Lent
Showing 51–100 of 143 results
-
Easter Earthquake : How Resurrection Shakes Our World
$14.99Add to cartLike a news reporter announcing breaking news, Matthew reports that on the first Easter morning, a great earthquake shook the earth. An angel descended from heaven, rolled back the stone from the entrance to Jesus’ tomb, and sat on the stone. This is the second earthquake recorded in the Gospel of Matthew. The first one took place on Friday, when the noonday sky turned black and Jesus died. Matthew says, “The earth shook, and the rocks were split.” In Easter Earthquake, James Harnish invites us to place Easter at the center of our Lenten journey. This study explores how Christ’s resurrection shakes some of our most basic assumptions about ourselves and God. Harnish reverses the usual focus of Lenten studies by starting at the empty tomb and seeing the entire journey in light of the resurrection. This different perspective on the passion can bring fresh energy into our lives as followers of Christ.
-
Coloring Lent
$12.99Add to cartExperience the stories of Lent in a vibrant, new way this spring as you Color Lent!
The journey of Lent-from Ash Wednesday to Easter-is traditionally one of prayer, repentance, spiritual discipline, and meditation. But coloring?
Now you’re invited to add the spiritual practice of “coloring the Bible” on your Lenten journey. Engage both sides of your brain as you read the scripture and color your way through each day of Lent with evocative illustrations of God’s Resurrection story, from the Old Testament prophecies of Emmanuel to Jesus’ victorious appearances after his crucifixion to the loyal Disciples. Dozens of drawings will draw you deeper into the story and your own place in it.
From the Introduction: “This moment of Easter is Good News for this Jesus, who is fully human and fully God, yet it is even better news for the world: God has not only moved into the world with humans but the fullness of God has taken on flesh. As you color these pages, then, consider how your fingertips, your palms, your body have now become the house of God, and following the stories of the Hebrew and New Testaments, consider how we might also walk the same journey of Jesus.”
Grab your crayons, colored pencils and pens, and prepare to deepen your journey to Easter this year with Coloring Lent.
-
Walking The Journey Of Lent Cycle A
$15.95Add to cartYet even now, says the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping and with mourning; mend your hearts and not your clothing. Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relents from punishing.
-Joel 2:12-13
This famous passage of scripture proclaimed each Ash Wednesday provides the themes and sets the environment for the holy season of Lent. In its wisdom the Christian church provides its members a forty day period of preparation, emphasizing prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, for the great celebration of the Paschal Mystery, the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We who are privileged to bear the name Christian must use this annual time of renewal to reconnect ourselves to our God, the source of all that is good. Through a process of study, reflection, and discussion on the scripture passages that the church uses in its Sunday celebrations during this special time, an environment can be provided for us to discover and foster the renewal we all need. It is hoped that Walking the Journey of Lent: Reflections on the Scriptures for Cycle A provides this specific opportunity.
This Lenten Bible study can be a helpful and effective way for groups and individuals to reflect upon the scriptures and through this process prepare ourselves better for the greatest of all celebrations, Easter, when Jesus rises from the dead and brings all Christians the possibility of salvation. Like any effort in life that is meritorious, this Bible study will require some effort, but it need not and should not be a burden. Rather, in sharing with others, and allowing the Spirit of God to flow through us, we can come to greater insights as to what the scriptures might mean for us and how, most importantly, we can apply them to our lives.
Chapters Included:
Negotiating The Hurdles Of Life
Allowing God To Change Us
Christ Gives Us Hope
Seeking The Light Of Christ
Jesus Unchains Us
-
Surprise Surprise Surprise Cycle A
$12.95Add to cartBut What Of Lazarus? (John 11:1-45)
For The Glow Of It (Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21)
Friday (John 18:1-19:42)
Learning To Walk In The Dark And Remembering The Dark Is As Day To God (Matthew 26:14– 27:66)
Nicodemus Came By Night (John 3:1-17)Additional Info
Two voices, fourteen sermons…The lives of David and Marian Plant have been intertwined for 46 years, their mutual ministries, for even longer. Their voices were shaped by their ministry experiences that began together in shared, co-pastorate positions, and then matured into individual settled ministry positions and then again, moved into their own specialties of the last 20 years: Marian, in the teaching ministry and David in the interim and church revitalization ministry. Marian’s voice is one practiced well from a traditional setting of pulpit with written text in hand. David’s voice is one practiced in a relational style of informal conversation, often done without notes, and in back and forth dialogue with the gathered worshipers.
