Giving Thanks the Widow at Zarephath 1 Kings 17:8-16

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1 Fall 2016 ~ Beginners Lesson #8 Learning Objectives Giving Thanks the Widow at Zarephath 1 Kings 17: The children will explore the story of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath. 2. The children will name things they are thankful for and recognize that we should give thanks to God for everything. Getting Started Memory Verse: God loves a cheerful giver. --2 Corinthians 9:7 (NIRV) Choose One Activity Be Grateful for what God gives you Object Talk See: Preschool Object Talks Be Grateful for What God Gives You You will need to have the following for this activity: a box, a bag, and little objects (house, toy car, bed, food, clothes, CD, cross, little people for parents, siblings, grandparents, friends, etc.). Please see the above website for detailed instructions. This activity will lead the children in an exercise about being thankful to God each day. Continue with the lesson. SNACK time! Bring in a yummy snack item-for example, one donut. Tell the children that this donut is the last donut that you have, that you have no more. Then tell them that you love them so much that you want to share your last donut with them. Break the donut into enough pieces so each student gets one. Ask the children: How did it feel when I shared my last donut with you? (Thankful, happy, etc.) Today we are going to hear a story about a woman who cheerfully gave her last tiny bit of food to someone else. Bible Lesson with Discussion Questions Message: Give to others with a joyful heart! 8 Then the LORD said to Elijah, 9 Go and live in the village of Zarephath, near the city of Sidon. I have instructed a widow there to feed you. 10 So he went to Zarephath. As he arrived at the gates of the village, he saw a widow gathering sticks, and he asked her, Would you please bring me a little water in a cup? 11 As she was going to get it, he called to her, Bring me a bite of bread, too. 12 But she said, I swear by the LORD your God that I don t have a single piece of bread in the house. And I have only a handful of flour left in the jar and a little cooking oil in the bottom of the jug. I was just gathering a few sticks to cook this last meal, and then my son and I will die. 13 But Elijah said to her, Don t be afraid! Go ahead and do just what you ve said, but make a little bread for me first. Then use what s left to prepare a meal for yourself and your son. 14 For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: There will always be flour and olive oil left in your containers until the time when the LORD sends rain and the crops grow again! 1

2 Bible Lesson with Discussion Questions Continued 15 So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her family continued to eat for many days. 16 There was always enough flour and olive oil left in the containers, just as the LORD had promised through Elijah. Discussion Questions: 1. What did Elijah ask the widow for? (A piece of bread.) 2. The widow did not have any bread, but what did she have instead? (Just flour and oil; this can be used to make bread.) 3. Did the widow have a lot of flour and oil? (No, just enough to feed herself and her son.) 4. What did Elijah tell the woman to do? (To make him the bread and that God would make sure she never runs out of flour and oil.) 5. Did the woman listen to Elijah, or did she make the bread for just herself and her son? (She did what Elijah told her and everything he promised her came true!) 6. Do you think it makes God happy when we give something of ours to someone who needs it more? (Answers will vary. Use this opportunity to talk with the children about other children in our country and around the world who have much less toys, clothes, homes, food, etc. Pictures are always good to help with this.) 7. Do you think God was happy to take care of the widow and her son, especially since she gave all she had to someone else? (Yes! Discuss together.) Application to Real Life Enjoy a healthy snack together as you discuss the following: Bring in a piggy bank to class. Ask the children "How many of you have a piggy bank, or some other type of bank, at home? It is fun to save your money isn't it? It's your own personal treasure. Do you get excited while you wait for the day that you can spend the money on a brand new toy or something else you would really like?" Ask the children to share some of the things that they may save up their money to buy. Talk with the children about how our earthly treasures can be lost, they can break, or even become stolen. Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:19-21 that we can store up treasures in heaven. The treasure that we store up in Heaven will not be lost, stolen or destroyed. The treasures we store in heaven will last forever. One way we can store up treasures in heaven by tithing or offering. Tithing, or offering, is sharing some of our money with our church. The church then uses the money to teach other people about Jesus. We can also store up rewards in heaven by obeying God and learning more about Him. We can learn more about God by reading the Bible and by going to church. God will also reward us when we help other people and show them acts of kindness, just like the widow in today s story. Ask the children to share some ways that they can help other people and show kindness. It can be fun to save our money here on earth, but it is even more exciting to know that we can store up our treasures in heaven. Review the message statement and memory verse. Adapted from: OR 2

3 Application to Real Life - Continued Good Deeds Activity Sheet : Before class you will need to print out a copy of the activity page (one for each child). (See: preschool activities Good Deeds ) Give each child a copy of the Good Deeds activity sheet. The purpose is to have the children identify from the pictures showing children having fun from the children that are doing good deeds. Please see the above website for detailed instructions. Review the message statement and memory verse. Memory Work Suggestions 5 minutes 1. Name the two parts of the Bible and identify where today s story comes from (Old or new?). 2. Practice repeating the memory verse. 3. Ask the children what fruit of the spirit was talked about last week (joy) and see if they can name any others. 4. Recite the memory verse. Activity Ideas Thankful Wheels For each child, you will need a sturdy orange or yellow paper plate, and a fine-tipped permanent marker. Draw six pie-piece sections on the plate using a fine-tipped permanent marker. Write one thing to be thankful for in each pie section, such as church, Jesus, family, friends, food, and the Bible. Below the words, draw simple (or paste) illustrations depicting each word. Talk with the children about being thankful for everything on the wheel, and then take turns closing your eyes and pointing to a section on the wheel. Say something you're grateful for that relates to the corresponding item. (See attached for sample pictures.) Adapted from: Make Mini Pumpkin Pies For a tasty way to celebrate Thanksgiving this year, have your students make mini-pumpkin pies. Allow each child to make two pies: one for them to eat, and one for them to cheerfully give to someone else in the congregation. You'll need premade custard crusts (available in grocery stores), spoons, bowls, and the following ingredients for each "pie." 2 tablespoons canned pumpkin pie mix 2 tablespoons marshmallow crème 1 tablespoon whipped cream Help the children to mix their ingredients in a small bowl and then spoon the mixture into a custard crust. Allow the pies to sit for 15 minutes. (You may need extra hands for this activity so find those awesome volunteers!) Play a Musical Chairs Thank You Game See: Search the resource room for lepers rr_samplelepers.html scroll down to Activities #2 You will need the same amount of chairs as you have children for this activity. Please see the above website for specific instructions. This is a great activity for adding the youth or other volunteers to in order to make things more interesting! 3

4 Homework Ideas - Read at home with a grown up: God Makes a Promise to Abram (Genesis 12:1-7 and Genesis 15:1-6). - Learn the memory verse for next week: Trust in the Lord with all your heart. --Proverbs 3:5 (NIRV) - Work on memorizing commandment #. - Color the God Makes a Promise to Abram handout and return it for a sticker. Other Resources Old Testament Lessons 98 4

5 Thankful Wheels Church Jesus Friends (boy) Friends (girl) Family Food 5