The Biblical Narrative Begins with a stunning picture of human beings claiming they are “the image of God.” This is our first and foundational identity. It is an identity that is easily forgotten in our world today – by the way we view ourselves and by the way we view others. But, how might we be transformed if we considered the weight and the glory of this identity? This is what we will explore in the Lenten season.
EASTER SUNDAY
Join us on Easter Sunday, April 9, to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. DCC Kids is available for all children 0-5th grade.
EASTER EVENTS
GOOD FRIDAY
We’ll be Gathering at 7pm on Friday, April 7, to participate in our Good Friday Gathering. It’s a beautiful night that allows us to follow Jesus during his final evening that lead to his crucifixion and death on the cross. We hope you’ll join us.
EASTER EGGSTRAVAGANZA
Join us on April 8th to experience the story of Easter in a fun and exciting way at our Annual Easter Eggstravaganza. We’ll have a scavenger hunt for kids 5yrs – 5th grade; an egg hunt for kids 0yrs – 4yrs; a photo booth; and picnic area to connect with other families. RSVP here.
EASTER WOSO
It takes a lot of hands to bring our Easter Celebration to life. We’d love for you to WOSO with us – that’s Worship at One and Serve at One Gathering. We invite you to choose one of our Easter Gatherings to attend so you can worship alongside your church family (That’s the “wo”) and then share your gifts and serve at the other gathering (that’s the “so”). You can help greet people and make sure they know where to park or hangout with our kiddos downstairs with Maggie. Sign up below.
SIGN UP
LENT RESOURCES
BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS
This collection will satisfy the growing hunger for meaningful and accessible devotions. Culled from the wealth of twenty centuries, the selections in Bread and Wine are ecumenical in scope, and represent the best classic and contemporary Christian writers.
Richard Rohr, one of today’s most prophetic voices, invites us to self-disclosure and to enter the wondrous divine dialogue with clarity, insight—and holy desire! These daily meditations for Lent are his gift to us for our transformation into our original image and likeness, which is the very image of God.
Features reflections by Scott Cairns, Kathleen Norris, Richard Rohr, Luci Shaw and others. Lent is not about becoming lost in feelings of brokenness, but about cleansing the palate so that we can taste life more fully. Lent and Easter reveal the God who is for us in all of life―for our liberation, for our healing, for our wholeness. Lent and Easter remind us that even in death there is resurrection.
This Lenten Guide is a counter-cultural attempt to move away from selfish satisfactions that harm us. While we admit that using the adjective “deadly” for virtues is meant to be catchy, it also communicates the importance of these virtues. As in being “deadly serious,” we commit to being “deadly virtuous.” We invite you into a weekly rhythm for the seven weeks of Lent. Each week will counter the historic deadly sin with a more “deadly virtue.” A brief devotion will explore the heart of the virtue by considering Biblical passages, followed by ways to respond— practices are recommended, reflective questions offered, and historic examples provided.
KIDS & FAMILY RESOURCES
Lent Guide
The Season of Lent is a season of walking into the wild, a 40-day journey filled with wild beasts, wild love, beauties, challenges, gifts, and visions. A journey that begins with ashes, and ends with joy. A journey that follows Jesus down into the wilderness, and up into resurrection and new life.
In this Lenten devotional, we take this adventure with Henri Matisse, one of the most daring, influential, and beloved artists in modern history. From his childhood growing up in a small town in France to what he called his “masterpiece,” the Chapel of the Rosary in Vence, Matisse explored faith and wildness throughout his life.
Download Here.
Lent Guide
“Floriography” is the secret language of flowers. It bloomed first in eighteenth-century northern Europe, drawing on the fascination with flowers that cuts across cultures, times, and places. In many churches, the word, “Alleluia” (which means, “Praise God!”) is buried, or put away, on Ash Wednesday. It’s not meant to be spoken until the end of Lent. This makes sense because the 40 days (plus Sundays) of Lent are a time of prayer and quiet reflection, a time of fallowness and rest and longing, a time for growing deep. On Easter, all those buried Alleluias sprout up everywhere, in all the prayers and songs. They flower on the tongue.
This year we’d like to invite you on a Lenten journey that’s full of flowers. Just at the time of year when (in the top half of the Northern Hemisphere, anyway!) things seem most barren and flowerless, we hope you’ll join us in considering the lilies, as Jesus asked us to do. And not just the lilies, but the tulips, the forget-me-nots, the snowdrops, the weeds, and the corpse flower too, to see what they might have to teach us about life and death and resurrection on Easter morning.
Download here.
Lent Guide
At its heart, Lent is a six-week journey of transformation – and transformative journeys can be messy. This printable calendar will help you and your family “bless this mess,” as we travel with Jesus through the valley of the shadow of death into newness of life. Download here.
Lent Guide
SALT’s “40-Day ‘Love Builds Up’ Family Challenge” is the perfect way for families of all shapes and sizes to strengthen spiritual muscles and emotional health during Lent. We could all use a little training – and a little practice!
Here’s the challenge: For each of the six weeks of Lent, spend some time at the beginning of the week (Sunday night, maybe?) reading that week’s Bible passage together. Talk as a family about the suggested topic, using the devotional’s optional conversation prompts if you like. Commit to taking on an action or practice for that week – and then just watch as the Realm of God fills, strengthens, and beautifies your house and the world! Download here.
SPIRITUAL FORMATION
Weekly Analog
The word, Analog, means “something that is similar or comparable to something else”. Analog is designed to be a tangible way to take another, deeper, look into each week’s Sunday morning message. Individuals, friends, small groups, and families can use Analog for further discussion and exploration of the Sunday teaching. May this tool help you connect with God as we continue on this journey of following Jesus together.
Podcast
At DCC we believe that as we explore and participate in the life of Jesus, we become a healing presence in the world. Part of participating in the life of Jesus is actively engaging our interior worlds. This involves exploring who we are, the Divine in us, and the ways in which God uniquely speaks to and leads us. Listen to our weekly podcast to learn what it means to listen to God and respond with our lives. Click here.
Prayer Guide
Prayer during Lent traditionally focuses on repentance; we seek to undeceive ourselves. This kind of prayer is closely linked with fasting. As our bodies hunger and crave we replace the material solution with a spiritual one: we pray. There are many Lenten prayers to discover, but we may always look to the one practiced by Christ and known as The Lord’s Prayer. It is intentionally couched between his words on fasting and giving. The key to all three, he says, is to practice these for an audience of One rather than for the strokes of others. By doing so, your Father who sees in secret will reward you. This Lent consider daily recitation of The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6). Let it be a springboard to others prayers for yourself, your community, and even your “enemies.” See if you can’t find a rhythm of prayer that marks your days. Download our prayer guide here.
Lent Guide
This reflection guide is designed to be used in conjunction with our new book of blessings, The Lives We Actually Have: 100 Blessings for Imperfect Days. Each day’s homework reflects on a blessing from our new book. Of course, you can just use this free guide by itself, but you may find the most richness and depth when you use the book and guide together. It can be used by churches, book clubs, small groups, or by individuals.
Download the guide here.