27/5/12  PENTECOST

Theme: The Power of the Spirit

Bible Reading

Ezekiel chapter 37 verses 1-14

Preparation

You will need a torch with the batteries removed, and the appropriate batteries to hand.

If you are feeling “brave” pupils can use assorted untuned percussion instruments to represent the rattling of the dry bones and the wind as you tell the story from Ezekiel. A skeleton would also be an excellent visual aid should one be available in school!

Introduction

Ask for a volunteer to come and hold the torch for you. As they struggle to switch it on, offer helpful advice about what could be wrong (without mentioning batteries) and then ask the assembly what should be done. It should be only a matter of moments before someone realises there are no batteries, at which point allow your volunteer to open up the torch and hand over the batteries to get it working.

Talk with the children about how things need to be "plugged" into power of some kind to work, whether this is electricity, batteries, clockwork, steam, sunlight etc etc. Ask for some examples of different items that are powered in different ways. Should any pupil mention something animate, use this as a bridge to the main story from Ezekiel:

The Message

In the Bible there is a story about a man called Ezekiel who had a very strange experience. God sent him a dream or a vision with a special message. In the vision Ezekiel found himself in a huge valley filled with human bones. It looked as if a great army had died there and their bodies had just been left in the sand. When Ezekiel looked at the skeletons God asked him if they could come back to life, but Ezekiel wasn’t sure what the answer should be. “You know whether they can, God” he said “but I don’t!” So God told Ezekiel to call out over the bones and to order them to come back to life. He did this, and then watched in amazement as the skeletons were covered with muscles and sinews and skin – but the bodies were still dead.

Remind the assembly of the torch. To start with you had just a dead shell of a torch – it looked as if it should work, but it had no source of power. What needs to happen for a body (any body) to work?

Ezekiel was told by God to call out again; this time he called to the winds to bring the breath of God to the valley. The winds came roaring down the valley and as the breath of God was breathed into the bodies they came to life and stood upon their feet.

It sounds a really strange vision doesn’t it? It reminds us of horror films where weird things happen and the dead come back to life. But in the Bible it is not meant to be a scary story, instead God is giving Ezekiel a picture of how much people need God in their lives to be really alive. The wind is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, which is God’s power working within us.

Elsewhere in the Bible it says that the gifts (fruits) the Spirit brings into people’s lives are love, joy and peace( see Galatians chapter 5 verses 22-23 for the full list). So people who have God in their lives should be showing this in their way of life, just like the torch showed it had batteries in it by giving out a bright light.

If you know the song “D’em bones” which is based on this story from Ezekiel you could sing this here – otherwise a hymn referring to the working of the Holy Spirit would be especially appropriate.

Prayer

We thank you God for the gift of the Holy Spirit which we remember as we celebrate Pentecost. May the Spirit’s gifts of love, joy and peace be seen in our lives today.

Also this week tell the actual Penecost story - Acts chp 2 - and the Holy Spirit at Jesus' baptism - Luke chp 3