ABOUT THE SCRIPTURES God reveals Himself to us through the Bible, and it is 100% accurate, reliable, and authoritative.

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1 W-2 2 PRELUDE Chief Executive Officer Reggie Joiner Creative Team Kristen Ivy Mike Clear Molly Boylan Elloa Davis Elizabeth Hansen Jessica McKee Brandon O Dell Greg Payne Phil Pierce Dan Scott Jon Williams Contributing Writers Sharon Carey Kristy Hecht Sam Johnson Julie Tiemann Dana Wilkerson SOCIAL 15 MINUTES Editors Molly Boylan Elloa Davis Dana Wilkerson Illustrations & Graphic Design Brian Bascle Mike Davis Joe Goode Technical & Web Support Hadley Brandt Orange Specialists Amy Grisham Joy Bowen Abbey Carr Amy Fenton Leslie Galema Misty Phillips Stephanie Porter Courtney Templeton STORY WORSHIP Statement of Faith ABOUT GOD God is the one and only true God, yet He exists in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. God is the Creator, so everything belongs to Him and is under His control. God is holy, so He is righteous, majestic, and loving. God is all knowing and purposeful, so He s at work to bring about His will. No person, thing, or idea compares to God. ABOUT THE SCRIPTURES God reveals Himself to us through the Bible, and it is 100% accurate, reliable, and authoritative. ABOUT PEOPLE People are made in God s image and for His pleasure. But everybody falls short of God s intention, or ideal, for people. In other words, everyone has sinned. As a result, we are all separated from Him, even though He wants an intimate relationship with each of us. ABOUT SALVATION That s why Jesus God s Son came and lived on this earth, died, and rose again. God offers His free gift of salvation to all who believe in Jesus and accept Him as Savior the only way to be forgiven and reconciled to God. Anyone who accepts this gift is adopted as a son or daughter into God s family and will live with Him forever in heaven HOME User Agreement Orange gladly grants permission to churches, schools, and other licensees to tailor 252 Basics materials to fit their unique leadership requirements, locale and format preferences, and physical environment needs. However, if you wish to edit the content substantively, including Bible stories, learning activities, scripts, and any other content in which biblical principles and concepts are presented, you are obligated to do so within the doctrinal guidelines we ve expressed in our Statement of Faith. These resources are intended to be downloaded and printed for use by the subscribing entity only and may not be electronically transferred to or duplicated by other non-subscribing entities. Any unauthorized reproduction of this material or incorporation into a new work is a direct violation of US copyright laws The rethink Group. All rights reserved. 252 Basics and the 252 Basics logo are trademarks of Orange and the rethink Group. Scripture marked NIrV is taken from the NEW INTERNATIONAL READER S VERSION. Copyright 1996, 1998, 2014 Biblica. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of Biblica. Scripture marked NIV is taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

2 SOCIAL PRELUDE STORY WORSHIP HOME 15 MINUTES BIBLE STORY Yes, Mary, This Is a Savior Gabriel appears to Mary Luke 1:26-38 BOTTOM LINE God saw our greatest need. Whose needs do you see? MEMORY VERSE God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son. Anyone who believes in him will not die but will have eternal life. John 3:16, NIrV LIFE APP 15 MINUTES 25 MINUTES 10 MINUTES 25 MINUTES PRELUDE: Setting the tone for the experience For Leaders Only Create the Environment SOCIAL: Providing time for fun interaction Ideas for Early Arrivers Angel Imitation STORY: Communicating God s truth in engaging ways Opener Worship Bible Story Prayer Closer WORSHIP: Inviting people to respond to God 12 Days of Christmas from Jingle Jam: All Wrapped Up Go Tell It from Jingle Jam: All Wrapped Up The Greatest Gift from Jingle Jam : Creating a safe place to connect Candy Cane Q&A Spot the Dot Name that Voice Prayer HOME: Prompting action beyond the experience GodTime Parent Cue Compassion caring enough to do something about someone else s need. BASIC TRUTH I should treat others the way I want to be treated. PAGE 2

