It's time for a new year and a new youth theme. This is an awesome theme and scripture for our youth today. Here we go! I am a disciple of Jesus Christ
Last year I put our theme Kick-off night on here for all of you. This year I'm planning ahead and posting this early. So not everything has been tried and tested with a group of Young Women - but it has been tested by myself and my own YW daughter.
Opening Exercises
Begin the night with a prayer, the young women theme followed by the NEW THEME SONG (linked to youtube, but you can find it in your gospel library app).
*Either have your YW leaders or your older young women participate in this brief presentation of the youth theme, scripture and short program.
Tell the group what the new theme is. "I am a disciple of Jesus Christ." Then ask the girls what a disciple is. Give a few minutes for discussion. You may choose to use this definition (paraphrasing of the words of Robert D Hales talk -Becoming a Disciple of Jesus Christ).
A disciple is someone who has been baptized and is willing to take upon them the name of the Savior and follow Him. A disciple strives to be like Jesus by keeping His commandments. One might think it only means to follow, but it's more about how we live. Disciples live so that the characteristics of Christ are woven into who they are, into everything they do and say.
Next, display the new theme scripture and have the girls recite it together.
PRESENTATION
On a table, have 6 jars with the letters C-H-R-I-S-T. With a different person for each letter - have them turn on a light in the jar as they explain about being a disciple of Christ. (It would probably be easier to have the lights all turned on with the letters facing away from the Young Women and then turn the jars around one by one as you present.) You can ask each presenter to explain one way to be a disciple that has nothing to do with the letters on the jars. They give their example and turn a jar around. But I also created a script using the letters C-H-R-I-S-T. It is a free download below.
TIP *You can do a paper wrap like I did, or you can paint the jars with the letters left unpainted. I used a shilloette to cut out these letters and they easily wrap around the jar and are tapped in the back. This picture shows how the jar simply slides out the top or bottom when you're done. With 2 on a page, they will fit on a pint size jar. Painting the jars will look great too, but we use our jars for canning so I don't like to paint them. With enough planning, you could collect kitchen jars like pasta sauce, etc.
DOUBLE TIP *make sure you are using bright enough lights. If you have fairy lights those might work. The lights I used came from my halloween box. They are bright enough, but you'll want to present where you can turn off the lights directly overhead without turning off all the lights in the room. If you don't have that option, or want to avoid the hastle of putting lights inside them, simple put yellow or white paper rolled around the inside the jar to make the letters stand out.
FREEBIE
I'm sharing the program script and the jar letters as a free download. Click below.
ACTIVITY: Light of Christ Lanterns
These tea light lanterns should take about 15-20 minutes to make with an oven dry time of 15 minutes. Depending on the size of your group you may need to split up so there are enough supplies. There are two stations you could rotate between. ** I recommend making one yourself before your young women do. You will find it easier to help them if you have made one first!
What you will need:
Clay (I chose Original Sculpey 1.75 lbs. Any clay will work - just look at the drying methods)
Vinyl tableclothes (the kind with the fuzzy back - not dollar store plastic coverings)
Rolling pin (I would suggest a rolling pin with a depth measurement of 1/8"-1/4")
Butter knife (plastic will work)
Heart Fondant Plunger Cutters (or other shapes if you want)
PVC pipe or other form (I' used a small glass)
Fold-top sandwich baggies or Plastic wrap (to make it easy to remove from your form)
Cardstock template (have several premade. Cereal boxes work awesome for this)
Cookie sheet for baking
Parchment paper (You don't need this for baking, but it would be helpful to write the names next to each piece so they don't get mixed up)
Small bowl of water
Start by making a template around your form. I used a glass, but for a larger group I suggest cutting a PVC pipe that is large enough to fit over a tea light.
Then roll out the clay to 1/8"-1/4" thickness. If you don't have a rolling pin with depth measurements, you can use disposable chopsticks on the side. Use the rolling pin to go over the clay and chopsticks at the same time to give you a good thickness.
Using the template and knife, cut your clay to the rectangle needed to fit the form.
Punch hearts all over the clay with the plunger cutters. Any cutter will work, but these give a nice small heart and it's easy to remove the clay after punching.
5. Score the edges that will connect by making lines across them with the knife.
6. Cover your form with plastic wrap. A fold-top sandwich bag worked perfectly.
7. Wrap the clay around the form and wet the edges that with be connected.
8. Press the seam together until it holds. This was the trickiest part and might require small pieces of additional clay to adjoin.
9. Slide the form out of the baggie and then remove the bag from inside the lantern.
10. Place the lantern on a cookie sheet and follow the directions on your package for drying.
TIP *With multiple lanterns needing to be dried, I'd suggest lining the pan with parchment paper then writing their names next to the lanterns. Our clay took 15 minutes in the oven to dry and a few more minutes to cool off before you could handle them. You could also use Crayola Air Dry clay, keep them on a cookie sheet to air dry and possibly paint them at your next activity. This is the clay my sister uses in her school art class. I just wanted mine dried and sent home on the same night.
SIDENOTE: *my first idea was to make "oil lamps." If you have someone with pottery skills, or you have a smaller group that you could devote more time to these - I love them and think they would be beautiful. This could also make for another great activity later, more focussed on filling our lamps and sharing our light, with a video about the 10 virgins.
ACTIVITY: Carrying the Light of Christ
While the clay dries, have the girls fill out "The Light of Discipleship" card with 8-10 specific ways they can be a disciple and how they can share the Light of Christ. I suggest providing colored pencils to make it more interesting.
FREEBIE
I'm happy to share my Carrying the Light of Christ print. There are 2 on a page.
ACTIVTY: Torch Suckers
These turned out amazing and were super easy to make.
How to make Torch Suckers:
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. (Your pan MUST be lined or the suckers will not come off - DO NOT use wax paper or foil.)
Place unwrapped Jolly Ranchers on the prepared baking sheet. The Tropical flavors give you red, orange and yellow. You will want to set them right next to each other. And check when you put them in the oven that they have not rolled apart. (You can also do only 2 candies, red and yellow - they blend great.)
Make sure you leave several inches between each sucker to allow for spreading.
Bake for 5-8 minutes. Watch carefully. When they have completely melted and combine they are ready to remove from the oven.
Immediately remove from the oven and with the sucker stick drag lines from the red up through the yellow to create the flames. Place the sucker stick in the center of the red end. Roll the sucker stick over to coat completely then press down so the stick is not sitting on top.
TIP *If you are making these suckers beforehand, I would only make two at a time (or recruit more helpers). You have to work quickly before the candy starts to harden. If I were to do this with the youth creating the flame, I would do 4 at a time so they can reach in from all sides of the pan without too much crowding.
STICKERS
I plan to give each girl a water bottle sticker. These stickers are in my store, along with other items for this theme. They are amazing quality, waterproof and will last for years. Some people choose to put the stickers on a journal to give to the girls.
REFRESHMENTS
I don't always think we need treats at the end of every activity. But if you want to include a dessert I thought these were awesome. I have not made these but found the idea online. Click the image if you want to go to their site. Don't they look perfect for the occasion!
FREEBIE
To remind youth and parents, I like to send out a quick invitation. Personally I think invitations show extra effort has been put into an activity AND it's a visual reminder that we have something on the calendar. I'll share it in the youth chat and the parent chat.
This invitation is a free canva template. You do need a canva.com account, but it's free. Click below to use this template. The date and location can be edited. You can send this digitally or print as a 4x6 photo to distribute.
*The links above are affiliated links. I could earn a small referral commission if you choose to purchase with these links. I hope we like the same things :)
