Teacher Guide. FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT SERIES Volume 3 : : : Peace. LOVE 5 year old. 1st Grade. Kindergarten

Transcription

1 Teacher Guide LOVE 5 year old Kindergarten 1st Grade FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT SERIES Volume 3 : : : Peace

2 The Virtuality Curriculum is a Bible based curriculum, using biblical stories and events to teach children about God s truth. Virtue by definition: moral goodness, excellence or that which establishes value and merit. It is our goal to partner with parents to disciple their children by teaching them these godly virtues. Kindergarten through 5th grade. Copyright 2010, Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale 2010 Fruit of the Spirit edition All rights reserved. No part of this book my be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher, except where noted on handouts. Visit our Web site: Acknowledgements Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Senior Pastor: Bob Coy Children s Pastor: Jorge Bustamante Credits Concept: Calvary Kids Team Curriculum writer: Elise Aleman Copy editor: Janet Werner Graphics: Elise Aleman, Mark Cruz Video animator: Mark Cruz Video writers: Robert Wendel, Ashley Sellers Video producers: Robert Wendel, Ashley Sellers All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (ICB) are taken from the International Children s Bible 1986, 1988, 1999 by Tommy Nelson, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. Nashville, Tennessee Used by permission. It is the author s intent to emphasize certain portions of Scripture by underlining them. These changes are solely the author s and do not reflect the original text.

3 Table of Contents MONTH at a glance 4 1 begin class let s play 6 7 large group let s worship/virtuality Bible story let s talk Bible 8 12 Philip and the Ethiopian Acts 8:26 40 end class let s review 13 2 begin class let s play large group let s worship/virtuality Bible story let s talk Bible The Lord Appears to Elijah 1 Kings 19:9 18 end class let s review 22 3 begin class let s play large group let s worship/virtuality Bible story let s talk Bible Do Not Worry Matthew 6:25 34 end class let s review 30 4 begin class let s play large group let s worship/virtuality Bible story let s talk Bible Battle of Jericho Joshua 6:1 26 end class let s review 40

4 Month at a Glance FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT PEACE Galatians 5:22 The fruit of the Spirit is... peace Staying calm and cool knowing that God is in control. Episode 1 BIBLE STORY Philip and the Ethiopian Acts 8:26 40 MEMORY VERSE For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 KEY POINT Without Jesus it is impossible to have peace. Episode 2 BIBLE STORY The Lord Appears to Elijah 1 Kings 19:9 18 MEMORY VERSE... but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. 1 Kings 19:12 13 (NKJV) KEY POINT You continue to have peace by staying close to God through prayer, worship, and reading His Word. Episode 3 BIBLE STORY Do Not Worry Matthew 6:25 34 MEMORY VERSE Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6 7 KEY POINT You show peace when you stay calm during tough times. Episode 4 BIBLE STORY Battle of Jericho Joshua 6:1 26 MEMORY VERSE Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27 KEY POINT Showing peace in tough times will give others peace. Virtuality Fruit of the Spirit series page 4

5 Peace lesson 1 Fruit of the Spirit Galatians 5:22 The fruit of the Spirit is... peace Peace Staying calm and cool knowing that God is in control. Episode 1 Philip and the Ethiopian Acts 8:26 40 MEMORY VERSE For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 KEY POINT Without Jesus it is impossible to have peace. Lesson 1 page 5

6 Let s Play EARLY ARRIVAL (before service) Have some upbeat music playing. Welcome children warmly. Have some simple toys available to make the environment welcoming. Teachers should take this time to engage in conversation with children as they sit to play with them. Ask them about their week, school, and home. Begin to establish relationships. BEGIN CLASS (service time) Introduce yourself and your assistants. Before the discussion questions, PRAY that the Lord will bless your time together. Have a set of supplies for yourself to demonstrate as you explain. SUPPLIES per child Letter-tile print-outs Board game print-outs SUPPLIES to share Scissors PREP it : : : instructions Have you ever played Scrabble before? It s a fun spelling game where you get points for the letters and words that you use. We re going to create our own version of the game. In the real Scrabble game, you start with a blank board and everyone picks letters from a bag. Our game is different. We ll start with four words already on the board and everyone will get four extra letters to add to the board to make new words out of what s already there. 1 Cut out the letter-tiles before class. 2 Pair up the children into teams of 2 to 4 players. 3 Hand 4 Ask: 5 Hand each team a board game and ask someone to read what it says. Have everyone repeat it together, No Jesus, no peace. Can someone tell me what this means? (Wait for answers.) That s right; it means that without Jesus there is NO PEACE. We need to fi x that, don t we? Our game will help us figure out the answer. out the letter tiles. (Each team gets two Ks and two Ws.) If there are four players, each player gets one of the letters. lesson 1 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 6

