Not surviving but living

Looks at the extra depth that having faith is claimed to bring to our lives.

by Ronni Lamont

Suitable for Key Stage 2

Aims

Looks at the extra depth that having faith is claimed to bring to our lives

Preparation and materials

• You might like to download some of the music from the film Wall-E (Pixar, 2008). ‘Put on your Sunday clothes’ is particularly appropriate. Some children may have toys, etc. from the film that you could borrow.

Assembly

1. Ask the children how many of them have seen the film Wall-E? Have a brief discussion of what the film is about. Show the toys if you have them.
2. In a future world, the Earth has been left by human beings as it slowly became covered in rubbish. Wall-E is a little robot who spends his time clearing up the mess. One day, a spaceship lands and another robot, Eva, emerges. She is looking for signs of life on the planet, and Wall-E has just discovered a small growing plant, which he has kept.
   
   When Wall-E shows Eva the plant, she summons the ship back. Eva is retrieved by the spaceship and Wall-E hitches a ride back to the space station where all the remaining humans are living. They have now become inactive beings, riding hover chairs and not relating to each other.
   
   Through a series of adventures, the spaceship captain is eventually shown the plant and sets the ship to return to Earth. However, the robot co-pilot is more concerned with the danger of the Earth, and the survival of the human species, which might not be the same as returning. Eventually, the pilot asserts the need to return, saying, ‘I don’t want to survive, I want to live!’
3. Ask the children what they think the pilot meant: ‘I don’t want to survive, I want to live!’?
   
   How do we sometimes survive rather than living? How do we reduce the fullness of our lives?

Time for reflection

Reflection

Jesus said, ‘I have come that they might have life, life in all its fullness.’

Ask the children what they think Jesus meant by that.

How could the children have a fuller life?

How could they help other people to live life in all its fullness?

How did Wall-E and Eva help the humans on the spaceship to live a life that was full, rather than just survive?

Prayer

Lord, help me to live life in all its fullness.

Help me to live, not just survive.

And may you bring your fullness to our lives today.

Amen.

Song/music

‘Give me oil in my lamp’ (Come and Praise, 43)