Sunshine and Showers is a collection of six-week courses that allow small groups to explore aspects of the Christian faith together.
- Prayer's beautiful messiness
- The Bible's beautiful strangeness
- Worship's beautiful elusiveness (coming Autumn 2025)
Each course explores a series of paradoxes - ideas and beliefs we hold in our minds which contradict each other, and seemingly can’t both be true, but somehow are. Like a weather forecast for sunshine and showers. Two types of weather, both valid, even when they don’t go together.
This sort of paradox can give us what psychologists call cognitive dissonance: that unpleasant feeling when we believe seemingly mutually incompatible things. People naturally want to reduce this discomfort. One way is to oversimplify and ignore one side and push into the other. Another strategy is to avoid it altogether. Either way, our understanding and appreciation of God can suffer.
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Sunshine and Showers: Prayer's beautiful messiness
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Sunshine and Showers: the Bible's beautiful strangeness
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Resources
Each course provides resources to get the conversations flowing:
Booklets - with notes and space for refections.
Animation videos - to introduce each session.
Conversation films - real people share their experiences.
"The combination of animation, personal video comments and booklet are a brilliant combination. So wonderful to have such an open and honest approach to the subject of prayer."
Sprotbrough Methodist Church
How are the courses led?
Anyone can lead them! Choose one person, or take it in turns. We don’t believe in hidden knowledge or that you have to be super holy to be a leader, so everyone has the notes.
We don’t have a leader, do you run sessions?
We passionately believe that everyone has the ability to facilitate a conversation space. If you need a confidence or skill boost, check out the Learning Network calendar. If you would be interested in an external facilitator, contact your District or Circuit Mission Enabler or Learning Network Officer and ask if they would consider running the course in your area.
Can I order printed booklets?
You can! For environmental reasons, we encourage everyone to use digital copies if possible. However, printed copies are available from Methodist Publishing for those who need them.
Is it free?
Yes! Both the digital and printed versions are free for anyone to order. You just have to pay P&P for the printed materials.
Are there Welsh, braille, large print, or other formats?
If you would like to request this resource in an alternative format, please contact us to discuss your needs at publishing@methodistchurch.org.uk
Can I have the images to make promotional materials?
Yes you can - each course page has an image pack to download them all.