Sunday 9 February 2014

Growing as disciples: Salt crystals!

This week we've been looking again at being the salt of the earth and talking about how, as disciples, we can lead 'salty' lives of compassion for others and love of God.  I wanted to get across the idea of having to grow as disciples and that this will take time, so I had a little bit of an experiment with growing salt crystals!

Here's what you do...

Put some salt in the bottom of a jar (probably a bit less than shown in the picture!)
 Pour in some water to fill about 1/4 of the jar and mix with the salt.  Not all of the salt will dissolve and you will be left with a thick salt layer at the bottom of the jar.  This is fine!

Tie a string to a pen or pencil (as in the picture) and dangle the string in the water.  Let the pen rest over the top.  Put the jar/pen/string somewhere warm and wait!
 Over time, evaporation will happen and salt crystals will start to form on the strings.  The picture below shows a few days growth only.
Use the salt crystal strings to talk about the fact that, to grow as salty disciples, we need to cling to Jesus like the crystals are clinging to the string.  We can do this by Bible reading, praying and being with other Christians (look at all the crystals growing together on the string!)  The saltier the water, the more the crystals will eventually grow, but it takes time and being a disciple is something we grow into over time.  

Have fun!

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