Christmas
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Coming Home
$12.95Add to cartAfter many years of preaching from the first three chapters of Luke and the first two chapters of Matthew, Frank Ramirez decided to preach about something a little different around Christmastime. What evolved was this series of seven messages for the Sundays beginning with Advent and ending with Epiphany.
Why a sermon series based on the Old Testament book of Haggai? Ramirez writes, “I’ve always been fascinated by the lesser known books of the Old Testament, partly because I’m afraid of being embarrassed in heaven if I don’t recognize some of these people!”
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12 Days Of Christmas
$8.99Add to cartOn the first day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
A partridge in a pear tree.For many centuries young and old alike have been singing about the maids a-milking, the lords a-leaping, and a partridge in a pear tree. A Christmas carol, a parlor game, and a delightful counting song- The Twelve Days of Christmas- is indeed a favorite of the holiday season.
In this book, sumptuously illustrated by Jan Brett, all the splendid images of The Twelve Days of Christmas come joyously alive. Look closely and you’ll see not only the extravagant gifts given by a suitor to his lady, but a love story, a family’s busy Christmas preparations, Merry Christmas in eleven languages, and a veritable menagerie of charming creatures.
Jan Brett’s exquisitely detailed illustrations so rich in traditional folk motifs, make this book a visual treat to be enjoyed over and over again.
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Legend Of The Poinsetta
$8.99Add to cartIn Mexico, the poinsettia is called flor de la Nochebuenao flower of the Holy Night. At Christmastime, the flower blooms and flourishes, the quite exquisite red stars lighting up the countryside.
A Mexican legend tells how the poinsettia came to be, through a little girl’s unselfish gift to the Christ Child. Tomie dePaola has embraced the legend using his own special feeling for Christmas. His glorious paintings capture not only the brilliant colors of Mexico and its art, but also the excitement of the children preparing for Christmas and the hope of Lucida, who comes to see what makes a gift truly beautiful. -
Martin Luthers Christmas Book
$11.99Add to cartThe pain of childbirth, a defenseless babe lying in a cold manger, the violent slaughter of innocent children—Luther vividly portrayed the human reality surrounding God’s birth on Earth. Featuring 30 excerpts from Luther’s Christmas sermons, along with elegant engravings by Durer, Schongauer, and Altdorfer, this gift edition captures the timeless truths of the Christmas story.
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Advent Christmas Resources For Young And Old
$12.95Add to cartThese resources were carefully selected from almost 100 manuscripts submitted. They were chosen for their creativity and content, but also for their adaptability to churches of any size. None of them require complicated props or settings, nor do any require lengthy rehearsals.
This collection of resources will enliven the worship of any church, involving members young and old in the presentation.
-A Christmas Play: Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room
-A Christmas Eve Candlelight Communion Service
-A Christmas Program For Children (Or Entire Congregation)
-An Old Fashioned Christmas Pageant
-Two Worship Services For The Christmas Season
-A Worship Service And Choral Reading For Christmas
-A Christmas Play: Mary After The Angel -
Whose Birthday Is It Anyway
$7.95Add to cartFor the small church that does not have a lot of time to prepare, here is an ideal Christmas program and worship service. It can be presented as part of a Sunday School program or Sunday worship service.
The true message of Christmas is spoken through the words of “the friendly beasts,” which include two donkeys, three doves, four cows and four sheep.
This program enables children to become involved in a Christmas project in which they share their Christmas ornaments and angel food cake with the congregation.
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My Merry Christmas
$3.49Add to cartThis book begins with the story of the first Christmas (Luke 2:1-20) and ends with the celebration in our own homes.
The Arch(R) Books series tells popular Bible stories through fun-to-read rhymes and bright illustrations. This well-loved series captures the attention of children, telling scripturally sound stories that are enjoyable and easy to remember.
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Behold That Star Christmas Anthology
$20.00Add to cartLooking for a fresh collection of stories to usher in the season of joy and giving? For those grown tired of commercialism, who feel that Santa Claus and red-nosed reindeer do not project the true Christmas spirit, this book may be the answer.
Containing little-known classics by old and new masters of the genre, this bestselling anthology includes stories from many lands, interspersed with songs and poems – over half the contents available in English for the first time.