7 PLAY it : : : instructions 1 The object of this game is to make two new words from the words already on the board by using the letters on your tiles. Each person on your team gets a turn; but keep going around until someone figures out the answer. (You can determine who goes first in each team alphabetically, e.g., Anne, Bobby, Kate, Will.) 2 The 3 After answer to the game will tell us how to find peace. If you think your team has figured out the answer, raise your hand and share it with the rest of the class. you read the Connect it, hand out more boards and tiles so that every child gets one set to take home. (A set is one board game, two Ws and two Ks.) CONNECTit KEYPOINT CONNECT it : : : SAY That game was hard but very important. What did the answer tells us? (Wait for answers.) That s right; it means that when you KNOW JESUS you will KNOW PEACE. Today we begin to learn about a new fruit of the Spirit PEACE. As we learned in the game... Without Jesus it is impossible to have peace. When you learn the answer in this game, everyone wins. You don t just win points (like in other games) you win eternal peace! Let s watch Virtuality now and learn about a man who had no peace because he didn t know Jesus. We ll also learn about the man who told him about Jesus. It s important to tell everyone you know about Jesus so that they ll know Jesus and have peace too. This game is a great way to share Jesus with others, so I have one set for everyone to take home. WATCH it : : : Go to large group to see the Virtuality DVD, Fruit of the Spirit Series DVD (VOLUME 3, EPISODE 1) lesson 1 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 7

8 Let s Talk Bible BIBLE STORY : : : Philip and the Ethiopian Acts 8:26 40 BE PREPARED Read the Bible story and study the background information at home. Before you begin reading today s Bible story tell children the background information in your own words. BACKGROUND information : : : SAY IT in your own words Ethiopia is a country on the continent of Africa. The man that we are going to read about today was an important officer for the queen of that country. He was also a eunuch (a male castrated as a child to serve in the royal court). Most eunuchs were typically slaves, but were also considered very trustworthy and loyal, which is probably the reason he was allowed to travel. Although the Bible mentions him only briefly (we don t even know his name), he was very influential and important for the future of Ethiopia. It is believed that the God of the Jews (our God) was introduced to Ethiopia many years earlier during the reign of King Solomon. The Queen of Sheba (the queen of Ethiopia at that time) visited Solomon in Jerusalem and was very impressed by his wisdom. She told him Everything I heard in my country about your achievements and wisdom is true! I didn t believe it until I arrived here and saw it with my own eyes. Truly I had not heard the half of it! Your wisdom and prosperity are far greater than what I was told. How happy these people must be! What a privilege for your officials to stand here day after day, listening to your wisdom! The LORD your God is great indeed! (1 Kings 10:6 9 NLT). She undoubtedly bought Judaism back to Ethiopia with her and the nation began to believe in the one true God. There s no doubt that the Ethiopian in our story already believed in God, but he didn t know about Jesus. There was something in his spirit that was searching for more. He had many questions and no peace, so he traveled to Jerusalem (where the Queen of Sheba first heard of God) in search of answers. The Ethiopian was searching for peace and he was about to meet Jesus the giver of peace. (Isaiah 9:6) Back in Israel, Philip (one of the Apostles) was having great success spreading the Good News of Jesus in Samaria. Acts 8:6 8 says that when the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said... [And] so there was great joy in that city. lesson 1 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 8

9 Philip may have wondered why the Lord would tell him to leave this huge city where thousands of people were listening and believing in Jesus to travel a lonely desert road to tell one man about Jesus. But that s exactly what happened, and Philip obeyed. We know that everyone is important to God, but it still may not have made much sense to Philip at the time. He probably never knew the impact this one man would have; yet history reveals a different story. Let s meet Philip and the Ethiopian on this desert road and listen to their conversation. Afterward I ll tell you the rest of the story, what Philip himself never knew. PREP it : : : props and characters 1. Select a few children to act out portions of the story as you read it. If you don t have enough children, they can play multiple roles in the different sections of the story. These are the characters.» Philip» Angel of the Lord» Man from Ethiopia» People of Azotus 2. If you are able, bring a few of these props from home to enhance the story.» Wings or something to make angel s costume» Roll of paper (cut a long strip for the desert road)» A Bible» Blue fabric or paper (for the water) READ SCRIPTURE READ Bible Story : : : ACTS 8:26 40 (Ethiopian, walk really slowly, reading your Bible along the desert road.) An angel of the Lord spoke to Philip. The angel said, Get ready and go south. Go to the road that leads down to Gaza from Jerusalem the desert road. So Philip got ready and went. (Philip, pretend to pack bags and get ready to make a long journey.) On the road he saw a man from Ethiopia, a eunuch. He was an important officer in the service of Candace, the queen of the Ethiopians. He was lesson 1 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 9

