March 26, 2024
Text: Tove R. Nilsen / Photo: BCC Nederland
“ The most important thing is to convey Jesus’ love for us; Jesus didn’t just die for us so that we could be forgiven, but there was something more: He wanted brothers and sisters,” says Tineke Neinders from Groningen in the Netherlands. She is a committed volunteer in the work with Sunday school and also emphasizes how important it is that you have been laid hold of by Jesus yourself when communicating this to the children.
“Most of the children already know the Easter story, but we want to give them a bigger picture of Jesus,” she says.
Tineke points out that the Easter story is quite long and has many details, and that not everything is included every time they cover this topic. But there is one thing Tineke always includes in the Easter story:
“That is Jesus’ prayer in Gethsemane, where He asked God that He would not do His own will. He really had to fight for this,” says Tineke.
“The Easter story is complex; do you think children understand all this?”
“I think they understand a lot! They know very well what their own will is,” she says with a smile, adding that they also know very well what God’s will is, which is to choose good and to do good.
A big joint Easter event
Sunday School in Groningen is divided into three age groups: The youngest group is Juniors, with children aged 3-6 years , there are two different groups for the older children, one for those aged 6-9 years, and one for those aged 9-12 years. At this year’s Easter gathering, they chose to merge the groups and have a big joint Easter event for the children.
The event was organized in such a way that they started with the Easter story from the Bible, then they gathered for a nice festive meal, an Easter lunch with the children’s favorite food, followed by games, and finally a big Easter egg hunt where hundreds of small chocolate eggs were hidden around the building, and the children had to find them, with the help of a costumed Easter bunny.
Tineke has children of her own and loves spending time with them at Sunday school.
“The children have a future ahead of them, and we want to help them keep their purity and get to know Jesus. Being involved in this work gives me a lot of joy!”
More tips for Easter gatherings for children:
We have spoken to several mentors who also have good tips to share with other mentors who want to organize a gathering for children at Easter:
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Get to know the Easter story. (Described in the Bible in Matthew 21:1-11; Luke 19:28-40; Matthew chapters 26-28; Luke chapters 22-24.)
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Think about what the message of the Easter story means to you.
Your own personal faith will shine through in what you tell the children. Be inspired by this film.
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Use visual resources; create a structure in the content.
See our collection of resources for Easter.
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Be short and involve the children.
Make sure that communication is not one-way, but invite active participation.
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Finish with a fun activity.
An Easter egg hunt, make an Easter chicken, cut and paste the empty tomb task.