Their latest work, Surprise! Surprise! Surprise! provides fourteen cycle A gospel sermons for Lent/Easter. In these sermons you will see the mix of the lives of the Plants, committed to social justice, the important context of the role of the church as that which speaks for Christ, and the importance of the need for individuals to take up the challenge of living their faith more fully. There is no doubt that their mutual passions for addressing the ills befalling our culture and our world were foremost on their minds, and they could not but help influence one another’s work by virtue of their lives lived in the practice of ministry and marriage. They offer these words to you, as colleagues in ministry, even if only a sentence is valuable to you.
-
Worship In Light Of The Cross
$14.99Add to cartJohn Indermark urges us to focus on the cross, its imprint on how we worship as a community, and how it transforms our discipleship. This 6-week study inspires us to connect corporate worship with our daily lives. He organizes the daily readings according to the components of corporate worship: gathering, invocation, confession, proclamation, creed, response, and sacrament.
Key Features:
Leaders’ Guide helps you share this worship experience with your community of faith
Daily readings are key in preparing you for worship experiences
Each daily reading includes a reflection question or action
Includes ideas for creating a weekly worship center to emphasize each week’s theme -
Grace And Hope
$17.99Add to cartPrepare yourself to remember the meaning of Lent and celebrate Easter this season: grace for our past and present, hope for our future!
Beginning with Ash Wednesday, Grace & Hope: A 40-Day Devotional for Lent and Easter will guide you through this holy season of self-reflection, prayer, fasting, and remembrance-all to prepare you for the hopeful words “It is finished!” and even more wondrous words, “He is risen!”
Each short, engaging devotional will focus your heart and prepare your soul to celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus, using a faithful and relevant new translation of the Bible, The Passion Translation. It is an ideal devotional for your own personal, family, or small-group use. And daily Bible readings from The Passion Translation will deepen your understanding of God’s Word as you journey toward the cross.
We trust this devotional and version of Scripture will kindle in you a burning, passionate desire for the One who bore our pain and shame, and give you a greater measure of grace and hope!
-
Make Room : A Child’s Guide To Lent And Easter
$16.99Add to cartEncourage your children to learn the importance of Lent and Easter with Make Room: A Child’s Guide to Lent and Easter by Laura Alary, and illustrated by Ann Boyajian. Make Room presents Lent as a special time for creating a welcoming space for God. Episodes from the life of Jesus are woven together with a child’s wondering and reflections on how these stories might shape our own choices and actions throughout the season. Lent can be a difficult for season for children, unlike advent, which is filled with delightful anticipation and growing light, Lent is a journey through dark and frightening places. This book offers suggestions on simple and practical activities like cleaning a room, making bread and soup, turning off the television, clearing clutter, or inviting a neighbor for supper, that encourage kids to learn how to live like Jesus.
-
40 Days Of Decrease
$18.99Add to cart“What are you giving up for Lent?” we are asked. Our minds begin to whirl: Chocolate? Designer coffee? Social media? Forty days later, some feel disappointed in their efforts (it was a limited-time blend . . . ), some feel surprised by their success (didn’t even miss it . . . ), but perhaps precious few feel spiritually renewed.
Can such fasts alone truly prepare us to celebrate Easter? Or any other chosen time of reflection during the year?
Or could it be that before we can be duly awed by resurrection, we need to daily honor crucifixion?
40 Days of Decrease emphasizes a different type of fast. What if you or your church fasted comparison? What if your family fasted accumulation? What if your office fasted gossip?
40 Days of Decrease guides readers through a study of Jesus’ uncommon and uncomfortable call to abandon the world’s illusions, embrace His kingdom’s reality, and journey cross-ward and beyond.
Each daily, 1000-word entry will include:
*a devotional based on Jesus’ cross-ward life;
*a reflection question to guide journaling or group discussion;
*a fast to inspire a tangible response;
*a thought-provoking Lenten quote;
*a sidebar into the historical development of Lent. -
Pauses For Lent
$12.99Add to cartIn this beautifully minimalist book, Trevor Hudson focuses on 40 single words – one for each day of the season of Lent. Each brief meditation pairs the word for the day with a scripture verse, brief insight, and a thought or action for the day. Each paus for Lent will refresh and challenge readers.
