Small Group Curriculum Summer Celebration 2014 1
Dear Small Group Leader, Thank you for giving of your time and gifts to teach children this week. I know that your effort will bear much fruit in their lives of faith. Celebrate What God has Done! Is our theme this year. This week is all about learning some of the mighty acts of God and how He revealed His great power. We celebrate the amazing things God has done for us! We will study God sending Jesus to Earth, some of the miracles and healing stories of Jesus and of course the greatest celebration of all-his Resurrection! It s going to be a great party! Deleted: I have a few reminders as you prepare to teach these little hearts: 1. Prepare. Make sure that you know what you are teaching well and are able to communicate in a way that is engaging. We are teaching God s word and that means we have to take it seriously! 2. Prepare your heart. Spend time praying for your kids and praying over your lesson. Ask God by His Holy Spirit to give you wisdom. 3. Connect with your kids. Get to know their names, what they like, who they are... Most of us come to know Christ through relationships-kids are no different. Teach them about Jesus but also show them Jesus through your interactions with them. 4. Create boundaries of acceptable behavior within your class. Children work well when they understand expectations. Make sure that they understand your expectations for them during teaching time and the experience will be richer for everyone. 5. You won t get through all of the activities listed and that is ok. You have been given more than enough material and it is your job to decide which things work best for you. Different groups may need different activities. 6. Unless noted, all supplies are provided for you. If you need something-please ask! We want to help you be successful. 7. Lastly-have FUN! God reminds us through children that He likes to play and have fun. Enjoy your kids and your week together. It is going to be a great week! Let s celebrate our mighty God! 2
Celebrate What God Has Done! Memory Verse for the week: Psalm 126:3: The Lord has done great things for us and we are filled with joy! Day Daily Theme Bible Story Celebrate Verse Monday Birthday Party! Celebrate God Sent his Son! Jesus is Born Luke 2:1-20 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 Deleted: Deleted:... [1] Formatted Table Tuesday A Wedding! Celebrate Jesus first miracle Water Into Wine John 2:1-11 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Prov 3:5 Wednesday Block Party! Celebrate how God provides Feeding the 5,000 John 6:1-13 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. Phil 4:19 Thursday Pool Party! Celebrate God s Power to Heal Jesus Heals the man at Bethesda John 5:1-18 But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31 Friday Surprise Party! Celebrate God Saving Us Crucifixion and Resurrection Mark 15:20b-39, 16:1-7 But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 Deleted: 3
Celebrate! Deleted: Ce What God Has Done! Monday: Birthday Party! Jesus is Born! Scripture: Luke 2:1-20 Memory Verse of the day: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 Key Point: God sent his son to the earth to save us from our sins. Objective: Help kids understand that God has the power to send His son to earth to live as God and man. Welcome and Introductions: Use this time to welcome your children. Have the children go around the room and tell you their names. Ask them to tell you about their favorite birthday. Opening Activity: Every day the kids will get a party favor with the day s verse written on it. They will add it to their party favor box and take it home at the end of the week. Today they are receiving Happy Birthday Jesus Party favor with the Bible verse on it. Today s Lesson: So every day this week is a celebration! Today our story is about the greatest birthday of all-jesus s birthday. Let s begin with prayer. Deleted: Teaching Time: Door decoration for the day: New Baby Arrival poster! So, when do we usually celebrate Jesus birthday-in July? No-at Christmastime. But you know, it is important for us to remember and celebrate when Jesus was born the entire year. Today we are going to talk about when Jesus was born and why it was so important. 4
Jesus birth is recorded in the New Testament of the Bible in the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. We call these the gospels. But, did you know that people were talking about his birth for 1,000 of years before that? Do you think anyone was talking about your birth 1,000 years ago? Probably not. But with Jesus they were. You see, the Jewish people were looking for a Messiah, a great ruler. They often found themselves taken into captivity by another group of people, or in other sorts of trouble. They believed that God was going to once and for all send a King to save them. There were people who lived a long time before Jesus. They were called prophets. They didn t use Jesus name, but they spoke about him. Prophets were sent by God to tell other people what God