LEADER S GUIDE BIG MESSAGE LIVE BIG PICTURE: UNLIKELY HEROES - BOYS BIG IDEA: A GOOD REPORT BIG POINT: HEROES HAVE COURAGE BIG WORD: HAVE I NOT COMMANDED YOU? BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS. DO NOT BE AFRAID; DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED, FOR THE LORD YOUR GOD WILL BE WITH YOU WHEREVER YOU GO. JOSHUA 1:9 (NIV) USER AGREEMENT Upon purchase of this resource, Hillsong Kids BIG gladly grants the buyer (The Licensee) or the organisation they represent, a free and non-exclusive license to tailor Hillsong Kids BIG print materials to fit their unique leadership requirements. However, it is prohibited to make changes to doctrine, scripture references, biblical principles and concepts presented. Please see doctrinal guidelines we have expressed in our What We Believe statement. These resources are intended to be printed for use only by the buyer or the organisation they represent and may not be electronically transferred to or duplicated by others. Any unauthorised reproduction of this material or incorporation into a new work is a direct violation of copyright laws. Hillsong Church. All rights reserved. DOCUMENT PURPOSE This document is the Leader s Guide for BIG Picture UNLIKELY HEROES - BOYS. It contains a summary of the BIG Message LIVE. The BIG Unlikely Heroes User Guide document contains all the service element information, including the large group segment of your service. Make sure you read through and prayerfully study this material prior to your service to be fully prepared to minister to your children.
Learning Outcomes At the conclusion of this lesson children will: Discover that Heroes are everyday people just like them. Understand that Joshua was a normal guy, with courage and God on his side, he became a hero. Know that with God they can have courage too. BIG POINT: HEROES HAVE COURAGE BIG WORD: HAVE I NOT COMMANDED YOU? BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS. DO NOT BE AFRAID; DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED, FOR THE LORD YOUR GOD WILL BE WITH YOU WHEREVER YOU GO. JOSHUA 1:9 (NIV) BIG MESSAGE LIVE OUTLINE DOCUMENT PURPOSE Use this outline to construct a message that works for you and your children s ministry. INTRO Wear your superhero costume and come on stage, stand front and centre with your hands on your hips in a superhero pose. Have a fan blowing so your cape blows behind you. As the music fades out announce, I AM (say your superhero name). I can leap tall buildings in a single bound. I can overcome any obstacle. I can rescue small cats from large trees, open jars that no others in my family can open and reach things from high cupboards that no one else can reach. For I am (say your superhero name) the greatest superhero of all time. What makes me a hero? Well, it s this cape and mask of course! No not really. The cape and the mask are just a costume. It s me (say your real name). (Take off your mask) Did I fool anyone? Probably not! Almost all the superheroes in cartoons and movies have masks like Batman, Spiderman and IronMan. What happens when they take off their mask? They look like average everyday people, just like you and me! It s not the costume or the mask that gives them power or ability to do amazing things, it s the person underneath! Everyday people, just like you and me, can be heroes. We don t have capes, masks or slick costumes but what is inside of us is what makes all the difference. God can use you and I to do amazing things! We re going to learn all about some heroes from the Bible. They were everyday people just like you and me, unlikely heroes. Throughout the Bible God worked through unexpected people in incredible ways. You and I are just as unlikely and unexpected, so imagine what God can do through us! Scripture References: Numbers 13 Numbers 14:24 Deuteronomy 31:6 Joshua 1-12 Joshua 1:9 1 Chronicles 22:13 Psalm 27:14 Psalm 31:24 Acts 4:13 Acts 1:8 Superhero cape and mask, superhero style music and a large fan to make your cape blow in the wind.
