Lent
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God Is On The Cross
$17.00Add to cartWhen people suggest in their letters . . . that I’m ‘suffering’ here, I reject the thought. It seems to me a profanation. These things mustn’t be dramatized. I doubt very much whether I’m ‘suffering’ any more than you, or most people, are suffering today. Of course, a great deal here is horrible, but where isn’t it? . . . No, suffering must be something quite different, and have a quite different dimension, from what I’ve so far experienced.”
-from Letter to Eberhard Bethge from Tegel prison, 9 MarchThese forty-seven stirring devotions will guide and inspire readers as they move thematically through the weeks of Lent and Easter, encountering themes of prayerful reflection, self-denial, temptation, suffering, and the meaning of the cross. Passages from Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s letters and sermons provide special encouragement as readers prepare themselves spiritually for Holy Week and Easter Sunday. Supplemented by an informative introduction to Bonhoeffer’s life and a Scripture passage for each day of the season, these daily devotions are moving reminders of the true gift of Christ on the cross.
Also available: God Is in the Manger: Reflections on Advent and Christmas.
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Praises Abound : Hymns And Meditations For Lent And Easter
$22.95Add to cartDevotional reading for Lent and early Easter
Original hymn texts and meditations on existing hymns by students at the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the SouthwestThese hymns and meditations are authentic and honest reflections of seminary students who have since become priests, musicians, and educators throughout the church. The collection is made up of selected works by students of Dr. Schultz-Widmar during his thirty-year teaching career at the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest (ETS), Austin, Texas.
It is organized for devotional reading for Lent and the early Easter season, although readings are not designated for specific days.
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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
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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.
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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! -
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.
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Things He Carried
$10.99Add to cartThe narrative of Holy Week is powerful and painful, and because we know how the story ends it’s easy to gloss over the difficult details, and stay in the comfort zone of our understanding. Stephen Cottrell brings home, vividly and poignantly, the physical reality of the passion story. This is a book to stimulate thought, provoke discussion and create space for contemplation.
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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 -
Bread For The Journey
$9.95Add to cartWorship involves the senses. The light filtering in from the stained-glass windows, the colors of the vestments, and even the words we read in our Bibles and prayer books fascinate us visually in worship. The sounds of musical instruments and voices raised in song grip us audibly. The feel of the wood on the pews and the altar or the leather on our Bibles can engage our sense of touch. All of these sensations come together to form our worship experience.
In Bread for the Journey, Rolf Svanoe has sought to attract our other senses, enhancing our encounter with God. This Lenten worship series offers sermons for Ash Wednesday, each week in Lent, and services for Holy Week and Easter. This book also includes recipes for breads that can be baked and distributed during the services, each scent and taste offering an additional insight into the Lenten worship experience. Whether it is the sweetness of Welcome Bread or the bitterness of Betrayer’s Bread, each bread takes us on a journey through the season of Lent, culminating in the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Pastors and other ministers will be able to use this resource to draw their congregations into a deeper and more fulfilling Lenten worship. Bread for the Journey is a resource that will feed a congregation, both spiritually and physically.
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Give Us This Day
$18.95Add to cart* Easy-to-make recipes are ideal for families with younger children,church school classes, and pot lucks
* Connecting of baking, food, and social justice make it good Lenten reading for middle and high school youth groups.
* Substantial reflections for prayer groups and Lenten study groups.
* Ecumenical in focusIdeal for altar guilds and women who bake communion bread who want to make prayer and reflection part of their ministry. Bread speaks to us of our daily reliance upon a Maker, writes Christopher Levan. Perhaps more than any other food it brings us close to our roots as fellow creatures of God’s creation. Bread is an apt metaphor for the spiritual journey.
Give Us This Day offers meditations for every day in Lent, inviting us to connect faith “our daily bread” and the world in which we live, along with recipes that range from Shrove Tuesday “No-Fret Pancakes” to Easter Challah bread. Each of the 40 meditations begins with a scripture verse and a prayer.
