THE MESSY CHURCH MAGAZINE

Get! s y Me s MAY AUG 2017 Session material, news, stories and inspiration for Messy Churches THE MESSY CHURCH MAGAZINE Sessions in this issue: The still small voice The lost son John the Baptist The soldier s faith Holy Communion One big Messy family Messy Parables messychurch.org.uk 1

BRF, 15 The Chambers, Vineyard, Abingdon OX14 3FE +44 (0)1865 319700 enquiries@brf.org.uk BRF brf.org.uk Messy Church is part of The Bible Reading Fellowship, a Registered Charity (233280) ISBN 978 0 85746 457 6 First published 2017 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 All rights reserved Acknowledgements Unless otherwise stated, scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version (Anglicised edition). Copyright 1979, 1984, 2011 by Biblica. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Publishers, a Hachette UK company. All rights reserved. NIV is a registered trademark of Biblica. UK trademark number 1448790. Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. Scripture taken from The Holy Bible, International Children s Bible (ICB). Copyright 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Tommy Nelson, a division of Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. Every effort has been made to trace and contact copyright owners for material used in this resource. We apologise for any inadvertent omissions or errors, and would ask those concerned to contact us so that full acknowledgement can be made in the future. Editor: Olivia Warburton Subeditor: Rachel Tranter Proofreader: Kathryn Glendenning Designer: Rebecca J Hall Cover photos: Roberta Jantzi Egli, Debbie Smith, Rachel Harper, Helen Laird and Jonathan Brooks Printed in the UK by Stephens & George Print Group Note for subscribers Print copies are dispatched to arrive six weeks prior to the date on the cover of the magazine. The September 2017 issue should be with you around the middle of July. The PDF version of the magazine is also available for purchase and immediate download from the beginning of July. messychurch.org.uk/resources/get-messy Photocopying You re welcome to photocopy the Bible reflections and session outlines for use only within your team. Copying other parts of the magazine is not permitted. To order back issues of Get Messy! and Messy Church resources, email BRF at enquiries@brf. org.uk or telephone +44 (0)1865 319700. Send in news, stories, photos and general enquiries to our Messy Church administrator on +44 (0)1235 858246 or messychurch@brf.org.uk. Meet our session and Bible study writers for this issue Kai Bland lives in Lancashire with her husband and a hyperactive kitten. She works as an Anglican Family and Young People s Worker, which she loves challenges and all! She is also a Messy Church Regional Coordinator so she is privileged to see some fantastic Messy work happening. Jonathan Brooks heads up the Messy Church team at St Michael s C of E Church in Highgate, north London. His Messy Church experience began on a cool summer s afternoon in 2014, and has specialised in a good bangers n mash supper ever since! In his spare time, Jonathan uses lots of trains and reads more newspapers than is good for him. Rachel Harper lives in Suffolk with husband Stuart and young son Joshua. She is Messy Church Regional Coordinator for Suffolk and is involved in running Messy Church at the Salvation Army on Bramford Road in Ipswich. She loves all things Messy! Helen Laird is the Youth and Children s worker at Bromyard Road Methodist Church in Worcester, and has been running a Messy Church there for six years. She is also a Mission Enabler for Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury District. She is passionate about telling children, young people and their families about God s love, and helping them to start their own discipleship journey. Themes in this edition Another set of unmissable stories to get messy with this season. May features the still small voice of God speaking to Elijah. Set, as it is, at a time of burnout and deep-down weariness, the gentle story of God s loving concern for Elijah at his weakest may have resonance for some of the Messy families in your care. The parable of the lost son is one to enjoy in June, with its heartwarming picture of God s love for everyone, just as Father s Day hits some of us. Whatever the season, we can enjoy the revolting pig sty and the rejoicing father when his son returns. July may well be a warm month in the northern hemisphere, so perhaps John the Baptist can be accompanied by some outdoor splashy activities. Some churches will want to hold this a month earlier and celebrate John the Baptist s saint s day on 24 June. And in August we explore the encounter between Jesus and a Roman soldier, an outsider, someone who didn t deserve for a Jewish rabbi to do him any favours. As many people coming to Messy Church may feel like outsiders, they may appreciate the inclusive love of Jesus shown in this story. 2 @MessyChurchBRF

