Experiencing the Holy Week as a Family

Today is the first day of Holy Week, when we prepare our hearts to remember again Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Here are some suggestions I gave to our teen parents and guardians for experiencing this together as a family. The first two are activities at Stillmeadow and the final three are activities you can do at home.

Go through the Stations of the Cross together. They’re open Monday-Thursday from 6PM-9:30PM and on Good Friday from 9:30AM-9:30PM.

Attend the Passion Play together. Remix is going to the Passion Play on Tuesday. Feel free to join us in this!

Read Scripture Together

a. Monday: Isaiah 42:1-9, Psalm 36:5-11, John 12:1-11

b. Tuesday: Isaiah 49:1-7, Psalm 71:1-14, John 12:20-36

c. Wednesday: Isaiah 50:4-9a, Psalm 70, John 13:21-32

d. Maundy Thursday: Isaiah 50:4-9a, Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19, John 13:1-17, 31b-35

e. Good Friday: Isaiah 52:13-53:12, Psalm 22, John 18:1-19:42

f. Holy Saturday: Job 14:1-14, Psalm 31:1-4, 15-16, Matthew 27:57-66

I found these scriptures neatly laid out here.

Have a special family meal on Thursday Night, remembering Jesus' Last Supper with his disciples. Read Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14 (explanation of Passover Feast) and Matthew 26:17-30 (the Last Supper).

Traditionally the church has kept Friday and Saturday as days of quiet remembrance. Invite your family into quietness. Stay at home on Saturday or go to a park together. Watch a movie at the end of the day. Relax.

What are some traditions that you do?

And I quote...Tom Smail

Tom Smail in The Giving Gift where he explores the personhood of the Holy Spirit. What he says here has vast implications for the unity of missional and cruciform living.

"...think of the Spirit much more personally and creatively as an artist whose one subject is the Son, and who is concerned to paint portraits of that subject on countless human canvases using the paints and brushes provided by countless human cultures and historical situations. On such an analogy the Christological center is fully affirmed and maintained. It is Jesus, the incarnate Son of the Father, and no other that the Spirit seeks to portray. Each portrait is successful and creative, not because it makes of him what he is not, by forming him in our likeness and conforming him to our preferences and predilections, but because it uses ever new cultural approaches and historical situations to bring out more of the infinite variety of saving truth that is in him."

Tom Smail, The Giving Gift, 77

with jesus in the boat you can swim with sharks

As we ate our breakfast this morning Cadence exclaimed, "look daddy! My apples look like boats!"

I replied, "that's crazy!" "No. It's not crazy. It's awesome! Because Jesus was in the boat with his disciples," she retorted.

"Oh yeah..." I say.

With her eyes widening and eyebrows lifted she went on with her story. Raising her arms to the sky, "and the rains came down." Lowering her hands to the ground and lifting them while she spoke, "and the waves came UP!" Waving her arms in circles above her head, "and there were rain clouds sending down water."

"And you know what Jesus did?" She asked excitedly. Without waiting for a reply she went on ending with a yell..."He said to the rain STOP!"

With that flourish she ended her story.

"But what happened after Jesus said that?" I inquired.

"They all fall into the water."

"Who?"

"Jesus and his friends fell into the water and went swimming. And there were SHARKS!"

I love these kinds of stories.

NYC 2011 A World Unbroken

So I get the privilege of leading the Mid-Atlantic Nazarene teens to Nazarene Youth Conference again in 2011. I'm pretty stoked about it. Check out the vid:

I love the theme and am excited to see what God's going to do in the lives of those who take part in this event in Louisville, KY!

Also, the website (www.nyc2011.org) is up and running as well! And you can follow them on twitter and facebook!