HAPPY EASTER!

Hallelujah, Christ has risen!



Whether your tradition celebrates for a day, a week, 40 days or 50 days we live in this period of celebration, remembering that Jesus is ALIVE!

So as you eat your way through the remnants of Easter eggs and chocolate bunnies and discover that tiny egg that was left down the back of the sofa from your Easter egg hunt, as the flowers in the easter garden begin to droop and the shops come alive with must-have-summer-essentials, let’s not hurry away from the celebration but let’s take some time to think about what it means to really live as Easter People, fully alive in the resurrection of Jesus.

At that first Easter, Jesus friends hid away, afraid of what would happen to them if they were seen living as followers of The Way. Those brief but startling encounters with him over the coming days would reveal to them what it really meant to live as a follower of Jesus; he who had fulfilled all that he had come to do.

This year, through ALIVE, churches up and down the country will be boldly sharing this good news message with their communities. On the ALIVE journey, participants will encounter some of the people who met the alive Jesus, whose lives were changed as a result; people like Mary who experienced love, the disciples on the road to Emmaus who had hope restored to them, Thomas who needed peace, Peter who found freedom and Paul who was given a new purpose. Many people today are looking for the same things, for love, hope, peace, freedom and purpose. The ALIVE resources aim to build a bridge between felt need now and what the ALIVE Jesus offers. You can find out more about ALIVE here, where you can access all the resources.



If you are looking to explore ‘what happened next’ with very young children, why not take a look at our new God’s Big Story book, in between times. You can purchase the book here and find all supporting resources here.








For those first disciples, there continued with some trepidation, until they were empowered and emboldened by the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. For us today, we need not live in fear; we know that the same power that conquered the grave lives in us! We have been set free to live life in all its fulness and to share this message with all around us.

As we look ahead to the 11 days between Ascension and Pentecost, this year again, we will be joining with Christians across the globe and praying ‘Thy Kingdom Come.’ You can find out more about this ecumenical, international prayer movement here and we have a range of resources available here to support you.It is so easy to get involved in praying in the Kingdom of God. You can join Christians from all over the world in praying every day between Ascension and Pentecost, using the words of the Lord’s prayer, to pray for five friends by name, that God’s Kingdom would come in your community and in their lives.


As the people of God, we live in the hope of his resurrection and the promise of his return. As we journey through this season, let’s take every opportunity to share this good news with those we meet and love.