This resource provides ways to approach Father’s Day within church groups and the wider community, or as part of an act of worship. As you prepare, be mindful of those who have difficult or different family circumstances. It may be appropriate to say parent instead of father/dad in some instances.
Here’s a way to introduce the theme.
What does ‘dad’ look like? Give out paper and pens/pencils, then invite everyone to draw (no words!) their response to this question. It might be a picture of their actual father, or an item of clothing, a type of food or an activity – anything that says ‘dad’ to them. Use the results to create a ‘Dad wall’ – this will be used again later.
Dear God,
thank you for being with us,
help us to understand more of what it means
that we, like Jesus, call you ‘Father’. Amen.
Before you end, come together to gather your thoughts and, if appropriate, to pray.
Give everyone a piece of salt/play dough. Ask them to form a simple shape that represents either themselves or their father. Invite everyone to think about what they’re grateful for about the relationships that have been explored in the sessions; also, anything they would like to move on/away from.
We all know our lives have been shaped by those who cared for us as children, and that we can continue to change as we grow older. Invite people to consider how their understanding of God has changed over time, and whether that affects how they see themselves.
Father God,
whatever our experience of an earthly father might be,
thank you that you – our heavenly Father – love us so much,
more than can ever be expressed in human terms.
Help us to receive your love and to share it with others. Amen.
If the group knows it, you could end by saying the Lord’s Prayer together.
Linking the introductory activities to the theme and Bible passage.
Jesus tells a story about a man with two sons, one of whom demands his share of his inheritance now, then wastes it. When he returns home, penniless and sorry, his father welcomes him back to the family and celebrates his return.
This is a great story for people to act out. Ask individuals to take on a role, miming the action as the story is read out: the disappointed father, the partying son, the desperate son feeding the pigs, the father running to the son on his return. Alternatively, you can use the drama script either for one person acting out the story while someone else narrates, or with everyone following and performing the actions together for each part of the story.
People often focus on the ‘prodigal’ son in this story, but Jesus’ focus was on the forgiving father. In that culture, what the son did was shameful and Jesus’ listeners would probably have expected the son to be cut-off and forgotten. At the very least they would have expected the son to beg for forgiveness and have to make up for what he had done. Instead, the father – who has been looking every day for his son’s return – gives up all dignity when he does return home, running to embrace the smelly, pig-stained young man. This would have been unthinkable. But Jesus was really talking about God – is it unthinkable that God would run to us? Hug us? Throw a party just for you when you return to him?
Choose from these ideas to help people of all ages explore the theme together. Use the spiritual styles indicated by the coloured letters to help you plan, and cater for the different ways in which people connect with God.
Prepare two large man-shapes on two large sheets of paper. Give one the title: ‘Father God’ and the other ‘Human father’. Provide a range of marker pens, or sticky notes and pens, and invite people to write/stick single words to describe either a human father or Father God, on the appropriate shape.
Sitting in a circle, play pass the parcel but each time the music stops, the person unwrapping a layer of the parcel needs to share something positive and helpful that they feel their dad has passed on to them. It could be something physical, or a habit or a way of approaching or doing things – anything at all. What is the positive impact of fatherhood?
Humour is a good way to build relationships. Invite people to share their favourite ‘Dad’ joke (there’s plenty to find on the internet!). You could have a vote to decide which one is best. Why are they called dad jokes? Are there mum jokes too? Apart from jokes, what other ways help parents to build relationships with their children, and vice versa? What might help us build up our relationship with God?
Provide a range of items that can be used as percussion instruments: e.g. drums, plastic tubs, pan lids, strips of wood. Invite people to choose one ‘instrument’ and to think of a few words that describe either their father, or another father they know, or something memorable a father has said or done. Point at someone who says their phrase, tapping their instrument once for each syllable or word, then pauses for a few seconds, then repeats. Point to someone else who joins in with their phrase. And then another person, and so on, so that the rhythm becomes increasingly complex. Stop after a minute or two and ask everyone which words caught their attention, or resonate with their own experiences or feelings.
Have an old-fashioned set of scales or a small DIY see-saw on a table: One side labelled ‘helpful’, the other ‘hindrance’. Have two bowls filled with marbles in front of this. Play some music to make it easier for people to spend time here quietly. Invite people to think of how they understand the word ‘father’ and whether it is helpful or a hindrance to think of God as a father. When they have reflected, they can place a marble on one side of the balance or the other.
Play and reflect upon ‘The Prodigal Song’, Cory Asbury, on To Love A Fool.
These are suitable when using these resources as part of an act of worship.
This call and response can be used after each bidding.
O God, as a parent comforts their child
wrap them up in your love and care.
We rejoice in the gift of human love and give thanks for all that we have received from our parents. We celebrate with those for whom Father’s Day is a true celebration. But we pray also for those for whom Father’s Day is a difficult time – perhaps a reminder of sorrow, loss or pain.
We give thanks for the joys of parenthood and new birth. But we pray also for parents overwhelmed by the demands of small babies, lacking in sleep, or suffering from post-natal depression.
We give thanks for health and growth, physical and in relationships. But we pray also for parents whose children are very ill, who spend their days sitting by a bedside, waiting for signs of hope.
We pray for parents who have lost children, and whose grief is still raw; for couples who have been unable to conceive, and women who have suffered miscarriages.
We pray for parents estranged from their children, who do not know where they are, or what has become of them; for families where there are tensions, where parents and children are locked in conflict.
We pray for children who have lost parents, for those living in children’s homes or with foster parents.
Spiritual styles (as defined by Dave Csinos) key: Word, Emotion, Symbol, Action.