10 responsible for taking care of all her money. He had gone to Jerusalem to worship, and now he was on his way home. He was sitting in his chariot and reading from the book of Isaiah, the prophet. The Spirit said to Philip, (Angel, say:) Go to that chariot and stay near it. So Philip ran toward the chariot. (Philip, walk quickly to the desert road and then walk slowly next to the Ethiopian.) He heard the man reading from Isaiah, the prophet. (Ethiopian, read or pretend to read to yourself.) Philip asked, (Philip, say:) Do you understand what you are reading? He answered, How can I understand? I need someone to explain it to me! Then he invited Philip to climb in and sit with him. (Ethiopian, say, I don t get it, would you explain it to me? ) The verse of Scripture that he was reading was this: (Both men, look at the Bible together, while the teacher reads the following verses from Isaiah.) He was like a sheep being led to be killed. He was quiet, as a sheep is quiet while its wool is being cut. He said nothing. He was shamed and was treated unfairly. He died without children to continue his family. His life on earth has ended (Isaiah 53: 7-8). The officer said to Philip, Please tell me, who is the prophet talking about? Is he talking about himself or about someone else? (Ethiopian, say, What s he talking bout Philip? ) Philip began to speak. He started with this same Scripture and told the man the Good News about Jesus. (Philip and Ethiopian, walk and talk quietly together.) While they were traveling down the road, they came to some water. The officer said, Look! Here is water! What is stopping me from being baptized? (Ethiopian, point to the blue paper or fabric next to the desert road.) Then the officer commanded the chariot to stop. Both Philip and the officer went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. (Philip, pretend to baptize the Ethiopian in the water.) When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord took Philip away; (Angel, take Philip away quickly.) the officer never saw him again. lesson 1 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 10

11 (Ethiopian, say, Where d he go? Look around, Doesn t matter, I understand my Bible now and now I have peace.) The officer continued on his way home, full of joy. (Ethiopian, jump for joy down the road.) But Philip appeared in a city called Azotus and preached the Good News in all the towns on the way from Azotus to Caesarea. (Philip, somewhere else, say I have Good News to tell you! ) CONNECTIT CONNECT it : : : SAY The Ethiopian already had the Scriptures, but they weren t the whole Bible we have today. The New Testament had not been written yet, so he didn t know about Jesus. Someone had to tell him. Until Philip explained it, the Ethiopian didn t know that he was already reading about Jesus. He knew there was something very important about what he was reading, but he didn t have peace because he couldn t understand it. KEYPOINT MEMORYVERSE Without Jesus it is impossible to have peace. The book of Isaiah (that he was reading) also tells us that Jesus is the Prince of Peace. For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 (NIV) In the book of Isaiah, we learn that Jesus had to suffer so that we can have peace. But he was wounded and crushed for our sins. He was beaten that we might have peace. He was whipped, and we were healed! (Isaiah 53:5 NLT) The Bible tells us that if we look for God with all of our heart, we will find him (Deuteronomy 4:29). The Ethiopian went to Jerusalem to look for God but it was on his way back home that he found Jesus and finally had peace. Historians tell us that this man went back to Ethiopia and began the Christian church. Even today more people are Christians there than any other religion. Philip dropped everything and obeyed God to meet this one man in the desert road. God doesn t have to explain everything to us; we just need to obey Him. lesson 1 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 11

12 Philip s obedience bought the peace of Jesus to an entire nation for thousands of generations to come. PRAYER LET S PRAY : : : SAY Heavenly Father, Thank You for giving us so many ways to share Jesus with others. I pray that You will help us stop and listen, the same way Philip did, so we too can share the peace of Jesus with others. We know that without Jesus there is no real peace. In Jesus name, we pray. Amen. lesson 1 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 12

13 Let s Review This Month s Verse PEACE THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS... PEACE Staying calm and cool knowing that God is in control. TODAY S LESSON Bible Story Philip and the Ethiopian Location Acts 8:26 40 Memory Verse For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 Key Point Without Jesus it is impossible to have peace. TIME FILLERS Ask if anyone would like to play the teacher and review today s lesson with the class. Play games to help children memorize today s Bible memory verse. TAKE HOME SHEETS VIRTUE Quest is the take-home sheet designed for children to do with their parents. The sheet contains information about today s lesson. The goal is to partner with parents to continue and to reiterate the lesson. Be sure to hand all parents a sheet as they pick up their children. lesson 1 page 13

14 Peace lesson 2 Fruit of the Spirit Galatians 5:22 The fruit of the Spirit is... peace Peace Staying calm and cool knowing that God is in control. Episode 2 The Lord Appears to Elijah 1 Kings 19:9 18 MEMORY VERSE... but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. 1 Kings 19:12 13 (NKJV) KEY POINT You continue to have peace by staying close to God through prayer, worship, and reading His Word. Lesson 2 page 14

15 Let s Play EARLY ARRIVAL (before service) Have some upbeat music playing. Welcome children warmly. Have some simple toys available to make the environment welcoming. Teachers should take this time to engage in conversation with children as they sit to play with them. Ask them about their week, school, and home. Begin to establish relationships. BEGIN CLASS (service time) Introduce yourself and your assistants. Before the discussion questions, PRAY that the Lord will bless your time together. Have a set of supplies for yourself to demonstrate as you explain. SUPPLIES to play No supplies needed for game. Optional: bring some noisemakers from home. One sheet of paper per child (to take home). PREP it : : : instructions 1 Select two children: a listener and a messenger. 2 Have 3 When 4 The 5 Allow 6 Try 7 If 8 Hand the children stand at opposite sides of the room. you say, Go, everyone else in the room will make as much noise as he or she possibly can. messenger will give attempt to yell his message to the listener. (The message can be today s memory verse or something simpler, such as, Jesus loves you. ) the noise for only a few seconds, and then ask the listener if he or she heard the message. it once more, but this time ask the messenger to stand just a foot away from the listener. Have everyone make some really loud noise. you have time, you can repeat the demonstration a few more times with different children. out the blank sheets of paper. Have everyone fold them in half and then in half again like a greeting card. lesson 2 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 15

