I’m so happy to share this guest post from author Laura Sassi about simple ways to make Easter egg hunts have a spiritual message for your young kids. It’s perfect timing for Lent and Easter family Bible studies!
In my new board book, Bunny Finds Easter, Bunny is on a quest to find out if Easter is all about chocolate eggs and jelly beans or if it might just be about a little bit more. As the story unfolds, Bunny
encounters many of the fun traditions surrounding Easter, including going on an Easter Egg Hunt, but it’s not until she arrives and church and they sing an Easter song that she realizes JESUS is the reason we celebrate Easter.
Since I imagine your little bunnies might be looking forward to Easter Egg hunts and jelly beans as well, here are seven ideas to make an Easter hunt fun AND focus on Jesus! Church Easter egg hunts aren’t the only ones that should have a spiritual element, and there are lots of SIMPLE ways to have a Christ filled Easter egg hunt.
Seven Ways to Have a FAITH FILLED Easter Egg Hunt
1. Use words in the eggs themselves.
Include simple messages in the plastic eggs that you hide that speak to the meaning of Easter. You could fill the eggs with notes that say things like, “He is risen!” “Jesus loves you!” “Thank you, Jesus.” “Jesus makes all things new.” etc. You could even have your older children brainstorm these and write them.
2. Use faith-based stickers.
Have your children help you decorate the plastic eggs with stickers that point to Jesus and Easter. You can find these at your local Christian book or craft store or online. Or if you want the hunt to be a surprise, instead hide stickers in some of the eggs and after the hunt, the children can have fun decorating them and you can talk about how the stickers point to Jesus as the reason we celebrate.
3. Dye eggs with faith symbols.
If you and your kids are decorating real eggs for the hunt, have them use wax-based crayons (like these) or cheap birthday candles to gently draw on crosses and other symbols of Easter before dipping in dye. The dye won’t stain the egg where the wax was, leaving white space where the crayons are. As you are drawing and dipping, ponder together how even the eggs themselves remind us of our new life in Christ.
4. Kick off the Easter egg hunt with a good faith filled book!
Incorporate a story time into the Easter Egg Hunt by sharing your favorite Easter-themed picture book or books with your children. Bunny Finds Easter is a great option because it has Jesus AND an Easter egg hunt!
(Note from Kristin: I’ve reviewed Bunny Finds Easter on this updated list of faith-based picture books for Easter, and it’s lovely.)
5. Fill the eggs with Jesus-focused items.
Include candies and other little toys etc. in the hunt that are, in some way, connected to Jesus and Easter. Some examples are a little lamb (we are His sheep), a glow-in-the-dark cross, chocolate hearts (because Jesus loves us), little chicks and bunnies (to represent new life in Christ), life savers.
6. Have a Christian scavenger hunt instead of a traditional egg hunt.
Building on the idea above, create a simple scavenger hunt sheet with different Christian Easter-themed items for the little ones to look for. In addition to the suggestions above, these could include: a ball or trinket that says Jesus, a stone (because the stone was rolled away), an empty purple egg (to represent the empty tomb), a brand new eraser or wash cloth (because He wipes our sins away), or a little flashlight (because He is our light). The possibilities are endless!
7. Embrace the Easter CANDY!!
After you finish your Easter egg hunt, as you and your little ones are enjoying all the sweet treats that now fill their baskets, have everyone nibble a jelly bean or other candy. Ponder together how Easter candy tastes so good, just like God, who, in His goodness, sent us Jesus. Remind your child that Jesus’ love is sweeter and deeper and more lasting than even the tastiest jelly bean.
About the Author: Laura Sassi has a passion for telling stories in prose and rhyme. She is the author of five picture books including the best-selling Goodnight, Ark, which was a 2015 Christian Book Award Finalist (and which I reviewed on this list of Christian baby books); Goodnight, Manger (which I reviewed with other great Christmas picture books about Jesus); Diva Delores and the Opera House Mouse, which won First Honor Book for the 2019 Best in Rhyme Award; Love Is Kind, which was a 2020 Anna Dewdney Read Together Award Honor Book (and which can be found on this list of great non-romantic Valentine’s Day picture books); and Little Ewe: The Story of One Lost Sheep. Her newest book is Bunny Finds Easter.