3 PRELUDE SOCIAL STORY WORSHIP HOME 15 MINUTES BIBLE STORY Yes, Mary, This Is a Savior Gabriel appears to Mary Luke 1:26-38 BOTTOM LINE God saw our greatest need. Whose needs do you see? MEMORY VERSE God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son. Anyone who believes in him will not die but will have eternal life. John 3:16, NIrV LIFE APP Compassion caring enough to do something about someone else s need. BASIC TRUTH I should treat others the way I want to be treated. GETTING READY SOCIAL: PROVIDING TIME FOR FUN INTERACTION (Choose one or both of these activities.) Early Arriver An offering container Print the Faces Activity Page; 1 for each kid Pens Angel Imitation No supplies needed : CREATING A SAFE PLACE TO CONNECT (Choose as many of these activities as you like.) * If you don t have time to do all these activities, be sure to do activity #2 1. Candy Cane Q&A (application activity / review the Bible story) Individually wrapped candy canes; 1 for each kid Print the Candy Cane Q&A Pictures Activity Pages; 1 set for each Small Group * 2. Spot the Dot (application activity) Dot stickers; 1 for each kid 5-6 Challenge: Paper 3. Name that Voice (memory verse activity) Bibles Prayer No supplies needed Additional Resources: Make copies on cardstock of this week s GodTime and Parent Cue cards. Tell parents about our additional family resources: Studio252.tv, CUE Box, and the Parent Cue app. To find out more about these great resources, go to PAGE 3

4 PRELUDE STORY WORSHIP HOME SOCIAL 15 MINUTES SOCIAL: PROVIDING TIME FOR FUN INTERACTION Welcome kids and spend time engaging in conversation and catching up. Get ready to experience today s story. Before kids arrive, pray for each regular attendee by name. Pray for those who might visit your group for the first time. Ask God to open the kids eyes to the needs of those around them. Pray for them to have opportunities to meet others needs, both big and small. And pray for kids to be motivated to answer the call. 1. EARLY ARRIVER IDEA WHAT YOU NEED: Offering container, Faces Activity Pages, pens Give each kid a copy of the Faces Activity Page and a pen. On the line under each face, they should write an emotion they think it represents. Have them circle some of the emotions they felt this week and then take turns sharing the situations that made them feel that way. Did anyone have someone else notice the way they were feeling this week? How did they respond? 2. ANGEL IMITATIONS WHAT YOU NEED: No supplies needed Invite the kids to do their best impression of what they think an angel might look like, walk like, talk like, and so on. Be sure to explain that the Bible doesn t tell us exactly what angels look like. In some Bible stories they have appeared as men or bright lights, and they have been described as having wings. We do know that they do God s bidding as well as offer praise to Him. None of us have seen or know EXACTLY what an angel looks like. But those were some interesting impressions. [Transition] We might be able to do our Angel Imitations a little more accurately if we could have a conversation with one of the people in today s Bible story. Let s go to Large Group and find out why. Lead your group to the Large Group area. PAGE 4

5 PRELUDE SOCIAL STORY WORSHIP HOME : CREATING A SAFE PLACE TO CONNECT Create a safe place to connect and learn how the Bible story applies to real life experiences, through interactive activities and discussion questions. 1. CANDY CANE Q&A (application activity / review the Bible story) WHAT YOU NEED: Candy Cane Q&A Pictures Activity Pages, individually wrapped candy canes Place the Candy Cane Q&A Pictures on the floor so that kids know where they are, and then tell them to turn around so their backs are facing the pictures. The entire group should be at least 10 or more feet from the pictures. Explain that you will read a statement someone in today s Bible story may have said. When the kids think they know who the person is, they should toss their candy cane over their shoulder and try to hit the picture of the person they believe said the words you read. Let kids turn around and see how close they came to the correct picture and then retrieve their candy canes and repeat for each of the following statements: o I can t wait for the day Joseph will be my husband. (Mary) o I can t wait for the day Mary will be my wife. (Joseph) o I can t wait to tell Mary that God has an amazing, one-of-a-kind plan for her life. (Gabriel) o You will have a son and His name will be Jesus. (Gabriel) o I m a carpenter in the town of Nazareth. (Joseph) o The Lord has blessed you in a special way. He is with you. (Gabriel) o I was totally confused and frightened when an angel spoke to me out of the blue. (Mary) o I am going to have a baby and the baby is God s Son. (Mary) o I trusted the angel when he said that God would be with me. (Mary) o I was just as confused and frightened as Mary. (Joseph) [Bottom Line] God saw our greatest need. Whose needs do you see? If I asked you to close your eyes and picture the face of someone you know who has a need, whose face would you see? (Let kids share. No names are necessary.) [Make It Personal] (Tell kids about a time when you were able to meet someone s need. Maybe you loaned a person something they needed, helped them work on a project that needed to be done, babysat for them, or simply helped a family member carry an arm full of groceries in from the car.) There are always people around us who have needs. It s easy to not see people s needs or to turn our backs and ignore the needs we do see. When God saw what WE needed, He didn t turn His back on us. He made sure that we received what we needed in order to be forgiven and made ready for heaven. One need everyone has is to believe and receive Jesus. Even if you don t have a way to meet the needs people have for things like clothes and food, you can always share the message of Jesus with someone or invite that person to church. This week, let s all keep our eyes open to see the needs around us and not turn our backs when we know that we can help in some way! PAGE 5