-
These 40 Days
$9.99Add to cartAccording to the Scriptures the devil tempted Jesus during a period of fasting and prayer that was preparation for Jesus’ public ministry and passion. Throughout the Bible, times of desert preparation often preceded significant ministry. This is why we observe the season preceding Easter as a time for spiritual focus. The rhythms of fasting and feasting, desert and oasis, discipline and joy are not only well known to God’s people but also essential components of spiritual growth.These Forty Days is a simple guide for the reading of Scripture, reflection, prayer, and response. By beginning each day with intention, these devotionals will shape each of your hours with a heightened sensitivity to the Holy Spirit’s teaching and guidance.
-
40 Days 40 Ways
$16.99Add to cartIf you’re looking for a new Lenten experience, here are forty fresh ideas. Some will challenge you to deepen your prayer life; others will open your mind to new ways to serve others. Each of the forty ways includes a reflection to help you understand more about Lent and why it matters. You’ll learn how to have a more creative experience of Lent. You’ll discover positive, proactive ways to take action instead of the same old routine of giving something up. The result will be spiritual transformation and a closer walk with Christ-not only during Lent but throughout the year.
-
Pilgrim Road : A Benedictine Journey Through Lent (Revised)
$23.95Add to cartRevised edition of a classic Lenten devotional guide from Morehouse
* Includes a revised introduction and questions for reflection
In the view of St. Benedict of Nursia, the Lenten journey is an inner pilgrimage with Christ
into the deepest parts of ourselves, to be marked not so much by external observances,
such as fasting and self-denial, as by a deepening of our relationship with God.Benedictine monk Albert Holtz develops that journey theme through meditations written
during a fifteen-country pilgrimage while on sabbatical. At the heart of each reflection is
the lesson it teaches about our inner spiritual journey. By applying Benedict’s monastic
wisdom to the everyday concerns and aspirations of modern Christians, Pilgrim Road
helps contemporary spiritual seekers travel along and experience the journey of Lent in
the most positive, meaningful, and fruitful manner.For use as a Lenten devotional by individuals and groups.
-
When God Died
$14.99Add to cartMediations for Lent
“Did Christ die as God, or did He die as man? The answer to such a question is that He died as neither. What gives efficacy to the cross is the fact that Christ died as the God-man….The blood He shed, therefore, has abiding efficacy, seeing that it was the blood of an extraordinary nature, namely, the blood of God and Man combined.”
How could God, the deathless One, die? In When God Died, legendary Bible teacher Dr. Herbert Lockyer explores the person of Christ-both His divinity and humanity-in an effort to show the majesty of His death and resurrection, and what they mean to us today.
This series of Lenten meditations will open your eyes to the purpose, power, and beauty of Christ’s crucifixion. Among the topics you will explore are:
*The magnanimity and honor of Christ
*The cleansing power of His blood
*The sovereign power of His grace
*The last seven words Christ spoke from the crossMay we take the time to lovingly remember Christ’s sacrifice-the means of His extraordinary grace and power to save dying sinners-so that we may stand in rightful relationship with Christ, in awe of His holiness, power, and wisdom, with a heart of gratitude for all He has done.
-
Forgiveness : A Lenten Study
$16.00Add to cartForgiving others and humbly asking for forgiveness are central disciplines for all Christian believers. Lent, a time to reflect on our Christian journey, is an appropriate time to deepen our understanding and practice of forgiveness. Marjorie J. Thompson, author of the best-selling book Soul Feast, takes a close look at our understanding of forgiveness in this encouraging study. In six brief chapters, Thompson addresses such questions as the following:
Is forgiveness a Christian duty under all circumstances? Or are there situations when Christians do not need to forgive?
Is forgiveness a matter between individuals, or is it meaningful only in the context of communities?
Is forgiving the best route to healing for the injured?
How do we get past emotional barriers to real forgiveness?Using biblical examples and real-life situations, Thompson illustrates each chapter’s theme in an informative and engaging way. A study guide is also included at the back of the book that is appropriate for either individual reflection or group discussion. With clarity, insight, and sensitivity, this book is the perfect resource for examining both our ability to forgive and our own need for forgiveness.
