Saturday, April 25, 2015

April 26: A Story of Investing (Luke 19:11-27)

April 26: A Story of Investing (Luke 19:11-27)

Supplies:
1 copy of coloring sheet for each child
Crayons

Activity Before Story:
            Allow students to color picture while reading the story.

Story:
            Jesus liked to tell stories that taught lessons. He told a story about a king going out of town. Before he left, he gave his servants some money to invest. The first and second servant put their money into the bank to draw interest. The third servant was scared. He did not want to lose the money, so he dug a hole in the ground and kept the money hidden.
            After a few months, the king came back. He asked the servants to show how much money they had. The first servant said he made ten times what he started out with. The king was so impressed he put the servant in charge of 10 cities. The second servant showed the king that he made five times what he started out with. The king put him in charge of 5 cities. The third servant was nervous. He told the king that he didn’t want to lose any money, so he put his in a hole. The third servant had the same amount of money as when he started. The king was very angry. He took the money from him and gave it to the first servant.
            Jesus explained this story. Because the first two servants invested the money like the king told them to, they were given rewards. The third servant did not do anything with the money, so was not allowed any rewards. The first servant worked the hardest, so he was given ten cities, plus the third servant’s money. When we do what God wants us to, we are rewarded. The better we do, the better our rewards. We might not see the rewards right away, but God knows. He keeps tracks of our good deeds!


Summary & Questions:
            If I were to give each of you $20, what would you do with it? What if you only had $20 to last an entire month, would you spend it differently? You would soon realize that money is only useful if you keep getting more to spend. Sometimes your mom or dad, or a family member may give you money, but without them, you soon would not have any. It is the same with the gifts that god gives us. The gift of caring, understanding, sharing, building… even doing homework. These are gifts designed to help us live our lives, but they are also designed to help others. What are things you do well? These are your gifts. Even though it’s not money, like in the story, they are still things you use to help others, like your friends and family. What does God want us to do with the gifts He has given us?
           
Activity After Story:
            Decorate the dollar-bill coloring sheet to show different ways kids can use their gifts to help others.

            

Saturday, April 18, 2015

April 19: Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus (Mark 10:46-52)

April 19: Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus (Mark 10:46-52)

Supplies:
Scraps of fabric to make a blindfold for each child
12 Popsicle sticks for each child
1 cardstock pattern for each child
Band-aids and stickers
Glue
Yarn
First-Aid Kit

Activity Before Story:
            Open the first aid kit and one by one take the supplies out and talk with the kids about what they are and what we use them for and why. Ask students, “Have you ever been sick, or gotten hurt? Who took care of you? Doctors—doctors are smart people, and they are smart because God gives them the knowledge to heal people. God helps the doctors learn about making sick people well again. Read the story of Jesus healing the blind man.

Story:
            Jesus and his followers were leaving Jericho one day. There was a very large crowd of people with them. As they walked out of town, a blind man named Bartimaeus was sitting beside the road. When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus was near, he began to shout.
“Jesus, have mercy on me,” he cried out. Some of the people yelled at blind Bartimaeus. “Be quiet!” they shouted. But Bartimaeus called out to Jesus even louder. “Have mercy on me!” he begged. “Please be kind and help me.”
“Jesus heard blind Bartimaeus. “Tell him to come here to me,” jesus said. “Jesus wants you to come to him,” some people told Bartimaeus. So Bartimaeus threw his coat to one side and felt his way over to Jesus. “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked. “Help me to see,” Bartimaeus answered.
“You may go now,” Jesus said. “Because you believed in me, your eyes are healed.”
As soon as Jesus said that, Bartimaeus could see. He was healed! Then Bartimaeus followed Jesus as he went on down the road.
What was the blind man’s name? What did he ask Jesus to do? How did Jesus help him? Why do you think Bartimaeus followed Jesus after he was healed?

Summary & Questions:
What was the blind man’s name? What did he ask Jesus to do? How did Jesus help him? Why do you think Bartimaeus followed Jesus after he was healed? Can Jesus heal us when we are sick? How can we ask Jesus to help us feel better when we are hurt or sick?

