October starts this week, which means pumpkin patches, pumpkin spice, and of course, pumpkin-themed ministry ideas! (Are anyone else’s kids as obsessed with pumpkins as mine are?) Pumpkins are fun, familiar, and full of potential when it comes to engaging kids with God’s Word. If you’re looking for simple and seasonal ways to bring pumpkins into your children’s ministry, here are six ideas (and some fall pumpkin resources) that make it easy.
1. Play with Pumpkins – Pumpkins aren’t just for carving. They can also be the star of your next game time! Kids love interactive activities that get them moving, laughing, and connecting with one another. Try a few ready-to-go options like Pumpkin Select, Pumpkin Peekaboo, Pumpkin Jokes countdown, or Pumpkin Shuffle to bring some pumpkin fun into your large group gathering or fall festival. Or make the play more hands-on with games like the Pumpkin Pose Game, Pumpkin Walk game, or even Pumpkin Twister (DKM Subscribers have free access to these last 3 games in our Subscriber Freebie Library)!
2. Pray with Pumpkins – Prayer is an easy spiritual discipline to incorporate in your ministry time + to encourage families at home. DKM Subscribers have access to this Pumpkin Prayer Activity for Families, and you can encourage families to make a Pumpkin Patch of Prayers by writing prayers on pumpkin cut-outs and taping them to a window, wall, or fridge in their home.
3. Share the Gospel with Pumpkins – Pumpkins make the perfect teaching tool. The 4-week Pumpkin Patch series (one for preschool and one for elementary) teaches kids that God picks them, Jesus cleans them, God loves them, and they can shine for Jesus! Object lessons like this turn something kids see every day in the fall into a memorable spiritual truth they’ll carry with them. Whether you use these cute Pumpkin box gospel tracts or share the gospel with a pumpkin object lesson, pumpkins are a seasonal way to present the gospel to kids and invite them to let Jesus’ light shine in and through them!
4. Equip Families at Home with Pumpkins – Pumpkin discipleship doesn’t have to stop when kids leave church. Family devotionals for while families carve their pumpkin and take-home resources like the Scripture Pumpkin give parents everything they need to continue the conversation at home. Simple activities like a Pumpkin Scripture Scratch-off or guided discussions help families grow together in faith while enjoying seasonal fun.
5. Celebrate with Pumpkins – Fall is the perfect time for a church-wide celebration. Whether you host a fall festival, a trunk-or-treat, a Fall Fiesta, a party for dropping things from high places, pumpkins naturally become part of the décor and the fun of any fall event. Adding intentional faith elements with something like a Pumpkin Prayer Station or pumpkin-themed games helps connect community fun with gospel truth. Families particularly love this Pumpkins and PJs Parents’ Night Out!
6. Craft with Pumpkins – Kids love creating, and pumpkin crafts are a hands-on way to help them engage with the lesson. The Gratitude Pumpkin Craft, for example, gives kids a tangible reminder to pray with thanksgiving. The Pumpkin Gospel Craft or this simple Pumpkin Gospel Craft helps kids make a pumpkin that shares the gospel message. These take-home treasures reinforce what kids learned and give parents an easy conversation starter.
Pumpkins may be fun fall plants, but in children’s ministry, they can become powerful tools for teaching, connecting, and celebrating. Whether you’re playing, praying, sharing the gospel, equipping families, hosting an event, or crafting, pumpkins remind us that God can use even the simplest things to shine His light through us.
Find even more fall resources for your kidmin here.
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