Free Game & Lesson on being Salt & Light

Written by Rob Quinn

Free Game & Lesson – Salt & Light

DOWNLOAD THE PDF OF THIS LESSON

Our youth pastor gave a sermon a few weeks ago about being the salt and light of Jesus. It got me thinking about preteens and what it looks like for them.

Do they even know what it means to be salt and light to the world?

If they do, how does that look when they are at school, or when playing sports, or even just hanging out with friends?

Just talking to them about being the salt and light isn’t enough. They need something more.

I decided to come up with a fun and crazy game and lesson to get preteens discussing ways they can be the salt and light for Jesus. Not because they “have to” but because they “want to”.

So, here you go…

Game: Salt & Light

Supplies:

• Scrabble game letters (enough to spell several words from your list per group plus some)
• Salt
• Lots of ice cube trays
• Water
• Food coloring, a few colors
• Battery operated lantern
• A small flashlight for each team
• List of 2-4 words for your students to spell out. Note – choose words that best describe or represent
• Your students
• Towels or paper towels to dry off letters
• Place to spit water into (bowl, bucket)
• Dark room

Must be prepared in advance:

• Add salt to the water
• Color the water as you want to
• Freeze one scrabble letter in each cube in the trays with the water

Directions:

Divide your students into teams, have at least three per team.

Give each team a designated area.

Place all the colored ice cubes with frozen letters on a table with the battery lantern on.

On go, turn all lights out in the room except the lantern and flashlights.

Teams will take turns running to ice cube pile / bowl and choose one with a letter in it.

They can use the light from the lantern to try an see what letter it is.

Then return to the team and begin to thaw out the letter by sucking on it or rubbing it between their hands.

The next team member can go and repeat the process.

You cannot get another letter until current one is out of the ice cube.

Only one team member at a time can get a letter from pile.

First team to spell out all the words (or however many you choose) correctly wins.

Teach – Salt & Light

Say:

Were any of those ice cubes the flavor they looked like? What flavor were they?

(Allow them to voice their displeasure with the salty ice cubes)

Oops, I must have put salt in them instead of sugar. Sorry everyone.

No, really the salt was in there for a reason, and the use of lanterns and flashlights were a huge part of the game.

Based on what I just said, what do you think we are going to talk about?

Take a few answers.

Right, being the salt and light for Jesus.

Read Matthew 5:13-16:

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.

“You are the light of the world-like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let you good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly father.

Discuss the following questions:

• What does being the salt mean?
• What does being the light mean?
• What are things you see that are not being the salt and light?
• Are there times in your life you are not the salt and light? Why?
• When are you the salt and light? Why?

Say:

Thank you all for opening up and talking about some of these things. It can be hard to admit to things you know you are doing wrong and need to work on.

Let’s re-read Matthew 5:13-16

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.

“You are the light of the world-like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let you good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly father.

Say:

We are called to be the salt and light always, not just when we think it is the right time. Sometimes we can get wrapped up into what others think of us. We can begin to do things that are not so much for Jesus but for us.

Just like in the game, being the salt and light may not be what tastes good at the time. Nor is it easy to see that it is the right thing in this dark world. But, it is always the right thing to do.

Wrap Up

Have your students go back into their teams.

Pass-out the list of words they had to spell out and have them talk about each one.

Talk about if the words truly represent who they are, and are they characteristics of a person who is being the salt and light for Jesus.

Have them come up with ways they can be the salt and light for Jesus.

Then pray about being the salt and light and ask God to give them the strength and courage to be the salt and light no matter what they are facing or how they are looked at.

DOWNLOAD THE PDF OF THIS LESSON

Like this game and lesson? Be sure to check this FREEBIE on The Power of Peer Influence

Rob Quinn serves as the Preteen Ministry Coordinator at Community Bible Church in Brighton, MI. He has been involved with preteen ministry for almost 8 years now. Rob is married to an amazing woman Jodi, who just so happens to be the Children’s Ministry Director at his church. They have one beautiful daughter Sydni, and an 8-pound attack dog named Lilly.