January 14, 2018 Second Sunday after the Epiphany 1 Sam. 3:1 10 (11 20) Ps. 139:1 6, 13 18 1 Cor. 6:12 20 John 1:43 51 God Knows My Name Goal for the Session Third- and fourth-graders will explore Samuel s call and think about how they listen for God s call in their lives. n PREPARING FOR THE SESSION Focus on 1 Samuel 3:1 10 (11 20) WHAT is important to know? From Exegetical Perspective, Richard Boyce This passage stands at the beginning of the stories of kingship in Judah and Israel, a time when God s people grew weary with the occasional service of the judges who rescued them when their disobedience had made them prey to their enemies. Now Israel began to long for a king. From the beginning, this concentration of power in the hands of a human being was fraught with difficulty. Who will speak the truth to power? In this nice little story, a new office begins to emerge, preparatory to the later emergence of the king: the office of trustworthy prophet of the LORD (v. 20). Human speaking and hearing now become one of the main means by which the light of God s revelation breaks into the affairs of this world. WHERE is God in these words? From Theological Perspective, Joseph L. Price To be called by God is an act of spiritual intimacy and divine urgency. To be called by God means that God knows one s name and, in knowing one s name, exercises a powerful influence on the person. To be called by God also indicates a need for immediate response because the Almighty has indeed summoned one to a specific vocation or course of action. The story of Samuel s call eslishes his authority, empowers his transfer of priestly leadership from Eli to Saul, and reinforces hope in God that God will refresh and renew. SO WHAT does this mean for our lives? From Pastoral Perspective, Donna Schaper What this passage recommends to us is that we begin to make decisions based on the tingle of hope. Oddly, the passage assures us that what God is going to do will make both ears tingle. Let one ear tingle with fear. Fear is legitimate under most of the circumstances of most of our lives. Fear is spiritually legitimate. A lot has gone wrong. A lot of danger lurks. But listen now with the other ear. Hear what Samuel was reluctant to hear: God is going to do a new thing, which will make both of our ears tingle. NOW WHAT is God s word calling us to do? From Homiletical Perspective, Lawrence Wood This comic, tender, tragic story really does come from modern life. In an age of divine reticence and the all-too-human failings of religious leaders, it speaks to every servant weighed down with fatigue or regret. Are we Samuel? Are we Eli? Can we really be sure which? And what shall we do if the living God comes into our troubled temple? It is Eli, ironically enough, who tells us what to say: Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening. 2017 Westminster John Knox Press Grades 3 4 1
God Knows My Name FOCUS SCRIPTURE 1 Samuel 3:1 10 (11 20) Focus on Your Teaching Third- and fourth-graders are thinking about who they are and imagining who they may grow to become. They will appreciate that God knew Samuel s name and that Samuel heard the call and grew to understand it. Names are very important to children. Always be sure that you use the learners names, and help them learn and use one another s names. At this age, children can learn from Samuel that they can ask God for clarity about their own call and seek clues from faithful people who know them well. Lord, give me insight into each child as an individual, so that I might see their gifts and point them toward your call in their lives. Amen. YOU WILL NEED green cloth battery-powered white Christ candle Singing the Feast, 2017 2018; CD player Color Pack 13, 14, 32 For Responding option 1: letter squares from Resource Sheet 1 on pastel-colored paper, construction paper in light colors, scissors, glue sticks, markers option 2: copies of Resource Sheet 2 option 3: blind n LEADING THE SESSION GATHERING Before the session, if you are using option 1 in Responding, make copies of Resource Sheet 1 on pastel-colored copier paper and cut out enough squares for all the children to spell out their names, one letter per square. Make a point of saying hello to each child by name as the group gathers. Invite learners to arrange the green cloth in the middle of your space, placing the Christ candle on top. Light the Christ candle as a reminder of Jesus presence with the group. Ask children what church school song they would like to sing, and sing it together. Offer this prayer: Dear God of night and day, guide our learning. Help us recognize your word for us today. Amen. Display Color Pack 13 and ask the following questions to initiate a conversation: P Do you think this child is dreaming? If so, what might the dream be about? P When have you remembered something that you dreamed? P Have you ever been awakened suddenly in the middle of the night? If so, what woke you up? Tell learners that today s Bible story is about a boy who was awakened in the night. EXPLORING Show Color Pack 14. As the group looks at the picture, offer this background information: When Samuel was a young boy, his mother, Hannah, kept the promise she made to God in her prayers. She brought Samuel to live in the temple so that Eli, a priest, could teach Samuel how to serve the Lord. This is the story of what happened one night. 2017 Westminster John Knox Press Grades 3 4 2