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Voices Of Christmas
$7.95Add to cartUsing a skillful blend of irony and humor, this work is designed to reveal the realities of Christmas-both the detrimental and the divine. Involving no scenery or props, cast members address visualized listeners as if no interruptions from other characters or changes of subject occur. Lines may be read or recited and the cast may stand or be seated on various levels. No one needs to move about, though use of pantomime is suggested in some cases.
Characters include:
* Patient — a resident of a nursing home
* Homemaker — a food-happy matron
* Shopper — a wealthy, materialistic socialite
* Sportsman — a ski enthusiast
* Merchant — a toy store owner
* Traditionalist — a sentimental Swedish-American grandmother
* Corporation Man — a heavy-drinking partygoer
* Child — a greedy little girl
* Working Wife — a frazzled victim of the Christmas rushWith a presentation time of about 30 minutes, this creative, easy- to-produce play can be used in a variety of situations and settings. It will be one of the most popular programs of the entire year.
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Light In The Land Of Shadows Cycle B
$12.95Add to cartLight In The Land Of Shadows contains 16 sermons for Advent, Christmas, Epiphany and Transfiguration Sundays.
This book makes connections between Old Testament themes and contemporary issues. The preacher will find it exegetically sound yet filled with illustrations and insights. The lay person will find it comprehendible and useful for exploring ultimate issues within the context of meaningful Bible study.
(The) sermons are fleshed out in normal, everyday language, grammar and sentence structure — Yet the faithful preacher can take comfort in the fact that they are backed up by sound biblical exegesis. (from the Introduction)
Hal Warlick is a master at weaving a fascinating story or illustration into the sermon, dramatically portraying the scriptural message. This is Old Testament preaching at its best.
Sermon titles include:
Lighting A Fire In A Cold Room
All Dressed Up And Somewhere To Go
Any FAX From God Today?
Will We Enjoy Heaven?
Pain And Promise In The Hand Of God -
Born One Of Us
$7.95Add to cartThis Christmas chancel drama, used by itself or incorporated into a worship service, uses seven speaking parts (from children to adults) and takes about 30-35 minutes to perform. It is designed as a readers’ theater so that little rehearsal is needed. Included is a closing litany for the minister and congregation which provides a gripping conclusion to the drama of Christ’s birth. (Copying privileges are also included.)
The action takes place in the home of a middle-class Jewish family in Bethlehem at the time of the birth of Christ. The father is a rabbi, the mother one who helps out in almost any needy situation, the daughter a dream-struck adolescent, and the son a rebellious young adult.
The dialogue builds to the point at which the daughter returns struck by heaven’s light, which she calls a miracle. Her mother explains to her (and the congregation) that the real miracle is Jesus, who on that holy night was born, one of us.
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Wrinkled Wrappings
$12.95Add to cartWrinkled Wrappings is a series of pulpit messages for Advent and Christmas carved from the pen and emanating from the heart of a distinguished preacher whose messages inspire hope in the hearts of believers. Brokhoff is especially skilled at relating biblical stories to modern life. The flowing style of these sermons is peppered with gripping illustrations that catch us where we are and carry us along as he shines the light of God’s Word into our lives.
Sermons are based on texts from Mark, Luke, John, and Isaiah.
Sermon titles include:
You’re Going To Have A Baby
Good News For Bad Times
God With A Human Face
Happy Next Year? -
1st Christmas Present Ever
$7.95Add to cartVersatile — “ready-to-use” — no memorization required. Just what the volunteer ordered.
This program is appropriate for Christmas Eve or any Sunday morning in Advent. Involving children of all ages and one adult, it can be used in any size church with a few participants or many. Two versions — a longer version intended for a full-length service and a shortened version to be used in place of a sermon — are also included.
Symbols of Christmas (a tree, ornaments, candy canes, a creche and more) are combined with biblical readings and brief dialogue to create a greater understanding of Christian traditions. While the narrative dialogue is being read, a silent, active nativity scene is shown to illustrate the first Christmas present ever. (Copying privileges included.)
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Promise Kept At Christmas
$7.95Add to cartWe approach the worship of God this evening with a hushed awareness of Christ’s presence in our midst. God again breaks through the calm and darkness to reveal himself to us in the stillness of our hearts. (From the order of worship)
Light and darkness is a powerful biblical metaphor to talk about God’s compelling activity in the world. This Christmas Eve resource focuses on this metaphor.