was going to do in the future. The prophets said that God would send a Messiah. So the people waited and waited.and then finally Jesus came. But Jesus looked like nothing they expected! He didn t look like a King and he didn t act like a King. Jesus was born a baby and his bed was in a feeding trough in a stable. Let s read about his birth. Read the Scripture passage for today. Luke 2:1-20. The people thought that God would send a King to rule them, but God sent a king for a much greater purpose. God sent Jesus to save us from our sins. You see, we all sin and the punishment for that sin is death and separation from God forever. But Jesus came to take that punishment for us. No one knew when he was born that that would be his purpose for living on earth. But God knew. We will learn more about that on Friday. God sent Jesus as a baby, but did you know that while he was a baby he was also God? That is hard to think about isn t it? Jesus was human and God at the same time. How great is that? God had the power to send Jesus to earth as God and man. We had God on earth with us-living with us, talking with us, doing everything we do. Jesus came for us! Sometimes we call Jesus Emmanuel, which means God with Us. When babies are born it is a huge celebration! Today we get to celebrate the greatest birthday of all-the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! 5
Questions for Discussion: What do you call people who told about Jesus birthday many years before it happened? (prophets) Why do you think Jesus came to earth as a baby? How do you think Mary and Joseph felt to have this special baby? Why do you think we should celebrate Jesus birthday? Application Activity: Human Maze Choose one person to be the volunteer. Have them go out into the hallway with a leader. Have the leader blindfold them. Meanwhile, have the rest of the kids stand up. Starting close to the door, position them and have them make a maze around the room. Tell them they are not allowed to touch the person that is blindfolded, although the blindfolded person may run into them! Bring in the blindfolded person-have a leader stand at the end of the maze. The leader at the end should softly call out the blindfolded person s name. The blindfolded person tries to make their way through the maze and get to the leader. Depending on time you may be able to play more than once. Ask the blindfolded person the following questions? How did It feel to not know where you were going? Did it feel better to hear someone saying your name at the end? How did it feel to get to the end? Tie in with the story: Before Jesus everyone felt in the dark and they didn t know how to live and they were waiting for a Savior to guide them. The prophets talked about a Messiah that would come. Jesus came and he provided us a way out of the darkness. He showed us by his actions and his love how to live and how to follow him. We aren t blindfolded anymore. Jesus showed us while he was on earth the heart of God and how we can trust and live like him! 6
Bible Verse Party Game: Pin the Bible Verse on the Bible. In a variation of pin the tail on the donkey ne person from each team is blindfolded. The scripture is written out on a notecard in chunks of words. Tape is put on the back of the notecard. Divide the group up into two teams. The first team has to instruct the blindfolded person to put the scripture in order on thebible. Time them to see how long it takes them. The second team tries to beat their time. Read the verse at the end. For younger children that can t read simply play the game as usual and then if they put the bible verse on the Bible they get to choose one hand motion to help with the scripture. Continue until everyone has played and come up with a hand motion. Say the verse together with hand motions. Deleted: o Deleted: Deleted: Celebration Box: Invite the children to sit in a circle. You will be given a wrapped present. Tell the kids that this is our celebration box to celebrate the many gifts that God has given us. Today we will focus on the gift of Jesus. Open the box lid in the center of the circle. Invite the children to say what Jesus means to them. You can also ask them names of Jesus. Close in Prayer. 7
Celebrate! Deleted: Scripture: John2:1-11 What God has done! Tuesday: The Wedding! Jesus First Miracle Memory Verse of the day: Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5 Key Point: Celebrate Jesus first miracle. Objective: To help kids understand Jesus can perform miracles because he is God. Welcome and Introductions: Go around the room and tell you their favorite thing they did yesterday at Summer Celebration. Opening Activity: Remind the kids that we are adding to our party favor boxes all week and we can take them home at the end of the week. Today, we are talking about a wedding. At weddings you sometimes get a party favor to take home. One thing you sometimes get is bubbles so that you can blow them as the bride and groom are leaving the wedding. Start by giving kids their party favor for the day. It will have the Bible verse on it. Today s Lesson: Props for Today: Veil, Fake Flowers, dark pitcher, grape kool-aid mix, clear pitcher with water Put your veil on and ask the if the kids if they have ever been to a wedding. What about a wedding reception? What do you do at wedding receptions? You eat good food, you dance and you have a great time. Usually our wedding receptions that happen after the wedding only last a few hours, but during the time of Jesus they 8
