11 years ago in August we were engaged at Navy Pier in Chicago, so last week in celebration of our 10th wedding anniversary we returned to Chicago! My favorite part was going along the Chicago River Walk! Since being in a wheelchair I've never been so close to waves - it was super special! Today our family went to Calvin's Library to find Greg's thesis on the shelf (2nd from the right)! "Daddy's an author! He wrote a book that's in the library!" Abbie giggled! For all you Bible scholars out there - if you want a little "light" reading email Greg and he would be happy to send you a digital copy of his thesis to read! I'm feeling overwhelmed by God's goodness this morning! When I was 16 my family was in a car accident and I received a spinal cord injury...in the days/weeks/months that followed I was sure my dreams of a husband and family had been shattered (I mean really who would marry a girl in a wheelchair?), but our gracious God has blessed me far beyond my dreams! So grateful for my amazing husband who loves, challenges, and cares for me in more ways then I could ever say - literally never complaining and in fact asking me to let him help more. And I'm so thankful for our 4 beautiful children - I never knew my heart could contain so much love before them. Thank you God for your precious gifts!
"We were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, 'The Lord has done great things for them.' The Lord has done great things for us; we are glad. Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy!" Psalm 126 Looking for a fun way to reach out to your neighbor children and share the love of Jesus Christ with them? Host a Backyard Bible Club (BBC)! Below is a quick overview of our "Wordless Book" themed BBC, and at the bottom are links to each day described in detail with complete supply lists, instructions, printables, and pictures, so you can have five, fun filled days of activities - including Bible Stories, visual aids, songs, verses, crafts, snacks, and games! The Wordless Book is a book that is simply 5 colored pages stapled together. Each day the meaning of a different colored page is explained. Promotion Approximately 2-3 weeks beforehand let your neighbors know that you'll be hosting a Backyard Bible Club! Be sure to request that parents let you know if their children will be attending, so you can purchase adequate craft and snack supplies. Also, collect the parents' email addresses and cell phone numbers so you can send a reminder email and text the day before BBC begins. Below is an example flyer - feel free to click the link below to download it, edit, and make it your own! ![]()
Schedule A good time frame for a BBC is 90 minutes. We chose 10:00-11:30 AM. 10:00-10:10 Welcome/Play Time 10:10-10:20 Bible Story 10:20-10:35 Songs 10:35-10:40 Memory Verse 10:40-10:55 Craft 10:55-:11:10 Snack 11:10-11:25 Game 11:25-11:30 Play Time/Goodbye Color Theme Each day the children were encouraged to wear the theme color of the day! Monday: Black Tuesday: Red Wednesday: White Thursday: Yellow/Gold Friday: Green ![]() Songs We sang 4 songs daily. The Wordless Book song explains the meaning of the 5 daily colors. The 3 Bible verse songs are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday's Bible verses, so the kids are naturally hiding God's Word in their hearts as they learn the songs. Wordless Book Song – Aanderud’s Childrens Music John 3:16 – The Rizers 2 Corinthians 5:17 – The Rizers 2 Peter 3:18 – The Rizers Memory Verses Monday: Black – John 8:12 “Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” Tuesday: Red – John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Wednesday: White – 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” Thursday: Gold – 1 Peter 1:3-4 “Through Jesus Christ we have an inheritance that is indestructible, pure, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.” Friday: Green – 2 Peter 3:18 “Grow up in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever. Amen.” Click the link below to download 8X10 printable verse sheets for teaching and display purposes. ![]()
Bible Stories Each day we explained the meaning of the daily color, used The Big Picture Story Bible to tell a relating Bible story, and had a visual aid activity to help the children remember our daily lesson. (For Visual Aid details - click the daily links at the bottom of this post.) Monday: Black – Creation / Adam & Eve’s Sin
