By: All the pews are filled and the sanctuary is silent. Every person holds a noise maker. We clasp old plastic bottles filled with beans, last year’s plastic Easter eggs filled with rice, little sticks decorated with Crayola markers, or even our own keys. We...
By: Performing faith involves four important actions: prepare, practice, play and participate.” This quotation is from Dorothy Butler Bass’s book Christianity After Religion: The End of Church and the Birth of a New Spiritual Awakening. She advises that we...
By: Come join us at the 2013 Annual Event in Orlando where we’ll experience the spirit of God through play. As God’s redeemed creation in Christ, we believe that God has gifted us with the ability to both work and play. We know that Christ came that we might have...
By: Young men and women alike, Old and young together! Let them praise the name of the Lord, For his name alone is exalted; His glory is above earth and heaven. Psalm 148:12-13 Es beautiful as the cross is, my favorite memories of Easter morning are often what happens...
By: A playful spirit has rich avenues to explore faith and learning I smelled God. Maybe you have too. It happened in northern Montana as I was making my way along forest and fire roads on my off-road motorcycle with my riding partner, Barry. We were on the...
By: The other day my daughters (ages four and six) taught me something important about being open to the Spirit. They were dancing around a sofa-cushion house they had assembled on the floor of the living room. As they skipped in circles, they sang this song: There’s...
By: Drama is a means of expression that may be used to build up or to bring down, to heal or to hurt. Drama can be a powerful tool in church. It can be used for worship, evangelism, or Christian education. As with any means of expression, it is necessary to determine...
By: Lis Van Harten Much to the delight of some, renewal occurs in surprising, unintentional ways North American culture is such that we work too hard, and too much. While the resulting productivity is a good thing, it often leaves us spiritually, emotionally,...
By: Picture this scene on a September Saturday at your local church: A girl band rocking out to Cyndi Lauper’s feisty song, “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” A team of amateurs painting rock-star symbols on smiling faces before they step into a photo...