STORYTELLING JOSHUA 1. Story Image 1 Today s hero from God s Word is Joshua. Joshua was an ordinary guy with God on his side. He lived his life with courage and followed God. We learn about Joshua in the Old Testament, in the time of Moses and the Israelites. 2. Story Image 2 Moses had led the Israelites out from Egypt, they were no longer slaves and they were headed to a new land to make their home there. God told Moses that they would be given this land, called Canaan. There was just one problem, other people were already living there! God spoke to Moses and told him to send some men into the land as spies to explore and report back. Their mission was clear: find out what kind of people live there, are they strong or weak? Find out what the city is like, are the walls big or small? Find out what the land is like, is the soil good or bad? And lastly bring back some fruit. Twelve spies set out on their mission. They went up big hills, down deep valleys, around big trees and winding paths. They explored for 40 days. (Hold up and look through your binoculars.) They saw the people that lived in Canaan, they saw the city and its walls and they saw the land. 3. Story image 3 Don t forget to bring back some fruit! They cut off a branch with a huge cluster of grapes and two of them carried it all the way home. When the twelve spies returned Moses, Aaron and all the Israelites gathered to hear the report. We went into the land and yes, the land is good! Look at these huge grapes! BUT the walls are high and the people that live there are strong, they re like giants! The crowd gasped and grumbled at the news. 4. Story image 4 Caleb, one of the spies, spoke up and brought a good report, saying, We should go up and take possession of this land, FOR WE CAN CERTAINLY DO IT Everyone repeat this after me WE CAN CERTAINLY DO IT 5. Story Image 5 The other spies didn t agree, their report was no good at all. They said, There s no way we can take them, they are stronger than us, we are like little grasshoppers compared to them. They spread the bad report among all the people. This made the Israelites afraid, they cried and moaned. They wished they had stayed as slaves in Egypt. They believed the bad report from ten of the spies. They had forgotten all the ways God had taken care of them, they had forgotten how God brought them out of Egypt and how He fed them through the wilderness. It seems that although each of the spies went to the very same land, it was as if they looked through their binoculars and saw very different things! Reminder: This is a great time to play the Big Story video to your group. We find it breaks up your Big Message Live really well and keeps the children focused. Binoculars, story images supplied with print material files.
6. Story image 6 Joshua, who was one of the spies that explored the land, agreed with Caleb. Joshua said to the Israelites, Here s what I saw, the land we went through and explored is incredibly good! If the Lord is pleased with us, He will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and He will give it to us. Don t be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them. 7. Story Image 7 The other 10 spies looked through their binoculars and although they were looking at the exact same land Joshua and Caleb looked at, they saw huge giants. These giants probably grew larger and larger in their imaginations each time they spread their bad report. They saw obstacles and they saw defeat. They spread their fear all through the Israelite camp. No one wanted to listen to Caleb or Joshua and no one wanted to trust God. Because of this it would be another 40 years before the Israelites could enter the land that God had for them! Joshua and Caleb were different, they had courage and followed God, they brought a good report and God rewarded them for it. 8. Story Image 8 40 years later it came time for the Israelite people to enter the land God had promised to them. By now Moses was very old and it was time to choose someone new to lead the people. God saw Joshua s heart and courage and chose him to be the leader. God spoke to Joshua saying Joshua 1:6 (NIV) Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them. Be strong and very courageous. 9. Story Image 9 Joshua showed great courage! He obeyed God when he led an army to march around the walls of Jericho for six days. On the seventh day they sounded their trumpets and the walls came crashing down! 10. Story Image 10 During a famous battle, God spoke to Joshua and said Don t be afraid. Joshua didn t know how his army would be able to defeat their enemy so he prayed and asked God to make the sun stand still. God did just that, He made the sun stand still for a whole day and Joshua s men won the battle! God was faithful to His people and God was faithful to Joshua. Joshua, an ordinary guy, faced so many challenges but each time he chose to have courage and trust God. Joshua was one amazing hero with God on his side, walls fell and the sun stood still! I wonder what view you have when you face a challenge, do you see your challenge like the 10 spies and say, there s no way we defeat it or do you have courage like Joshua and Caleb who said, We can certainly do it!? With God on our side we can have courage like Joshua. Heroes have courage!
