All-Age Service Plan: The Tower of Babel

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Prayer / Worship Activity

Option 1

Resources: flip chart, large sheet of paper and pens, or the ability to type onto a PowerPoint slide and project instantaneously

5 MINS

Encourage people to turn to those around them and talk about the different words they might use to describe God. Having given them a minute or so to do this, get them to shout out the words, having someone write or type them up and making sure all ages get to share. Once everyone who wants to share a word has done, begin by praying ‘God, you are…’ then point at the words and read them out together.

Option 2

Resources: print-outs of a map of the world for people to gather around, notes on different situations in the world that it would be good to pray for

5 MINS

Hand out the maps and invite people to gather in groups of between four and eight people of mixed ages. Explain that you are going to pray for the world and things that are happening in the world at this time, and that after having said a prayer, everyone is invited to join in by saying the words from Ephesians 3:20 – ‘God can do anything’.

Share the first place you are going to pray for, and invite the groups to find it on the map. Pray, let everyone respond, and then repeat this four or five times for different places.

Story Genesis 11:1-9

10 MINS

Resources: statements in English printed out on separate pieces of paper, paper aeroplanes, Lego bricks, wooden building blocks or similar construction material, three or four large cardboard boxes, a house brick, a ‘building site closed’ sign, statements in various languages printed out on separate pieces of paper

You are going to read the story of the Tower of Babel. Before the service, arrange for two people to read the passage – ideally a child or young person and an adult. Encourage them to read it slowly, with as much expression as possible to help create an image of what is happening. The reading is interjected with different illustrations to emphasise and explain what is being read.

Reader A reads verse 1.

Different members of the congregation, of mixed ages, stand up and read the following statements out having been given them before the service, encourage people to have learnt them so they can look up and around as they say them:

Hello.
How are you?
I am very well thank you.
Do you have the time please?
I make it (add actual time).
Did you see the match the other day?
I’m afraid I was washing my hair.
It’s been good to talk.Reader B reads verse 2.Different members of the congregation, of mixed ages, stand up and throw the paper aeroplanes they were given before the service towards the front.Reader B comments that it is not talking about ‘that’ kind of plane, but a plain, in that it would have been a big flat area of land, possibly good for growing things and a great place for people to live.Reader A makes a remark about getting back to the reading, before reading verse 3.Reader B reads verse 4.Three members of the congregation bring forward in turn the following items only to be told by the readers that the bricks the story is talking about would have been bigger bricks:

Lego bricks
Wooden building blocks
Massive cardboard boxesAfter the third person comes forward and starts building with the massive cardboard boxes, one of the readers produces a building brick and explains that it would have been bricks something like this they would have used, bricks to build a proper building.Reader A reads verse 5.Reader B reads verse 6a.Reader C, as the voice of God reads verses 6b-7, from off-stage or out of sight.Reader A reads verse 8Someone from the congregation brings a sign with ‘building site closed– due to lack of communication.’ written on it and hangs it from the lectern or somewhere appropriate at the front.Reader B reads verse. 9Different members of the congregation, of mixed ages, stand up and read the following statement out (‘the end’, in different languages) having been given them before the service:

The end – English
La fin – French
Ang pagtatapos - Filipino
Slutet – Swedish
Endalok – Icelandic
Sonu - Turkish
Na kraju – Bosnian
Het einde - Dutch
Fundi – Albanian
El fin - Spanish

Reflective response to story

Option 1

Resources: copies of the prayer for everyone, pens

7 MINS

If you did Option 1 of the opening activity, refer back to the list of words to describe God. If not, then prepare a list beforehand. Encourage the congregation to gather in their families or small groups, making sure no one is excluded and where possible the groups are of mixed ages. Hand out the prayers below and invite everyone to choose one of the words that best describe God, and fill in the first blank.

The second and third blanks need to be filled in with words to describe somewhere that they will be over the coming week (e.g. home, work, school) and who they will be with (e.g. family, friends). The last blank is again filled in with the word they’ve chosen to describe God. Having filled in all the blanks, encourage each of the small groups to pray the prayers together.

God, you are_________

Help us never to forget that.

When I am at _________,

When I am with _________,

Help me never to forget how_________ you are.

Thank you that there is no one like you. Amen

Option 2

Resources: pieces of card cut out to represent bricks, around 7 x 3cm in size, pens, a cross outline on white paper, card or wood, large enough to fit the card ‘bricks’ on, double-sided sticky tape or PVA glue.

10 MINS

Hand out the pens and the pieces of card, explaining that they represent the bricks in the story. Invite people to write their name on the card and then encourage everyone to come and stick it onto the shape of the cross using either the tape or glue, as a symbol of wanting Jesus to be the main thing in our lives.

10 MINS