SUNDAY MORNINGS January 28, 2018, Week 4 Grade: PDF Free Download

Pennies from Heaven Bible: Pennies from Heaven (The Widow s Offering) Mark 12:41-44 Bottom Line: Practice living for God. Memory Verse: For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. 1 Timothy 4:8, NIV Life App: Commitment Making a plan and putting it into practice Basic Truth: I can trust God no matter what. Social: Providing Time for Fun Interaction (Small Groups, 15 minutes) Welcome kids and spend time engaging in conversation and catching up. Get ready to experience today s Bible Truth. Before kids arrive, pray for each kid by name. Ask God to help you encourage kids to live for Him in order to show others the love of God. All Service Times Penny Don t Drop Made to Move: an activity that increases the oxygen in the brain and taps into the energy in the body What You Need: Pennies, buckets, masking tape What You Do: Divide the group into two teams. Make sure the teams are even, or assign one kid to go twice if necessary. Mark a starting line for each team with masking tape, and line up the teams behind it. Place a bucket about 15 feet away from each team. When you say, Go, kids will take turns placing a penny on the top of their shoes and hopping on one foot to the bucket without dropping the penny. Once they reach the bucket, they must tilt their foot and drop the penny into the bucket and run back to tag the next person in line. If they drop the penny, they must return to the starting line and try again. The first team to finish is the winner. Note: If this proves too difficult for your group, allow them to take off their shoes and hold the penny between their toes. Play the game the same way, except kids will be holding their penny with their toes instead of balancing it on their foot. What You Say: Great job! Quick, someone raise your hand and tell me how much a penny is worth. (Pause.) That s right! It would take ONE HUNDRED of these to make a dollar. A penny isn t worth much, is it? [Transition] In our Bible story today, we ll about someone who gave a little like a couple of pennies and someone who gave a lot. But one of these givers caught Jesus attention. Let s find out who it was. Lead your group to the Large Group area. 2

Pennies from Heaven Bible: Pennies from Heaven (The Widow s Offering) Mark 12:41-44 Bottom Line: Practice living for God. Memory Verse: For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. 1 Timothy 4:8, NIV Life App: Commitment Making a plan and putting it into practice Basic Truth: I can trust God no matter what. Bible: Communicating God s Truth in Engaging Ways (Large Group, 35 minutes) Engage kids hearts through a dynamic and interactive Bible Truth, worship, and prayer experience in a Large Group setting. CG: Work It Out Theme Slide HOST: What s going on, friends? Welcome to The Hideout! My name is [Host s name] and we re about to have the BEST DAY EVER. Look at your neighbor, point, and say, Are you ready for this? HOST and KIDS: (Point to the audience.) Are you ready for this? HOST: I hope you are! Because it s time to laugh, play, learn, and even get a little wild. Is that okay with you guys? (Hold hand to ear.) That s what I m talking about! Let s get started with our Life App! It s our last week to talk about it, so on three, I want you to yell out what you think this month s Life App is. One, two, three! (Hold hand to ear.) If you said commitment, I want you to give yourself a high five. (Give yourself a high five.) If you didn t say commitment, or if you don t even know what that word means, no worries. Let s take one more look at it. CG: Commitment Slide Commitment is making a plan and putting it into practice. Help me out. Let s all read that together. HOST AND KIDS: Commitment is making a plan and putting it into practice. HOST: (Hold up one finger.) You make a plan. (Hold up a second finger.) And then you put it into practice. We do all sorts of things that take commitment. It takes commitment to go on a long hike. Has anyone ever gone on a hike? (Raise your hand and allow for response.) Yeah! It takes commitment to learn how to do the backstroke. Can anyone in here do the backstroke? (Mimic a backstroke.) I still have a hard time with that one. And it ALSO takes commitment to be a good friend, to do your chores every day, to start something new, or to join a club or a team. Commitment: sometimes it s easy, sometimes it s hard, but it s always important. SFX: Workout music 4

