GETTING TO KNOW GOD: BIBLE BASICS Week 7: Jesus Wants to Be Your Best Friend LEADER PREPARATION

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Kristina Carpenter
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1 GETTING TO KNOW GOD: BIBLE BASICS Week 7: Jesus Wants to Be Your Best Friend This includes: Leader Preparation Lesson Guide LEADER PREPARATION BIBLE BASIS In this passage, Jesus gives several facts about true friendship. Friends put each other first, they love each other, they share everything with each other, and they ll even die for each other. Jesus also says he has chosen each of us to be his friends. He follows his own prescription for friendship with us, too. What an amazing thing! If children find this friendship, they ll have the privilege of growing up with a true best friend for life. DISCOVERY POINT Jesus wants to be your best friend. BIBLE FOCUS John 15:12-17 KEY VERSE A real friend sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24). TEACHING PREP The short overview below is designed to help you prepare for your lesson. Supplies You ll Need: Getting to Know God: Bible Basics (Year 1/Quarter 1) CD, LIVE Children s Curriculum (Year 1) DVD, CD player, TV/DVD player, Bibles, newsprint, markers, Stick Together handout, tape, pencils, paper, 1/2 cup fat-free milk, 2 tablespoons vinegar, 2 teaspoons water, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 2 bowls, strainer, paper towels, spoon, newsprint, and colored paper Before Lesson Print the Stick Together handout. You ll need one copy per team of four kids. Assemble Bible Exploration Kits (one per four kids): Bible, Stick Together handout, paper, markers, and one half-sheet of colored paper, a sheet of newsprint, and a pencil per child. Hang newsprint in a prominent spot, and write the numbers 1 through 4 down the left side with plenty of space between each number. Set these Stick Together supplies on a table: 1/2 cup fat-free milk, 2 tablespoons vinegar, strainer, several paper towels, 2 teaspoons water, 1 teaspoon baking soda, spoon, and two bowls. Review John 15: Cue "Into the Bible" (Track 1) on the Getting to Know God: Bible Basics (Year 1/Quarter 1) CD or (Quarter 1/Track 1) on the LIVE Children s Curriculum (Year 1) DVD. Huddle briefly with your volunteers beforehand. Answer any questions they have. Encourage them and pray.

2 PARENT We ve provided you with a Family Devotion handout to send the Bible learning and faith discovery home. When kids and parents have faith discussions regularly, kids faith multiplies. So we ve given you two options: Print the Family Devotion handout and make enough copies for each child to take one home. the Family Devotion to families before or after the actual lesson. Or why not do both? That way you ll double the opportunities for parents to actually get the handout.

3 GETTING TO KNOW GOD: BIBLE BASICS Week 7: Who Is My Best Friend? LESSON GUIDE WELCOME! Supplies: Getting to Know God: Bible Basics (Year 1/Quarter 1) CD, LIVE Children s Curriculum (Year 1) DVD, CD player, TV/DVD player 1. Play Into the Bible (Track 1) from the Getting to Know God: Bible Basics (Year 1/Quarter 1) CD or (Quarter 1/Track 1) from the LIVE Children s Curriculum (Year 1) DVD as kids arrive. Into the Bible Makes me wanna jump! Jump! Jump! Jump! Jump! Makes me wanna sing! Hallelujah! It s the greatest book. Come and take a look. Makes me wanna shout! Shout! Shout! Shout! Shout! So that everyone will see I m getting into the Bible And the Bible...is getting into me! We re discovering a brand-new world As we dig a little deeper (deeper), Finding out about who God is. Open it up and see it (see it)! There s nothin like God s Word, and I get So excited. It makes me wanna, Makes me, Makes me wanna jump! Jump! Jump! Jump! Jump! Makes me wanna sing! Hallelujah! It s the greatest book. Come and take a look. Makes me wanna shout! Shout! Shout! Shout! Shout! So that everyone will see I m getting into the Bible And the Bible...is getting into me! Into the Bible by Jay Stocker Group Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Permission to use lyrics granted for local church use only. No unauthorized duplication permitted. 2. As kids arrive, ask them to introduce themselves to several children they don t know very well and find out several things about the other kids best friends.

