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Large Group! About this Series: What is the greatest gift you ve ever received? A game? A pet? Maybe a visit from someone you love to see? Did you know that you can give a gift this Christmas that could change someone s life? One of the most incredible gifts we can give someone is an invitation. When you invite someone to be your friend, to spend time with you, you show that they matter to you, and they matter to God. God sent Jesus to give us all an invitation, a chance to be part of God s family. That s what the first Christmas is all about. Memory Verse: John 13:34- I give you a new command. Love one another. You must love one another, just as I have loved you. Weekly Overview: Lesson: Topic: Big Idea: : Nov. 25/26 The Great Party Luke 14:15-23 Everyone is invited to know God. Lesson 2: Dec. 2/3 The Wise Men Matthew 2:1-12 God invites everyone on earth. Lesson 3: Dec. 9/10 The Shepherds Luke 2:8-20 God invites people who don t expect it. Lesson 4: Dec. 16/17 Simeon and Anna Luke 2:22-40 I can keep on inviting. Lesson 5: Dec. 23/24* The Baby Luke 2; John 18-20. Jesus came to show me God s love. 2
: The Great Party! Series at a Glance for Elevate (continued) One of the most powerful gifts we can give is an invitation. That s because telling someone You re invited also tells them You matter. Jesus believed that every person mattered. When He was asked about heaven, Jesus compared it to a party where everyone is invited. Imagine what a difference you could make this week by inviting someone to be your friend, to talk about how much God loves them, or to come with you to a huge Christmas party in Elevate and learn about God s love. Lesson 2: The Wise Men We have a lot in common with the people we love. We might not know it, but we also have things in common with people we ve never met! God didn t just invite people from the town of Bethlehem to see Jesus. With a star, He invited people from around the world, and they came. This week, we ll connect with people around the world, and see how big this Christmas party really is! Lesson 3: The Shepherds An invitation can mean the world to someone, especially someone who isn t expecting it. On the first Christmas, God invited a group of humble, average shepherds to meet his son. After meeting Jesus, the shepherds told everyone they could, Great news! Jesus, the Savior is here! They knew that everyone was invited to experience God s love. Who do you know that isn t expecting an invitation this Christmas? This could be your chance to show them God s love, and maybe even change their life. Lesson 4: Simeon and Anna Not all of our invitations will go as planned. Some people may say no. Some may not want to be invited. No matter what happens, though, we can trust that God is doing something good. That s what Simeon and Anna did. God told them years before the first Christmas that Jesus was coming. They waited, and trusted that God s promise was true. Every day, they watched for Jesus, and when he arrived, they were ready. Who can we be ready to show God s love to this Christmas? Lesson 5: The Baby Finally, everyone s here, and we re ready for the party! This week, take some time to remember why Christmas is a celebration: it s the day we celebrate Jesus coming as a baby to show everyone that they were loved by God and invited to be a part of his family. Join us in Elevate as we celebrate Christmas! 3
Lesson Outline for Elevate Lesson Segment Engage Opening Song (2:00) Welcome (1:00) Question of the Day (2:00) Group Activity (10:00) : The Great Party Total Running Time Worship: Joy to the World (5:00) 0:00-20:00 Involve Media: Part 1 (4:00) Lesson Intro (1:00) Group Time (15:00) 20:00-40:00 Challenge Memory Verse Challenge (3:00) Media: Part 2 (7:00) Application (5:00) Worship: What a Glorious Night (4:00) Wrap Up (1:00) 40:00-60:00 Video Cue Slide Cue Audio Cue Tech Notes 4
Opening Song 2:00 (Roll when directed) Elevate Opener Welcome to Elevate! As you come to the middle of the room and sit down, call out the best thing you had to eat this Thanksgiving! Do This: Repeat four or five of the kids answers as they call them out. (Auto advance) Elevate Slide and Underscore Welcome 1:00 Awesome! Thanksgiving was super fun, but here in Elevate it s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Today, we re starting an amazing Christmas series! I m super excited to celebrate with all of you. My name is! It s been a busy week, so I am super excited that all of you made it here today! Today, we are talking about one of the best gifts we can ever give someone. It can be hard giving gifts, so that is a big thing to say. See if you can figure out what that gift is as we play some games, learn a verse from the Bible, and have fun in group time today. Question of the Day 2:00 Let s get into the Christmas spirit with a question of the day! Question of the Day Video (Auto Advance) QOTD Slide: What s the best gift you ve ever gotten? 5
What s the best gift you have ever gotten? Fun! Think about it, then turn to someone next to you, and tell them your answer! Do This: Emcee as the kids are sharing their answers. Encourage them to share with the people around them, and encourage any kid whose story you hear. Know This: It s more important that the kids interact with each other than with you. Allow them time enough to share with each other, and don t have them share with the whole group. Just about all of us love to get gifts, but some are better than others. Sometimes the best gifts aren t things we can hold. It could be something someone said that made us feel good, someone asking us to be their friend, or something a friend did to serve us. We can give those gifts all year round, too! Let s keep prepping for Christmas with an activity called Speedy Decorating! Group Activity 10:00 Game Title Slide: Speedy Decorating! As you can see, we ve done some decorating in here, but there s still a way to go. This activity is a chance for you to get your group ready and decorated for Christmas. The problem is, you don t have any decorations! You ll have to use people from your group to create a Christmas scene. Once you get into your groups, your leader will tell you what your scene is. Ready? Look for your flag to find your group leader! Once you ve all found your groups, we ll start the countdown! 5:00 Countdown and Christmas Game Music (Auto-Advance) Worship Slide Wow! Your Christmas scenes look great. When I point at your group, tell us what your scene is. Do This: Give each group a chance to say what their scene is. Know This: If you have a photographer available, give them time to get a picture of each group s Christmas scene. You can stay standing, because it s time to worship God! 6