A Promise Kept At Christmas offers congregations a complete order of service with suggested carols, lighting of Advent candles and scripture readings from the Old and New Testaments using a narrator and lay readers.
Scriptures are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible.
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1st Christmas In Origami
$14.99Add to cartA one-of-a-kind book that allows children to enjoy the Christmas story while they learn the ancient Japanese art of paper folding. Each chapter features a narrative about one of the characters in the Christmas story with easy-to-follow directions on folding that character. Eleven characters compose the finished Nativity scene.
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Kneeling In Bethlehem (Large Type)
$19.00Add to cartIn a style that is contemporary, reverent, and faith-filled, Ann Weems reflects on the mystery of the Christmas season. Included in this collection are twenty-six poems created specifically for this title as well as popular selections from her earlier workds, especially Reaching for Rainbows and Family Faith Stories. Capturing the spirit of joyful celebration, the poems can be used in worship services, read aloud at family gatherings, or used by individuals for quiet reflection.
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Come To Christmas (Revised)
$7.99Add to cartFrom Advent wreaths to Christmas Trees, from Mistletoe to Lumiminarias, from, Hanging of the Greens to Epiphany,Come To Christmas provides families and Christian educators with a treasury of information and worship ideas for the season. Learn about the season of Advent, Advent Wreaths, Hanging of the Greens, Chrismon Trees, The Jesse Tree, the origins of popular traditions such as Santa Claus, mistletoe, and poinsettias, and much, much, more. Also includes a brief set of Advent services for lighting the Advent candles and the songs “The Holly and the Ivy,” and “The Friendly Beasts.”
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Christmas Stranger : A One Act Christmas Play
$7.95Add to cartA Christmas play with a surprise ending!
The church youth group and adult leaders prepare to practice for a Christmas program.
They anticipate a visit by the church’s new custodian, who will clean and lock up the building.
A visitor arrives, who all believe to be the custodian. The visitor begins to help with the rehearsal. With his help, the real meaning of Christmas is clearly revealed to all.
The stranger leaves. To the surprise of the cast (but not the audience) the “real” custodian finally arrives. The cast ponders: “Who was that visitor?”
This simple play is easily adaptable for any size group. No special props are rquired other than a lectern and a Bible. -
Whats The Matter With Christmas
$7.95Add to cartFour youths, rehearsing a church Christmas play, are perplexed about why everyone appears so busy at Christmas. Through a series of events, the youths learn, to their surprise, that the real meaning of Christmas is God’s gift of Jesus.
Highlights of this drama:
Easy-to-rehearse
Simple, yet powerful message
Parts for four youths, up to 10 young children and two adults
Five original songs for young singers
Complete order of worship provided
Performance time from 35 to 45 minutes -
Golden Bells
$12.95Add to cartIs the need a Christmas message, adult casts, and great themes of literature? This book offers two solutions:
The Bells of Christmas Eve takes place in Italy in 1520. In the final moment of the play, the bells ring — it is a miracle. Speaking parts for 8 persons. Performance time about 30 minutes. Church bells should ring as sound effects at the play’s end.The Golden Gift is set in France in 1820. The story is based on a scene from Les Miserables by Victor Hugo. It includes the familiar story of the ex-convict and the good bishop. The ex-convict takes the golden candlesticks. Parts for 10 persons. Performance time is about 30 minutes.
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Unplug The Christmas Machine
$17.99Add to cart1. “A Christmas Carol” Revisited
2. Women: The Christmas Magicians
3. Men: The Christmas Stagehands
4. The Four Things Children Really Want For Christmas
5. The Homecoming
6. Inside The Christmas Machine
7. The Gift Of Joy
8. A Simple Christmas
9. Christmas RevivalAppendix: Resources For A Simple Christmas
Additional Info
Nine years and thriteen printings later, Unplug The Christmas Machine is still the undisputed guide to creating a joyful, stress-free holiday season. Revised and filled with new material, this book will enjoy even greater popularity in the years to come. -
Tis The Night Before Jesus
$7.95Add to cart‘Tis the night before Jesus when all through the earth,
Every creature is stirring for a new baby’s birth.