16 CONNECTit CONNECT it : : : SAY I want you to write this message, The LORD came in a gentle whisper. (Write it on the board for the children to copy onto their papers.) Today we are going to learn about Elijah (the great prophet of God) who was trying to hear God s voice in some very loud places. This prophet urgently needed to hear God s message in order to have peace because he was in bad trouble. God was not in the noisy places; He was in a gentle whisper. Take your papers home and go to a very quiet place to pray, and then just listen. If God speaks to you, write the message down on this paper so that you won t forget what He said to you. This may not be as easy as it sounds because we are not used to being still and quiet for long. It actually takes practice to be still and listen for God. Perhaps you can practice being still and quiet a little longer each day. Let s watch Virtuality and find out exactly what happened to Elijah and see if he got the peace he was searching for. WATCH it : : : Go to large group to see the Virtuality DVD, Fruit of the Spirit Series DVD (VOLUME 3, EPISODE 2) lesson 2 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 16

17 Let s Talk Bible BIBLE STORY : : : The Lord Appears to Elijah 1 Kings 19:9 18 BE PREPARED Read the Bible story and study the background information at home. Before you begin reading today s Bible story tell children the background information in your own words. BACKGROUND information : : : SAY IT in your own words Elijah was the first of a long line of powerful prophets of God in Israel and Judah. Elijah was very bold and not afraid to stand up for what was right against the evil kings. King Ahab was probably one of the worst since he did more evil in the eyes of the LORD than any of those before him (1 Kings 16:30). To top it off, he married one of the most evil women in biblical history, Jezebel. Ahab and Jezebel had hundreds of other prophets working for them, but these prophets only told them what they wanted to hear not the truth. When Elijah came on the scene, he wanted to prove to them that Baal, the fake man-made god they followed, was powerless. Elijah went right to the king and said, As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word (1 Kings 17:1). This shocked the king and the people because they believed Baal had power over rain, but they were very wrong. This threeyear drought was the first of many miracles God worked through the Prophet Elijah. While God withheld the rain and the nation suffered famine, Elijah was miraculously fed by ravens. Then God sent Elijah to a widow and her son. They were about to eat their last meal before starving to death when Elijah asked her to feed him. He told her, The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD gives rain on the land (1 Kings 17:14). She believed the prophet, and their food did not run out. But that wasn t the only miracle this family experienced. When the widow s son became sick and died, Elijah cried out to God and the boy returned to life! The scene was extreme. None of these miracles convinced Ahab and Jezebel to turn from their evil ways. Jezebel became angry, and instead of turning from evil, she went deeper into sin against God. She went on a killing spree against the prophets of God. Elijah was her main target, but he was nowhere to be found. Then one day he just showed up. Elijah was still committed to proving that the Lord God was the one true God. Elijah lesson 2 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 17

18 challenged 850 prophets of Baal and Asherah to a showdown. (These were all of Jezebel s puppet prophets.) God showed up in a miraculous display of power and the false prophets lost miserably and were all put to death. Ahab told Jezebel everything that had happened, but she still did not bow down to the one true God. She made a vow to kill Elijah. Elijah was afraid and ran for his life (1 Kings 19:3). You may wonder how Elijah came to be afraid even though he had the power and favor of God. He was probably sure that this last miracle would prove to Jezebel where the real power lay and that she would turn from her evil ways. When she didn t, it rocked his world. Elijah was a powerful prophet of God, but he was still human and he became discouraged. There was no proving anything to this evil woman; she just didn t care. After three intense years, he was tired; he ran; he hid; he was depressed. In fact, he gave up and wanted to die. He probably felt that he had failed God. God was not done with Elijah; He was gentle and loving. Elijah went into the desert to die but God sent an angel to care for him. So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God (1 Kings 19:8). This is where we pick up the story. Elijah reached the mountain and went into a cave to spend the night. He probably wanted to sleep, but God wanted to talk. PREP it : : : props and characters 1. Select a few children to act out portions of the story as you read it. If you don t have enough children, they can play multiple roles in the different sections of the story. These are the characters.» Elijah (Able to say the shorter dialogue in parenthesis.)» God (Teacher can read the Lord s dialogue directly.)» Wind noise makers» Breaking rocks noise makers» Earthquake noise makers» Fire noise makers» Gentle whisper makers» Three boys to be anointed lesson 2 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 18

