25 Mother-Son Church Activity Ideas for Mother’s Day

March 27, 2017March 16, 2017

Mother-Daughter activities abound around Mother’s Day and most churches host fun activities for women to be able to spend time with their daughters or focus on being a “daughter of the King.” Have you ever considered changing up the normal routine of events and focusing on those Mamas with sons in the family? I know this post is a little early to help you with some planning ahead if you’re interested in changing up your Mother’s Day event this year or making plans ahead for the following year.

This can be a lot of fun! Don’t discriminate between ages, let older men bring their older mothers if they want to and let mothers bring their younger sons too. If you allow the older men to come with Mama then it will show the younger men to show honor and respect to their mothers for their whole life. It will also give you a source of help for cooking during the cook-out and men who can do the devotion or be the drivers for the day-trip excursions.

1. Son-Hosted Grill Out/BBQ – Have the sons grill up meat for the mothers and have a picnic on the church grounds. Moms bring sides!

2. Mama-Son Baking Championship – Do a bake-off between families, having the mothers and sons cook up a baked dish and compete with each other. Add a twist by giving them a theme to base their baked goods from. P.S. If you’ve ever watched the hit show “Kid’s Baking Championship” on The Food Network then you will learn there are great boy chefs!

3. Lego Build Banquet – Boys love Legos, so why not have a Lego-themed event!? All you need are tables, legos, and decorations. Let the boys build to their heart’s content. Devotional Idea: “Lego and Let God,” talking about how mothers raise their sons for the Lord and then let go and allow God to take over their life. Or perhaps a devotion about building your life upon God’s foundations.

4. Raising Knights Night – Using a medieval theme you can teach Christian boys how to treat a lady by allowing them to be a valiant knight for their mother. Devotion Idea: Gentlemanly etiquette and Biblical advice on raising a knight.

5. Be Mom’s Super Hero Banquet – The idea is like that from above, concentrating the focus on teaching boys how to be a hero for women, especially defending and respecting their mothers. The super-hero theme is not complete without thinking of Christ’s love and tenderness toward Mary, His mother. Use primary colors for decorations, wear capes, and have fun with it!

6. Mother-Son Bowl-A-Thon – Gather up all the gals and guys and rent a few lanes at the bowling alley and just get out and enjoy those stinky bowling shoes and a striking afternoon game together.

7. Mother-Son Hike/ Nature Walk – Organize an outdoor hike and walk for either a day trip or a nearby adventure locally. Plan a picnic and have them enjoy God’s creation together!

8. High Tea with Son and Me – Have a dainty tea set up for mothers and sons to enjoy little sandwiches, punch/tea, and little desserts. This seems a little too close to what is normally done for mother-daughter events but this could be an exercise on teaching a young man to treat his mother to a fine date and wear his Sunday best and enjoy each other’s company. This is great training for men to learn the value of dating their future wives.

9. Sports Event Spectacular – Plan moms and sons to attend a sporting event together with the other mothers and sons in your church. I know some of you gals dig sports, so this would be the occasion for mothers to “take him out to the ballgame!”

10. Board Game Bonanza – Have an afternoon of fun with snacks and games enjoying mother-son bonding time playing board games with other mom-son competitors.

11. Birdhouse Build Day – Create a time of building (what boys like) a birdhouse together and then decorating/painting it together (what moms like). Devotional ideas: Putting together a life for God, Preparing your heart for God to live in (like you prepare a birdhouse for a bird’s family).

12. Dessert Potluck – Need an idea in a hurry? Just invite mothers and sons to bring desserts and enjoy a dessert potluck in the church fellowship hall together on a Saturday afternoon. Devotion Idea: Be Sweet to Mama – Be Sweet to Son (Use examples from God the Son).

13. Mama/Son Picture Booth – Okay, so this would be something you can incorporate to any of the events! You could also find a background and a photographer, and perhaps a few props for a fun activity to do on Mother’s Day Sunday itself for all children and their mothers. Set it up in the foyer or another easy spot to get access to and you can give them a great memory to cherish for years to come.