Hey! It s everybody s favorite time: game time! Today s game is all about YOU, how we re all different from one another, and how that s totally okay. In fact, it s pretty cool! Here s how we ll play. When I tell you to, you re going to stand up and line up along the tape that s running down the center of the room. I ll ask you a question, and you ll have three seconds to respond and move to one side of the tape or the other, based on your response. We all know that working out takes a lot of commitment, so all of our questions will be about exercise. Here we go! Everybody get up and stand on the tape line. Give kids a moment to move to the tape line in the middle of the room. First question: Which do you like doing better: jumping jacks or push-ups? If you like jumping jacks better, move to the left side of the tape and do a jumping jack. (Do a jumping jack.) If you like push-ups better, move to the right side and do a push up. (Do a push up.) Give kids a moment to choose their favorite and move to that side of the room. Some of you like push-ups better than jumping jacks? That s so cool! You must be workout pros! Move back to the tape, and let s do another. Which do you like doing better: squats or hops? If you like squats better, move to the left side of the tape and do a few squats. (Do a squat.) If you like hops better, move to the right side and do a few hops. (Do a few hops.) Give kids a moment to choose their favorite and move to that side of the room. I like squats better, personally. But you guys sure look like you re having fun on the hopping side. Let s go another round. Which is more fun: high knees (jog in place with high knees) or heel kicks? (Jog in place with your heels hitting your bottom.) If you like high knees, move to the left side of the tape and do some high knees. (Do high knees.) If you like heel kicks better, move to the right side and kick those heels. (Do heel kicks.) Give kids a moment to choose their favorite and move to that side of the room. I actually like both of these. They re fun! Want to do another round? Okay, last one. Which exercise would you rather commit to: lunges or arm curls? If lunges are your thing, move to the left side of the tape and lunge around. (Do a lunge.) If working your arms with some curls is more your style, then move to the right side and get in a few curling reps. (Do a few bicep curls.) Give kids a moment to choose their favorite and move to that side of the room. 5

Cool! Now I want you all to return to your seats after you do your favorite exercise five times. Let s do it! Allow students to do their favorite exercise and then return to their seats. That was fun! When we commit to working out, we actually have to go and do it. We can t just say, I m gonna work out, and leave it at that. We have to actually practice working out! What s great, though, is that your commitment to working out doesn t have to look exactly the same as someone else s commitment to working out. We re all different, and that s awesome! Speaking of awesome, it s Bible time. Please welcome to the stage, [Historyteller s Name]! Historyteller enters as Host exits. SETTING UP THE BIBLE TRUTH HISTORYTELLER: Hello, hello! How is everybody doing today? We re ending our month of what God says about commitment with a Bible Truth that I think can totally flip your mind upside down and turn it around. That s my way of saying that we re about to hear about something that really happened that s totally cool. Like we ve been saying all month, commitment definitely takes work. It takes practice. And sometimes commitment takes something else. It takes GIVING. We find today s Bible Truth in the book of Mark. Mark was one of Jesus first followers. He hung out with Peter and the rest of Jesus disciples. They must have told him all sorts of stories about what Jesus said and did during His time on earth. Mark decided to write down these stories so people just like us could read them all these years later. How cool is that? In Mark 12, we discover that Jesus and His friends were hanging out at the temple. A temple in the Bible is like a church is to us today. Jesus was sitting close to the spot in the temple where people came to bring their money for offerings. Hold up one brown bag with the dollar sign showing. Back then, people would give money at the temple to help support the priests and keep up with any needs they might have kind of like how people give money to this church. The money helps support the church staff and meet different needs, like [your environment s name], and all the ways we help people in our community and in the world. An important part of worshipping God is giving money to the church or, the case of our Bible Truth for today, the temple. JESUS WATCHES THE RICH PEOPLE AT THE TEMPLE CG: Mark 12:41 Slide HISTORYTELLER: Here s what Mark said Jesus saw. (Open Bible and read Mark 12:41.) Jesus sat down across from the place where people put their temple offerings. He watched the crowd putting their money into the offering boxes. Many rich people threw large amounts into them (NIrV). 6

Let s set the stage for a moment and really see what s happening here. Would two of my volunteers come up? Call up the first two volunteers as the wealthy givers. After they put on their robes, hand each of them several bags. The Bible tells us that Jesus saw some rich people people with lots of money coming to give their offerings. Take the first volunteer and lead him/her to the box. The rich people gave lots of money to the temple. But there wasn t just one rich person. There were many. These rich people gave a LOT of money! Take a few bags (but not all) from the volunteer and put them inside the box. Bring over the second volunteer. Take a few bags (but not all) from the volunteer and put them inside the box. JESUS WATCHES THE WIDOW AT THE TEMPLE CG: Mark 12:42 Slide HISTORYTELLER: But Jesus noticed someone else at the temple. Let s find out who. (Open Bible and read Mark 12:42.) But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins. They were worth only a few pennies (NIrV). Just reading that, you may not understand how the widow s actions were a big deal, but they were. What the widow did was HUGE. It was amazing. It showed incredible commitment. Widow might be a new word to some of you. A widow is a woman who was married but her husband died. During Jesus time, widows were very poor. Most found it hard to earn enough money to buy what they needed each day. Let s take a closer look at what she did. Would my last volunteer come up? Call the third volunteer to the stage. After she puts on her robe, give her the bag with the two coins inside. Jesus watched as the widow went over to the offering station. Mark tells us that she came to give money to the temple. Bring third volunteer over. Take the bag, open it, pull out the two coins, and drop them into the box. 7

