November 4, 2018 Bible Passage: Exodus 1 4 (Moses) God Is I AM REMEMBER VERSE The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still. Exodus 14:14 Schedule CONNECT GATHER RESPOND BLESS 1
Leader Prep Each week you ll find a list of resources along with encouraging articles that help you prepare your heart to present the lesson. Further Resources A Small Group Enhancement is available for this lesson. A Storytelling video is available for this lesson. Download the following resources to help you plan and lead TruStory lessons: Customizable copy of Lesson 10 2016 17 Scope and Sequence TruStory How It Works document HomeFront Weekly: Lesson 10 is provided for this lesson. The weekly for the next lesson to be sent home for preteaching by parents is found in BLESS. If you have questions about Tru curriculum or are looking for great training, blogs, and other support resources, visit truministry.com A Storytelling video is available for this lesson. Inspire Shares personal stories from fellow ministry leaders about how God has worked in their lives My pastor once said something about the Holy Spirit that really stuck with me. He said that when God revealed Himself to the people in the days when the Old Testament was written, He chose to speak to His people and dwell among them in the form of fire in a bush or in the tabernacle at the Israelites camp. But this wasn t good enough for God; He wanted to be closer. My pastor went on to say that when Jesus came to earth as a man, God ate with us, hugged us, and wept with us. But this still wasn t good enough for God; He wants to be closer. God sent His Holy Spirit to fill us mind, body, and soul. He wants to be closer to us than our own breath! God the great I AM reveals Himself to us in subtle ways. After we spend time in God s presence, we re different. We have a clearer perspective of what really matters, as well as our identity in Him. God may not speak to us through a burning bush, but He still miraculously reveals Himself to us. Tori Funkhouser TruStory Team Equip Offers perspective and context to the lesson s Bible passage God revealed Himself to Moses in an amazing way and He called Himself I AM. No one is like Him! Moses lived no ordinary life. During his early years, Moses participated in three cultures: Hebrew, Egyptian, and Midian. As a Hebrew, he was condemned to death; as an Egyptian, he was the adopted son of the princess of Egypt (and watched his kinsmen slave away in the hot sun); as a Midianite, he was an outlaw who married into a foreign tribe. 2
Certainly there must have been days, or years, when Moses was greatly distressed about his identity. He even named his first son Gershom, saying, I have become an alien in a foreign land (Exodus 2:22). But all along, God knew who Moses was a Hebrew, one of God s chosen people. But Moses was also a Levite, a descendent of the priestly tribe of Levi, one of Jacob s sons. Wow! Moses was a direct descendant of God s covenant promise with Abraham. Moses began to understand who he was the moment God revealed Himself in the burning bush. God called Himself the God of Moses father and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. By saying this, God reminded Moses of his heritage, both physical and spiritual. God called Moses to be the hands and feet to bring about His incredible plan to reveal Himself to His people and save them from bondage. Moses would have remained an alien in a foreign land had God not revealed Himself and reminded Moses of his heritage, and given him his true calling: service to the one true God. Truly, Moses found his identity in God. Support Provides reflection and assessment through encouragement, prayer, and time in God s Word In ancient Egyptian culture, people believed in and worshipped hundreds of gods. When Moses asked for God s name in Exodus 3:13 14, Moses was trying to understand God s place in his culture. God responded in an unexpected way God said, I AM WHO I AM. God doesn t always fit in our boxes and paradigms. He can t be constrained by our expectations. What would it look like for us to shift our expectations? After all, God never promises that we will fully know or understand who He is. That would be impossible. Instead, God assures us that He completely knows and understands us. He sees our full and complete identity in Him, and He deeply loves us as His children. It s easy to desire to serve and be used by God without ever pausing to receive from Him first. However, we ll be ineffective in God s kingdom if we try to participate without receiving His love first. That leads to burnout. As you prepare to serve God this week, take time to meditate on God s truth about you. Set apart time to simply receive His love. Consider using these Scriptures as a launching pad: Ephesians 3:14 21, Isaiah 61, Psalm 36:5 9, and Psalm 116. As you read, ask yourself what stands out in each of these passages. Spend a few moments in silence, thinking over what you just read. Ask God to continue revealing to you the depth of His love for you. CONNECT// 10 min. Children develop relationships with their leaders and one another through simple activities and conversation starters. CONNECT QUESTION: Welcome and greet children. Open your time by asking this question: If you could have anyone in the world walk into our room right now, whom would you choose and why? 3
