All Age Christmas Day Service 2006

This year we are delighted to offer you three alternatives for use as part of an all-age Christmas service. We hope that they provide you with some ideas to construct your own service that appeals to all!

The Story Sack

Recently a colleague was telling us of a way to share your own personal faith story with children by using a story bag in which you place items that relate to your faith journey that explains your story in a more visual way for children. This idea is the basis for this year's All Age Christmas service and we thank Rosemary Kidd (Training & Development Officer, Manchester and Stockport) for her inspiration!

The retelling of the Christmas story is an important part of any Christmas service and we hope that this way opens up the story in many different ways for children and adults alike. After listing the item or prop from the sack we have expanded a little on the connection to the Christmas story. You may come up with many more of your own!

Prop – An old worn sack under the Christmas tree with the items below inside - Take the sack out and explain that it has been left there and perhaps we should all take a look inside and the contents.
As you take each item out of the sack you can either pass it around the children and adults or maybe lay it on a large table or covering at the front of the Church. The idea is that people get to experience each item either through sight, smell, or touch. Use ‘wondering’ type questions to ask those in the church to engage with the story that is being told - 'I wonder what this has to do with the Christmas story?, I wonder what this makes you think of?

Prop- silver tinsel – This can remind us of Mary, a young girl who was visited by angels and was asked to do an amazing and quite frightening thing by God – to have a special baby that would change the world.

Prop – a piece of carved wood – Mary was going to marry a man named Joseph who was a carpenter, he made things from wood.

Prop – a bag of sand- the long journey through the rough terrain that Mary and Joseph made on the donkey. What would the landscape have looked like, how would it have felt underfoot?

Prop – Hay- reminds us of the stable, used to keep the animals warm, used as food, harvested from the fields. After the long journey how would the stable have looked?

Prop – Nappy- When the baby was born it would not have had a nappy like this wrapped around it but it would have been bundled up to keep it warm from the cold night air. How do you imagine Mary and Joseph would have felt being so far away from home with a new baby to look after?

Prop – Woolly scarf – think about the shepherds and the sheep out on the hillside. Although we think of the sandy desert of Israel as being warm it gets very cold at night on the hills. (Check the actual weather in the area on the BBC weather site!)

Prop – a piece of velvet and/or a  crown – Other people who came to visit the new baby are described as Kings, Wise Men, or Astrologers who watch the stars. They had known where the baby was born by following a bright star in the sky. They too had travelled from far away to see Jesus.

Prop – A bottle of scented oils and a bowl – the gifts they bought remind is that Jesus was born to be a King, but not the kind of King that had great palaces and armies, but the kind of King who was to lead people to a new life and new understanding of how to live. Encourage the children to share in touching and smelling the oils.

Prop – pieces of sack cloth similar to the one used to put the items in. Remind all the congregation that this story is not just to be remembered at this time of year but it is part of out whole lives as Christians. At this time of year we can sometimes forget the whole story of the life of Christ and today you are giving them all a piece of the sack to take home and asking them to hold on to this and use it as a prayer reminder for the months to come.
Alternatively you may want to tie in the pieces of sack into the phrase 'sackcloth and ashes' – which was an Old Testament way of saying that we had to be humble before God. Jesus was humble in all that he did with the ultimate expression of this being his walk to the Cross and his willingness to give up his life for all of us. The piece of sack cloth can then be taken away by those present as a reminder of the connection between the baby Jesus and the crucifixion.

