6. Keeping Your Tongue from Evil

Transcription

1 6. Keeping Your Tongue from Evil The Course Key Verse: Proverbs 10:19 How can I become wise? Psalm 34:13; Proverbs 10:19; 11:9; Ephesians 4:29; James 3:3-6 The Goals As a result of this lesson the children will: 1. Know the dangers that bad speech can cause. 2. Feel the importance of using speech for good, not bad. 3. Use words pleasing to Jesus. The Equipment Room For the following lesson you will need: 1. Handful of small to medium sized feathers [Synthetic feathers can often be purchased at large department stores.] 2. Electric fan 3. Three puppets [One girl, one boy, and one father] 4. An actual horse bit and reins [Or PowerPoint of Visual #1] 5. The model of a ship [Or PowerPoint of Visual #2] 6. Picture of a large fire [Or Power Point of Visual #3] 7. The following verses written on a board or put in a PowerPoint in advance: a. Psalm 34:13 b. Proverbs 10:19 c. Proverbs 11:9 8. Copies of Visual #4 [This would be best if copied on card stock. Cut them apart and have enough copies for each child to take one home. Also use PowerPoint slide.] The Warm-up Activity: Print the following tongue twister on slips of paper and have the children attempt to say it as quickly as they can. Reward the child who says it the fastest and clearest. [Silly Sally swiftly shooed seven silly sheep; the seven silly sheep Silly Sally shooed shilly-shallied south; these sheep shouldn t sleep in a shack; sheep should sleep in a shed.] Scripture Memory Review Game: Using two different colors of construction paper, cut the paper into strips. Write the words of one review verse on one color and the words to another review verse on the other color. Cut the words apart, mix them up, and clip them to a piece of yarn or rope that is hung like a clothesline. Divide the children into two teams and seat them on the floor. Choose two members from each team to go first. On your signal, the two members from each team come to the clothesline and put their verse in the right order. They are allowed to get help from other members of their team. Only the two chosen team members may be on their feet. Once the verses are in the right order, have all the children repeat each verse two times, once in a loud voice and once in a whisper. Keeping Your Tongue from Evil Topical 57

2 Opening Ceremonies Songs: We Will Praise You [See Olympian CD Track 6.]; Stand Up and Shout It if You Love My Jesus; Oh Be Careful Little Eyes What You See [Add the verse, Oh be careful little tongue what you say. ] Bible Lesson Review: Write point values on feathers or small pieces of paper that look like feathers. Place the papers inside a paper bag. Divide the group into two teams and alternate questions. If the child answers correctly, they receive 2000 points for their team and they may reach in the bag to pull out a feather for additional points. If they get it wrong, they may receive help from their team. If they answer correctly with help, they receive 1000 points and an opportunity to choose a feather. If no one gets it right, tell them the answer and go to the next question. The team with the most points wins. The Coach s Corner [Before the lesson begins, set the feathers in various places near the puppet stage.] ADAPTATION > 1a Extra Action Have you heard the phrase, Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me? Well, that isn t true. Words can really hurt you! Yes, words can hurt you AND other people. Have you ever been hurt by what someone has said to you? Let s look in on some friends and see how what is said can be hurtful. ( 1a) [As the puppets appear, have an adult from behind the puppet stage blow a few feathers in front of the stage using the fan.] [Sally and Jeremy enter.] Jeremy: Jeremy: Jeremy: Dad: Dad: [Trying to gather the feathers; acting upset] Uh Oh! NO! NO! NO! [Looking at Sally as if she s crazy] What are you doing? I am trying to gather up all these feathers. Why? Because my dad blew them everywhere and told me to try to pick them all up. It sounds like your dad is up to something. You can t pick them all up with this wind. I m beginning to see that. Every time I almost have them all, the wind blows and more seem to pop up. I don t think I can ever get them all! [Blow more feathers into the room.] [Enters while noticing feathers still lying around] Well, Sally, I see you don t have all the feathers picked up yet. When will you get the job done? It looks like never! As hard as I try when I begin to think that I have them all, more feathers appear. I can never get them all. That is what I am trying to teach you. Remember this morning when you called your sister stupid and told your brother he was a geek? Yes! I told them I was sorry and asked them to forgive me! Keeping Your Tongue from Evil Topical 58