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Organic God : Lenten Meditations On The Words Of Jesus
$12.95Add to cartIn these Lenten meditations, Kate Moorehead devotes each of the seven weeks to a theme that Jesus addressed frequently, particularly through Earth-centered parables of planting. Each day of the week she explores an aspect of the particular theme. Seeking meaning in the details, the secrets of God’s life with us are revealed to us every day in nature – the icons of God’s presence.
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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. -
Blessed Is She
$16.95Add to cartEveryone is happy to see Mary in the creche at Christmastime, but by the time the Magi head back East after the Feast of the Epiphany, Christians of many traditions are often ready to place Mary to the side too. But Timothy Perry presents a Mary who belongs in Lent as much as in Advent, showing what it means to die and live with the crucified and risen Jesus.
Drawing primarily from the Gospel of Luke, this lovely book of spiritual reflections reveals a Lenten Mary who teaches us about being disciples. The result is a complex, inviting, strong character – a disciple to be emulated by all Christians, especially during this holy season. With a study for each week of Lent, along with questions to ponder, this is a thought-provoking volume for private use or parish study.
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Women Of Calvary
$12.95Add to cartThis five-scene chancel drama tells the story of Jesus’ arrest, crucifixion, and resurrection through the eyes of the women who knew Jesus and were influenced by his life and death. From the Upper Room through Golgotha and the Empty Tomb, we hear the passionate feelings the Master stirred in these women who are much like us. The scenes can be presented separately for midweek services or in a single 90-minute performance. (Performance time for each individual scene is approximately15-20 minutes.) Since no setting is necessary and costumes and props are simple, this play is easy to stage for congregations of all sizes. There are roles for nine women, but for smaller groups, some performers could portray more than one role. There are also small roles for four men.
Biblical women featured are:
* Mary (mother of Jesus)
* Mary Magdalene
* Mary (mother of James and Joseph)
* Salome (mother of James and John)
* Mary (mother of Mark)
* Mary (sister of Martha)
* Martha
* Claudia (Pilate’s wife)
* Julia (Claudia’s maid) -
Voices Of Repentance
$12.95Add to cartThis book offers busy pastors a complete package of thematically related resources for Lenten preaching and worship. With services for each week in Lent plus Ash Wednesday and Maundy Thursday, as well as a Good Friday tenebrae service, Voices Of Repentance provides everything needed to create compelling worship throughout the Lenten season, either for a midweek series or for regular Sunday services. Each week’s resources feature a monologue sermon that tells the story of someone who sought redemption in the baptismal waters of the Jordan. These spiritual contemplations view the events leading up to Jesus’ crucifixion from a unique perspective — that of everyday people who lived through them. Each service also includes a children’s object lesson and a convenient order of worship.
Monologues feature these characters:
* John the Baptist
* a Pharisee
* a Sadducee
* a well-dressed man
* a well-fed woman
* a tax collector
* a Roman soldier -
Wounded For Us
$10.95Add to cartBy focusing on the sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf — and powerfully linking it to our lives today — this comprehensive resource offers a compelling approach to observing Lent that truly prepares worshipers to experience Easter’s new hope, new possibilities, and new life. Based on the ancient tradition of the five wounds of Christ, Wounded For Us identifies places where we find ourselves hurting, then connects them to one of the wounds Jesus suffered and explores how Christ’s resurrection offers reconciliation and healing.
Wounded For Us draws an imaginative analogy between Jesus’ wounds and these areas in our lives where we are wounded:
* Head (crown of thorns) — our thoughts
* Side (piercing) — our spirit and emotions
* Back (scourging) — our hopes and dreams
* Hands (nails) — our relationships
* Feet (nails) — our actionsWith sermon and worship material for Ash Wednesday, the Sundays in Lent, Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday, Wounded For Us provides a complete package with everything needed for developing meaningful, thematically unified services throughout the Lenten season. Each sermon suggests an action plan that applies the “cure” of the gospel to our wounds, and reproducible outlines that help the congregation focus on the main themes are also included.
