Building the City

We're working our way through Urban Expression's Praying our Values booklet. Today we came to the story of Nehemiah setting out to rebuild Jerusalem, so, after praying, we set about re-building our Lego city.
We're still doing it, so I can't be certain how the "service" will finish, but both David, Joel and Rachel who all seemed rather out of sorts when they arrived have all engaged in worship with enthusiasm.

The plan is that we will use a prayer which Imogen wrote for Eucharist last night. Hopefully, I'll put that up on Dancing Scarecrow tomorrow.

Dancing Teddy Bears

So we're looking at Naboth's Vinyard at church tomorrow. A passage very dear to my heart.

Naboth tends his ancestral vinyard, but King Ahab wants to extend his organic, sustainable allotment over the vinyard. Queen Jezebel taunts him with his lack of power, and they plot and scheme for Naboth to be killed so they can take the vinyard. Elijah arrives and proclaims God's judgement on Ahab who comes to a very sticky end.

All well and good, but Naboth is still dead!

So many layers of meaning and theology. But how to explore this in a way that includes both adults and children?

With teddy bears.

We've invited the congregation - we're at a neighbouring church - to bring their old, precious Teddy bears (or other toys). We'll share stories of teddies and what they mean to us. After which I will offer to swap them for a Steiff teddy (worth about £150) provided I can burn their teddy. Hopefully no one will take me up on the offer!

Then for our prayers, I have just finished making a batch of teddy bear shaped biscuits. We've got some tubes of writing icing, so they can ice their concerns onto a biscuit then swap their biscuit with another member of the congregation - a sort of non-eucharistic offering of love.