This week we explore God’s Spirit pouring out on the whole of creation.

A prayer of praise for children

Holy Spirit, open our lips
and help us sing God’s praise.
Let our song be alleluia.
Alleluia. Amen.

Share the Word

Read the story and pause at the  to share these points with the children 

Stop and share

• Explain that Pentecost was a Jewish harvest festival.
• A prophet is someone who wrote down messages from God, a long time ago about the promised Messiah.

Use these ideas to help the children make connections between the Bible passage and their lives

Flowing art 

Create a symbol of the Spirit 

You will need: paper cup, string, a long cardboard tube, two small cardboard boxes (the same size), paper and something to cover a table, several different colours of paint.

• Make a hole in the bottom of the paper cup and attach it with string to the cardboard tube. Balance the tube on top of the two cardboard boxes and put a piece of paper underneath the cup (see instructions).
• Invite the children to add paint in several colours of their choice to the cup and then swing the cup like a pendulum. The paint will come out of the hole and spread across the paper.
• In the story we read how the Spirit pours out, just like the paint pours out and spreads. Discuss what this might mean for the world, and for our lives.

Talk together

• What makes you feel so excited that you want to share it with other people?
• In what ways can we see God’s Spirit being spread into the world in the passage?
• How can we be part of sharing God’s Spirit with the world?

Talk to God: Acrostic prayer

Ask God’s Spirit to move in the world today

• Explain that you will call out letters of the word ‘World’ and the children can add suggestions of words or phrases beginning with each letter, where they want to ask God’s Spirit to be at work today.
• Go through each letter at a time and encourage the children to contribute creatively, e.g. W – workers, women, wild animals, water.
• Allow plenty of time for each letter and then end with an ‘Amen’.

Activity sheet

Consider together what you have explored, what that means for each of you and how it might influence your daily lives

• Ask the children to close their eyes. Invite them to hold out their hands if they would like to receive the Holy Spirit.

A sending out prayer for children

Holy Spirit, stir us up
to see things we haven’t seen before,
to hear things we haven’t heard before,
and to feel things we haven’t felt before.
Amen.