CHALLENGES

#1: Not only is today Palm Sunday but it’s also National Children’s Picture Book Day. To celebrate both holidays, find a children’s picture book that depicts that first Palm Sunday and Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Once you’ve found one, take a memorable team picture or video reenacting the scene and characters in the picture you found and at some point show the picture or take a separate picture of it for comparison.

#2: Get to any clothing or apparel store and find two different items with enough in stock that every team member can be wearing the same two items in their own sizes. Then take a fun team picture with everyone wearing those items. For example it may be a wacky shirt, and a pair of shorts. Or maybe some cozy slippers and a large sun hat. As long as everyone is wearing the same exact two items but in their own sizes.

#3: In this final week of Jesus’ life here on Earth he faced unthinkable pain, and showed incredible strength to overcome it all and die for our sins. As a show of respect for all he overcame throughout his final days, get your team to the “Stairway To Hell” located at approximately 10132 Clairemont Mesa Blvd (parking likely available around the corner on Antigua Blvd). Once there, climb the steps together as a team and then take a celebratory picture at the top with the steps behind you.

#4: Get every team member a large (16 ounces or so) open-top paper, plastic, or foam cup and fill it with water. Then somewhere outdoors, line up shoulder to shoulder and have each team member balance a full cup on their head. Once everyone’s cups are balanced, hold hands with the team members on either side of you and take a video of your team working together to all take 10 steps forward without anyone touching their own cup (or another team member’s cup) or having it spill. If someone’s cup spills make sure to encourage them and then refill any spilled cups and start again as a team. After your team successfully travels 10 steps together dump the cups to prove they were full, and celebrate!

#5: With the Easter bunny arriving in only a few days, and 2023 being the year of the rabbit, get your team to the establishment whose logo is shown HERE. Once you’ve found it, take a fun team picture giving each other “bunny ears” while the establishment’s logo is visible in the background.

#6: Research shows that consuming raw garlic can boost your immune system, which is especially important for those working to spread the love of Jesus, without spreading germs. So take a video of all your team members each chewing a separate raw clove of garlic for at least 10 full seconds. Team members should be actively chewing the clove and not just holding it in their mouths. Disclaimer, although healthy this will likely not be pleasant, which is exactly the point. Because a team that suffers together, grows together.

#7: San Diego is home to the nation's largest concentration of military personnel and more than 240,000 veterans reside here. Anywhere around the area find an active military person or a veteran. They could be wearing some form of military or veteran attire, have a military ID, or they could simply describe their military background while you’re completing your challenge. Then take a video of them watching your entire team doing 10 push-ups, sit-ups, or jumping jacks to honor their strength and courage. After you’ve finished recording, spend a few minutes learning more about their time in the service as a small gesture of appreciation.

#8: Take a video of your team successfully completing the Whipped Cream Catapult Challenge. Divide your team into pairs. Have one person from the pair squirt a small lump of whipped cream onto the back of their hand. That person should launch the whipped cream to their partner using the “arm catapult” technique seen in the video HERE. The second person should successfully catch the whipped cream in their mouth, or at least catch some of it in their mouth and the rest on their face. To complete this challenge at least half your team should make a successful catch in the video.

#9: Jesus was known for hanging with those that others might not. An important part of being a Christian is listening to and loving everyone in your community and understanding the stories that make them who they are. Take a video of your team and any stranger that has a tattoo while they explain what that tattoo means to them or why they got it. The tattoo must be visible at some point during the video.

#10: After being crucified Jesus’ body was wrapped in linen, and it was that cloth that signified the resurrection had occurred and God’s greatest gift to Christians had been given. Wrap any one member of your team from head to toe in toilet paper (or multiple team members if they want to get in on the fun) leaving as few gaps as possible except around their nose/mouth so they can breathe easily. Then take a fun team picture with your newly wrapped teammate and at some point throughout the process have each team member state one reason why the person being wrapped is a “gift” to TLC or to them personally.

#11: Wildfires are among San Diego County’s leading disasters because the terrain is prone to brush fires in the hot summer months when vegetation is dry. In California, there are more than 2 million properties at high to extreme wildfire risk, the largest number of properties of any U.S. state. To honor the brave firefighters that protect this county, take a video of your team completing "Stop, Drop, and Roll" while any regulation/operable fire extinguisher is visible in the background, or you are standing in front of an actual fire station. Be sure to yell each step of the fire safety technique as you all do it together and make sure the fire extinguisher or fire station is clearly visible at some point in your video.

#12: Take a video of any ONE team member successfully completing the Oreo Face Challenge. Place an Oreo (or any other type of similarly sized cookie) on your forehead and using only your facial muscles and gravity attempt to move the cookie down your face and into your mouth without grabbing it with your hand or having it fall off. If it falls off place the cookie back on your forehead and try again. All team members can be attempting the challenge but only one needs to successfully complete it. To watch a video of someone completing this challenge successfully click HERE.

#13: Recently was National Letter To An Elder Day. Find a postcard that features this area in some way, or a fun greeting card, and purchase it. Then click HERE to go to the Love For Our Elders project, which is focused on fighting loneliness with love, one letter at a time. As a team, choose someone from their list whose story or background resonates with you. Then on your card include a fun or uplifting message and sign it. Stamp your card and take a picture with it to show you've completed your Act Of Kindness and then drop it in the mail along the way or after your event ends.

#14: April is Earth Month. The late evangelist Billy Graham once noted that “of all people, Christians should be the most concerned for the environment,” explaining that God created the world and entrusted humanity to protect it. Anywhere around the area find a canister of some sort that has the triangular recycling symbol on it. You are looking for an actual recycling disposal can, where someone would get rid of recyclable materials, and not just any product that has the recycling symbol on it such as a plastic bottle. Once you’ve found one, take a picture of your entire team all completing any variation of the "Tree Pose" while the canister with the recycling symbol on it is clearly visible in the background. To view a picture of someone properly performing a variation of the Tree Pose click HERE.

#15: Days after the resurrection, Jesus ascends into Heaven where he was exalted as Lord and Christ, sitting at the right hand of God. To celebrate this important moment in the Christian faith, find the local establishment whose logo is seen HERE. Once you find it take a well-timed picture of your team members all jumping into the air at the same time while the establishment’s logo is visible in the background.

#16: Over the years, we’ve found that the teams that bond the most are the ones that do something meaningful or impactful together. So here is your chance. Today is World Autism Awareness Day. To honor those, and their families, who are impacted by Autism, take a proud team picture showing off your hands once every member of your team has gotten their fingernails painted blue (the color many organization’s associate with autism awareness, and is associated with a calm feeling and acceptance in an otherwise loud and busy world for people on the spectrum). Read more about the Light It Up Blue movement HERE.