Prayer Action

➜ Guide, p.225-6

 

Prayer Action: Option 1

Action: placing candles (battery tealights) on a dark piece of fabric

We ask an adult to light the battery tealights in advance as we’ve found younger children can be distracted by attempts to light the tealights themselves.

 

Show the children one or more baskets/trays containing lit battery tealights.

Now as we pray, we’re going to turn the lights off

for a moment and look at these candles.

Ask an adult or child to turn off the lights.

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Jesus is the Light of the World!

In a moment, Name and Name are going to bring around these candles.

If you like, you could take one

and hold it gently in your hands like this.

Model to the children holding their tealight.

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Imagine Jesus’ love shining on you

and on the special person you’re praying for.

We’re going to sing

as we wait in the dark for Jesus,

Light of the World, to come to us.

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Hum the tune together, with the words ‘Jesus, hear our prayer!’ as a refrain, until all the children and adults who wish to take tealights have done so.

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Lay a dark piece of fabric in the centre of the circle.

Let’s give our light prayers to God as we sing.

Let’s pray that God’s light will shine in every dark place.

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Hum the tune together, with the words ‘Jesus, hear our prayer!’ as a refrain, as you lead the children in placing the candles in the centre of the circle on the dark piece of fabric. Some groups may like to invite two children to go around the circle in opposite directions with trays to collect the candles. The trays can then be placed in the centre. End this time of prayer with the final verse of the Prayer Song you’ve chosen.

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Prayer Action: Option 2

Action: placing paper/material/wooden stars on a dark piece of fabric

​

Lay a dark piece of fabric in the centre of the circle.

Show the children one or more baskets/trays filled with stars.

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Jesus is the Light of the World!

In a moment, Name and Name

are going to bring around these stars.

​

If you like, you could take a star

and hold it up high like this.

Model to the children holding their star up.

​

You can imagine Jesus’ love shining on you

and on the special person you’re praying for,

like a star shines in the night sky.

 

We’re going to sing

as we wait in the dark for Jesus,

the Light of the World, to come to us.

​

Hum the tune together, with the words ‘Jesus, hear our prayer!’ as a refrain, until all the children and adults who wish to take stars have done so.

​

Let’s give our star prayers to God as we sing.

Let’s pray that God’s light will shine in every dark place.

 

Hum the tune together, with the words ‘Jesus, hear our prayer!’ as a refrain, as you lead the children in placing the stars in the centre of the circle on the dark piece of fabric. Some groups may like to invite two children to go around the circle in opposite directions with trays to collect the responses. The stars can then be placed in the centre. End this time of prayer with the final verse of the Prayer Song you’ve chosen.

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Prayer Action: Option 3

Action: placing paper stars, sun shapes or lit candles (battery tealights) on a world map

If you’re using battery tealights, we ask an adult to light the battery tealights in advance as we’ve found younger children can be distracted by attempts to light the tealights themselves. 

 

Place your world map in the centre of the circle.

This is a map of the world.

Jesus is the Light of the World!

​

Show the children one or more baskets/trays with lit battery tealights, stars, or sun shapes.

​

If you’re using battery tealights:

Now as we pray, we’re going to turn the lights off

for a moment and look at these candles here.

​

In a moment, Name and Name

are going to bring round these candles/stars/sun shapes.

If you like, you could take one.

Let’s sing as we wait [if lights are off: in the dark].

​

Let’s hold our hands out gently like this

Model cupped hands

as we wait for Jesus to shine in our world.

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Hum the tune together, with the words ‘Jesus, hear our prayer!’ as a refrain, until all the children and adults who wish to take candles/stars/suns have done so.

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If appropriate, as leader, you could mention specific places for prayer. You could take these from your church’s intercessions or other times of prayer:

At the moment, there’s fighting in the world

here and here. As leader, place a candle/star/sun on these places on the map.

Name the countries or areas if appropriate.

​

There’s been an earthquake [or other disaster]

here. As leader, place a candle/star/sun on the map

There are people who have no homes here. As leader, place a candle/star/sun on the map

There are people who need our prayers all over the world.

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As we sing again, let’s put our lights on the world.

You can put your little light anywhere you like.

Let’s ask God to see our lights as prayers for the world.

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Hum the tune together, with the words ‘Jesus, hear our prayer!’ as a refrain, as you lead the children in placing the candles/stars/suns on the map. We’ve found that asking the children to do this in age groups helps, as the older children tend to be more intent on finding a location than the others. We invite babies first, then nursery and reception children, then Year 1 and upwards (including the adults). Some groups may like to invite two children to go around the circle in opposite directions with trays to collect the candles/stars/suns. The trays can then be placed in the centre of the map. End this time of prayer with the final verse of the Prayer Song you’ve chosen.

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Prayer Action: Option 4

Action: placing paper stars or shiny (safe) Christmas decorations on a small Christmas tree or a picture of a Christmas tree

With young children, it’s best to have stars/decorations that can simply be balanced on the branches of the tree rather than decorations that need hanging, unless you have a very small group in which each young child can be helped.

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Place your Christmas tree in the centre of the circle.

Show the children a basket of stars or Christmas decorations.

Jesus is the Light of the World!

​

At Christmas, whenever we see stars/shiny decorations,

we remember Jesus the Light of the World.

​

In a moment, Name and Name

are going to bring round these stars/decorations.

If you like, you could take one

and hold it up high like this.

Model to the children holding their star/decoration up.

​

You can imagine Jesus’ love shining on you

and on the special person you’re praying for

If using stars: like a star shines in the night sky.

Let’s sing as we wait for Jesus,

the Light of the World, to come to us.

​

Hum the tune together, with the words ‘Jesus, hear our prayer!’ as a refrain, until all the children and adults who wish to take stars or decorations have done so.

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Let’s decorate our Christmas tree

with our prayers as we sing.

Let’s pray that God’s light will shine in every dark place.

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Hum the tune together, with the words ‘Jesus, hear our prayer!’ as a refrain, as you lead the children in placing the stars/decorations on the Christmas tree. End this time of prayer with the final verse of the Prayer Song you’ve chosen.

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Prayer Action: Option for Christmas Day or the week after Christmas

Action: placing paper hearts, stars, or candles (battery tealights) on a world map

 If you’ve been using a map for your Prayer Action during Advent, you could use it again today and place Baby Jesus in his manger at the head of the map. If you’re using battery tealights, we ask an adult to light the battery tealights in advance as we’ve found younger children can be distracted by attempts to light the tealights themselves. We tend to place 3–4 lit tealights on Jesus’s manger in advance to show that he is the Light of the World.

 

Show the children one or more baskets/trays filled with paper hearts/stars/candles.

​

If you’re using battery tealights:

Now as we pray, we’re going to turn the lights off

for a moment.

Ask an adult or child to turn off the lights.

​

Jesus, the Light of the World, is here!

In a moment, Name and Name

are going to bring round these candles/stars/hearts.

If you like, you could take a candle/star/heart

and place it gently on Baby Jesus’ manger

If appropriate: or on our map

anywhere you like.

Let’s give our prayers to the tiny Baby Jesus as we sing.

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Hum the tune together, with the words ‘Jesus, hear our prayer!’ as a refrain, until all the children and adults who wish to have taken a light and placed it. End this time of prayer with the final verse of the Prayer Song you’ve chosen.

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