19 2. If you are able, bring a few of these props from home to enhance the story.» A table or desk for Elijah to hide under» A cloth (for Elijah s covering)» An empty bottle of olive oil (You can put water in it.) READ SCRIPTURE READ Bible Story : : : 1 KINGS 19:9 18 There Elijah went into a cave and stayed all night. (Elijah, go under the desk and pretend it s a cave.) Then the Lord spoke his word to him: Elijah! Why are you here? Elijah answered, Lord, God of heaven s armies, I have always served you the best I could. But the people of Israel have broken their agreement with you. They have destroyed your altars. They have killed your prophets with swords. I am the only prophet left. And now they are trying to kill me, too! (Elijah, say, I m scared and I have no peace. ) Then the Lord said to Elijah, Go. Stand in front of me on the mountain. I will pass by you. (God, say, Wait for Me, I m coming. ) Then a very strong wind blew. ( Wind, make howling wind noise.) It caused the mountains to break apart. It broke apart large rocks in front of the Lord. ( Breaking rocks, make crashing noise like rocks breaking.) But the Lord was not in the wind. (Elijah, say, I can t hear you, Lord, the wind s too loud. ) After the wind, there was an earthquake. ( Earthquake, stomp your feet and make earthquake noise.) But the Lord was not in the earthquake. (Elijah, say, I can t hear you, Lord, the earthquake is too loud. ) After the earthquake, there was a fire. ( Fire, make crackling fire noise.) But the Lord was not in the fire. (Elijah, say, I can t hear you, Lord, the fire is too loud. ) After the fire, there was a quiet, gentle voice. (Everyone be really quiet. Gentle whisper, blow out a gentle puff.) lesson 2 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 19

20 When Elijah heard it, he covered his face with his coat. He went out and stood at the entrance to the cave. (Elijah, cover your head with the cloth and come out of the cave.) Then a voice said to him, Elijah! Why are you here? Elijah answered, Lord, God of heaven s armies, I have always served you the best I could. But the people of Israel have broken their agreement with you. They have destroyed your altars. They have killed your prophets with swords. I am the only prophet left. And now they are trying to kill me, too. (Elijah, say, I m scared and I have no peace. ) The Lord said to him, Go back on the road that leads to the desert around Damascus. Enter that city. There pour olive oil on Hazael to make him king over Aram. (Elijah, pour a small amount of water on one of the boys and say, You are king. ) Then pour oil on Jehu son of Nimshi to make him king over Israel. (Elijah, pour a small amount of water on one of the other boys and say, You are king. ) Next, pour oil on Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah. He will be a prophet in your place. (Elijah, pour a small amount of water on the third boy and say, You are a prophet of God. ) Jehu will kill anyone who escapes from Hazael s sword. And Elisha will kill anyone who escapes from Jehu s sword. (The new kings pretend to battle with swords.) But I have left 7,000 people living in Israel. Those 7,000 have never bowed down before Baal. Their mouths have never kissed his idol. (Elijah, say, You mean I m not alone? ) CONNECTIT CONNECT it : : : SAY Elijah had been very busy doing the Lord s work, but he was now tired, scared and discouraged. King Ahab and Jezebel continued their evil ways and Elijah thought he was the only one left who loved God. Elijah wanted to give up and he needed peace to go on. The last three years had been filled with tense excitement. Elijah had seen God do great miracles and was used to seeing God in these big events. But this lesson 2 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 20

21 KEYPOINT MEMORYVERSE time God came in an unexpected peaceful way. He wanted to let Elijah know that everything was still okay, that He wasn t disappointed in him and that he didn t have to hide or be scared. Elijah needed to stop and just listen quietly for the Lord. Elijah needed to have the peace of God. You continue to have peace by staying close to God through prayer, worship, and reading His Word. Elijah ran from Jezebel in fear of his life, but he didn t find peace in the desert nor the mountains, Peace was not to be found in the earthquake, the wind or the fire. He found peace in the soft whisper of God s gentle voice. I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety. Psalms 4:8 Elijah thought he was done helping God. But God told him to get up and keep going; there was more important work to be done. Elijah thought nothing he had done worked to turn people s hearts back to God, but there were 7,000 who still had a chance. We should never give up sharing Jesus with others. Next time you feel like giving up, remember Elijah s story and just sit quietly and wait for God to speak in a soft gentle whisper. In that still, quiet place, Jesus will bring you peace. PRAYER LET S PRAY : : : SAY Heavenly Father, Thank You for Your gentleness and love. Thank You for peace and encouragement. We pray that we may be able to sit quietly enough to hear Your sweet voice, especially when we feel like giving up. As long as we have Your peace, we can continue to do Your work. In Jesus name, we pray. Amen. lesson 2 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 21

22 Let s Review This Month s Verse PEACE THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS... PEACE Staying calm and cool knowing that God is in control. TODAY S LESSON Bible Story The Lord Appears to Elijah Location 1 Kings 19:9 18 Memory Verse... but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. 1 Kings 19:12 13 (NKJV) Key Point You continue to have peace by staying close to God through prayer, worship, and reading His Word. TIME FILLERS Ask if anyone would like to play the teacher and review today s lesson with the class. Play games to help children memorize today s Bible memory verse. TAKE HOME SHEETS VIRTUE Quest is the take-home sheet designed for children to do with their parents. The sheet contains information about today s lesson. The goal is to partner with parents to continue and to reiterate the lesson. Be sure to hand all parents a sheet as they pick up their children. lesson 2 page 22