1. Ask God to bless and guide you as you consider what s most helpful to bring families in your community closer to him in the coming months. 2. Glance through the four sessions so that you have an overview of the months ahead, noting down resources that will take time to source. 3. Use the downloadable planning sheets to share this month s session with your core team in plenty of time to shape the ideas together to suit your own situation. 4. If you re meeting face to face with the team, talk about this month s theme, using the Messy team theme provided. 5. Tell God your worries. 6. Ensure that the whole extended team has copies of your final version of activities, together with the Bible reflection provided to give them the background they need. You could give them the link to the passage on www.biblegateway.com if you re not certain they have their own Bibles. 7. Include take-home ideas on handouts, texts or a Facebook page. 8. Print copies of the mealtime question cards for the meal tables. 9. Encourage review and reflection from everyone after the session has taken place and respond to suggestions for change ready for next time. 10. Thank God for wherever you saw him at work. Planning suggestions Contents Lucy Moore writes...5 Stories from Messy Churches far and wide...6 Messy Parables...9 Baptism: the journey begins...10 Messy Church Does Science...12 Youth column...13 The sacrament of Holy Communion...14 Messy Woodwork...16 SESSION MATERIAL May: The still small voice...18 June: The lost son...23 July: John the Baptist...28 August: The soldier s faith...33 Dear Jane...38 Go to messychurch. org.uk/getmessymay17 to download all templates at A4 size, including a session planning sheet IN THE NEXT ISSUE OF GET MESSY! September: A holy temple October: The ten bridesmaids November: Peace and comfort December: Christmas Joseph messychurch.org.uk 3

Coming soon does science Hannah Earnshaw is a PhD student at Durham, studying astrophysics and is on the shortlist for the one-way mission trip to Mars! I ve always loved finding out how things work whether it be the cutaway diagrams and models which let you look inside a piece of machinery and figure out which bits make other bits move, or an equation which very simply describes a very complicatedseeming phenomenon. One of my favourite experiences is that lightbulb moment when all of a sudden something that I didn t understand before now makes perfect sense, and I can see the world in a new light. At school, the class that did that for me was physics, and it was one of my favourite subjects. job is to analyse X-rays from beyond our galaxy to learn more about how black holes work, some of the most extreme and alien objects in existence. It s hard to find somewhere in the universe that is less like our Earth than the roiling, twisted space around a black hole filled with hot and brightly glowing gas, and yet it follows the same laws of physics that apply here on Earth. But learning new things about the world is not just exciting for its own sake getting to know creation provides us insight into the one who created it. For example, take the laws of physics. We observe them to be the same wherever we look in the universe everything, everywhere, following the same rules. This tells me of a God who is constant, not arbitrary, a God who plans and designs rather than doing things at random. And yet the amount of variety that these same laws generate is stunning, like the unique nature of each planet in our solar system, and the planets around other stars that are completely different again. And this tells me of God s boundless imagination and creative genius, that he made a universe that follows rules we are capable of discovering and comprehending, but which allows for asteroids and comets, nebulae and supernovae, spiral galaxies and elliptical galaxies, red dwarfs and blue super-giants, black holes and neutron stars and a beautiful planet full of all sorts of life which is our wonderful home. ISBN 978 0 85746 579 5 6.99 Available June 2017 12 @MessyChurchBRF I get a great sense of awe and wonder simply by looking up at a clear night sky. I wanted to know more about everything out there in space all those stars and planets that I could see, and everything further beyond them that I couldn t see, and most importantly how it all worked! That s why I went on to study physics at university, and then continued into a PhD in astronomy. And now my day BRF s new resource Messy Church Does Science, published in June, includes this and other perspectives on the relationship between science and faith, alongside ten sections comprising 100 sizzling ideas: Water; Earth, stars and space; Air; Light and colour; Human body; Plants; Animals; Power and energy; Transformations and reactions; and Time and measurement.

