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Evangelism Resource Newsletter |
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| Reaching Out at Easter |
| News
from the Evangelism Resource Group
In 2004 this group will continue to produce four newsletters full of practical ideas and resources under the umbrella of EFAC who had been involved from its inception.
A forum will be established for people who are primarily engaged in the ministry of evangelism. For further information or to receive regular newsletters and information please contact Sue Collier or Stephen Abbott at Ridley College 9207 4800 or Stephen Abbott |
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In
This Edition
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WANTED!
Articles, ideas and resources that you are willing to share with others. DON'T BE SHY… Let us know what you have tried, how it went, etc. HELP US SHARE IDEAS THAT WORK! | |
| A Children's Story in Four Stages- | ||
| Suitable for use in church, playgroups or homes. | ||
| Get
Ready You'll need a shoebox with its lid, a white handkerchief, a figurine to represent Jesus, a small toy soldier and a small bottle of perfume. If you are doing this in church use a larger box and figure (soldier action figures are available in some $2 shops). |
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| WEEK
1: The Preparation Read John 19:16-20, 38-42. After you read the passage, wrap the picture or figure of Jesus in the handkerchief. Next dab a spot of perfume on the wrapped image of Jesus and place the wrapped figure in the shoebox carefully and close the lid. Talk about what it might have been like for the disciples to see Jesus buried. End by thanking God for the gift of his Son. |
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| WEEK
2: The Guard Read Matthew 27:62-66. Place the "tomb" in the center of the table. Put the toy soldier next to the box as a "guard." How do you think the disciples felt when they saw the guarded tomb? Why did Pilate order the tomb to be guarded? What was he afraid of? End by asking God to help you trust in his plan for your lives, even when life feels uncertain. |
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| WEEK
3: The Empty Tomb During the week, remove the image of Jesus from the shoebox while keeping the cloth in place. At the beginning of your time together, set the closed box where everyone can see it. Ask a child to open the tomb very carefully and to look for Jesus in the linens. Talk about how Mary might have felt when she discovered that Jesus was alive (John 20:10-18). What does it mean to you that Jesus rose from the dead? Leave the box open this week to remind you of Jesus' victory over death. |
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| WEEK
4: The Risen Lord Read John 20:1-3, 5-8, 14-16. Bring the picture of Jesus out and have the children take turns reading Mary's part. What was it like for Mary to realize she was speaking to Jesus? Talk about how God kept his promise to give us eternal life by overcoming death. End by thanking God for his great love. |
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| Karen L. Maudlin, Psy.D., is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in family therapy. She also taught in a Montessori-based children's worship program at her church. | ||
| This story originally came from Christianity Today | ||
| Easter Surprise Packages Craft | ||
| When talking about the surprise Jesus' friends must have felt about the empty tomb have the kids make surprise packages. You can also use this as an outreach tool. Hand out these gifts and in the inside put candy and a message explaining that Jesus gave us the greatest gift off all, eternal life, by dying on the cross for our sins. | ||
| What you will
need: Toilet paper tubes, wrapping or tissue paper, tape, chenille wires,
index cards, markers stickers, small candies, gum or toys. What to do: Have each child print a bible verse (Easter related) on an index card and then decorate the card. Fold or roll it to fit in the tube; then fill with candy and wrap with paper and tie ends with the chenille wires (like the English cracker style). Have them give it to someone to surprise them. Then you surprise your students with one for them that you made the night before! |
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| “Missing”-An Easter Drama | ||
| This drama is based on the scriptures in Matthew 28:1-4 and this passage can be read beforehand. | ||
| Cast:
3 guards If technically possible start sketch with a flash of light or stage pyrotechnic explosion, and/or sound effect of explosion, earthquake, etc. |
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| Scene: A garden; the guards are lying on the ground, 2 of them perfectly still, and one (Guard 1) shaking slightly. | ||
| Guard 1 (slowly gets to his feet, still shaking and looking around in fear; walks over to Guard 2 and shakes him) Wake up, wake up. | ||
| Guard 2 (jumps to his feet, bolt awake, thinks the angel is still there) I'll be good, I promise I'll be good...(breaks off when he realizes that the angel has gone, and turns to Guard 1) Did you see it, I mean him, I mean that, that BEING...? | ||
| Guard 1 I'm not sure, I think we must have imagined it. | ||
| Guard 2 (looking behind Guard 1) Well, we didn't imagine THAT (pointing) - look, the stone's been rolled away. | ||
| Guard 1 Oh no - you know what that could mean - someone's stolen the body! | ||
| Guard 2 We'd better check - I'll wait here while you pop inside. | ||
| Guard 1 No way - you go inside! | ||
| Guard 2 Not me! | ||
| Guard 1 Well one of us has got to do it...unless (they both turn and look at Guard 3, who is still lying on the ground, then look at each other, give each other a grin and a thumbs up sign, and walk over to Guard 3) | ||
| Guard 1 (bending over Guard 3) Oh Theo, wakey wakey... | ||
| Guard 3 (starts sucking his thumb) Oh mummy; please can I have another 10 minutes in bed... | ||
| Guard 2 (Tiptoes up, leans over and shouts in his ear) NO! | ||
| Guard 3 (jumps up) Whoa, what, where, who, when, why, how.....Oh it's you two. I was having the weirdest dream - there was an earthquake, and an angel, and a rolling stone, and...oh! (Breaks off as he realizes, looking around, that it wasn't a dream) | ||
| Guard 2 Now Theo, we were just wondering if you'd be kind enough to pop over here (they start to guide him towards the tomb - which is offstage) | ||
| Guard 1 Just have a quick peek inside, and we'll be right behind you. | ||
| Guard 3 Hang on, wait a minute, I mean...aargh! (They push him offstage) | ||
| Guard 2 Now I'm sure the body will still be there - that angel chap was only here for a moment, and I didn't see him go inside, and besides he'd have needed some help to carry the body away... | ||
| Guard 1 Yeah, I mean it's not as if he could have got up and walked away, is it? | ||
| Guard 2 Now that WOULD be unusual...! | ||
| They both laugh, as Guard 3 walks back on. They're still laughing, and then they catch sight of the expression on Guard 3's face and stop laughing immediately. | ||
| Guard 3 (points back inside the tomb and finally stammers) It's EMPTY | ||
| All freeze. | ||
| The script may be used freely (ie. printed, copied and acted out in church services or other free events) with no permission required, or royalties due. However, it remains Copyright © 2000, Mike Burn and may not be published or sold without prior permission of the author. | ||
| http://www.familyworship.org.uk/files/missing_script.htm | ||
| Internet Resources | ||
| http://www.eastermessage.com/ A web page that is evangelistic in nature and it explores the meaning of and implications of Easter. | ||
| http://www.greatcom.org/resources/sharing_in_the_classroom/ A web page full of resources designed for teachers who want activities for explaining Easter to children in the classroom. Includes craft ideas, word searches, stories and games for kinder up. | ||
| http://www.calvin.edu/worship/teach_resources/planning/easter/ A web page that has a variety of worship resources. | ||
| http://www.completelyfreesoftware.com/cfs_why.html This is a testimony of someone who pirated software and why he stopped when he became a Christian. It also has free downloads so you can pass it on to computer geeks who may read the testimony as well as download some software! | ||
| www.annointedlinks.com This is a Christian search engine with heaps of links. You can search on keywords or topics. |
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