So, it’s time for Lent. For once, I haven’t been on top of exactly when it’s coming, as after four years of doing #bigread, we’ve taken a break this year (it’s a huge amount of work, you know) – materials remain available online. Anyway, Lent starts Wednesday, with Easter Day 5th April (I’ll be at Spring Harvest, come join!)
So, what will I be engaging with for Lent?
I’m already engaged in a discussion group on Facebook, reading We Make the Road by Walking, which will last all year.
As I have done for the last few Lent/Advent sessions, I am going to receive Brian Draper‘s daily ‘in the moment’ emails, which always give something to chew over for the day.
A few years ago, I gave up supermarket shopping for Lent. I think this year, I will again do a food-focused challenge, in which I will focus on the foods in my cupboards, and seek to make meals from those, preferably topping up from small ‘fill-in’ shops, rather than a ‘big shop’ (in either sense of the word), and remove some of that consumerist mindset!
Finally, I love what @40Acts does, and look forward to engaging with the ‘gentle’ acts suggested within the ‘green’ section of 5 minutes or less (as this year acts will be split into 3 levels, according to the energy that you have that day):
This afternoon I went to my church, Christ Church Winchester, as the contemplative space opened for 3 days:
Great use of the ‘front garden’ space.
A chance to think at each point. Each of these red threads has the same activities upon it.
Put aside concerns, worries, and the contents of your pockets
Write in an envelope where you think you’re missing opportunities to reap the fruits of the spirit [I felt that God is carrying me through a particularly difficult time, but that I am still allowing ‘busy busy’ to get in the way!]
Holly Leaves: Feel them, feel the minor pain, and think how the pain would have been for Jesus on the Cross
Thin cloth/nails. Feel how thin the cloth is (Jesus skin), how heavy the nails are.
Water, given to Jesus, and poured out of his body. Drink some for refreshment or splash some on.
Throughout, worship music was playing, so I did actually spend quite some time listening.
An MP4 playing, that I can’t find online, which really had me thinking as the words ‘Breathe Breathe Breathe’ got more difficult for the auditor to play, and the screen played a heartbeat … ending in a single line.
A song, the words “Some work too hard; but work won’t get us far”….
There was also a prayer tree at the end, to put forward a prayer as a response to the session.
Have you heard of EasterLive yet? If not, check it out, and see the stories that people are posting on the #EasterLive hashtag on Twitter (if you’re not sure how to use Twitter, there’s a great guide here), and last year’s story is being retold on Facebook.
It’s Passover week in 1st Century Jerusalem. A bustling throng of Jewish pilgrims have gathered in the city. But this year a preacher/carpenter from Nazareth is set to turn the tables of history – right before their eyes. This is the Easter story and this is your cue.
By Tweeting your story, the Easter(LIVE) website allows you to showcase your very own Passion Play. Be it a historical and Biblical account or a poetic, visual, musical or creative retelling – it’s up to you. It’s a chance to explore, to learn and be creative. Give it your personal stamp, bring it to life and share it with everyone.
I am going on a visual, digi-explorer journey, to see where my thoughts, prompts from others on Twitter, and Google take me… and may God prompt me to put something useful on here, alongside the materials we’ve been producing for BigBible!!
Thought 1
I am a keen supporter of 12Baskets, and am embedding myself in using the tools in order to provide feedback on how we can encourage its use using social media… so many people spend so long preparing sermons, tracking down images that can be (legitimately) used (praying before you download from Google isn’t really an ethical approach!), and we could do so much more if we SHARED images. The site already has over 35,000 images – what can you contribute?!
Anyway, I went onto 12baskets to look for images related to Palm Sunday… and here’s your opportunity to add to the 8 images currently online, although there’s also a great selection of written thoughts, hymns, and materials to purchase, and picked out the following couple of images:
What were the verses that tell us the story of Palm Sunday, of Jesus coming into Jerusalem on a donkey… and note, as Richard Littledale has in his blog… that the donkey doesn’t only appear “in the Christmas story”.
Luke 19:29-40 “When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Lives, he sent two of the disciples, saying, ‘Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it? just say this, ‘The Lord needs it.'” So those who were sent departed and found it as he had told them. As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, ‘Why are you untying the colt?’ They said, ‘The Lord needs it.’ Then they brought it to Jesus’ and after throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. As he rode along, people kept spreading their cloaks on the road. As he was now approaching the path down from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the deeds of power that they had seen, saying, ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest heaven!” Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, ‘Teacher, order you disciples to stop.’ He answered, ‘I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.'”
John 12:11-19 “The next day a great crowd that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, shouting, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord — the King of Israel!’ Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it; as it is written: ‘Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion. Look, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!’ His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written of him and had been done to him. So the crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to testify. It was also because they heard he had performed this sign that the crowd went to meet him. The Pharisees then said to one another, ‘You see, you can do nothing. Look, the world has gone after him!'”
@richardlittleda had been talking to @vahva, as she’d posted the picture below – donkeys in the churchyard (from today!)… he’d responded to tell her about his blog post… donkeys are not just for Christmas!
Vahva: http://twitpic.com/4lypli
Thought 4
I wonder what YouTube has to offer on this? There are multiple videos on YouTube, but I thought this one was beautifully produced and with a great message…
Thought 5
I grew up in a Brethren church, and I’m not sure we did Easter in the same way that others do. The one thing that has always stuck out in my mind from when I started going to an Anglican church was the prominence of these palm crosses, so I headed over to Flickr to see if I could find a Creative Commons image for that… and went for a little hunt as to their significance. These crosses can either be given to members of the congregation for them to place somewhere as a reminder of Easter throughout the year, or the alter may be covered with palms which are blessed, then kept, and burned the following year, the ashes used on Ash Wednesday (the beginning of Lent) to mark the forheads of the faithful (from here).
Thought 4Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/perspective/126606466/
Thought 6
Maybe time for a little audio in our multi-media world… and prompted by following another Flickr image, came across AllGloryLaudAndHonor (downloadable MP3, taken from here)
