Fun Christian Games or Activities

Christian Versions of Secular Games

• With a little creativity, you can give almost any secular game a Christian twist. Many popular games naturally lend themselves to any theme or topic you choose.

  One example is charades: make it Christian charades by having players act out Bible stories or church-related words. Another example is "Who Am I?", an icebreaker game in which each player has the name of a famous person taped to his back. Each player tries to guess the name on his own back by asking other players yes-or-no questions. Give this game a Christian theme by using famous Bible characters.

  Another example is the alphabet game, in which players must think of words that fit within a theme. Each player tries to list a word starting with every letter in the alphabet. You can adjust the difficulty of this game to match the needs of your group. To make it easier, simply require that all the words have to do with Christianity. To make it harder, require words with a more specific theme, such as words that have to do with praising God or words that relate to Lent.

Games that Teach Christian Values

• Games don't have to have an obvious Christian theme to be good choices for a Christian group. Many games can teach powerful Christian values, even if they don't talk about specifically Christian themes. If you use one of these games for your group, you can let it stand on its own or follow up with a discussion of what your group can learn from the ideas in the game.

  All team building games can teach the values of cooperation, communication and humility. Team building games require players to work together, listen to each other and help each other. You can debrief a team building game by talking about individual roles within the body of Christ or how Christians should handle disagreements. An example of a team building game is "Helium Hoop." To play, the group stands in a circle around a hula hoop. All members of the group hold out both of their index fingers and the hula hoop is placed on top of their fingers. The goal of the game is for the group to lower the hula hoop to the ground without anyone ever losing contact with the hoop. If anyone loses contact, the group must bring the hula hoop back up and start again.

  Trust games can also be used to teach Christian values, especially the value and nature of faith in God. You can use a trust game to start a discussion about what it means to trust God completely. One example of a trust game is "Mine Field," which is played in partners. One partner is blindfolded and must try to walk through a "mine field" of obstacles scattered on the ground without stepping on anything. The other partner guides the first person through the obstacle course by talking to them but not touching them. This game can lead to a discussion about hearing the voice of God and trusting when you don't understand.

Bible Games

• Any game that teaches Bible knowledge is useful for a Christian group. One obvious example is Bible trivia, which you can play with a specific theme (such as trivia about Jesus' birth) or with general knowledge. You can buy a commercial Bible trivia board game or develop your own questions.

  However, there are many other types of games that can teach your group more Biblical knowledge. One example is Bible reenactment, in which your group reenacts a Biblical story. You can make this more fun by dividing into several groups and having them perform for each other, or by giving each group several random props that they must include in their reenactment.

Clean Fun Games

• If you don't like any of the obviously Christian-themed games, you can always play a simply fun game with your Christian group. Many party games are clean and enjoyable for Christian groups. If you choose this type of game, be sure to consider any aspects of the game that might be potentially offensive for a Christian group. For example, games that involve playing with food are popular with Christian youth groups, but some Christians feel it's disrespectful to waste food when so many people in the world don't have enough food.

  One example of a clean party game is an indoor scavenger hunt. To play, divide into teams. The leader has a list of items that members of the group are likely to have on them (such as a shoelace, a hair, a dime or a key). The leader calls out one item from the list. Each team finds the item and then chooses one person from their team to run to the front and give it to the leader. The first team to get their item to the leader gets a point for the item, and the team with the most points at the end of the game wins.