Theme: Being A Church Together

Sunday 20th July 2025

As we explore the idea of being a strong community together as part of the Big Weekend, this morning we’re looking at how the early church acted.

The earliest church shared everything. People sold their belongings, even their houses, and gave the money to the poor. They did everything together as well, sharing food and praising God. What does this tell us? When we explore this passage, what is our response? Do we ever go beyond the bounds of generosity with our money, our food, our time? This kind of community demands much of us – as we explore this story, they might challenge us too as the way we live our lives. How open are we to hearing God’s word through their revelation?

Sunday Kids Work Video

Sunday Storytelling

Things You May Need

  • Large sheet of paper

  • Marker pen

Questions & Thoughts

Share out some refreshments and enjoy eating and drinking together. Start to talk about the Bible story using these questions:

  • Which is your favourite part of the story? Why?

  • What is important about this story? Why?

  • What might have been like to be part of that earliest church?

  • If people looked at your family and church, would they know you followed Jesus? Why? Why not?

  • How can you invite people to join in this adventure of following Jesus?

  • What does this story tell us about the way your church should work?

Chat & create

Brainstorm together different ways you can invite others to join your church community. Get creative in order to reach out! Your ideas might be as simple as baking a cake and delivering it to your neighbours or organising a Zoom quiz for different families in your community. You could give some money or donate some groceries to a local food bank. Let your imaginations run riot – it’s likely that you will have some wonderful ideas (and some outlandish ones too, but that’s OK).

Write all these ideas down and choose some that you can do. Then plan how you’re going to do them!

Worship

These are the worship songs being played in our kids groups this morning, if you wish to listen to the same

Under 5s

  • Let’s Praise the Lord

  • Love the Lord Our God

  • My BFF

Over 5s

  • Every Praise

  • Every Move I Make

Encounter

Look at the pictures of your church community and / or your church website. What would you like to ask God for with regards to your church community? Pray for your community with words or create a piece of artwork that represents your prayer. If you create pieces of art, then stick these up around your house that you can continue to pray for these as you walk past.

Remember to pray for your plans to share community with others. Return to your prayers in weeks to come to see how God has answered them.

Growing faith at home

This weekend was the New Life Big Weekend! Throughout the weekend, we explored the idea of being stronger together. During the service on Sunday, the children discovered the story of how the early church operated in Acts 2:42–47.

For All Children

  • Read the story again from Acts 2:42–47 (using a child-friendly translation of the Bible, such as the Contemporary English Version or the Good news Translation). You could also read Acts 4:32–37. You could read it too from a Bible storybook. And/or you could watch the retelling your child(ren) saw in the session: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMQKy1Mx49M.

  • Explore the idea of being a community of believers with your child(ren) by doing some of these craft ideas: https://flamecreativekids.blogspot.com/search/label/community. Remember to think about why you’re doing as well as completing the craft!

  • For younger children, play at cooking and sharing meals. As you play, talk about where your food comes from, and how you might help others who don’t have enough food.

  • As a family, think about how you can share, as the early Church did. What things can you share? Can you invite people to share a meal with you? Can you give food to a foodbank? Can you donate money or toys? Choose something to do together and make sure you do it!

  • Over the past few weeks, we’ve suggested that, when you’re out and about this week, each time you pass a church, pray together for the work that this church does, telling people about Jesus. Keep on doing this! But this week, pray for the church when it finds itself in a difficult situation – pray that God will keep them safe and that they will still keep telling people about Jesus, despite the situation.

Other resources