OBJECT LESSON Choose a challenge that your group will enjoy. Invite some brave children to complete the challenge. Do you have what it takes to complete one of today s courage challenges? Overcome your fears and be today s hero! Clothespin Slime Challenge: Courage Level = MEDIUM Before the lesson: Make a few liters of green slime using flour, water, and green food colouring. Place 10 clothes pegs in the bottom of the pool and pour the slime over. Choose two players, have them take off their shoes and dress them in a garbage bag (garbage bag with holes cut out for the head and arms). Everyone count down 3, 2, 1 go! The players step into the slimy pool and have to pick up clothes pegs using only their toes and drop them out of the pool into their bucket. The player who can collect the most clothespins in 1 minute is the winner. Be careful the slime can be slippery! Slime, kiddy pool, garbage bags, 10 clothes pegs two buckets, 1 minute timer/ countdown clock. Leader Tip! Cover the stage area with plastic and have some extra buckets with soapy water so the children can wash their feet :) Noodle Face challenge: Courage Level = HIGH Before the lesson: Cook some plain spaghetti noodles and when they re cooled divide into two large bowls. Just before the game add a handful of frozen peas to each bowl and stir them through the spaghetti. Choose two players and set them the challenge to retrieve as many peas as they can using only their mouth. If you have older children, blindfold them to make it more messy and challenging! Everyone count down 3, 2, 1 go! The winner is the player that can get the most peas out of their spaghetti in 1 minute. Cooked spaghetti, bowls, frozen peas, blindfolds. Cricket challenge: Courage Level = EXPERT Choose two very brave players to complete this challenge. Players must reach into the tub/aquarium tank and pull out as many rubber frogs and rubber snakes as they can in 30 seconds. (The crickets will jump out the way when hands are placed in, it s our aversion to bugs that will make this challenge hard!) Having courage is all about doing something even though it might be scary. Being brave and doing it anyway! God is with us! Deuteronomy 31:6 (NIV) Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. With God on our side we can be a hero with courage. The Bible is full of everyday people who were heroes with courage. Just like Joshua who saw a challenge but had courage to take it on. Peter and John had courage to speak about Jesus to people that may not agree with them, Acts 4:13 (NIV) When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realised that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. With God we can be heroes that have courage! Live crickets (can be purchased from pet stores), large clear tub (or aquarium) with a screen on top so the crickets don t escape, rubber/ plastic frogs and rubber/ plastic snakes.
POINTS 1. Everyday Heroes Share with the children about someone who is a hero to you. E.g. My hero is my Grandfather, he overcame massive challenges in his life so that he could help others. When he had every reason to give up, he had courage and was obedient to God. He trusted God and kept serving Him by helping people who were homeless find places to live. Sometimes he was afraid, sometimes he didn t know what to do next, but with God on his side he was able to become a hero not just to me but to many others. Think about someone who is a hero to you. They probably don t have superpowers like a comic book hero, they re probably an everyday normal person just like us. Sometimes it s the person you least expect that ends up being a hero! God can use the most unlikely people to do incredible things. 1 Chronicles 22:13 (NIV) Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Heroes have courage in the face of challenges. Just imagine what God could do through your life when you live with courage! 2. With God on your side In the story of Spiderman, Peter Parker was an average kid, a nerd who was the most unlikely to be a hero. He is bitten by a spider and gains powers like superhuman strength, ability to climb buildings and spray webs from his wrists. In this story, Spiderman may get his power from a spider, but in our lives we receive power from the Holy Spirit! With God on our side we have power that can change the world. Acts 1:8 (NIV) But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. We receive power from God, through the Holy Spirit that is more powerful than anything in the whole universe. Power right from the person who created the whole universe! Wow, that s better than any comic book hero powers! You might be the quietest, most shy, unlikely hero but with God on your side you can live a life that is so much more than you could imagine. Joshua was a man that lived with courage. Joshua 1:9 (NIV) Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. He led God s people into the land God had promised to them. He marched around the walls of Jericho, blew trumpets and the walls crashed down. He prayed and God made the sun stand still. He lived a life marked with courage because he always remembered that he had God on his side. 3. Have Courage There were 12 spies that Moses sent to explore the land God had promised to His people. How many of them brought a good report? Only two! Joshua and Caleb! Heroes don t give up at the first sign of a challenge. Joshua and Caleb said We can certainly do it. They had courage! Courage is the ability to do something that frightens you. To have bravery and strength in the face of trouble. When we look at the word courage, it starts with COR, in Latin, the language that many of our English words come from, COR means heart. God said in Numbers 14:24 (NIV) that Caleb, who was with Joshua, has a different spirit. He follows me with his whole heart. So I will bring him into the land he went to. And his children after him will receive land there. Courage isn t a costume with a cape and mask, courage comes from the heart. Courage comes from a heart that follows God. Psalm 31:24 (AMP) Be strong and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for and hope for and expect the Lord! Heroes have courage.