A Relationship-Driven Method For Leading Preschoolers in Prayer

A Relationship-Driven Method For Leading Preschoolers in Prayer A Ministry of SureFire Prayer International Written by Paige M. Kolb

I dedicate our Little Flames material to my daughter, Sophia Kolb, who has learned the beauty of living in the palm of her Heavenly Father's hand. Sophia inside a Uruguayan sculpture called Hand in the Sand. SureFire Prayer International - Little Flames: A Relationship Driven Method for Leading Preschoolers in Prayer Paige M. Kolb Copyright 2017 SureFire Prayer International. All rights reserved. No further use, copying, dissemination, distribution, or publication for use outside the intended organization or approved partnerships is permitted without express written permission of SureFire Prayer International. contact@surefireprayer.org

Table of Contents Little Flames: A Ministry for Preschoolers from SureFire Prayer International Introduction... 4 Scriptural Foundation for Little Flames... 5 Parts of a Little Flames Lesson... 6 Suggested Topics for Little Flames... 7-8 Sample Lesson for Little Flames... 9 Team & Idea Development... 10 SureFire Prayer s Ministry Model... 11-12 Overview: Why We Do What We Do... 13 Addendum: Purpose of Sending Kids to Preschool... 14 16

LITTLE FLAMES A Ministry for Preschoolers from SureFire Prayer International Written by Paige M. Kolb Goal Little Flames seeks to show preschoolers that Jesus wants to talk and listen to them through prayer. This model of ministry will give them a sure foundation of prayer that can be built upon in the elementary ages. It should be evident by the time they leave your class that they know God loves them, that He knows them by name, and that He wants to talk with each of them through prayer. How it Works This material is organic and should remain simple. We provide you a structure, but you are free as a team to develop easy lessons geared to the children in your specific group. (There is a list of ideas to get you started in this packet.) Each lesson should be grounded in Scripture. The Structure has Three Parts 1. Greet Time 2. Group Time 3. Go Deeper GREET TIME Take genuine time to greet and talk briefly with each child. The purpose is to build relationship. Let them see your true interest in what is happening in their lives. (1-2 minutes) GROUP TIME Build lessons around what they are learning naturally as preschoolers. Use their zeal for self-discovery to your advantage! These topics should teach the Bible and you should model prayer. Leave time for prayer requests. Be flexible to discuss what is on the hearts of your Little Flames. (10-15 minutes) GO DEEPER Take 1 to 2 children aside at a time to discuss the lesson, ask further questions, build relationship and trust. Build in personal prayer and blessing each child as the Lord leads. Keep it short and relational unless they desire to go longer. (2-3 minutes)

SCRIPTURAL FOUNDATION FOR LITTLE FLAMES 1 Samuel 3:1-8 New International Version (NIV) The Lord Calls Samuel The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions. 2 One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. 3 The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was. 4 Then the Lord called Samuel. Samuel answered, Here I am. 5 And he ran to Eli and said, Here I am; you called me. But Eli said, I did not call; go back and lie down. So he went and lay down. 6 Again the Lord called, Samuel! And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, Here I am; you called me. My son, Eli said, I did not call; go back and lie down. 7 Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord: The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. 8 A third time the Lord called, Samuel! And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, Here I am; you called me. Consider this... Samuel DID NOT YET KNOW THE LORD (verse 7). Samuel was simply ministering, or working, in the name of the Lord around God s temple (verse 1). Application Surround your preschoolers with the things of God. Bathe them in the richness of Scripture, let them help you from time to time. Pray that they will hear from the Lord as little Samuel did. Remember, he grew to be a great judge and prophet during his day! Your Part Establish a lifestyle of Listening Prayer in your own life so you can know what the Lord wants you to say, share, or teach. Sometimes your actions of listening or giving a hug can be the most powerful act for a child under your care. Be led by the Holy Spirit.

PARTS OF A LITTLE FLAMES LESSON GREET TIME Take genuine time to greet and talk briefly with each child. The purpose is to build relationship. Let them see your true interest in what is happening in their lives. (1-2 minutes) GROUP TIME Build lessons around what they are learning naturally as preschoolers. Use these topics to teach Scripture and model prayer. Leave time to ask for prayer requests. Be flexible to discuss what is on their hearts. (10-15 minutes) GO DEEPER Take 1 to 2 children aside at a time to discuss the lesson, ask further questions, build relationship and trust. Build in personal prayer and blessing each child as the Lord leads. Keep it short and relational unless they desire to go longer. (2-3 minutes) Definition for Listening Prayer Prayer is both talking and listening with listening being the most important part. Each week, you should be working with your preschoolers to learn this definition. Give them time to practice listening for the voice of God through the self-discovery activities, free play, group time, and other activities you come up with.

