Pentecost Sunday
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Pentecost Sunday
Preparation
Gathering
Story Time
Response
Closing
Read the Scripture passage for the day over -Acts 2:1-21- it can be found online at http://divinity.library.vanderbilt.edu/lectionary/AEaster/aPentecost.htm#acts
Pay attention to the words or phrases that jump out at you. You may want to read from the beginning of the chapter to get the whole sense of what is going on here.
Read over the lesson so that you are familiar with what is intended to happen. Gather the materials that you will need for each section of the lesson. If you can, print up the picture for the week from the website. For deeper thinking or for ways to extend the lesson take a look at the following websites:
http://www.textweek.com/yeara/pentecda.htm
http://www.word-sunday.com/Files/Seasonal/Pentecost/A-Pentecost.html
http://talks2children.itsforministry.org/t2c/seasonal.asp?SeasonID=7P
http://children.calvarychapel.com/site/pdf/New/Curr245.pdf
http://www.daniellesplace.com/HTML/bible_themes_o_-_p.html#pentesheet
This Sunday is also Mother's Day and if you would like to do a craft around that idea here are some websites that might be useful:
http://www.daniellesplace.com/html/mothersday.html
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/mothersday/
http://www.mssscrafts.com/miscellaneous/mothers.htm
http://biblekidsfunzone.com/crafts/dirmothersdaybearcard.html
Materials needed:
Small table or end of one table
Red candle
Bible & Bookmark
Red cloth (optional)
Gather around the small table or at the end of one table. If you have the red cloth put it down and place the candle on it. Put the Bible near the candle (you may want to let the children help with this).
Light the candle.
Pray the following prayer together:
Come Holy Spirit and be with us,
Come Holy Spirit and teach us,
Come Holy Spirit and show us the way,
Amen.
Blow out the candle. Ask the children if something so unexpected has ever happened to them. Did they have to tell everyone that they meet about what happened? Ask the children what they think about when they see a fire (possible answers include: camping, fun, scary, safety, etc.). Explain that for today's story they will hear about something special that God did with flames for Jesus' friends and that they just had to tell everyone about what happened.
Materials needed:
A comfortable place to tell the story - on the floor with cushions or around a table
Red, yellow and orange streamers - a group of three for each child
Aluminium pie plates - two
Give each child a streamer set. Have them practice waving them about and calling out COME HOLY SPIRIT COME.
Jesus' friends were all gathered together. They were remembering what Jesus had told them before he went to be with God in heaven. Jesus had said, "Go to Jerusalem. Go and wait. Soon the Holy Spirit will come and give you all great power. You have an important job to do for God. Go and wait."
Have children wave their streamers and call out the chant. COME HOLY SPIRIT COME.
Jesus' friends were praying together. Jesus' friends were singing praises to God together. Jesus' friends were waiting together.
Have children wave their streamers and call out the chant. COME HOLY SPIRIT COME.
Suddenly a great noise started outside of the room. (Rattle the two pie plates together.) It got louder and louder. It sounded like the rushing of the wind. (Rattle the pie plates even louder.) Everyone was looking so surprised. They stood up and kept looking around as the noise got louder and louder. (Rattle the pie plates one more time.)
Have children wave their streamers and call out the chant. COME HOLY SPIRIT COME.
The friends of Jesus were looking all around at each other. They thought they knew what the noise was but they were not quite sure. All at once something even more surprising happened. What looked like tongues of fire began to appear on their heads.
Have children wave their streamers and call out the chant. COME HOLY SPIRIT COME.
Everyone in the room became filled with the Holy Spirit. They could not stay in the room any longer. They rushed out into the streets of Jerusalem. They just had to tell everyone what had just happened to them.
Have children wave their streamers and call out the chant. COME HOLY SPIRIT COME.
They went out into the streets. Now in the city there were people from all over the world. They spoke many different languages. Imagine their surprise. For all of sudden they could hear Jesus' friends speaking to them about the mighty acts of God through Jesus in their own language.
Have children wave their streamers and call out the chant. COME HOLY SPIRIT COME.
Peter stood up where everyone could see him. He shouted above all the noise that the people were making. He said, "People of Jerusalem. Do not be surprised that you can understand us. God has sent the Holy Spirit on all of us. We are the followers of Jesus. Jesus who is the Son of God. You will remember that the leaders of this city put Jesus to death. Well, I have news for you. On the third day after he was killed God raised him back to life. We are witnesses to these marvellous acts of God. We saw Jesus die. We saw Jesus after he was raised from the dead. Jesus is alive. Jesus has gone back to live with God. Jesus has sent the Holy Spirit to us so that we can share this Good News with you."
Have children wave their streamers and call out the chant. COME HOLY SPIRIT COME.
Idea #1: Wind Chimes
This project will connect with the idea of the wind bringing something new to the people of God through the Holy Spirit.
Materials needed: wooden dowel cut into 30 cm/12 in lengths, heavy string cut into various lengths from 10 -15 cm/ 4 - 6 in lengths, ring washers of various sizes and anything else you think might be used
Instructions: Have a dowel and up to 5 pieces of string prepared for each child. Put the washers in a bowl. Give each child a dowel and the string pieces. Show the children how to tie the string onto to the dowel, so that each piece is spread out across the dowel. Help them to tie the washers on at various lengths so that when the wind blows them they will jingle against each other. You may want to add the streamers used during the story to the dowel as well. Encourage the children to place this somewhere at their homes where others can hear it and be reminded of the way the Holy Spirit blows through our lives.
Idea #2: Tongues of Fire Headband
Children can wear these to show others what the disciples might have looked like after the tongues of flame came on them during Pentecost.
Materials needed: flame shape (at bottom of lesson), red, yellow and orange construction paper, markers, stapler, and scissors
Instructions: Copy the flame shape and cut out a number of flames from the red, yellow and orange construction paper. Cut 8 cm/3 in strips of construction paper. Print on one side of the strip COME HOLY SPIRIT COME. Give each child a prepared strip and show them how to attach the flames using the stapler. When they are completed put the strips around their heads and attach ends of the headband using the stapler. The children can use these to share the story of Pentecost with their families.
Idea #3: Pentecost Wind Socks
This project will connect with the streamers that they used in the story with a way of sharing the excitement of the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.
Materials needed: streamers used in the story, poster board, heavy string, hole punch, stapler, markers
Instructions: Cut the poster board in half vertically. Bring the two short ends together and staple them together. Using the hole punch put holes across from each other on the circle at one end. Cut the string into about 60 cm/24 in lengths or longer if you want. Give the children the prepared poster board tube. Let them decorate the tube with the markers - using as many words as the group can think of that describe the actions of the Holy Spirit on the tube. Get them to tie the string into each of the holes to make a handle for the wind sock. Attach the streamers onto the other end of the wind sock. If you have time you might want to get the children to make a parade with their wind socks chanting COME HOLY SPIRIT COME as they go around the room.
Closing:
Gather with the children around the worship table again. Relight the candle. Say the prayer line by line and encourage the children to repeat it after you:
Thank you God for the Holy Spirit,
Thank you God for the gifts we are given,
Thank you God for all that we learn,
Thank you God for being with us,
Amen.
Flame for Tongues of Fire Headbands