Here is a Christmas Eve service that persons of all ages will enjoy. It may easily be presented by the younger members of your congregation.
It includes a complete order of service with:
? Suggested music for children’s choir
? Hymns for the entire congregation
? Parts for a speaking choir
? A brief monolgue by Mary
? One page listing additional hymns that could be used with the service
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Gift Of Christmas
$7.95Add to cartIt is Christmas Eve. All over town people are preparing for Christmas. Amid the hustle and bustle of the night a little church is open and prepared for any visitor. For some people on this night the scene at the little church’s altar will be a lifesaver.
Here is a Christmas Eve drama in modern-day setting. It includes parts for six adults, four teenagers and seven children.
Scripture, read by a narrator, are from Luke. Three familiar Christmas carols, for singing by the congregation, are part of the drama. Performance time is 15 to 20 minutes.
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Legends Of Christmas
$7.95Add to cartThis delightful Christmas pageant includes speaking, reading, and non-reading parts for all the children in your congregation. Pre-schoolers, younger children, older youth, and their adult audience will all enjoy exploring a variety of charming Christmas legends from around the world. Familiar carols highlight each legend and involve your entire congregation in song and celebration.
Sets and props can be simple; costumes for most players consist of ordinary school clothes. Performance time is approximately 49 minutes.
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Choices
$7.95Add to cartYour congregation’s children are the focus of this spectacular service for Christmas Eve.
Traditional Christmas scripture texts are skillfully interwoven with mimed dramatizations, dramatic dialogs in contemporary language, and familiar hymns and carols in this complete order of worship.
With something for everyone to do, from pre-schoolers to high school seniors, your children — and their parents — will personally experience the joy of the Christ child’s birth — and the choices which that miraculous event gives us.
Performance Time: approximately 45 minutes.
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Places Of The Promise
$12.95Add to cart“The Advent/Christmas story is one that identifies specific places as the font of the rich interactions between God and humanity. The names of such locales are as familiar to us as our own homes.”
Here are six sermons with accompanying children’s sermons. The series covers Advent 1 through Christmas 1. Each sermon focuses on the particular sphere God used to prepare creation for the gift of Jesus.
The sermons offer:
* Texts from Lectionary Cycle B
* Other suggested texts
* Suggestions for congregational activitiesThe children’s sermons follow an advent wreath-lighting series. Following Christmas, these sermons use the Christmas tree and the creche scene as themes. Each children’s sermon offers at least three objects to use as illustrations.
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Prophets Bread Cycle A
$12.95Add to cartFrom the author of the vastly popular “Gospel Horizons” series, comes this new collection of deeply thoughtful, personal; yet, universal responses to First Lesson lectionary texts for the Advent season.
Drawn from the author’s own searching questions and sensitive insights, these model homilies will deepen your understanding of the proclaimers and prophets who were sustained by the word of the Lord.
Messages include:
– God as Woodcutter
– The Glance of God
– What God Sees
– Six Cloudy Days
and thirteen more!
For use with Common Lectionary texts. -
Shepherds Of Bethlehem
$7.95Add to cartThis Christmas Eve Candlelight Service takes your congregation to the hills and homes of Bethlehem on the night that Jesus was born. Monologs by local shepherds and their families reflect on the hopes and expectations of the common people who populated that quiet, historic town. Prayers and suggested hymns combine with traditional Christmas readings and the drama of candlelight to create a spectacular and reverent Christmas Eve worship event.
Staging and costuming can be simple or complex. Includes reading parts for up to eight older youth and adults, and walk-on parts as desired.
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Come Sing And Celebrate
$7.95Add to cartHere are two delightful Christmas plays for a special celebration with your parish’s children, youth, and adults.
The Night Love Was Born by Mary Jane Mulder is a contemporary re-enactment, in word and song, of the first Christmas story, set within the world of imagination — where even a cynical toy soldier can learn the true meaning of Christmas.
Originally written for participation by up to fifty children, this flexible pageant can be tailored to suit the needs and resources of large or small congregations. Staging can be either simple or elaborate, and the entire performance can be presented in forty minutes.
