4 Lego prayer ideas

April 30, 2017Leave a comment

Most families have some Lego lurking somewhere and it is a fantastic tool for praying with, especially is you are looking for hands on, colourful prayer.

Here are some ideas for praying with Lego…

Have fun!

Use lego to spell the names of people you are praying for (or the initial letter of their name if it is a long name!) Ask God to bless that person.

2. Say sorry to God for something you have done wrong and ask Him to forgive you. Make a cross with some Lego pieces as a reminder that because of the cross and the resurrection, we have the chance at a new start too.

3. Use Lego figures to pray for people. If you pick up a girl- pray for a female, if it’s a boy, pray for a male, if it’s a figure that has a particular job e.g. a construction worker or an artist, pray for people doing that job. If you pick up a figure with an angry expression, pray for people who are angry and need peace. Let your imagination to think of other ways of using the figures to pray!

4. Make models with Lego of things you’d like to say thank you to God for.

God knows me matchbox craft

April 30, 2017Leave a comment

Very often there are stories in the Bible where people do things that completely exceed expectations. Samuel hears the word of God, even when he is a young child; David kills Goliath when he is only a boy; Jesus teaches in the temple when he is a boy. Children are often used by God in ways that adults would never expect and this should be a great encouragement to our own children! However young they are and however small they seem, God knows who they are, sees their potential and can use them to build his kingdom.

This craft helps children to think about the fact that they are known by God and each one of them has individual talents and gifts that, perhaps, only He and they know about. A reading of Psalm 139 might also help to put this idea into perspective. God knows them on the inside- no matter what they seem to others on the outside!

You will need: a matchbox for every child, paper, scissors, pens, sequins, glue, small items to go inside the box (the children could search for these and bring them with them or add them to the box later).

What to do: Keeping the outside of the box plain (with perhaps the child’s name on it), ask the children to decorate and fill the inside of the box to reflect their personality- they might want to draw and cut out pictures of things they like or are good at, or fill the box with keepsakes that mean a lot to who they are. When closed, the box will look small and insignificant but, when opened up, everyone will see details of what God knows about who that person has been created to be.

Talk about: gifts God has given us, things in our lives we would like to thank God for, things about our friends that we would like to thank God for.

Pray: ask children to close their boxes and to swap them around so that each person is holding someone else’s box. Ask each child to thank God for the person to whom the box belongs and to ask him to bless and use that person to help and bless others.

5 Ideas for Reflective Prayer

January 26, 2017Leave a comment

It’s always amazing to see the depth of spirituality children display when we give them freedom and encouragement to explore. Just as some adults prefer to connect with God in quiet contemplation, the same is true with some children and we underestimate them at our peril! Here are some ways I’ve found useful to help children to reflect on God and to be with Him in silence and contemplation.

Each of the activities below allows children to speak to God, but also, as they are doing so, to listen for His voice. After doing one of these activities, it might be helpful to ask them if they felt God was saying anything to them or if anything popped into their head while they were praying. Be ready to be astounded!

Sand art reflection

You will need: slightly damp sand, a tray, a lolly stick, pencil or finger!

Fill the tray with the sand and smooth out the surface. Ask children to spend time writing or drawing their prayers to God in the sand. What do they want Him to know? What would they like to tell Him?

Letters to God

You will need: envelopes, paper, pens, a letter box

Ask children to write letters to God. What questions do they want to ask Him? What do they want to say to Him? Do they want to thank Him for anything? Put the letters into envelopes and encourage children to address the envelopes and put them into the box.

Reflective colouring

You will need: Reflective colouring sheets or prayers or Bible verses. Click here to print some off, pens and colouring pencils

Let children colour in silence. As they colour, do any of the words or phrases stand out to them? Do they feel God saying anything to them? Do they have any questions for God?

Play dough reflections

You will need: Play dough, a wipeable surface

Encourage children to use the play dough to express their ideas about God: What might He look like? What words describe Him? What other signs and symbols reflect who He is?

