I’ve already been posting ideas for CHRISTmas and Advent. For some, Advent is this vague concept that their church may or may not acknowledge or celebrate. For others, they are very familiar with Advent and are well into plans for the first Sunday of Advent coming this weekend. For those in both camps, I’d like to direct you to this great article by Reverend Dr. Mark D. Roberts. Continue reading
Advent
Create-A-Day #229: ADVENTure Prayer Walk 1 — Hope & the Wise Men
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ADVENTure is a self-directed prayer walk pondering the true meaning of Christmas. You can read all about it here, as well as learn how you can do this interactive prayer walk for your church or ministry.
This coming Sunday, November 29th, is the first Sunday of Advent. As we consider the true meaning of CHRISTmas we light our first candle of the Advent Wreath, the Candle of HOPE, and we consider the Wise Men who traveled across many miles when the star appeared in the sky in the east.
Candle of Hope: The Wise Men
Read: Matthew 2:1-12
Meditation:
The Wise Men were men of knowledge and HOPE. Their knowledge gave them the information they needed to discern the coming king and where they would find Him. Their HOPE gave them the desire to seek after Him.
They followed a star – a brilliant light in the sky – and it led them directly to the “King of the Jews.” They sought hard after Him, and they found Him. They brought Him gifts and worshiped Him. Continue reading
Create-A-Day: your daily dose of creativity #228 — The Advent Door
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The Advent Door is the blog of artist, author and minister Jan Richardson. For several years now Jan has posted weekly Advent meditations with her artwork and poetry. The meditations are based on each year’s lectionary cycle. You can sift down through the posts and be inspired by her BEaUtiful artwork and thoughtful poetry, just make sure you hit ‘older posts’ at the bottom to continue down through the posts she has made over the years. She has much to share to take us through the CHRISTmas season. Resource ideas for corporate or personal worship — a great way to prayerfully and intentionally move through the season. Continue reading
Create-A-Day: your daily dose of creativity #226 — Advent Media Resources
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Need Advent and CHRISTmas resources for your church or ministry this coming season? Don’t forget Worship House Media, Sermon Spice, or Share Faith for everything from still images to whole video packages for Advent! Search “Advent” or “Christmas” and you’ll find tons of great resources to add creativity to your worship! Continue reading
Create-A-Day: your daily dose of creativity #225 — 52 Weeks of Prophetic Art with Grace Bailey
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Grace Bailey is a prophetic artist on a mission! Ministering out of her home church in Ballarat, Victoria (Australia) and at a variety of conferences, she has set herself a goal of 52 Weeks of Prophetic Art. Yes! 52 weeks of live painting during worship! What an amazing goal and ministry. I have been following her since I first found her last Spring on her Facebook page and have been deeply blessed by the artwork she is painting. You can also follow her journey here on her website.
“Valley of Dry Bones? Ha! piece of Cake!”
by Grace Bailey (C) 2015
The painting on your right is “Valley of Dry Bones? Ha! piece of Cake!”
Won’t you take a moment to consider? What are the dry bones in your life? Are they dreams and visions that seem to have died? Are they broken, wounded places in your spirit? Are they mistakes from your past that still fill you with shame? While you examine this painting, won’t you slowly and prayerfully read this prophetic prayer adapted from Ezekiel 37 with me and other fellow artists praying this prayer with us today? Continue reading
Create-A-Day: your daily dose of creativity #224 — Advent Ideas from re:think Worship
StandardThere’s quite a bit to explore today so I’m sending you right over to Re:think Worship today to check out Creative ideas for Advent with all kinds of ideas for your worship services or ministry! Continue reading
Create-A-Day: your daily dose of creativity #223 — Interactive Advent Candle Lighting
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Looking to add creativity to your Advent Candle lighting in your church services?
Looking to get your worshipers more involved in the Advent Lighting instead of just watching from their pews?
Sending you over the Still Waters blog again where Pastor Theresa’s Advent Candle Lighting post has great ideas to make it more interactive and creative! She has two different ideas with 
pictures, supply lists and instructions so you can see exactly how to duplicate it for your own church or ministry event. Check it out today! Continue reading
Create-A-Day: your daily dose of creativity #221 — Why Advent is Important to Artists
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“My encouragement to all artists of faith is to see every creative act you do during this Advent season as a breathtaking remembrance of God’s loving incarnation to us.” ~Manuel Luz Continue reading
Create-A-Day: your daily dose of creativity #219 — ADVENTure Prayer Walk
StandardADVENTure is a self-directed prayer walk we did several times at church on our college campus. It includes scriptures and short meditations combined with an activity at each prayer station designed to help ponder the true meaning of Christmas.
The church is set up with four candles around the outside of the room to represent a traditional Advent wreath. Another candle is positioned in the middle of the room to represent the Christ candle. These candles become the prayer stations where there are scripture meditations and supplies for an activity associated with each scripture passage. Continue reading
Create-A-Day: your daily dose of creativity #216 — Advent Illustrated
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I LOVE the idea I’m sharing today! Sara Laughed is a fun and creative blog and this year she is doing a Bible journaling challenge called Advent Illustrated. Throughout the Advent season (from November 29th to December 24th), Sara will share a Bible verse, starting with Genesis and extending to the nativity story. She will also provide creative prompts for folks who need a little bit more inspiration. Everyone is encouraged to share their art journal project on her Facebook page or on Instagram with the hashtag #AdventIllustrated. Continue reading
Nurturing the Creative Spirit Within 