-
People Of The Passion (Student/Study Guide)
$12.95Add to cartIt is a simple theological truth: We become more like Jesus when we draw close to him. People of the Passion unpacks this tenet in a powerful examination of some of the main characters of Jesus’ final days: Mary, Mother of Jesus; Mary Magdalene; Pilate; Nicodemus; Peter; and Judas. Throughout each chapter, Dr. Randall explores our perceptions and our knowledge of these individuals, pointing out how each played significant roles in exposing themes of faithfulness, gratitude, conflict, power, and betrayal.
People of the Passion calls us to embrace the “grace and opportunity of Lent,” for when we pause to examine our hearts and spirits within our collective narrative of fallen humanity, we are reminded that “we are an Easter people.” And in this, we celebrate Christ’s resurrection, understanding that everything about our redemption hinges upon the most significant event in human history: Easter morning.
-
40 Days With Jesus
$2.99Add to cartHonor the Easter season for 40 days with our Redeemer.
The sanctity of Easter…how do you approach and honor this holy time of year? Now you can spend 40 days with Jesus-from leading up to His death on Good Friday, to celebrating His resurrection on Easter Sunday-and draw into worship and praise as never before. Select devotionals from Sarah Young’s bestselling Jesus Calling are compiled into this gift book to create an experience of closeness with the Savior during the Lenten season.
-
Lent For Everyone Year A Matthew
$20.00Add to cartLent for Everyone: Matthew, Year A provides readers with an inspirational guide through the Lenten season, from Ash Wednesday through the week after Easter. Popular biblical scholar and author N. T. Wright provides his own Scripture translation, brief reflection, and a prayer for each day of the season, helping readers ponder how the text is relevant to their own lives. By the end of the book, readers will have been through the entirety of Matthew, along with Psalm readings for each Sunday. Suitable for both individual and group study and reflection, Wright’s Lenten devotional will help make Matthew’s gospel your own, thoughtfully and prayerfully, and your journey through Lent a period of discovery and growth.
-
Give Up Something Bad For Lent (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartInvites readers to focus on, with God’s help, eliminating habits or attitudes that may be destructive in their lives, such as envy, self-pity, procrastination, gossip, resentment, or negative thinking.
Seven sessions, one for each Sunday in Lent and Easter Sunday
Each session features a Scripture reference, a personal reading, questions for personal reflection or group study, and closing prayer -
Lent For Everyone Year C Luke
$20.00Add to cartFrom one of the world’s leading scholars and Christian writers, stirring reflections for Lent.
“Lent for Everyone may be a profitable way for readers to follow Jesus in their Lenten study.” Lois Sibley, Episcopal Journal
Lent for Everyone: Luke, Year C provides readers with an inspirational guide through the Lenten season, from Ash Wednesday through the week after Easter. Popular biblical scholar and author N. T. Wright provides his own Scripture translation, brief reflection, and a prayer for each of the days of the season, helping readers ponder how the text is relevant to their own lives today. By the end of the book readers will have been through the entirety of Luke, along with Psalm readings for each Sunday. Suitable for both individual and group study and reflection, Wright’s Lenten devotional will help you make Luke’s gospel your own, thoughtfully and prayerfully, and your journey through Lent a period of rich discovery and growth. -
Lent For Everyone Year B Mark
$20.00Add to cartLent for Everyone: Mark, Year B provides readers with a gentle guide through the Lenten season, from Ash Wednesday through the week after Easter. Popular biblical scholar and author N. T. Wright provides his own Scripture translation, brief reflection, and a prayer for each of the days of the season, helping the reader ponder how the text is relevant to their own life today.