SUGGESTED TOPICS FOR LITTLE FLAMES Remember: keep it simple! Use the Little Flames natural curiosity and desire for self-discovery to your advantage. Lessons should not take a long time to prepare. Letting them see your love for them outweighs any craft project you put together. Human Body - Begin to talk about how each Little Flame is fearfully and wonderfully made. Use Scriptures about various body parts over several weeks to show how God loves them, made them, knows them, cares about them. (This is a great study with a new/ very young group of Little Flames.) Examples: Trace out each Little Flame's body onto butcher paper. Cut it out. Find Scriptures about various body parts; discuss and write the names on those body parts. Let them take it home when done. Build a fun memory by letting THEM trace YOUR silhouette on butcher paper! Review the Armor of God in Ephesians 6. Talk about how God's love provides it for protection. Divide into teams and make the armor out of aluminum foil. Take it further by finding a song about the armor of God and teaching it to the kids. Send a link to the parents during the week. Colors - Use the story of Noah and the rainbow as a springboard to teach about God's promises and the colors in the rainbow. For a unit study, find various scriptures on color and discuss during group time. Examples: Scarlet/crimson (red) and snow (white) in Isaiah 1:18 - talk about how red is like our sin and white is the purity of God. Have the kids help you make a huge rainbow on butcher paper in class. Paint or color in a different color each week that corresponds with your lesson on that color. Hang in your room or somewhere in the church where others can see it. Numbers - Learning numbers is a huge part of a preschooler's life. Incorporate Bible stories that utilize numbers to help them grow and practice this important milestone. Do a 7 week study on the 7 days of creation. Find a color page representing each day of creation and let the children water color the picture. At the end, assemble their pages into a Creation water panel. Put it on display in your church foyer before sending the artwork home. During Christmas, introduce the Advent calendar and teach about the first week of advent, the second week of advent, etc. (I have resources on this if you are interested.)

Discuss when Jesus was 12 that he went to the temple (Luke 2:42). Refer to how 12 means dozen. In subsequent weeks, talk about other 12 s in the Bible: 12 tribes of Israel, 12 disciples, etc. One week, give each child an egg carton and send them outside to collect 12 things. Animals - Find Scriptures about various animals in the Bible and discuss them over the course of time. Don't forget to talk about the horses in Revelation! And that Jesus is the Lamb of God! Examples: Role play with animals and discuss any variety of topics like forgiveness, being nice, praying for a friend who is sad, obeying Mommy and Daddy. The possibilities are endless and can be spontaneous as the Holy Spirit leads you during group time. Read any of Thornton W. Burgess' books. He gives animals like Peter Cottontail human traits and builds in good stories about proper living. Chapters are very short and hold the kids' attention. Carry a very small lamb in your purse or pocket. Each time you see a Little Flame, pull it out and remind them they are "safe in the palm of God's hand." (This goes with teaching on the palm of God's hand from the SureFire Prayer Guidebook.) Use during class and when you see children in other places. 6 Elements of SureFire Prayer Guidebook - Topics covered include Salvation, Listening Prayer/Obedience, Confession, Worship, Service, Ends of the Earth. This study will prepare the children for Time with Abba in their elementary years by laying a foundation of how prayer touches these vital areas of their faith. This is best done with a group who understands your format and are ready for some deeper teaching. Examples: Create the hand glove and take your time discussing each element. Come up with a very simple service project the children can invite their parents to help them with. Other Ideas When possible, create a "problem" the Little Flames have to solve together. Generate activities where they must work together to make it happen. For example, if you are teaching the 7 days of creation, give 7 children numbers and the others have to put them in the right order. Do it 2 or 3 times so each child has a turn in a different role. Use a puppet to interact with the children - either during the lesson, as review, to role play, or however else the Lord uses your team. Resources We at SureFire Prayer International are here to help and support you in raising up Little Flames who know Jesus loves them and enjoy talking and listening to their heavenly Father. Should you need to reach us, please visit our website or reach out to one of our team members in your local church.