The Big Picture Story Bible - Pages 15-49 Visual Aid: Black Pompoms on Heart Tuesday: Red – Jesus Death and Resurrection The Big Picture Story Bible - Pages 359-395 Visual Aid: Cleaning Red Foam Hearts Wednesday: White – Nicodemus’ Lesson on Being Born Again The Big Picture Story Bible - Pages 307-321 Visual Aid: You, Sin, Christ Water Activity Thursday: Gold – New Heaven & Earth The Big Picture Story Bible – Pages 437-451 Visual Aid: The children pulled “jewel” facts about heaven from a treasure box. Friday: Green – Growing The Big Picture Story Bible – Pages 413-435 Visual Aid: Potted Flower – Give the plant Soil, Sunlight, Water Crafts (For Craft details, instructions, printables, and pictures - click the daily links at the bottom of this post.) Monday: Black – Blindfolds Tuesday: Red - Jesus Saves Life Preservers Wednesday: White – Caterpillars to Butterflies Thursday: Gold – Heaven Door Knob Hangers Friday: Green – Wordless Book Bracelets Snacks Monday: Black Oreos Tuesday: Red Jell-O Cups Wednesday: White Popcorn Thursday: Goldfish Crackers Friday: Green Key Lime Cupcakes Games Monday: Blindfold Maze – The children have to navigate a maze blindfolded with partner giving instructions. Lesson: Jesus is our light and guide. We are trapped in darkness without Jesus. Tuesday: Blanket Tag – 1 child tags, 1 child has a red blanket, and the other children run. The tagger has to try to tag the running children and if they get tagged they freeze. The blanket child as to cover the children in a red blanket to unfreeze them. Lesson: Jesus blood frees us from the bondage of sin. Wednesday: Street Cleaners – Each team gets a sidewalk square filled with sins written in chalk. The first group to cleanse their square by scrubbing it with water/rags wins. Make the bucket of water a distance away so they have to make several trips to rinse their rags. Lesson: Jesus cleanses us from sin. Thursday: Treasure Hunt – Hide treasures (plastic eggs) filled with candy in the backyard. The children have to find the treasures. Lesson: The new heaven and earth will be filled with treasure and eternal life is a treasure worth seeking. Friday: Tallest Tower: In this review game ask the children trivia questions about the Bible lessons from the week. When they get an answer correct they get to place a jenga block on their team’s tower. If they aren’t careful and it falls down they have to start again. The team with the tallest tower wins. Links to Detailed Supply Lists, Instructions, Printables, & Pictures BBC - Day 1 - Black BBC - Day 2 - Red BBC - Day 3 - White BBC - Day 4 - Gold BBC - Day 5 - Green We had our fifth and final day of Backyard Bible Club, and our theme was the color green from "The Wordless Book." Bible Story: Green - Grow The Big Picture Story Bible – Pages 413-435 Visual Aid: Flower – Give the plant Soil, Sunlight, Water What three things does a plant need to grow and thrive?
Supplies: Flower Dirt Box Water Singing & Memory Verse: “Grow up in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever. Amen.” 2 Peter 3:18 The Rizers have a fun, rocking song version of 2 Peter 3:18 that makes memorizing it a snap! Craft: Wordless Book Bracelets Supplies (per child): 3 Black Pony Beads 3 Red Pony Beads 3 White Pony Beads 3 Gold Pony Beads 3 Green Pony Beads 12 inches of suede leather lace Instructions: 1) Beforehand cut the leather and tie a knot several inches from the end. 2) Instruct the children to thread the colored beads onto their bracelets. 3) Tie a knot for the children at the end of their beads. 4) Thread two beads (any color) on one end of the chord. Thread the other end of the chord through the beads in the opposite direction. Tie knots on the ends of the chords (if the chords are really long cut down to size). Pulling the knots in the opposite directions will tighten the bracelet around the wrist to put on and take off easily. Snack: Green Key Lime Cupcakes Game: Growing Towers – In this review game ask the children trivia questions about the Bible lessons from the week. When they get an answer correct they get to place a jenga block on their team’s tower. If they aren’t careful and it falls down their team has to start again. The team with the tallest tower at the end of the game wins. Supplies: Review Questions (download questions below) 2 Jenga Games ![]()
Click this link to see an overview of our Backyard Bible Club Week.