14. Coffee and Cookies Campout – Mix a camping theme with yummy coffee and cookies and you’ll have a great mother-son connection. Imagine tents and fake campfires in your fellowship hall and cowboy coffee (or real!!)made on electric burners surrounded with plates of cookies made by Mom. OR break out the patio fire pits and use them outside in someone’s backyard instead! Devotion Idea: How Parenting is Like Camping – Crazy things happen on camp-outs just like in parenting but when it’s over you cherish the adventures!

15. Talent Show/Hobby Highlight Night – Showcase the talents of your mothers and sons by allowing them to have a time to share their God-given abilities for the church or for the other mothers and sons. Ensure the content is appropriate by having a sign-up sheet with what each family will be performing for each other. Mother-Son ideas could be: duets, instrumentals, comedy/skits, scripture recitation, etc.

16. BYOB – Bring Your Own Breakfast – Meet at a park for an early morning picnic and have each mother-son duo bring their own breakfast to eat. Devotion idea: “Joy Comes in the Morning” Highlight the godly benefits of being a joyful mother and a godly son.

17. Chef Cooking Demonstration – Hire a local chef to come in and do a cooking demonstration for mothers and sons. This could also be hosted by another cook (perhaps a gifted person in your church) that is great at teaching their skills. Have them create a meal that could be served to the group and easily duplicated at home. Encourage them to foster a love for family by learning to serve each other with these newly acquired skills. (Add this to the Mother-Son Baking Championship and you’ll have a pretty cool event.)

18. The Amazing Race Adventure – Create your own local scavenger hunt placing other mothers and sons on teams working together to carry out tasks and find clues that will lead them to a common place to enjoy time together.

19. Go-Kart Championship – Enjoy an afternoon at a local Go-Kart track. Rent a place for the afternoon and enjoy mom-son competition and speed!

20. Mother-Son Pottery Painting – Pottery painting is not just for girls! Creative boys would like to make something they can take home or maybe even a gift for Mama. Check out your local pottery painting place and see if you can rent a room for an afternoon.

21. Theme-Park Trip – Do you have a theme park within a day’s travel? Gather a mother-son group and set out for roller coasters and rides for a fun day trip.

22. Ice Cream Social – Ice Cream + Moms & Sons = Special Memories. Provide the ice cream and have the ladies bring the toppings. An exciting edition to this would be to create a “Giant Banana Split” like you can find here. Devotion Idea: God sprinkles blessings on us just like we’ve sprinkled toppings on our ice cream. Even though we can have cold times (like ice cream) God can make them sweet.

23. Glow Game Night – This can be a fun night activity done indoors at church or outdoors. Include black lights, glow in the dark paint, and more! Create fun games using glow sticks where mothers and sons can compete to win prizes together.

24. Card Game Carnival – Set up a variety of card games at different tables. Rotate the groups through the tables to be able to play a variety of card games together. Or drop the card games and just have a carnival with carnival games!

25. Mother-Son Lock-In – Gather the boys together with Mamas and enjoy fun at an all-nighter! Moms and sons can enjoy doing all types of activities (incorporate a conglomeration of the things listed here for a night of fun!). Choose a theme to go along with the lock-in and you’ll be able to focus on decorations, food ideas, and the devotions. Have a son bring the devotion to the group at some point in the evening. Don’t think mothers will attend all night? Then end at midnight.

Thank you so much for coming by and taking a look at these ideas. If you ever use one and do your own Mother-Son event please take some photos and send them to me in an e-mail! I’d love to see your creativity.

A “Fruitless” Sunday

August 22, 2016

Quick Family Update: We are now working in a church plant ministry in the southwest and have been since March 2016. We hold our services in a local elementary school. We travel around 30 minutes to services on Sundays and meet in the pastor’s home on Wednesday nights. We are still living with my in-laws which is allowing our children special time to spend with their grandparents. My husband serves as the assistant pastor leading music and teaching the adult Sunday School class while also working a full-time job. We are all growing and enjoying the new experience church planting really is… this story is from a “fruitless” Sunday this summer!

