Sunday School and Blessing Based Spiritual Nurture
What one church is doing

Sunday School at Memorial United Presbyterian Church in Xenia, Ohio, has incorporated Blessing Based Spiritual Nurture into all of its elementary school activities. A shepherd in the program writes:

Teaching the Creation Story

We read the creation story from the Bible. For a different approach of re-telling the story, the children made bead necklaces. As the story is told, the children slide the white bead – light, day and night, a light blue bead – water and land, green for plants and trees, yellow – sun and stars, dark blue – living creatures in the sea, birds in the sky, red – animals on land and people, clear – God rested. The bead necklace is a good visual for the story as well as a remembrance tool.

Blessing Beads

We close Sunday School class by gathering around a Worship Table. On the table is a Christ candle, Blessing Balm, a Bible, lamb, Blessing beads. The beads are passed around and the child or teacher holding the beads slides a bead and tells the others how they are feeling – sad, happy, thankful…
After all have shared, one of the children closes the worship time with prayer.

Thank You Beads

Children strung colorful beads – 8 to 10 of them – on a ribbon. A cross, symbolic of Christ, was included on the string. Children slide a bead and thank God. This is a great visual reminder to us all of the blessings from God.

Holy Listening Stones

Holy Listening Stones are great to quiet and calm the children after an active activity. It is a time of stilling, sharing and reflecting. We then gather around the worship table to praise God.