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Mother's Day Games for Church

The history of Mother's Day can be traced as far back as ancient Greece. The Greeks held an annual festival to celebrate the life of the mother of all gods, Rhea. Christians later began marking the holiday four weeks after Lent to celebrate the life of Mary, Christ's mother. Mother's Day celebrations were later abolished due to time constraints. In the year 1872, a woman named Julia Ward reorganized the holiday, dedicating it to both mothers and world peace. The tradition, celebrated today with dinners, parties and activities, is now celebrated annually.

Mother's Day Word Search
- Have each child in your Sunday School or church class create a Mother's Day Word Search with words that describe his mother. This game is not only thoughtful but will give moms and their children something special to do together later in the day.
  
  Start by creating a grid for the children to fill out. The size is up to you but should be at least 20 spaces wide and 20 spaces long. Have the children start by filling in at least 10 nice words that they think describe their mothers. Make sure they write the words at the bottom of the sheet to form a word bank.
  
  Once the children have written the words into the grid, have them go back and fill in the empty spaces on the grid with random letters in order to "hide" the words. Let them decorate or color the empty space on the paper around the word-find grid so that the game is personalized to each child and mother.
  
  The games can be used during your church Mother's Day gathering, or the kids can take them home to play with mom later on. Make sure you have crayons or pens available for the mom's to use if you plan on letting them play during your gathering.
Photograph Matching
- Before the gathering, have every mother in your church bring in a photograph of herself as a baby. Mount each photograph on a piece of paper and give each a number. Hang them in random order around the room in which your Mother's Day gathering will take place. Make sure you create a master list or answer sheet for yourself so that you know who is in each picture.
  
  Allow the guests (including the other moms) to walk around the room and look at each photograph. Give them each a sheet of paper with numbers (to match the number of photographs you have) and ask them to write the name of the person in each picture on their sheet of paper.
  
  Later in the party you can reveal the true identities of the people in the baby pictures on the wall. Whoever correctly guessed the most identities wins the game. Sweeten the deal and encourage participation by offering a nice prize like a bouquet of flowers or a small box of chocolates.
Getting to Know You
- Most children, especially young children and teens, don't know their mothers as well as they think they do. Before your church Mother's Day party, create a list of questions you'll ask children or families about their mothers. You might ask about her favorite color, first pet's name, and anything else you think might keep the game fun.
  
  During the party, ask the moms to leave the room. Have the kids and their families (if present) work together to answer the questions you've prepared. You can either give them a written list or ask the questions out loud and let them write the answers.
  
  Invite the moms back into the room and ask them the same questions so that they can reveal the real answers. Give the kids or teams one point for every question they answered correctly. The team with the most points wins the game.

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