Viewing blogs by tag: christmas
Embracing the Beauty of the Wait
Kieran Murphy | 20th December 2024
With Christmas just days away, the season of Advent is drawing to a close—but there’s still time to pause and soak in the beauty of this sacred period. It’s not just about rushing towards the big day; it’s about savouring the journey and reflecting on the deeper joys that Advent holds.Rediscovering the Purpose of AdventAt its heart, Advent is about
Read more
A Wrap on Christmas Unwrapped
Emily Croucher | 23rd December 2022
Last week we finished delivering the Christmas Unwrapped workshop for Year 6. The workshop is an opportunity to explore the story of the nativity, which is right at the centre of the Christmas celebrations. I know you’re thinking it should be fairly straightforward – but not always! This workshop is full of surprises!One of the most fun parts of t
Read more
Advent
Kieran Murphy | 10th December 2022
As we make our way through Advent, I wanted to share a few thoughts on what I see as the joy of this special time as a seasonof wating.The joy of Advent is a time of anticipation and preparation leading up to the celebration of Christmas. It is a time for many Christians like myself to reflect on the coming of Jesus into the world, and to prepare o
Read more
Covid Christmas
Kieran Murphy | 20th December 2020
I had planned a very different blog post, however following Saturday's announcement of Hertfordshire and much of the east and south east of England moving into a new fourth tier and the huge implications this has on the Christmas many of us planned, I thought I would share some thoughts on how we can make the best of the situation we find ourselves
Read more
Reflection and planning
Elizabeth Feltoe | 20th December 2019
Photo by Nikola Jelenkovic / Unsplash We’re coming close to the end of the year now. Christmas anticipation is looming, parties are in full swing, schools are focused on getting to the end of Friday 20th and presents are being bought and wrapped. How are you feeling about Christmas? We were just talking in the office the other day about how it’s e
Read more
The Heart of Christmas
Emily Croucher | 13th December 2019
Today is the end of two weeks of our Christmas Unwrapped workshop, where we are able to share the story of the first Christmas with 15 groups of Year 6 students in Hitchin. One of the central messages of the workshop is how we have wrapped the message of Christmas up in so many other things – parties, food, presents, music, decorations. All wonderf
Read more
Bringing Hope this Christmas...
Hannah Dengate | 6th December 2019
Christmas lights have been switched on, Christmas music is playing, and it is now only 19 days until Christmas! I wonder what it is that you are hoping for this Christmas? What is it that you are expectant for? With hope comes that anticipation, that waiting. As we enter this season of advent, we enter a time of waiting and anticipation as Christm
Read more
So, here it is, Merry Chr...
Elizabeth Feltoe | 29th November 2019
Too early?! Never! Despite having young children I am usually the first in my house to want to put the tree up, the lights round the front door and the mulled wine opened. I have also opened day one of my advent calendar, despite it only being the 29th November. I just couldn’t resist. Don’t tell Ben and Iris otherwise I’ll have to say yes to them
Read more
Christmas Unwrapped
Hannah Dengate | 24th December 2018
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6. Less than a week until Christmas 2018! Over the past two weeks here at Phase we have engaged with around 300 children in Hitchin, delivering our Chris
Read more
Expectations
Helen Bainbridge | 7th December 2018
How do you feel about expectations? To me, the word seems pretty negative. We talk about unrealistic expectations, which only end in disappointment. We talk about managing expectations, not letting others run away with an exaggerated impression of what we can achieve. And then there are those expectations others hold of us, which they forget to le
Read moreBe a light at Christmas
Bethany Murray | 23rd December 2015
What words do you associate with Christmas? Cambridge university press gathered data on the words most commonly associated with Christmas and the top 300 words revealed a strong association between the holidays and a sense of family and positive relationships as well as showing that the most frequent category to appear were words relating to feeli
Read more