Angels We Have Heard on High Street by J. Richard Coyle is a modern version of the Gospel’s account of Christ’s birth, using contemporary characters who present their message in music and mime. Parts are involved for participants of all ages, and congregational involvement is required. Staging and production are flexible, and can accommodate abundant or limited resources. Performance time is also flexible.
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Reading The Signs Cycle C
$12.95Add to cartIf you are like many parish pastors, you find the Christmas season to be the most frustrating season of the church year — so much to do, so much to celebrate, so much to say — and so little time to prepare it all!
That is why J. Ellsworth Kalas has prepared these twelve thoughtful sermons — to help you present the meaningful and coherent messages you want your congregation to hear during this busiest of seasons.
Within are sermons for every Cycle C gospel text during the Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany seasons from the Common, Lutheran, and Roman Catholic lectionaries, including:
– The Signs of Summer
– The Hinge of History
– Songs of the Season
– Return to the New
– From Empty Nets to Full Lives
– Awake to GloryUse these complete sermons as presented — or as jumping-off points for your own meaningful messages.
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Light Shines In The Darkness
$7.95Add to cartThe familiar music and scripture of the Christmas season is interwoven with prayers and responses for the congregation in this well-crafted Christmas Eve candlelight worship resource. Four readers share speaking parts. Suggested music may be sung either by the congregation or by choir or soloists. Holy Communion may be included as a part of the service.
The message suggested for inclusion with the service is a powerful modern take about a twelve-year-old Salvadoran refugee named Jesus (pronouced Hay-SOOS), who stumbles across the international border into Arizona following a time of terror in his home country. In modern dress, the story focuses on the horror of King Herod’s plan to exterminate his enemies in the days of Jesus’ birth 2,000 years ago.
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Isaiahs Surprise
$7.95Add to cartWhat might have happened had the Prophet Isaiah been able to transport himself, through time, to the date of Jesus’ birth? Nancy Steltz asked that question. The result is this delightful Christmas pageant. Isaiah, wide-eyed and unsure of how his prophecies are coming to fruition, punctuates the dialog and action. Seven scenes introduce the congregation to all the familiar Christmas characters from the narratives in Saint Luke and Saint Matthew. Parts are included for children from nursery through senior high.
Scenes include:
The Annunciation
Joseph’s Quandary
The Roman Decree
Finding a Room
Jesus’ Birth
The Shepherds
The Wise Men -
Kneeling In Bethlehem
$19.00Add to cartIn a style that is reverent and faith-filled, Anne Weems reflects on the mystery of the Christmas season. Included in this collection are twenty-six new poems as well as popular selections from her earlier works, especially Reaching for Rainbows and Family Faith Stories. Capturing the spirit of joyful celebration, they can be used in worship services, read aloud at family gatherings, or used by individuals for quiet reflection.
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Joy To You And Me
$7.95Add to cartJoseph, Jesus’ Guardian; the Bethlehem shepherds; and aged Simeon are featured in these three new Christmas worship dramas. Any of the three could provide the message for the service for one of the Sundays in Advent, or for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, or a special worship time near Christmas. With the use of selected prayers and hymns, any of these dramas can provide a complete worship service.
When Joseph Doubted confronts the congregation with the turmoil with which Jesus’ guardian was faced when God gave him the task to stand by Mary and her infant son. The drama involves a cast of four.
Off-limits To Shepherds features the first visitors to the manger in a Nativity play for eight participants. The Old Torch Lighter, with three speaking parts, tells the story of Simeon, who waited in the Jerusalem Temple hoping to see the Messiah.
All three dramas are easily staged with a minimum of props.
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2 Nativity Dramas
$7.95Add to cartEither of the two dramas in this book are suitable for use as a Sunday church school Christmas program, a special Christmas season worship service (hymns may be added), or a program for a youth group or other church organization during the Advent or Christmas season. Either can be produced with simple props, and parts can either be read or recited from memory.
The Tinsel Time Machine is a charming Christmas fantasy in the style of H. G. Wells. An unlikely contraption proves capable of transporting members of a disillusioned Midwestern family to other times and places at the Christmas season.
Rag Doll Number Thirty-Seven tells the story of an aging couple who create and give away a homemade gift of love each Christmas season — a rag doll, intended for someone in special need.
