Children’s Church Idea Starter: Make the Best of Summer Part of Your Class
For most any kid, summer is the favorite season of the year. Kids expect to have fun in summers, and you can help meet that expectation in children’s church and show that God loves summer fun also. So much of God’s creation can be celebrated in summer. Here are some of the fun things kids remember most about summer along with how they can be used in children’s church lessons that teach kids about God:
Water
Kids love to play in water in the summer. If your church has expectations that kids can get a little wet sometimes, you can have all sorts of fun while teaching them Godly principles.
Water Balloons are like our fears. They look threatening when they come flying at us. We try to run or duck what looks like a bomb! But ta da! They’re fun and bring relief from heat! They can help us understand that “faith doesn’t fear,” and therefore to reach out and try something new!
Squirt guns are great for teaching about the fiery darts of the enemy as spoken of in Ephesians 6:16. As kids dodge fiery darts (and get hit with a few) they can learn about the Armor of God from Ephesians 6 and how to use shields of faith.
Wading pools or giant tubs can be used to rec reate the great “water” stories of the Bible such as Noah’s Ark, Jonah and the Whale, the parting of the Red Sea, crossing the Jordan, etc. Using tub toys, Tupperware boats, or even simple imagination, tubs of water can help kids feel a greater sense of “being there” in these famous Bible stories.
Flowers
Blooms of magnificent summer colors show God’s artistry and devotion to detail. A dozen great thoughts about our Heavenly Father can be taught simply by examining one summer bouquet.
The scent of a rose is like God: You have to get right up close to detect it, but once you do, you’re aware of a sweetness you can’t experience from far away.
Flower stems are like God’s love. They feed us and make us into beautiful blooms. If we break our spiritual stems, our blooms will wilt and eventually die.
Multi-colored irises can illustrate God’s multi-faceted love. Yellow is for his joy in his creation. Purple is for his passion about right and wrong. White is for his purity and how he offers it freely to us through his son.
Daisies are like God’s heart. It is rich and passionate at the center and reaches out in every direction to show his love for all people everywhere.
Baby’s breath is like the angels. It is considered “filler” in a bouquet to help support the blooms. Angels are God’s design to support and encourage us to be beautiful.
Leaves are like the Bible. They’re rich and mysterious and store the nutrition that the blooms need to grow strong. Scriptures contain our spiritual nutrition, and we can recall when we need them like blooms draw strength from leaves!
Birds, Trees, Sun, Sky
If your Sunday school allows, nature walks can provide great lessons about God in summertime. All the senses can be activated, and God’s creation can be appreciated by even the minute things you can point out.
Birds calling to each other can bring up thoughts about God. The multitude of bird calls coming from different trees can teach kids to listen for God’s voice.
Crows’ caws are loud and dominant and not very pretty. They’re the ones we hear first, however. They’re like the temptations of this world: loud fashions, loud voices, loud peer pressure can get our attention quickly. But if we listen behind the loudness, we can hear the cardinals, mocking birds and blue birds who are much prettier. They’re like the voices of God and the angels. They don’t dominate this world but they are far more melodious.
Trees rustle in breezes and sound like the whispers of angels. It’s just plain fun for children to listen through rustling and see if they can hear “whispers” of the angels and a few words here and there!
Cloud watching is most popular in the summer, when kids can lie on their backs and see shapes. Kids who see angels can point them out to others, and the one to see the most angels wins a prize.
The sun warms our flesh and makes us feel good. It’s like God’s love. You can’t see it; you can’t always feel it right away. But you can see the evidence of it if you stay in the light of his love long enough.
Kids have waited all year to be out of school again and to experience God’s summer extravaganza of life. Make it part of your children’s church in crafts, experiments, games or just simple conversations about his amazing artistry!
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