3 Dad: Dad: Jeremy: Dad: I know you did, but that does not make the hurt go away. It is just like these feathers: you spread hurt by your words to your brother and sister. Even when you told them you were sorry, you were trying to gather all the hurt you caused and take it back. Sally, you can never get it all. Even when they said you were forgiven, they still remember what you said and it still hurts. Do you understand? Yes, dad, I do. Whenever I m not nice to people and say things I don t mean; even though I say I am sorry, I can never really take it back. It s the same when someone calls me names. Even if they say they are sorry, my feelings are still hurt. That s right, Sally. Wow! Dad, you are awesome. Those feathers not only helped Sally understand how our tongues can get us in trouble, but it helped me understand, too. I will have to be more careful with what I say! You are the greatest, Dad! I agree. Thank you for helping me understand that I need to watch what I say even when I am upset. I love you, Dad. I love both of you as well. Hey, let s all help pick up these feathers. [Puppets exit.] ADAPTATION > 9 Challengers Only What do you think our puppets were trying to teach us? [Allow children to respond.] We have to be careful what we say. Not only do we want to make other people happy, we also want to be pleasing to God. God is sad when we choose to use our tongue to say bad things. Can anyone give me some examples of how we do this? [Allow children to respond.] ( 9) When we say things to purposely hurt someone, it is called sin. We sin when we think, say, or do anything that God doesn t like. ADAPTATION > 1b Extra Action Whenever we think of saying bad things, we need to remember Psalm 34:13. [Read Psalm 34:13 together.] This verse tells us to keep our tongue from evil and our lips from saying bad things. ( 1b) Our key verse for today is Proverbs 10:19. Let s read Proverbs 10:19 together. Who can tell me what this verse says about the tongue? [Allow children to answer.] In order to communicate, we have to talk, don t we? Some people talk all the time. The more they talk, the more they get into trouble. We need to stop and think before we speak. This verse reminds us that someone who is careful about what he says is wise. We need to use our mind and God s Word to help us hold our tongue when we speak to others. Again, if we are careful how we use our tongue, God calls us wise. Do you want to be wise? Turn in your Bible to James 3:3-6. [Read James 3:3-6.] These verses are giving us an example. [Bring out the horse bit or display Visual #1.] Who knows what this is? A bit is small and fits in the horse s mouth. The bit has these straps, called reins, fastened to it that go back to the rider. When the rider pulls on the right strap, it guides the horse to go right. When the left strap is pulled, the horse will go left. That small piece of metal called a bit steers a great big horse. These verses also talk about something else small that affects big things. How many of you have seen a big ship? [Bring out the model of a ship or display Visual #2.] The rudder on a ship is small and in the water, but it is very powerful. It can make a huge ship go to the right, left or straight. These verses are saying that although the tongue is small compared to the whole body, it can cause great hurt. The tongue is also compared to a fire. [Display Visual #3.] It starts out as just a small flame, but keeps growing and growing until it is burning out of control. Just as fire hurts, our tongue can hurt others with our words! Keeping Your Tongue from Evil Topical 59

4 ADAPTATION > 4 Mostly Churched Children ADAPTATION > 8 Champions Only Have you ever said something mean and then wished you could take back? Let s read Proverbs 11:9. This verse tells us that we can destroy our friends and neighbors just by saying mean things. Do you want to hurt others or help others? [Read Ephesians 4:29.] Our words need to be used to encourage and build up others. ( 4) ( 8) Running the Race Mostly Unchurched Children Maybe you are in a home where bad words are spoken and you didn t know that you shouldn t use them. God wants us to encourage others and to use words that please Him. Think about the past week. Were there times that you used words that would not please God? Were there times that you used words that hurt others or maybe you talked back to a parent or teacher? You say that you have tried to control your tongue but you just can t. You are right! You can t do it your own. Only God can help us control our tongue. Maybe you have never received Jesus into your life to be your personal Savior so you don t have Jesus to help you. God s Word says in Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. We are all sinners. Can anyone tell me what sin is? [Allow the children to respond. Explain that sin is anything we think, say, or do that God doesn t like. Make sure you give the children examples they can personally apply to their lives.] Everyone in this room has sinned. Because of our sin, we cannot get to Heaven on our own. Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. What are wages? [Allow the children to respond. Explain that the payment we deserve for our sins is death physical death.] But God the Father loved us so much that He sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to pay the penalty for our sin. Jesus died on the cross to make a way for us to go to Heaven someday. The good news is that Jesus didn t stay dead; He came back to life three days later and is now in Heaven preparing a place for you and me. Mostly Churched Children I want you to think about this past week. Were there times that you used your words to hurt others or maybe to talk back to your parents? Perhaps you have tried to control your tongue but you just can t. You are right, you can t do it your own, but if you have received Jesus as your Savior, He can help you when you ask Him. Why not put it on your prayer list in your Quiet Time and pray each day that God will help you speak right words. You may want to also remember to stop and think before you speak. Ask yourself if Jesus would be pleased with the words you are about to say. In your Personal Training Time, your coach is going to give you a card [Display Visual #4.] like this one. I want to encourage you to fill it out after you decide who you will encourage this week. We can use our tongue to encourage others. Encouraging someone may give us the opportunity to tell them about Jesus and how they can receive Him as their personal Savior. If you believe this, you can receive Jesus Christ right now and become a child of God. God s Word tells us in John 1:12, But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. I need you to bow your head and close your eyes. Have you ever asked Jesus to save you from your sins? Do you know for sure you are on your way to Heaven? If your answer is yes, please raise your hand. [Wait for response.] Thank you, put your hands down. Keeping Your Tongue from Evil Topical 60

