Godly Play on the Seventh Sunday in Easter
Welcome to our Godly Play circle on the seventh Sunday in Easter! Today our story is “Jesus is Risen: The Road to Emmaus". You can find today's story in Luke's gospel here.
“Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:32).
If you'd like to revisit today's wondering questions, along with a few additional ones, they are as follows:
I wonder how Jesus' friends felt when Jesus died?
I wonder how they knew Jesus was alive? Or how they knew the person was Jesus?
I wonder what it felt like to recognize Jesus in the breaking of the bread?
I wonder if you have ever been close to bread like this?
I wonder how it feels to know Jesus is alive?
I wonder what it was like to tell others that Jesus is alive?
How can we help the children respond creatively to this story? Here are a few options:
Free response: Provide your child with a journal or a blank piece of paper with art supplies and invite him/her to simply respond to the story as they wish.
God-sightings: Our story this week reveals a literal God-sighting, but God is working all around us, and through all circumstances, all the time. As Father Tyler has suggested, sharing your own God-sightings is a great way to reflect with your child. Each day we receive small “I love you”s from God, but if we don't slow down and pay attention, we can miss them. Invite your child to share where they've seen God working this week.
Play the seeing game with your child: Give each child an opportunity to do something while the others observe him/her and try to detect what he/she is doing (suggest to the children that they do SMALL motions such as wink an eye, move one finger, move a toe, wiggle an ear). When an observer thinks he/she sees, say: "I SEE, I SEE"! If no one is able to guess what the other child is doing after several tries, then the children will "need help in seeing", just our story demonstrated today.
Chalk "seeing": Invite your child to go outside and let him/her draw a big pair of eye glasses in the driveway. Discuss what the disciples had trouble seeing and understanding from today's story.
As one final “bonus” activity, we are including a link here the FORMA “Color for Calm” coloring book. Feel free to print and color at home!