Worship Resources

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Undone by Easter: Keeping Preaching Fresh. William Willimon. 116pp Abingdon (2009). $29.99. [5 in stock]

Face the prospect of preaching your next Easter sermon with joy and confidence, rather than worry about finding something new to say.

Preachers dread the arrival of Easter, because these holy days bring the daunting task of finding new ways to tell the old stories everyone's heard so many times before. But what if it were only we preachers who are bored with these stories? asks Willimon. What if people keep showing up at Easter because the story of God's victory over death continues to hold power for them? What if the point were not to capitulate to the culture's insatiable appetite for novelty, but to tell the old stories faithfully, trusting in the power of the Spirit to make the text, the congregation, and yes, even the preacher come alive again in the preaching event?

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Lenten Services. (Just in Time series) Lucy Lind Hogan. 94pp. Abingdon (2009) $22.99. [6 in stock]

Based on the Revised Common Lectionary and broadly ecumenical, this newest addition the Just In Time! series provides:

• Sitting with the Text: Scripture commentary for each of the three lectionary years; Worship and Preaching Themes
• Creating the Environment: ideas for decorating and preparing the worship space
• Shaping the Worship Service: prayers, liturgies, dramas, music suggestions
• Scripture Index; and more.

Beginning Ash Wednesday, Lenten Services aids the reader in planning and implementing transformative worship services throughout the Lenten journey.

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Feasting on the Word: Preaching the RCL – Year C Vol. 2 – Lent through Eastertide. David Bartlett & Barbara Brown Taylor, eds. Hbk Westminster John Knox, US. (2009) $109.99 [Allow 3 weeks]

When complete, the 12 volumes of the series will cover all the Sundays in the three-year lectionary cycle, along with movable occasions, such as Christmas Day, Epiphany, Holy Week, and All Saints’ Day. For each lectionary text, preachers will find four brief essays - one each on the theological, pastoral, exegetical, and homiletical challenges of the text. They might focus on the Gospel text, for instance, by reading all four essays provided for that text, or they might explore connections between the Hebrew Bible, Psalm, Gospel, and Epistle texts by reading the theological essays for each one. Each lectionary year will consist of four volumes, one for the Advent and Christmas season, one for Lent and Easter, and one for each half of Ordinary Time. While the 12 volumes of the series will follow the pattern of the Revised Common Lectionary, each volume will contain an index of biblical passages so that non-lectionary preachers may make use of its contents.

Unlike commentaries that offer only one perspective on the assigned texts for the day, this series will offer four distinct viewpoints on each of the four assigned texts, giving preachers sixteen different approaches to the proclamation of the Word on any given occasion.

For each text there are four essays from top scholars, preachers, and writers on the theological, pastoral, exegetical, and homiletical challenges of the text. For all preachers and teachers of the Word. With a Scripture index in each volume, the series is ideal for lectionary and non-lectionary preachers, as well as teachers and students.

“Feasting on the Word should be a delight for all those obligated to preach Sunday after Sunday. Wonderfully organized and intelligently shaped, these reflections on Scripture are sure to be a valuable aid for those in ministry.” Stanley Hauerwas, Professor of Theological Ethics, Duke University Divinity School.

Order these forthcoming Year C volumes:

·         Feasting on the Word: Preaching the RCL – Year C Vol. 3. Pentecost and Season after Pentecost 1  $109.99. [Allow 3 weeks]

·         Feasting on the Word: Preaching the RCL – Year C Vol. 4. Season after Pentecost 2 $109.99. [Allow 3 weeks]

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New Proclamation: Year C, 2010: Easter to Christ the King. David B Lott ed. 256pp Augsburg Fortress, US (Dec 2009). $49.00 [Allow 3 weeks]

Assists preachers in understanding bible readings, developing effective, gospel-centred sermons faithful to Scripture and liturgical seasons and preaching the gospel in a way that is true to the Christian tradition and relevant for our day. Ecumenical in orientation, each volume in this series offers exegesis and homiletic reflection on readings for half the church year as well as an overarching strategy for approaching each season and ways to connect one’s homily or sermon to the salient features of contemporary life.

