What if the Most Sacred Thing in Your Sunday School was the Play-Doh?
There’s this unspoken idea floating around many Sunday school rooms: play is the warm-up. The extra. The thing you fill in after the “real” ministry work gets done.
But let’s slow that down for a second. Because what if play isn’t the prelude—it’s the point?
Kids don’t separate learning and play the way adults do. They process the world with their whole selves—body, voice, imagination, movement. When they build, pretend, act out, laugh, and explore, they’re not just having fun. They’re making meaning. And when we treat play like filler, we risk missing one of the most powerful tools we have for nurturing a child’s spiritual development.
This isn’t just about keeping the preschoolers occupied while the lesson plan loads. It’s about recognizing the importance of play as sacred ground. A space where wonder grows roots. Where kids connect with God not just in words, but in motion, joy, and curiosity.
In this post, we’re flipping the script on play in ministry settings. We’ll look at how it shapes the way kids come to know God, how it mirrors biblical principles of childlike faith, and how you can create space in your ministry where joy and theology hold hands.
Biblical Foundations for Play as Spiritual Practice
God could’ve created a grayscale, no-frills universe that simply functioned. Instead, He filled it with color, rhythm, movement, and mystery. He built a world meant to be explored, delighted in, and played with. The very first garden wasn't just practical—it was beautiful. A place of joy, discovery, and relationship. That says something.
Play isn’t a modern invention. It’s baked into the design of creation.
Throughout Scripture, we see joy woven into spiritual life—not as a reward, but as a rhythm. Psalms burst with dancing and delight. The prophets use story and metaphor. Jesus teaches with parables that spark imagination. And perhaps most strikingly, in Matthew 18:3, Jesus calls His disciples to become like children if they want to understand the kingdom of heaven.
That wasn’t a metaphor for innocence. It was a call to posture—to approach God with openness, curiosity, humility... and yes, playfulness.
Kids don’t need to be convinced that God is big or that miracles happen. Their imaginations already make room for wonder. That’s not something we need to teach them out of—it’s something we need to join.
When we make space for play, we’re not just entertaining kids. We’re honoring the way God wired them to grow. We’re planting seeds of spiritual development in soil that’s ready for it.
So no, play isn’t a spiritual detour. It’s sacred territory.
And maybe, just maybe, grownups in ministry could learn a thing or two from building a block tower or jumping into a game of make-believe.
Developmental Science + Theology: Why Play Shapes the Soul
Before a child can grasp abstract ideas like grace or forgiveness, they need to touch, move, test, and imagine their way through the world. Play is how they do that. It’s their native language.
From a developmental standpoint, play builds the foundation for critical thinking, emotional regulation, empathy, and communication; all essential for growing into emotionally healthy, spiritually grounded people. It’s in imaginative games that kids practice storytelling. In group play, they learn fairness and compassion. In creative freedom, they begin to shape their own sense of meaning and purpose.
Now pair that with theology.
Faith isn’t downloaded into a child like software. They don’t “receive” doctrine fully formed—they develop spiritually in stages, just like they develop physically and emotionally. A three-year-old won’t articulate the Trinity, but they can trust. A six-year-old may not define redemption, but they can reenact the Good Samaritan with puppets. This is the beauty of play: it lets truth land in age-appropriate, heart-shaping ways.
Understanding the stages of spiritual development helps us meet kids where they are. For young children, this means grounding them in relationships, routines, and stories. It means letting them experience God’s love not just as a concept, but as a felt reality—through the joy of community, the safety of structure, and the freedom to play without fear.
In play, children learn that it’s okay to ask questions, make mistakes, try again, and keep wondering. That’s spiritual formation in motion.
It’s not about trying to make every moment “deep.” It’s about recognizing that play already is deep—because it’s where kids process the world, build identity, and begin to understand themselves as loved, safe, and created on purpose.
So if you want to support a child’s spiritual development, don’t rush them out of the playroom. Join them in it.
The Stages of Spiritual Development
Now, let’s take a closer look at the previously mentioned stages of spiritual development. Not every child will encounter God the same way, and that’s exactly the point. Recognizing the stages of spiritual development helps us meet them with greater empathy—and teach in ways that stick.
In early childhood (roughly ages 2–6), kids are experiential learners. They don’t need systematic theology; they need routine, affection, and opportunities to feel safe and seen. This is where play becomes powerful. It's how they begin to understand abstract ideas like love, forgiveness, and trust.
As they grow (ages 7–11), their understanding shifts from “what I feel” to “what I know.” This is the age of curiosity and connection. They want to ask hard questions, roleplay what they’ve heard, and see how it all fits together. Play, when guided with intention, becomes a way to explore those ideas with freedom and safety.
By the time kids enter adolescence, their faith begins to internalize. They start asking, “What do I believe?” rather than just “What have I been told?” But even here, playful practices—especially those rooted in creativity or storytelling—can be deeply grounding.
Knowing where a child might be spiritually allows leaders to shape environments that honor their growth without rushing it.
What Play Teaches Kids About God
Children may not sit through a sermon, but they’re always absorbing theology—especially through play. Every game, every role-play, every joyful burst of imagination is a window into how they’re learning about God, themselves, and others.
Here’s what play teaches them, without a single worksheet or formal lesson:
🧠 Trust
Play requires vulnerability. A child has to trust that the rules are fair, that the space is safe, that others will respond. In this environment, they begin to understand that God is trustworthy too—a safe place to explore, to try, to grow.
🌈 Imagination
The ability to imagine is deeply spiritual. In play, a cardboard box becomes a boat on the Sea of Galilee. A child becomes David facing Goliath. The Gospel becomes real not through explanation, but embodiment. It’s a critical part of spiritual development—believing in what we can’t see yet.
🕊️ Freedom
Play gives permission to express without fear. To try new roles. To be loud or quiet or silly or serious. Kids learn that their individuality is welcomed—and that God’s presence isn’t reserved for quiet corners and folded hands.
🪞 Identity
Through make-believe, storytelling, and movement, kids begin to form an understanding of who they are. Not just “what they’re good at,” but who they’re becoming. A beloved creation. A part of a bigger story.
🤝 Belonging
Group play teaches kids how to listen, include, and be included. It mirrors the community God designed us for while reinforcing the idea that church is not just a place to sit still, but a place to be known.
In all of this, the importance of play comes into focus: it goes beyond fun. It’s formational. Through it, kids learn who God is—and that He delights in their joy.
Play at Church: Making Room Without Losing Structure
Let’s address the elephant in the craft corner: some leaders hear “play” and imagine total chaos. Running, yelling, glitter explosions. But play at church doesn’t have to mean the loss of structure—it just means creating space for movement, imagination, and joy within it.
Healthy, spirit-led play has direction. It’s not about letting kids “burn off energy” before the real stuff starts. It’s about using play as the method, not the reward.
There’s value in both structured and unstructured play:
→ Structured play gives kids purpose and focus. Think Bible story re-enactments, role play, or games with simple spiritual connections—like building “walls of Jericho” and knocking them down together.
→ Unstructured play allows kids to decompress, explore, and connect freely. Think sensory stations, imaginative play areas, or quiet corners for solo time with drawing, blocks, or prayer prompts.
Both offer something essential, and when used with intention, both become sacred spaces of discovery.
So what does that actually look like? Here are a few ideas to make play at church feel intentional and spiritually rich:
- Dramatic play stations with costumes and props to act out stories
- Sensory bins tied to themes (e.g., water for baptism, sand for wilderness)
- A “prayer play” area with quiet music, journals, and soft toys
- Rotations that include both open play and short group activities
When done well, play becomes one of your most powerful ministry tools—not a distraction from the lesson, but the lesson itself in motion.
Equipping Your Volunteers and Leaders to Embrace Play
Adults often underestimate play because they’ve been taught to see it as frivolous. But in ministry, it’s time to reframe that thinking. This isn’t “just play”—it’s a deeply spiritual practice. It’s where belonging is built, emotions are processed, and hearts become open to truth.
Helping your team see play as soul-shaping starts with a simple mindset shift: if spiritual development in kids happens through movement, creativity, and imagination, then play is ministry—not a warm-up or time-filler.
Start small in training:
- Model how to get involved in a play-based activity instead of just supervising it
- Teach leaders to ask open-ended questions during play (“What part of the story are you building?”)
- Help them recognize spiritual moments in the ordinary—when a child comforts another, forgives in a game, or wonders aloud about something they’ve seen in Scripture
Encourage volunteers to look for what’s underneath the action: curiosity, compassion, worship, or wonder. These aren’t “off-topic”—they’re often the real moment of connection.
And remember, not every adult is naturally playful. That’s okay. Some volunteers will shine in hands-on games; others will be the steady presence that helps a child feel safe while they explore. What matters most is willingness, not performance.
When your team understands the power of play, the entire tone of your ministry shifts—from managing kids to ministering with them.
The Kingdom of God Is Playful
Play creates space for faith to take root before kids have the words to explain it. It’s in those moments of pretending, building, giggling, and imagining that children begin to form their earliest ideas about who God is—and how deeply they’re loved.
The importance of play in ministry lies in its power to shape hearts quietly and profoundly. Trust is practiced. Joy is expressed. Curiosity is encouraged. And in the middle of all that movement and noise, something sacred is unfolding.
This is the kind of environment where spiritual development flourishes—not under pressure, but through presence. Through delight. Through design that says, “You matter here.”
So plan with play in mind. Invite your volunteers to notice what’s happening beneath the surface. Let your space reflect the freedom and creativity you want kids to carry into their faith.
And when the logistics are easier—when your lessons run smoothly and tech doesn’t steal your focus—there’s more time to be present in those small, soul-shaping moments. That’s where tools like Playlister help, by clearing space for you to lead with intention and joy.
Your classroom might be loud, messy, and full of questions. That’s not a distraction—it’s the sound of ministry in motion.