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Lent Holy Week Easter And The Great 50 Days
$19.95Add to cartThis long-awaited companion volume to Howard E. Galley’s classic The Ceremonies of the Eucharist provides clergy, liturgical assistants, and altar guild members with clear, step-by-step guidance for the liturgies of Lent and Easter. In addition to background material for the traditions and theology of each season, Mitchell includes specific preparations and instructions for each liturgy of the paschal cycle-Ash Wednesday through Pentecost-as well as Tenebrae, the Way of the Cross, the Vigil of Pentecost, the liturgies of the catechumenate, and the chrism mass. He also provides helpful ideas for how the often complex liturgies of these seasons can be done simply and well by small congregations.
Based on the liturgies of The Book of Common Prayer and the latest edition of The Book of Occasional Services, this ceremonial guide also draws on the paschal liturgies of other Anglican traditions, including those in Canada’s Book of Alternative Services.
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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.
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We Preach Christ Crucified (Anniversary)
$17.95Add to cartIn this tenth anniversary edition of Kenneth Leech’s classic Lenten book, he draws from his own prayer, study of the Bible, and encounters with others to offer a rich account of the resurrection for today. The themes of suffering and healing, justice and compassion, and Christ’s dying and rising all come together in a compelling theology of discipleship and ministry.
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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.
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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
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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
$28.95Add 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.
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Paradise Restored
$12.95Add to cart“Children’s time” — a brief lesson specifically targeted for preschool and elementary age youngsters — is an important part of the Sunday morning worship service in many churches today. But many of those who are called upon to provide these lessons feel too intimidated to write their own material. Pastors, children’s ministry leaders, and Sunday school teachers who need fresh, exciting messages that captivate their young people will find that this collection of easy-to-prepare lessons is just what the doctor ordered.
Geared toward the typical age range of the “children’s time” audience — toddlerhood to age 13 — Ping-Pong Words is a valuable resource for anyone who presents children’s sermons or devotionals. Each of the 31 lessons is scripture-based and runs 3-5 minutes in length, and many include demonstrations using simple visual aids such as ping-pong balls, family pictures, a flashlight, and clothespins to illustrate common precepts in ways that clearly communicate God’s Word to young ears, eyes, and hearts. The lessons are flexible, and can be incorporated into a variety of churches and ecumenical settings. Appropriate for Sunday school, worship services, religious schools and day care programs, Bible clubs, and anywhere else where young people gather to learn about God, this volume is certain to earn a trusted place on the bookshelf.
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Dateline Jerusalem : Dramatic Dialogue Sermons For Lent
$8.95Add to cartYou’ll feel like you are right on the scene viewing the events of Holy Week as this innovative series presents the familiar story of Jesus’ death and resurrection in a novel, engaging, and entirely modern way. In a television-style interview format, six witnesses share their point of view in up-to-date language and references — making each personage more accessible to contemporary congregations.
Dateline: Jerusalem is a flexible resource that can be used in many different settings: during Lenten worship services, as part of a Christian education curriculum, or for a youth program. Scripture lessons accompany each script, and a character summary provides further insight into the personality of each interviewee. Easy to produce with a minimum of staging, these dialogues provide a fresh, engaging approach to the timeless story.
Characters interviewed are:
* Pontius Pilate
* Caiaphas
* Peter
* Mary Magdalene
* John
* the Centurion -
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.
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Thespian Theology Cycle B
$13.95Add to cartStimulate audiences to see the scriptural message in a new light with these inspiring sketches based on Cycle B 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 are an excellent tool for sharing the Gospel with unchurched people and getting them excited about Jesus Christ. Each skit is introduced by “Thespian Theological Thoughts” that briefly make an explicit connection between the drama and the scripture text. Use these versatile pieces in place of the Sunday sermon or for youth programs and other fellowship settings — this latest installment in the popular Thespian Theology series will enlighten audiences of all ages while leaving an indelible impression.
