Tag: Easter

Celebrating/Keeping the Season of Easter

Lauren

Everyone enjoys and celebrates the build up to Christmas! In the Christian faith, Easter is a more important day, yet it is not seen this way in our world. Once the Easter baskets and egg hunts are done, it is seen as over. This makes Christmas seem a bigger day in our faith. There are several ways that we can help families to continue the Easter celebration.

First is teaching families that Easter is a season and lasts eight weeks. It is a season of joy and love. Next, give them ways to continue beyond the church walls the celebration of Easter.

  • Each night families can share something that brought them joy in their day. After everyone has shared, say a prayer of thanks for the gift of the joys.
  • Once a week, have a “Favorite” Night. Examples are to have a dinner made up of one of everyone’s favorite foods (don’t worry about being healthy for one meal) or extend it by once a week adding someone’s favorite food. Another example is to have a Favorite Movie Night or Favorite Book reading Night, where each person takes a turn sharing their favorite with the family. Add in a Favorite Game Night or Favorite Song Night (the music plays during dinner.)
  • Go for a walk or to a park and point out the things that bring you happiness and say a quick prayer of thanks.
  • Keep a family Gratitude Journal and before bed say thanks to God for the items listed in it.
  • Read the Bible as a family or a book of Bible Stories.
  • Find a community service project to spread love to others.
  • Celebrate a family members Baptism, bring out pictures, clothes, and talk about hw=ow that person is special to your family.
  • Find times and ways to say “Alleluia!”

For churches, encourage Easter as a Season! Look for fun opportunities to include families with children. They can plant flowers, make cards for a nursing home, and other projects. Have them write their name on hand imprint with the project they completed and hang it on a wall or bulletin board. Show the love of helping hands!

Helping Families Keep Easter at Home

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Easter should be our most joyous season, yet with the “Stay at Home” order caused by the COVID-19 Virus, it can feel anything, but joyous.  We are all feeling worn out, frazzled, and grieving.  Here are some ways for families to keep Easter and remind them of the joy of the season.

Holy Time:  Set a time each day (if that is too ambitious, then once a week) for a holy time.  Explain to the children that this time is to practice Sabbath.  Set the alarm so that when the predetermined time arrives, it is a reminder to start.  Ideas include, sitting in prayer with eyes closed, practice some deep breathing or “box” breathing, sitting in a circle and saying what you are grateful for today, or praying a song (offering a song as a prayer to God and then maintain a few moments of silence after it is finished.)

Find a way that works for your family and make it a priority.

Finding Joy:  Each family member has a day and a predetermined time, all the family participates in what brings the person joy.  Start with a prayer, let the person explain what the activity or thing is that brings them joy, all try it and then end with sharing what each person is grateful about the activity or thing, then close in prayer.

Easter Butterflies:  Each person in the family design a butterfly.  Put them in the front window to remind people walking by that it is Easter.  Hearts and signs can be added too.

Empty Tomb Stone:  On a walk, find a rock that can be decorated.  When you get home, use permanent markers, paint, ribbon, and other craft objects to decorate the rock.  While you are decorating the rock, each time a color is added or an object, say a prayer of thanksgiving to God.  Place the finished rock or rocks in a bowl to be used for prayer during Holy Time or Prayer Time.

Scavenger Hunt Walk:  As you go for a walk outside, look for signs of new life.  Try to remember what certain bushes, trees, or paths looked like in Winter.  Notice the differences now.  Remind yourself that this time will pass to and we will enter Spring.  After you have found 10 things, say a prayer to God, then continue the hunt until you find 10 more, then pray and continue repeating until you arrive home again.

Prayer Walk: Before you leave home, each person chooses a color.  Every time they see that color on the walk, they offer a prayer to God.

Easter Pen Pals: Make a list of people you miss seeing and don’t forget the people, who may not be considered friends but are a regular part of your life (like the janitor at school or church).  Each week of Easter send a letter to one person on your list telling them that you miss them, what you like about them, and what is going on at home for you.  Encourage them to write back.  The more letters you send, the more you will get in return.

Holy Week for Children at Home

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As a Children’s Minister, my biggest question is how to make Holy Week special and fulfilling for children. This week should be a big deal. It is a big deal!

In addition to the ideas on my previous blog on Holy Week, we are faced in 2020 with one of the biggest challenges for Holy Week that leave us struggling with, “What do we do when we can not gather to prepare or worship?”

Here are ideas for keeping Holy Week that families can do with little to no preparation:

  • Palm Sunday: have the children gather greenery from their yard. Do a children’s moment either during the service and tell the children the story or have a Children’s Chapel after and retell the story. Encourage them to yell, “Hosanna!” and wave their greenery. Have the family create a “Holy Week” space in their house (a corner or table) and place the greenery their as a reminder of the start of the week. They can make a crown for the king. A battery operated candle can be used for prayer time.
  • Wednesday of Holy Week: have a Children’s Chapel of what has happened and what is to come. I talk about Jesus as teacher, healer, storyteller, and messiah. The Godly Play Faces of Easter are very good for this. Ask the children to choose a role of Jesus and put a symbol representing that role on their “Holy Week” space. Letting the children choose the object or picture creates a beautiful chance at sharing.
  • Maundy Thursday: have a Children’s Chapel before the Maundy Thursday Service and explain how this Service will be different. Tell the story of the Last Supper and the washing of the feet. Encourage each family to wash each others feet or hands before they eat tonight. Add a small towel to the “Holy Week” space.
  • Good Friday: have a Children’s Chapel before the Good Friday Service and explain how this service is different. Tell the story and talk about being afraid. Remind them that this is not the end of the story! After the service, create a cross from twigs or other objects at home and put it on your “Holy Week” space.
  • Holy Saturday/Easter Vigil: depending on which service you will do, have a children’s chapel explaining what will happen and why. If doing Holy Saturday, it is a beautiful time to talk about waiting, about God never leaving us, about love, and about family. To the “Holy Week” space add a picture of the family that is not there with you. If doing the Easter Vigil, have the children draw their favorite Bible Story and add it to the “Holy Week” space. During Children’s Chapel (done before the service), expain what the Vigil is, encourage families to light a candle and turn off all the lights until Easter is announced.
  • Easter: have the children pick flowers or draw flowers. Remove all the items from the “Holy Week” space and replace with flowers. During the children’s moment or during Children’s Chapel, tell the story of love winning and light winning. Tell the story of the resurrection with enthusiasm and excitement to emphasize the big deal this is.

Viritual Easter Egg Hunt: one of the ways, I am making Easter special for our children, is during each of the above named Children’s Chapels, I have cut a very large egg out of paper and put a Bible story picture or symbol on it. For the week of Holy Week and the first week of Easter, every time I do a chapel, I will have an “egg” in the background. Children find the eggs and write the Bible Story or symbol down. Those who have found all of the eggs and named the story get a goodie bag of Easter treats on Pentecost or the next time we are able to gather. (If you are not on a “Stay at Home Order”, then you can deliver the treat bag to their houses.

To view any of the Children’s Chapel Services on our Holy Week, visit www.facebook.com/stpaulswinstonsalem.