Make your own Box Bible

On your marks

If you are planning a special focus on celebrating the Bible as part of your programme with your group, or as a whole-church event or service, here is a simple craft idea. It will give everyone something to take home as a visual aid of the big story of the Bible.

Get set

Each participant will need an emptied large-tray matchbox. In addition, you will need: glue sticks, silver or gold card, colouring pens, sticking tape, scissors, sticky labels, decorative transfer letters and a ruler. You may be able to find something similar to a two-part matchbox at a local scrap store. Alternatively, an appeal to your congregation might provide a sufficient number of appropriately sized matchboxes.

The aim is to make a small box Bible each and then store inside some simple symbolic objects that represent key stories from our special book. There are some suggestions below but these can vary depending on which stories you decide to focus on either in your group’s programme, or at the church event or service.

Go!

1. Remove the inner tray from the outer sleeve of the matchbox.
2. Cut along one edge of the outer sleeve and then open that out flat, turning it inside out. This will be the cover of the matchbox book, whose inside is the inner tray. Stick the spine side and the back cover of the outer sleeve to the inner tray but leave the front to flap open above the empty part of the inner tray.
3. Cut some strips of gold or silver card to fit the three ‘page’ sides of the inner tray. Rule lines on these to give the appearance of pages. Stick these on to the exposed sides of the inner tray.
4. Decorate the cover of the box Bible so it looks as much like a mini Bible as it can. Use labels to create a title window, or stick on letters from an alphabet pack of stick-on transfers. Personalise the Bible box.
5. Decide on a particular symbol to go on the front – perhaps a cross, a star or a world.
6. Use tape along the spine to help make the hinge of the front flap work well.

This is now your own mini-Bible but without pages or pictures inside. You can make it your own ‘treasure’ box by putting inside small items which relate to each of the stories that you have looked at in your session or series of sessions. Here are some ideas:

• A small green and blue piece of Plasticine – creation
• A small leaf – the Garden of Eden
• A star – God’s promise to Abraham
• A piece of multi-coloured fabric – Joseph’s story
• A piece of matzo bread – the Passover
• A small stone – places of remembrance from the stories of Joshua
• A mini pretend sword – the battles in Judges
• A mini crown – David and Israel’s other kings
• A small scroll (doll’s house stair banisters with some paper rolled around them make attractive little scrolls) – the prophets
• A birthday candle – the birth of Jesus
• A seed – the stories of Jesus
• Some cotton wool – sheep stories and the story of the The Good Shepherd
• A cross – the death and resurrection of Jesus

Finally, choose something that will stand out for yourself – this is a way of remembering that we are in these stories too and that these Bible stories are for us.