SEASONS | RESOURCES
Winter
Winter is a season where we are invited to remember the long wait for the birth of Jesus, to receive the gift of his coming, and to notice how God’s story continues—right here, right now, and still unfolding in the future.
“The season of epiphany is a reminder to the church of her vocation to face outward, toward the other, to share the Light of Christ.”
ABOUT THE SEASON
Winter is a season that asks us to slow down and pay attention. The cold narrows our world: we’re tempted to avoid our sidewalks, cancel the walk, and huddle indoors. But what if winter is an invitation—not to withdraw, but to turn toward one another? To check in on neighbors. To shovel a driveway that isn’t yours. To invite someone in for a meal, a fire, a simple conversation. Winter can become a reset: a chance to establish new rhythms in the new year and embrace a steady practice of community—small, faithful, and close to home.
Epiphany is the celebration of Christ being revealed to the world. The season focuses on arrival: Jesus is the Light of the world—the Light that brings life. It is a season where we are invited to see that the Light of the world has come for all people.
Epiphany means “manifestation.” Traditionally, the season of Epiphany begins with the visit of the Magi, following the Light. The work of formation during Epiphany is to see how Jesus’ life becomes the pattern for our life—so that what has been revealed in Christ is also revealed through us, in the places we live.
Rhythms
RESOURCES FOR WINTER
Winter rhythms are simple practices that help us meet this season with open eyes and open doors. They look like winter play and delight: finding the nearest sledding hill, laughing until your cheeks burn, letting joy be a form of resistance to the dark. They look like steady care—clearing snow from sidewalks and steps, making a path where others might slip, doing the unnoticed work that sees and celebrates, God with us.
Prayer for Epiphany
The light of Christ enlightens all.
You have come for every nation and every neighborhood,
You deliver us from darkness
And invite us to live in Your light.
May Your light lead us
To unexpected locations
Where the holy is hidden in plain sight.
May Your light brighten us
To fill our hearts with Your joy
And our lives with Your peace.
May Your light illuminate us
To reflect Your love for those across our street
And around Your world.
May Your light guide us
To make our homes places of peace
And our neighborhood a reflection of Your love.
DAILY PRAYER for EPIPHANY
from VENITE: A Book of Daily Prayer
In the work of Your creation, Almighty God,
You commanded the Light to shine out of the darkness:
Grant that the light of the gospel of Christ
May shine into the hearts of all,
Dispelling the darkness of unbelief,
And revealing Your glory in our world.
Prayers
Practice | Chalking the Door
Chalking the Door is an ancient practice to mark our homes as places of sacred hospitality. It is a tangible way of asking God’s blessing on those who enter the home throughout the coming year.
Chalking the Door is a practice in the season of Epiphany that began near the end of the Middle Ages. Priests would visit the members of their congregation after the Feast of the Epiphany, commemorating the visit of the Magi. They would bless their homes and mark them with chalk near the front door.
A common way of Chalking the Door is to write the symbols along the doorframe: the first two digits of the year + C+ M + B + the last two digits of the year. This year the inscription is: 20+ C + M + B + 24. The letters traditionally refer to the legendary names of the three Magi: Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. Another tradition refers to it as the abbreviation of the Latin phrase, Christus Mansionem Benedicat, which means “May Christ bless this house.”
Chalk is an ordinary material of the earth. This practice takes common elements and makes them holy. Chalk does not make a permanent mark. It fades with time, but each time we enter our home and see the inscription, we are reminded of our desire for our homes to be places of hospitality, welcome, and peace.
Practice Chalking the Door
Mark your calendar. Epiphany is 12 days after Christmas.
Find some chalk. Thick sidewalk chalk is a good option.
Gather everyone. Gather your whole household. Invite a friend or neighbor if you live alone.
Say a simple prayer. Consider using A Blessing for Home.
Write the inscription. Use the chalk and take turns to write the numbers and letters on or above the door.
Add the 4 crosses. Recite the blessing together as you mark the crosses in between the numbers and letters, “May Christ bless our home throughout this year.”
Practices
Places for Winter: Sledding Hill
A sledding hill is a sacred place. It is a place of winter play where children and adults alike experience the thrill of speeding down a snowy surface. Many winter sports can be exclusive based on finances, but a sledding hill is an inclusive gathering. A sledding hill is an open invitation to anyone willing to risk. Sledding is winter enjoyment that comes from effort. You learn how to “earn your turns” as the excitement of going down comes with the work of hiking back up the hill.
Almost any object can be used to descend a snowy hill—from heirloom wooden sleds to oversized metal sheet pans. An inflatable tube is widely agreed as the best way to go further and faster. A well-designed tube with a simple tow rope makes walking back up the hill easier work. The argument against tubes is the inability to steer them. For those wanting a bit more control on their descent, toboggan style sleds are a great option.
Ruby Hill Park has become Denver's most popular sledding hill. Located in southwest Denver, at over 250 feet, it is the largest designated sledding hill in the city. Beyond an abundance of space, there are some aspects that set Ruby Hill apart as an iconic sledding hill.
Ruby Hill Rail Yard is a unique winter skatepark for skiers and snowboarders. When it launched in 2007, it was the first free winter terrain park in an urban area according to Denver Parks & Recreation. The Rail Yard maintains a snowy surface throughout the season with snowmaking machines in collaboration with Winter Park Resort. There are designated areas adjacent to the Rail Yard groomed for sledding. The Rail Yard is illuminated which allows for the unique experience of nighttime sledding.
For children who tire of sledding, there is a large playground at the top of Ruby Hill Park. And for those who enjoying watching instead of working, the location provides beautiful 360-degree panoramic views of Denver, most notably at sunset each day.
Eugene Peterson wrote, “Praying and playing are deeply congruent with each other and have extensive inner connections.” The sledding hill at Ruby Hill Park is an amazing place of winter play. The sledding hill is a sacred place.
Here is the best tube to purchase to enjoy on sledding hills according to Popular Mechanics.
Places
More rhythms to root your faith in place.
RESOURCES FOR EPIPHANY
Recommended Resources
These curated resources help you hold winter’s full movement—waiting and welcome, darkness and dawning, birth and revelation. Each one is chosen to deepen your awareness of God-with-us in your community, offering grounded hope, honest reflection, and practices for noticing the light that has come and keeps shining.
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Epiphany
We have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father."
This line from the prologue of the Gospel of John declares the theme of Epiphany. Christmas celebrates Christ's birth; Epiphany manifests his glory.
The feast of Epiphany and its following season are not as well observed as they should be. Many of us associate Epiphany with the visit of the Magi but don't know much more about it. In this short volume, priest and theologian Fleming Rutledge expounds the primary biblical texts and narrative arc of the season, inviting us to discover anew "the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."
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Good Shepherd Epiphany Guide
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2025 Epiphany Guide
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Hygge Epiphany
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Sacred Ordinary Days
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