She only had two small coins, which only equaled a few pennies. What the widow gave was far, far less than what the rich people gave. But Jesus knew something about her the others didn't. Listen to what Jesus said. JESUS REACTION CG: Mark 12:43b-44 Slide HISTORYTELLER: The Bible tells us that Jesus called over His disciples and He talked to them. (Open Bible and read Mark 12:43b-44.) He said: That poor widow has put more into the offering box than all the others. They all gave a lot because they are rich. But she gave even though she is poor. She put in everything she had (NIrV). Pick up the money box and flip it over, emptying the bags onto the floor. Jesus said that her two coins (hold up two coins) were worth more than all those other bags of money (motion to the bags). And why? Because the widow had given everything all she had. She gave when she didn t have much to give. What the widow did show was that she loved God. It showed she trusted Him. It showed she knew God would take care of her no matter what. Before we finish up, let s hear it for our volunteers. You three can have a seat. Volunteers exit. WRAPPING UP THE BIBLE TRUTH HISTORYTELLER: That must have been such a hard decision for the widow. Does she give money to the temple, or does she save the money for herself? She decided in her heart to give, knowing that she could trust God no matter what. God would take care of her needs! The same can be true for us. When we give what we have our time, our attention, our obedience, or even our money when we give our all to God, we show Him the kind of commitment that widow had in our Truth and show Him that we trust Him no matter what. The widow lived for God, and we can, too. We can practice living for God. CG: Bottom Line Slide That s our Bottom Line: [Bottom Line] Practice living for God. Say that with me. HISTORYTELLER and KIDS: [Bottom Line] Practice living for God. HISTORYTELLER: When we practice living for God, we give all we have. We commit. We make a plan to live for Him, and we stick to it. That kind of sounds like training to me. Pretty sure we had a memory verse that said something about training. Anyone remember it? (Pause for responses, allowing kids to recite the verse.) HOST: Read it with me. 8

CG: Memory Verse Slide For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. 1 Timoty 4:8, NIV Let s pray. Pray HISTORYTELLER: God, thank You for giving us Your Word to learn how we can practice living for You. Thank You that You re always with us. Thank You that we can trust You with our time, our hearts, and our money. Help us worship with our lives and live for You! We love You. We pray this in Jesus name, amen. If you have an offering with you today, raise your hand and we will bring the bucket over to you. Now, please welcome our friends, the Power Praise team! Worship SFX: I Go to the Rock SFX: Never Gonna Be SFX: Close Historyteller exits as Power Praise team enters. Power Praise team exits as Host retakes the stage. Closer HOST: Hey, everyone! Who knew that two small coins could mean so much to Jesus? It s pretty cool. It reminds us that no matter how young we are, no matter how small we are, no matter how little we feel like we have, when we give our all to God, He is blown away by our commitment and can use even our small gifts to do big things. Let s look at our Bottom Line one more time. CG: Bottom Line Slide [Bottom Line] Practice living for God. You know, practicing living for God is going to look different for all of us. For some of us, giving our all means making time to talk to God every day. For others of us, giving our all means inviting our friend to church. You can practice living for God by serving others, raising money for people who don t have much, or by simply giving your teachers and parents your obedience. No matter who you are, you can worship God with your life as you give your all to God. You can practice living for Him. You can show Him incredible commitment. In Small Group today, you ll talk more about how you can [Bottom Line] practice living for God. Have fun together, and we ll see you next time! CG: Small Group Slide Dismiss children to their Small Groups. 9

