Weekly Fun Plan: Gather in Prayer

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Welcome to this week’s Weekly Fun Plan: Gather in Prayer! If you haven’t already I recommend you read my introductory blog post “Faith-filled Fun: What Is It? And Why I Started It”. That post will give you some background into this blog and a little more in-depth explanation of my Weekly Fun Plans and how to use them.

This Week’s Theme: Gather in Prayer

You can’t have much of a relationship or friendship with someone if you never talk to them right? Well, it’s the same with God. If we want to have a close and fulfilling relationship with our creator, we need to talk to him regularly. And if we want our children to grow up with a close relationship with God, we need to teach them about the importance of prayer!

We need to “gather” together in prayer and we need to “gather” up lots of prayers and send them to God, just like a squirrel gathers up acorns. This week we learn about prayer, what it is, and why it’s so important. We do this through various fun squirrel & acorn-themed crafts, snacks, and activities. If you try anything in this week’s plan don’t forget to share your experiences on social media! Tag us @faithfilledfun on Instagram or use #faithfilledfun.

New Weekly Fun Plans drop on Mondays so stay up to date with the blog each week by subscribing to my email list!

close up of eating squirrel — Photo by Andrew Patrick Photo on Pexels.com

Bible Lesson: What to Read or Watch this week

Since this week we are learning about prayer, here are some great resources to read/watch:

If you have young children (ages 0-8):

Read the following Bible verses:
Watch “4 Stories on Why Prayer is Important for Kids | Bible Stories for Kids” by Minno – Bible Stories for Kids on YouTube. This is a fun 14-minute collection of animated videos that teaches on the topic of prayer and is geared towards young children.

If you have older children/teens (ages 9-18):

Read the same verses listed above and take notes on what they learn. Then have them answer the discussion questions for this week’s lesson and spend some time alone in prayer.

Bible Lesson: Questions to Ask Your Kids/Discuss this week

If you read the recommended Bible verses or watched the YouTube video your kids should be able to answer this week’s question:

What is prayer? Answer: Talking to God!

If you have little ones (ages 0-8):

I would focus on that one question first. Ask them the same question every morning or evening and see if they can remember the answer. Once they understand and remember that answer, move on to the additional discussion questions below.

If you have older children (ages 9-18):

Here are some additional questions you can discuss with them throughout the week:

When should we pray?
What should we pray about?
Do we have to say certain words or sound a certain way to pray to God?
Why is it important to pray?
How can we make talking to God part of our family routine?

Bible Lesson: Memory Verse

Memorizing scripture is vital to teaching our children at a young age. Recalling and reciting scripture that they’ve memorized will help them as they grow and go through trials in life. It will also encourage them, equip them to go out and be little disciples of Jesus, and strengthen their faith as they age.

This week let’s have your kids work on memorizing 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18. If you have little ones that struggle with the whole thing then work on having them memorize just 1 Thessalonians 5: 17.

Memorizing scripture is so much easier for kids if you can find a way to make it fun. Here are some different ideas to try as a family to help memorize this week’s verse:

Come up with some simple motions for each word of the verse and make a cheer or dance out of it.
Come up with your own melody and create a song out of it.
Make it a game. Start by saying one word or phrase of the verse at a time and have your kids repeat after you until you’ve gotten through the whole verse. Then repeat the process saying the words differently every time. Examples: slow, fast, in a silly voice, quiet, loud, etc.
Pass around a ball and every time someone catches the ball they have to say the next word that comes in the verse. Keep going until you have said the whole thing.

Once your child/children have got it, I recommend practicing reciting the verse each morning over breakfast or before they leave for school and maybe even again before bed. Make it a part of your routine and you’ll be amazed at how fast they will begin to pick it up.

Supplies needed for this week’s activities

Here is a quick list of all the supplies that you will need to complete all the suggested crafts, activities, and snacks for this week’s plan. For a list of my most used craft supplies, and things I will be utilizing often in future Weekly Fun Plans be sure to check out my Links page.

Recipe: Acorn Donut Holes

After watching this week’s video or practicing your memory verse, make and enjoy these easy and sweet Acorn Donut Holes.

Crafts:

This week, we are making Paper Acorn Handprints and Prayer Request Squirrels. Both crafts are simple, fun, and the perfect way to review the topic of prayer discussed in this week’s lesson!

Prayer Acorn Handprint:

For our first craft this week we’re making these super simple Prayer Acorn Handprints! Make them in a matter of minutes and inside your “prayer hands” write a prayer request or Bible verse. Follow the link for easy step-by-step instructions.

Prayer Request Squirrel:

Next, we have these fun Prayer Request Squirrels. Print off my free Prayer Request Squirrel PDF and use it as a simple prayer-themed coloring sheet or follow the link for an easy step-by-step guide to the tissue paper part of the craft.

Activities:

With our theme this week, “Gather in Prayer”, here are a few extra ideas for activities to do with your children:

Go on a nature hike – gather acorns, leaves, & other nature treasures you can find.
Spend time praying together as a family.
Ask family and friends how you can pray for them and make a prayer request wall.

Parenting Tip of the Week:

One easy way we can help our children build a strong foundation of faith is through the music we listen to in our homes and in the car. It can be such a passive activity having music on in the background while we cook dinner, while they play with their toys, or while we drive them to school or practice, but it can make such an impact. Fill your home with praise and worship music whenever possible. You’ll see the greatest effects of this when you suddenly hear your children singing along to the words of your favorite worship song. Check out my Spotify for playlists I’ve created specifically with Christian Songs for Kids and My Current Worship Favs to play in our home!

christian songs for kids spotify playlist

Prayers:

Lastly, I like to end each Weekly Fun Plan with some example prayers for your week. One is to pray with your kids, maybe before they get on the bus in the morning, before a meal, or before bed, and the other prayer is for you, the parent, to pray over your kids throughout the week.

Prayer to say with your kids this week:

Dear God, Thank You for always being there and always listening to my prayers. Thank you that we can come to you in prayer anytime, anywhere, and with anything. Amen.

Prayer to pray over your kids this week:

Dear Lord, Thank You for the gift of prayer and the amazing privilege to come to you with all our needs. Bless our family, and guide us as we aim to live for you every day. In Jesus name, amen.

I hope you have a wonderful week and don’t forget to subscribe to my email list and follow me on Instagram @faithfilledfun to stay up to date with the blog!