23 Peace lesson 3 Fruit of the Spirit Galatians 5:22 The fruit of the Spirit is... peace Peace Staying calm and cool knowing that God is in control. Episode 3 Do Not Worry Matthew 6:25 34 MEMORY VERSE Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6 7 KEY POINT You show peace when you stay calm during tough times. Lesson 3 page 23

24 Let s Play EARLY ARRIVAL (before service) Have some upbeat music playing. Welcome children warmly. Have some simple toys available to make the environment welcoming. Teachers should take this time to engage in conversation with children as they sit to play with them. Ask them about their week, school, and home. Begin to establish relationships. BEGIN CLASS (service time) Introduce yourself and your assistants. Before the discussion questions, PRAY that the Lord will bless your time together. Have a set of supplies for yourself to demonstrate as you explain. SUPPLIES for game Popcorn or animal crackers 1 large bowl Water pitcher Small cups 2 Button-down shirts (bring from home) Blank paper and crayons PREP it : : : instructions 1 Set up three stations along an obstacle course or path. 2 Place the clothing on the starting line where each team lines up. 3 Have 4 Put 5 Set a large bowl full of popcorn at the first station. (Be sure to let parents know their child might eat popcorn. If a child is allergic, he or she can just carry a piece of popcorn.) a pitcher of water and small cups in the second station. (You might also have a waste-basket for the used cups.) up the plain paper and crayons on a desk at the last station. PLAY it : : : instructions 1 Divide the children into two teams for a challenge/relay race. lesson 3 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 24

25 2 When 3 At 4 Next 5 Lastly, 6 The 7 Continue you say, Go, the first child on each team puts on the shirt. He or she must button every button on the shirt before moving to the first station. the first station the racers eat one popped kernel or animal cracker. they walk quickly to the water station and pour themselves a cup of water and drink it. they go to the paper and draw the most beautiful flower they can imagine. When their flower is finished, they take it with them and return to their team. next child in line goes next; the baton in this relay is the shirt. Each child must unbutton it completely before handing it to the next player, who must put it on and button it completely also. until all the children in one team have had a turn. The first team to complete the challenge wins. CONNECTit CONNECT it : : : SAY This race was challenging but fun. Were you at all worried that your team wouldn t make it? What challenge worried you the most? Was it the food, the drink or the clothes? Actually, this really wasn t worry at all; what you felt was excitement to win the game for your team. If you were stranded naked in the desert, then perhaps you would really worry about what you would eat or drink or having clothes to cover and protect your body. But guess what Jesus said about worrying? He said, Don t! Jesus said don t worry about what you ll eat or drink or having nice clothes to wear. In fact, He said don t worry about anything. Let s watch Virtuality and learn why Jesus doesn t want us to worry about anything. WATCH it : : : Go to large group to see the Virtuality DVD, Fruit of the Spirit Series DVD (VOLUME 3, EPISODE 3) lesson 3 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 25

26 Let s Talk Bible BIBLE STORY : : : Do Not Worry Matthew 6:25 34 BE PREPARED Read the Bible story and study the background information at home. Before you begin reading today s Bible story tell children the background information in your own words. BACKGROUND information : : : SAY IT in your own words Jesus was a rabbi (a Jewish teacher). It was not unusual for rabbis at that time to have student followers. What set Jesus apart from other rabbis was the large number of followers He had, the miracles He did, and the authority with which He spoke and taught (Matthew 7:28). Jesus did and taught many, many things. John the Apostle even said, I suppose that if all the other things Jesus did were written down, the whole world could not contain the books (John 21:25). On a mountainside by the Sea of Galilee, Jesus gave one of His most well-known teachings the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1 6:34). Thousands of years earlier, God spoke to us through Moses. When the LORD finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two tablets of the Testimony, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God (Exodus 31:18). These tablets are, of course, the Ten Commandments. This is the set of rules which lets us know how to live our lives the way God wants us to live. It s our foundation. God didn t give us these rules to make life harder; on the contrary, God loves us and wanted to make life easier. Jesus takes the rules further by teaching us how Christians should behave. In some ways you can say that the Sermon on the Mount is the commandments of the New Testament. Jesus teaches us how to follow God s rules practically. In the Ten Commandments, for instance, we learn not to have idols. Jesus explains that an idol can be many things, including money. He said that the treasures we keep on earth can be stolen or destroyed but the treasures we store up in heaven will last forever. How do we get treasures in heaven? When we obey the Word of God and make Him a priority, the treasure will follow. Jesus said, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (Matthew 6:21). When we follow God s rules and obey His Word the result is the fruit. Think of rules as seeds. If a seed just sits there and is never planted, watered, or cared for, it will never grow into a tree and give fruit. You must take the seed and do something with it. lesson 3 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 26

