Messy Church - Pilgrimage.
A short break in the Flower Festival posts because yesterday was a Messy Church day.
Our theme was Journeys and Pilgrimages. There is actually a Pilgrim's Walk on the island and I helped develop a Messy Church pack to go with it - so this was us using it!
Journeys, whether pilgrimages, journeys through life, or just a day's walking, will have ups and downs, encounter obstacles and occasional rocky patches, sometimes meander, and there are also occasional rewards.
See what you think of the activities we used to fit this theme -
A giant game of Snakes and Ladders - this was ongoing all afternoon with different participants - the lady with her back to us is our minister.
A 'Marble Run' where you dipped the marble into paint then, using a spoon, set it off down the slope to create a path that might be straight, or might meander a little. (Jackie was in charge of this and couldn't resist having a go at the end as the children headed off for their story.)
Here I am helping a small person and her granny to make an individual portion of Rocky Road -
And here is Val helping people make decorative 'scallop shells' from paper plates - pilgrims wore a scallop shell as a sign that they had completed one of the major pilgrimages.
There was also an activity, just visible in the background where the bucket is, where the children painted their own feet and walked along a long strip of paper, leaving their own path behind them. Then, at the other end, was a big bowl of water and towels to have their feet washed - also quite symbolic!
But the biggest hit was an outdoor obstacle course set up by niece number 2 - all of the children spent about half their time out there trying to improve their times along a course that included zig-zagging through chairs, throwing balls into buckets, crawling under a 'parachute, a couple of hoola hoops, and a plank to walk to the finish!
The minister then told a little of the story of Abraham, trusting in God and setting out on a journey which was, for him, into the unknown, everyone sang 'One more step along the World I go', and then we had tea. As it was such a nice day this included jelly and ice-cream which proved to be a big hit!
Our theme was Journeys and Pilgrimages. There is actually a Pilgrim's Walk on the island and I helped develop a Messy Church pack to go with it - so this was us using it!
Journeys, whether pilgrimages, journeys through life, or just a day's walking, will have ups and downs, encounter obstacles and occasional rocky patches, sometimes meander, and there are also occasional rewards.
See what you think of the activities we used to fit this theme -
A giant game of Snakes and Ladders - this was ongoing all afternoon with different participants - the lady with her back to us is our minister.
A 'Marble Run' where you dipped the marble into paint then, using a spoon, set it off down the slope to create a path that might be straight, or might meander a little. (Jackie was in charge of this and couldn't resist having a go at the end as the children headed off for their story.)
Here I am helping a small person and her granny to make an individual portion of Rocky Road -
And here is Val helping people make decorative 'scallop shells' from paper plates - pilgrims wore a scallop shell as a sign that they had completed one of the major pilgrimages.
There was also an activity, just visible in the background where the bucket is, where the children painted their own feet and walked along a long strip of paper, leaving their own path behind them. Then, at the other end, was a big bowl of water and towels to have their feet washed - also quite symbolic!
But the biggest hit was an outdoor obstacle course set up by niece number 2 - all of the children spent about half their time out there trying to improve their times along a course that included zig-zagging through chairs, throwing balls into buckets, crawling under a 'parachute, a couple of hoola hoops, and a plank to walk to the finish!
The minister then told a little of the story of Abraham, trusting in God and setting out on a journey which was, for him, into the unknown, everyone sang 'One more step along the World I go', and then we had tea. As it was such a nice day this included jelly and ice-cream which proved to be a big hit!