ECC | Ministry Idea Exchange

“Hope in Every Tongue” CKC Play Script

sondrey — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 21:28:38 +0000

This is a play originally written and performed by Faith Covenant Church in Sumner, Washington for their Hope Sunday event. Feel free to adapt it to your church’s Hope event.

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Graffiti Provides Pathway to Deep Conversations

milliel — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 19:52:01 +0000

What started as an effort to clean graffiti from a pedestrian walkway in La Coruña, Spain developed into a “tapestry of relationships” among neighborhood residents, politicians, members of a local church plant, a mission team from Covenant Grove Church in Modesto, California, and local graffiti artists.

After cleaning the graffiti, they all joined together to beautify the walkway with a mural. Vida Nueva Covenant Church sponsored the multi-day event as a means of promoting reconciliation among locals and “illegal” graffiti artists. The church’s witness has grown as it has worked on the walkway, organized discussions, and developed relationships with the teens. They continue to serve with the community, not just for the community.

Submitted by: Covenant Newswire (ECC), Chicago, Illinois

Church website – Visit here
Original Newswire story – Read here

MobilePack

milliel — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 19:48:40 +0000

Hilmar Covenant Church mobilized community volunteers to participate in MobilePack, a food-packing event to benefit Feed My Starving Children (FMSC). Bags of food were packed for hungry kids around the world. The local community also benefited from the experience, because their awareness of the issue of global hunger was raised and they realized how they can make a difference in the wider world. They also experienced their community in a new, richer way through doing this activity together. MobilePack also highlighted the denomination’s commitment to compassion, mercy, and justice.

Submitted by: Covenant Newswire (ECC), Chicago, Illinois

Church website – Visit here
Feed My Starving Children website – Visit here
Original Newswire story – Read here

Cycles 4 Hope

milliel — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 19:45:02 +0000

Shawn Holiday founded Cycles 4 Hope after seeing how a bicycle could help the homeless get themselves to shelter, food, medical appointments, and jobs – and bring hope and joy. Cycles 4 Hope is funded through donations and many volunteers who help clean, repair, and prepare the bikes.

Submitted by: Covenant Newswire (ECC), Chicago, Illinois

Original Newswire story – Read here
Additional photos – Download now

Children and Communion

milliel — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 01:23:15 +0000

Steve Burger from the Department of Christian Formation (ECC) shares this overview of Children and communion.

Submitted by: Steve Burger, The Department of Christian Formation (ECC), Chicago, Illinois

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Communion: Tips for Talking with Children

milliel — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 01:22:31 +0000

If your child begins to ask questions about communion and expresses a desire to participate, here are some suggestions for exploring and preparing your child to participate. Helpful for churches and parents.

Submitted by: Steve Burger, The Department of Christian Formation (ECC), Chicago, Illinois

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The Story (Zondervan Publishing)

milliel — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 17:41:35 +0000

Prairieview Covenant, New Richmond, WI participated in The Story (published by Zondervan) over the school year of 2011-2012.

The Story goes through the whole Bible chronologically in 31 weeks, using the NIV translation and organizing the major themes and stories into chapters. We have used The Story for preschool, early elementary, later elementary, teen, and adult books. The book for each age has NIV scripture and some connecting paragraphs of explanation. It helps us to see God’s “Upper Story,” which is God’s overall plan from creation to Revelation, as well as God’s “Lower Story,” which is all the people he used to carry out his plan.

We introduced The Story to the congregation with a series of dramatic sketches of Bible characters. We used it as emphasis for everything during the week. In Sunday school there was a video for adults and youth, along with discussion. Parent pages were sent home each week with suggestions for the family to use in family devotions for the week. The youth curriculum had a wealth of material and resources. In worship, the sermon focused on the Scripture for the week. For Wednesday family night we had small groups for men, women and youth. The elementary children worked on the stories and made pictures to put on a time line that was displayed in our fellowship hall. Preschoolers used some of the Sunday school story. Children’s church also used some part of the week’s story.

By the end of the year, our elementary children could explain the story of God from creation through the book of Revelation. At the end of the year, we also had many from our congregation asking how we were going to go through the Bible in the coming year. So we will be strongly encouraging our congregation to read through the Bible using an approach of their choice. (Note: options for Bible Reading Plans may be downloaded here.)

Submitted by: Nancy King, Prairieview Covenant Church, New Richmond, WI

Meal Ministry

milliel — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 17:36:51 +0000

Hungry families in the community have the opportunity to eat a delicious soup and salad meal every Sunday night at McMinnville Covenant Church as the church partners with others in the community to meet a need. In addition, the ministry has been a way to develop a heightened sense of community within the congregation and provide families and all ages a way to minister together. The ministry exemplifies the congregation’s commitment to living its mission statement, “Seeking God’s heart for our neighborhood, we offer a warm nourishing place of hospitality where every person is recognized as a child of God.”

Submitted by: Covenant Newswire (ECC), Chicago, Illinois

Learn more – church website
Original Newswire story – read here

Intergenerational Worship Evaluation

milliel — Sun, 23 Sep 2012 00:22:35 +0000

This evaluation is a resource that is available to help you evaluate your church’s engagement in intergenerational worship. This resource will help you think through the importance and the implications of intergenerational worship. It will help you to ask critical questions about the place children have in worship, as well as what steps you are taking to intentionally engages the generations together.

Submitted by: The Department of Christian Formation (ECC), Chicago, Illinois

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Cov Anapolis 500

milliel — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 17:26:32 +0000

At Prairieview Covenant Church, New Richmond, Wisconsin we have a “Cov Anapolis 500” every May at the end of the Sunday School season. This event includes a church picnic and a race. The children each make a race car. We make a race track out in the yard using orange cones. The racers run around the track once and then do a pit stop and then run another lap.

We have 3 pit stops:
Fill with gas — drink a glass of water
Clean your windshield — put on goggles, have pit crew spray goggles with water and wipe them off. Then take off the goggles and run.
Change tires — take off shoes and put them back on.

Prizes are given for the best overall car, biggest car, most unique, etc.

The cars are made from cardboard boxes with arm and head holes cut out so that the kids can put them over their head and run in them. They can be decorated as they choose…colors, headlights, license plates, streamers, etc.

Submitted by: Nancy King, Prairieview Covenant Church, New Richmond, Wisconsin