Preschool Teacher Guide Session Title: Elijah Ran from Jezebel Bible Passage: 1 Kings 19 Big Picture Question: How does God help in times of trouble? God promises to be with us. Key Passage: 2 Kings 17:13-14 Unit Christ Connection: The prophets called God s people to repentance as Christ calls people to repentance. Sin continued to divide and ultimately destroy the Northern Kingdom, but Christ s perfect kingdom is forever. TEACHER BIBLE STUDY Prep Time The prophet Elijah had just witnessed God s great display of power over the false god Baal. God had sent fire from heaven and then ended a long drought with a great rain. Elijah must have felt a sense of victory; the evil King Ahab could not deny the one true God. But trouble awaited Elijah in the form of Ahab s wife Jezebel. When Jezebel heard what Elijah had done at Mount Carmel, she threatened to kill him. Elijah ran away and hid in the wilderness. What a change Elijah experienced! He went from a man faithfully and confidently praying for God s glory to be displayed at Mount Carmel to a man begging the Lord to take away his life. (See 1 Kings 19:4.) God was merciful to Elijah. An angel of the Lord brought Elijah food and drink while he rested. Then Elijah traveled to Horeb for a personal encounter with God. Horeb another name for Mount Sinai was a familiar place in the history of Israel. It was the place where God gave the Ten Commandments to the Israelites and where Moses met with God. After the events in 1 Kings 18, Elijah might have expected a grand display of God s presence, but what he experienced was just the opposite. The Lord was not in the wind. The Lord was not in the earthquake. The Lord was not in the fire. God revealed Himself to Elijah in a voice, a soft whisper. Elijah s circumstances were difficult, but God didn t leave him. God gave him Elisha, a friend and successor. God assured Elijah that he was not alone; there were 7,000 people in Israel who had not turned to worship Baal. God s prophets suffered, but their lives and messages pointed forward to the ultimate prophet, priest, and king Jesus Christ who suffered for the sins of the world. Jesus was hated and killed, but His death and resurrection brought victory for God s people. Welcome/Transition Time (15 minutes) Lesson Snack/Video Activities 1 2012 LifeWay Christian Resources
WELCOME/TRANSITION TIME (15 minutes) Greet boys and girls as they arrive. Direct them to work on the color/activity page. After that, they may choose to play with a favorite toy or do another activity that you have provided. Color Page/Activity Sheet: Trace Elijah s Trip - provided Crayons or colored pencils color/activity sheet, 1 per child Where did Elijah go when he ran from Jezebel? Help kids trace his path. Mention that he walked for 40 days. He was a strong man, and God gave him strength for travel! Mount Carmel is where Elijah faced the prophets of Baal. It was near the sea. Mount Horeb is in the wilderness, like the rocky land where God gave the Ten Commandments. Notice the territory change in the maze. Cave Activity: provided Talk about creatures that might be found in caves. (bats, bears, crickets, and so forth) Say In today s Bible story, you will hear that the prophet Elijah spent the night in a cave in a mountain. Transition to Lesson Use your usual transition cue to signal that it is time for Bible study. Ring the bell, show the countdown video, flip the lights, or clap a simple rhythm for children to copy to gain attention. LESSON Worship Music Classroom DVD contains worship songs for each unit that the children will enjoy learning. Unit 13 DVD Story Time Say If you wanted to go somewhere in a hurry, think about how you would travel. Would anyone like to come here and pretend you are traveling the way you thought of? We will try to guess what it is. Call on two or three volunteers to act out their ideas. In today s Bible story, Elijah ran and walked many miles to get away from King Ahab s evil wife, Jezebel. The story is here in the Bible, in the Book of First Kings. 2 2012 LifeWay Christian Resources
THE BIBLE STORY Elijah Ran from Jezebel 1 Kings 19 Preschool Teacher Guide God is powerful! Elijah knew this. Elijah was a prophet who saw God send fire from heaven. God showed King Ahab, the Israelites, and all the people who worshiped the false god Baal that God is the one true God. Elijah was probably very happy, but Elijah was about to face some big trouble. King Ahab s wife, Jezebel, was not happy with Elijah. Jezebel did not want the people to worship the one true God. Jezebel killed the men who were prophets for God. Jezebel told Elijah to watch out! She was going to kill him too. Elijah was very afraid! He didn t want Jezebel to kill him. So he ran far away. He went into the wilderness where Jezebel couldn t find him. Elijah said a prayer to God, Everything is going wrong! Lord, take my life. I m ready to die. Then Elijah lay down under a broom tree. He fell asleep. God heard Elijah s