mountain masala

Multimedia in Ministry group

The "Multimedia in Ministry" group on Facebook now has 145 members. It's an open group and you're welcome to join - https://www.facebook.com/groups/197294490370704/

Abide in Me

Having taken a few photos of our autumn grape vines on my iPhone a couple of days ago using Hipstamatic, I thought I'd turn them into Powerpoint slides for this Sunday's lectionary reading. You're welcome to use them for non-commercial purposes. They're 1024 x 768 pixel JPGs, so if your slides are 800 x 600 you'll need to downsize them. I used a "nice" font (Bickley Script) rather than something funky.... Click on each image for the full-size version, then right-click or control-click to download it.

Download Vine Leaves - original photos unedited, no text (4.9 mb zip file)

Seven Sites, Seven Words

I missed Geoff Boyce's "Stations of the Cross" based on the sufferings of indigenous Australians at Pilgrim UC during Holy Week. Apparently it was pretty significant. If you want to check out the resources, they're here.

A New Spirit - Pentecost and Ezekiel

How we have longed at times for a new spirit in the church!
we have looked out across the valley and seen,
not one instance of decay
but a sea of skeletons

We too have felt the seeping away of life in all its fullness
    in solitude, we have acknowledged that our preaching, our teaching
our prayers, our shepherding even our compassion |
– have failed to bring life
a message falling on deaf eyes, blind eyes, dry hearts

Is this how Jesus felt?

How often have we blamed others
for their failure to hear or learn
knowing deep within
that the problem was not theirs alone?

if we are honest
we may find this dryness within ourselves
faith stretched thin
hope in slow decay
limited patience
less generosity of spirit
energy lagging   

Can these bones yet live?
… the bones of a brittle church
… the bones of a crusty congregation?
… the bones of a decaying disciple?

What might these bones represent for you this day?
Bones take time to dry and decay.
How has this lifelessness come about?

Would you seek a quick dressing-up, a respectable skin?
Or the breath of Yahweh?
Restored sinews and muscle.
Hands that grasp and legs that leap.
A pumping heart and eyes that truly see.

May we be a church that is not lifeless in the face of oppression
May we be a church that is not voiceless in the face of injustice
May we be a church which is not cold in the face of indifference
May we be a church of pumping heart, of pulsing veins, a heaving lungs, of vibrant voice, of warming touch

Ezekiel ideas from past years - here, here, and here.

Go to the Worship Downloads section on the right and you can download some of this stuff, along with a guided meditation on Ezekiel that I wrote for the Belonging Kit back in 1997...

Interactive Easter

We ran our second Interactive Easter event at Rosefield last night. Not sure how many turned up, but the place was comfortably busy. We run 5-7pm and most people arrived in the first 45 mins.

Here's a rundown on the program with some photos and downloads. I didnt get to take photos of everything, and our resident photographer was absent.

Download Program Handout and Activity Posters (cover photo courtesy of jonny baker).

1. Easter Palms

We made Palm leaves and Palm crosses in the foyer of the church. This also serves as a 'holding area' prior to people coming in for the plenary activity. Palm leaf details. Video on making palm crosses.

2. Songs and Story

Jo, Emma, Elena and Peter both performed and taught some songs. Gillian Powis told the Palm Sunday story, first as biblical narrative, and secondly from the perspective of the two donkeys, with on-screen visuals.

3. Crafty Easter

Helen and David led some craft activities - making Easter cards and other stuff. You know, cutty pasty things.

3. Arty Easter

People were invited to paint an image (icon) of Jesus on a tile.

interactive easter

coming soon to a church near me...

 

 Download Interactive Easter Poster (A4 low-resolution) 900kb

Download Interactive Easter Poster (A4 high-resolution) 8 mb

Alive@5 March

Easter Worship Resources

I thought I'd collect here some records of a few years of Easter of Holy Week worship. Because I'm not a congregational minister, these are a mixture of other kinds of events - mid-Holy Week chapel at college, an event for Deacons that combined a bunch of other ideas, and more recently  a 'family' event in my local church. All variously on my blog but hard to find....

Interactive Easter 2011 and Stations Outline (PDF)

Holy Week 2010

Holy Week 2009 and here and here

Lenten Worship - National Deacons Conference 2008

Easter 2008 and Holy Week 2008 and Holy Week 2008 Worship Outline (PDF)

Easter 2007 - and Worship Outline (PDF)

Workshop stuff based on a 2005 Emmaus-themed Worship

use at your own peril. and thanks to my main influences, whose words are throughout the above, never officialy quoted - cheryl lawrie and roddy hamilton. they are not responsible in any way for my own  words of mass distraction!

 

Interactive Christmas 'Stations'

Here's the detail of what we did last Sunday with Interactive Christmas. The event was open 5-7pm, with people coming and going when they chose. Unlike Interactive Easter, this time we channelled everyone through the church. As they arrived they received a simple ' program' with map.(380kb PDF) This matched posters (33kb PDF) throughout the venue (icons from the excellent font Speed Bump from 3 Islands Press).

The First Angel - based on the angel coming to Zechariah. We had the text from Luke 1:5-23 (CEV) and a simple poem to introduce the journey. People made the angels that are described here. It was a good activity, but we only had two glue guns (which kids arent allowed to use themselves) and not enough helpers for the busy times. Next time I'd add a couple of face painters and have more helpers and equipment. The issue for us was that this area was a 'holding area' prior to the next activity, so people had to wait here until they were ushered into the next place.

Read on for more...

interactive christmas

Here's an upcoming event at Rosefield UC to engage with playgroup families, community and congregation. Live music, drama, storytelling, art, craft, food, reflection.

Download Interactive_christmas flyer  (2.9mb PDF)