Storybooks
You may also want to take a storybook out of the sack and use it to tell the children a story that links with Christmas, here are some new publications that you may like to use-

On Angel Wings - Michael Morpurgo & Quentin Blake
Have you seen Christmas? Vicki Howie & Caroline Pedlar
Mystery in the Stable Lisa Flinn & Barbara Younger
The Snow Angel - Christine Leeson & Jane Chapman

Download The Story Sack here (pdf version)

The Sound story

Our colleague in Germany, Lutz Rochlitzer, shared with us a way of telling Bible stories through using sounds. He first played us only the sounds and asked us to guess what the story was, it took a few guesses but we got there!
Split the Christmas story into section headings (see examples below). The headings can be put onto overheads or powerpoint for projection onto a large screen or wall. After displaying the heading you play the sound. After going through the story once you can go back to the beginning and repeat the sounds but this time pause between each one and actually tell the story. If you don’t think people will guess the story without telling it then simply tell the story using the sounds, or of you think they will enjoy being tested then miss out the section headings the first time you play the sounds!

All the sounds are available for free download here as mp3 files (right click and 'Save Target as' to save on your pc)

Heading - Mary and the Angel
Sounds: Hark the Herald

About two thousand years ago, in the town of Nazareth, there lived a young woman named Mary. One day an angel appeared before her and told her she had been chosen to have a special baby. The baby would be God's son and she must call him Jesus.

Heading -Journey to Bethlehem
Sound: Donkey Clip clopping Donkey Braying

Soon after the angel's visit, Mary and Joseph were married. Mary was due to have her baby when they were told they had to go on a long journey to Bethlehem, which was where Joseph came from. This was because they had to pay a special tax. Mary had to ride on a donkey for a few days over the hills of Gallilee.

Heading - No room at the Inn
Sound: Footsteps Door slaming

At last Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem. It was crowded with other people who needed to pay their taxes. Mary was very tired and needed a place to stay. Walking around each inn, the story was the same. There was no room for them. Doors were slammed in their faces. Eventually, one kind innkeeper said he had a stable where he kept his animals that they were welcome to use.

Heading - Jesus is born
Sound: Baby crying

And so it was that a few hours later, Mary gave birth to her son in that stable. She wrapped Jesus in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger full of hay.

Heading - Shepherds hear the news
Sound: Sheep and Joy to the World

At the same time, on a hillside overlooking Bethlehem, some shepherds were watching over their sheep. A bright light appeared in the sky. They were very afraid. It was an angel sent by God. The angel told them not to be afraid, because he had some good news. He said the Son of God had been born and they should go and visit him.

Heading - Shepherds give gifts
Sound:Presents unwrapping

The shepherds wanted to go and see the baby. When they arrived at the stable, they were filled with joy at seeing Jesus lying in the manger. They knelt down and worshipped Him. They told Mary and Joseph how the angel had appeared in the sky and told them that Jesus was to be the Saviour of the world.

Heading - A new star appears
Sound: Celestial Disturbance

Far away in the East, Wise Men saw a new star shining high in the sky. These men studied the stars and they knew this was a very special star. They studied their scrolls where it said that whenever a bright new star appeared it meant that a great ruler had been born.

Heading - Following the Star
Sound: Hooves

The Wise Men decided to find this new ruler. They went to Jerusalem to see King Herod, as they thought the baby would be in the palace. They asked to see the child that would be King of the Jews. The king was troubled. He thought this new king may take away his throne. He told them to return when they had found the baby so that he could worship the child himself.

Heading - The Wise men give gifts
Sound: Presents unwrapping

The Wise Men were guided by the star to the stable in Bethlehem. Here they knelt down and worshipped Jesus. They gave him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. That night, the men had the same dream - an angel warned them that King Herod wanted to kill Jesus and told them not to go back to his palace. The Wise men never went back to Herod.

Heading - Christmas today
Sound : Church Bells

This story from over 2000 years ago is why we celebrate Christmas today - it is a story that brings great joy to all.

Download The Sound Story here (pdf version)

The Prayer Story

This prayer idea combines prayer and Bible study. Can you take the story and imagine yourself into the character’s situation? 

Suggested Passages to explore
Luke 2 v1-7
Luke 2 v8-20
Mathew 2 v1-12

Questions to explore
‘How would I have felt?’
‘What would my response have been?’ 
‘How did the character/ characters respond?
‘What would I do in that situation?’ 
‘What did the characters learn about God?'
‘Where was God in the whole picture?’

