Games

I have always enjoyed leading games with young people; from extreme wide games in the dark with rules so complicated they take days to prepare, to simple games sitting round a table.

In the last few weeks I have realised again the importance and centrality of games in youth ministry. Sometimes people can dismiss games as being secondary or less important than the times we sit down and pray or read the bible, but surely this is a narrow view of how God's love and grace is known through the ministry we are involved in?

When we play games we laugh, compete, chat, learn new skills and make new friends. At a cosy cafe in a school this week I was playing the "yes, no" game with some pupils, it was a struggle at times, but by the end of the game they were encouraging each other and working together, and new friendships had begun.

Jen