A lock-in at the church is an opportunity to strengthen relationships in the youth group and have good old-fashioned fun. Plan enough activities to fill the night so kids don't get bored. Combine activities with reflection and community outreach to make the lock-in enjoyable and purposeful.

A church has a variety of places to hide clues to a scavenger hunt. Write clues ahead of time and place them throughout the church or in a fellowship hall. Make the clues relate to lessons learned in Sunday school or specific facts about the church. Make harder questions so the youth has to ask a friend or a church elder to learn the answer to the clue. Have a prize or an evening snack at the end of the scavenger hunt.

Develop communication and trust within the youth group with this game. Set up an obstacle course with jump ropes, cups, chairs or other furniture. Blindfold one person and guide her to the beginning of the obstacle course. The other youth members tell the person how to get to the other side of the obstacle course. Try dividing the youth group into teams and see which team can get someone through the obstacle course in the least amount of time and run into the fewest number of things.

Involve the youth group in a community service project during a lock-in. Buy large squares of fleece or ask a local craft store to donate the material. Put two squares of fleece back to back and cut fringe around the outside. Tie the fringe from the two squares together to join the pieces of fleece. Give the blankets to a homeless shelter or the fire department to give to kids.

Ask the youth group members to pick a partner. One person from each paring forms an inside circle while the other person from each paring forms an outside circle. Play music as the youth members run around the circle. The inside circle runs in one direction and the outside circle runs in the other. When the music stops, each pair finds each other and one partner hops on the other partner's back. The pair who is last to complete this formation is "out." See which pair is the last one standing.