You can probably think up more questions to ask once you get into the flow. Background music may help people to meditate quietly, thinking their own thoughts and responses. You may want people to respond out loud.
Finish the meditation with a prayer.
You could use the meditation as the main content of the service and have different readers as well as interspersing it with hymns. We have suggested some questions after some of the sections for you.

The Birth of Jesus
Luke 2 v1-7

Caesar Augustus was a Roman.
He was the ruler of the whole Roman world.
He was the ruler of the country where Jesus was born.

Caesar Augustus wanted to count the people.
He wanted to know how many people he ruled over.
Everyone had to be counted.
They had to go to the town where they had been born.
They were counted in the town where they had been born. 'How would I have felt?'

Joseph had been born in Bethlehem.
He had to go to Bethlehem to be counted.
Mary went with him to Bethlehem.
Her baby was nearly ready to be born.

The town of Bethlehem was very busy.
All the inns were very busy.
There was no room for Mary and Joseph in the inns.
They had to sleep in a stable.

Mary’s baby was born.
The baby was a boy.
Mary wrapped the baby in cloths.
She laid him in the animals’ feeding box.
Mary and Joseph called the baby Jesus.'What had Mary learnt about God?'

Luke 2 v8-20

The shepherds and the angels
Some shepherds were in the fields.
They were looking after their sheep.
It was night-time.

Suddenly there was an angel in the sky.
The shepherds saw a bright light.
The angel and the bright light came from God.
The shepherds were frightened. 'What would my response have been?'

The angel said to the shepherds:
‘Don’t be frightened.
I have good news for you.
This good news should make everybody happy.

A baby has been born today in Bethlehem.
This is a special baby.
He is the special baby God promised.

Suddenly there were lots of angels in the sky.
The angels sang praise to God.
They sang:
‘Praise to God in heaven.
Peace to people on earth.’ 'What did the shepherds think and do next'
  
Then the angels went back to heaven.
The shepherds said:
‘We will go to Bethlehem.
We will go to see the baby.’

The shepherds went quickly to Bethlehem.
They found Mary and Joseph.
They found the baby in the animals’ feeding box.
They were happy to see the baby.
Mary was happy that they had come to see the baby.

Later the shepherds went back to the fields.
They told lots of people about the baby.
They said thank you to God for the baby.

The visit of the wise men
Mathew 2 v1-12

King Herod was the king of the Jewish people.
He lived in a palace in Jerusalem.
Jerusalem was the capital city.

One day some wise men arrived at the palace.
They had travelled a long way.
They said to King Herod:
‘We have seen a new star in the sky.
The star tells us that a baby has been born.
The baby will be king of the Jewish people.
We are looking for the baby.
Where is he?
We want to visit him.''What did Herod think and feel?'

King Herod was very angry.
He was the only king.
He didn’t want another king.
He called together his holy men.
He called together the people who taught the law.
He asked them where the special baby was to be born.
They answered:
‘In Bethlehem.
A prophet said the special baby would be born in Bethlehem.’

Then King Herod called the wise men.
He asked them exactly when the new star had appeared.
He sent them to Bethlehem.
He said:
‘Go and find the baby.
Then tell me where he is.
I want to visit him.
I want to tell him I love him too.’

The wise men left the palace.
They followed the star again.
The star was moving.
The star stopped moving above a house.
The wise men went into the house.
Jesus and his mother were in the house.
The wise men bowed down to Jesus.
They told Jesus they loved him.
They gave him some very valuable presents.
They gave him gold and two kinds of perfume. 'What would you have given the baby?'

The wise men had a dream.
The dream gave them a warning.
It warned them not to go back to the palace.
It warned them that King Herod wanted to kill Jesus.
So the wise men did not go back to the palace.
They went back to their own country.
But they went back a different way. 'How did the kings feel when they got home?'

Download The Prayer Story here (pdf version)