My goal for this final time with Jonah was to share the end of the story and include time for a recap of the whole story. I decided today to do this by sending the youth to stations set up around the space.
Here’s how we did it. We divided up into two groups. Each group went to the stations in any order and did what was stated on the information sheet at the station. Then, they took their station information sheet and went to the next station. The stations can be competed in any order. This is because the final step is assembling the story in order using the information sheets from each station.
Station 1-Call from God!
I would have loved to have a telephone with a prerecorded message when they picked up the phone with God’s call to Jonah. What I had was a picture of a telephone and one person was asked to be the voice of God and call Jonah!
Station 2-Build a Boat!
If Jonah is going to flee on a boat, he needs you to build him one. Make a boat using the materials on this table. The boat must float for 10 seconds.
For this station, I sent out a big bowl of water and a random assortment of items from the craft closet (popsicle sticks, pipe cleaners, small cups, glue, etc).
Station 3- Rock, Paper, Scissors
While on the boat, the sailors cast lots which could be something like rock, paper, scissors to see who was causing the problem on the boat. Play rock, paper, scissors until someone is the winner-this person is your Jonah and needs to be thrown overboard.
Station 4-Jonah into the Fish
This station requires a cup, string, tape, a tiny figure to be Jonah. I borrowed this idea from somewhere online that I cannot find again to give them credit. The goal is to catch Jonah in the cup, so you need to tie the string around Jonah and then attach the string to the cup. Each person takes a turn being the fish who swallows Jonah.
Station 5-Write a Prayer in the Fish
Working together as a group, talk about how Jonah might have been feeling inside the big fish for three days and three nights. He didn’t know God was going to save him. Pretend you are Jonah and write a prayer to God together.
Station 6-Go to Nineveh!
God called to Jonah a second time. Be like Jonah and walk all around the city (or this room) yelling, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.”
Station 7-Repent with the People of Nineveh!
Instead of sitting in ashes, we sat in scraps of paper. And in place of sackcloth, we used old painting shirts from the craft closet.
Have someone read out loud-The people heard Jonah and changed their ways. They promised not to eat (fast). They put on sackcloth (old, not fancy clothes) and sat in ashes. They hoped God would see the changes they made in their lives and forgive them. And guess what? It worked. God saw their changed behavior, and God forgave the people of Nineveh.
Station 8-Sit Under a Tree
You might think Jonah would be happy that God was kind and forgave the people of Nineveh. Nope! He got mad. Jonah said, “God, I know you are merciful. I didn’t even want to come here because I knew you would forgive them.”
Take turns sitting in this chair under the tree being grumpy like Jonah was. Remember that God forgives us and loves us just like God forgave the people of Nineveh and grumpy Jonah too.
Once all eight stations have been completed, it is time to put the story in order and tell it to the awesome adults waiting to hear the story.