NEW Edition

Darkness Yielding: Liturgies, prayers and reflections for Christmas, Holy Week and Easter. Jim Cotter, Martyn Percy, Sylvia Sands, W H Vanstone, Rowan Williams. 336pp. Canterbury. (Sep. 2009) $49.99 [Allow 4 weeks]

This rich resource of ready to use liturgies and reflections for the richest seasons of the Christian year sold out within a year. Its timeless qualities found a ready and eager readership among all looking for fresh inspiration for these annual celebrations. This new edition includes extra seasonal reflections from Rowan Williams and Martyn Percy, and a new liturgy for Maundy Thursday from Jim Cotter.

In addition it offers:

·         probing reflections by outstanding thinkers to inspire preaching and personal devotion

·         complete liturgies for:

·         a Christmas Eve vigil

·         Maundy Thursday foot washing and watch

·         a Good Friday devotional service

·         an Easter Eve vigil

·         a dawn celebration of the Resurrection

·         a set of meditations on the Stations of the Cross and the Seven Words from the Cross

·         seven Good Friday addresses by WH Vanstone.

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Lent for the Whole Church Community. Susan Sayers. 88pp Kevin Mayhew (2004). $29.99. [2 in stock]

Lent is the season of soul searching, wrestling with the problem of evil and our fractured relationship with God, tracing the human story through scripture, always aware of Jesus' power to heal and restore as we prepare for Easter. Is any of this suitable for the younger members of the Body of Christ? Or should we leave them out of all this? As full members of the Body, our youngest and oldest alike are an organic part of the love community which is church. We need to explore these areas of our common human experience together as family.

Throughout this book there are mixed-age-group activities and times of worship and reflection, which happen in the formal setting of the church congregation. There are others which keep the Lent pulse going on a daily basis, in homes and households, in family or friendship groups, or alone. There are also suggestions for opening the church up to the wider community during Lent. 

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Together for a Season: All-Age Seasonal Resources for Lent, Holy Week and Easter. Gill Ambrose, Peter Craig-Wild, Diane Craven & Peter Moger. 256pp with CD Rom. Church House. (2007) $82.99. [Allow 4 weeks]

Aimed at all those planning and leading worship and those working with children and adults in groups, the book offers a rich array of creative material designed to bring to life the seasonal liturgy of Lent, Holy Week and Easter, including Pentecost.

It includes:

·         An introduction to each of the seasons of Lent, Holy Week and Easter

·         Fully worked-out all-age services for all the key dates, including the start of Lent, Palm Sunday, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Ascension and Pentecost

·         Creative suggestions for incorporating multi-sensory elements into seasonal worship to encourage active participation and involvement from the whole church

·         A wealth of additional practical resources for use with groups of children and adults, at home and in outreach activities

There are three pathways through the material: the Lenten tree, Head, hands and heart and Stations of the cross. The book includes information on the origins of these symbols and suggestions as to how they might become a unifying thread in the worship of the whole congregation as they journey through Lent, Holy Week and Easter.

Woven throughout are suggestions for how to lift the liturgical texts off the page to produce engaging, multi-sensory worship that encourages the participation of the whole people of God.

The material is supported by a free CD-ROM, which includes:

·         Illustrations and templates

·         The texts of services

·         Full-colour photographs to inspire your own worship 

The Cross Walk. Anna Johnstone. 80pp. Johnstone² Photography, NZ (2006) eBook PDF $20.00 [10+ in stock] or paperback $25.00 [1 in stock]

Now released in eBook PDF format, this book of reflections and inspiring colour photos will be a valuable resource for worship, personal and group devotions during Lent and Easter.

The eBook is a 3.38mb PDF format file. (You need Adobe Acrobat Reader software version 8 or later installed on your computer to view this book.) We will email the PDF to you when you purchase a copy from us - no postage to pay. You can easily copy and paste the photos and text from the eBook into PowerPoint or other software for presentations in church or other gatherings.

“This is a volume to lift the spirit, to warm the heart. Anna’s reflective, dramatic monologues embrace the good news of God’s love in Jesus in a charming, conversational, grounded spirit. Be ready for astonishing, wonderful words. Be ready for photographs to fill you with wonder.” John Hunt, author of We Celebrating People.

Palm Sunday and Holy Week Services. (Just in Time Series). Robin Knowles Wallace. 84pp Abingdon, US (2006) $22.99 [3 in stock]

Ready-to-use lectionary-based worship and preaching resources for Palm Sunday and Holy Week. Includes three options for Palm Sunday services including procession suggestions with special emphasis on participation by children. Also includes two suggested services for each lectionary year (A, B, and C), six services for Holy Thursday and three services for Good Friday. Includes multiple worship options for each lectionary year scripture. Gives suggested liturgies for each service including those related to Taize.

