Innovative Ways to Encourage Learning

Have a Heart

The recent holiday season offered many opportunities to provide care for the sick, lonely or less fortunate. However, these are needs that exist all year. "Have a Heart" provides your church with a structure for showing God’s love. After al,l it’s the month where love is already on our minds!

"Have a Heart" is a three week emphasis that involves children through adults in acts of love and care. We offer a simple outline for the emphasis, but feel free to substitute ideas that will work better in your setting.


WEEK 1—Have a Heart: CARING

Begin the event early with a light supper (soups & sandwiches) and offer a quick overview of the "Have a Heart" schedule. Build excitement for the activities to come. Prepare ahead of time for these age group activities:

Children: Create "Thanks for Caring" cards for parent(s) (be sensitive to those children with single parents or guardians). Provide a wide range of card-making supplies and envelopes. Prepare a few ideas ahead of time as examples for the children. If possible, have Polaroid cameras available so children can place their photo in their cards. The children can take the cards home to their parents that day, or – allow time during the week 3 event for children to hand-deliver the cards during the celebration.

Youth: Hold a canned goods scavenger hunt. Have adult drivers and a church directory for each car. Provide a list of canned goods, and set a time limit. Youth are to visit homes of church members, friends and neighbors, seeking the canned goods on their list. No grocery store visits allowed! Whichever car returns with the most complete list wins. All food items are donated to a local charity or your church’s food pantry.

Adults: Write cards to shut-ins, sick, and grieving individuals. Provide plenty of simple cards (feel free to use the logo for "Have a Heart" and create your own cards in advance) and pens. Also provide a list of known shut-ins, sick or grieving members within your congregation. If you wish, a list of teachers, deacons and leaders can also be included. Encourage the adults to write caring notes to these individuals. Collect and mail the cards.

WEEK 2—Have a Heart: SHARING

Children: Children will create "walker aprons" to donate to local nursing homes. Use the detailed instructions provided here. You will need Adobe Acrobat® Reader to read the instructions.

Download "walker apron" instructions (pdf)

Download Adobe Acrobat® Reader

Youth and Adults: Prepare "Have a Heart" meals and deliver to shut-ins or sick people. Purchase food supplies in advance for an easy-to-prepare meal (spaghetti, salad & bread, for example). Be sure to also purchase containers to hold each meal and keep it warm. Provide a list of meal recipients and inform them in advance of your visit. Organize adults and youth into teams for cooking and delivery of the meals.

WEEK 3—Have a Heart: CELEBRATING

All Ages: Create a festive environment (perhaps even with a Valentine's Day theme). Provide refreshments, sing together a few love songs, and watch a slide show made from the activities of week 1 and 2. Ask a minister or other leader to provide a brief reflection on insights we gain into God’s heart as we care for those around us.

Organization:
• Appoint group leaders for the projects, by age group to form a "Have a Heart" Committee. Together, organize the details for the three sessions of the event.

• Appoint photographers for each group. Because of the brief time frame, you may want to request digital cameras be used. For fastest preparation of the final slide show, a computer and projector are best. Three to five minutes is plenty for most slide shows.

• Decide on a time frame. Sessions 1 & 3 could fill normal Wednesday or Sunday evening time slots, while the week 2 activities might better be held separately or on a Saturday. There are many scheduling possibilities, so choose the schedule that works best for your congregation.

• Be creative. This brief outline is only a starting point. Add ideas or completely replace our projects with your own. The point is to involve children, youth and adults in acts of caring and love... all in God’s name.

Promotion:
• Consider offering a "Have a Heart" t-shirt to those who participate. A logo file can be downloaded here.

• Promote the event across January using Sunday School classes, church bulletins and a special mailing announcement or invitation. Again, consider using a Valentine's Day theme for the promotions. What better way to show God’s love during the season of love?