4 3. After five minutes, start the Bible Countdown (Quarter 1/Countdown Track 2) on the LIVE Children s Curriculum (Year 1) DVD, turn up the volume, and lead kids in cheering along. 4. SAY: Welcome! Thanks for choosing to be here! Today we re going to be talking about friendship. Tell what you learned about someone s best friend. What makes a great best friend? Say: Jesus wants to be your best friend. He can be the greatest best friend of all! LET S EXPLORE! Supplies: assembled Bible Exploration Kits, prepared newsprint, Stick Together ingredients, marker 1. SAY: Let s look at what Jesus has to say about being a friend. Have children form Bible Crews of four or five, and distribute Bible Exploration Kits. Take out the Bible, and turn to John 15: Have one person in your group read John 15:12-17 while the rest of you listen to find four things that Jesus says a best friend does. Have one person record your ideas. After three minutes, SAY: Let s see what you found out. Who can tell me one of the things a friend does? Record the answer on the numbered newsprint. What would this look like today? Repeat both questions for numbers 2 through 4, taking volunteers from different groups. Say: Jesus wants to be your best friend! He has chosen you and will be the kind of friend he has described. What do you think about the fact that Jesus wants to be your best friend? 2. Say: Stick with me while we try this experiment. Direct kids attention to the table of supplies for the Stick Together handout in their Bible Exploration Kits. Ask for willing kids to help you with each step. Complete steps 1 and 2. While the mixture is sitting for two minutes, read the Key Verse, Proverbs 18:24. How does a brother stick with you? What does it mean to stick closer than a brother? How do you know when your friend is sticking with you? Complete steps 3 through 5. Allow each child to put a dab of the glue on a finger. Let kids test the stickiness of the glue by touching some of the paper in their Exploration Kits. Reserve most of the glue until the prayer time. How do you know when Jesus is sticking with you? SAY: Jesus wants to be your best friend. He ll stick closer than anyone, and you don t have to use glue! Each of you will get to use some of the glue in a moment. LET S PRAISE!

5 Supplies: Getting to Know God: Bible Basics (Year 1/Quarter 1) CD or LIVE Children s Curriculum (Year 1) DVD, CD player or TV/DVD player 1. SAY: Knowing that Jesus wants to be your best friend and my best friend makes me want to praise Jesus and thank him for his friendship. Let s take a few minutes to sing to our best friend! 2. Set up the Getting to Know God: Bible Basics (Year 1/Quarter 1) CD or the LIVE Children s Curriculum (Year 1) DVD. PLAY: You Are the Messiah (CD Track 5) (DVD Quarter 1/Track 5) You healed the sick, You made the blind to see, You walked on water, And you set us free. There is no other like you How could we ever doubt you? You are, you are, you are the Messiah. You broke the chains That kept your people bound. You gave your life So that we could be found. There is no other like you How could we ever doubt you? You are, you are, you are the Messiah. The Son of the living God, The Son of the living God, You are, you are the Messiah.

6 You Are the Messiah (Matthew 16:16) by Jay Stocker Group Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. No unauthorized duplication permitted. No Greater Gift (CD Track 3) (DVD Quarter 1/Track 3) Not a gift that we can earn, So much more than we deserve. It would take a million words To thank you for your love! Not a gift that we can earn, So much more than we deserve. It would take a million words To thank you for your love! Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah, hey! Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah, hey! Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah, hey! Not a gift that we can earn, So much more than we deserve. It would take a million words To thank you, Thank you, Thank you for your love! No Greater Gift by Jay Stocker Group Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Permission to use lyrics granted for local church use only. No unauthorized duplication permitted. You Are My Friends (CD Track 6) (DVD Quarter 1/Track 6) Tell everyone what an awesome God I am. Friends are friends when it s daytime or it s night, And God is a friend who will be there all the time. We can talk to him, and he will listen. God will always be right by your side Cause he says, Tell everyone what an awesome God I am.

