"Nothing to do?" Cure those summer grumbles with this beaded craft & lesson!

Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you ... shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of Life--  Philippians 2:14-16

Have you noticed tempers rising (along with the temperature) on these last days of summer?  Complaints of "nothing to do" after all the "fun" of summer has been done?  Such attitudes, however common today, keep us all from shining like Jesus, don't they?  Complaining and arguing plague all God's children regardless of age, so gather your crew together for some heart-to-heart re-grouping!

The materials you need are simple:  10 Pony beads (glow-in-the-dark, UV, heart-shaped and/or multi-colored); and 30" lanyard lacing, string, ribbon to make each cross necklace.

The approach is simple too: Read together Philippians 2:14-16.  Have each person pick out 10 beads of their choosing -- and then share 10 things from summer and upcoming fall that they are THANKFUL for while making this 10-bead cross necklace.  Thankfulness cures grumbling, don't you know!

To turn your plain pony beads into a cross shape, center your first bead on the lacing and "stack" the second one on top, threading BOTH ends of the lacing through the opposite sides of the top bead (the red one here).

Repeat stacking and threading for the next two beads (orange and yellow).


For the arms of the cross, thread ONE lacing end through two more beads, threading BACK through the center of the first bead you did (the red one here).  Repeat this step using the OTHER lacing end for the other arm of the cross.

Lastly, thread BOTH laces together through the holes of two more beads (traditional beading here). Tighten any loose spots and knot at the top.

If you do have glow-in-the-dark beads (readily available at craft stores) or the color-changing UV beads handy, the cross' "cool-factor" increases significantly-- for who doesn't ooh and ahh for things that glow at night or change color with the sun? 

Regardless of your supplies, you're sure to find cooler heads and a bit more thankfulness in the air as you finish out this summer.  Now that's how we really shine for Him, wouldn't you say?

   

Layer Learning Beautifully!

From the fullness of His grace we have all received one blessing after another.  John 1:16

We all learn one layer at a time, don't we? And yet one-layer learning, especially when it comes to God and His Word, doesn't cut it if we want to teach Biblically and nurture real maturity?  So how can we help kids better grasp the full and many-layered topics of God's character, salvation, faith, grace, etc.--without overwhelming them?  

The first 18 verses in John 1 are just one of the many "deep-water" places in Scripture. Yet even here, there are clear, simple words of truth you can give young hearts and minds to grasp.  Words that lead to understanding the next thought, and the next thought. Words that can be shared at home, conveyed in prayer, and pondered on throughout the week. 

Here's a fun, simple way to present such a many-layered lesson to a child. 
You will need cardstock, (white or light-colored), plastic straws and a hole-punch that matches the diameter of the straw:
-Decide how many layers (how many key points) you want to make and label each in a flower-shaped circle on cardstock that can be copied (if teaching more than one child).   I broke down the John 1 passage into 5 key points.  Ideally you'd want at least 3 and no more than 7 layers.   I traced the flower shapes from a variety of craft foam shapes from little (1") to big (5"). Circular shapes can be traced outlining flowers and helping with cutting.

-I added a leaf layer to tag the Scripture address  (optional) 








- Have child color and embellish each flower and cut out

- Hole-punch each layer in its center

-Insert straw into leaf piece, then add flower layers from biggest to smallest onto straw.  Starbuck's green straws work great, though your hole-punch may not be big enough to fill all on easily. Mine wasn't.  A smaller hole worked well with slim stirrer straws I had. (Cheaper too).

 
Now your multi-layered lesson can be held simply in a child's hand.  Put in a vase or stuck in a pot at home.  And perhaps this pretty flower will promote some  real questions, heartfelt discussions and maybe some prayer.  A beautiful way to grow, I'd say!