Who Am I? Children will write down what character from a well-known book, cartoon, or movie they would want to be. Then answers will be drawn from a basket and children will guess whose is read. After answers are matched up, children will share what they like about this character with the group. Index cards (1 per child) Pens or pencils Basket or bowl Whiteboard and dry erase marker SET UP Pass out an index card and a pen or pencil to each child. Put the basket in the center of the group. On the board, write this question: If you could be any character from a well-known storybook, cartoon, or movie, who would you be? It s fun to think about being in the same room as someone special or important. When we spend time with people, they show us new things about themselves. Today, we are going to play a little game to help us get to know each other better. On your index card, write your answer to the question on the board, and don t let anyone see it. When the children are finished writing, have them fold their cards in half and place them in the basket. When everyone has done that, shake up the cards in the basket so that no one knows which card belongs to whom. Then pass the basket around and have each child draw a card, read it, and then guess which child wrote that answer. As the responses are matched with the owners, ask questions to help the group learn more about each child. For example: What do you like about this character? What similarities do you see between yourself and this character? Keep passing the basket until each answer has been read and matched with its owner. GATHER// 30 min. Children experience and learn more about God through memorizing Scripture, storytelling from The Big God Story, prayer, and discussion. Remember Verse Each week children will spend time memorizing a portion of Scripture together. The Remember Verse focuses on a character trait of God that s highlighted in today s portion of The Big God Story. Remember Verse cards (see Resources) 4
The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still. Exodus 14:14 Game: High Five Train Remember Verse cards (see Resources) Index cards (7) Marker PREPARE AHEAD Write two consecutive words of the Remember Verse, including the verse reference, on each index card. Keep the cards in order from the beginning of the verse to the end. Have the children sit in a circle and give each one an index card. If you have fewer than seven kids, continue looping around the circle a second time so that some of the children have two or three cards. If they receive an additional card, have them place it underneath the first card. If you have more than seven children, partner some of the children. Lead the children in a fun high five game to help them memorize their verse. First, go around the circle and have each child reveal the words he was given, starting with the first words in the Remember Verse. Have them each read their words aloud as you move around the circle, completing the verse. Then have the children place the cards in front of them. This time, as you move around the circle, the first child should begin by saying the words on his card and then cueing the next person by high-fiving her. When the second child is cued, she should say the phrase on her card and then cue the next person with another high five. Continue around the circle until all of the children have said their words. Once you have finished, repeat the game, going faster each time. The game should flow in a steady rhythm. When the children are ready, have them turn the index cards upside-down and repeat the game with no visuals. Lastly, they should join each other to say the verse in unison. Storytelling Bible Passage: Exodus 1 4 Storytelling Technique: Draw As You Go God Is I AM Bibles Butcher paper (about 3') Tape Markers Optional: whiteboard and dry erase markers SET UP Tape the butcher paper to a wall in your storytelling area. (As an alternative, use a whiteboard.) Place the markers nearby where the children can access them. 5
Lead children in a Prayer of Release to pause, be still, and ask the Holy Spirit to quiet their hearts and minds. Does anyone remember the names of the first two people whom God made? Allow responses. That s right, Adam and Eve. God loved Adam and Eve, and they belonged to Him. He wanted to know them and let them know Him. God also revealed Himself to a man named Abraham and made a promise to him that he would be the father of a great nation and that many people would be blessed through that nation. God continued to make Himself known. He revealed Himself to Abraham s son Isaac, Isaac s son Jacob, and Jacob s son Joseph. God is I AM. That name is special for God only because there is no one like God. What part of The Big God Story did we hear about last week? What happened to Joseph? Allow responses. Joseph was taken as a slave to Egypt, but God blessed him and used him to save his father Jacob s whole family from starving during the famine. Joseph became the king s right-hand man and was able to bring Jacob s family to live in Egypt, where there was food. After Jacob s family settled in Egypt, the family grew and grew as more babies were born into the family. Those babies grew up to be adults who had more babies, and Jacob s family eventually grew so large that they were called by their own name. Do you remember when