PRETEEN MINISTRY GAME: UNITY BUILDERS
Everything is better when we all work together.
It’s not just a cliché – it’s the truth!
If a preteen student can learn the value of collaboration at a young age, then it will carry with them though life – in relationships, careers, and also in how they function in the Body of Christ.
Use this game to show preteens that God created us to be our best when we work together.
Christmas and New Year’s are a great time to teach on this topic. It’s the time of the year where everyone seems to come together and celebrate.
– Nick Diliberto, Preteen Ministry
PRETEEN MINISTRY GAME: UNITY BUILDERS
Bible: Ephesians 4:3-4
Bottom Line: God created us to be our best when we work together.
SUPPLIES
- Resealable plastic bags containing 10 Lego pieces – one bag for each student
- Candy for the winners of the game
GAME PREP
Beforehand, assemble a house out of about 50 Lego pieces.
You can take a picture of the object and give everyone a copy, or you could post several copies around the room.
(Alternatively, you could just leave the object in a central location, but you’ll find that the kids then gather around the object which blocks the view for others.)
Give each person a plastic bag containing 10 Lego pieces and tell them they must make a house identical to the one which you’ve made.
Give students 5 minutes to complete their houses.
They can combine their resources with as many people as they want, but once they join, they then become a team and will have to share the prize.
The first team to complete the task, wins the prize.
If they are wise they will all join forces and then everyone will get a prize.
TEACH
Say: Wow! You guys did an awesome job building your house(s).
We played this game to learn a valuable lesson – We are our best when we work together!
In fact, it’s how God created each of us.
Read Ephesians 4:3-4 (NLT).
Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future.
If you looked at your bag of 10 Legos and thought, ‘I could build a really great house by myself’, you were mistaken.
Some people go through life thinking they don’t need anyone else.
People can let you down and disappoint you.
In fact, people will let you down and disappoint you.
But, we were created to work, live, and serve others together.
God places such a value on unity that he tells us to ‘make every effort’ to be unified.
This isn’t an easy task; sometimes it’s really hard.
When you came together to build your house(s), you had to trust someone to be in charge, follow their instructions, and hope that you would be able to build something awesome.
We have to trust God to lead us as we all work together to build the Body of Christ.
Now, we’re going to do something else with the blocks.
I’d like each of you to take back 10 blocks from the house(s) that we created.
Allow a couple of minutes for each student to get 10 blocks and return to their seats.
Say: With your blocks, and without talking to anyone, I would like for you to create something that represents yourself.
It can be anything – be as creative as you can… with 10 blocks.
Give students a few minutes to create something and remind them to do it in silence.
Ask: Is there anyone who would like to share what they made?
Let 4-5 volunteers share about their creation and how it represents them.
Try to call on kids that have been really creative and make sure they haven’t all built the same things.
Say: As I listened to each of you talk about your works of Lego art, I noticed that each of you created something different.
Ask: Why didn’t everyone create the same thing?
Here are a couple of reasons:
- Each of you had different materials to work with.
You couldn’t create the same things because each of you had a different set of blocks.
As individuals, we are all different and each of us have qualities that make us unique and special.
God knew that when he put all of us here in a group.
Each of you individually, make this group special together.
Another reason that you didn’t create the same things is…
2. None of us think alike.
Obviously, you weren’t reading each other’s minds when you were making your block creation, so you made something unique.
One of the challenges of working together in unity is that each of us have our own unique opinions and ideas.
If we aren’t careful, our own way of doing things can get in the way of being unified.
To maintain unity, we have to set aside our own feelings and put others above ourselves.
Today, let’s decide that whether it’s easy or hard, we will choose to be better together.
(Close in prayer.)
ONE YEAR PRETEEN CURRICULUM, VOLUME 3 – One year of preteen ministry curriculum designed to help 4th-6th graders explore their faith and wholeheartedly follow Jesus.
