Children and Families - Scripture Union NZ

  freebibleimages.org The season of Lent begins soon, and we travel with the disciples on the road to Jerusalem. Ahead of us lie paths covered in cloaks and palm fronds, as people herald Jesus' arrival in the city. We know that Jesus is heading to his death, and ultimately to his vindication and resurrection. Lent and Easter mark significant moments in the Christian calendar and the gospel story. The Children and Families team at Scripture Union have a range of FREE resources, programmes and intergenerational services to support you as you prepare. Check them out today!  For our full library: click here Check out this  board game to explore Mark's gospel  (easy to play and great for all ages)

  On the Road to Easter A brand new board game for all the family. Journey together through the events of Easter, through the eyes of Mark. Along the way, face challenges, answer questions and eat skittles! Download all the files you need here!

There is power in a question... A group of children and I were exploring the story of Zacchaeus. He had climbed the tree so he could see Jesus coming. I asked the children to imagine themselves as Zac. Jesus gets closer, and then all of a sudden he stops. I asked them just one question: What would you have said when Jesus  stopped under your tree and looked up?  This is what they said:  “Wow! I can’t believe he noticed me.” “Hi Jesus.” “Oh dear, God’s going to tell me off. Boo hoo boo.” “Well done Zacchaeus for listening to Jesus.” “Why is Jesus talking to me?” “I can’t live like this now.” These responses reminded me that there is power in a question. Look at the depth of thinking in those answers!  There is power in a question to open up possibilities, to invite imagination, and to bring to life children's feelings and responses to God. Notice that one child assumes that Zac is going to get a telling off. What image of God does this child carry ...

Te Kawenata o Waitangi (the Covenant of Waitangi) The Treaty of Waitangi  signed 6 Feb 1840 “Te Kawenata o Waitangi is the name Māori gave to the Treaty of Waitangi. It means, the ‘Covenant of Waitangi’, and reflects the influence of the gospel on New Zealand history. The signing of the Treaty was not simply a contract but a covenant, in the Biblical sense of the word.” (Mark Grace, The Gospel and the Treaty of Waitangi, 2014) Waitangi Day is a great opportunity to reflect on our history as a nation, but also the part that Christians played in this historic event. Here are some ideas you might like to use in your Sunday School or children’s programme or together with all ages in your church services. Click on the links below to view and download free resources. We are keen to add to this col lection, so if you have an idea or activity we would love you to share it w ith us. Email: annette.o@sunz.o rg.nz A few main points:  Click here for a brief overview o...

  Matthias Stomer, Adoration of the Shepherds  wikipedia This painting from 1650 reflects its time. The clothing and skin colour of those pictured place this image some distance from the original events of Jesus' birth, not to mention Jesus' glow-in-the-dark-ness! But what captivates me about this beautiful painting is the faces of the shepherds. There is no distance here between these visitors and the baby. They lean right in. Their faces show wonder and awe, caught in the glow of divinity. This painting is called 'Adoration of the Shepherds', and it sure captures that.  Let's be like the shepherds. Lean in, draw close. Allow the moment to soak into our hearts.  Let's be people of adoration, who once again find ourselves in the presence of Immanuel, God with us. 

  In Their Shoes Step into the shoes of six people in the Easter story and look at what happened through their eyes. This resource brings to life some of the lesser known or briefly mentioned people in the story and aims to bring them to life. This resource contains six character descriptions, scripts and suggestions for how to include them in your Easter services. You choose which characters to introduce, and which approach will best suit your church. Hannah, Samuel and Isaiah: noisy children in the temple: Matt 21 Benjamin and his jar of water: Luke 22 Sarah sits by the fire: Luke 22 Claudia's Dream: Matt 27 Marcus and his surprising discovery: Matt 27 Crispus spreads rumours Matt 27-28 You will need:  'In Their Shoes' - the resource  Story Scripts Optional: Easter images from Max7.org Good Friday Easter Sunday

  Easter with Family and Whānau Our NEW resource for 2023 is a simple way to gather the family together around the Bible and create a piece of art at the same time. Free to download here .  We also have a range of Easter resources available. Are you looking to bring all the generations together for a church or community service? Are you looking for resources to support families as they explore this event in the Church calendar?  Easter resources

  Our first WAY2GO events have just happened. We gathered together kanohi ki te kanohi, face to face, to be inspired, challenged and equipped in our ministry with children. This word cloud shows some of the highlights from our Auckland South East event.  Why not come and join us at one of the 12 other events coming up soon?  Find out more at  www.sunz.org.nz  Resources from the event  

  We have NEW resources available for Lent and Easter this year. Check out our Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday ideas for family and whānau to explore together!  Our full range of Lent and Easter resources can be found here .  

