Safeguarding Sunday is an initiative run by our safeguarding partners at thirtyone:eight. While the main church spent some time thinking about making our churches safe spaces, the young people also explored this topic.
What do these items have in common – an umbrella, oven gloves, plasters, shin pads, a cycle helmet, sunscreen and sunglasses? They all protect us from different things – the kids spotted this link really early on in the game! We talked about how God keeps us safe and thought of some stories in the Bible where God protected people: Rahab when the walls of Jericho fell down, David facing Goliath, Daniel in the lion’s den and Moses leading the Israelites through the Red Sea.
God also wants his people to look after and keep each other safe. We thought about places and people that make us feel safe – often our homes, family, friends and people at church. We also talked about what to do if someone makes us feel unsafe – maybe they’re unkind to us, or hurt us, or just make us feel uncomfortable. We can talk to the adults who make us feel safe, and at church that can include the leaders in Pebbles, Rocks and Topz.
We made a fun craft to help us remember that God loves us, protects us and keeps us safe, based on Psalm 91:4. You can see some of them below.
This video gives a family friendly overview of what safeguarding is and you can check out our own safeguarding page to explore what safeguarding looks like at Forefront.