Product Updates Archives – Illustrated Ministry

Illustrated Ministry

Illustrated Resources for the Church & Home

You are here: Home / Archives for Product Updates

Product Updates

Nativity Stickers and Nativity Sticker Sheets

Leave a Comment

Nativity Stickers and Nativity Sticker Sheets

Nativity Sticker Sheets

Pre-orders: Last year we sold out in just 9 days, and so we are taking pre-orders this year to make sure everyone can get them. Pre-orders will start September 24 and go through October 22. To be notified as soon as they are available to pre-order, click here.

When Illustrated Ministry started to take off in the fall of 2015, one of the first questions we received from our customers was, “Are you going to make some Nativity sticker sheets?!”

People shared with us that they were so tired of buying the same, cheap, stickers from the same, online discount website. To begin with, the stickers weren’t very good quality, but more so because Jesus and all of the biblical characters on the sticker sheet were all WHITE!

White? WHY?

Breaking News! Jesus wasn’t white.

And Jesus ISN’T white on our Nativity Sticker Sheets.

I’m honestly not sure why it’s so hard to make stickers and illustrations that are more authentic and diverse. Seriously though – these are just a few of the faces of baby Jesus that I picked out from some of the most popular Nativity sticker sets that I found online:

White Jesus

Really? Why? Oh, why?

And it doesn’t get much better when you start looking at the full collections of sticker sheets. Sweet little White Baby Jesus is surrounded by White Mary and Joseph, White Angels, White shepherds, etc. You get the idea.

Nativity Sticker Sheets

From the very beginning of Illustrated Ministry, we have created fun, engaging, diverse and well-made products for children and youth of all ages. Our Illustrated Nativity Sticker Sheets are just one more example of the decisions we’ve made to continue to be as inclusive and authentic as possible with our products.

How to Use our Nativity Sticker Sheets

Nativity Sticker Sheets Nativity Stickers Christmas Stickers

There are many fun and creative ways to use stickers…and sticker sheets! Kids obviously love them, and they can provide endless entertainment for young children during a worship service. Add them to your pew bags, give them to families in your church, buy them for your own family, stick them in gifts your community is collecting for families in need…there are endless ways to use these kinds of sticker sheets.

So if Nativity Stickers and Nativity Sticker Sheets are so great…why is it SO hard to find ones that don’t look cheesy, feel cheap, show white-washed biblical characters (literally), and portray Jesus as a cute little white baby with blonde hair and blue eyes?!

If you’re tired of giving out sticker sheets that make you cringe as you hand them to the little kids in your congregation, I’d recommend that you take a look at our Illustrated Nativity Sticker Sheets.

Mary’s Song Coloring Posters

4 Comments

Check out our Mary’s Song Coloring Posters, which you can purchase here.

2018 Advent Resources

In addition to our large physical coloring posters, we will also offer the related products below:

We hope you’ll take a moment to check out this post and look at the video and poster illustrations below.

NOT SURE IF THESE ARE RIGHT FOR YOU?
 CLICK HERE to download a free PDF of information that you can take to your colleagues/committees/staff meetings to share about our Mary’s Song Coloring Posters!

the Magnificat prayer

Mary’s Song Coloring Poster Themes from Luke 1 46-55

For these posters, we are looking at the traditional Advent themes through the lens of Mary’s Song, found in Luke 1 46-55. This passage is also known as the Magnificat prayer.

Below is a list of the posters and the scripture included on each of them:

  • Poster 1 • Hope (Luke 1:46-50): All generations will call me blessed.
  • Poster 2 • Peace (Luke 1:51-53): God has filled the hungry with good things.
  • Poster 3 • Joy (Luke 1:54-55): The promise made to our ancestors.
  • Poster 4 • Love (Luke 1:39-45, 56): Blessed is She who believed.
  • Poster 5 • God is With Us (Luke 2:1-18): I am bringing Good News of great joy for all the people.

These posters are designed to take you through the Gospel of Luke’s account of the Magnificat prayer of Mary and Jesus’ birth, found in Luke 1 46-55. Through the Mary’s Song Coloring Posters (and the accompanying devotional guide), you will explore the themes of the HOPE we have when we remember all God has done, the PEACE that comes with God’s provision, the JOY we have in God’s promises, the LOVE we feel from God’s blessings and the celebration knowing GOD IS WITH US.