  Exploring how understanding context can bring the gospels to life  and invite children to think more deeply about following Jesus.   This is a collection of resources from the 'Gospels Alive' workshop at WAY2GO 2021. Feel free to download these and use them, just mention Scripture Union!  Photos: The Galilean Boat A & B An Archaeological Dig site Links: Oil Lamp Youtube clip of the archaeological process Daily life in the time of Jesus - blog (lots of good information and pictures) Resources: Children’s Guide to the Bible by Robert Willoughby  ( Scripture Union resource )  Daily Life in the time of Jesus by Miriam Feinberg Vamosh - An excellent resource! In the Steps of Jesus by Peter Walker - a more academic source with good info and lots of photos.  Bible Timelines ( Scripture Union resources) Maps:  http://www.bible-history.com/maps/palestine_nt_times.html http://virtualreligion.net/iho/map.html Apps: Virtual Jerusalem  -...

  Easter weekend is done and dusted, all the chocolate eggs and hot cross buns eaten. But if you thought the festivals of the church calendar were over until Advent or maybe Christmas... just wait, there’s more… The Three Great Feasts or Festivals traditionally conclude the season of Easter and usher in the season of Pentecost. Three Sundays worth of interesting sounding titles and theological concepts that continue to challenge and stretch us today. Ascension Day (13 May) is 40 days after Easter Sunday and so is on a Thursday, but can be observed on the following Sunday. Pentecost Sunday (23 May) follows Ascension 10 days later. Trinity Sunday (30 May) deals with one of the biggest theological concepts of all time, but provides an opportunity to simply acknowledge that we don’t know or understand everything and never will, and that’s okay. These three family devotions require nothing but yourselves, but include additional resource ideas, and it is my hope and prayer that the th...

  This Lent/Easter season, we have a series of intergenerational services for your church to download and use. These services have been written by our Children and Families Team and used in churches. This season in the church calendar is a very important one to share together as an intergenerational community and we want to support you in this.  Download one of our services, or get in touch with us if you would like us to run a service for you. We love getting out and about and supporting your ministry.  Intergenerational Services:  The rocks will cry out: Palm Sunday The Mercy Tree: Good Friday The Colours of Easter: Easter Sunday Breakfast on the Beach: Jesus appears to the disciples  More Easter resources

Looking after number one v Caring for others The opposite of looking after number one is caring for others.  This 20 min devotion will help your family to explore together what God has to say about caring for others.  Each session includes:  - To do: a simple fun activity (no materials required) - To talk about: a question to get the conversation started - To explore: A short Bible passage to read, and an optional video clip to view - To think about: something for the family to ponder - To respond: choose from a few options (prayer ideas, a song to sing, an action) - To pray: finish by praying a simple blessing together Click here to download this session Click here to see all five in the series

Easter Grab it! A simple way to explore the Easter story together as a family, using things you can grab from around the house!  You will need: Your family/household all in one place A Bible or access to a Bible online  Click here for a PDF of this content .  To begin: To tell the story of Easter, send each member of the family on a mission to grab an item. Bring this item back to the kitchen table, ready to be used in the telling of the story.  Grab It! 1. A leaf, small branch or twig 2. A rope, string or dressing gown tie 3. A bowl with water in it and a hand towel 4. A piece of fabric that you don’t mind being torn up (or a piece of black clothing) 5. A jar with a lid 6. Egg timer (or the stopwatch on your phone) 7. A flower from the garden (or click here for a virtual one ) When everyone is back from their ‘Grab it! mission’ begin the story. **You could choose a different member of the family to read each section **You could spread th...

"If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers - most of which are never even seen - don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you?" Matthew 6 (The Message) Welcome to this series of five devotions for families and households. These sessions are designed for all ages, and are simple to use. They don’t require lots of set up or materials, just you and your family. This series is specifically written for families confined to their homes during the Covid-19 pandemic of 2019-2020. Each session includes: - To do: a simple fun activity (no materials required) - To talk about: a question to get the conversation started - To explore: A short Bible passage to read, and an optional video clip to view - To think about: something for the family to ponder - To respond: choose from a few options (prayer ideas, a song to sing, an action) - To pray: finish by praying a simple blessing together This series i...

Greetings from my bubble to yours!  Easter is fast approaching, and it will be a year like no other. And because it's been an intense and worrying time for many of us, I suggest that we don't get overwhelmed by trying to accomplish too much. I have put together five tips for preparing for this season - so that we can worship God, find joy in each other's company and not collapse with stress.  1. Lower your expectations: While we might want Easter to be a super-spiritual amazing time, the chances are our housemates (young and old) may have other ideas. God made families, God understands the craziness. Celebrate the small wins.   2. Raise your expectations:  I shall now contradict myself! Now is the time to be surprised by what God can do in and through our families. God is creative, and works in unexpected ways. I am all too often taken by surprise by children and their ability to cut right to the heart of the things of God. I shouldn't be surprised, Jes...