Bonfire night is over, so it must be time for the Advent resources. Here’s a handy-dandy guide to loads of my Advent printable crafts, patterns, recipes (sort of). Use them for Messy Church, Christmas fairs, schools/family events, Christingles crib services and outreach events.
There will be more coming soon – colouring, puzzles etc – but I couldn’t fit them all in one post (golly gosh, problems, eh?)
How About Some Drama?
If you need some Christmas drama (no, not “Granny’s been at the egg-nog again”, I mean sketches), check out these popular books of Nativities.
Please note that this post (and others) contains affiliate links to Amazon. If you buy anything after following a link I will get a very, very tiny commission. The price you pay is the same and no data about you is passed in either direction. Ty.
Not a Very Silent Night
A Pop-Up Nativity
The lilac one: This is an instant Nativity play suitable for schools, all-age worship, crib services or Messy Church. It has a few, very simple props and uses the tune of ‘The 12 Days of Christmas’ to tell the story of God with us. And No Rehearsal Needed! (Yay!)
Just go with whomever is there; adults, children, passing aliens, anyone. If they’re in costume – great. If they’re not – that’s fine. Plenty of audience interaction and a simple but relevant message that God lives with us in our messiness.
Remember to grab your copy of the #1 bestselling (I’m still gob-smacked by that!) Walking to Bethlehem – imaginative devotions for Advent.
Available from Amazon or you favourite bookstore (but I get best royalties from Amazon).
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Crafts
First, and ever-popular, is the amazing Flexagon Advent Calendar
Print and fold this amazing Advent calendar then flex to find each day’s reading. It’s a perfect for Messy Advent or as a giveaway for your youth and families ministry. For schools this makes a fun Christmas craft, with some mathemagic thrown in for good measure – what more could one want?
Click on the link for PDF and full instructions, and a preview of ‘Walking to Bethlehem’, my intergenerational Advent book that uses the same readings.
Next is the Flip-Flap Advent Storyteller. This is a popular foldable, great for primary-aged children. Again, click to get an A4 printable PDF to cut out, colour and fold.
You may remember making these when you were a kid. I know I made hundreds and pestered the life out of my parents – “pick a colour, pick a colour!”
This version features the four candles of Advent and has a short explanation and Bible verse to go with each week: Hope, Love, Joy and Peace.
The Flip-Flap Storyteller links perfectly with the Advent Wreath devotion resources.
This is one of my favourite resources. It’s a 6-page printable PDF including a really nice colouring page. Each of the four weeks has an accessible devotion based on the one of the candle themes with a reflection and a prayer
And just in case you fancy making one as well, here is a bunch of ways to make your own Advent wreath.
And here is a fab 25-page PDF of goodies – yes, you read that right, twenty-five whole pages of Christmas Crafts. Click here to see what’s on offer.
Some of the ideas have been circulating on the web for ages, some are my own, some have templates included, some are messy, some are quiet. You pays your money and you takes your choice – oh, except you don’t pay your money. It’s free. You’re welcome 🙂
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