7 Trust me and love me: You ll always be my friends. Friends are friends when it s daytime or it s night, And God is a friend who will be there all the time. We can talk to him, and he will listen. God will always be right by your side Cause he says, Tell everyone what an awesome God I am. Trust me and love me: You ll always be my friends. Tell everyone what an awesome God I am. Trust me and love me: I ll always be your friend. You Are My Friends (John 15:14) by Jay Stocker Group Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Permission to use lyrics granted for local church use only. No unauthorized duplication permitted. LET S PRAY! Supplies: assembled Bible Exploration Kits, Getting to Know God: Bible Basics (Year 1/Quarter 1) CD, CD player, list and glue from Let s Explore! 1. SAY: What can be better than knowing that Jesus wants to be your best friend? Read aloud the list you made earlier. Jesus says he ll be this kind of friend to you. Let s take some time now to talk with Jesus one-on-one about being his best friend. Each of you will need one of the half-sheets of paper, a piece of newsprint, and a pencil [or marker] from your Bible Exploration Kit. Pause to give kids time to find their supplies. On your paper, create something that shows your relationship to Jesus. It could be a simple heart with your name and Jesus inside of it. It could be a note that you write to Jesus about your friendship with him. It could be anything you want to create. When you ve finished, bring your paper, take a small amount of the glue we made, and glue your note to your blank newsprint sheet. This will be a time between you and Jesus, so you won t need to talk to anyone else. If you finish before others, you can quietly look through your Bible. I ll play some music while you re working. You ll know our prayer time is over when the music stops. 2. Play Prayer Time Sound Effects 1 (Track 17) from the Getting to Know God: Bible Basics (Year 1/Quarter 1) CD as the children pray. Repeat the song as necessary. After five minutes, stop the music. HIGH FIVES Supplies: none SAY: What would a high five be like if your hands were sticky? As you leave today, give five kids a sticky high five. As you give each person a high five, remind him or her that Jesus wants to be your best friend! Tell each person that Jesus will stick with him or her more closely than anyone else will.

8 FOR-EXTRA-TIME ACTIVITIES Getting to Know You! Supplies: none In their Bible Crews, have kids take turns introducing themselves by answering these wacky questions. You may want to write the questions on newsprint so kids can see them. Tell what your favorite smell is and why. What would you most like to do with a bucket full of mashed potatoes? Imagine you ve just put your three favorite foods in a blender and mixed them up. What would you call it, and what would it taste like? After kids discuss the questions in their groups, What three questions would you like to ask Jesus to get to know him as a best friend? Knot of Friendship Supplies: string and scissors Have kids each find a partner. Give each pair two 12-inch pieces of string. Tell children that each partner may use only one hand as partners work together to tie the two pieces of string in a knot. Talk about what was important when tying the knot and how tying it is like building a friendship with others and with Jesus. Hiding It in Your Heart Supplies: pencils and sticky notes Have kids help you make a list of as many sticky things as possible, one per sticky note, such as tape, glue, and Velcro. Then have kids repeat the Key Verse, Proverbs 18:24, inserting something from the list after the words sticks like. For example, they might say, A real friend sticks like Velcro, closer than a brother. Create a Bible Dictionary Supplies: paper, markers, dictionary, CD player, Getting to Know God: Bible Basics (Year 1/Quarter 1) CD Ask kids to create one or more pages, each with a new word, for a Bible dictionary. Have kids suggest words from today s lesson friends and friendship are two suggestions. Have them write each word on a sheet of paper in fun letters, add a definition, list Scripture references, and make illustrations. Play The Books of the Bible Song (Track 8), from the Getting to Know God: Bible Basics (Year 1/Quarter 1) CD while kids work. Add each page to a three-ring binder, and watch the dictionary grow!

Building Trust in God: Being Yourself Week 5: God Is There When You Turn to Him LEADER PREPARATION

Building Trust in God: Being Yourself Week 5: God Is There When You Turn to Him This includes: Leader Preparation Lesson Guide LEADER PREPARATION BIBLE BASIS The Israelites had a bad habit of turning away