Let there be light

Hello and welcome to Sunday on Christchurch Kids. Have you heard the birds singing today? Why don't you open a window and listen for a moment? We are spending our days a bit differently at the moment and it will probably feel a bit odd. Today we are going to be looking at God, who always stays the same. He is the God who created our amazing world and who loves us. We can see His creation all around us and it can remind us of His love for us.

Here is a fantastic retelling of the story of creation from Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

Have another listen. What is your favourite part of the story?

Feeding the birds

There are so many ways to celebrate God's amazing creations. Why don't you have a go at creating a bird feeder? There are lots of great ideas online.

These first two ideas are quite simple.

https://teachbesideme.com/homemade-window-bird-feeder/

https://happyhooligans.ca/milk-jug-bird-feeder/

Or you can have lots of fun decorating the bird feeder. Can you see how they have used bottle caps to make the eyes?

https://www.redtedart.com/juice-carton-crafts-owl-bird-feeder/

If you are wondering what to feed the birds, there is a great guide from the RSPB about which food scraps can be used safely. You can see it here.

We have a colouring page that you can download here. God created the birds and tiniest insects and he also created the stars and the planets. This is Bible verse about how space can remind us how amazing God is.

Prayer

There is an East African prayer talking to God about His creation.

All you big things, bless the Lord

Mount Kilimanjaro and Lake Victoria

The Rift Valley and the Serengeti Plain

Fat baobabs and shady mango trees

All eucalyptus and tamarind trees

Bless the Lord.

Praise and extol Him for ever and ever

All you tiny things, bless the Lord.

Wriggling tadpoles and mosquito larvae,

Flying locusts and water drops,

Millet seeds and dried dagaa,

Bless the Lord.

Praise and extol Him for ever and ever

Can you write your own version of this prayer? What big things would you include? What tiny things would you include?
(to "extol" means to "praise enthusiastically)

And finally, one of our favourite songs from F@CT all about our Creator God...

We would love to see your bird feeders or your prayers. You can see how to send pictures of your creations in the right hand side column. You can add comments to this post too. We'd love to hear from you. 

Rainbows

Have you made a rainbow and put it in your window? It's a great idea that has been shared online and lots of people are doing this because it's fun to do and brings a smile to other people's faces.

We can use these rainbows to help us pray as well.

In this place, we're going to say Grace!

ID 94000576 © Lavitreiu | Dreamstime.com

Hi everyone and welcome to Wiggle Wednesday. I hope you can find a good space to move around as we are going to be trying a bit of Irish dancing today.

I love the song "As for me and my house". We sing it in church and love to shout out "In this place, we're going to say Grace!", but we don't usually say Grace in church. It's a prayer for mealtimes at home. This is the perfect song to sing at home.

Why don't we all try to say Grace a bit more this week? Grace is a prayer of thankfulness, usually before we eat. Think of something you are thankful for and say "Thank You" to God - and have a wiggle to the song. There's a great bit of dancing at the end as it gets quicker and quicker. Have fun!

The Lord is my shepherd

Hello and welcome to our first Sunday on Christchurch Kids and Happy Mothering Sunday.  Isn't it lovely to see the blue skies and sunshine outside. Today we are looking at Psalm 23. The psalms are a book in the Bible of poetry and songs and today's psalm is all about how God looks after us. Here is a great version of this psalm so have a listen...

There are so many fantastic elements in this psalm. Why don't you have another listen? What are your favourite things in Psalm 23?

A Sensory Hunt

Why don't you go on a sensory hunt around your house and try to find things from the psalm?

Can you ...

... find something as soft as a lamb?

... run your fingers through some grass?

... listen to running water and imagine the stream running through the meadow?

... collect some "wonderful things"?

... stay still as long as you can and imagine you are lying in the grassy meadow?

We have a colouring page to download here. When your page is coloured in, you could put it up somewhere in your house to remind you that God is looking after you. 

We also have a wordsearch to try here  ( and the answers are here).

Prayer

We can use the words of Psalm 23 as a prayer and you can add actions to help remember the words.

The Lord is my shepherd (point to self)

 I have all that I need. (Stretch arms out wide.)

He lets me rest in green meadows. (put palms together at one side of face)

 He leads me beside peaceful streams. (Make wavelike motions with hands.)

He renews my strength. (Make muscles.)

He guides me along right paths (walk in place)

as He has promised. (Point up.) 

Even when I go through the deepest darkness, (cup hands over eyes)

 I will not be afraid (hug self)

For you are close beside me. (Point left and right.)

Your shepherd's rod and staff protect me. (Cross fists in front of you.)

You prepare a banquet for me, where all my enemies can see me (Pretend to eat.)

you welcome me as an honoured guest. (Touch hands to head.)

 My cup overflows with blessings. (Cup hands in front of you.)

I know that your goodness and love will be with me all my life (turn in a circle)

 and your house will be my home as long as I live. (Stretch arms up high.)

Amen.

And just for fun, here are some lambs to sing you a song about following God. Look out for the grey one - he's a bit cheeky!

We would love to see your colouring sheets or what "wonderful things" you found. Have a look in the right hand column for our contact details. You can check back here on Wiggle Wednesday for a song to dance and sing to. We hope you have a great week.

Welcome to Christchurch Kids

Hello and welcome to Christchurch kids. We love to meet up on Sundays to learn about God and have fun but, for the moment, we aren't able to meet together. The good news is that church isn't a building or Sunday morning, it's a group of people who love God and want to follow him. We can carry on being church anywhere, anytime.

This is going to be a fun place to learn more about God and share together. We are going to be adding animated Bible stories, craft ideas, activities to print off, prayers and more. We would love to see anything you have made so ask a grown up at home to email me any pictures at sundaychildrenandfamiliescoordinator@christchurch-clevedon.org.uk. (We won't be putting pictures of people on here - just things you have made or written).

To start things off, today is Wednesday! Every Wednesday, we will put a new song on here and we will call it "Wiggle Wednesdays". Play the song, have a dance around your kitchen, sing along and see if you can remember the actions - or make up your own.

To kick off Wiggle Wednesday, here's one of our favourite songs from Sunday mornings. It might feel a bit "stormy" outside at the moment, but Jesus is always our constant lighthouse...