Green Heart of the Snowdrop. Kate McIlhagga. 221pp. Wild Goose, UK (2005). $54.50. [1 in stock]

McIlhagga was a minister and a member of the Iona Community until her death in 2002. This book includes poems and prayers of gathering and beginning; creation and self; Advent and Epiphany; Lent and mothering; Easter and Pentecost; pilgrimage and endings and blessings. 

The green heart on the underside of the tiny snowdrop flower, which so captured Kate’s imagination, symbolised for her an aspect of God’s purpose for our lives, as did so much else in her surroundings. Her passion for the integrity of creation and right relationship with the environment, in city or countryside, and with one another clearly provided inspiration for her writing. The wonderful inclusiveness of her work reflects an ecumenical outlook in the truest sense.

Eggs and Ashes: Practical & liturgical resources for Lent and Holy Week. Ruth Burgess; Chris Polhill. 254pp, Iona/Wild Goose, UK. (2004) $49.99. [2 in stock]

Suitable for group worship or personal reflection, and with material for Shrove Tuesday, Ash Wednesday, Mothering Sunday, Palm Sunday and Holy Week, it is a collection to accompany readers through Lent and Easter for many years.

Stages On the Way: Worship Resources for Lent, Holy Week and Easter. Wild Goose Worship Group. 236pp. Iona/Wild Goose, UK. (1998) $42.50 [Allow 4 weeks]

This book traces Jesus’ road to the cross through Lent, Holy Week and Easter. Its prime purpose is to resource worship that enables people to sense the hope, apprehension and joy of Easter as felt by Jesus’ friends.

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Fire and Bread: Resources from Easter Day to Trinity Sunday. Ruth Burgess. Wild Goose (2006). $55.50. [Allow 4 weeks]

This book of Eastertide resources is a follow-up to Ruth Burgess's previous popular collections of material, such as Eggs and Ashes, Candles and Conifers and Hay and Stardust. It offers prayers, responses, liturgies, songs, poems, reflections, meditations, sermons and stories, written by Iona Community members, associates, friends and others, and is suitable for use by groups and individuals. The resources cover the weeks from Easter Day to Trinity Sunday, including Ascension Day, Pentecost, Saints’ days, Rogation days, environmental days and many more.

Seven Words For Three Hours: A Good Friday Meditation – with music CD. Updated. DLT, UK (2005). $72.00 [Allow 1 week]

This new and expanded resource provides further materials for both public and private worship. IT can be used in its entirety as a Good Friday three hours devotion, and is designed to take two to three hours to perform, or it can be adapted for other forms of public worship as required. It can also be used by individuals for private meditation on Good Friday, or dipped into during Lent or Passiontide for shorter periods of reflection. Suggestions are also given for using the material as a basis for a Lent study group. Seven Words for Three Hours includes original contributions from Rowan Williams, Richard Harries, Edmund Newell, Giles Fraser and Tarjei Park, along with new reflections and meditations from Sabina Alkire and Lucy Winkett. The music has been completely re-recorded, and includes several new pieces by Adrian Snell, working with cellist Hannah Alkire and guitarist Joe Scott.

The Crown and the Fire. (SPCK Classics series) 127pp. Tom Wright.  SPCK, UK (First published 1992, re-issued 2009) $29.99 [Allow 4 weeks]

Instead of the seven words that Jesus spoke from the cross, Tom Wright invites you to consider seven words that people spoke to the cross - people like Mary and the Roman centurion who witnessed the crucifixion, and Pontius Pilate, who helped to instigate it. The result is a powerful sequence of meditations that will move you to reassess your own response to Jesus’ death, his resurrection, and the continuing influence of his Spirit on those who follow him today.

Part of the SPCK Classics series.

Study & Devotional

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Lent for Everyone - Luke - Year C. Tom Wright. 176pp. SPCK (2009) $24.99. [9 in stock]

A Lent lectionary resource using Tom Wright’s For Everyone Bible translation, this is the first in a three-volume series to cover the three years of the Revised Common Lectionary. For each day of Lent, there is a reading chosen from the Gospel designated for the year, plus a reflection by Tom Wright. The book grows out of a project to encourage Lent reading in the diocese of Durham.