Worship 5:00 Whatever gifts we give or get this Christmas, the greatest gift ever comes from God! At the first Christmas, He sent His son Jesus to earth, to give us joy, peace, and love. This is a great Christmas song called Joy to the World. Let s sing it together! Song 1: Joy to the World (Auto advance) Worship Slide Worshipping with you is always amazing, but it s super special at Christmas. Did you know, worship means showing that we love God. Singing about how much we love God is a good way to worship, but so is giving to others, helping them, or telling others about how much God loves them. Another great way to show love for God is to talk to him! We call that prayer. Let s close our eyes and do that now. God, thank you for sending Jesus! We are super excited for Christmas to be here. Help us to remember how much you love us every day, and to tell others about your love for them, too! Amen. Media: Part 1 4:00 I wonder if the Light Force team is getting ready for Christmas, too? Let s check in to their lighthouse headquarters, and find out! Light Force: Part 1 (4:00) (Auto advance) Series Title Slide: Wow! What an interesting problem. Inviting someone to a party, or inviting them to be our friend, can be a big deal. Lesson Intro 1:00 7
You ve probably noticed our theme for this series, but I want to say it anyway! Welcome to the Christmas party, everyone! I m having a great time with all of you, but there s something even more awesome coming up in a few weeks. On Christmas week, we are going to have an epic Christmas party right here! Until then, we need to get ready for the party. We ll be decorating, getting gifts ready, and setting up some Christmas music, but there s one thing this party needs that only you can get. People! Let s face it, if it s just a few people, the party will be a little lame, so it s up to you to invite all your friends! This party is a big deal. We ll have hot chocolate for everyone, snowball fights, Christmas games, and everyone who comes will get to hear how much God loves them. When I say invite someone, I don t mean just say Hey, come to Christmas in Elevate, and then walk away. When it s done well, an invitation is one of the best gifts we can give someone. Think of how good it feels when someone says Will you be my friend? or Want to come to this party with me? When you invite someone to this Christmas party, you are showing them that they are important, that they matter to God and to you. So, the question I want you to answer in group time is this: Who is invited? Who is invited to learn about God s love? That s a super important question to answer. Look for your group leader, you ve got about fifteen minutes to figure out an answer! Group Time 15:00 Optional: 15:00 Countdown Do This: Make sure each kid finds their group. Help group leaders if there is a need. Encourage kids as they work to answer the question. Know This: This is a time for kids to search for answers in the Bible, and see how they can use the Bible to investigate and better understand life. This time is designed for kids to interact and deepen their understanding. They won t get all the answers, but allow them to question and discover as much as possible. Be ready to support group leaders in any way needed. Do This: Give the groups a warning about one minute before this time is up. When this time ends, transition into the memory verse challenge. Bumper Video (1:00) 8
(Auto-Advance) Memory Verse Slide: John 13:34- I give you a new command. Love one another. You must love one another, just as I have loved you. Memory Verse Challenge 3:00 Come on up to the front, it s time for our memory verse challenge! Each series here in Elevate, we learn a new memory verse. This is the first week for this verse, so we ll be learning it together. I ll read it, then we ll practice saying it a couple times. This verse is something that Jesus said. He said: I give you a new command. Love one another. You must love one another, just as I have loved you. That s a super cool verse. Jesus tells us to love each other, just like he loves us. Let s all say that verse together. John 13:34. I give you a new command. Love one another. You must love one another, just as I have loved you. Part of the way Jesus has loved you is that he has invited you to be his friend and follower, and has an awesome plan for your life. That s the best kind of love. It s not a mushy love, it s a love that can change our lives. If Jesus loves us enough to invite us to this awesome party of following God, that s how we should show his love to others, too! Now, if you are on this side of the room, you re going to say I give you a new command. Love one another. If you re on the other side of the room, you ll say You must love one another, just as I have loved you. I want to see who can say their half of the verse louder! When I point at you, say your half of the verse. Do This: Alternate sides of the room, saying their half of the verse with them. Feel free to change the order you point in, or make one team go several times. Encourage them to be loud! Media: Part 2 7:00 Nice job! I m super ready to find out what happens to the Light Force team. Let s check out the rest of their story! Light Force: Part 2 (7:00) (Auto advance) Series Title Slide: 9
