Children and Families - Scripture Union NZ

Weaving spiritual practice into our day can be a challenge. In the busyness of work, school, meetings, sport and life, setting aside time to connect with God can seem one step too far.  Here's one simple practice we have found helpful. It's as easy as 5 steps. And it's a simple version of an ancient practice. That means people have been using this method for centuries. That's gotta mean its good, right?  Faith Five: Five steps to help you and your family connect with God.  This method is based on a practice called the Examin , an ancient way of pausing at the end of the day to reflect on where God has been. It can be incorporated into your bedtime routine for five to fifteen minutes a night, or can be used during a meal time. We use this on our kids camps as a review at the end of each day.  Five steps, hence the name.   “Faith Five is easy, biblical, intergenerational and faith forming." Andrew Ramsbottom  1.  SHARE your highs and ...

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!

July is Bible Month in New Zealand!  Here's an All Age Service outline you can use. It's about 25mins long.  Click here to download all the files you will need.   For more on Bible Month, see the Bible Society NZ

ANZAC Day 25 April is the day that we remember the ANZAC landings on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey. It is important for children, young people and adults to be aware of New Zealand's history and to reflect on the place of faith in the midst of war and violence. If you are looking for resources for your children's ministry or All Age ideas then look no further than these: KidsFriendly  and Pinterest page STRANDZ website Other resources: ww100.govt.nz:  The official 100th year commemoration website, a wealth of information as well as events and resources. OMF reflection resource using stones: Written for adults, but could easily be adapted for an all age reflection.  Sacraparental - the sacred practice of parenting (and some other stuff): If you are interested in reading wider on how to approach ANZAC Day from a faith perspective, this is an excellent blogpost to spark your thinking. 

**This is episode one of a serial story, leading right up to Easter. This story is written to share as a family or with your church community. You can find the rest of the story by clicking on the 'Easter' ta b above. You will find the pi ctures to be downloaded, as well as a little Easter booklet to print and share .  ____________________________ Step with me back in time, over 2000 years back. Look around you. The land is dotted with olive trees, their silvery foliage swaying with the gentle breeze. It's warm, not too hot. The full on blaze of summer hasn't arrived yet, but the harshness of winter is fading.  The fields are tinged with green, with the olive trees providing shade for weary travellers. You sit down on one of the many rocks scattered all over the fields. They are everywhere! And sh epherds have used them to create walls and holding pens for animals, and the structure of their simple houses.  The journey towards Easter is just beginning....

This page is the right spot to find all the resources for series one, books 1-5.  Click on the links below to access our dropbox folders, with all the resources you need. Crafts, waiata (songs), karakia (prayers), story telling ideas and great suggestions for how to set up your room with stations.  Start with the 'Read First' book, as this gives you some important details into how the programme works and some of the thinking behind it. Click here to download it. The programmes: T here is a programme for each book. You will find the programme file, as well as lots of additional material to go w ith it.    Click on the link s below to access th ese programmes:   Book #1 - Te Powhiri - The Welcome Book #2 - Te Pahi the Adventurer Book #3 - Ruatara and the new Beginning Book #4 - Patuone the Peacemaker Book #5 - Elizabeth Colenso the Teacher

An All Age Palm Sunday Service Use your imagination to enter into the story of Palm Sunday.  This service is a great way to encourage your whole church to enter into the event of Palm Sunday. It begins by setting the scene as Jesus approaches Jerusalem, providing helpful background details. It also includes: - Role Play: imagine you are one of the people in the crowd that day. Why have you come to see Jesus? - Waving of palm branches and laying coats along the front of the church.  - Bible readings  - A reflection activity using rocks, based on this verse:   “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.”  This All Age service is designed so that people can be as involved as they want to be. It provides depth as well as interaction, seeking to bring to life the story in a creative way. You can download the file for FREE by clicking here . Feel free to adapt it to fit your church context. I would love to hear how it g...