The plan was to have a Sunday morning “Fun Day,” a morning Vacation Bible School type service in hopes to meet people in our community. Our little church plant had a group of eight teenagers and four adults come for a week on a missions trip. Throughout the week we went out in the blistering heat and passed out flyers in the neighborhoods surrounding the elementary school where we meet. The teens practiced special music weeks ahead before they arrived and did fundraising for their trip well in advance.

Meeting and planning where we will put out flyers

The week before our event…

The sun was wearing us out within two hours of putting out flyers. Water bottles were in high demand. I took all five of our children out two days of four to put out flyers on doors. It was hard to get through those two smaller neighborhoods without sweaty foreheads and pink cheeks close to being overheated even though we stopped toward the end every five minutes for a drink. Our Tres (nickname for 3rd child), who is six years old and learning to read, began recognizing the “No Soliciting” signs that were dispersed along the neighborhood doors. Our baby rode along in the stroller playing with a little monkey key chain, I was constantly adjusting the shade over her to keep her feet from being sunburned. The teenagers did more leg work but came to the end of the mornings just as drained. When the afternoons came, they crashed into a heap taking naps on the couches because the heat had zapped their energy. The flyers were distributed and a few contacts had been made.

The day of our event…

Two hours before the service we were setting up around the school for the fun water games. Water balloons and other supplies were ready, ice in ice chests for snow cones, two lessons ready for younger and older children. We waited in anticipation.

Several people waited outside the school gates to welcome visitors but no one came.

No one.

Not one kid, adult, or new guest at all.

My heart had built up an anticipation for multiple visitors so when no people came it was a crash of disappointment. I won’t lie, I am human, and a woman with emotions. I was disheartened. I wanted to cry for everyone who put forth all the effort. I was not disappointed in God but surprised at our results. I tried reading the faces of the other adults as the morning service time came and our services began with just our small handful of church folk.

Were we really okay with what looked like an event of menial proportions?

The answer is yes, we were okay. The group went on with the program with our children (our children plus the pastor’s children = 8) They still played the games planned, ate the snow cones, gave away the candy prizes and did the “Grand Prize” drawings that had been advertised in our flyers. Most importantly they went on with the Bible lesson and the youth pastor spoke about “The Greatest Gift Ever Given.” Almost all of our children have given a profession of faith except our Cuatro (4 year old). We all needed the reminder of Christ’s gift of His own precious life dying on the cross for our sins that day.

The youth group treated our “ministry kids” as if they were just as important as any visitor. The pastor and the group did not just drop the program because guests did not arrive. It could have been easy to throw our hands up in the air and have everyone join in together for the regular church service. Our children were taught ministering to them was important because it’s true: Ministry children are important too.

Sunday night the youth group sang, “If just one more soul were to walk down the aisle, it would be worth every struggle, it would be worth every trial, a lifetime of labor would be worth it all if it rescued just one more soul.” My heart was struck that may not have been our week to rescue one more soul but if in the course of time we see someone saved, a Sunday like that day genuinely would be worth all the efforts.

After Sunday was over…

The thought occurred to me that night as I lie in bed in the twilight of sleep, there was fruit. The fruit of my womb, my children. The fruit of my pastor’s wife’s womb, her children. The fruit of some parents and youth leaders and a pastor in that neighboring state were there ministering to us. The fruit of parents and youth leaders decades ago were there, my husband and I and our pastor and his wife. We are all fruit of labors people invested in our lives for the Lord’s sake. The Lord Himself has been the investor of our lives, nurturing our hearts all along to help us have spiritual growth and understanding. He has been watering, pruning, investing since we were all children to bring us to where we are today. We, the ministers, count as fruit although at first glance the “reward” from the labors for our current day left us seeming empty-handed. The truth was the opposite. The enemy would love for us to discount the Lord’s investment and make us feel like failures.

