Many times, children’s pastors stress about Easter Sunday. The idea is more children will be there that Sunday, and they need to be at their best if they want to win those children into the Kingdom. Here are 3 things to remember to make your life easier on Easter Sunday.
1. Most of the effective ministry you do will be the day in and day out discipling of children. Ministry on one day out of the year is not as important as ministry throughout the year.
2. Your job is to convey the Good News of the Gospel. Don’t worry about all the gimmicks and circus tricks that are promoted in children’s ministry. The important thing has always been the Gospel.
3. It is not your job to save children. It is your job to preach the Gospel in a way children can understand and respond to. It is the Holy Spirit’s job to convict and convince children to be saved.
Easter parties are great events to have for children in your ministry. Here some things to consider.
When will you have the party? Easter Sunday after church is not a practical time. But you could have the party during church on Easter. Or you could have the party after church on Palm Sunday. The Saturday before Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday are good times to have it as well.
What type of party will you have?
Easter Egg Hunts: These are very popular, but they have drawbacks. You need to have church property large enough to hide the eggs to make if fun. If you don’t, look for a park or a parent’s yard where you can hide eggs. Don’t use real eggs. Buy the plastic eggs from the dollar store and stuff them with candy or toys you can buy in bulk. Or you can put tickets in the eggs the children can use to purchase prizes. That way, each child gets prizes. You’ll also want grand prizes you can give away to children who collect the most eggs. Easter baskets work good for this. In some areas of the country, snow and rain are problems at this time of year. If that’s the case, make sure to schedule a rain date.
Easter Carnival: A carnival can work well even indoors. Call your local carnival rental place and see if they’ll donate the games for the carnival. Some places will if the games aren’t being used. Also if you have a carpenter in your church, consider having him make some games you can use. You can give out tickets, candy, or prizes for each game won.
Fun Sunday: If you have the party during or after church on a Sunday, consider having pizza, pop, and treats for the children. You could also show an Easter movie in the sanctuary on the “big screen” like in a movie theater. You could have gospel illusions, games, crafts, and other activities.
How Will You Present The Message: An Easter party is a prime opportunity to present the message of salvation to children. Think of a gospel illusion, story, or object lesson you can use for a short 5 minute message.
Get Donations: Contact pizza places, bowling alleys, skating rinks, and fast food restaurants to see if they’d be willing to donate free gift certificates to their establishments that you can give as door prizes. Most businesses are willing to do this.
Plan Ahead: Get the workers you need. Decide how you’ll spread the word. Find people to set up and do follow-up. The better you plan ahead, the better this party will go.
Pray: This is a great opportunity to reach unchurched children. Pray for God to move during this party.
There are many different ways to handle Easter Sunday in children’s church. Some children’s pastors believe this is an opportunity to reach children who are never in church with the Gospel. Others want to make it a fun day so children who don’t normally attend will want to come back. Still others think Easter Sunday should be for families, and children should be in the adult service with their parents.
Please take a moment to vote in this poll and let me know how you handle Easter Sunday. If you want, also add a comment with what you do to make the day special.
Palm Sunday is this Sunday. Here’s a lesson that you can use to make the day powerful.
Theme: God Wants Children To Praise Him
Verse: Matthew 21:16 (NIV) …From the lips of children and infantsyou, Lord, have called forth your praise
Game: Pin the Tail on the Donkey
You can buy this at most party supply stores.
After playing the game a few times, talk to the children about how Jesus rode to Jerusalem on a donkey.
Activity: Palm Branch Limbo
To play “Palm Branch Limbo,” you will need a few palm branches. These branches are easily found in department stores and floral shops weeks leading up to Palm Sunday. The children will have to limbo under the palm branches while the other children around them cheer them on.
Remind the children of how palm branches were placed in front of Jesus as the crowd around Him cheered Him on and shouted praises to Him.
Bible Story: Jesus Enters Jerusalem (Matthew 21:1-17)
You can assign children parts and have them act out this story.
When Jesus entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, he rode in on a colt like a king. A colt is a young donkey. That means a child donkey held the full glory of God on his back. Child can have the full glory of God in them. You don’t have to wait until you’re grown up.