Some of the intriguing titles include:
* Blow The Trumpet! (Ash Wednesday)
* A Single Granary (Lent 5)
* Everyone’s Invited To The Feast! (Easter Day)
* Righteous Rudy And Judgmental Judy (Easter 6) -
Voices From The Desert
$17.99Add to cart“The idea of the desert as being a place where we escape the pressures of everyday life in order to hear God speak afresh is intimately associated with Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness – our model for keeping Lent today. It is easy to gain a romantic idea of desert sands beneath starlit skies, but in reality the desert is a hard palce tat tests our endurance and few venture there, geographically or emotionally. Reflecting on the work of writers such as Salman Rushdie and R.S Thomas, and bands such as the “”Manic Street Preachers””, Leslie Griffiths explores the deserts in today’s world and teaches us to hear the voices of these unlikely prophets who tell the truth about the human condition and challenge us to change.”
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Never Said A Mumbalin Word
$8.99Add to cartThis powerful Lenten devotional is drawn from an ethos forged by the iron grip of sorrow and suffering. Welcome to a spiritual journey through Lent and Holy Week that will lead you to the God who loves us beyond all human understanding. Meditations and spiritual exercises will enrich and empower your faith as you encounter the Christ who suffered and died, and who seeks to live in and with you.
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Shadows To Sunrise
$19.95Add to cartAre you looking for fresh, vibrant material for Holy Week worship? Do you want your congregation to experience the unforgettable drama of Jesus’ suffering, so that they more fully appreciate the celebration and joy of Easter? If so, then you’ll want this anthology that provides several innovative choices for Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter sunrise worship. Copying privileges are included for all six segments.
Beyond The Shadows combines communion with gradually extinguished candlelight to create a moving Maundy Thursday tenebrae experience. As each part of the Passion story unfolds, more candles are snuffed out, and the service concludes in total darkness. By reminding us that the Light of the World came to us, yet was engulfed in total darkness as his life slipped away, Beyond The Shadows focuses worshipers’ attention on the coming resurrection, and how that brightness contrasts with the darkness of the crucifixion.
When The Son’s Light Failed is a poignant Good Friday dramatization that imagines the presence at the crucifixion of many women whose lives were profoundly affected by Jesus. The women all share their stories with each other as they witness our Lord’s ultimate sacrifice. It’s a moving portrayal which reminds us that Jesus’ ministry touched the lives of everyone.
The tenebrae service Choices At The Cross explores some of the choices faced by those involved in the events of Christ’s Passion — ones of far greater magnitude than what we often face on a daily basis. Choices At The Cross emphasizes that the most important decision we ultimately face is our response to the question posed by Pilate: “What shall I do, then, with Jesus, who is called Christ?”
Based on John’s account of Christ’s passion, Good Friday Readings, Meditations, And Prayers is a series of seven brief contemplations and prayers that can form the basis for a remarkably effective Good Friday service or be used for personal devotional reading during Lent. Filled with vivid imagery, the meditations make the scriptures come alive while relating them to contemporary life.
Good Friday: I Was There is a stark, gripping Good Friday worship experience which confronts us with the powers of darkness and destruction which were responsible for Christ’s crucifixion. Brief monologues from seven shadowy personae (Doubt, Sorrow, Fear, Shame, Agony, Hate, and Death) dramatically recall how our Lord suffered as he took the sins of humanity upon himself.
Designed as a co
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At The Cross With Jesus
$12.95Add to cartBy combining a compelling sermon series with an insightful group of monologues, At The Cross With Jesus offers flexible, effective resources that will keep the cross central in your congregation’s minds and hearts during Lent. Practical for use in any church, large or small, the material in At The Cross With Jesus is perfect for midweek worship or Holy Week services, and could also be used for a Bible study.
The five moving messages in The Symbols Of The Cross examine Jesus’ final days by focusing on powerful images from the Passion story. Each homily relates these events to our everyday lives by exploring a specific symbol and the human characteristic it exemplifies. There are also directions for creating a searing memory of these symbols by placing visual representations of each image on a wooden cross.
