October 2008

Welcome to Connect, the monthly e-newsletter for those who minister to children in small Sunday schools, midweek programs, and new church plants. Click here to invite your ministry staff members and volunteers to receive Connect!

Here Comes Santa Claus!

Santa Clause caught my eye in the “Happy Harvest” section at Target last week. I was admiring a fall wreath when he and seventy-seven other electric Santas started blinking from their shelves in Aisle 19. (No doubt ready to advance as soon as the last faux pumpkin was purchased.) Having celebrated Christmas in September with Kid Connection Year 2, Unit 1, I wasn’t caught completely off guard; still, I made a mental note to add “Christmas planning” to our upcoming team training session. Here are some of the things we’ll be talking about at my next children’s ministry meeting—maybe you’d like to talk about them at yours, too!

Celebrating with the kids
Whether you shared the Christmas story in September or plan to use Unit 1 after Units 2 and 3, you probably still have a date or two that you’ve reserved for a Christmas celebration with your group. Consider these ideas:

• Add some meaning. Is your church sanctuary decorated for Christmas with special banners/colors, centerpieces, nativity scenes, and more? Is the pastor leading a special series of messages accompanied by themed images on the PowerPoint screen? If your kids have been sitting in church looking around at all that stuff they may be curious to find out what it all means! Connect with your worship team and find out what will be “new” in church during December. Ask for or make a replica of what will be used in church and bring it to your teaching area. Talk about what it means and how it fits into the Christmas story. Tip: Ask your worship team if there’s an opportunity for your kids to provide some of those special decorations by creating some artwork to adorn the walls or to be turned into bulletin covers.
• Share the good news. Christmas is the time to bring in all that messy stuff that we shy away from during the year. (Yup, we’re talking glitter here!) Bring in a variety of card-making supplies and set up a workshop where your kids can make a set of Christmas cards for people who might not expect them—like their coach, babysitter, teacher, principal, bus driver, and so on. Tip: A stack of old Christmas cards is a great source of pictures that kids can cut and paste on their new creations!
• Make a Jesse Tree. Draw a tree on poster board or stick a large branch in a pot or bring in a small Christmas tree. Make simple symbols for the following verses: Genesis 1:26-31; Genesis 8:21b-22; Genesis 17:6-7; Samuel 7:16; Isaiah 11:11; Micah 5:2; and Luke 1:30-33. Invite your preteens to come forward and read a verse while your younger kids hang the corresponding symbol on the tree. (Lots of younger kids? Make multiple copies of the symbol ornaments so everyone can hang something up.) Talk about how God promised to send Jesus a long, long time before he was born and finish with a reading of Luke 2:8-20.
  
  After using the Jesse Tree in the large group, send kids off to make their own take-home version to share with their families. Provide kids with small branches in little terra cotta pots or make poster-sized trees on paper. Kids can cut out, color, and hang their symbols on the tree. Tip: Save time by ordering a copy of The Promise Keeper, a Christmas leader’s guide full of Jesse Tree resources for you to photo-copy and other great Christmas craft, game, and snack ideas. It even comes with a CD of great Christmas music you can use for your Christmas program! Which brings us to the next item on our agenda…

Celebrating with your church family
Looking for simple ways to participate in worship? Check these out:

Quick & Easy Christmas Programs Series 
Last year I told you about the “one rehearsal” plays written by Laura and Robert Keeley. At my church we did the one called The Very Best Gift of All and had so much fun (and found the process so painless) that we’re choosing another one to try this year! Here’s what is so cool about these plays:

• One Rehearsal. I know, it sounds crazy but it’s true! Older kids get reading parts and receive the script one week in advance. They promise to read their lines once each day that week. (Notice I didn’t say memorize!) On the day of the program you meet, read through your lines together once, show your little (non-reading) kids where they will be standing, singing, and so on, and voila! You’re ready to go!
• Inexpensive. You buy one copy and you get permission to copy the script for everyone involved at your church.
• Size doesn’t matter. If you don’t have enough kids to read some adult leaders can join in. If your church is large and you don’t have enough parts for all your older reading kids, add a few characters by dividing up some lines (For example, add a character named Mike and give him some of Brenda’s lines.) Involve non-readers by having them form the choir and also take on simple roles like walking across the stage with a sign that says “Act 1” or “Away in a Manger.” Got kids with stage fright? Invite them to design bulletin covers, paint a backdrop, or make posters, and be sure to acknowledge their contributions on performance day.
• Great perspective. The Keeleys are committed to producing simple, Bible-based plays that delight as well as inspire—and it shows! The plays are infused with humor and a solid message so the kids (and the congregation) learn something and have fun while doing it!
  (By the way, Bob Keeley is our featured speaker at the upcoming GROW conference. He’s insightful and funny, and it’s not too late to register to attend!)

Bring Kid Connection into church!
As I was leading the Unit 1 Kid Connection sessions last month I kept thinking, “Wow, these large group stories would be great to use for intergenerational worship too!” Take a look at each of the four stories in Year 2, Unit 1. With some simple editing of the opening and closing transition paragraphs you could easily string together 2-4 of the stories and tell them to the whole congregation during a worship service. Older kids can get involved by reading parts like Zechariah and the angel (session 1), reading verses from Mary’s Song (session 2), or posing as a group of shepherds (session 3). The whole group could do the “Breaking News Rap” between scenes. Ask your pastor to read the storyteller’s lines or to take on the role of reporter Ben There or Omar Winfrey! What a great way to show the folks in your larger church family what the kids have been learning! Christmas planning doesn’t have to be elaborate and stressful to be meaningful. Keep it simple, focused, and fun so that you can have as much fun as the kids!

Happy Planning!
Karen DeBoer

P.S. Thanks to all of you who wrote to share the exciting ways you kicked off your ministry this year. It’s so energizing for us to hear what God is doing through you and your ministry!

We’d love to hear what your group has planned for Christmas and anything else you’d like to share about how your Kid Connection program is going. Drop us a line at Editors@FaithAliveResources.org.

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