonus was being at Cowplain for Messy… Continue reading

Most churches have a ‘commissioning’ for leaders of various ministry areas, and usually people are asked to stand or go to the front and be prayed for, and often the whole congregation then stands and recognises that God’s power is not confined to the formal programs of the church and ministry isn’t just done by ordained leaders. Another way to demonstrate visually our connectedness in… Continue reading

UnitingPeople has just released the 100 Ways to celebrate Christmas booklet on their site. Designed to be a free download for you to keep and refer back to year after year, it is available in A4 and A5 sizes and filled with great Christmas activity ideas. As they explain: At the core of Christmas we celebrate peace & joy & love. It isn’t always easy to experience this, when… Continue reading

Advent Treasure Hunt If you have a nativity scene, this is easy but you can make your own figures from cardboard tubes.  Wrap the pieces in tissue paper and hide them around the house.  Create a treasure map either by drawing a map or creating clues (for example: This animal was surprised to find a baby where its breakfast should have been.  Now it is to be found where you get breakfast. … Continue reading

I found these little sheep erasers at Smiggle and thought of Sunday school teachers who are often looking for little gift ideas or something to take home to reinforce a lesson. There are so many stories in the Bible about sheep – lost sheep, sheep being led by a good shepherd, sheep being fed, being known by name … Have you found any simple little gift ideas that you’d like to share with… Continue reading

Here are my ‘Top 20′ selection of books to get you started thinking about topics like child theology, ministry to children and families and inclusive worship. How do we as a church prepare children and young people to be involved in the ongoing life of the church?   Are we countering the negative messages of our culture?  Do children have opportunities to develop an inner working model of … Continue reading

1st – 8th August 2010. The theme for this year is: Learning for Sustainability. Education week is a time for all to celebrate the valued place of our NSW public schools. As part of this week of celebration, the NSW Department of Education and Training, along with the Director-General’s Consultative Committee on Special Religious Education have provided an Inter-Denominational… Continue reading

Katrina Cleland from Cherrybrook Uniting Church helped the children create this beautiful paper ‘quilt’. This is a beautiful way to follow through a theme creatively with children and showcase their art work for the whole congregation to… Continue reading