Flame: Creative Children's Ministry

Across the world we are seeing violence, war and unrest and it is understandable that children will have questions about what they see and feel. Giving the opportunity to discuss and explore questions and prayers for peace is important and this is a resource to help in a hands on way. While using the play dough, children will have space to think and talk if that is what they would like to do. To print out the play dough mat, click here. Cover with a plastic sheet protector for multiple uses and give children space to explore. Talk about: what is peace? what is a 'peacemaker'? How would you recognise a peacemaker? What could you do to be a peacemaker? Where in the world will you pray for?  

In light of current events in Ukraine, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York have asked that Sunday 27th February is used as a day of prayer for peace. Here is a reflective colouring sheet if you like to pray with colour. One version is the image only and the second version is a sheet with the Archbishops' prayer for peace copied at the bottom.  For the colouring sheet on its own, click here . For the colouring sheet with the Archbishops' prayer for Peace in Ukraine, click here.  

I've often struggled with how to approach Remembrance Sunday from a Christian perspective and I've come to find the beginning of John's gospel really helpful. As the fields were churned up by fighting, unseen poppy seeds were distributed, which meant that the following year the fields were full of bright poppies. Life came where death had been. Life found a way. This always reminds me of the verse in John 1:4-5 describing Jesus, which says:  4  In him was life, and that life was the light of all people.   5  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Just as life persisted in the poppy fields, Jesus' light will never be put out. With God there is always hope that war and death and violence will be defeated. This craft helps to explore this verse and this idea. You will need : Black paper, a hole punch, sellotape, glue, red paper, scissors, battery operated tea lights. Cut a roughly A6 size piece of black paper or card ...

This Sunday will be Remembrance Sunday and, because of our new restrictions, we will have to do things differently this year. Here are some resources to help! This is the family service video I made for our diocese this week, including a short story of a real soldier who died in WW1 and what the Bible says in Isaiah 2: 4 about the hope that God will bring Peace between nations.  Click here for the simple liturgy, if you'd like to follow along with the words. This is the story of the soldier just by itself:  Here is a 2 minute video of images to help visual children (and adults!) to reflect during the 2 minutes silence. This is a play dough mat using a verse from Revelation to help explore Remembrance day themes. Here are some prayer ideas for people and places in conflict: Play dough prayers for peace Flying dove peace prayers Praying for peace with zips

This is a very tactile and visual way of praying for peace and reconciliation that would work for all ages. You will need: small blobs of play dough in different colours Think of and talk about situations where two sides are fighting with each other.  This could be anywhere in the world (e.g. wars) or much closer to home and involve people they know or even themselves.  Talk about God bringing peace and that it is one of our jobs as Christians to pray for peace: God blesses those who work for  peace , for they will be called the children of God. (Matthew 5:9) Ask each child to choose two blobs, each of a different colour.  Ask children to blend the two colours together to make a new colour.  As they do so, ask them to pray that the two different sides will come together and make peace.

As part of our series looking at Holy Communion we spent some time thinking about community, the sign of peace and what it means to make peace with others.  Here's what we did! Game: stand a stick of spaghetti into a bit of play dough and then thread cheerios onto it.  How many cheerios can you get on the stick in 1 minute? Eat the cheerios and then start again.  This game then leads on to talking about bringing people together as a community, which is what we do in the church family. Talk about:  belonging to our own families and to God’s family   How do you show that you belong to a group? Everyone is welcome in God’s family and it doesn’t matter who you are or what you have done or if you get on with that person! Think about  the part in the liturgy where we say “peace be with you’ and then we reply ‘and also with you’ What does peace mean? How does it feel if peace is ‘with you’? What does it mean to make peace? Why do you...

This is a fun and active prayer activity, using the dove as a symbol of peace. You will need: A straw, the dove shape and paper rectangle cut out of the resource sheet ( click here to print), sellotape, pens Wrap the paper rectangle around the straw (not too tight) and then fold the top of the paper over to make a 'pocket' for the end of the straw.  Make sure that there is a little gap between the fold of the pocket and the end of the straw or your paper will stick to the straw and will not fly when the time comes! Write or draw prayers for people or places who need God's peace on the front of the dove shape.  Turn the dove over and sellotape the paper pocket to it, as shown in the picture below.   Turn the dove the right way round, aim it and then blow through the straw.  Watch your peace dove fly as a symbol of giving the prayers to God!

Remembrance Sunday can be quite sensitive for many reasons and schools often request assemblies at this time.  Here's an assembly based on the theme of peace that can be adapted for any age group. You will need: a large poppy prop, bubble mix and bubble wand, poppy seeds (optional but useful!) Ask Children about the poppies they see people wearing at  this  time of year and might be wearing themselves.  What are they for?  Using the prop,  talk  about the different parts of the poppy Red petals- a reminder of the blood that was and is spilled in wars- sacrifice of others Flower-the poppies that grew on the battlefields were a sign of new life and hope for the future leaf- set at 11 o clock position to remind us of the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month when the  armistice  was signed.   This  is the day and the time we remember those who have died. Talk about the fact that war is a painful, hurtful th...

This is the second play dough mat in the Nativity story series I am putting together: Angels and Shepherds! Print out the mat, laminate it for future uses and get creatively thinking about peace on earth... Click here to print out the mat.

I've often found Remembrance Sunday to be a day both of challenge and of opportunity when working with children: Challenge because it's vital to get a good balance between respectfully remembering those who have died and fought in war and praying for peace and opportunity because there are amazing discussions to be had!  The depth of what children perceive and offer is profound. This year I've designed a play dough mat to help children to reflect on those 2 key areas- remembrance and peace- and have tied it in with a verse from Revelation 21 about the new Jerusalem where there is no more pain, sadness or death.  This verse is a great conversation starter to help the children think about how they could pray for the world how they could help God to bring His Kingdom. Click here to print the sheet.  Laminate the sheet if you intend to use it more than once and the play dough will be easy to remove!

You will need:  Dove pictures, pens, paper clips, string Is there part of your life that makes you feel stressed?  A dove is a sign of peace. Take a dove shape and write or draw on it the thing that stresses you.  Pin it to the line as a sign that you are asking God to bring you peace in that area.

This coming term our prayer stations are going to focus on interceding for the world.  One of the things I want to look at is praying for peace and reconciliation.  When I was thinking about how to do this, it struck me that zips might be a good idea- they are a great illustration of bringing two sides together! so.. I plan to leave a list of countries in the world where wars are taking place on the station along with the zips so that the children can choose where to pray for!