Lesson 23
Date: 23 March 2014
Time: 12.30-2.00pm
Concept area: Family
Theme: I can do what my parents tell me to do.
Key Bible verse: Exodus: 20:12 Obey your father and mother.
12.30-1.00pm: Activities and snack time.
Two activities stations:
1)
Playdough station – Make an ‘O’.
O=obedience
2)
Coloring station – coloring page on
O=obedience
Objective: Talk to children about obeying father and mother.
Guidance: As the children color the pages, ask them examples of how they
obey their father and mother, and share to them how and why they should obey
their parents.
1.00-1.45pm: Learning Bible verses
through activity
http://ministry-to-children.com/obey-your-parents-lesson/
Getting Attention: Set up the circle and a few of the props while the
children are watching. Do not make any comments except to say how excited you
are about today’s lesson. The children will build interest and excitement to
match your own.
Active Listening: Before you read the Bible verse, ask the children to
listen carefully for the answer to these questions:
“What can I do to make my life
better? What could I do to make my life worse?”
Then carefully read the key Bible verse:
Ephesians 6:1-3 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.”
Ask the children if they can answer those two questions. Introduce the lesson by saying: That’s what we’re learning about today. I have a special name for this I call the “Circle of Blessing.” Can you repeat that with me? “Circle of Blessing.”
Let’s Talk about that Bible Verse: Ask for volunteers(children) to explain tricky parts
to you. Use their answers as jumping off points to briefly clarify the meaning
of this passage. Here are some parts chosen for elaboration:
- honor your Father
and mother (what does that
mean?) it’s more than just obeying but treating them like important people
with love & respect
- commandment with a
promise (what does that
mean?) it’s the first of the 10 Commandments that comes with a specific
promise from God, there is a reward if you do this right
- go well with you (what does that mean?) that God will help your
life work out better, not perfect but much better than it would be if you
did not obey
- live long in the
land (what does that
mean?) when God first said this it was talking about the promised land,
but for Christians the promised land is mainly about heaven, if your
parents teach you about Jesus you can have eternal life in heaven
·
Circle of Blessing Object
Lesson: Invite a child to come up to
the front of the room. Have them stand inside an imaginary circle of about 3ft
diameter. Then say:
·
This is the circle of blessing. It’s a way to imagine
the way obedience keeps us out of danger. Just like our Bible verse says, God
will watch over us while we obey our parents. To move outside the circle is
like disobeying. Moving outside the circle brings danger.
·
At this point surprise the child by showing them a
squirt-gun (or water bottle that sprays a mist) that you previously had hidden.
Tell them as long as they are in the circle they are safe, but outside the
circle they are in danger. Demonstrate by shooting a jet of water outside the
circle. Then ask the child to step outside the circle to the spot you just
shot. Then give them a short blast of water. Then say:
·
When we obey our parents it’s like staying inside the
circle, God will keep us safe. But when we disobey it is like stepping outside
the circle. When we do that we cause bad things to happen to our lives.
Circle of Blessing Object
Lesson: Invite the children to stand
inside an imaginary circle of about 3ft diameter. Then say:
·
This is the circle of blessing. It’s a way to imagine
the way obedience keeps us out of danger. Just like our Bible verse says, God
will watch over us while we obey our parents. To move outside the circle is
like disobeying. Moving outside the circle brings danger.
·
At this point surprise the children by showing them a
squirt-gun (or water bottle that sprays a mist) that you previously had hidden.
Tell them as long as they are in the circle they are safe, but outside the
circle they are in danger. Demonstrate by shooting a jet of water outside the
circle. Then ask a volunteer to step outside the circle to the spot you just
shot. Then give him/her a short blast of water. Then say:
·
When we obey our parents it’s like staying inside the
circle, God will keep us safe. But when we disobey it is like stepping outside
the circle. When we do that we cause bad things to happen to our lives.
Agree / Disagree [understanding test]: Have the children respond as a group to the
following questions. If the statement is right they should stand up, if wrong
they should stay seated and cross their arms.
- Disobeying is okay if you know your parents will say NO [disagree]
- Since your parents put the kindergarden in charge of you, to honor
your parents means to obey your teacher too [agree]
- If you always obey your parents, your life will always be perfect
[disagree]
- Once you disobey, you can’t get back inside the circle [disagree]
- When Jesus was a child, he always obeyed his human parents [agree]
- God doesn’t care if we have a bad attitude when we obey [disagree]
- God promised a better life for those who obey [agree]
- It’s not really disobeying if you parents didn’t actually say NO
[disagree]
- When Jesus was a grown-up, he always obeyed his “Father in Heaven”
[agree]
Closing: Lead the children in prayer thanking God for our
parents. Ask for new hearts that help them obey.
1.45-1.55pm: Clean up time.
1.55 – 2.00pm: Parents to collect
children.