Church planting is beginning with a bare field and seasons of time include sowing the seed of God’s Word and letting people know you are in the community. To all the church planting families out there I say, keep planting, the Lord will give the increase. Don’t give up on reaching out in the community to all the “neighbors” out there, souls still need Christ no matter your attendance. Compel, sow with energy, pray in earnest with tears, fruit will come in its season.

To all the Ministry Mamas out there I say, even if it is only your children teach the class or run the program! When the church van or bus route is filled only with your children share the joy of the Lord with them and invest in them in a special way. Relish the moments of only watching the few babies in the nursery, laugh and have fun with them for they too need a good experience in learning to love going to church. When your ministry seems to bear no new fruit and no visitors walk through the door or souls come forward in a church service, do your job and leave the rest to God. Value those who are present, they are fruit worth loving and investing in!

What We’re Doing for Christmas This Year

December 23, 2015May 14, 2016

Christmas, our family chooses to celebrate it! This year it has come to my attention that many Christian families choose not to celebrate it at all for many reasons such as it not really being the season of the year that Christ was probably born or it being a time of year that many people lust selfishly for gifts. I believe Romans 14 gives us an allowance as Christians to celebrate specific days differently than other brothers and sisters in Christ without it being wrong if we are doing it in faith-Read it! (This may be something I write about in a future post.)

We will still choose to celebrate Christ’s birth to this earth and show our children the wonderful gift of God and teach them the Biblical emphasis of gifts are to be given rather than received. It is the time of year when people are often open to the gospel and we can share the gift God gave us of His only begotten Son with more ease than other seasons of the year.

As many of you know we are living with my in-laws so our celebration is a little different from our usual “just us” routine. We will be with my husband’s family for the first time at Christmas in the eleven years we have been married. We are getting introduced to their traditions and routines while still trying to incorporate ours.

For Christmas devotions we are using the Gloria: A Christmas Hymn Study by Not Consumed. I received it as a free download and thought it would be a great addition to our school days. We are still trying to catch up on our homeschooling after our move so we are still working through our school work and having these devotions in the morning have been a blessing. We have used Not Consumed’s When I Survey Hymn Study in our Resurrection Week activities and really liked how it focuses on the words of the hymns and teaches the meanings of how scripture intertwines in the depth of the hymn writer’s lyrics.

For fun I purchased our first Little People Nativity for our daughters on eBay. Word to the wise, make sure you have all the pieces in the set that you buy because I did not even notice Jesus was not included in the one I bought. Thankfully though there was a baby Jesus listed and we finally completed our set! This keeps our girls thinking of the Christmas story during their playtime and can be something we keep until our newest addition grows up and plays with it.

I also purchased a board game called Back to Bethlehem, created by a homeschool Christian dad who wanted to make learning about the birth of the Saviour memorable with his own family. We played it for the first time when I went to watch a friend’s children one evening and it was a lot of fun! We laughed at oinking out a Christmas song, the person that was able to sit on another player’s lap, and was able to learn new things about each other while answering the campfire conversation cards.

We are going to have a Royal Baby Shower with our children on Christmas morning. We decided to choose a local church planter and their new baby church that was started in November and buy gifts for their nursery. Since their church is located in an elementary school we bought a big tub to put all of our toys in so it would be easy to move and to store. This is the part where we’re really focusing on giving to the Lord, something for use for His work. Together the kids and I wrapped the gifts and the plan is to take it to the church planter’s home and make a big deal about how special it is to give to the Lord.

We decided to work on singing a special song about Christ for our extended family gathering as a gift for them. My husband’s father will play the piano for us and we will sing with our children. The rest of the day will be spent with our family enjoying the gift of each other.

I hope you have a Merry Christmas and are able to think upon the remembrance of the beautiful gift of salvation God gave to us when He sent His only begotten Son!

*The idea for the cupcakes from a pin that I found on Pinterest but the link to the original webpage is now unavailable. Click on the photo to go to the pin on Pinterest.

**This post does not contain affiliate links.

The Ministry Mama

Living as a Ministry Wife and Mama

Category: Mama Hood