Our First Week Together

This Wednesday was the first week of our Girlfriend group. We spent an hour getting to know each other with a bag of M&Ms. This neat game allowed us to gab about our funniest quirks and our favorite things, and our hidden secrets. It was a great way to form a safe place for us to share our most intimate of moments. I am going to attach the game below for those of you who work with youth regularly.

I think this will be a very successful next few weeks. The girls are already excited to get to see what the 22 year old will have to say. It is a nice age difference, but I am still young enough in their minds to know what they feel and to not have a "mom" view. I am very excited where they will lead me in my journey as well. I have always felt that my gifts were with children, and I am not saying that they aren't, but in just an hour I can see how God can use me in different ways.

The M&M Game:

http://www.group-games.com/ice-breakers/mm-game.html

This icebreaker is a simple way to help people introduce facts about themselves. It’s very flexible and adaptable – and (if you have a sweet tooth) delicious too! The M&Ms Game goes by other names: the Skittles Game, the Candy Game, the Color Game, among other names.

Setup

Pour M&Ms or any other multicolor candy into a bowl. Have everyone in the group grab as much or as little as they like from the bowl. Make sure that no one eats their candy right away.

How to Play

For each piece of M&M candy they took, they will have to answer a question, depending on its color. For example, you can designate:

• Red candy: favorite hobbies
• Green candy: favorite foods
• Yellow candy: favorite movies
• Orange candy: favorite places to travel
• Brown candy: most memorable or embarrassing moments
• Blue candy: wild cards (they can share anyone they choose)

You can be creative and choose any questions you think would be fitting for your group. The facilitator will then call out the color topic and everyone will go around the room sharing 1 answer per M&M. As an example: if you chose two red pieces of candy, you will have to name two of your favorite hobbies. After the individual has shared that color with the group, he/she may then eat their candy. Continue to go around the room until each color topic has been shared.

Doing Girlfriend Theology by Dori Grinenko Baker

I had the opportunity to read a book entitled Doing Girlfriend Theology for a class. It is a small group setting for young women, middle school through high school aged. The book lays out a process of meetings where each girl leads the group with an important story from her life. They then discuss the different theological motifs in the girl's story and help her see God in her story and in all of her stories. It was a way of empowering young women to live their story in the comfort of God's love and grace. The book also makes suggestions on how this can be used in male groups and co-ed groups.
"Addressing the problems of girl teens' missing voice (as a footnote to contemporary theology) Baker identifies feminist theology's 30-year disregard for teenage girls. She admits early on that the research result for this book was "to lead girls to more fulfilling lives because of a connection to their feminist inheritance" (page 20). Girlfriend Theology anticipates assisting marginalized teen girls in reclaiming their God-given humanity." Amazon.com
It's a great read and I will be starting a girls group next week based on this book and will be documenting our process in the following weeks.

Colors in God’s World: The Yellow Sun

Colors in God’s World: The Yellow Sun
“God made the two great lights – the brighter light to rule the day and the dimmer light to rule the night.” Genesis 1:16

Call to Worship
(Sung to “The Bear Went over the Mountain”)
Let’s worship God, let’s worship God, let’s worship God,
With joyful hearts, with joyful hearts, with joyful hearts,
Let’s worship God with joyful hearts!

Joys and Concerns
Have the children share a few joys and concerns they have and follow with a prayer thanking God for our joys and asking God to be with us in our concerns.

Sharing
Ask: What is something you like to do outdoors on a sunny day? (swimming, playing on the playground, etc.)
Listening
Begin by holding up the Bible. Ask: What book is this? (The Bible.)
Say: We learn a lot about God’s world in the Bible. In the first book of the Bible, the book of Genesis, we learn how God created the world. These verses tell of God creating the sun and the moon and the stars. “14 And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, 15and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.’ And it was so. 16God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth, 18to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.19And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day. Genesis 1:14-19” On the fourth day of creation, God made the sun. The sun gives energy and warmth to the world; causes plants to grow; and gives light. Without light, we would not be able to see any color in God’s world. Ask the children to each name one or two things in God’s world that they especially like to see.
Exploring
Sun weather mobile: Take a paper plate and have the children draw a sun on both sides of the plate. Have them glue streamers to the bottom and a string on top so they can hang them up.
Benediction
Say: Loving God, thank you so much for the yellow sun. Amen.

Colors in God’s World: White Manna

Colors in God’s World: White Manna

“The house of Israel called it Manna, it was like coriander seed, white and the taste of it was like wafers made of honey.” Exodus 16:31

Call to Worship
(Sung to “The Bear Went over the Mountain”)
Let’s worship God, let’s worship God, let’s worship God,
With joyful hearts, with joyful hearts, with joyful hearts,
Let’s worship God with joyful hearts!

