EASTER
UNPLUGGED
A LOW-TECH 3-DAY EXPERIENCE
Graves to Gardens was born in 2020 in response to the cancellation of our own local Easter gatherings here in New Zealand and we’re excited to offer these practices once again as a free gift to anyone who would like to explore some new and interesting territory with us.
Come along for a three day journey—a mostly-analogue, kinesthetic experience beginning Friday evening and extending through Sunday morning. The Graves to Gardens project explores a wide array of spiritual practices and touches on the topics of hope, disappointment, rest, non-anxious presence, open-handed faith and kingdom purpose.
With this project we set out to help you cultivate an offline, low-tech, all-ages, weekend experience that helps your household or group of friends celebrate Easter together...in person. Our greatest desire through this is that God would inspire and re-awaken the Spirit of Hope within you as you lean into Him during this ongoing season of challenge and change. Join with us and many others around the planet as we dive into the story of Christ's death, burial and resurrection and celebrate the ever-expanding Kingdom of God within and around us.
So why not round up your family and/or a few friends and make this an Easter to remember! You'll need a few supplies before you get started so make sure to read through the starter guide below before Good Friday. Let’s do this!
Start by downloading the handy “Graves to Gardens: Get Started” guide, pull your crew together and dive in.
Download the full mobile version here. View/save to any reading app for offline use.
DAY 1:
THE GRAVE
GOOD FRIDAY | DAY & DUSK
FOCUS: Grief | Disappointment
PRACTICE 1: GRAVES
PRACTICE 2: LIGHTS OUT
SUMMARY: These practices are designed to help us explore Jesus’ crucifixion, death, and burial. The emphasis is on placing our best-laid plans, disappointments and unfulfilled hopes in the grave with Jesus trusting that, like a seed, these laid-down plans will sprout into fruitful trees... During this practice we will explore the spiritual disciplines of empathy, silence, self-examination and simplicity.
Download the Day 1 practice below. Available to print or view/save on any mobile device
(save to any reading app for offline use)
DAY 1 SOUNDTRACK
DAY 2:
THE SABBATH
SATURDAY | FULL DAY
FOCUS: Sabbath | Rest | Fasting
PRACTICE: TECH BLACKOUT
SUMMARY: Day 2 is spent digging into the disciplines of fasting and sabbath rest, and exploring the art of being a “non-anxious presence” in the transitional seasons of our lives. This practice will explore the ideas of liminality (between places) and wilderness (the untamed places) that we all experience when life takes an unexpected turn. Undertake a full-day technology and internet fast, while exploring sabbath rest through a number of suggested practices such as: large-portion scripture reading, creative works, presence focus, pilgrimage, and book-sharing.
You can download a print-friendly or mobile version of the Day 2 practice guide below.
DAY 2 SOUNDTRACK
DAY 3:
THE GARDEN
EASTER SUNDAY | MORNING
FOCUS: Nature-Immersion | Celebration
PRACTICE 1: GARDEN SUNRISE
PRACTICE 2: BREAKFAST PARTY
SUMMARY: Easter Sunday provides the final steps in the Graves to Gardens journey. We’ll try on the disciplines of celebration and “nature immersion” (the discipline of experiencing God through nature) which will help us explore our part in the ever-expanding kingdom of God among us. There are two practices, the first involves getting up before dawn to watch the sun saturate the world with light. The second, and possibly the highlight of the weekend, is a breakfast feast focused on celebrating the resurrection of Jesus and the inauguration of a new way of being human.
Download the print (and tablet) friendly version or the mobile phone version of the Day 3 journey guide here:
DAY 3
SOUNDTRACK
JOIN THE PROJECT
Follow Graves to Gardens on Facebook and Instagram for additional content
Graves to Gardens is a virtual-to-actual project designed to be experienced in real life (actual space) and shared through social media (virtual space). You are invited to share your journey using #gravestogardens on Instagram or by posting on the Graves To Gardens Facebook page.
Happy Easter!
A gift from Prayer Collective Christchurch (New Zealand) to you!
(Please link and share this project freely)