27 Hearing God s Word and not obeying it is like having a seed and never planting it. What we do with God s Word will show others that we are God s children for a tree is recognized by its fruit (Matthew 12:33). We ve been learning about what some of these fruits are. So far we learned about love and joy. This month we ve been learning about peace. Today we are going to learn how the evidence of peace is a person who doesn t worry. In fact, in the few verses we re about to read, Jesus says DO NOT WORRY five times. Let s open our Bibles and listen to Jesus teaching on why we should not worry. PREP it : : : props and characters 1. Select a few children to act out portions of the story as you read it. If you don t have enough children, they can play multiple roles in the different sections of the story. These are the characters.» Hungry people» Fashionable people» Birds» Flowers in the field» King Solomon» Grass READ SCRIPTURE READ Bible Story : : : MATTHEW 6:25 34 So I tell you, don t worry about the food you need to live. (Hungry people, say, I m not worried. ) And don t worry about the clothes you need for your body. (Fashionable people, say, I m not worried. ) Life is more important than food. And the body is more important than clothes. (Both fashionable and hungry people, say, I m not worried. ) Look at the birds in the air. They don t plant or harvest or store food in barns. (Birds fly around and say, I m not worried ) But your heavenly Father feeds the birds. And you know that you are worth much more than the birds. You cannot add any time to your life by worrying about it. (Everyone say, I m important to God. ) And why do you worry about clothes? (Fashionable people, say, I m not lesson 3 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 27

28 worried. ) Look at the flowers in the field. See how they grow. They don t work or make clothes for themselves. (Flowers, pretend to grow and sway happily in the breeze and say, I m not worried. ) But I tell you that even Solomon with his riches was not dressed as beautifully as one of these flowers. (Solomon say, Those flowers are more beautiful than my crown. ) God clothes the grass in the field like that. The grass is living today, but tomorrow it is thrown into the fire to be burned. (Grass, spring up quickly and then shrivel quickly.) So you can be even more sure that God will clothe you. Don t have so little faith! (Everyone say, I have faith. ) Don t worry and say, What will we eat? (Everyone say, I won t worry about what to eat. ) or What will we drink? (Everyone say, I won t worry about what to drink. ) or What will we wear? (Everyone say, I won t worry about what to wear. ) All the people who don t know God keep trying to get these things. And your Father in heaven knows that you need them. (Everyone say, God knows what I need. ) The thing you should want most is God s kingdom and doing what God wants. Then all these other things you need will be given to you. (Everyone say, God knows what I need. ) So don t worry about tomorrow. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Tomorrow will have its own worries. (Everyone say, I m not worried. ) CONNECTIT CONNECT it : : : SAY Have you (or your mom) ever bought something at a store but then decided to take it back. Sometimes the store returns your money but some stores say you have to take something else instead. At those stores you must exchange one thing for something else. Think of worry as something you bought in a box. Jesus wants us to take it to Him and exchange it for something else. Do you lesson 3 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 28

29 know what He wants to give us in exchange? Peace! KEYPOINT MEMORYVERSE Jesus isn t saying we will never have problems. In fact, He knows we ll have problems. Jesus had problems, too. He suffered the consequence of all of our sins. But He said, I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world (John 16:33). You show peace when you stay calm during tough times. Do you know how to stay calm? By not worrying. Our memory verse says... Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6 (NIV) The New Living Translation says it like this. Don t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. God knows what you need and He knows what is important and what isn t. We may think we understand peace, but this verse tells us that God s peace is greater than anything we can ever understand. When we don t worry, we show our faith and trust in God and that gives us peace. DO: Have the children finish their flower pictures (from the game) by writing the memory verse on their drawings. Then, if time permits, they can add more things from today s Bible lesson, such as the birds in the air, Solomon s clothes, etc. PRAYER LET S PRAY : : : SAY Heavenly Father, Thank You for taking care of our needs and showing us how important we are to You by sending your Son, Jesus. Help us have enough faith to give You all the things we worry about in exchange for Your peace. In Jesus name, we pray. Amen. lesson 3 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 29

30 Let s Review This Month s Verse PEACE THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS... PEACE Staying calm and cool knowing that God is in control. TODAY S LESSON Bible Story Do Not Worry Location Matthew 6:25 34 Memory Verse Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6 7 Key Point You show peace when you stay calm during tough times. TIME FILLERS Ask if anyone would like to play the teacher and review today s lesson with the class. Play games to help children memorize today s Bible memory verse. TAKE HOME SHEETS VIRTUE Quest is the take-home sheet designed for children to do with their parents. The sheet contains information about today s lesson. The goal is to partner with parents to continue and to reiterate the lesson. Be sure to hand all parents a sheet as they pick up their children. lesson 3 page 30

31 Peace lesson 4 Fruit of the Spirit Galatians 5:22 The fruit of the Spirit is... peace Peace Staying calm and cool knowing that God is in control. Episode 4 Battle of Jericho Joshua 6:1 26 MEMORY VERSE Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27 KEY POINT Showing peace in tough times will give others peace. Lesson 4 page 31