Joys and Concerns
Have the children share a few joys and concerns they have and follow with a prayer thanking God for our joys and asking God to be with us in our concerns.

Sharing
Ask: Can you tell us one of your favorite foods? (pizza, candy, steak, etc.)
Listening
Tell the children the story of the Israelites and the manna.
Say: In the Bible, we hear about a man named Moses. Moses led his family and friends, they are called Israelites, out of Egypt into the Holy Land. To get to the Holy Land, they had to cross the desert. They got very hungry as they walked across the desert so God sent them a special food to eat. They found this food on the ground. Listen to our Bible verse again which tells us about this special food. “The house of Israel called it Manna, it was like coriander seed, white and the taste of it was like wafers made of honey.” This stuff called Manna is like saltine crackers and our Jewish friends still eat these crackers when they have celebrations.
God still gives us special foods. Our foods aren’t just white, like the manna, but it comes in many colors. Let’s go around and name a food, then tell what color it is. (Let the children take turns naming foods and telling their colors.)
Exploring
Have the children make a colorful table runner for your next church fellowship event. Roll out the paper and have the children watch you write “Thank you God for colorful foods.” Using butcher paper and markers, have the children decorate the runner with their favorite colorful foods. If the need ideas suggest grapes, pizza, cupcakes, bananas, etc.
Benediction
Say: Loving God, thank you so much for colorful foods. Amen.

Colors in God’s World: Red Mittens

Colors in God’s World: Red Mittens
“She is not afraid for her household when it snows, for all her household is clothed in crimson.” Proverbs 31:21
Call to Worship
(Sung to “The Bear Went over the Mountain”)
Let’s worship God, let’s worship God, let’s worship God,
With joyful hearts, with joyful hearts, with joyful hearts,
Let’s worship God with joyful hearts!

Joys and Concerns
Have the children share a few joys and concerns they have and follow with a prayer thanking God for our joys and asking God to be with us in our concerns.

Sharing
Ask: Can you tell us about a time when you enjoyed being in the snow? (I went sledding, skiing, etc)
Listening
To tell the story you will snip a cloud, a snow flake, a pair of mittens, and a snowman. Practice doing this. Use white paper for the cloud, the snowflake and the snowman, and red for the mittens.
Say: Even in Bible times, God sent beautiful snow! There’s a verse in the Bible that talks about a woman being ready for snow, because she had crimson clothing for her family to put on. This was probably a sort of wool which was a deep red in color. Listen to Jessica’s story:
Jessica looked up and saw a puffy (cut the cloud out and hold it up) cloud in the sky. “I hope it’s going to snow,“ she said to her friend. “I love it when God send us beautiful snow!” Just then, Jessica noticed a white (cut the snowflake out and hold it up) snowflake floating slowly to the ground. In a few minutes the snow was coming faster and faster. “Let’s make a cool (cut the snowman out and hold it up) snowman,” said Jessica. Just then her mother rushed out with two pairs of warm red (cut the mittens out and hold them up) mittens for Jessica and her friend. Before long, they had made a cool (hold up the snowman) snowman with the beautiful (hold up the snowflake)snowflakes that came from the puffy (hold up the cloud) cloud. “I’m glad God send us beautiful snow,” said Jessica. “Me too,” said her friend, “and I’m glad your mother brought us warm red (hold up the mittens) mittens.
Exploring
Lead the children through this action song, sung to the tune of “This is the Way We Wash Our Cloths.”
“This is the way we throw a snowball, throw a snowball, throw a snowball. This is the way we throw a snowball in God’s beautiful snow. (Pretend to pack then throw a snowball.)
This is the way we build a snowman, build a snowman, build a snowman. This is the way we build a snowman in God’s beautiful snow. (Pretend to roll a big snowball then lift it onto the snowman.)
This is the way we glide and slip, glide and slip, glide and slip. This is the way we glide and slip in God’s beautiful snow. (Pretend to glide and the slip.)
This is the way we twirl in the snow, twirl in the snow, twirl in the snow. This is the way we twirl in the snow in God’s beautiful snow. (Spread arms and twirl around.)
This is the way we taste the snowflakes taste the snowflakes, taste the snowflakes. This is the way we taste the snowflakes in God’s beautiful snow. (Tilt head back and stick out tongue.)
Encourage the children to help you create more snowy lyrics and motions.
Benediction
Say: Loving God, Thank you for all of the beautiful colors in your world. Amen.
More Exploring
Have the children color the mitten coloring sheet with the red mittens from the story.