5 Some of you did not raise your hands and I appreciate your honesty. I have a question for you. Would you like Jesus to come into your life and save you from your sins? If you say yes, please raise your hand. [Wait for response. Even if no one raises their hand, continue.] Thank you. [Tell the children who have raised their hands that they can put them down.] Right now, you can pray this prayer with me. You will not be talking to me; you will be talking to God. It is not the prayer that saves you, it is telling God what you believe about Him. You can tell God something like this: Dear God, I know that I am a sinner. [Pause] I believe that your Son, Jesus Christ, died for me and rose from the dead. [Pause] I am asking Jesus to save me from my sins right now. [Pause] Thank you, Lord Jesus. Amen. Please continue to keep your head bowed. Did you just now ask Jesus to come into your life? If so, would you let me know by raising your hand? [Wait for response.] If you raised your hand, look up here at me? [The Bible Coach should look eye-to-eye with each person and ask: Did you really mean it when you asked Jesus to save you? That s great! ] I need each of you who are looking at me right now to come up front and stand next to me. [At this point, have a coach lead the new believers to a place where follow-up can begin.] Maybe you already have asked Jesus into your life but you are still having trouble with your tongue. Jesus can help you if you ask Him. Why not put it on your prayer list in your Quiet Time and pray each day that God would help you to speak the right words. If you are having trouble with your words and would like me to pray for you that God would help you, raise your hands. I encourage those of you who raised their hand to tell their Personal Training coach so they can pray for you each day. In your Personal Training Time, your coach is going to give you a card [Display Visual #4.] like this one. I want to encourage you to fill it out after you decide whom you will encourage this week. We can use our tongue to encourage others. That may give us the opportunity to tell others about Jesus and how they can receive Him as their personal Savior. [Close in Prayer.] Keeping Your Tongue from Evil Topical 61

6 Personal Training Time 1. Why should we think before we speak? 2. Has someone said something hurtful to you? How did it make you feel? 3. Whom will you encourage this week by speaking kindly to them? The Big O vent Siamese Crab Walk [See Big O vent Mega CD, page 320.] Did you encourage your partner as you worked together in the game? Did you use encouraging and helpful words? This is where you can start putting our lesson into practice. Christian Service Opportunity: Have materials available to do Christian Service Projects: ICS 1 or GCS 11. See Olympian Christian Service Manual for details. Closing Ceremonies This week stop and think before you speak. Ask yourself the question: Would Jesus be pleased with my words? We as coaches will be praying for you this week as you encourage others. Lesson Adaptation Explanations 1a Extra Action: Instead of using puppets to teach the illustration of the feathers, consider using coaches to act out the story. This will make it more realistic to some children. The coaches can expand on the skit to include what Sally said to her brother and sister. Her dad can then confront her and make her say she was sorry. Then have the dad scatter some feathers, turn on the fan, and instruct Sally to pick up the feathers. Dad should tell her she cannot turn the fan off. He then walks out of the room and the written puppet script can be started from there. 1b Extra Action: If you know the song Keep Your Tongue from Evil, Keep Your Tongue, this would be a good place to stop the lesson and teach the song to the children. Sing it through a couple of times and on the third time, have everyone hold their tongue with their thumb and finger while they are singing the song. It can be a lot of fun! 4 Mostly Churched Children: Discuss that the way we talk and what we say affects our witness. For example, it is hard to invite our classmates to church if we call them names. Our unsaved friends might reject our words about Jesus if, at other times, our words show a bad attitude toward our parents or church. It is hard to witness to an unsaved parent if we are always arguing with or disobeying them. 8 Champions Only: Read 1 Timothy 4:12 and 2 Timothy 2:2. Discuss how we can use our words to help the younger children in Olympians hear about Christ and desire to grow in Him. For example, by using the right words, we can encourage younger children to complete their Olympian levels. If we speak positively about Christian Service when we are around younger children, it may help them get more involved in ministry. 9 Challengers Only: Have a list of bad things we say intermixed with good things we should say printed on the whiteboard or poster. Have the children tell you what is good and what is bad. Mark next to each line Good or Bad. Suggested list: Talk back to parents, tell others about Jesus, thank someone for their help, call people names, tell people they smell bad, tell someone you love them because Jesus loves them, tell someone that they are nice, tell someone that they shouldn t be at church, invite people to church, say bad words. Keeping Your Tongue from Evil Topical 62

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