Children and Families - Scripture Union NZ

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...

Each year we sing, ‘While shepherds watched their flocks by night’, but what do we really know about these early witnesses to the birth of Jesus? What did it mean for them to experience a sky filled with angels and be the ones chosen to hear the good news? This year, our Christmas resource will focus on the shepherds and their rags to riches story. From the rags of the field to the riches of heaven, let us follow their journey and discover it anew for ourselves. How does God visit us in our rags and bring riches beyond our imagination? An intergenerational church service

  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...

A 1st Century stone path in Bethsaida, where Jesus walked the streets Understanding the daily life of Jesus helps us to discover who he really was. Context puts flesh on bones, and breathes life into the gospels. There are many great resources out there to help us to dig into the context of 1st Century Palestine. Here are some of our favourite free resources: Modern Photos of Israel/Palestine Annette took these photos during her visit in 2011. Free to download and use in PowerPoint or printed out to show small groups of children. We would be grateful if you could acknowledge Scripture Union New Zealand.  Links to great websites: A virtual tour of Israel Bible Places Great images of reconstructions of the temple in the time of Jesus Free photos of modern Israel A basic interactive map of Israel with photos A free app which gives you a virtual tour of Jerusalem and the temple. Works offline!  A couple of great Youtube clips of the Temple i...

Our WAY2GO Children's Ministry conference is over for another year. We had an awesome time in Dunedin, Auckland and Wellington. Some of the resources from our workshops are here for you to download. Check them out!

These are the resources from the 'In the Footsteps of Paul' workshop at WAY2GO 2017. Map of Corinth: http://www.cwr.org.uk/cover2cover  Photographs: Corinth The Lechion Way (The Main Street) The Main Street Shops Temple of Apollo The Forum The Bema Philippi The River The Church to remember Lydia The Corinthian Church: Who is in the church?  Lydia: The story script  Check out this page for more detail: By the Riverside First Century Roman Coins Websites: www.bible.ca/maps www.windowintothebible.com/a-photo-tour-of-corinth www.bibleplaces.com The River in Lydia, Philippi