Symbols included are:
* The Palms (a symbol of our fickleness)
* The Money Bag (a symbol of our greed)
* The Towel (a symbol of servanthood)
* The Crown of Thorns (a symbol of mockery)
* The Nails of the Cross (a symbol of suffering)In Five Who Knew Jesus, five persons who were intimately acquainted with Jesus describe their personal relationships with him. Through hearing the perspective of those who played critical roles in Jesus’ life, we are encouraged to look more closely at our own relationships with Christ during the introspective season of Lent. The monologues may be performed in readers’ theater format, but are even more effective if memorized. Few props are required, and costumes are a nice touch but not essential.
Characters represented are:
* John — a hot-tempered man who becomes the disciple of love
* Mary, the mother of Jesus — a woman who suffers a mother’s pain while humbly accepting God’s will
* Peter — an arrogant man who becomes a humble disciple
* Judas — the disciple who failed because he thought he knew best
* Mary Magdalene — a woman of the world who strives to love herself as Jesus loved her -
Jesus Lonely Road
$7.95Add to cartBased on scripture passages from the Gospel of Mark, Jesus’ Lonely Road includes two devotional guides for personal meditation and prayers during Lent. The first section covers Ash Wednesday through Passion Sunday, focusing on Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem and his increasing isolation from the disciples as well as his growing conflict with Jewish leaders. The second section, for Holy Week, follows Jesus each day as he walked the Road to the Cross.
These devotional resources are perfect for distribution to church members as part of your Lenten activities — use them in combination with Bankhead’s other Lenten titles for a complete interrelated seasonal program.
Also by Robert C. Bankhead:
* A Trail Of Tears: Bible Study For Lent
* Come In And Worship: Liturgies And Sermons For Holy Week -
Shepherd And His Sheep
$12.95Add to cartOne of the most striking representations of Jesus in the scriptures is that of a shepherd. Based on John 10’s statement that He is the Good Shepherd, this series of eight lessons teaches youngsters of Jesus’ unfailing love and care (even to the point of death on the cross). Like all of her previous collections, each children’s message is accompanied by a two-sided activity page — one side that’s a coloring page for younger children, and the other with numerous puzzles and activities to reinforce the lesson’s theme for older children. Bland has a well-earned reputation for biblical faithfulness, creativity, and practicality. Busy pastors and teachers have found her ready-to-use materials just what they need for their children’s time — we know you’ll love her latest release!
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Trail Of Tears (Student/Study Guide)
$8.95Add to cartDrawing on texts from all three Synoptic Gospels, this series of seven lessons traces the events of Jesus’ final journey into Jerusalem and toward crucifixion. Through the study of parallel passages from Matthew, Mark, and Luke, readers will discover both common elements and disparate viewpoints in the passion narratives.
Drawing on texts from all three Synoptic Gospels, this series of seven lessons traces the events of Jesus’ final journey into Jerusalem and toward crucifixion. Through the study of parallel passages from Matthew, Mark, and Luke, readers will discover both common elements and disparate viewpoints in the passion narratives.Each study includes a listing of texts and themes, plus a preparation guide for class members and discussion suggestions for group leaders. These practical resources will be useful not only for pastors, but for anyone who plans educational opportunities for adults during Lent. Use them in combination with Bankhead’s other Lenten titles for a complete interrelated program focusing on the journey to the cross.
Also by Robert C. Bankhead:
* Jesus’ Lonely Road: Devotional Guides for Lent and Holy Week
* Come In And Worship: Liturgies and Sermons for Holy Week -
Lenten Discipline
$12.95Add to cartAn acclaimed Luther scholar revisits the wisdom of Martin Luther’s Small Catechism in this complete Lenten program. Based on the six sections of the catechism, A Lenten Discipline provides instructive homily/meditations and worship services for each week in Lent, including Maundy Thursday. An initial chapter examining the Word of God as Law and Gospel sets the tone for the series and can be used as the basis of an Ash Wednesday sermon. Subsequent weeks explore the basic teachings of the faith on the Ten Commandments, the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, Baptism, Confession, and Holy Communion.