God gave Jacob a new name, Israel? Because of this, his family was called the Israelites. Have a volunteer draw a family tree on the butcher paper to represent the growth of Jacob s family. The Israelites numbers grew so large that the new king of Egypt became afraid of them. He was scared that the Israelites might fight against the Egyptians in a war, so he decided to make them slaves. Let s read what happened in Exodus 1:11 14. Have the children find Exodus 1:11 14 in their Bibles. Invite a child to read the verses for your group. Have a volunteer draw a picture of bricks to represent the Israelites slavery. How do you think the Israelites felt about having to do all of this hard labor as slaves? Allow responses. Once, Pharaoh even commanded all of the Israelites baby boys to be killed! How horrible! One day, an Israelite woman had a baby boy. She knew she had to save him from the Egyptians, so she put him in a basket and set him along the bank of the Nile River, where he was found by an Egyptian princess. Have a volunteer draw the river and the basket. The Egyptian princess raised the baby as her own and named him Moses. So Moses was born an Israelite but was raised in the Egyptian palace. Later, Moses left Egypt and became a shepherd in an area called Midian. Throughout all of this time, God heard His people groaning in Egypt and crying out for help. Read Exodus 2:25 aloud for your group as they follow along. Next, we see God beginning His plan. God appeared to Moses, who was tending his flocks of animals. Have another volunteer come and draw a picture of Moses and his animals. Read Exodus 3:1 6 aloud for your group. What an amazing moment when God revealed Himself to one of His children through a burning bush! God told Moses that He was the same God who had been revealing Himself to Moses s ancestors. Have a volunteer come and draw the burning bush. But Moses had a question. Have the kids follow along as you read Exodus 3:13 15. What did God tell Moses to call Him? Allow responses. Yes, I AM. God always is, always was, and always will be. There is no one like Him. God had a plan to show His people more of His love by rescuing them. God revealed Himself to 6
Moses and also revealed His plan for Moses to be the one to lead His people out of Egypt. The only problem was that Moses was afraid. He didn t think that he was good enough for this job. Ask a volunteer to read Exodus 4:10. Moses protested because he thought he wasn t a good speaker. But God said that He would help Moses and that He would send Moses s brother Aaron, who was a good speaker, along with him. Have one last volunteer come up and draw Aaron traveling with Moses to Egypt. Have you ever felt afraid or not good enough? We all have. But God told Moses that He would go with him, that He would help him, and that He would give him what he needed to accomplish the job. And He says the same to us. Even though Moses was afraid to go back to Egypt and talk to Pharaoh, he obeyed God. He went back to Egypt, and God worked through him to lead the people out of slavery. God also performed many signs and wonders through Moses. He showed Moses His power through these miracles. He continued to guide Moses and His people, and He kept revealing Himself to them more and more as He prepared to lead His people out of slavery. God took care of Moses and all of the Israelite people because they belonged to Him. In the same way, God loves us, and we belong to Him as well. We re His children! Share a personal story of a time God revealed Himself to you. Turn the children s attention back to the mural on the wall. Check out our mural. At the beginning, this whole page was blank, but little by little, the artists colored it in to reveal God s story. God revealed Himself to Moses, and God reveals Himself to us, His children. He is I AM. There is no one like our God! Discussion Questions How did God reveal Himself to Moses? Exodus 3:2 4 What was God s plan for Moses? Exodus 3:9 10 Why was God going to be with Moses the whole time? Exodus 3:12 What name did God tell Moses to use when he went to Pharaoh? Exodus 3:13 14 What did God say He would do for the people of Israel? Exodus 3:16 17 How did God help Moses? Exodus 4:10 17 What are some ways God reveals Himself to us? RESPOND// 15 min. Children reflect on what the Holy Spirit is teaching them and respond through games and creative activities. Fiery Letters from God The God who revealed Himself to Moses also reveals Himself to us. Children will write a letter from God to themselves, with guidance. Then they will paint envelopes that look like burning bushes to hold their letters from God. Bibles Watercolor sets (1 for every 3 children) 7
