Horizons Kids is a children’s ministry run by Horizons International that holds weekly Saturday meetings and other events, in addition to kids camps throughout the year.

This fall, for the Saturday morning meetings, the Horizons Kids staff decided to try a new approach with the children by planning different series. They decided to start with a series on creation. Instead of telling the whole creation story they divided it by days; one day of creation per meeting. The team planned the whole curriculum, making sure to include educational videos, games related to the stories, creative ways to tell the stories, bible verses for each day, and they even made sure to pick worship songs linked directly to each lesson.

Daily Breakdown of seven part creation series:

Day 1: Let there be light!

Staff used this day to discuss light and darkness, not only in creation but in our lives. The worship songs were about light and darkness and then they played games where the children got the chance to experience the importance of light. They used visual aids to help with the story and later played a game of opposites. 

Day 2: God created the Heavens!

The team called the lesson, “the wonderful world that God created,” and the worship songs were about the wonders of God’s creation. We played games for the children to experience the difference between sky, land, and sea. The story was told as a skit acted out by the Horizons Kids staff. The Bible verse was written out on cloud shaped cards for the kids to keep.

Day 3: God created land and vegetation!

The focus of the third meeting was that God takes care of all His creation and that is why He prepared land and food for us before He even made us. The worship that day was focused on a grateful attitude. After worship the team showed a video of amazing plants that God created that we don’t see in our daily lives. The children were astonished! Later they played games that involved fruits and vegetables to make the children more acquainted with them. The bible verse was written on flower shaped cards that they had to order and place on green grass.

Day 4: God created the heavenly bodies!

In this meeting Horizons Kids staff discussed timings and seasons with the children. The main purpose was for them to understand that in every season they need to keep a relationship with God. They will worship Him through it all, as long as they live. The main worship song said “as long as there’s light in the sun and water in the sea, i will worship you.” As for the educational part; the children watched a short video on the sounds of different planets that they really enjoyed.

Day 5: God created sea creatures and birds!

For the purpose of leaving the creation of man in a meeting by itself, the Horizons Kids team decided to place the creation of all animals in the 5th meeting. However, they did explain to the children that land creatures were created on day 6.

The worship was focused on animals created by God and worshipping Him. The story was told with animal hand puppets. They used lots of visual aids, for example we showed them pictures of baby animals that most of them had never seen before. And to enjoy the time, they showed them a video of animals doing funny things. They also played games with the object of teaching them where each animal lives (land- sea- air).

Day 6: God created dry land creatures and man!

Creation of human beings was the main focus of this meeting. The worship focused on how special all the kids are in God’s eyes, how beautiful God made them and that He created each one of them because of His great love for us! The story was told using visual aids on a powerpoint presentation. Then the children watched a video which took the kids on a trip inside the human body. They were able to explore what’s inside their bodies which they have never had the opportunity to learn about.  The children also had fun sketching themselves. 

Day 7: God rested!

God rested on the 7th day and on the 7th meeting of this series the Horizons Kids staff taught the children a very important biblical principal: Rest! In order to do that they explained at first the purpose of the Sabbath and then worshiped and prayed before dividing the kids into four teams. The teams rotated between four stations for fifteen minutes each.

• The first station was about finding rest and releasing tension through physical activity. Staff prepared a mini ping pong table and the children took turns playing.
• The second station was about finding rest through artwork. Staff prepared seven paper plates, each representing a day of creation and each child chose one design to make. As they were making these crafts the teacher explained that by doing art we can meditate and reflect on the Word of God. 
• The third station was about finding rest through calming activities. Staff gave them the example of making puzzles but explained on this station that they could rest in coloring or any activity that would help them quiet the storm inside of them. This was a hard station because the children have gone through so much in their lives and don’t know how to remain calm!
• The final station was about allowing people to pamper you and help you rest. The team gave them two options at the station: face painting and nail polish for girls. The kids were so happy at this station!

At the end, we asked each team to come and take a group photo in order to remember who were the people that they took their first sabbath with!

Pray with us that this series will continue to bring change in the lives of the Horizons Kids!

If it is on your hear to give to the Horizons Kids ministry, you can do so at this link. There is always a need!