It s amazing how much you can do with a simple invitation. Inviting someone into your life can be a great way to show them that they are loved. It could make a big difference to that person, too. Application 5:00 Jesus had a cool idea in that story. Have you ever been to a party where everyone was invited? Probably not, that would be a huge party! You d need an enormous house to fit everyone inside. In Jesus story, though, every person was invited to come to this incredible party. The father in that story represents God. Jesus was saying that everyone is invited to know that God loves them and to be a part of God s family. What does it mean that everyone is invited? Does it mean that our families, our parents, our aunts and uncles are invited? Yes. Does that mean our friends are invited? Yes. Does that mean people who aren t very nice are invited? Yes. Does that mean people who we think are different are invited? Yes! Every person in the world is invited to know about God s love. Do you remember the examples Jesus used in that story? They invited people who couldn t walk and people that couldn t see. They invited travelers who lived a long way away, and people who no one else would spend time with. God wants all of these people to know that he loves them. Knowing that everyone is invited to the party makes a big difference. Imagine this with me. You re invited to Jesus party. Do This: Take out a party hat and put it on. This is going to be an awesome party. There s going to be games, great food, and maybe even a piñata. You re Jesus friend, so of course you are invited, and like you know now, Jesus wants every person to come. You invite a couple of your friends, and that s pretty easy. They re excited to come. Then, you see a kid in the hallway who you haven t ever talked to. You could just walk by, but you notice that they seem sad. You don t know what s going on, but there s something you can do, isn t there? You can invite them to come with you to this awesome party. You can show them that they matter. How good could that make them feel? You have the chance to change their day, maybe their whole week. What if, later that day, you see a kid that isn t very nice? You don t want to spend too much time with them, but you remember, They re invited to the party, too. What if 10
they are mean to others because they feel alone, afraid, like no one likes them? It could change their life, if you just let them know that they were invited. That s why we re throwing a huge party all about Jesus here in Elevate. Everyone needs to know that God wants them to be part of his family. You re all invited to this party, but it s not really for us. This is a party to let everyone know that God loves them. Think about who you can invite to learn about God this Christmas. As you leave today, you ll be getting some of these invite cards. Do This: Show kids the Elevate invite card. It s not for you to keep, but to give away! You can use this to invite someone new to Elevate. My challenge for you is to keep inviting your family and friends, but use at least one card for someone else. Give one card to someone you don t know very well, a quiet kid at school, someone you don t talk to very much. Invite them to come to our Christmas party with you. If they say no, that s ok, but if they say yes, make sure you let your parents know, and try to get your families to come to church together the week of Christmas. In fact, as soon as your parents pick you up today, do this. Show them this card, and tell them who you want to invite to Christmas. Write that person s name on the card. There are blanks on this card for you to write down when and where you are going, so they can come to the Christmas party with you. This week, give this card to that person! Worship 4:00 You can make such a big difference for someone, just by letting them know that God loves them. That s what Jesus did while he lived on earth. He showed all of us that we were invited to be friends with God, to know that he loves us, and to be a part of his family. Let s get up on our feet, and worship God again with this Christmas song, Oh What a Glorious Night! Song 2: Oh What a Glorious Night (Auto advance) Series Title Slide: 11
Wrap-Up 1:00 We celebrate Christmas because God sent us the greatest gift ever, his son Jesus! Let s give as many people as we can a chance to know about that gift. Our huge Christmas party is a great way for people to find out about God s love, so try inviting someone to that this week! It will also be a super fun party, with snowball fights, Christmas games, and so much more! Like I mentioned before, you can use this to invite someone to this Christmas party. Do This: Show kids the invitation again. This card invites someone to come with you to Elevate the week of Christmas. Remember, you can invite your family and friends, but try giving this to someone who you don t know well. If you need some help finding someone, ask your parents or another adult you trust to help you out! You can think of someone together, and even talk to them together. I have one more thing for you to take. Do This: Show kids the Family Connection Card. This card has an awesome Christmas activity for you and your family to do, and you can use it to remind you of all the stuff we talked about today. We ll have a different card each week of this Christmas series. Let s finish up by talking to God. To help us stay focused, let s close our eyes and bow our heads while we pray. God, you are awesome. Thank you for sending Jesus to tell us about your love. Thank you for inviting all of us to be in your family. Give us courage and excitement to invite others this week. Amen! I ve loved hanging out with you, come back, because we ll continue the Christmas party next week! Elevate Slide Start Christmas hangtime music videos 12