Suitable for both personal and group reflection, Wright’s guide through Lent will make the Bible–and the season–come alive in inspiring new ways. -
Mosaic : When God Uses All The Pieces A Lenten Study For Adults
$13.99Add to cartFocuses on how God uses the brokenness in people’s lives to make them better
Seven sessions, one for each Sunday in Lent and Easter Sunday
Each session features a Scripture reference, a personal reading, questions for personal reflection or group study, and closing prayer
-
Word Has Come Down
$12.95Add to cartLent holds a central place in the worship of many Christians. After the joyful celebrations of Christmas and Epiphany, it is vital for Christians to set aside time to repent, meditate, and reflect on the fact that Jesus’ life was a buildup to the ultimate sacrifice of himself on the Cross for our sins. In The Word Has Come Down, Huener guides participants through the ashes of repentance of Ash Wednesday, journeying through the Last Supper of Maundy Thursday and the crucifixion of Good Friday, culminating in the revelation of the risen Jesus at Easter. Along the way, Huener stops to look at each of the main characters in these events, people like Caiaphas, Peter, Judas, Pontius Pilate, and the women at the tomb, allowing each one to tell their side of the story. Huener explores each character in detail, allowing each one to flesh out this central event in Christian history. Whether used for congregational worship, small group study, or personal Lenten devotions, The Word Has Come Down will draw its readers into the beauty, agony, and triumph of Lent and Easter. Beth Huener is the pastor of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Oregon, Ohio, a suburb of Toledo. She has also served at other Lutheran parishes in Ohio and West Virginia.
-
Hard To Dance With The Devil On Your Back (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartLooks at transcendent struggle in the lives of believers while helping readers enter the continually crumbling world surrounding Jesus and the disciples in the days preceding Easter.
Seven sessions, one for each Sunday in Lent and Easter Sunday
Each session features a Scripture reference, a personal reading, questions for personal reflection or group study, a closing prayer, and a focus for the coming week. -
To The Cross And Beyond
$14.95Add to cartIn each of Sunday’s assigned lectionary readings — the First, Second, and Gospel lessons — we are invited to view the glorious narrative of scripture through three different, yet harmonious, perspectives. In the gospel lesson, we return to the fountainhead, bringing the congregation back to where Christianity began. Like the first disciples, we walk with Jesus, hearing his words and witnessing his miracles as we journey to the Cross.
To the Cross and Beyond takes us through Jesus’ final days on earth as recounted in the Sundays of Lent and Easter. David O. Bales explores some of the gospel’s best-known moments as Jesus journeys to Jerusalem and, ultimately, to the Cross and then the empty tomb.
This collection of sermons is a valuable resource for:
Sermon starters and illuminating illustrations
Gaining a new homiletical perspective to the lectionary
Offering a newer, deeper understanding and appreciation of scripture
Using as a starter for adult Bible study groups or personal devotionsThis insightful collection of sermons includes:
Looking Down on God
Putting the World Back Together
Jesus’ Prayer: The Pause in the Battle
… and many more! -
Show And Tell Cycle A
$14.95Add to cartIn each of Sunday’s assigned lectionary readings — The First, Second, and Gospel lessons — we are invited to view the glorious narrative of scripture through three different, yet harmonious, perspectives. In the first reading, the congregation returns to the heritage of our faith as described in the Old Testament, as well as in the New Testament book of Acts. We travel with the children of Israel as they take their first steps in faith, reliving the highs and lows of that journey with them. Through studying this part of scripture, we can see our own journey of faith played out by an entire nation.
Show-and-Tell guides us through some of the earliest accounts in the Bible in Genesis and Exodus, as well as the prophetic words of Isaiah and Ezekiel. During the Easter season, the first readings also explore the beginnings of Christianity as recounted in Acts. By taking us back to the beginning, Dr. Everett offers insight and encouragement into how we can live out our faith today.
This collection of sermons is a valuable resource for:
Sermon starters and illuminating illustrations
Gaining a new homiletical perspective to the lectionary
Offering a newer, deeper understanding and appreciation of scripture
Using as a starter for adult Bible study groups or personal devotionsSermons in this volume include:
Will This Be on the Test?
A Breath of Fresh Air
Stuck in Park
… and many more! -
From Preparation To Passion
$15.49Add to cartFrom Preparation to Passion Devotional and Reflective Meditations Celebrating the Lenten Season Based On the Lectionary and Celebrated African-American Sacred Songs and Hymnody There are many devotional books written to help communities of faith and individuals to observe the season of Lent in a devout manner. Here within is another resource that is intended to allow you to truly engage yourself in the preparation and propel you into a Holy passion for Christ by the time you reach Easter. This push to a deeper passion may be enhanced through the connection of the celebrated African-American sacred songs and church hymns. From Preparation to Passion will be a resource you will want to use in subsequent years, as it offers insights through the meditative readings on the message that the music and the Word of God brings! From Preparation to Passion includes meditations highlighting sacred songs such as: “My Tribute,” “God Is,” “O Didn’t It Rain,” “I love Thy Kingdom Lord,” and more! Excerpt: Jesus’ avowal that the church is a “House of Prayer” rather than a den of thieves still applies. As present day pilgrims, prayer should stand as the “sweet communion” that draws us into a deeper love for the church and “her heavenly ways.”