Reflection bottles

You will need: Clear plastic bottles, water, oil, food colouring, glitter

Glitter bottle: fill a bottle with water and add a tablespoon of glitter, seal and shake.

Oil Bottle: Fill the bottle 2/3 full of water. Add some food colouring to colour the water. Fill the rest of the bottle with vegetable oil or baby oil. Seal and shake.

Watch the glitter or the oil mix with the water and then gradually settle. Use the time to focus on God and to listen for his voice.

School Club Session: The 10 Lepers

October 26, 2016Leave a comment

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5 mins	Reflective colouring while waiting for all children to arrive. Click here for ideas to print out
5 mins	Game- 10 cup bowling Set out 10 cups in a ten pin bowling formation and throw a soft ball or beanbag at them. Can you knock down all 10 with 3 throws?
2 mins	Song (click for a Pinterest board of Children’s Ministry songs)
10 mins	Tell the story either from a book or interactively. The Lion Storyteller Bible is great! Get children thinking about what they are grateful for. Remind them that out of the 10 lepers, only one came back to say thank you. Why do you think that was? How do you feel when someone forgets to say thank you? What would you like to say thank you for?
10 mins	Prayer: balloon praise- blow up balloons and write/ draw thank you prayers on them with sharpies (or write on stickers and stick to the balloons) Play some music and bat the balloons around. When the music stops, everyone grab a balloon and say thank you to God for something on that balloon. Repeat. Make up a word search using words from the story or using word of things they would like to say thank you for. Click here to print out a blank word search sheet.
3 mins	End with a game! Click here for a Pinterest board full of ideas.

Bible Story Response: Styrofoam Prints

July 31, 2016Leave a comment

This is a really easy idea that can be use with any Bible Story whatsoever. Just beware that it involves getting the paint out!

You will need: paint, paper, flat styrofoam circles or squares cut from styrofoam plates or sheets, pencils, paint brushes

Talk to the children about their favourite part of the story, their favourite character or the most striking part of the story they have heard. Ask them to draw a simple picture of what they have shared on the back of the styrofoam circle or square, pressing lightly with a pencil.

When they have drawn their picture lightly, get them to press harder with their pencil on all of the lines so that the lines become quite deep (but not so deep that they cut through the back of the sheet!)

Paint a thin layer of paint over the etched in drawing and then press the paint side down firmly onto a piece of paper.

Lift up the styrofoam and you should be left with a print of your picture! Repeat and give the children time to share and explain what their pictures show.

Jesus walks on water construction challenge!

June 28, 2016Leave a comment

This craft is a construction challenge!

In the story of Jesus walking on water, Peter manages to walk a short distance on the water, but when he starts to pay attention to the storm around him rather than Jesus, he starts to sink. When Peter get distracted by his problems and loses focus on Jesus he can’t keep going. He needs Jesus’ help to walk across the water!

Set children the challenge of constructing a way, using recyclable rubbish, of helping a stone (which would naturally sink) to move across the water. The stone needs to stay afloat and it needs to move!

You will need: stones, marker pens, recyclable materials e.g. cardboard, plastic pots, tubes, plastic lids, scissors, glue, sellotape, balloons, straws, a tray of water.

There are no rights and wrongs with this craft- only imagination. It is probably best to give the children a time limit and to keep reminding them of what time they have left. Some will prefer to work with a partner and some will very much prefer to do their own thing. When time is up, let the children test out their constructions!

Talk about:

How do you think Peter felt when he saw Jesus walking on the water
Why do you think he wanted to try it himself?
What do you think he started to sink?
Have you had times when you needed help to keep going at something that was difficult?
What helped you?
Have you ever asked Jesus for help?

Pray

Pray for people who are experiencing , difficult, stormy times in their lives, where they feel that it is hard to keep afloat. Put the children’s crafts on the water and pray that those people will find the help that they need.