SAMPLE LESSON FOR LITTLE FLAMES Play Time/Self Discovery/Greet Parents Greet Time Touch Point with each child as They Play Key: Make an effort to have a one on one time with each child. Say a Discreet Prayer with Your Team as the Children Play Gather with a Song: John 3:16 Do Listening Prayer Definition.remind children that God loves to talk with them.he loves them and wants them to hear His voice. Open Group Time in Prayer Group Time Close in Prayer. Switch it up.you pray, have them pray, be led by the Lord Play Time Snack Puppet Discussion during Snack Time.review lesson & key material from previous week Go Deeper Pull children aside and ask what they learned.go deeper with those who are ready Incorporate Song/Listening prayer definition one more time Share with Parents What the Little Flames Did that Week

TEAM & IDEA DEVELOPMENT Use these questions to talk with your team about how to incorporate Little Flames into your ministry model. Give yourself and them time to make this adjustment. If you would like more information and support, consider our Activate Leader Training material and conferences for you and your team. Why are you here in this area serving? What makes this class like any other preschool-aged class? What makes this upcoming class unique? What special spiritual gifts, talents and abilities do you bring to this role? Spend some time praying right now. Think about the children who will be in your class. Jot down ideas, Scriptures, lesson ideas, craft ideas, songs, etc. that come to your mind. I encourage you to teach to their humanity (commonality) but also to the uniqueness of your flock.

SureFire Prayer s Ministry Model Many have asked me what style I use with writing the SureFire Prayer material. I use the very best method modeled by the Master Teacher, Jesus Christ. Greek philosopher Socrates later adopted Jesus techniques in teaching his pupils. (In educational circles this is called the Socratic Method, but it really dates back to Jesus.) An example of this method played out in modern times would be the one- room schoolhouse that many cultures have utilized for generations. Students of various ages are taught the same rich material. As they cycle through the material again and again, a few things happen:» Knowledge goes deeper, producing a richer understanding and retention of what is being taught» An ability to practice the concepts with confidence because they have taken ownership of the material themselves Therefore, one of the undercurrents of this Jesus Method (and SureFire Prayer) is review, review, review. We teach fewer subjects well. Those subjects are the Bible and listening prayer. We want kids and young adults to have a solid foundation of Bible teaching within their personal listening prayer life. This will lay the healthy groundwork necessary for them to fulfill the other things God will call them to in the future. Leaders, let this free you from having to recreate the wheel each week. That will cause burn-out, something else we want to help our ministry partners avoid. When you focus on teaching the Bible and listening prayer coupled with obedience, then you can trust the Holy Spirit to talk to the young people about purity, baptism, tithing, fasting, coming under authority, forgiveness, etc. It will also allow you to stay fresh as a leader! SureFire Prayer is cyclical. One thing you will notice if you decide to adopt SureFire Prayer concepts is the constant review of the Hand Elements laid out in the guidebook. Adults might think this is boring, but for kids and young adults it is not when done properly. Think of it this way: How many ways can you prepare a chicken dish? Thousands! Therefore, exposing them to the same material over and over with a twist thrown in here and there is part of the Jesus Method. We are creating mental and spiritual pegs in the hearts of these kids that parents and leaders can later build upon. If we continually offer the meat of God s Word over and over again, they will eventually internalize the teaching so it takes root in their hearts. Then they will begin taking ownership of God s Word which will raise them up to be fully equipped within two or three years for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16). A personal example: My son has been doing this since first grade. By fourth grade, he was seeking out places to serve, and doing it confidently, because he d experienced the earlier elements for himself. He cycled through the same Scriptural truths as a servant. That gave him a different perspective on the same principles, taking God s Word even further into his daily walk as a believer. Now he is a leader-in-training in our youth group. The same elements of praying Scripture, listening prayer, and service are traveling to a whole new place in his heart! Church leaders and parents are partnering together for the equipping of the child. Focusing on Bible reading and listening prayer creates an alliance that benefits the child and family as a whole. Such partnership directly impacts the health of the entire church body. As I have said before, healthy families create healthy churches. Not perfect, but healthy.