Reprinted with permission from Get Messy! May Aug 2017, published by The Bible Reading Fellowship Session material: May Go to messychurch. org.uk/getmessymay17 to download all templates at A4 size, including a session planning sheet Messy Reflection Helen Laird Then he was told, Go, stand on the mountain at attention before God. God will pass by. A hurricane wind ripped through the mountains and shattered the rocks before God, but God wasn t to be found in the wind; after the wind an earthquake, but God wasn t in the earthquake; and after the earthquake fire, but God wasn t in the fire; and after the fire a gentle and quiet whisper. When Elijah heard the quiet voice, he muffled his face with his great cloak, went to the mouth of the cave, and stood there. A quiet voice asked, So Elijah, now tell me, what are you doing here? Elijah said it again, I ve been working my heart out for God, the God-of-the-Angel-Armies, because the people of Israel have abandoned your covenant, destroyed your places of worship, and murdered your prophets. I m the only one left, and now they re trying to kill me. God said, Go back the way you came through the desert to Damascus. When you get there anoint Hazael; make him king over Aram. Then anoint Jehu son of Nimshi; make him king over Israel. Finally, anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. Anyone who escapes death by Hazael will be killed by Jehu; and anyone who escapes death by Jehu will be killed by Elisha. Meanwhile, I m preserving for myself seven thousand souls: the knees that haven t bowed to the god Baal, the mouths that haven t kissed his image. 1 Kings 19:11 18 (The Message) Elijah had seen the corruption in the king s court and in the priesthood. Now he was running away, afraid for his life, in hiding. Feeling lonely and discouraged, believing he was the only person left who was still true to God, in his fear he had forgotten that others too had remained faithful. Elijah knew that God was not in the destructive forces of the hurricane, earthquake or fire. It was only when the gentle quiet whisper came that Elijah knew God was there. He realised that God doesn t reveal himself only in powerful, miraculous ways, but also through quiet, gentle actions. What must it have felt like to be hiding in a cave, frightened for your life, when hurricanes, earthquakes and fires resound in the landscape around you? Each of those would be terrifying enough even if life was good. Yet Elijah was scared and disillusioned as the deafening commotion tore apart the land outside his hiding place. How liberating, comforting and reassuring must it have been for Elijah to hear God s voice in the gentle whisper that followed those destructive forces; how calming, how wonderful! We, like Elijah, run scared, hide from God and carry out our plans without seeking his guidance. I wonder how often people seek God among worship events, high-profile leaders or high-tech churches, where we might well miss him. God may well show his presence in those places, but do we look for him in the still, small quiet places? Take a step back from the busyness, the messiness of your lives, take a moment for silence, to listen humbly and quietly for his guidance. We should look for God at all times, in all settings and seek his guidance for all we do. Remember, though, it may come when you least expect it! Mealtime card What are you afraid of? Has someone ever been really mad at you for something you thought you were doing right? Elijah stood up for what he thought was right, even though he was scared. What cause would make you stand up against people? Take-home idea Take time each day to think of something that has scared you. Do as we will do in the celebration prayer and imagine it in a big bubble going up to God. God tells us again and again that we shouldn t be scared, so let s try to do that! Messy health check What has made you happy about the way your Messy Church has been going? 18 @MessyChurchBRF

Reprinted with permission from Get Messy! May Aug 2017, published by The Bible Reading Fellowship Session material: June Messy health check Who is currently your oldest member? And your youngest? How about celebrating them at your next Messy Church? How does this session help people grow in Christ? This story is often very familiar but endlessly deep and rich. Wherever we are in life, there is a character or a situation that we can identify with. Resist the temptation to say precisely what this parable means, and allow Messy families to enter it themselves. This session helps us to understand loss, loneliness and failure. But it also makes real for us the unwavering, unending love of our heavenly Father. This session can be a comforting reassurance, or a sharp cry for us to return home. Bible reference Luke 15:11 32 Messy team theme Picture yourself as the son at his lowest point, feeding the pigs. When have you felt like that? Who do you think this story was told for? For people who are lost? People who are found? This is a parable, but for some of us it might feel a bit like history. Are you ready to share your testimony and your faith? Question to start and end the session So why do you think Jesus told this story? 1 Activities 1. Forgiveness road You will need: paper; coloured acetate; felt tips; tissues Make a road out of the acetate. Write or draw something on the road that you regret or are sorry for. Wipe it away. Talk about what the son was thinking as he walked home and what he was sorry for. Have you ever walked somewhere, knowing you must face up to an apology? When the father came running, the son s tears were wiped away. Have we ever had feelings like this? 2. Seen from afar You will need: binoculars; paper; pens and pencils If you have a high place such as a church tower, give people binoculars and paper and ask them to draw a picture of something they can see far off. You could take photographs of details that must then be found by looking through the binoculars. If you have a small room, put up a piece of paper with small writing or pictures on, and try to read it from far away using the binoculars. Talk about the father who was scanning the horizon for his son. Talk about things or people you have watched out for, and what you could see through the binoculars. 3. Love-ly fence You will need: lollipop sticks; glue; sticky decorations Using lollipop sticks, make a garden fence. Be sure to decorate it, and maybe include a welcome sign. Talk about the father waiting at the gate for his son to return. The gate is a threshold that the son feared, yet is the entrance to the father s embrace of love. Talk about gates to keep people out and to keep them in. 4. Let us build a house You will need: small cardboard boxes or small pieces of card; noticeboard; drawing pins; pens 24 @MessyChurchBRF