We had our fourth day of Backyard Bible Club, and our theme was the color gold from "The Wordless Book." Bible Story: Gold - New Heaven & Earth The Big Picture Story Bible – Pages 437-451 Visual Aid: The children pulled “jewel” facts about heaven from a treasure box. Supplies: Wooden Treasure Box ($2 at Michaels) 15 Treasurer Paper Pieces with Facts About Heaven on the Back (download files below) ![]()
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Singing & Memory Verse: “Through Jesus Christ we have an inheritance that is indestructible, pure, and unfading, kept in heaven for you." 1 Peter 1:3-4 A piece of candy is always a great incentive to memorize your daily Bible verse! Craft: Heaven Door Knob Hanger Supplies: Door Knob Hangers (download file below and print on white card stock) Gold Sticker Paper Scissors Jewel Stickers Crayons Instructions: 1) Instruct the children to cut out a mansion and street of gold using the gold sticker paper. 2) Instruct the children to use the jewels and crayons to finish decorating their door knob holders as a reminder of what the new heaven and earth will look like. ![]()
Snack: Goldfish Crackers Game: Treasure Hunt – Hide treasures (plastic eggs) filled with candy in the backyard. The children have to find the treasures. Lesson: The new heaven and earth will be filled with treasure and eternal life is a treasure worth seeking. Supplies: Candy Plastic Easter Eggs Bags (for holding candy/eggs) Click this link to go on to Backyard Bible Club - Day 5 - Green
Click this link to see an overview of our Backyard Bible Club Week. We had our third day of Backyard Bible Club, and our theme was the color white from "The Wordless Book." Bible Story: White – Nicodemus’ Lesson on Being Born Again The Big Picture Story Bible - Pages 307-321 Visual Aid: You, Sin, Jesus Water Activity Have a child pour the “Sin” into “You” explaining that we all have sinned. (The “You” water will become dirty.) Have a child pour “Jesus” into “You” explaining that Jesus has cleansed us from our sin. (The “You” water will magically become clean.) Have a child pour “Sin” into “Jesus” explaining that God poured onto Jesus the sins of us all even though He was sinless. (The “Jesus” water will magically remain clean.) Have a child pour “Jesus” into “Sin” explaining that Jesus has conquered sin and death. (The “Sin” water will magically become clean.) Click link for 1-minute video of "You, Sin, Christ Water Activity" Supplies: 3 Glasses labeled “You,” “Sin,” and “Jesus” Water Iodine Bleach Singing & Memory Verse: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 The Rizers have a fun, rocking song version of 2 Corinthians 5:17 that makes memorizing it a snap! Craft: Caterpillar to Butterfly Snack: White Popcorn Game: Street Cleaners – Each team gets a sidewalk square filled with sins written in chalk. The first group to cleanse their square by scrubbing it with water/rags wins. We made the bucket of water a distance away so they have to make several trips to rinse their rags. Lesson: Jesus cleanses us from sin. Supplies: Sidewalk Chalk Rags Bucket of Water Click this link to go on to Backyard Bible Club - Day 4 - Gold
Click this link to see an overview of our Backyard Bible Club Week. We had our second day of Backyard Bible Club, and our theme was the color red from "The Wordless Book." Bible Story: Red – Jesus' Death and Resurrection The Big Picture Story Bible - Pages 359-395 Visual Aid: Cleaning Hearts – The children wrote sins on red foam hearts and we washed them clean using soapy water and rags. Supplies: Foam Hearts (download file below, print, cut, and trace onto red foam) Washable markers Bucket of soapy water and rags ![]()
Singing & Memory Verse: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16 The Rizers have a fun, rocking song version of John 3:16 that makes memorizing it a snap! Craft: Jesus Saves Life Preservers Supplies: Paper plates (cut a hole in the middle and punch four holes in the sides) Red markers White string Scissors Camera Photo Printer Instructions 1) Take a picture of each child and print it. 2) Color four strips on the life preserver and write Jesus Saves (preferably in red) 3) String the white thread through the four holes leaving a long string for tossing 4) Tape the child’s picture in the center of the life preserver (cut as needed) Snack: Red Jell-O Cups Game: Blanket Tag – 1 child tags, 1 child has a red blanket, and the other children run. The tagger has to try to tag the running children and if they get tagged they freeze. The blanket redeemer child as to cover the children in a red blanket to unfreeze them. Lesson: Jesus' blood frees us from the bondage of sin. Supplies: Red Blanket Click this link to go on to Backyard Bible Club - Day 3 - White
Click this link to see an overview of our Backyard Bible Club Week. Our first day of Backyard Bible Club we introduced our week’s theme "The Wordless Book." The kids had a wonderful time during every aspect! Bible Story: Black – Creation / Adam & Eve’s Sin The Big Picture Story Bible - Pages 15-49 Visual Aid: Black Pompoms on Heart - As the children placed black pompoms on their hearts they mentioned sins that make our hearts dark/black. Supplies: Heart Sheets (download file below and print on white cardstock) Elmer's glue Large black pompoms (8 per child) ![]()
Memory Verse: “Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” John 8:12 Craft: Blindfolds Supplies: Blindfolds (download file below, print page 1, cut, and trace onto black cardstock) Verse Sheets (download file below and print page 2 onto white cardstock) Hole punch Tape String (18 inches - 2 per child) Instructions: 1) Cut out masks/verses. 2) Glue verse to mask and color. 3) Tape the edge of the mask (for reinforcement) and punch two holes. 4) Tie strings to mask and tie around child's head to size. ![]()
Snack: Black Oreo Cookies Game: Blindfold Mazes - The children had to navigate various mazes blindfolded with a partner giving instructions. Sometimes the children were allowed to lead their partners by the hand, and other times they were only allowed to give verbal instructions. We also had them navigate the maze as a team. Lesson: Jesus is our light and guide. We are trapped in darkness without Jesus. Supplies: Caution Cones Blindfolds Click this link to go on to Backyard Bible Club - Day 2 - Red
Click this link to see an overview of our Backyard Bible Club Week. |
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