Everyone heard that Jesus was coming and ran out to meet Him. Some laid palm branches on the ground for Him to ride on. Others waved palm branches and shouted Hosanna, Son of David. They called Him Son of David because that was what they called the Messiah. They knew that the Messiah would have King David as an ancestor in His family tree. Hosanna means “save us” or “rescue us”. They were recognizing that Jesus is the Son of God who had come to save them. Imagine being in the crowd that day and waving palm branches to Jesus and shouting “Hosanna”.
After Jesus rode into Jerusalem, He went to the temple. There were men outside selling and cheating people. This made Jesus angry that these men would cheat people in the Temple of God. He knocked over their tables and said, “It is written, my house will be called a house of prayer. You have made it into a den of thieves.”
This made the religious leaders angry. They made money off these men who cheated the people.
At that point, children ran up to Jesus and waved palm shouting “Hosanna, Son of David.” Children, let’s use our hands to praise Jesus the way these children did. (Encourage the children to shout praises.)
Some of the religious leaders were angry that the children were praising Jesus. They said, “Do you hear what those children are saying? Tell them to be quiet.”
Jesus defended the children. He said, ““Have you never read,“‘From the lips of children and infants you, Lord, have called forth your praise?”
Jesus wants children to praise Him. (Encourage children to shout praises to God.)
Object Lesson: Wave Your Palms
When Jesus entered Jerusalem, children and adult grabbed palm branches to praise him with. We don’t always have palm branches around, but we can still praise Jesus with our palms. (Hold up your hands.) God created us with two palms we can always use to praise Him with. Let’s hold up our palms now and shout “Praise the Lord”.
Object Lesson: The Rocks Will Cry Out
Supplies Needed: rocks
If you have enough rocks, give a rock or pebble to each child to take home. Tell them to put it out some place to remind them to Praise the Lord.
Have any of you ever heard a rock talk? After the Pharisees tried to get Jesus to stop the children from praising Him, Jesus said something very interesting. He said if we don’t praise Him, the rocks will cry out praise.
(Show the rocks) Have any of you ever heard a rock speak? That was amazing what Jesus said. But if children hadn’t praised Him as the Messiah the day he entered Jerusalem, that’s just what would have happened. Rocks not only would have spoke, they would have cried out praises to God.
God still wants His children to praise Him. I don’t want the rocks to cry out my praise. I want to praise God with my own mouth.
Let’s do that right now. On the count of three, let’s all shout “Praise the Lord”.
Lesson: God Wants Children to Praise
Quote the memory verse for today’s lesson. Matthew 21:16 … From the lips of children and infantsyou, Lord, have called forth your praise
When Jesus said this, He said it in Hebrew. It was written down in Greek. And we quote the verse in English. What the verse really meant in the original language is that God taught children and babies to lead praise. That means that Jesus not only wants children to praise Him, He wants children to lead praise.
Have you ever seen a church that had children lead praise and worship in Big Church. Most churches normally have adults leading praise, but God wants children to lead praise. That doesn’t mean you have to join the adult praise team. But it does mean if you praise God with your whole heart, adults will see it and want to praise God too.
Ask the children to make a decision to praise God with their whole hearts. If you have time, lead them in another praise song and encourage them to praise God with their whole hearts while they sing it.
Craft Activity: Hand Palms
Supplies Needed: construction paper, craft (Popsicle) sticks, scissors
Have children trace their hand prints onto construction paper. Have them cut out the hand prints and glue them onto the craft sticks.
Remind the children that we made these palm branches to remind us that we all have palms to wave when we praise the Lord.s
Tomorrow many of you will have Easter egg hunts and parties where you will share the Gospel message.
Then on Easter Sunday, most of you will have special children’s services where the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is taught in creative ways.
I pray that the Lord uses you in a mighty way and that many children come to know Him as a result of your faithfulness. I pray that many new children will come to church for the first time to hear the Gospel message. And I pray that you won’t be overwhelmed by the task ahead of you and its eternal significance.
Remember, the Holy Spirit goes before you. Your mission is to be faithful and obedient. God is responsible for the results.
I love using short video clips in children’s ministry. Here are some of my favorite downloadable video clips for Easter. Click on the name of the video to find the link where you can buy and download it.
This is a list of the best Easter Videos For Children in order. This is an update from an earlier post. Some of the movies include video clips.
1. The Visual Bible For Kids: The Story Behind The Cross (Not available for sale on DVD, but parts 2 & 3 are on YouTube, and you can buy it in VHS. I included it because in my opinion, it is the best kid’s Easter story ever made.)