could last days! That s a long time. The family would have to provide food and drinks for the people the whole time. When our story starts Jesus had just met some of his disciples and he hadn t really begun to teach or perform miracles yet. In fact, the wedding was the first place he performed a miracle. They had been at the wedding for three days and they ran out of wine. Jesus mother told him that he should help them. Jesus mother knew that he was special and he could do great things. But Jesus said to his mother that it wasn t quite time yet and we think that means he was saying it wasn t quite time for him to show the amazing things he could do. But Jesus mother knew Jesus well and I think she had an idea that he was about to do something great. Jesus mother went to the servants at the wedding and said as she pointed to Jesus, Do whatever he tells you to do. There were six stone water jars that stood in the corner of the room. They each held about 20-30 gallons of water. Jesus told the servants to fill the jars with water. They filled it to the top. Jesus said to the servants, Now take some out of the jar and take it to the master. So they did (At this point pour the water from the clear pitcher into the dark pitcher. The dark pitcher has the powdered grape kool-aid in the bottom. Swirl it a little, but don t stir it). The servants took the drink to the master of the banquet and it had been turned into wine! (Pour from the dark pitcher into the light pitcher and it will be purple) The master did not realize where it had come from but the servants knew. The master called the groom over and said, Usually the host doesn t save the best wine for last-but this is the best wine! This was the first miracle Jesus had done. When the new disciples saw what Jesus had done they put their faith in him. They knew they could trust him. Some people think that Jesus did this as his first miracle to tell the people about himself. You see, the people needed someone to come and save them, and they had tried many ways to get to God. But, they always ended up disobeying him. They needed Jesus to come and be their Savior. And like the wine, where the best 9
came last, Jesus was the best thing that could happen to everyone! He came last after they had tried everything else! God saved Jesus as the best for last! This was just the beginning of some great things he was going to do! (if you don t choose to do the application activity that follows make sure you show the kids how you made the water turn to wine. Explain that you did a magic trick, but Jesus really did a miracle). Discussion Questions: Why do you think Jesus chose a wedding to perform his first miracle? What do you think the disciples thought when they saw it happen? Can you remember some other miracles Jesus performed later in his ministry? Jesus mother knew he could do something great at the wedding. Why do you think she encouraged him to do something? Why do you think it is important for us to see Jesus doing miracles? Application Activity: The difference between magic and a miracle: Explain that when you changed the water to wine it was just a magic trick-it wasn t real. Jesus however wasn t performing a magic trick-he was performing a miracle. Magic tricks no matter how real they may look always are fake. There is always a trick to how they happen-let s look at a few. (We will provide you with a few easy magic tricks to do). See-all of these tricks had an explanation. That is how they are different from miracles. Miracles are things that only God can do. Jesus is God and he can do amazing things. Let s share together some of the miracles that Jesus did here on earth. We will learn this week about some times when Jesus did things when it seemed impossible. When you feel like you have something impossible in your life share it with Jesus! He can make the impossible possible because of his power! 10
Bible Verse Party Game: What word is missing? Each part of the memory verse will be taped or written on an object. Lay all of the objects on a table and cover it with a cloth. Let one person go at a time. Lift the cloth and let them study the objects for twenty seconds. Cover the cloth. Take away one object, but don t let them see what object it is. Lift the cloth again. They have to tell both the object and the word that is missing. Give them ten seconds to answer. Continue playing until everyone has had a turn. You can also play in pairs if your group is large. Celebration Box: Gather the children in a circle and place the box in the center of the circle. Remind them that this is our celebration box where we share the gifts God has given us in prayer. Today we want to celebrate that God does great miracles. How has God helped you in your life, or in your family s life? Leaders share an example to get them started. After they share, close in prayer. 11