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Bread in the Wilderness: Spiritual Famine or Gospel Feast? Kenneth H. Carter, Jr. Abingdon (Dec 2009) $21.99. [3 in stock]

Christians know that we often live in the wilderness - a place of difficulty and even danger - and yet we also believe that there is bread in the wilderness. During the Lenten season, as we remember the story of God's faithfulness, and especially the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, we are given strength for life's journey, “bread” to sustain us through the wilderness and beyond.

This seven-session study, appropriate for both group and individual use, provides one lesson for each week in Lent. Each lesson includes a Scripture reference, a brief reflection, questions for reflection or discussion, a brief prayer, and a focus for the coming week.

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Encountered: Meeting God in Ordinary Places, A Lent Course. Claire Benton-Evans. 112pp. Kevin Mayhew (2009). $26.99. [Allow 6-8 weeks]

This Lent course explores the ordinary places of the Easter story in which the extraordinary events of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection occurred. The five sessions and accompanying meditations lead you to examine the reality of these places which Jesus knew so well, and engage with the Gospel stories in a fresh, informed and imaginative way. You will be encouraged to look at the ordinary places of your own life, and rediscover them as places in which you may meet the living God. Above all, this course leads you on a shared journey through the Easter story towards a deeper understanding of Christ’s sacrifice and the joy which is ours on Easter Day.

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Walking with Jesus through Lent and Easter: A 'Visual Pilgrimage' For Families And Churches. Murray McBride. BRF. (Nov 2009) $39.99. [4 in stock]

Designed to help adults and children to prepare for Easter together by entering a 'visual pilgrimage' - a spiritual exploration through Lent that culminates with the celebration of Easter. Each creative and thought-provoking reflection invites adults and children to share the journey at their own level by making a special time in the day to reflect on the Easter story. As we prayerfully join Jesus on a spiritual journey, we may pause a while and consider not only the choices set before Jesus but the choices that we make in life.

The material is ideal for families and church-based children's groups. The seven weekly themes each unpack different aspects of Jesus' ministry, starting with the call to follow him and focusing on key aspects of this teaching, including miracles, parables and mission. Each theme helpfully provides five days' worth of material until Holy Week is reached, whereupon there is a reflection for each of these special days concluding with Easter Day itself.

Each daily reflection is accompanied by a photocopiable illustration, designed to draw participants deeper into the Lenten journey as they colour in this part of the story. Each illustration then builds into a storyboard frieze that can be hung on the wall or unfolded on the floor, where the gospel story gradually unfolds in a memorable visual drama.

Easter Cracked. 96pp Scripture Union, UK (2005) $39.99 [Allow 6-8 weeks]

A vital resource for the whole of the Easter season covering craft, drama, events and service outlines. This book is designed to help churches maximise outreach opportunities at Easter time. Also features all-age events for Passover and Good Friday, plus assembly outlines and ideas.

Contents include:

·         Easter events (6 ideas)

·         Short talks for all ages (7 ideas)

·         Drama (7 ideas)

·         Stories (11)

·         Craft (19 ideas)

·         All-age services (6 outlines)

·         Assembly material

·         Creative prayer, games, cookery, quizzes, puzzles (6), songs, quotes and anecdotes.

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Life Balance: A Five-Session Course On Rest, Work And Play. Sue Mayfield, Robert Warren. 80pp. Church House. (2005). $16.99. [4 in stock]

“Keeping the Sabbath Holy is not just another commandment conveniently forgotten in the society that loves being busy; it is a gift of God in creation: a way of restoring balance to life. Rediscover it here. A free Holy-Day is guaranteed with every purchase!” Stephen Cottrell, Bishop of Reading

21st century living is hectic. Getting the right ‘life balance’ between rest, work and play seems almost impossible. Life Balance aims to help groups explore:

·         How to build Sabbath time into the crazy pressures of everyday life.

·         How ‘Sabbath attitudes’ can transform the way we spend our time.

In five interactive sessions are:

·         Time to Pause

·         Time to Celebrate

·         Time to Rest

·         Time to Play

·         Time to Liberate

Each session contains enough material for a 90-minute session and includes guidelines for group study, with full background notes for leaders, interactive activities, including questions for discussion and multi-media ideas (e.g. film and music) and ideas for practical action. Each member of the group will need a copy of the book.

Ideal for Lent, cell and house groups