Jigsaw Reflective Activity

Jigsaw reflective activity

You will need: a jigsaw puzzle depicting a map of the world (alternatively, especially for a large congregation, you could use a large world map – one that you won’t need again, as it will be destroyed during this activity; something that can represent a ‘safe place’, for instance a blanket, or a picture of a big pair of hands (or a large model of a pair of hands, if you have one or fancy making one); - if you are using a large paper world map, you will also need a pair of sharp scissors or a craft knife (which will need to be kept safely by an adult when not in use).

Begin with the jigsaw puzzle complete, or the world map held up for all to see.

Song: He’s got the whole world in his hands (first verse only)

The earth belongs to God: all: and everything in it.

God made the world to be a beautiful place, where his beloved people could live at peace with one another and with him.

We are gathered to remember a time when God’s world was broken by conflict.

Since human beings first picked up sticks and stones there has been fighting. Fighting about land. Fighting about power. Even fighting about God. Also fighting about justice and fairness. Fighting to protect others, too. Even fighting for peace.

Today we remember a time when war broke out in one place, and spread to many places.

As you speak, begin to remove pieces from the jigsaw, starting from central Europe, scattering them on the floor. If you’re using the world map, continue to hold it up for everyone to see as you begin to cut it up into pieces beginning with central Europe.

It was the First World War. Never before had conflict spread so wide, and involved so many. Never before were so many afraid. Never before had the world felt so broken. Borders changed. Whole nations disappeared. The world would never be the same again.

Many centuries before World War One, a woman of God, mother Julian, had a vision of God’s love for his world. She wrote:

‘And in this vision God showed me a little thing, the size of a hazel nut, lying the in palm of my hand, and to my mind’s eye it was a round as any ball. I looked at it and thought, “What can this be?” The answer came to me: “It is all that is made.” I wondered how it could last, for it was so small it might suddenly disappear. The answer came to my mind, “It lasts and will last for ever because God loves it, and in the same way everything exists through the love of God.’’’ Begin to gather up the pieces of the world map or jigsaw pieces – children can help with this.

We place into the loving hands of God the broken pieces of the world he loves.

Place the pieces in the safe place you have created earlier. Children can be invited to stay there to ‘watch over’ the broken pieces during the final prayer. If you’ve used a blanket, don’t be surprised if some of the younger children want to tuck the pieces in.

If you would like to use a song at this point you might consider ‘Father I place into your hands’ or repeat ‘He’s got the whole world in his hands’ again.

Loving Father we look on your broken world, held carefully and lovingly in your hands, and we pray for peace, for the healing of the nations, for earth to be more like heaven. Amen.

As a variation on this activity, you may wish to use the pieces of the paper world map in intercessions, distributing the broken pieces to the congregation and inviting them to write a prayer on the back, before collecting them in to place them in the ‘safe place’.

This activity was devised by the Rev’d Ally Barrett, Vicar of Buckden and the Offords, Cambridgeshire.