As we thought about what to focus on for this year’s posters, we contemplated various passages of scripture, the world that we live in right now, and what we wanted to speak into that world through our art. In the end, we felt that the Magnificat prayer, Mary’s revolutionary and subversive song and prayer from Luke 1 46-55, felt like an important message to share.

Take a moment to view the posters and hear the words from Luke 1 46-55 in the video below:

This Advent, let us stop and ponder the words of the Magnificat prayer of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and imagine how we might bring about this vision and prayer in our world today.

Below are more detailed images of each of the Mary’s Song Coloring Posters:

Who Uses Illustrated Ministry’s Coloring Posters?

So many different groups of people have used our coloring posters over the years: Sunday School classes, youth groups, college ministries, men’s and women’s Bible studies, nursing home residents, and more!

But we’ve found that churches who have taken the time to create intergenerational opportunities with the coloring posters have received one of the greatest gifts of all: deepened relationships among people of all ages.

If you’re having a hard time imagining what it would look like in your space to use our coloring posters, take a look at some of the photos below and start getting creative!

How Do I Use the Mary’s Song Coloring Posters?

We are so excited to see all of the creative ways that congregations and communities use these Mary’s Song Coloring Posters. Almost 1,200 churches used last year’s posters, and we loved seeing all of the fantastic photos they shared with us. Here are some testimonials, and ideas, from churches who have used our posters in the past. And if you’re wondering how you can display your posters as beautiful art in your church when they’re colored, take a look at this fantastic tutorial for creating beautiful wooden poster hangers! And finally – here are ten creative ways to use our large coloring posters!

As we mentioned above, we’ve learned that most churches find the posters to be a slam dunk when it comes to developing intergenerational ministry. If you’re looking for ways to use these posters intergenerationally, here are a few ideas:

  • Host an all-ages education hour during Advent. Use our Mary’s Song Devotional Guide as the curriculum for the classes.
  • Start coloring the posters during your Advent Fair.
  • Have your children’s ministry or youth ministry take a poster to a nursing home to color with the residents.
  • Host a simple soup/salad/sandwiches dinner on Wednesday nights during Advent and have conversation and coloring before or after eating together.
  • Leave the coloring posters out on tables during Fellowship/Coffee Hour after church for people to sit, color, and talk with one another.

Luke 1 46-55

Here’s What You Need To Know About the Posters

Poster Details & Cost

Our Mary’s Song Coloring Posters are made up of five large posters that cover Advent themes from the Magnificat prayer. The first four are 3’ x 2’, and the fifth poster is 6’ x 2’. You can purchase the physical posters, digital files to print yourself, or add the digital files to your order of the physical posters for the most flexibility to use the posters in a variety of ways.

The cost for our Mary’s Song Coloring Posters are listed below:

  • Physical Coloring Posters: $69.99
  • B&W Digital Files: $74.99
  • Digital Add-on: Save 50% off the B&W Digital Files when you add both the Physical Posters AND the B&W Digital Files to your cart and use the discount code MARYS-SONG-BUNDLE at checkout.

Ordering Process

Posters are available now and ship within a day or two of receiving your order. UPS ships our posters in heavy-weight cardboard poster tubes. Because we use UPS, we cannot ship posters to P.O. Boxes. If you list a P.O. Box as the shipping address, your order will be delayed until we can be in touch with you to determine an appropriate physical mailing address.

We ship our posters to the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and the United Kingdom. Of course, we have many other international customers who have successfully purchased the digital versions of our posters and printed them locally.

2018 Advent Resources

2 Comments

2018 Advent Resources

Advent Coloring Posters

Mary’s Song Coloring Posters and Coloring Pages • ORDER NOW

Illustrated Ministry started over 3 years ago with the creation of our Advent coloring posters. This is now the fourth year we have created giant coloring posters for Advent. For this year’s posters, we returned to the traditional themes of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love.

We are looking at the traditional Advent themes through the lens of Mary’s Song, found in Luke 1. The Mary’s Song Coloring Posters set includes five posters. The four Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love posters are 3′ x 2′ and the larger God is with us poster is 6′ x 2′.