6 PRELUDE SOCIAL STORY WORSHIP HOME * 2. SPOT THE DOT (application activity) WHAT YOU NEED: Dot stickers Have all the kids sit with their backs to you and their eyes closed. Choose one kid from the group to stand a few feet behind the group and put a dot sticker somewhere visible on his or her body. (You might need to tell them to put the sticker on an appropriate place.) Invite everyone to turn around and open their eyes. The first kid to Spot the Dot wins and takes the place of the previous kid wearing the dot. Play as time allows or until all the kids have had a turn wearing a dot. 5-6 CHALLENGE WHAT YOU NEED: Paper Play the game as explained above, but when it comes time for kids to turn around and try to Spot the Dot, give a couple of kids a sheet of paper to use in whatever way they choose as a distraction that keeps the others from clearly seeing the kid with the dot sticker. After the game, talk about what it was like to be distracted. Have kids name some distractions that can get in our way and cloud our view from seeing others needs, such as selfishness, busyness, fears, or even good or fun things that keep us from noticing the needs of others around us. Great job! You guys are the best dot spotters I ve ever seen. If you can spot a dot, I bet you can spot a need. It s all about keeping your eyes open and being willing to help. If you re willing to show others that you care about them, then all you need are two good eyes and a heart that wants to show compassion. This week you might spot someone who needs help with homework or a hard project they have to do. Maybe you ll spot someone who needs a friend or could use some encouragement. (If you re not participating in Bite Back, edit the following to fit with the service project your church is doing this year.) A need we ve been hearing about is for mosquito nets to protect kids at night while they re sleeping. Even if you can t give enough money to buy a whole net yourself, whatever you DO give will be combined with what everyone else gives, and together, we can all make a huge difference! Christmas is the perfect time to help those around you who may need warm clothes, food, or other things. Just like God knew what we needed and gave Jesus to us, we can have that same attitude as we look for ways to help others with their needs. [Bottom Line] God saw our greatest need. Whose needs do you see? 3. NAME THAT VOICE (memory verse activity) WHAT YOU NEED: Bibles Hand out Bibles and then have kids race to find John 3:16. PAGE 6

7 PRELUDE SOCIAL STORY WORSHIP HOME Read the verse together as a group. Tell kids to pair up. Then secretly assign each pair one of the voices or styles listed below. Tell them to recite John 3:16 in front of the group as if they were that person. Let the remaining kids try to Name That Voice by guessing who the partners are acting out. 1. A Christmas caroler 2. Santa Claus 3. A little kid excitedly opening a gift 4. Angel Gabriel 5. Joseph 6. Mary when the angel appeared to her 5-6 CHALLENGE: Let the kids come up with more voices or styles for others to guess. If you lead mostly older kids, consider asking these discussion questions: What would you say is the greatest need most people have? What is your greatest need right now? Why do you think that missionaries often try to meet people s physical and basic needs before trying to help them with their spiritual needs? Do you agree with this approach? Why or why not? (This could be an interesting conversation since technically our greatest need is Jesus. But there is no right or wrong answer. Just a way to get your kids thinking critically about what they believe.) What are some things that get in the way of our seeing the needs others have? How would our lives and others lives look differently if we took the time to see the needs of others? How would the world be different? Name three things that would help us notice the needs of other people. No matter who you are or how you say it, John 3:16 is one of the most amazing verses in the whole Bible. It pretty much says it all: God loved, God gave, we believe, and we receive. [Bottom Line] God saw our greatest need. Whose needs do you see? PRAY AND DISMISS WHAT YOU NEED: No supplies needed Form two equal groups. Have one group form an inner circle with backs toward the center. Have the other group form an outer circle facing the kids on the inside circle. As kids stand face-to-face, invite them to pray for the person in font of them, asking for God s help to see the needs of others this week. At your signal, have the kids step to their right and face someone else. Continue until kids are facing the first person they prayed for. PAGE 7

8 PRELUDE SOCIAL STORY WORSHIP HOME It s possible for us to come face to face with people who have needs, but if we re not looking we won t see them. I will be praying for you this week, asking God s help to open your eyes and fill our heart with compassion to respond to the needs of others. Let s say today s Bottom Line together as we head out: [Bottom Line] God saw our greatest need. Whose needs do you see? Give each child a GodTime card. Pass out Parent Cue cards as adults arrive to pick up. PAGE 8