Staying Together
Go outside and play Blob Tag. The object of the game is to tag all players, making them part of the Blob.
The game starts out as an ordinary game of tag except that as players are tagged, they join hands with the Blob (the person who is “it”) and become part of the Blob themselves. Only the outside hands of the Blob can be used for tagging. The last person caught becomes the new Blob (from the book, Games, compiled by Mary Hohenstein).
After playing, share a snack (popsicles or something to help everybody cool down) and talk about it.
What was the hardest part of the game?
What would have happened if the Blob wanted to go one way but the others wanted to go a different direction?
How did you work together?
It is important to work together to play the game. It is important to work together and learn to solve disagreements. Paul and Barnabas worked with Peter and James to solve a disagreement in the early church about the Gospel.
Three Steps
Put things that children might argue over (remote control, video game, one cookie, a favorite toy, etc.) in a bag. Divide the family members into pairs and let them choose an item from the bag. Give them a few minutes to come up with a short skit about a disagreement with the item. Take turns acting out the skits for each other.
Ask:
Did you know the people in the early church had disagreements?
Disagreements are going to happen. (If there is only one of something, there will be a disagreement!)
What disagreement did you learn about? (There was a disagreement about who could be saved; some people said the new believers had to keep the Jewish law to be right with God; etc.)
Here are three steps to solving disagreements.
Consider others.
Pride keeps us seeing how we like things, how we do things, or how we want things, instead of how others think or even what God wants. When we consider others’ opinions and suggestions, we can work on a solution. The Bible tells us to love others and to be patient with them.
Stay calm.
What happens when we get angry? (We say or do wrong things; we might attack the person instead of trying to find a solution; we aren’t able to listen to others, etc.)
Talk it out.
When the Christian believers did not agree, they talked about the problem. And remember, there was not just talking. There was also listening.
Disagreements will happen, but just as the early church worked together to solve a disagreement, we can too!
Write out the steps on construction paper (Let children decorate the page, if you like.) and post them on the refrigerator. Read them aloud and follow the steps when there is a disagreement.
God Wants You!
Paul and Barnabas disagreed with the early church leaders about who could be saved. The Jews wanted the Gentiles—a people very different from them—to be saved by keeping Jewish laws. Finally, they resolved the argument and accepted Gentiles. God wants ALL people to be part of His family.
Role-play meeting new people.
You meet a new child in the neighborhood from a different country.
You see a child your age in a wheelchair.
You are paired up with a child that others make fun of because of his or her clothes.
You meet an elderly person in the grocery store.
(A few ideas: make eye contact; smile; say “Hello;” introduce yourself; shake hands; don’t make comments about their handicap or appearance; etc.)
How do we treat people who are different from us? We must be kind and respectful to all people because God loves all people.
*Model this behavior and your children will catch more than even your words say.