-
Week That Changed The World
$17.95Add to cartThis devotional for Lenten and Easter meditations is a synthesis of the four gospel accounts of the eight days of Jesus’ passion and resurrection.
Uses the popular and contemporary TNIV translation
Includes maps, notes, and user guide
Preface by Robert Webber, noted evangelical scholarBeginning with Palm Sunday, the gospels record every day of Jesus’ life up to the time of his death and resurrection. These eight days are unparalleled in the canon of Scripture for their narrative power, their detail, and their focus. A unique synthesis of the four gospel accounts of the passion and resurrection of Christ is provided in this seamless and elegant narrative account of the Easter events, including every detail mentioned in all four Gospels, but without any unnecessary repetition or distracting references.
-
Gospeled Lives : Encounters With Jesus A Lenten Study
$16.99Add to cartWhat does it mean to be gospeled? John Indermark suggests that an encounter with the living Christ demands a response. Gospeled Lives presents biblical characters who had such an encounter. Some of these persons responded with joy and gratitude. Some ignored or rejected Christ’s offer of good news. These stories, along with daily readings of scripture, written prayers, and suggested exercise, make an ideal study for either individual or group use over the six-week Lenten period. The offer and the experience of grace are found in these pages, as they are in the Lenten season itself. Each chapter has five daily readings and an introductory overview of the week’s theme. The appendix includes session guides for group study.
-
Courage To Carry On
$8.95Add to cartUsing the Hebrew scriptures and the book of Acts as a guide, David Webb journeys through the First Readings from the Revised Common Lectionary for the Lent and Easter seasons. The Courage to Carry On not only draws people into a deeper appreciation and understanding of the meaning of Lent and Easter, it also offers insight into living the Christian life in today’s world. Ideal for sermon inspiration and preparation as well as small group Bible study and personal reflection and meditation, The Courage to Carry On is a valuable addition to any library.
Some of the sermons included in this collection are:
* Relentless Grace
* A Precious Gift
* Salvation Is Coming
* The Church’s DNA
* Confident Faith -
Who Is This Man This Jesus
$10.95Add to cartTake your congregation back in time and put worshipers right in the midst of the events surrounding humanity’s salvation with this collection of three sets of five monologues, each centered around a different perspective on the life and death of Jesus.
Who Is This Man? looks at the death of Jesus through the eyes of ordinary people who through various circumstances find themselves caught up in the passion story, including a soldier of King Herod, Roman centurions, and Malchus, a servant of the high priest.
In Women of the Promise, audiences will journey through the Old Testament as five women look with faithful anticipation to the future coming of the Savior.
Come, Follow Me tells the story of Jesus’ life and death as seen by his followers, including Nicodemus, Mary Magdalene, and even Judas Iscariot.
Each series of monologues will be sure to enrich the Lenten observances of any congregation, as well as any small group study throughout the year.
-
Holy Moses
$12.95Add to cartIn Holy Moses, Arley Fadness takes the reader on a trip with Moses and the Hebrew people. This collection of six family-oriented Lenten services creates excitement and anticipation in children and adults alike as they retell and relive the greatest salvation event in the Old Testament. The Exodus experience is relived and remembered while being applied to the lives of modern Christians.
-
40 Days To A Closer Walk With God
$14.99Add to cartAre you trying to do it all yourself? Muyskens reminds us that what God seeks is relationship with us, a two-way communication. What relationship with God requires is very similar to what our earthly relationships require: openness, listening, focused time. One way to practice the skills needed for this relationship is centering prayer, a simple but deeply powerful prayer practice. In beautiful and accessible language, Muyskens invites us to spend time daily focusing our hearts on God, to find the power to be still and be reoriented to “the One who is the Center of all.”
Exercises in prayer and scripture reading are provided for the 40 days. -
Clearing Season : Reflections For Lent
$14.99Add to cartCities across the world celebrate the day-before with colorful parades and over-the-top parties. Then Wednesday arrives … Sigh. Lent. has. begun.
