Despite being “hated by the world” (Jn 15:18), Jesus keeps creeping into mainstream culture, from Hillsong plastering Times Square with his name as part of a new campaign, to being more popular than Chairman Mao on China’s equivalent of Facebook.

This Chinese e-zine has done a comparison between mentions of the Bible compared to quotations of Chairman Mao on Weibo, and found that the Bible was mentioned 17 million times compared to less than 60,000 mentions of Mao’s quotations. Similarly, “Christian congregation” appeared 8 times more than “the Communist Party”. Read more here.

Meanwhile “#blessed” is growing in popularity on social media. But is it a good thing? “There’s nothing quite like invoking holiness as a way to brag about your life,” writes the New York Times.

The famous One Way! Jesus sign in Sydney.

Someone else getting the Jesus word out there, and who has been for the last 14 years, is the guy behind the most famous sign which can be seen from the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It reads “One Way! Jesus” and can be seen as you drive over the bridge. The Guardian spoke to the reclusive housing commission tenant Owen McAloon about having to leave his home when the NSW government sells of his building. Read the full story here.

For practical help in promoting Jesus, here’s something that looks pretty handy. Ever struggled to find the right image for your church powerpoint, advertising or social media? Lightstock is a resource where you can find stock images relevant to Christianity–pictures of bible study groups, the cross etc.

And lastly, are you leading the service this Sunday and still not sure what you’re going to say about Mother’s Day? This blog post over at The Messy Middle is a helpful reminder to keep in mind the multitude of life situations people are in when you talk about mothering.