2018 Advent Resources

Below is a list of the posters and the scripture included on each of them:

  • Poster 1 • Hope (Luke 1:46-50): All generations will call me blessed.
  • Poster 2 • Peace (Luke 1:51-53): God has filled the hungry with good things.
  • Poster 3 • Joy (Luke 1:54-55): The promise made to our ancestors.
  • Poster 4 • Love (Luke 1:39-45, 56): Blessed is she who believed.
  • Poster 5 • God is With Us (Luke 2:1-18): I am bringing Good News of great joy for all the people.

We hope you will begin imagining how you might use these beautiful coloring posters this season with your congregations, schools, and communities! And if you’re looking for some ideas, start here and then get creative!

Coloring Posters Devotional Guide

Mary’s Song Devotional Guide • ORDER NOW

Our Mary’s Song Devotional Guide is designed to take you through the Gospel of Luke’s account of Mary’s Magnificat and Jesus’ birth as you color the Mary’s Song Coloring Posters & Coloring Pages. This devotional guide includes five short reflections and questions for both children and adults. It explores the themes of the HOPE we have when we remember all God has done, the PEACE that comes with God’s provision, the JOY we have in God’s promises, the LOVE we feel from God’s blessings and the celebration knowing GOD IS WITH US.

The devotional guide is great for churches to use in addition to the posters. It is also a great resource for individuals looking for an Advent devotional.

Advent Devotions for Families

An Illustrated Advent for Families: Preparing the Way • ORDER NOW

Families are often searching for meaningful ways to talk about the birth of Christ but feel unprepared. No need to feel under-resourced or under-qualified to put together activities for your families. We’re here to help!

This year, our theme is “Preparing the Way.” As we journey through this season of Advent together, you will be introduced to prophets, or God’s messengers, who helped prepare God’s people for Jesus’ arrival. You will also encounter individuals who faced the unexpected, trusting in the promises of God for their lives, and yet continued to prepare for Jesus.

Each week, you will have the opportunity to create time and space to prepare for Jesus through scripture readings, discussions, and activities together. Our Advent devotions are based on passages from the Revised Common Lectionary readings. They are written so they can be used by children and adults of all ages.

An Illustrated Advent for Families: Preparing the Way also includes coloring pages to go along with the devotions, an Advent Calendar, and our brand new Illustrated Ornament Set (new for 2018!).

Nativity Sticker Sheet

An Illustrated Nativity Sticker Sheet • ORDER BEFORE WE SELL OUT!

We are probably most excited about our Illustrated Nativity Sticker Sheet! This has been one of our most requested products – Nativity stickers with characters who aren’t white! And now we have what you’ve been asking for!

When you order our Illustrated Nativity Sticker Sheet, you’ll also get a digital illustration of a stable that you can use in any number of ways. Print it out at home to use, or print it in your bulletin for Christmas Eve so kids can put the stickers from the sticker sheet directly into the bulletin! We wanted to make this product as versatile as possible.

In terms of the quality of stickers, you won’t be able to find any stickers like these on those online discount stores. Our designs are unique, hand-drawn, authentic, and diverse. The stickers themselves are made in the USA, at a sticker company in Longmont, Colorado. They use premium, high-quality white vinyl and a special clear coat added for extra protection.

We think you’re going to love our sticker sheet!

Advent activities

Stand-alone Advent Activities • ORDER BELOW

Our previous editions of An Illustrated Advent for Families have been very popular! We’ve even received requests for some of the activities to be pulled out and offered as stand-alone activities.

You asked and we listened! These stand-alone products are perfect for families to use at home, or for Advent Fairs or other times at churches or schools when you may need a fun activity. Below are the three that are available this year:

  • An Illustrated Nativity: This activity was originally in our 2016 edition of An Illustrated Advent for Families. With An Illustrated Nativity, you can color and cut out different characters from the Nativity scene and build your own at home, together as a family.
  • An Illustrated Advent Wreath: Our Illustrated Advent Wreath was incredibly popular, and was originally in our 2017 edition of An Illustrated Advent for Families. You can color and cut out paper candles to go along with your paper Advent Wreath as a family or at your school or church
  • An Illustrated Ornament Set: New for this year’s edition of An Illustrated Advent for Families: Preparing the Way, we are creating An Illustrated Ornament Set. You will find beautiful ornaments that you can color and hang on your tree. These will be included in An Illustrated Advent for Families: Preparing the Way. However, you can also purchase it separately.

Children's Worship Bulletins

Illustrated Worship Resources

In addition to all of the above products, we also launched our next batch of worship resources. Those products are listed below: