HENNA BIBLE STORYTELLING ACTIVITY

Looking for a unique event that encourages creativity and empowers women to learn, memorize, and share Bible Stories? Then, this fun and engaging henna activity is for you! Whether you do this alone, with a small group, or as a large event, you will have a blast and be more prepared to share Jesus with the world!

Let’s Get Started!

Where the idea came from:

Several years ago, a friend of mine introduced me to Bible storytelling through henna designs. She was a missionary overseas for a couple of years with a people group who would adorn their skin with designs from a natural dye for celebrations like engagements, weddings, births, religious events, festivals, or even just for everyday beauty. Click here for more information.

As a missionary, my friend learned to create designs on herself that would hold a symbolic representation of a Bible story. When the women there would notice her practicing henna or wearing it, they would ask her how she learned to do henna. As a door would open for a conversation, she would often share how her henna had a special meaning behind the designs and ask to share the story with them.

I loved the idea of learning and memorizing stories from the Bible to share with others in such a creative way and felt like it did not have to be limited to foreign countries where henna is more well-known. Since the designs are beautiful and noticeable to anyone who looks at your hand, I decided to take the method she used and mobilize the women in my life to share Bible stories more readily with people they meet. (Note: I have done the activity with middle/high school students, college students, and some adult women.)

If this is something you would like to do too, here is a breakdown of the process!

Preparation:

Select a time and place! The event can last anywhere from 2-4 hours, depending on the number of people who come, their work pace, and how many artists you have. For my last event, I scheduled 2 hours for the activity, which hosted 13 girls. However, I had a few people stay close to three hours to finish up. If I were you, I would schedule 2-3 hours for any event and leave some open-ended time for those needing to finish up. The place you host the event does not matter; I have personally hosted in two different small homes. You just need some flat surfaces to do the designs!
Get the Word out and invite people! I created an invitation image through Canva and sent it to my target group through a Remind account I have for them and through personal texting. I encouraged each girl to invite friends and follow up with them as the event came closer with pictures of henna designs and explanations of what they could expect. (Since henna is not as common in the U.S., sending pictures I found on Google and explaining in more detail what we would be doing helped to get the girls more excited!)
Buy the supplies! I bought three cases of henna from Amazon for $15 each. With 13 women, I think we maybe went through one box. A little henna goes a long way, but I am all about being over-prepared! I would way rather have too much than too little, plus now I have some more supplies for the next event I host!
- I also bought some table clothes to put over the tables I used. It made the event a little more festive and protected the furniture from the dye.
- Don’t forget the food! People feel more at home when they are eating. You may choose to have a meal, serve culturally specific foods and/or teas, or like me, attempt a charcuterie board with a variety of crowd-pleasing foods!
Print the stories and designs! I chose TWO stories/designs from this website (I chose the Pray for Perseverance and Pray for Mercy stories and designs)! When I printed them, I stapled the Bible story to the front of the henna design.
Find Designers (optional)! At one event I hosted with college students, I did not seek out artsy people ahead of time. I had all the women attempt to do the henna themselves, or they naturally found someone who was clearly gifted at henna and waited patiently for their turn. For the last henna event I hosted for teen girls, I specifically asked creative people to be henna artists to help those who did not have confidence in their ability to execute the designs. Not being very artistic myself, I enjoyed having designated people to help with the designs. All that to say, your event can be successful whether you find helpers ahead of time or not!

The Event:

Eat and mingle! When the guests arrived, I had them get snacks and visit for the first 15 minutes.
Memorize and discuss! The learning, memorizing, and discussing of the two scriptures took 45 minutes. Mind you, I hosted 13 people, and we did not go as in-depth as we could have, but it worked out great for the purpose of the activity.
- First, explain what henna is and how it is used as a tool for missionaries in other countries.
- Explain what the girls can expect to do:
  - Reading two different scriptures.
  - Memorizing the scriptures.
  - Discussing the scriptures.
  - Choosing which scripture design they would like to have on their hands and then actually doing the henna.
- Next, lead the girls through a time of prayer, asking God to help everyone to be able to memorize and retain the scripture in their hearts and to have opportunities to share it with others. Also, take time to pray for missionaries using the same tactic of sharing the Bible stories in other countries.
- Pass out the first scripture handout (the scripture and design) and start by reading the scripture out loud.
- Next, tell the girls you will attempt to retell the story to them while pointing to the images on the design handout.
- Have the girls examine the design and discuss why they think the images represent particular parts of the story (notice the intricacy of the images, the order they appear, etc.)
- Next, have the girls pair up and practice retelling the story to their partner while pointing to the images on their handout. Once one girl finishes, the other one should take their turn (give them 5-7 minutes for this part).
- Lastly, lead the girls through a short discussion based on the passage by asking them what they learned about God/Jesus/Holy Spirit, about people, and what kind of response they think God would like from them. (The point is to get them interacting and understanding the Word of God, not to have a full-blown Bible study, so be mindful of the time.)
- Pass out the second scripture and design and repeat the steps above!
Apply the designs! Once you have finished, have the girls pick out their favorite of the two stories or their favorite design and spend the remainder of the time having them put the henna on themselves or with the help of a designated artist.