Crafts for Kids for Telling Others About Jesus

In the Gospel of Mark (16:15), Jesus commands his followers to “go into all the world and preach the good news to everyone." This imperative is called "the Great Commission," and is one of the primary duties of many Christians. Christian children are also encouraged to obey this directive by telling their friends about Jesus, and crafts that demonstrate evangelism can help them do it.

Stories in the Bible that show the disciples telling others about Jesus, or that feature children sharing the "good news" with their friends, are examples of evangelism. Crafts that focus on these stories, such as paper dolls, coloring books, puppets or clay figures, are good ways to highlight the message. Stories such as Andrew's telling his brother Peter about Jesus, Philip's explaining the Bible to the Ethiopian official and Paul's bold evangelism are among possible choices.

The concept of evangelism may be too advanced for children to grasp, but they understand sharing. Crafts that demonstrate sharing with others, and reminders that Jesus commands us to love others by sharing, are simple enough for even young children. Crafts that demonstrate sharing might include drawing or painting pictures of things that multiply when you share them, such as smiles, friendship -- and good news.

Crafts that illustrate the Gospels as oral history are a good demonstration of evangelism. The story of Jesus began with Jesus, who told his disciples, who told their friends, who also told their friends -- all the way down to us, with each person representing one link in a long chain. Children might put together a paper chain to dramatize this concept. Or, they might complete a "connect the dots" drawing showing the spread of the Gospel from Jerusalem to Rome to Europe and to America, noting the people who likely passed it on to the next place, such as the apostle Paul.

Evangelism beads, which are multi-colored beads worn as a bracelet, are often used as an aid to tell others about Jesus, and may be crafted by older children. The bracelet often includes a black bead, to represent the darkness of humanity's sin; a red bead, to stand for the blood Jesus shed on the cross for humanity's redemption; a white bead, to show that those who repent and believe in Jesus are now purified and clean; and that those who follow Jesus Christ will join him one day is symbolized by a blue or yellow bead, representative of heaven, or glory. This concept can be replicated by simple booklets that use the same colors and message in tract form.