That title might have been offensive to some… terribly sorry. Oh well, it’s true though, isn’t it? Advent has totally become the “think” in our Kidmin communities in recent years, right? It’s not like advent is new or anything. I remember the creative calendar boxes from when I was a kid, but now it seems to be everywhere, and that’s a great thing. (Confession: I’ve never actually done advent, in a serious and disciplined way – meaning to do it every day for 25 days. Don’t judge, I think we’re going to give it a shot this year.)

So, I thought I’d share some of the advent ideas out there as there seems to be quite a few. Maybe you’re looking for some inspiration to create your own for families in your church or you simply want to point families to an advent resource they can do on their own. Well, here are some of the ideas I know about. If you know of others, please send them my way and I’ll add it to the list. Hurry though, December is just a few days away!

Family Advent: A few years ago my friend Jenny Funderburke created a great online advent resource. The dates are for December 1-25 for 2012, but the year doesn’t matter… so it will work just fine. Click on each day of the month and you’ll get a bible passage to read, a video to watch, something to talk about and something to do. It’s a quick and easy resource to pass along to your parents. Click here for Family Advent

Truth in the Tinsel: This little ebook came out a couple of years ago and they sold a billion I think, because it’s really good. If you’re crafty, or your kids enjoy crafty projects, this is the perfect advent experience for your family. The ebook is a little less than $8, but is so well done, you’ll appreciate the quality of the presentation and the projects for you to do. Click here for Truth in the Tinsel

The Expected One Advent Guide: This app is promoted by Lifeway Christian Resources and was developed for the Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, AL. It’s great to have a handy little advent resource in the form of an app. The app is well put together and seems like it will better engage older kids in the family or the whole family without the older kids feeling left out. The app divides advent into 6 parts, includes a guide to family worship, games and suggested songs. Each day’s activity includes a scripture passage and some questions to review and reflect. To get the app for the iPhone, click here. To get the app for android, click here.

Kids Club (Crossroads Church) Advent Experience: My friends at the Children’s Ministry at Crossroads Church in Cincinnati, OH have launched their online advent experience. It’s totally new and they just sent me a link to day one of the calendar, so I don’t know what to expect for the entire experience, but it looks like a great option. Crossroads is a church very similar to Gateway, so I expect this is a great Advent for people who aren’t as familiar with church culture. Click here for Kid’s Club Advent

Family Advent Calendar: Last year my friend Dale Hudson posted a Family Advent Calendar that his church used. The calendar is pretty specific for his church, but serves as great inspiration for any church that wanted to create a quick little advent calendar to share with families. Dale said he’d share the EPS design file with those who’d like to tweak for themselves. Click here for this Family Advent Calendar

Advent Chain: My friend Cindy Fiala at Preston Trial Community Church in Frisco, TX just shared a create approach her church is using for advent and it ties in with Orange’s 252 Basics curriculum for the month of December. It’s really simple and some days will have less to do than others, but it ties every day back to Joy, the virtue of the month of December. Click here to download the December TribeTime Activity