Easter parties are great events to have for children in your ministry. Here some things to consider.
When will you have the party? Easter Sunday after church is not a practical time. But you could have the party during church on Easter. Or you could have the party after church on Palm Sunday. The Saturday before Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday are good times to have it as well.
What type of party will you have?
Easter Egg Hunts: These are very popular, but they have drawbacks. You need to have church property large enough to hide the eggs to make if fun. If you don’t, look for a park or a parent’s yard where you can hide eggs. Don’t use real eggs. Buy the plastic eggs from the dollar store and stuff them with candy or toys you can buy in bulk. Or you can put tickets in the eggs the children can use to purchase prizes. That way, each child gets prizes. You’ll also want grand prizes you can give away to children who collect the most eggs. Easter baskets work good for this. In some areas of the country, snow and rain are problems at this time of year. If that’s the case, make sure to schedule a rain date.
Easter Carnival: A carnival can work well even indoors. Call your local carnival rental place and see if they’ll donate the games for the carnival. Some places will if the games aren’t being used. Also if you have a carpenter in your church, consider having him make some games you can use. You can give out tickets, candy, or prizes for each game won.
Fun Sunday: If you have the party during or after church on a Sunday, consider having pizza, pop, and treats for the children. You could also show an Easter movie in the sanctuary on the “big screen” like in a movie theater. You could have gospel illusions, games, crafts, and other activities.
How Will You Present The Message: An Easter party is a prime opportunity to present the message of salvation to children. Think of a gospel illusion, story, or object lesson you can use for a short 5 minute message.
Get Donations: Contact pizza places, bowling alleys, skating rinks, and fast food restaurants to see if they’d be willing to donate free gift certificates to their establishments that you can give as door prizes. Most businesses are willing to do this.
Plan Ahead: Get the workers you need. Decide how you’ll spread the word. Find people to set up and do follow-up. The better you plan ahead, the better this party will go.
Pray: This is a great opportunity to reach unchurched children. Pray for God to move during this party.
OBJECT:small piece of cloth ripped slightly so it can be ripped in two easily
In Bible days, Jerusalem had a temple with a great curtain. This curtain hid the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark was a gold box that showed God is with us always. But the curtain kept people away from God. That’s because sin keeps us from being close to God. But Jesus died for our sins. He wants us to be close to God. When He died on the cross, the curtain hiding the Ark of the Covenant was ripped in two like this piece of cloth. (rip the piece of cloth) That’s because Jesus took the punishment for our sins. Now we don’t have anything separating us from God. God wants us to be close to Him. All we have to do now is accept Jesus as our Savior from sin.
This is a great object lesson to use for Easter or for a salvation message.
Items Needed: 2 glasses, red food coloring, dissolvo paper (Dissolvo paper is available on the Internet of in magic shops. It dissolves when it comes in contact with water.)
Preparation: Fill one glass with water. Put 2 to 3 drops of food coloring in the bottom of the second glass.
I put what you’ll say to the children in italics.
Hold up the dissolvo paper. I want a very brave volunteer. Pick an older child or a worker. Say to the volunteer, write on this paper the worst sin you’ve ever committed. Don’t worry. Nobody’s going to look at it. While the volunteer is writing, tease him by saying things like Having trouble thinking of just one? Only one sin. We haven’t got all day.
Fold the paper in two and place it in the second glass. Hold the glasses up making sure to cover the food coloring with your hand. Pour the water into the second glass. Then pour it back and forth a few times. Tell the volunteer to dish the paper out of the water. Of course it’s gone. Talk about who when we accept Jesus as our savior, He removes our sin as far as the east is from the west, as if it never happened.
Many times, children’s pastors stress about Easter Sunday. The idea is more children will be there that Sunday, and they need to be at their best if they want to win those children into the Kingdom. Here are 3 things to remember to make your life easier on Easter Sunday.
2. Your job is to convey the Good News of the Gospel. Don’t worry about all the gimmicks and circus tricks that are promoted in children’s ministry. The important thing has always been the Gospel.
Game: Pin the Tail on the Donkey
Bible Story: Jesus Enters Jerusalem (Matthew 21:1-17)
Craft Activity: Hand Palms
Easter parties are great events to have for children in your ministry. Here some things to consider.