You hear about devout friends giving up seemingly innocent things in life (like chocolate) or stressing out to live a more perfect life during six grueling weeks – for reasons you don’t completely understand. Sermons about penitence are preached, and guilt soaks the congregation.
Sound like a good time?! It’s time to rethink Lent.
Or at least see it for the positive opportunity it offers. It’s spring-cleaning for the soul! Lent offers you time to pause, consider, and renew your relationship with God – an altogether hopeful (not dreary) experience.
“To arrive at newness of life, we first name parts of our lives that are shrouded in darkness,” writes Parsons. “To put it very dramatically,… your first order of business is to break your heart for God. We walk through some muck so that we can leave it behind and find Easter joy beyond…. With God’s help we will clear the darkness away and begin to experience greater joy and newness of life.”
Sure, there’s work to be done during Lent, but it’s the gentle, gradual work of opening one’s heart and mind to grace. A Clearing Space will move you week by week from “wilderness to holy ground,” using a personal tone that will stir and challenge personal reflection.
Parsons includes exercises for small groups, as well as questions at the end of each chapter for individual reflection. Also included is an appendix of spiritual practices for Lent you may not have considered before.
-
Life Balance : A Five Session Course On Rest Work And Play For Lent (Student/Stu
$9.99Add to cartChurch House Publishing
21st century living is hectic. Getting the right ‘life balance’ between rest, work and play seems almost impossible. In five interactive sessions, Life Balance aims to help groups explores:”How to build Sabbath time into the crazy pressures of everyday life. ‘How ‘Sabbath attitudes’ can transform the way we spend our time.”Each session contains enough material for a 90-minute session and includes guidelines for group study, with full background notes for leaders, interactive activities, questions for discussion and multimedia ideas, and ideas for practical action.
-
Roll Back The Stone
$20.95Add to cartCreate memorable services that help worshipers experience the profound sadness of the crucifixion as well as the marvelous joy of the risen Christ with this diverse collection of ready-to-use dramatic material. With ample selections for Lent, Holy Week, and Easter, there’s something special here for congregations of any size or worship style. Copying privileges are included for all segments. Included are:
* A Travesty Of Justice: In The Shadow Of The Cross (Kathy Martz), a series of six meditations in which an unusual assortment of “eyewitnesses” – the thorn, robe, nail, spear, shroud, and stone – tell about their extraordinary encounters with Jesus. Designed for use in Lenten vesper services, these spiritual contemplations examine the events leading up to the crucifixion from a unique perspective. Each user-friendly monologue comes with a brief scripture reading and a prayer.
* Live From Jerusalem (John O. Eby), a short Palm Sunday play that helps audiences envision what it would have been like to be on the scene of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Tying biblical prophecy together with a contemporary view, television-style news anchors and correspondents vividly portray the chaos and uncertainty of the first day of Passover while speculating on how simmering conflicts will be resolved – leaving audiences to ponder the question “What comes next?”
* Maundy Thursday Testimonies (David H. Covington), a brief set of dramatic readings depicting the Passion events and their meaning from the viewpoint of four characters: Mary Magdalene, Thomas, Judas, and Peter. An excellent vehicle for members to participate in worship, these moving monologues provide an especially powerful contribution to the Maundy Thursday service.
* God On Trial, Or…? (John O. Eby), a courtroom drama for Good Friday which portrays Jesus’ trial before Pilate ? with the novel twist of Beelzebub as the prosecutor, questioning several witnesses who level accusations against Jesus. While it is ostensibly Jesus who is on trial, it gradually becomes clear that everyone else (including all of us) is actually on trial before him ? giving new and deeper meaning to Christ’s plea, “Father, forgive them, for they do not understand what they are doing!”
* Sons Of Thunder (Carol Secord), a brief Good Friday sketch in which James and John struggle to come to grips with the stark reality of the crucifixion. As they bitterly lash out in anger and frustration at those who abandoned Jesu
-
Hey Joseph
$12.95Add to cartCreate stimulating, family-oriented Lenten worship that captivates the imagination with this engaging “dramily” series. Six humorous sketches, interwoven with brief homilies highlighting key points, update the familiar Old Testament story of Joseph and his brothers for contemporary audiences ? providing an instructive and entertaining resource for midweek programs. Additional messages and dramas for Holy Week and Easter Sunday shift the focus to Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection.
