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Easter

Easter Activities for Celebrating the Resurrection

April 16, 2019 by Guest Writer

easter activities
Where would we be had Jesus Christ not risen from the dead? First Corinthians 15:17 gives the answer: “If Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.” The gospel would be incomplete apart from the resurrection because it provides proof that God had accepted the sacrifice of His Son. Because Jesus conquered death as well as sin, we can now have eternal life. This incredible truth gives us much to celebrate during this season! Here are a few Easter activities you can use to help your family really understand and enjoy the meaning of Easter.

Resurrection Garden

These mini gardens are simple to assemble and serve as a great visual reminder of Christ rising from the dead. Here’s what you need and how to do it:

  • a shallow potting dish
  • a small terra cotta pot (2–3”)
  • potting soil
  • one large rock for the tomb entrance
  • six small twigs (and craft glue or twine) for making crosses
  • grass seed
  • small stones or moss for decoration (optional)
  1. Lay the small pot on its side in the center of the potting dish.
  2. Scoop potting soil into the dish, mounding it all over and around the small pot to form a hill.
  3. Sprinkle grass seed on the soil.
  4. Mist with water from a spray bottle, making sure the soil gets plenty of water.
  5. Place the large rock off to the side of the small pot to mimic the empty tomb.
  6. Make three crosses with your small twigs and place them on top of the “hill.”
  7. Add moss, decorative stones, and anything else you would like to complete your garden tomb.

Resurrection Eggs

This is a great way to teach younger children the story of Jesus’ betrayal, crucifixion, and resurrection. You will need a dozen plastic eggs, an empty egg carton, and 11 small items (one to place inside each egg, leaving one egg empty to signify the vacant tomb). You can include (but aren’t limited to) these:

  • Leaf—representing the palm branches used at the triumphal entry
  • A piece of cracker—representing the Last Supper
  • Three dimes—representing the pieces of silver Judas accepted for betraying Jesus
  • String or yarn—representing Jesus’s flogging
  • Thorn—representing the crown of thorns
  • Three nails—representing the crucifixion
  • Dice—representing the soldiers’ gambling for His clothes
  • Sponge—representing the vinegar offered to Jesus on the cross
  • Cloves or other spice—representing the spices used in Jesus’ burial
  • White cloth—representing the linen burial cloth
  • Rock—representing stone that closed the tomb

You can either open all the eggs at once while teaching this account or open one each day in the days leading up to Easter Sunday.

Easter Poem

Since April is National Poetry Month, consider having your children write the story of the resurrection using creative shape poems.

With a cross poem, encourage your children to focus the first four lines of their poem on the death of Christ, the next two on His burial, and the last six on His resurrection. Or with older children, you can try the form George Herbert used in his poem, “Easter Wings.”

May the miracle of Christ’s resurrection fill your family’s hearts with joy and gratitude as you celebrate this Easter!

• • • • •

Jennifer is a pastor’s wife and mom of two young girls and loves homeschooling them. During her own twelve years of being homeschooled, Jennifer developed a passion for reading and writing. She earned a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and relishes writing during her free time.

Filed Under: Simplified Homeschool Tagged With: Easter, easter activities, family activities, resurrection

Telling the Easter Story with a Poem (Printable)

April 6, 2017 by Jenna

Your children are being surrounded by the Easter story right now. They study it in Sunday school and family devotions, and they hear it in sermons and cantatas. They even see echoes of the Easter story in the seasons as winter loses its grip and spring begins to bloom, and everywhere the plants are coming alive.

You can find out how much of the Easter story your children are understanding with a fun Easter shape poem. Download this printable shape poem, and have your children fill in the blanks by telling the story of Easter one word at a time. It might turn out something like this.

Jesus
Sin
Lamb
Cross
Spear, blood, tomb, stone
Guards, herbs, angels, clothes
Life
Pardon
Gift
Redeemer
Savior
Christ

In this sample poem, the first section focuses on Christ being sent, the second on His sacrifice, and then the last on our redemption in Him. As long as your child tells the story based on the truths of the gospel, the words he uses to tell the story are up to him.

To ensure that they’re considering where they should put each word, have your children follow a death, burial, and resurrection pattern. They should use the first four lines to talk about the death of Christ. Then the next two should focus on His burial, and finally the last six should focus on His resurrection.

