There is something wonderful about making things. Despite our best efforts to slow down and prepare, the weeks of Lent may be flying by for some of us. We feel that we are not getting ready to receive the mystery of Easter and the blessings of that holy season. The world refuses to slow down – and we find it hard to opt out of the seemingly compulsory busy-ness of it all.

Easter garden & tomb

Well, here’s an idea for the remainder of Lent. Make something!  The children at Messy Church last Sunday made a lovely Easter Garden. Today, members of our congregation stayed after church to make palm crosses for next week’s Palm Sunday liturgy. Could you ‘take time out’ to make something in preparation for Easter?

Here are some ideas of things to make before Easter, and it would be great if readers could leave comments with other ideas:

* palm crosses (you can learn how on the internet)
* Easter biscuits/cakes/hot cross buns (not to be eaten until Easter Sunday)
* a really good Easter Egg hunt map for your children/grandchildren
* Easter cards and/or gifts for your family, friends, neighbours, workmates
* a cross (using small branches from your garden or driftwood from the beach)
* painted eggs
* a poem, a song, a painting, a flower arrangement

Alternatively, how about selling some of your stuff that you don’t need (try TradeMe.co.nz) and ‘making’ a donation to a charity. This may not seem like making something, but the idea is to give you a focus towards Easter. In this case, on decluttering your life to make someone else’s life more blessed.

Whatever it is you decide to do or make, share it here on this blog. We would love to hear from you. God bless.

Palm crosses – NZ flax (Harakeke)