I really enjoy learning definitions of words. For example, I remember sitting in my youth group years ago and hearing our teacher say that sin, in its fundamental definition, means missing the mark. In other words, sin diverts us from where God wants us to be. Our elementary school children need to understand this and realize that everyone “misses the mark” and sins sometimes. That’s what Romans 3:23 says. Here’s the full version: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Here is a fun Bible school activity that you can play with your children to help them memorize this important Bible verse. It’s called “Missing the Mark.”

This is what you do:

This game can be played indoors or outdoors. If you’re cooped up in your classroom all the time, you might want to grab a piece of sidewalk chalk and get out. If not, you will need to make the following grid, which I will describe, on your floor using masking tape. Make a grid of 12 squares, but then place a number 13 square right in the middle. I suggest making the grid about 1.5 yards long and wide. Then label each square except the middle one with a word from Romans 3:23 along with a point value of 200, 300, or 400. The middle square gets a point value of 500. There are 12 words in Romans 3 :23 including the reference. Don’t put them in any kind of order. They should look scrambled on the grid. Finally, grab a bean bag or some other object that you throw and land nicely on the grid. Now you are ready to play the game.

This is how to play:

Before starting the game, say the following: Have any of you ever shot an arrow? (Wait for responses. If no one has ever shot an arrow, ask if they have ever seen someone shoot an arrow.) I have shot an arrow and hardly ever hit the target. I always missed the mark. Did you know that this is sin? It’s like missing the mark or not getting to where you should be, where God wants you to be. Romans 3:23 says this: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” This verse means that we are all sinners and we all miss the mark sometimes and do bad things that displease God. Let’s play a game called “Missing the Mark” to help us memorize this important Bible verse.

Divide your class into 2 teams for this Bible school activity. Give a child from the first team a chance to throw the bean bag. You should try the middle square. If you are successful, you should look away from the grid and recite Romans 3:23 from memory. If you do it correctly, you earn 500 points for your team. If you land on a square with a word on it, you can earn the points on that square by saying the verse while looking at the grid. However, before he says it, you, the teacher, must erase the word in the box. The game continues for the next team. Eventually, it will be more difficult to recite the verse as the words are erased. On any turn, if the bean bag lands on a square whose word has already been erased, then the teacher erases a different word on the grid, but the child only earns the points from the original square. The team with the most points wins.