God Knows My Name Invite the children to help you tell the story. Instruct them to say, Here I am! when you hold up one finger, and Samuel, Samuel! when you hold up two fingers. Practice this several times. Read aloud 1 Samuel 3:1 10 from your Bible, pausing to cue their two lines as you come to them in the reading. Ask: P What is your favorite part of this story? Give each child a Bible and work together to find 1 Samuel 3:1 10. Point out the verse references as necessary while discussing the story: P What did Samuel hear when he was sleeping? (vv. 4, 6, 10) P Who did Samuel think was calling him? (vv. 5, 6, 8) P How many times did Samuel get up and go to Eli? (v. 8) What does this tell us about Samuel? P What did Eli finally tell Samuel to do? (v. 9) What does this tell us about Eli? Be sure the children understand the word is prophet, not profit, as you talk about Samuel being a prophet of God. Energetic awesome singer EASY PREP Tell the group that God did speak to Samuel that night, and many other times. Have learners find 1 Samuel 3:19 21. Read it aloud as they follow along. Ask: P What did Samuel become? What did other people think about Samuel? P What is a prophet? (Emphasize that a prophet is someone chosen by God to tell people what God says and how God wants them to live.) What might help prophets do their job well? Sum up Exploring by commenting that God knew Samuel and called him by name. Ask: P How does it feel when someone knows your name? P Eli knew God and helped Samuel to listen and understand God s word. Who might help you to listen for God s call? RESPONDING Mark the activities you will use: 1. Name Plaque Remind students that God knows their names and is already showing them where their strengths and weaknesses lie. Follow the instructions on Resource Sheet 1 (Name Plaque) to guide children in making name plaques. It might be helpful to make a plaque with your name to show as an example. Encourage the children to help think of words to describe one another. Allow time for pairs of learners to show each other their name plaques and become better acquainted. 2. Prophets Prophets are called to listen to God and find ways to tell others about God s ways. Sometimes they do this with words, sometimes with actions. Help children consider how God still calls prophets to work today. Distribute copies of Resource Sheet 2 (Prophets). The stories on this page tell about young people who are learning how God wants them to live and are willing to help others learn to live in God s ways. Ask volunteers to read the stories. After each story, pause to ask: P In what way is the young person acting as a prophet? P How do you think this young person knew what to do? 2017 Westminster John Knox Press Grades 3 4 3
God Knows My Name Take a moment to talk about how God can teach and guide through our experiences, education, parents and teachers, church leaders, and in other ways we may not hear God s voice in our sleep, telling us what to do! What are young people doing in your community that is helping others learn about living in God s ways? How might you act as a prophet? Examen is an ancient spiritual practice still used by many Christians for daily devotions. Done regularly, alone or as a family, it can reveal common threads of strengths and weaknesses, which are helpful in discerning God s gifts. You Are My Beloved Child You are my beloved child, hallelujah, You are my beloved child, hallelujah. And my face has smiled on you, hallelujah, And my face has smiled on you, hallelujah. Then says God to everyone, hallelujah, Then says God to everyone, hallelujah. 