Though perfectly suited for congregational use during Lent, this series has a multitude of other applications. In addition to catechism or confirmation instruction, it’s also excellent for a sermon series, as a theological resource, or for classrooms, workshops, and retreats. But whatever the setting, these informative homily/lectures and worship experiences will give users new insight into Luther’s genius.
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Life On The Edge Of Faith
$12.95Add to cartFive characters bear witness to a world-changing event that forces them right to the edge of faith in this series of midweek worship services for Lent, which also includes services for Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday. Each service contains a brief sermon, and the five midweek services also feature monologues from the perspective of someone who was present at our Lord’s Passion (a sleeping disciple, the high priest, a maid, a soldier, and a city resident). The bewilderment experienced by these characters will help worshipers find a voice for the confusion that we all feel from time to time.
Life On The Edge Of Faith is a complete package of thematically-related worship resources for the busy pastor looking for midweek programming. The monologues can be read by parishioners, and it’s a great opportunity to have your young people participate in worship activities.
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Empty Spaces Empty Places
$7.95Add to cartWhile we often try to fill the empty spaces in our lives with family, work, and material things, a lingering sense of emptiness and dissatisfaction seems to remain. The connections between biblical characters and these empty spaces in our lives are the focus of three dramatic sketches. By revisiting the stories of Jesus’ birth, death, and resurrection through interviews with the innkeeper’s wife, the centurion, and Mary Magdalene, Empty Spaces, Empty Places shows us the lives Jesus touched then (and continues to touch today). The centurion who witnessed the crucifixion tells how he became convinced that Jesus was the Son of God in the monologue Filling In The Empty Spaces: The Soldier. And the Apostle Paul’s life and Christian witness is depicted in Filling In The Empty Spaces: Saint Paul. Each presentation confronts audiences with the same question: “What do you fill your empty spaces with?”
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Returning Home
$12.95Add to cartGod’s never-ending pursuit of all prodigals, whether they’re far from home or nearby, is the theme of this complete package of preaching and worship resources. The timeless story of the Prodigal Son is examined through first-person portrayals of its characters: the prodigal, the elder son, the father, the mother, and a servant. The five monologues are perfect for use in midweek services — and with companion sermons for Ash Wednesday and Good Friday plus seven orders of worship, Returning Home provides everything busy pastors need for a total Lenten program. The material is also excellent for a sermon series, small group discussion, or personal devotional reading.
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Affirming The Ash Heap
$12.95Add to cartThese seven sermons will penetrate the hearts and souls of every listener…because each one of us has been touched by the tragic side of life. Like Job, everyone sitting in a church pew has at one time or another screamed for a reason why, or even wondered (like Jesus), “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”. Including sermons for five Sundays in Lent, along with Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday, Kirby’s meditations will help worshippers understand the process of coming to grips with these difficult questions
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And The Sea Lay Down
$11.95Add to cartHere are all the pastoral resources you need for a complete and integrated Lenten season of preaching and worship — Ash Wednesday through Easter, including Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.
Included for each Sunday or worship service are:
* Call to worship
* Suggested processional hymn
* Children’s message
* Prayers
* Scripture passages
* Sermon
* Suggested hymn
* Pastoral prayer
* Affirmation of faith
* Suggested closing hymnWard’s first book for CSS, Asking For Wonder: Resources For Creative Worship And Preaching, has become a favorite resource for thousands of busy pastors.
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Bad And The Good
$10.95Add to cartThis activity-oriented series of children’s sermons deals with word opposites. The lessons are based on the example found in Jesus’ teachings that the bad is followed by the good, through trust and obedience in God.
This series of children’s messages help young people understand the suffering and death of Jesus in a positive way. Throughout the series the children are asked to participate with word opposites. The lessons are planned so that each child may take back to the pew an activity sheet. One side is a coloring page for younger children. The other side has word puzzles and games for older children.
The usefulness of this series will become evident:
They require little preparation
The coloring pages will appeal to the younger children
The activity page will keep older children interested
The series can be used for worship services, Sunday school, or other times
