Westserve

Creative Christian Christmas

There’s no question that one of the toughest tasks each year for people involved in gospel ministry is coming up with a creative approach to our Christmas events.
I remember well the years at Toongabbie starting to sweat over the creative side of the carols event in August each year.

I reckon Australia is almost unique in the way Christmas in our culture connects with the gospel. There is a huge sense of goodwill in the Australian when it comes to Christmas and Christianity – something that I sense has disappeared in places like England, and remains compromised in the USA because of that country’s strange take on linked issues such as separation of church and state.
But in Oz, while we still need to work hard if we want to see people in church at Christmas, there is an expectation in the community that we will try!

But of course, seeing the community in church is only part of the picture. Surely we should be taking Christmas to our community.
Now I hear you jumping up and down about ‘Carols in the xxxx’ (fill in your particular venue) events. But I think they are close to running out of steam.
Looking at this article on Sydneyanglicans.net today, I’m have a mixed response. One is joy at seeing churches doing something a little out of the ordinary at Christmas, but also a touch of boredom, because there doesn’t really seem to be anything new being attempted.

Now it’s true that some communities still respond well to more traditional events and approaches, and that’s fine. If something is working, I’m not suggesting changing it. But for most of us, we really aren’t engaging as we could with our communities at Christmas.

So, while it’s all still fresh in our minds – what can we do to better connect with Australians at Christmas time?
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