Light as a Feather Demonstration
The Power of Working Together to Learn and Help Others
Q: Why bother to come to church, learn the Bible, and be with other people?
A: Because God has called us together to do things we can't do so well on our own. That's what Paul meant when he said that God has called us to be "like minded" --desiring to work together in harmony with each other to serve God. (Romans 15:5)
Light as a feather is an amazing demonstration of these ideas for all ages. Feel free to elaborate and adjust.
Here's the basic idea:
1. Have a medium size child lay on the floor. I'm calling him "Jim" in this example. Ask Jim ahead of time to be your volunteer.
2. Invite a smaller child to come try and pick up "Jim" off the floor. Let them try a few times. They won't be able to.
3. Make your point about how we the Church are more powerful together and with God than when we are on our own. God calls us together to make learning, growing, and helping others easier --and more fun.
4. Now invite all the rest of the children to kneel around Jim and put their hands* under Jim, then "on 3" lift him into the air.
5. Reiterate your point as you're holding Jim in the air, mentioning two or three things we need to do together, like help each other learn God's Word, and pool our resources to help others in need.
If you have time, do the lift a second time having each student only use one hand, then one finger. Depending on the size of "Jim" and number of lifters, a group of 6 or more kids will be able to lift one of their fellow students with a single finger!
*If Jim is a typical 3rd grader, it will only take about 4 or 5 other kids to be able to lift Jim a foot in the air if they are working together (and you are helping). Depending on the size of Jim and the lifters, they may only need to use one hand or even one finger!
**You or another adult should place your hands under Jim's head and shoulders to prevent injury should the other children suddenly remove their hands. I've done this children's sermon in several different churches and never had this happen, but you never know.