Celebrate! What God Has Done! Wednesday: Block Party! Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand Scripture: John 6:1-13 Memory Verse of the day: And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. Phil 4:19 Key Point: Celebrate God s Power to Provide! Objective: To help kids understand that God can meet all of our needs through His great power. Welcome and Introductions: Use this time to welcome your children and find out how their week is going. Opening Activity: For the party favor today the kids will put goldfish and oyster crackers in a bag with the verse on it. They will introduce that today we are talking about the boy that shared his lunch of fish and bread with Jesus and the miraculous thing that Jesus did with it. The goldfish represent the fish and the oyster crackers are the bread. Today s Lesson: Begin with prayer. Props: fish and bread Today our theme is a block party. Has anyone ever been to a block party? What is a block party? It usually happens in a neighborhood and people come out to talk and play together. Usually there is lots of food. Our party today wasn t exactly a block party-but it looked a little like that. Yesterday we talked about Jesus first miracle where he turned water into wine at a 12
wedding. Well, when our next story starts we find that he has been doing many miraculous things and in fact, he has gathered quite a crowd. People were following him wanting to see what he would do next! Jesus and his disciples went up on the mountainside for a while and when they looked down they saw that a crowd had gathered! He said to his disciple Phillip- Where can we buy bread for these people to eat? It was getting to be meal time and they were hungry. Jesus asked Philip this question, but really Jesus already knew what he was going to do. Philip said, We would have to work for 8 months to have enough money to feed all of these people! Andrew, one of the other disciples said, There is a boy over there with five loaves of bread and two fish, but that won t go very far. Jesus told the disciples to tell the people to sit down. There were about five thousand men there and that didn t even include the number of women and children! Jesus asked the little boy for his lunch and he took the bread-prayed over it and gave thanks for it and then passed it out to the people. He did the same thing with the fish. A crazy thing happened-everyone had enough to eat! They ate until they were full!! Jesus told them to gather up all the extra pieces so that nothing was wasted. When they did they had twelve baskets full! That s a lot of leftovers! After all of the people saw what Jesus had done, they said, Surely this is the prophet we have been waiting for to come into the world! Jesus once again proved that he has the power to do amazing things and to provide for our needs. Questions for Discussion: How do you think the disciples felt when Jesus made the food multiply? What do you think the people thought? Jesus cared that the people were hungry. He wanted to take care of them. How does he take care of us? How many people did he feed? 13
How would you share the story with someone else if you were there? What would you say happened? Application Activity: Jesus provides: Paper doll cut out. Today we are going to cut out fish and make them multiply. Give them prefolded paper with a fish design drawn on one side. Tell them to cut it exactly along the lines. If they do it correctly, they should have paper doll fish cut out that multiplied. Just as Jesus multiplied the fish, our fish increased! Deleted: Fish Deleted: Today we talked about how Jesus has the power to provide for our needs. The people were hungry-physically hungry and spiritually hungry. They needed physical food which Jesus gave them-bread and fish. But they also needed spiritual food which he gave them. They were lonely and he showed them love and they were hurting and he made them feel better. They could trust him to provide for them because he was God. We can also trust God to provide for us. Write or draw on each of the fish ways that God provides for you. Maybe it is physical things like a home, clothes, a family, etc. Maybe it is spiritual things too-such as he helps you not feel scared, he makes you feel loved. Bible Verse Party Game: Line game Supplies Needed: notecards with one word of the memory verse on each card. A posterboard with the entire verse written on it. Give each child a note card with one word on it. Display the memory verse in front of them. Tell them that when you say go they have to all start staying the word on their card at the same time. They should not show their cards to anyone. They have to listen to everyone else and work together to line themselves us in order for the memory verse. If there is time try it again with the memory verse covered up. Celebration Box: Today for our celebration box we are going to pray for people in need. Jesus took care of the people that were hungry. He provided food for them. Let s pray for our mission partners today-living Water and the homeless children that will get the birthday bags. else do you want to pray for that needs God s help? Close in Prayer.Celebrate! Deleted: Deleted: Who Moved (insertion) [1] Deleted: Close in Prayer. Moved up [1]: Close in Prayer. 14
