The Sleeping Game for Children’s Church

I was having a rough morning and our children’s church was getting a little rowdy.  A few of the kids were even practicing their complaining skills. Before I knew it, the following words came out of my mouth.

Since everyone is a little cranky today, I will give you a choice. We can do our normal set of worship songs or you can all lay down and take a nap.

To my amazement, they all started screaming for the second option. Thinking on my feet, I quickly turned this around into a game. Here’s the basic idea, be sure to leave a comment to add your own suggestions.

1. Have all the children spread out and lay down on the floor. Instruct them to avoid moving or touching each other.
2. On the count of three, everyone should pretend like they are asleep.
3. Walk among them praising particular children for their convincing performance. “Wow, I am really starting to think Elijah is asleep.”
4. Offer them the extra fun of tricking another grown up. I challenged our kids to convince one of the church ushers.
5. Use this few minutes of nap time to teach the Bible story. You could say, “Imagine your having a dream about this …”
6. Use a three count to “wake up” the children after a few minutes.

Suggest Bible Lessons

This game would work well with any Bible story that includes sleeping characters. Here are some examples.

• When God made Eve from Adam’s rib. Genesis 2:21
• When Jesus was asleep in the storm. Mark 4:38
• When Jesus raised Lazarus, he said he was “asleep.” John 11:11
• When Jesus raised a dead girl, he said she was “asleep.” Matt 9:24
• At the Transfiguration, Peter and the others had been asleep. Luke 9:32