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Showing posts from 2022

Joy to the World

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  We have some BRAND NEW Christmas resources to share with you! As we prepare for the joy of Christmas, we want to offer you these resources that are free to download and easy to use with families in your church and community.  Tiny House Advent Calendar 2022: This is a unique Advent calendar with a New Zealand twist. This resource includes a beautiful black and white template of 24 houses. Simply print the template, cut and colour each one, and then place a Christmas surprise inside before folding them up and gluing them securely. Put them on a table to create a Christmas village! A sample page showing one of the 24 houses Nativity in a Tin:  When life is so busy it is important to find simple ways to connect family and whānau and provide ways to engage intergenerationally. This is a simple activity to take on the road with you this Christmas season and share the story as you travel. Download the booklet and the nativity figures to create your very own ‘Nativity in a Tin’. Suitable fo

WAY2GO 2022

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RESOURCES FROM OUR 2022 CONFERENCES 1. Connected to God   Children's Spirituality: Bridging Theory and Practice : Bridging Theory and Practice in Children's Spirituality explores the different contexts, methods, and situations that influence and foster a child's spirituality and faith development.  Faithful Families: Creating Sacred Moments at Home: Add family faith moments to your daily routine with little or no prep, and share meaningful spiritual experiences with your children!  Visio Divina:  A way of connecting with God through images and visuals.  Lectio Divina:  Bookmark template PDF Faith5: Bookmark template PDF 45 Ways to Encounter God (English): A great resource from the Salvation Army. This is available in 6 languages (English, Te reo Māori, Fijian, Tongan, Samoan, Spanish). You can download them for free  from their website. ________________________________________ 2. Connected to God's Story  Jesus Storybook Bible Questions to think about - Upper Hutt _____

World Weekend of Prayer

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Every year on the first weekend of June, Viva hosts a weekend of prayer for children around the world. This campaign unites hundreds of thousands of adults and children across more than 40 countries.  The next event takes place on 4-5 June 2022.  This year, the weekend falls on the same weekend as Pentecost. The theme is 'Stronger Together'. The Viva website has a range of resources in different languages, which are free to download.  Here's this year's resource in English.  

Moses on the Mountain

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  The account of Moses on the Mountain in Exodus 33, is full of drama and suspense. It is a great story to tell with all the generations together. This intergenerational activity includes banners, thunder rolls and flashes of lightning! It really brings the story to life in a way that will involve everyone in your congregation. It also works well for community events, allowing the story to speak for itself. This intergenerational activity takes a bit of preparation, but it is well worth the effort. You will need to download the script from the link below. You will need:  Script Music: The Steward of Gondor ( Youtube clip ) A4 Cards: enough for 1 per 4 people 'I have carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself' 6 grey banners: one suggestion is to sew a length of grey fabric 2metres long by 50cm wide, with a sleeve to hold a length of dowel approx 80cm long. A quick alternative is to wave scarves. Choose blue or grey or black scarves if possible.  6 yellow stream

WAY2GO 2022!

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  Our first WAY2GO events have just happened. We gathered together kanohi ki te kanohi, face to face, to be inspired, challenged and equipped in our ministry with children. This word cloud shows some of the highlights from our Auckland South East event.  Why not come and join us at one of the 12 other events coming up soon?  Find out more at  www.sunz.org.nz  Resources from the event  

NEW Lent and Easter resources

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  We have NEW resources available for Lent and Easter this year. Check out our Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday ideas for family and whānau to explore together!  Our full range of Lent and Easter resources can be found here .  

A prayer for teachers

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As children flood through your doors, may you feel the love of God flooding in with them.  As your children bring with them their experiences of last year, carrying with them various shades of anxiety,  may you have courage to bring healing and comfort to their worries,  while finding peace for your own.  As you see dirty faces behind masks and empty lunchboxes  may you know that God's heart breaks too. As you hear stories of golden summer fun  Cousins, friends, sleeping out under the stars  May you be filled for gratitude for moments of untarnished joy  and find your own joy reflected in theirs.  Today may you know afresh how important  you are  in the life of just one of these children  who will walk through your door and may you be blessed. Amen