Activity After Story:
            Blindfold each child and play a short game of Simon Says while they are blindfolded. Then put them all in a line, have them hold onto each other’s waists and walk around the room (you leading the way). After a couple of minutes, sit down on the floor again. Then they may take the blindfolds off. Ask children, “Could you see anything with the blindfolds on? What was it like walking around the room when you could see where you were going? Would you want to be blind all the time? How did you know you weren’t going to bump into anything while you were walking around? You knew I was leading you—that’s called faith, when you trust someone to lead you and not let you get hurt. The blind man had faith in Jesus that He would heal him, and make him see again. That’s why Jesus was able to heal him. Jesus can only help us if we believe that He can. Do you believe that Jesus can make you well when you are sick or hurt? Let’s make something to help us remember that Jesus can heal us when we are sick or hurt. Pass out cardstock. Have students cut out squares and decorate with band-aids and stickers. Use glue to attach 12 Popsicle sticks (log-cabin style) to the sheet of cardstock. Be sure kids keep the picture frames flat on the table. When they are finished, glue yarn to the top corners on the back of the frame as a hanger.


Saturday, April 11, 2015

April 12: The Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31)

April 12: The Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31)

Activity Before Story:
            Hand out two sheets of paper to each child. Have them right their name on the back of both sheets. Tell them to draw a picture with crayons about what they think Heaven will be like. Then draw a picture with crayons about what Hell might be like.

Story:
            Jesus told this story. “There was a rich man who dressed nice and lived in a big house. At his gate, a man named Lazarus was very poor. He did not have anything to eat and was very sick. He begged for food but the rich man ignored him. The time came when the beggar died and went to heaven. He stayed beside Abraham. The rich man died and was buried. He did not go to heaven. He looked up from Hell and saw Lazarus. He asked Abraham to have a drink of water. But Abraham told him, “Remember that in your life on earth you received good things, and Lazarus received bad things. Now he is comforted in Heaven and you are not.
            The rich man said, “The please, send Lazarus to my father’s house. Let him tell my five brothers to not be like me. Tell them to do the right thing on earth.”
            Abraham replied, “They have others on earth to listen to.” The man knew that his brothers would not listen to people on earth telling them to be generous and kind. He knew that if they would not listen to the people on earth telling them to be nice, they would not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead to tell them.”

Summary & Questions:
            Who was telling this lesson? What was Lazarus’ life on earth like? How did the rich man feel when he died? How did Lazarus feel? Have we been warned about what will happen to us when we die? What should we do to prepare? What hadn’t the rich man done on earth? If we act like the rich man, will we get another chance?

Activity After Story:
            After students have depicted their ideas of what they think heaven and hell may be like, paint over the crayons with watercolors. Ask students how they would feel in heaven. Ask students how they would feel in hell. Ask kids how to get to heaven. Ask kids how to get to hell. Did the rich man go to heaven?


Saturday, April 4, 2015

April 5: Easter

April 5: Easter

This is always a very crowded day so I keep a simple project prepared for as many kids as we might possibly have (This year we had 38!) I also never know how long the service will last (Special singing, combined service, the fact that it's the biggest holiday we celebrate... you know!) so it's best to keep things easy.

For the last two years, my kiddos have made Flowering Cross Signs from Oriental Trading (It looks like they've been discontinued since I purchased them). Anyway, it was way too busy and crowded to get pictures on Easter Sunday (Which I hate because the little girls looked SO cute in their dresses!) so here is a screenshot:

The biggest recommendation I have for Easter crafts is to keep them CLEAN (no painting or anything they might spill on nice outfits since they're likely going to Gramma's for dinner afterward!) and EASY (Never know how much of things you will need and you can get a lot of new kids who don't really know how to behave in our small-group setting). :-) Happy Easter!

April 2015 Lessons

April 5: Easter
April 12: The Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31)
April 19: Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus (Mark 10:46-52)
April 26: A Story of Investing (Luke 19:11-27)