32 Let s Play EARLY ARRIVAL (before service) Have some upbeat music playing. Welcome children warmly. Have some simple toys available to make the environment welcoming. Teachers should take this time to engage in conversation with children as they sit to play with them. Ask them about their week, school, and home. Begin to establish relationships. BEGIN CLASS (service time) Introduce yourself and your assistants. Before the discussion questions, PRAY that the Lord will bless your time together. Have a set of supplies for yourself to demonstrate as you explain. SUPPLIES for game Jar of peanut butter Four paper plates Couple of spoons Baby wipes PREP it : : : instructions 1) Set up two tables. Move one table to the starting line and the other to the finish line. 2) Place a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter on a plate on the starting table and the entire jar of peanut butter next to it. Be sure the jar s lid is closed and the outside has been wiped clean. 3) Place two empty paper plates on the finish table. 4) Have the wipes ready for cleaning up after the game. PLAY it : : : instructions 1) Divide the number of children into thirds. One-third of the children will be team ONE and the other two-thirds will be team TWO. Don t worry about an exact numbers; you just want to have visibly more children on team TWO. 2) Have two adult helpers, one to lead each team. Make sure they understand the rules for their team. (See specific instructions for each team below.) 3) The object of the race is to transfer the peanut butter from the start to the finish table. 4) Have each team huddle together to receive their instructions from their leader. The team leaders will assist their teams differently. lesson 4 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 32

33 TEAM 1 : : : instructions 1) This team must transfer the peanut butter that is on the paper plate, NOT what is inside the jar. They cannot pick up the paper plate; they must pick up the peanut butter with their hands and transfer it from one player to the next player. The last player will put the peanut butter on the paper plate on the table at the finish line. 2) This team is allowed to talk, grumble and complain all they want. It is the team leader s job to make sure they stay CLEAN. The leader should be constantly reminding them to be careful: Don t touch anything! Watch your clothes! Watch your hair! (Etc.) The team leader should be panicked and very pessimistic about the possibility of winning. 3) Have each team player line up and spread out between the starting line and the finish line before the race begins. TEAM 2 : : : instructions 1) This team must transfer the peanut butter jar to the finish line by simply passing it from one player to the next. The team will line up and spread out between the starting line and the finish line. 2) The first player picks up the jar and hands it to the next player and so on. The last player will place the jar on the paper plate on the table at the finish line. 3) This team is NOT allowed to talk at all. It is the team leader s job to make sure they stay CALM. This leader should be encouraging and confident about winning. The team leader will give the instructions in the huddle and set up the team, but after that, he or she is not allowed to talk. (Be sure to clean anyone s hands that touched the peanut butter when the game is over.) CONNECT it : : : SAY This race was very predictable. Both teams had the potential to win but the team leader played a big role in either keeping you calm and moving easily to victory or panicking you so much about staying clean that you failed or gave up. Something very similar happened in today s Bible true story. We ll learn about the time Joshua (a calm and confident leader) led the people to victory against some amazingly impossible odds. God gave Joshua specific but strange orders but he never questioned God and simply obeyed. Joshua made sure no one else complained, panicked or feared by keeping them quiet. No one was allowed to talk. We will also learn that fear and panic is contagious. If one person loses it, everyone else will likely follow. The first team of Israelites panicked and because of that they spent the next forty years wandering in the wilderness. The first team never tasted victory because they didn t have peace about trusting and following God. Let s watch Virtuality now and learn exactly what happened to the second team of Israelites and how they allowed peace to prevail and had victory over their enemies. WATCH it : : : Go to large group to see the Virtuality DVD, Fruit of the Spirit Series DVD (VOLUME 3, EPISODE 4) lesson 4 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 33

34 Let s Talk Bible BIBLE STORY : : : Battle of Jericho Joshua 6:1 26 BE PREPARED Read the Bible story and study the background information at home. Before you begin reading today s Bible story tell children the background information in your own words. BACKGROUND information : : : SAY IT in your own words Have you ever been to a gated community? A resident of a gated community has an access card to enter through the gate. But a guest has to talk to the guard to be allowed in. These types of communities are good at keeping thieves out, but if someone really wanted to sneak in, it wouldn t be that difficult to climb over the fence or wall. A gated community gives us tiny picture of what a city like Jericho might have been like thousands of years ago. Back then, instead of having gated communities inside the cities, most cities themselves were entirely surrounded by walls. These city walls would not be easy to climb over and they would have been heavily guarded all around, not just by the gates. Illustration from: Jericho had double walls and was considered the most secure city ever. The lower wall sat above a large retaining wall and the upper wall was separated from it by a large sloped area. It was about 46 feet from the base to the very top! The walls were also thick, about six to eight feet wide. Without today s bulldozers or explosives, breaching the walls of Jericho was a physical impossibility. The people living inside Jericho were pretty confident in their security system against most armies, but they feared the Israelites. Here s why. Rahab told Joshua s spies, We have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea [and how other enemies were] completely destroyed... for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below (Joshua 2:9 11). The people in Jericho knew that their city was part of the Promised Land given to the Israelites as a promise to Abraham and his descendants hundreds of years before. The inhabitants of Jericho and most of Canaan were very evil; they made idols of man-made gods and did horrible things. They had no desire to turn from their evil ways to follow the true God. God ordered the Israelites to destroy these evil people to keep them from getting corrupted by their ways. The irony is that forty years earlier the Israelites feared the people of Jericho. When God lesson 4 Kindergarten 1 st grade page 34