3. Samuel, Samuel What does it mean to hear God s call to us? Play this game to introduce a conversation about how we might hear God. Choose one child to be Samuel and blind her or him. Then point to another child, who calls softly, Samuel, Samuel! Allow three guesses for Samuel to name the caller. Play until everyone has had a turn. Recall how God called Samuel s name. God still calls to God s people, sometimes in the night, and often in other ways. List some of the ways a person might hear God s call, such as: dreams, prayer, Bible, teachers, pastors, parents, coaches, worship, art, music, friends, time spent outdoors, or books. Eli helped Samuel recognize that God was calling him to do something. Talk about who in their lives is an Eli someone who knows them and God well, and can point them to what God might be calling them to do. How might they thank these individuals? CLOSING Gather around the Christ candle and light it as you sing You Are My Beloved Child (Color Pack 32; track 26 on Singing the Feast, 2017 2018). If this song is new to the group, sing each line of the first stanza and have them repeat it as an echo. Invite the children to join you in a very old form of prayer called examen. Many Christians find this a helpful way to listen for God s word. For this prayer, ask two questions: What was the best part of this day? What was the worst part of this day? Sometimes people write their answers in a journal. This can help them sense when God is speaking to them. Guide the time of examen prayer by saying to the children: Become very quiet. Thank God for being with you today. Ask yourself, What has been the best part of this day? (Pause for a moment of silence.) Ask yourself, What has been the worst part of this day? (Pause for a moment of silence.) Now repeat after me: Loving God / Thank you for the good things in my life / and for the hard things, too. / Help me to listen to your wisdom. / Amen. Stand at the door as the children leave, and touch each child s shoulder as you bless her or him by name, saying or singing, You re God s daughter/son. You re God s daughter, you re God s son, hallelujah! You re God s daughter, you re God s son, hallelujah! 2017 Westminster John Knox Press Grades (K)1 2 4
January 14, 2018 God Knows My Name Grades 3 4 Resource Sheet 1 Name Plaque Before the session, make copies of this resource sheet on pastel-colored copier paper and cut out the squares. Each learner needs one box for each letter in her or his name. 1. Show learners how to a 4½" x 12" strip of construction paper in half lengthwise. This is the plaque stand. It will hold a name of up to eight letters. Attach another piece of construction paper for longer names. 2. Have each learner take one box for each letter in her or his first name. Tell them to hold the box with the at the top and use a marker to write a bold capital letter in each box to spell out the name. 3. Show learners how to the on each square and place the over the of the construction-paper stand. Have them make sure the letters are in the correct order, and then use a glue stick to attach each to the back. The letters will appear as flaps on the front of the stand. 4. Have learners lift each letter and write words that describe them, being sure that the words include the letter on the flap. 2017 Westminster John Knox Press
January 14, 2018 God Knows My Name Grades 3 4 Resource Sheet 2 Prophets What is a prophet? A prophet is someone who listens to God. A prophet is able to teach others about God s word and how God wants them to live. Sometimes a prophet has to point out when people are doing the wrong thing. Ryan is in fourth grade. He was elected to the student council. He is popular, but he also pays attention to kids who are not. One day, he saw two boys take the milk from another boy s lunch tray. They pushed him and told him to sit somewhere else. Ryan told the student council about this. The council asked Ryan to go the next teacher meeting to ask them how the council and the teachers might work together to stop bullying. Jenny used to sit in the fellowship hall at church on Sunday and watch the trash can fill up with foam cups and soft drink cans. She knew this kind of waste isn t good for God s earth, but she also knew that people like how easy it is to just toss cans and cups in the trash. So Jenny asked the pastor if she could bring a new trash can and label it for aluminum cans only. She would be in charge of taking the cans to the recycle bin. She asked her Sunday school class to write a letter to the kitchen committee, asking them to consider not using foam cups anymore. They volunteered to lead a donate a mug to church campaign and to wash the mugs each week. James is a helper at an afterschool program that helps younger children with their reading and math. The center where he helps is on the other side of his town. He noticed that this neighborhood had no park where kids could play. He talked to his dad about this, wondering what he could do about it. His dad helped him find the e-mail address for his city council and James wrote an e-mail to tell them a park was needed. James was invited to come to a council meeting to tell about his concern. 2017 Westminster John Knox Press