Games That Bring Togetherness to Groups

As the leader of a new — or existing — Sunday School class or department, discipleship study, ministry team, or any other group at your church, you have the responsibility to help its members bond. Fellowship is an important part of Christian ministry, whether in leading the members of the group to care for one another, or in leading the group to care for others outside the church.

Fellowship can not be feigned. It can not be forced upon people. Christian fellowship in a group is a growth process that starts as its members begin to get acquainted and establish a basis for its development.

To begin building fellowship within your group, try one or more of these get-acquainted games. Some may be played at your group meeting; others may best be played at a group social event. You’ll find one that’s just right for your group.

Who Am I?

Select a category such as cartoon characters, movie stars, vegetables, Bible characters, or sports personalities. Pin the name of one of these items on the back of each group member as they arrive. Tell them that they need to find out who they are by asking others for help.

  The rules are:

  1. Participants can ask yes or no questions only.

  2. Players can answer yes or no questions only.

Make a Match
Write one name of a famous pair — biblical couples, movie stars, cartoon characters, or even food pairs (ham and eggs) — on pieces of paper. Attach them to group members’ backs as they arrive. They must ask yes and no questions to find their own identity and then find their mate. After everyone has arrived, let mates introduce each other.

Want Ads

As group members arrive, give them cards on which to write "want ads," advertising for a job made just for them. Later read the ads and guess who wrote them.

— Recreation and Sports Ministry Newsletter, August 2000

Animal Crackers
Use real animal cracker cookies for a variety of activities.

Icebreaker — When group members arrive, give each an animal cracker. Tell them either not to eat them or else to remember the animal. Let them ask one another yes and no questions until they guess the person’s animal.

To divide into groups — Give every person an animal cracker. Tell them to divide into teams by getting together with others of the same species. They cannot talk, but they can make animal actions and sounds. Hint: This won’t work if teams have to be exactly equal unless you ensure ahead of time that you distribute the same number of each animal.

— Recreation and Sports Ministry Newsletter, September 2000

Find Your Twin
Have participants collect a list of "twins" among the other group members who shares various preferences or personal facts with them.

A sample list:

• Same hobby
• Same favorite food
• Same favorite television show
• Same favorite song
• Same birthplace
• Same birthday

What’s Your Number?
As each group member enters the room, assign him or her a number between 1 and 8, to correspond with the numbers in this activity. Each player is given a game sheet, then moves around the room to get information from the other numbered players, according to the assignments on the sheet. The first to finish wins a prize. Stop the game before everyone finishes to keep interest.

Sample game sheet assignments (you may want to rearrange the order on each sheet):

1. Find the number 6. That person signs here:
2. Where does number 7 live?
3. What color hair does number 5 have?
4. How tall is number 3?
5. What color shoes is number 8 wearing?
6. What color eyes does number 2 have?
7. Find number 4. What is that person’s favorite food?
8. What is number 1’s middle name?

-- Church Recreation, Winter 1994

Scripture Match

As group members arrive, give each a piece of paper with half of a familiar Scripture verse. The object is to find the person with the other half without displaying your half. Each person recites his half of the verse until he finds a match.

Example verses:

• "For many are called;" "But few are chosen" (Matt. 22:14).
• "Father, forgive them;" "For they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34).
• "Ask, and it will be given you;" "Seek, and you will find" (Matt. 7:7).
• "A prophet is not without honor;" "Except in his own country" (Mark 6:4).
• "Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them;" "For to such belongs the kingdom of God" (Luke 18:16).

Other suggestions: Matthew 4:4; 5:9; 11:28; 25:40; Luke 2:49; 6:27; John 3:16; 11:25; 1 Corinthians 11:24. Pick verses with similar subjects to make the matching more difficult.

— Church Recreation, Summer 1994

Wagon Wheel

This game is best used with groups of around 20 persons. Arrange chairs in two circles, one circle inside the other. Each chair should be facing another.

 When group members are seated facing a partner, tell them you are going to call out a question, which the person on the outside has one minute to answer. At the end of the minute, the person on the inside answers.

After the question, everyone in the outside circle moves one place to the left. Continue with the questions until everyone is facing the same person with which he or she started.

Sample Questions:

1. What was your mother like when you were growing up?
2. What do you remember about last week’s sermon?
3. What is your favorite city? Why?
4. What kind of letter would you love to receive in the mail? 
5. Are you a pack rat or a "throw awayer"? Why do you think this is a good thing to be?
6. If you have a pet, talk about why it is special. If you don’t have a pet, talk about why you don’t.
7. What is your biggest fear? Why this?
8. If you were a talk-show host, who are some of the guests you’d like to have on your show?
9. If you could not fail, what would you try to do?
10. What do you think heaven will be like?
11. What did you enjoy the most about high school?
12. What was your dad like when you were growing up?
13. What is the worst thing that ever happened to you on a vacation?
14. What was your first paying job? Tell about it.
15. Who is one of your favorite house guests? Why?

— Padeia, June 1997

Please see the original sources for a full list of references cited in this article.

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