Since your children will be telling the gospel story one word at a time, they should focus on using only a few parts of speech. The sample uses only nouns, but your children could switch between using nouns in one section, verbs in the next, and then nouns again in the last. Remind them that the length of the words they choose will change the shape of the poem they produce. If they choose shorter, simpler words, it will ensure that their poem looks more like a cross.

Download the shape poem printable and retell the Easter story with your children!

Image Source

Filed Under: Shaping Worldview, Successful Learning Tagged With: Easter, language arts, poetry writing, shape poem

Easter Word-Art Cross

April 3, 2015 by Carolynn

text from Romans 5:12, Isaiah 53:6, Romans 3:23, Romans 3:10, John 3:16, Isaiah 53:7, Mark 15:37-38, Romans 5:6, Romans 5:8, John 3:17, 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, 2 Corinthians 5:15, 2 Corinthians 5:21

This Easter, I wanted to share a printable with you that would be different from the normal Easter activities/crafts. With a little help, I  created this word-art cross. The words come directly from the Bible, telling the true story of our sin, our need of a Savior, God’s loving provision, and Christ’s sacrifice that allows us to stand righteous before God.

Most of the passages are probably familiar, but in case they aren’t, I’ve also included the Scripture references. You can view the PDF version by selecting the image. Please print it out, read the verses, and remember this action of God’s love.

I hope this word-art cross is a blessing to you and your children. May you have a blessed Easter remembering Him.

Filed Under: Devotions Tagged With: Christ, cross, Easter, gospel, printable, spring

Pausing on His Way to Heaven

April 1, 2014 by Cosette

image of the sky with sun rays beaming

In the synagogue at Nazareth, the Lord Jesus introduced Himself with the most powerful, yet tender mission statement ever spoken.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.”        —Luke 4:18
 

To the end of His life on earth, our Lord was faithful to this mission; the closing hours and days before His glorious ascension vividly portray His commitment and shepherd’s heart. Throughout the Gospels, we see Him drawn to people with different needs. We see Him pausing on His way back to heaven to preach, to heal, to release, to show, and to convince.

Poor in spirit (Luke 24:13–31)

On the road to Emmaus, the Lord Jesus drew alongside to preach the gospel of His salvation to two downcast disciples who were poor in spirit. His words helped them to piece together the prophecies and promises so diligently taught to them before His crucifixion. They needed to hear it again, and our Lord didn’t think two was too small an audience. With knowledge and authority, steadfastness and patience, His divine instruction lifted them out of despondency. How easy it is for us to forget the power of the gospel. Hearing Him transforms even our bleakest circumstance.

Lonely, broken heart (John 20:11–17)

Then there was weeping Mary Magdelene—not only left alone in the garden—but feeling truly alone in the world.  Tears are the constant companion of the broken heart, and our Lord—yearning to wipe them away—drew near to her. Healing came with joyful recognition. The encounter was briefer than the one with the travelers, but the quiet comfort was lasting. And again, one was not too few for our Lord’s attention—even when His time was short.

Captive of the past (John 21:17)

A captive to his past, Peter, too, became the object of the risen Lord’s mission of mercy. Only a wide-open confession followed by a great commission could free the grief-stricken disciple from believing that his denial had cost him all future usefulness. He had to be singled out for grace. He needed to “taste” forgiveness. Peter: “Thou knowest that I love thee.” Jesus: “Feed my sheep.”  Restoration given, the shackles fell off.

Wounded and doubting (John 20:24–29)

Perhaps we understand doubting Thomas, but wounded Thomas? The Lord understood that in the flesh, sometimes life’s wounds can cause a hard crust of doubt or unbelief to form. Feeling his trust had been betrayed, Thomas refused to hope and be disappointed. He put up barriers; yet Christ was patient with him. He presented Himself to be seen and touched. He set at liberty the one who was wounded.

Unconvinced multitude (1 Corinthians 15:6)

On one occasion He was seen by more than five hundred of His followers—seen not by one or two, but by many. The Lord made Himself recognizable. In the same way today, eyes see and hearts respond. We have all been blinded by discouragement, heartbreak, guilt, or doubt. Only a supernatural work can give us the vision to see He is there and to know that He will never not be there.

Christ’s mission was fulfilled. He was faithful until the very end of His earthly mission—even as He paused on His way heavenward.

How has the ministry of Christ impacted you?

Filed Under: Devotions Tagged With: Christ, Easter, purpose

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