Synergy (our children's ministry) in its evening church permutation covers a huge range, K-5th. And I love it and I love them but it makes prep interesting. Some of the kids know their Bible inside and out. Some don't seem to have a bit of focus but are taking it all in. Some are pre-literate. On a given week we could have two kids or 15.
And when you throw in a major holiday like Christmas but don't actually meet since the first Sunday in Hanukkah (unexpected 14" of snow in NC, in addition to all the other programs and planned time off from evening church), you get to cover some interesting ground for Epiphany.
Like a cursory read-thru of the whole of Luke 2 and Matthew 2 with the kids, using my VeggieTales creche. They've all heard the story of Christmas but how much of it do they know?
Our pastor has been preaching thru Jeremiah so he's alluded to the prophecy of the slaughter of the innocents and its initial context of the Israelites going into exile, but to read it again out of Matthew, who calls out that it was Jeremiah, it's neat to see them put that together. Even if they're talking about the way soldiers killed the 2-and-unders. I told them they were probably all right in their death-by-_____; there were a lot of kids killed. Not just Jesus? Nope, aimed for one and took out a bunch in the looking. But the one got away.
Thing is, I myself learned a new tradition this year when my friend, an Episcopal priest, shared a pic of the chalk he bought for his congregation.
Here's a full article which goes into much fuller explanation.
What we did:
First we blessed the chalk, then used the chalk to write a secret code on the church entryway:
20*C+M+B+19
Which not only contains a numeric code of 20 times C, which is kinda like century, plus 19, for the year it is...
...It also contains the initials of the magi, or wise men, who according to tradition are Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar...
...And it has them following the star, as it were...
...And it alludes to a Latin blessing: Christus Mansionem Benedicat. Christ bless this house.
Then for take home art and to bless our own homes we did some chalk art of mountains and the secret code, and a prayer.
Visit, O blessed Lord, this home
with the gladness of your presence.
Bless it and all who live or visit here
with the gift of your love; and grant that
we may show your love to each other
and all whose lives we touch.
Lord Jesus Christ, be with us now and forever.
Amen.
