Editor's Note:

This game helps students consider how to BEHAVE around each other using the Fruits of the Spirit text.

Fruits of the Spirit Behavior Covenant

 A "Getting to Know You" Game

Purpose:

• Create a class covenant of behavior based on the Fruits of the Spirit
• Demonstrate the fruits of the Spirit in action
• Main idea: the Fruits of the Spirit are the qualities that help us know when we are showing love toward other people the way Jesus did.

Supplies:

• Bibles
• 9 slips of paper each with one quality: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
• Fruit candy such as Starbursts or fruit shaped candy from bulk candy bins.
• Polaroid, traditional or Digital Camera
• Covenant Behavior Poster Information Sheet
• Poster board and markers
• Glue or Spray Mount for taking up the photographs.

Playing the Game:

1. Set up the game by giving some background about Paul and the Fruits of the Spirit.
2. Read Galatians 5:22-23 aloud. Ask the kids to note the different qualities of the fruits of the Spirit.
3. Divide the kids into 9 groups of twos or threes. If you have fewer than 18 kids, ask the first team(s) to go twice. Let kids work at least in pairs.
4. Let each group pull a slip of folded paper from a hat. They are to huddle together for 2 minutes and decide how to act out this quality WITHOUT using the actual word. Encourage the kids to draw from their own experiences and problems in everyday life in producing (or not producing) these qualities.
5. Each group must decide upon a fruit to represent their quality. Think of some way to remember the quality by the fruit they choose eg. love – lime or kindness - kiwi (same letter), or joy - bananas ( a banana on its side looks like a smile). The goofier, the better they will remember the Fruits of the Spirit.
6.  Give the kids 2 minutes to figure out what fruit and how they will act it out.
7. Gather the class together. Ask a group to come forward.
8. The group performs a skit to demonstrate their fruit of the spirit. They must not use the actual word. Let them act for a minute and then ask the class to guess the quality. Do not shout out answers before called on the respond. Give each group an opportunity to act out their fruit. When the group is finished, ask the class what quality was represented. Ask what fruit they have chosen to represent their quality. Subsequent groups cannot repeat a fruit. It must be unique. Write the name of the fruit on the whiteboard with the quality it represents. Record this info also on the behavior covenant poster information sheet.
9. Take a photo of each group in action. These photos will be used in creating a Covenant Behavior poster.
10. Continue for the rest of the groups.
11. Record the fruit names on the Covenant poster information sheet.
12. When all groups are done, handout Starbursts or some other fruity candy.

Discussion Questions:

• Which quality was hard to enact?
• Which qualities are hard to do in their everyday lives? Why?
• Which qualities are easy to put into action?
  God’s spirit living in us makes us loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, generous, faithful, gentle and self-controlled. When we act in ways that produce the Fruits of the Holy Spirit, we show that God lives in our hearts.
• Can we agree to behave in ways that produce these qualities in Sunday school? Discuss a covenant of behavior.

Make a Behavior Covenant Poster

• Using the ideas developed during the skits, draw or paste on the poster board: the fruits that the children chose to represent the qualities, write the names of the qualities and paste the pictures you took of each skit to create a Behavior Covenant poster. All kids will then sign the poster as agreement to the behaviors for Sunday school.
• If you need to develop the pictures later, make outlines on the posterboard for each photo. Don't write in these spaces. Mount the photos on the poster board later and present the finished product to the kids next week.