What God has done! Thursday Pool Party! Jesus heals the man at Bethesda Scripture: John 5:1-15 Memory Verse of the day: But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31 Key Point: Celebrate that Jesus has the power to heal! Objective: To help kids understand that Jesus because he is God has the power to heal us physically, but also spiritually. Welcome and Introductions: Use this time to welcome your children. Let them share a time when they felt sick. Opening Activity: Today the party favor is a beach ball with the verse on it. Let the kids take it an add it to their party favor box. Today s Lesson: Props: Alka seltzer, cup of water Yesterday we spoke about Jesus having the power to provide for our needs. Today he reveals his power in a new way-the power to heal. Jesus went to Jerusalem and while he was there he went to a place called the Pool of Bethesda. A lot of people with disabilities would sit by the pool-people that couldn t see, people that couldn t walk There was one man there that had been brought to the pool for thirty-eight years. You see the pool would stir every once in a while. Kind of like this-(putthe alka seltzer in the cup). The people believed that this water could help you get better-if you made it in the pool in time. They didn t have many doctors back then so the people tried lots of different things to get better. 15
When Jesus saw the man and heard how long he had been at the pool waiting to get in he walked up to him. Jesus asked the man, Do you want to get better? The man said to Jesus Sir, I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me. Then Jesus said something amazing to the man. He said, Get up! Pick up your mat and walk! At once the man was healed and he picked up his mat and walked. Now some of the Jewish leaders were mad because the man had broken one of the ten commandments which was to do any work on the Sabbath day. They believed that the man carrying his mat was doing work and they told him he shouldn t be doing that. But the man said to the leaders, That man who made me well told me to carry my mat. This leaders asked-who is the person that told you this? But the man who was healed had no idea who Jesus was and by that time Jesus had slipped away into the crowds. Later Jesus saw the man at the temple and told him that now that he was physically well he should be spiritually well too. He told the man to try to live a life without sin. The man knew then that it was Jesus that had healed him. Application Activity: The man at the pool had to be persistent and he also had to be patient. He waited many many years for Jesus to come and heal him. Thirty-eight years! Let s see if we can count to thirty-eight. It is going to be harder than you think! Let s close our eyes. One person at a time calls out a number starting with one. If two people call out a number at the same time then we have to start over. See how far you can go. Deleted: Deleted: Ask questions at the end: Was it hard to get to 38? Was it frustrating that we couldn t make it to 38? How do you think the man felt when he came to the pool every day and was never healed? How do you think he felt the day that Jesus came and healed in? Do we sometimes have to wait on God? Is it hard or easy? 16
What does trust have to do with waiting on God? Bible Verse Party Game: Pool Noodle Lacing: Supplies:Pool Noodles Cut with the scripture words on them and a rope. ave one person be the one to lace the pool noodles. The rest of the class must work together to hand them in order the words for the verse. Make sure you start with one at the end to hold the noodles in place. This can be done by tying the rope througth the center of one noodle piece. Time them to see if they can get faster. Deleted: Deleted: H Celebration Box: Today for the celebration box we are going to pray for people who are sick. Jesus has the power to help those who are sick and we want to pray for them. Open the box and ask for prayer requests for those that are sick. Close in Prayer. 17