Creates disciple-minded servants. The clear foundation that has been laid encourages deeper dialogue about the Bible and confidence to dig into God s Word. Children s faith and prayer lives deepen. These kids can then be released to teach these same truths to younger prayers under the guidance of a faithful adult/young adult leader. And here, wrestling with these concepts from the standpoint of a teacher, biblical principles go even deeper! Other Benefits» Develops good verbal skills because you are talking with them along the way (Deuteronomy 6).» Removes the fear of asking hard questions and figuring out the hard things. (This is further encouraged if parents are diligently trying to model the Minister of Reconciliation lifestyle in the family.)» Empowers interaction in a hostile culture. Because they ve answered the hard questions for themselves, it becomes easier to dialogue with unbelievers, skeptics, and seekers with an attitude of grace and humility.» Nurtures independent thinkers. They have a God Spot and they know how to listen and talk with God. This inspires them to be confident in sharing personal encounters on a variety of subjects.» Dispels the lie that Satan can overcome them. No! They are learning the authority they carry when in Christ Jesus.» Produces pace setters in the society in which they find themselves. This makes them the salt and light of the earth.» Enriches time with the kids at church because they are in the Word.» Diminishes behavioral issues as the Word of God gets in them. It goes even further as church leaders equip parents to operate in biblical patterns at home.» Releases a ministry from having to entertain kids. Instead it is leading them to have fun in God s Word. There is a big difference in that! Conviction of beliefs is a big part of SureFire Prayer. Who is God, who a child is in Christ, what is right, and what is wrong. Those convictions begin to run deep and stick easier in young servant leader disciples as they grow and grow. That will release surefire success and glory to God for generations to come. By Paige Kolb President, SureFire Prayer International» Establishes the Scriptures as their litmus test for all statements and conversations. They won t easily fall for what the world is offering or peer pressure is dictating.» Fosters the understanding that when they make a mistake God forgives them.

Overview: Why We Do What We Do Our God is a God of reconciliation. He has a deep desire to see families restored, children equipped for Kingdom work, and a healthy church in proper alignment. In fact, healthy families make for healthy churches. The last verse in the Old Testament, Malachi 4:6, promises that God will strike the land with a curse if hearts within a family are not reconciled. Not very uplifting or hopeful, is it? Yet the Lord promises reconciliation when we follow the patterns in His word. So by looking into the Bible, we can discover how to avert disaster and see His Kingdom come. SureFire Prayer s Core Verses Malachi 4:5-6 See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse. Matthew 11 Begins with a teaching relationship and ends with a Father-Son relationship. a) v. 1-2: Teacher/student relationship b) v. 14-15: John the Baptist an Elijah of his day This is a transitional point in the chapter c) v. 25-30: Father/Son relationship (God s pattern & design) Father is mentioned 5 times and Son 3 times Our Ministry Structure SureFire Prayer follows the 5-fold ministry pattern in Ephesians 4:11-13 of apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, and teacher. We believe strongly that each of these roles, through the anointing of Holy Spirit, will allow us to:» Prepare God s people for works of service» Build up the body of Christ» Reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God» Become mature» Attain to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ A Model of Service Hebrews 2:17 says, For this reason He had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that He might make atonement for the sins of the people. We desire to see leaders and parents follow the example of Christ in that their character is a form of service to God. We therefore are conduits in this Kingdom equation that leads others to a right relationship with their Heavenly Father. What was Christ s character? Merciful and faithful. This is how the Lord wants leaders and parents to model service. This allows reconciliation to take place in families and the church.

Here is a good overview of what preschool time should be about. We hope Little Flames can help you minister to your preschoolers where they really are -- physically, emotionally, spiritually.

EDUCATION WEEK I TEACHER I DIGITAL DIRECTIONS I MARKET BRIEF I TOPSCHOOLJOBS I SHOP I ADVERTISE I August 5, 2017 LOGIN I REGISTER I SUBSCRIBE I LOGIN!it Get 2-Week FREE Trial >> Sign Up for FREE E-Newsletters Browse arnhlved Issues Y I current Issue TOPICS T BLOGS REPORTS & DATA T EVENTS T OPINION VIDEO GALLERY JOBS Here are statistics on what kindergarten is now emphasizing. Be aware of this as you prepare to launch your Little Flames into this environment. February 9, 2016 Kindergarten Today: Less Play, More Academics Researchers at the University of Virginia compared the views and experiences of kindergarten teachers in 1998 with those of their counterparts in 2010, and found dramatic differences in what teachers now expect of pupils and how they have structured their classrooms. Generally, teachers now expect children to come in knowing much more, spend more of the day in literacy and math instruction, and devote less time to nonacademic subjects such as music and art Some excerpts from the findings: Teacher Beliefs Percent of teachers who believed students should learn to read in kindergarten: 31% 80% Percent of teachers who believed parents should make sure their children know the alphabet before they start kindergarten: 29% 62% Percent of teachers who believed it was important for children to enter 35% kindergarten knowing how to use 1 a pencil and paintbrush:.,.1998 2010 68% Curriculum Focus Percent of kindergartens that had dance or creative movement at least weekly: Percent of kindergarten classrooms that had art instruction at least weekly: 95% 87%; Percent of kindergarten teachers who reported never doing any theater actmties with their students: -18%.1998 2010 50%