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Grow a Resurrection Plant for Lent and Easter

I love teaching Sunday School. I especially when I have a visual aid that gets the kids excited. Kids Sunday School lessons are always more fun, engaging and memorable when you kids can relate everyday items, events, and discoveries to Jesus and the Bible.

The Rose jericho, or Resurrection plant is a perfect Sunday school lesson for Easter, Lent or during the church year when you want to teach the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Learn how to grow a resurreciton plant and where to buy a resurrection plant for your students.

Here is how to grow a Resurrection plant as an example of Jesus Christ and the Resurrection Easter.

On Palm Sunday I used this unique Resurrection Plant to show the death of Christ and how the Easter miracle of resurrection brings everlasting life and rebirth with the forgiveness of sins. Easter lessons in Sunday school classes should be especially memorable.

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Sunday School Ressurection Lesson

I’m always looking for ways to keep kids interested and looking forward to attending Sunday School. When kids reach 4th-6th grade they often are bored with fill in the blanks, coloring, and crafts. A Sunday school resurrection lesson is perfect for Easter or Holy week but works just as well during other church seasons.

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During my 25 years of teaching Sunday school at Trinity Lutheran Church I have learned a lot, and obviously every year I teach the kids about the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. It is difficult for kids to wrap their tiny brains around “everlasting life”. It’s hard for adults to grasp as well.

The best way I have of getting kids to remember their lessons from week to week, or even from one year to the next is to give leading questions and they supply the answers. They discover the true Easter lesson of resurrection, life everlasting and how the water from their Baptism gives life to their faith.

Where to buy a resurrection plant for Sunday School activities

Introduction:

Does this plant look dead to you? Why? What makes it dead (get input from all the students, going around the room)
Do you think it could ever come back to life and be green again? (again get input from kids)
What if I said I can make this plant live again. Would you believe me?
Pass out the bowls, pour about 2 inches in each child’s bowl
What’s in the bowl? (obviously water- use references to baptism)

Give each student a Rose Jerico (Resurrection plant) of their own and have them place it in the water. Explain how Jesus remained in the tomb for three days before he rose from the dead on Easter morning. Jesus appeared dead in the tomb. Your plant appears dead.

This resurrection Sunday School lesson is perfect for Palm Sunday, Easter or anytime during the church year — 2 Hours- kids can come back down after church to see the progress

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If you are doing this lesson on Palm Sunday this same Sunday school activity continues the next week as an Easter Sunday lesson.

You can discuss how every living thing needs water. We can go without food for several days, but we can’t live without water. We can’t live without water, we can’t truly live in Christ without Baptism.

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Word Association Lessons: Sunday School

Everlasting life – life everlasting – heaven
Water – baptism – life
Reborn – rebirth
Resurrection – miracle
Faith – feed your faith – water it on a regular basis – How? Answer: Scripture, attending church

What is a Resurrection Plant?

The Resurrection plant is also known as the Rose of Jerico, Miracle Fern, or even the Dinosaur plant. While they are actually a couple of different species they have several traits in common. Both are from very arid parts of the world. During the dry seasons, the plant curls inward in a protection mode. It is thought this plant can lay dormant for 100 years just waiting for rain.

They appear dead without water, yet when their roots are placed in the water this grey dead (seemingly) plant uncurls, opens up, turns green and comes back to life. Much like water in baptism gives you new life.

We placed the Resurrection Plant in a bowl of water and I promised to take pictures during the next 24 hours and bring them the next week, along with the plant. Here is the sequence.

Resurrection Plant- Rose of Jerico — Time: 8 hours (SOOC)

Time: 10 hours (SOOC without custom white balance)

The kids decided they wanted to plant this remarkable plant and keep it in our classroom as a reminder of the miracle of Christs’ death and Resurrection. I think that is a good idea. Sounds like another Sunday School activity to me.

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Where to Buy A Resurrection Plant

It’s a good idea to purchase one for every student, then they can take it home after Easter as a daily reminder. You can purchase Rose Jerico plants in bulk from several nursery suppliers on Etsy.

A resurrection plant is the perfect Easter Sunday School activity.. Also know as the Rose of Jerico this plant shows an example of the resurrection of Christ.

They don’t have to worry about watering and killing the plant as the Jerico fern keeps coming back to life.

Time Lapse Video of a Resurrection Plant

It was actually very amazing how fast the plant opened. The video below of the Rose of Jericho plant opening is obviously a time lapse.

But in just a few hours from the start of Sunday school at 9:30 until when church was dismissed the plant had opened halfway. I did use warm water, that might have an impact. All I know is the kids loved it.

So do you think you might be using a Rose of Jerico (Resurrection Plant) for your Easter Sunday School Lesson this year?

Photography Tips: You will notice the photo at the 10 hour mark is distinctly “off color” and the others are pure white, even with the SOOC, straight out of the camera. I left this on purpose. I have been experimenting with my cameras white balance and none of the preset options (fluorescent, incandescent) gave me the results I wanted, so I tried the custom and LOVED the results.

Mind you I don’t have a fancy camera, just a 40.841667-96.293621

I didn’t know of the significance of red doors on churches until I read, Finally A Red Door, on another Project 365 blog. Although this door is of a Catholic church in Connecticut the symbolism of a red door in churches spans many denominations. It is definitely a more popular tradition in older churches.

Catholic Church in Connecticut

According to Dr. Richard C Hoefler, dean of Christ Chapel at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary, “Christians have entered into worship, into the presence of God, through the blood of Christ.” It is also said that a red door in the Lutheran Church harkens back to the time of Martin Luther, who posted his 95 Theses on the red doors of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany—the crimson color symbolizes the church as part of the Reformation. (Pastor Kuhlman, can you confirm?)

On the website St. David’s Episcopal Church in Laurinburg, NC it explains: “Red Front Doors. The red doors symbolize the blood of Christ, which is our entry into salvation. They also remind us of the blood of the martyrs, the seeds of the church.”

Historically a church has been a place of sanctuary, a place where a soldier could not pursue an enemy, much like when one takes refuge in Christ the enemy, the devil and evil, cannot pursue and destroy you. Thank you Bonnie for bringing this little known history to my attention.

By the way, this door is at St. Francis Assisi in South Windsor Connecticut.

I am now on a quest for other Red Doors around the country, here is one in Nebraska City at an Episcopal Church

Symbolism in Churches

If you are interested in learning more about symbolism in churches and the meaning of certain design elements in architecture of a various churches the books below are full of interesting information of Christian symbolism.

The Secret Language of Churches & Cathedrals: Decoding the Sacred Symbolism of Christianity’s Holy Buildings How to Read a Church: A Guide to Symbols and Images in Churches and Cathedrals Symbols of the Church