Paintbrushes (1 per child) Cups of water (1 for every 3 children) White envelopes (1 per child) Lined paper (1 sheet per child, 8½" x 11") Pens Chasing After Me, TruWorship Sincerely Yours God is I AM. God loved Moses and His people, and He wanted to rescue them because they belonged to Him. If you have accepted Jesus as your Savior, you belong to God as well. What are some ways God reveals Himself to us now? Allow responses. Just like God revealed Himself to Moses, He reveals Himself to us. Maybe He hasn t spoken to you through a burning bush, but He reveals Himself to us all of the time in many other ways. When you see the beauty of a sunset or the power of the ocean, God is showing you what He is like through what He has made. When you read the Bible or learn about God here at church, He is revealing Himself. And when you hear Him speaking to you through a quiet whisper in your hearts, or through another Christian, or in a song you love God is revealing Himself to you and showing you how much He cares about you. Let s take a moment and ask the Holy Spirit to help us remember how God feels about us. Developmentally Speaking Fifth and sixth graders can process many abstract concepts and yet still desire to keep learning. Many of them really want to learn how to hear from God and we have the privilege of creating space for this to happen each week. Allow the kids a moment to listen to the Holy Spirit, and then have them share what they remembered about God. Example: God loves us, God treasures us, God has plans for us, or We are God s children. Then encourage the kids to write a letter from God to themselves using the lined paper. What has God already said to us? Guide them to use things they know God has said, plus verses from their Bibles, to create the letter from God. Play the music as the kids write their letters. Afterward, have the children paint envelopes that look like burning bushes to hold their letters from God. They can use the red, orange, and yellow watercolors to create images that look like bushes on fire. Remind kids that the God who revealed Himself to Moses also reveals Himself to us. Allow the envelopes to dry during Engage and BLESS, and then have the kids place their letters inside and take the letters home. (Optional) Blindfolded Search As a way to learn what it means to reveal something, children will play a variation of hot / cold as they search for a ball. As partners, the seeing person will tell the blind person whether or not they are hot or cold as they get closer or further away from the ball. When they finish, children will play again, this time switching roles. However, this time no one will wear a blindfold but the ball will be hidden. Blindfolds (1 for every 2 children) Ball or other large object 8
God revealed new things to Moses that Moses could never have known alone. Hearing personally from God after hearing about Him for so many years was like having a blindfold taken off. Explain to the children that you are going to play a fun game to help everyone understand the meaning of revealing something. Assign everyone a partner. Show the group the ball that you re going to hide in the room. Then have one partner in each pairing blindfold the other. The blindfolded partner will hunt for the ball once you hide it while the seeing partner will help keep the blindfolded partner safe and give hints about where the ball is hidden without actually giving away the hiding place. Hide the ball. Make sure the seeing partners see where you hide the ball but the blindfolded partners do not. When you say, Go, the children with blindfolds will carefully race to find the ball using only their sense of touch. Their seeing partners should help them by giving them temperature directions saying, Cold when they are moving in the wrong direction, Warm when they are moving in a better direction, and Hot or Very hot when they are getting close to the ball. The partners are also in charge of giving them safety instructions such as Watch your step there s a chair in front of you. Play finishes when one blindfolded child locates the ball with his hands. When you are finished, play the game again, directing the seeker and the clue-giver in each pair to switch roles. However, this time no one will wear a blindfold. Have the new seekers turn around and close their eyes while you are hiding the ball in a new place as the clue-givers watch. Then instruct the clue-givers to give the same cold, warm, hot clues to their partners as the seekers search for the ball with their eyes open. Afterward, have the children share their experiences. Was it easier for the seekers whose eyes were open or for those who wore blindfolds? How did you feel when you took your blindfold off? How did Moses change after God revealed Himself through the burning bush? BLESS// 5 min. Children receive a blessing from their leaders and sometimes one another. A blessing can be a prayer of commission, a portion of Scripture, or words to encourage and guide. HomeFront Weekly: Lesson 11 (see Resources) Remember Verse cards (see Resources) Bible Before you bless the children in your group, pray about the blessing that God would have you give to them. Then have the children stand in a circle around you. God loves you all so much. You are His children, and He loves revealing Himself to you. 9
Invite them to cover their eyes with their hands as you open your Bible and read Ephesians 1:18a over them: I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you. Afterward, move from child to child, laying your hands on their hands, which are covering their eyes, and say, (Child s name), may you have open eyes to see God revealing Himself all around you. As you say the blessing, gently lift the child s hands away from his eyes so that he can see. After you ve individually blessed the children, gather the whole group and say: May God show Himself to you more and more this week. May you praise Him as I AM. Send home Remember Verse cards and the HomeFront Weekly with your kids. 10