By touching on such universal experiences as family squabbles, sibling rivalry, parental favoritism, jealousy, hatred, false accusations, reconciliation, trust, and healing, Hey Joseph! is certain to resonate with the people in the pews. It offers pastors, worship leaders, and drama groups a thematically unified total package that’s flexible and easy to adapt for any size church. A complete list of simple props is included, along with helpful illustrations for constructing “Joseph’s Granary,” which may be stocked with food donations for local pantries. -
Season For The Spirit
$27.95Add to cartExperience forty days of self-discovery through theological reflections and prayers. While it aims to assist a daily practice of personal prayer, it is also widely used by groups who pledge to meet regularly so that members can share their thoughts, reactions, and spiritual experiences.
-
Thespian Theology Cycle C
$12.95Add to cartStimulate audiences to see the scriptural message in a new light with these inspiring sketches based on Cycle C lectionary readings for the Lent and Easter seasons. Originally developed for presentation by a high school-age youth group, the simple, easy-to-perform scenes in this latest installment of John TenBrook’s popular Thespian Theology series are an excellent tool for sharing the Gospel with unchurched people and getting them excited about Jesus Christ. Each skit is introduced by brief “Thespian Theological Thoughts” on the drama and the scripture texts. These versatile pieces can be staged as an alternative to the Sunday sermon or used for youth programs and other fellowship settings — they’re sure to enlighten audiences of all ages while leaving an indelible impression.
Some of the intriguing titles include:
* Dust Thou Art… Art Thou Dust? (Ash Wednesday)
* Moses The Fig Tree (Lent 3)
* The Spiritual Struggle Of Sidney Centurion (Passion/Palm Sunday)
* “But I Wasn’t There… Ya Gotta Show Me!” (Easter 2)
* Let Everyone Who Is Thirsty Come (Easter 7) -
Season Of Ash And Fire
$20.99Add to cartIn addition to prayers and liturgies for Ash Wednesday through Ascension Day, this book includes suggested themes and symbols for the Sundays of Lent, daily Scripture readings for Lent and the fifty Days of Easter, household prayers for Lent and Easter, and an order for Lenten study groups. A Selected Scripture Index is included. This book has been designed for ease of use in both thematic and lectionary-based worship services.
-
9 Changed Lives
$12.95Add to cartI found Nine Changed Lives to be an intriguing series of Easter season monologues. Each met me on a personal level and pointed me to Christ. Their unique format enables a great deal of flexibility for their presentation.
Rev. Dennis H. Greenwald
Upper Midwest Area Representative for the Conservative Congregational Christian ConferenceNine brief monologues for Lent are spoken by:
* Simon of Cyrene (for Ash Wednesday)
* Tamar of Jerusalem
* Zimri the Pharisee
* King Herod
* Pilate and Claudia
* Thomas
* The Centurion
* Mary Magdalene (for Easter sunrise)This book also includes a youth one-act for Palm Sunday and a Maundy Thursday meditation. Directions to make a cross and whip for use in two monologues are part of the book.
-
Wheres Noah
$19.95Add to cartWhere’s Noah? features the classic biblical story of Noah, the flood, and God’s salvation in a worship format that engages all generations. This resource features monologues, brief pithy sermons, the exchange of animal tokens, crossword puzzles, an Easter Sunrise play, and other creative worship/learning experiences.
Worship leaders, clergy, and drama players will find this a refreshing series for congregational unity and growth.
-
Services For The Lenten Candles
$18.95Add to cartJust as the Lenten season reminds the Christian of Christ’s journey to the cross, the seven candles and the weekly extinguishing of each one enhances that long, soon-to-be dark journey. When the last candle is extinguished and the darkness seems to be all-consuming, worshipers will feel the darkness of the soul at the time of Christ’s crucifixion.
Using one or two liturgists, flexible services are provided for every Sunday during the Lenten season as well as Good Friday and Easter Sunday, during which a Paschal candle is lighted.
The beauty and symbolism of these services will add meaning and dimension to your Lenten worship as the congregation is reminded each Sunday of being one step closer in the journey to the cross.