prayer, and He sent an angel to help Elijah. The angel touched Elijah. Get up and eat, the angel said. A loaf of hot baked bread and a jar of water was nearby, and Elijah ate and drank. Then he lay down. The angel came and touched Elijah again. Get up and eat, the angel said. Elijah ate and drank. The food gave him strength to travel a very long way to Horeb (HOH reb), the mountain of God. When Elijah got to the mountain, he went into a cave and spent the night there. God spoke to Elijah. God said, What are you doing here, Elijah? God, I tried very hard to do what You said, Elijah said. But your people have not done what You said! They are trying to kill me! Go out and stand on the mountain, God said. Then God passed by. A strong wind rushed by the mountain. Was God in the wind? No, God was not in the wind. Then there was an earthquake! The ground shook. Was God in the earthquake? No, God was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake, there was a fire! Was God in the fire? No, God was not in the fire. Finally, there was a voice a soft whisper. Elijah heard the whisper. He covered his face and stood at the opening of the cave. What are you doing here, Elijah? a voice asked. God, I tried very hard to do what You said, Elijah said. But your people have not done what You said! They are trying to kill me! Then God said to Elijah, Go back to Damascus. God gave Elijah instructions. God wanted Elijah to make certain men leaders: Hazael (HAZ ay el) would be a king, Jehu (JEE hyoo) would be a king, and Elisha would be a prophet like Elijah. Elijah did what God said. When he found Elisha, Elisha was working in a field. Elisha left his work to follow Elijah and serve him. Christ Connection: Elijah was a special messenger for God. Jezebel did not like Elijah, but God was in charge. God kept Elijah safe. Jesus is God s messenger too. People did not like Jesus, but God was in charge. God used Jesus enemies to carry out His plan to rescue people from sin. * Use only the words in bold to review the Bible story or tell it to younger preschoolers. 3 2012 LifeWay Christian Resources
Review/Key Passage Key Passage Poster Big Picture Question Poster Say Elijah tried to warn King Ahab and Jezebel to quit worshiping Baal. They were in trouble with God because they would not listen to Elijah. They were mad at Elijah.Jezebel wanted to kill Elijah! What did Elijah do? (He ran away to hide.) How did God help Elijah when he was tired and hungry? (God sent an angel with bread and water.) How did God help Elijah on the mountain? (God was in charge. God kept Elijah safe. God spoke to him and encouraged him.) How does God help in times of trouble? God promises to be with us. Jesus is God s messenger too. People did not like Jesus, but God was in charge. God used Jesus enemies to carry out His plan to rescue people from sin. SNACK/VIDEO Snack Signal for cleanup time using the countdown video or whatever method you prefer. Take a bathroom break and wash hands before the snack. Ask for volunteers to help set up and serve the snack. Remind kids to wait until everyone has been served before eating. Thank God for your snack. Watch Video Show the video Elijah Ran from Jezebel (from Classroom DVD) ACTIVITIES Match Mountains provided Match Mountains cards (2 copies) Paper bag beanbags Play games such as the memory game, beginning with cards laid out in a 4-by-3-card grid. For very young preschoolers, begin by laying the cards faceup and guide them in making matches. For another game, spread one set of the cards around the floor and put the other set in a bag. Kids can pull a card out of the bag and toss a beanbag onto its match on the floor. Say Who made the mountains? (God!) Look at the different kinds of mountains. Which do you think looks like the one with the cave where Elijah spent the night? How does God help in times of trouble? God promises to be with us. 4 2012 LifeWay Christian Resources
Sign the Story provided Signing instructions Teach the sign language for wind, earthquake, fire, and whisper. Make these signs one at a time, and then pretend the event is happening. After kids hands sway back and forth like wind, pretend to be blown by wind. Move fists back and forth to sign earthquake, and then pretend to experience an earthquake. Wiggle fingers, moving hands upward, to show fire. Sign whisper and pretend to listen to a whisper. Read 1 Kings 19:11-13 and encourage kids to make signs where appropriate. Say God showed Elijah His power, but He spoke in a soft voice and told Elijah what to do. How does God help in times of trouble? God promises to be with us. Pick up Preschool children need to be picked up by a parent/grandparent and the adult must show the parent receipt with matching I.D. number. If the tag is missing, the adult can go to the Welcome Center and have a receipt reprinted. Welcome the second session teachers and tell them what they need to know about the children who are present. 5 2012 LifeWay Christian Resources