Generous God, Generous Advent

Christmas is coming and Advent lights the way. Seasons of hope and promise, of love, joy and gift-giving. Seasons to celebrate the overflowing generosity of God who so loved the world that he gave his only Son (John 3:16). And as we celebrate God's generosity the Gospel invites us to to live and give generously. This year, Generous Advent resources are being updated to reflect the themes of the book of Haggai. 

Generous God, Generous Advent is a creative opportunity to do two things:

1. To celebrate the generosity of our God using adaptable and freely available resources
2. To invite generous giving, as people are able, to sustain and grow the mission of ministry of our churches: "my gift to my church for our future"

Generous Advent Resources

Generous Advent draws on the comprehensive Generosity Week resources. Advent is a busy time so simple is good. 

Preaching/Sermon Notes

• Introduction to Haggai - download
• Notes and Sermon for Week 1 - download
• Notes and Sermon for Week 2 - download

Liturgical Resources

• A Eucharist to Celebrate Generosity: Christ the King - download as MS Word 
• A Eucharist to Celebrate Generosity: The first Sunday in Advent -download as MS Word
• A Service of the Word to celebrate Generosity: Christ the King - download as MS Word
• A Service of the Word to celebrate Generosity: The first Sunday in Advent - download as MS Word

Prayer Activities

• Advent Prayer Stations created with the diocese of York. Interactive, great for kids, adults and family groups they help look at generosity through a seasonal lens.
  • Don't miss the flexible all age Jesse Tree activity for a Saturday morning or Sunday School activity

If you require support or want to see a beta-version of any resources, please contact the resources team.

A Generous Advent Gift Day

Generous Advent may be an opportunity for those who are able to make a gift to their church: "my gift to my church for our future". Echoing St Paul's words above, a Generous Advent Gift Day invites those who can to make a one off gift or to review their regular giving. We do this in gratitude for God's generous love and for the ministry of our church. It's an opportunity for us to give from what we have, not what we don't have. 

The Resources team can help you plan your Generous Advent gift day and can assist with attractive leaflets, invitation letters, social media assets and more

Don't miss out on digital donations

Advent and Christmas will see many visitors in our churches. People enjoy carols by candlelight, crib and Christingle services, Christmas tree festivals and more. They value their church. So help your visitors help you. Go digital this Christmas; make it easy to give. Over a third of churches have a contactless giving unit; more again can receive online gifts.

• Add your own QR code for your giving page to one of these posters for Giving at Christmas 
• Give your contactless unit a festive makeover: run through a Christmas Contactless Checklist
• Remember: you can now make one off gifts to your church through the Parish Giving Scheme. It's simple and safe; for PGS account holders and for guests. Talk to Cath Gaskell for more details
• And if your church has not gone digital email Lucia now for advice and hands-on support. 

Follow the Star: Join the Song

For evangelilstic Advent resources, check out the comprehensive resources at Follow the Star. This is the Church of England's annual advent and Christmas campaign and it has huge reach. The 2021 Christmas content was seen 27 million times on social media with 1.2 million views of online services. So make these brilliant resources work for you as you share the good news of God's abundant generosity with your congregation and community.