Groups: Creating a Safe Place to Connect (10 minutes) 9:00 & 11:30 Penny Drop What You Need: Chair, pennies, plastic cup What You Do: Place the cup on the floor behind the chair. Instruct the kids to line up and one at a time, kneel on the chair (facing the back), lean forward, and drop a penny from chest height into the cup. If they make it into the cup, play passes to the next person in line. If they miss, that kid has to answer a question about today s Bible story. Kids can get help from friends if they need it. Bible Story Review Questions: 1. What was Jesus watching the people do in our Bible story today? (Place their money in the temple treasury) 2. Did the rich men give a little or a lot? (A lot) 3. Did the rich men trust God to provide all their needs? How do you know? (No, because they still had plenty to live on) 4. How much did the widow put in? (Two small coins) 5. Which of the two givers was Jesus most pleased with: the rich men or the widow? (The widow) 6. Why wasn t Jesus impressed with the giving of the rich men? (Because they didn t make a sacrifice that required them to trust God) 7. Who did the widow trust? (God) 8. What do you think the word sacrifice means? (To give up something valuable) 9. Was the widow who had very little given a different command than the rich men? (No, both were expected to give) 10. Did Jesus know the hearts of the people who gave? (Yes, He knows all our hearts) 11. What are some ways that we show we trust God? (By obeying Him, even when it seems easier/better/more fun to do what we want to do) 12. Why is it important to be obedient to God? (Because God made everything, which means that the way He tells us to live is the BEST way) 13. Today we learned we should practice doing what? (Living for God) 14. What are some ways you can live for God? (Various answers) What You Say: Jesus stopped to watch the people putting their money into the temple treasury. He wasn t concerned with the AMOUNT that people gave. If that was true, then Jesus would have pointed out the wealthy people who put in large amounts of money. But He didn t. Jesus pointed out the poor widow who only gave two small coins. But her gift proved that she trusted God to take care of her. She obediently gave all she had. Talk about living for God! We can live for God too by obeying His Word and trusting Him to take care of all our needs. So my challenge to you is to make a commitment to [Bottom Line] practice living for God. [Make It Personal] (Tell the kids about one thing you do on a regular basis to [Bottom Line] practice living for God. How does this habit or commitment make a difference in your life? Maybe you read your Bible and pray first thing in the morning. Maybe you tithe on a regular basis. Maybe you take time to journal on a regular basis. Share an example of one way you choose to live for God.) 10

10:15 End Game [Live for God Application Activity] Made to Create: an activity that explores spiritual ideas through the process of drawing, building, and designing What You Need: End Game Comic Panels Activity Pages, colored pencils What You Do: Pass out the Activity Pages. Invite kids to talk about what s going on in the last panel in each row. Challenge them to come up with the first two panels, showing the steps they could take to see the end result of the last panel. If you choose, they can work in pairs to discuss their ideas. Kids can then draw what has been discussed. Let each kid share as they feel comfortable what they think happened in the first two panels to cause the result in the last one. What You Say: The end panel shows some really great results, but we got to think about the actions that caused those results. We ve been talking a lot about commitment and sticking to a plan this month, and this comic strip shows what happens when you do that. Every plan has a first step, and a second, and sometimes there s even a 12th and 47th step! When your plan is to [Bottom Line] practice living for God, sticking to it will get some amazing results. You may get discouraged when you re right in the middle, but if you show commitment, all that practice will end up in a whole life lived for God. What would it look like if you lived all of third or fourth grade for God? What kinds of things would you do differently? (Pause for answers.) That would be awesome! The people around you would want to know what was motivating you to act like that. They might even learn more about God s love by your commitment to [Bottom Line] practice living for God. [Make It Personal] (Share about a time when you lived for God even setting aside your own desires or preferences. Maybe you wake up early to pray, or you were consistently kind to a difficult person at work, or you respected your parents even when you disagreed with them.) It only takes one small step to start you on your way to living for God. Maybe you could even take that step this week. Note: Take a moment to talk about one step they could take this week to [Bottom Line] practice living for God. Encourage them to write down that one step on the back of their comic strip page and commit to doing it this week. If possible, take notes on what each kid writes down so you can follow up with them over text, email, or next week during Groups. 11

All Service Times Pray and Dismiss (10 minutes) [Pray to God Prayer Activity] Made to Reflect: an activity that creates space for personal understanding and application What You Need: No supplies needed What You Do: Gather the group in a circle for prayer. Tell kids that as you pray, they should reach for the hand of their neighboring class mate. At the end of the prayer there should be a circle children all holding hands, showing your commitment to grow together as a group and to [Bottom Line] practice living for God each week together. What You Say: Dear God, we are so happy to learn to live Your way, even now while we re young. Please help us to keep living for you our whole lives. Be with us as we work on our commitment to [Bottom Line] practice living for God. Amen. As adults arrive to pick up, talk to parents about their child s desire to live for God, following Jesus even in little things like getting ready for school, cheerfully helping out around the house, etc. Make plans to check in on your few this week and encourage them to keep their commitment to [Bottom Line] practice living for God. 12

SUNDAY MORNINGS January 28, 2018, Week 4 Grade: 3-4