Reprinted with permission from Get Messy! May Aug 2017, published by The Bible Reading Fellowship Session material: July John the Baptist by Helen Laird Celebration You will need: the Bible text Mark 1:1 11; the craft from Spirit for all (activity 10) Read the text and, each time the words baptism, forgiveness, repentance and confession are said, get the children to change places with someone else while shouting new life for all. The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, as it is written in Isaiah the prophet: I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way a voice of one calling in the wilderness, Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptised by him in the River Jordan. John wore clothing made of camel s hair, with a leather belt round his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. And this was his message: After me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptise you with water, but he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit. At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptised by John in the Jordan. Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased. Mark 1:1 11 Then read out these examples and see if they can see who is truly sorry and has changed how they behave. A mum is always losing her temper; she is tired and grumpy, shouting at her children for the slightest thing. She says sorry later, but it happens all over again the next day. A girl tells lies: she says her aunt is a model, that she has a boat, and that she is the teacher s favourite. She realises she shouldn t tell lies, and asks God to help her not to tell lies. She says sorry for the lies she has told, and then tries to not tell lies. A boy lies that he has a BMW, has been selected to play for Manchester United Youth Team and is earning 900 a week. He realises he shouldn t tell lies, and asks God to help him not to tell lies. He says sorry for the lies he has told, but carries on lying. Who is truly sorry, who truly wanted to be forgiven? Fetch out the dove from the craft earlier. Each of you have had the opportunity to place your mark on this dove, and it shows that everyone is welcome to have God s forgiveness, that you can say sorry for the wrong things and then try not to do them again. When God forgives us, the things we did are completely forgotten, like a pencil mark rubbed out with an eraser. Now that is true forgiveness. Prayer Thank you that you will forgive each and every one of us. When we ask for forgiveness, help us to try hard not to keep doing the wrong things, and help us to forgive others as happily as you forgive us. Amen Song suggestions God can do anything Doug Horley (Song Solutions Daybreak) God s people aren t super-brave superheroes John Hardwick Our God is a great big God Nigel and Jo Hemming (Vineyard) Meal suggestion Salad wraps and fruit salad 32 @MessyChurchBRF

To order Online: brfonline.org.uk Telephone: +44 (0)1865 319700 Mon Fri 9.15 17.30 Post: complete the order form and send to the address below Delivery times within the UK are normally 15 working days. Prices are correct at the time of going to press but may change without prior notice. BRF Title Price Qty Total Please complete in BLOCK CAPITALS POSTAGE AND PACKING CHARGES Order value UK Europe Rest of world Under 7.00 1.25 3.00 5.50 7.00 29.99 2.25 5.50 10.00 30.00 and over FREE Prices on request Total value of books Postage and packing Donation Total for this order Title First name/initials Surname Address Postcode Acc. No. Email Telephone Please keep me informed about BRF s books and resources q by email q by post Please keep me informed about the wider work of BRF q by email q by post Method of payment q Cheque (made payable to BRF) q MasterCard / Visa Card no. Valid from M M Y Y Expires M M Y Y Security code* Last 3 digits on the reverse of the card Signature* Date / / *ESSENTIAL IN ORDER TO PROCESS YOUR ORDER The Bible Reading Fellowship Gift Aid Declaration Please treat as Gift Aid donations all qualifying gifts of money made q today, q in the past four years, q and in the future or q My donation does not qualify for Gift Aid. I am a UK taxpayer and understand that if I pay less Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax in the current tax year than the amount of Gift Aid claimed on all my donations, it is my responsibility to pay any difference. Please notify BRF if you want to cancel this declaration, change your name or home address, or no longer pay sufficient tax on your income and/or capital gains. Please send your form to: BRF, 15 The Chambers, Vineyard, Abingdon OX14 3FE enquiries@brf.org.uk To read our terms and find out about cancelling your order, please visit brfonline.org.uk/terms. Messy Church is part of The Bible Reading Fellowship (BRF), a Registered Charity (233280)