Reflections on Death and Life

This may sound odd, but it was a very powerful activity. If your church has access to a graveyard, take senior high kids, I wouldn’t suggest any younger, and explore death. Have the kids just walk through the cemetery and look at the headstones. If any kids have people of special meaning to them buried there, encourage them to look for that person’s grave. See if they can find the oldest, newest, and a person close to their age that is buried there. Remind them that this is holy ground and to be very respectful. Gather in a large group and listen to some relaxing music. (we used Titanic) Before you start the music, ask the kids to think about the graves they saw, how it made them feel, and encourage them to share their thoughts about death. Explain to them that although it’s a scary topic, it’s something that affects all of us, and those around us. Then go around the group for sharing. When everyone is done talking, sum up the feeling of the group and feel free to add any scripture verses you feel are applicable. As I said in the beginning, it sounds very morbid, but many in our youth group were seen with tears rolling down their faces, and it was a great group strengthener. We did this 5 days before Halloween, and went in the dark, so we had flashlights. I think that doing it in the dark was a powerful thing, and even though we were in a group, helped make it a more personal event because you couldn’t really see other people’s faces.