Scripture: Mark 15:20b-39, 16:1-7 Celebrate! What God Has Done! Friday: A Surprise Party-Resurrection! Memory Verse of the day: But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 Key Point: Celebrate God s power to save us through Jesus Christ! Objective: To help kids understand Jesus s great love for us and his invitation for us to follow him. Welcome and Introductions: Use this time to welcome your children. Ask them to tell you one thing they have learned during your time together each day. Opening Activity: Since today is a Surprise Party their special party favor surprise is Candy! As the kids leave have your teen helper deliver the party favor boxes down to the sanctuary so that they can be given out when the kids leave for the day. Today s Lesson: Our theme for today is surprise party! We are talking today about Jesus dying on the cross and His resurrection. Why do you think we would call today a surprise party? (Jesus rose from the dead-they weren t expecting it). A few days before Jesus died on the cross he was eating dinner with his disciples. It was there that he washed their feet, to show them that he was going to serve them. He also gave them bread and wine to tell them that the bread was his body and the wine was his blood. He knew that he was going to die, but the disciples did not really understand what was happening to him. 18
After dinner he took his disciples and went out to the garden to pray. Jesus was very stressed because he knew the time was coming for him to be arrested and taken away. It was after this that Judas, one of his disciples betrayed him and brought the guards to him. Jesus was arrested and taken to trial. Although they could not find any reason to keep him, the crowds and the leaders were insistent that they kill him. They did not like him claiming to be the Messiah. They were scared of him and his power. So he was sentenced to die on the cross and it was very sad. He suffered. But, it was all part of God s plan. We can t get mad at those that put him on the cross, because it was meant to happen. You see, the punishment for our sins is death and separation from God forever. Someone had to take that punishment. So Jesus took it for us. He died for us. If we choose to follow him, we can live forever with him both here and in heaven for eternity! Jesus did not want us to suffer, so he suffered for us. He had no sin, but he took our punishment for us. After he died they laid him in a tomb. The disciples thought it was the end they thought they would never see Jesus again. So did Mary Magdalene, his friend, Mary his mother, and many others. But Surprise! Three days later the women went to the tomb and he wasn t there! Let s read what happened. Read John 20:1-18. Jesus was alive! What a surprise! He has risen from the dead! That is the greatest celebration of all! You will have many celebrations in your life-birthdays, weddings, but the biggest celebration of all will always be the resurrection of Jesus Christ! Questions for Discussion: Why did Jesus wash the disciples feet? Why did Jesus die on the cross? How do you think the disciples felt when Jesus died? How do you think they felt when they found out he was alive? Why is Jesus resurrection the greatest celebration of all? 19
Application Activity: Puzzle Easter Egg Hunt Remind the kids that usually we celebrate Jesus resurrection on Easter. Prior to class hide Easter eggs around the room. Tell them they have to find them all. In each one will be a puzzle piece. They have to put the pieces together. You will have two sets so that each group can compete. One group will have eggs with the number one on them and the other will have eggs with the number two on them. The group that finds all of their eggs and puts their puzzle together first wins. The puzzle will have a secret message for them. Jesus died for me. Talk about that Jesus died for us and our sins. We can live because Jesus gave his life for us! Bible Verse Party Game: Put out the memory verse on sheets of laminated paper. The kids will play musical chairs by sitting on the pieces of paper. Start with the entire verse and every round eliminate one word. Have the kids keep saying it as they walk around the verse. When you have removed and there is one less word than child, the child is out UNLESS, they can say the verse from memory. If they can say the verse from memory they can stay in and another word is not removed until the next round. Celebration Box: For today s celebration box, we are going to share all the things we want to celebrate about God! We can share the fun things we have learned this week, other things we are grateful for in our lives! This is about celebrating the many gifts we have been given! Close in Prayer-thank God for the gift of each child by name. Deleted: 20
Page 3: [1] Deleted Rachel Poysky 4/30/18 10:49:00 AM Day Daily Theme Bible Story Celebrate Verse Monday Birthday Party! Celebrate God Sent his Son! Jesus is Born Luke 2:1-20 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 Tuesday A Wedding! Celebrate Jesus first miracle Water Into Wine John 2:1-11 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Prov 3:5 Wednesday Block Party! Celebrate how God provides Feeding the 5,000 John 6:1-13 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. Phil 4:19 Thursday Pool Party! Celebrate God s Power to Heal Jesus Heals the man at Bethesda John 5:1-18 But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31 Friday Surprise Party!-! Celebrate God Saving Us Crucifixion and Resurrection Mark 15:20b-39, 16:1-7 But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8