55 – Unboxing Expectations
A weekly blog of Creative Ideas for Leading Worship
Unboxing Expectations
Unveiling Spiritual Surprises
Purpose
To use the act of opening a sealed, mystery box during worship to explore the contrast between expectation and reality, helping the congregation reflect on how God’s gifts often appear in unexpected or ordinary forms.
Preparation
- Prepare a sealed and attractively wrapped box.
- Inside, place a simple symbolic object such as:
- A small, gnarled seed – representing hidden potential and life that grows unseen.
- An ordinary grey rock – representing strength, stability, or beauty discovered in simplicity.
- Position the box prominently in the worship space before the service begins.
- Do not refer to the box until the designated time in the service.
Introduction (Setting the Scene)
As worship begins, let the box simply be there – unexplained and unmentioned.
Allow curiosity to build naturally. It will prompt silent questions:
What’s inside? Why is it there? What does it mean?
Explain later that the box symbolises human expectation – the way we often come to God, worship, or life expecting certain answers, outcomes, or blessings. When things don’t meet those expectations, we can feel disoriented or disappointed.
The Action (Unboxing the Surprise)
At a chosen moment – perhaps during the sermon, reflection, or children’s talk – begin to “unbox” the contents.
- Make the process slow, deliberate, and suspenseful.
- As you unwrap, speak about the tension between what we expect and what we receive.
- When the object is revealed (a seed, a rock, or another simple item), let the simplicity itself make the theological point: God’s gifts are often not what we expect, but they are always what we need.
Explain the meaning of the object:
- A seed speaks of potential hidden from sight—life that must be buried before it grows.
- A rock speaks of strength and beauty discovered only when we stop expecting sparkle and start noticing texture.
Reflection and Discussion
Invite the congregation to reflect or discuss together:
- What did they expect to find in the box?
- How did they feel when the real object was revealed?
- What might this say about our assumptions about God and spirituality?
Link the object to a biblical story or theme, such as:
- The mustard seed’s smallness and hidden power (Matthew 13:31-32)
- The rejected stone becoming the cornerstone (Psalm 118:22)
- The treasure hidden in a field (Matthew 13:44)
Theological Insight
This activity offers a simple but profound sacramental moment – a visible sign of invisible truth.
In an age of instant gratification, where everything is unboxed and rated online, it reminds us that God’s work unfolds slowly and unpredictably. We can’t order transformation with next-day delivery.
Closing Reflection
Conclude by reframing the act of unboxing.
Rather than seeking novelty, we are called to uncover depth.
God’s surprises rarely come in flashy packaging but in the everyday moments and materials of our lives.
When we allow our expectations to be unwrapped, we discover that divine grace often hides in plain sight – waiting, like that little seed or weathered rock, to reveal something holy in the ordinary.
Ngā mihi
Philip