LESSON 15 Total Surrender Bible Basis: Daniel 3; Acts 6:8 7:60 Key Verse: Romans 12:1: When you offer your bodies to God, you are worshiping him in the right way. Key Question: How do I grow a life of sacrificial ser vice? Key Idea: I dedicate my life to God s plan. Resource: Believe Storybook Bible, Chapter 15, Total Surrender or story script (below) Master Supplies List Believe Storybook Bible (optional) PowerPoint slides or printable posters of illustrations Family Page (one per child) Optional Supplies You will need the following supplies based on which option(s) you choose in STEP 3 Explore More: OPTION 1: Clear plastic disposable cups (one per child), red and yellow tissue paper cut into strips (several per child), glue sticks, crayons, Boys in the Fire sheet (one per child) OPTION 4: Crayons or markers, Let s Color! sheet (one per child) OPTION 6: Two puppets, toys, donation box
STEP 1 Come Together (10 min) THE ICE-CREAM SACRIFICE GATHER the children. SAY, Today we are going to learn about a group of friends who we will call the three Hebrew children. They lived in a country where everyone in the entire country worshiped a false god, but they didn t. They refused to pray to this false god. Instead, these three brave Hebrew children had to make some hard choices. ASK, Have you ever had to make a hard choice? (Take responses) SAY, Sometimes choices are easy, and sometimes they are hard. For example, when you go to the ice-cream store, you have to choose between many different flavors. But whatever choice you make, you end up with ice cream, and usually every flavor choice is yummy. ASK, What flavor ice cream do you always choose? (Take responses) SAY, Sometimes we have to make hard choices in life. We have to give up something or not get something we want. Let s say that I gave each of you one dollar to spend at the ice-cream store. On your way into the store, you see a little boy who is crying on the step outside because his mom can t afford to buy him ice cream. The hard choice is this: Do you go inside and buy ice cream for yourself, or do you give your dollar to that boy? EXPLAIN, We call a hard choice a sacrifice. (Write this word on the board) ASK, Can you say that word with me? (Sacrifice) SAY, If you choose to give your only dollar to the boy, then you make a sacrifice. You give up something you want the ice cream in order to show kindness to a stranger. That s a sacrifice. REVIEW SAY, Today we learned that when you have to make a tough choice, it is sometimes called a sacrifice. Later we will learn more about how the three Hebrew children had to sacrifice. KEY VERSE REVIEW this week s Key Verse. You may want to repeat the verse slowly a few times until the children are able to say the verse from memory. NOTE: You may also choose to review last week s Key Verse together. LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL 2
Romans 12:1 When you offer your bodies to God, You are worshiping him in the right way. (Stand up straight and tall) (Lift hands before God) (Move hands back and forth) STEP 2 Hear the Story (15 min) Supplies: Believe Storybook Bible (optional), PowerPoint slides or printable posters of illustrations INTRODUCTION TELL the children that they will be learning more about making tough choices and about sacrifice. SAY, We already learned that people must make tough choices, and we call these choices sacrifices. CONTINUE, We ll also learn more about the sacrifice the three Hebrew children made and some sacrifices made by other people in the Bible. READ CHAPTER 15 READ aloud the story script below or chapter 15, Total Surrender, from the Believe Storybook Bible. SHOW the illustrations included with this curriculum on PowerPoint slides or printable posters. THE STORY OF THE FIERY FURNACE Have you ever helped clean up your home when you would rather be playing instead? When you choose to do something that you don t want to do, you are making a sacrifice! God wants us to always choose to do the right thing, even if we don t feel like it. He wants us to make the sacrifice of putting him first, just like the three Hebrew children did. Long ago, the Hebrew people were slaves in Babylonia. Their king, King Nebuchadnezzar, wanted everyone to worship a golden statue. He made a law that said anyone who doesn t worship the golden statue will be thrown into a fiery furnace. The three Hebrew children loved God and worshiped him. They would not worship a golden statue. King Nebuchadnezzar LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL 3
became angry. He ordered his soldiers to throw the three Hebrew children into the fiery furnace! The fire was hotter than ever. King Nebuchadnezzar looked into the furnace. He didn t see three people, but four! Come out of the furnace, he called. The three Hebrew children were not burned or hurt. They didn t even smell like smoke! King Nebuchadnezzar was amazed. Your God sent an angel to save you! He is a great God! From now on, no one will say anything bad about your God. The three Hebrew children had made a very tough decision a sacrifice. They did not worship the golden statue. They went into the fiery furnace. They chose to put God first and God rescued them! THE STORY OF STEPHEN Jesus knew about making sacrifices. He always did what God wanted him to do. He put us first and himself last. He even gave his life for us. Some of Jesus followers gave their lives, too. Stephen chose to follow Jesus, even though it cost him his life. After Jesus went to heaven, Stephen helped the new church to grow. He told people about Jesus and even performed miracles. This made some people angry. They wanted Stephen to stop, so they told lies about him. The leaders asked Stephen to explain himself. But Stephen didn t talk about himself, he talked about God! He said, Long ago, our leaders listened to God, but you do not listen to God. You do not obey God s law. You ve even killed the men who taught about Jesus. Now the leaders were angry, too! They chased Stephen out of the city. The crowd of people threw rocks at him. Even as he was being hurt, Stephen prayed, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit! Stephen put God first, even when it was very hard. He died and went to heaven to be with Jesus. How can you put God first? Spend time with God and get to know him. Learn what God wants you to do and obey him. Putting God first is always the right choice. LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL 4
REVIEW THE FIERY FURNACE ASK, What does sacrifice mean? (Choosing to do something we might not really want to do; making hard choices that put other people first) ASK, What kind of sacrifice did the three Hebrew children make? (They chose to be true to God; they didn t bow down or pray to the false god) ASK, Were the three Hebrew children hurt when they were thrown into the furnace? (No) ASK, Who saved them? (God sent an angel to save them) REVIEW STEPHEN ASK, Who was Stephen? (He was a follower of Jesus) ASK, Why were people angry with him? (They did not like the miracles he did or the things he said about Jesus) ASK, What sacrifice did Stephen make? (He chose to keep sharing the good news about Jesus even though people told him to stop and wanted to hurt him) PRAY, God, please help us as we make hard choices and sacrifices in order to love you and love others. Amen. STEP 3 Explore More Choose from these activity options, depending on your available time frame, to help the children explore the lesson further. Option 1: Boys in the Fire (15 min) Supplies: Clear plastic disposable cups (one per child), red and yellow tissue paper cut into strips (several per child), glue sticks, crayons, Boys in the Fire sheet (one per child) Teacher Prep: Print and photocopy the Boys in the Fire sheet (one per child). Prepare a sample to use as an example. SAY, Today we learned how the three Hebrew children (Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego) were saved from the flames in the fiery furnace. SAY, We are going to make a craft that helps show this. PASS out the plastic cups, tissue paper strips, Boys in the Fire sheet, crayons, and glue sticks. INSTRUCT the children to begin gluing the tissue paper strips to the outside of the cups. LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL 5
INSTRUCT the children to use crayons to color the Boys in the Fire sheet. HELP the children loosely roll up their coloring page, with the boys facing outward, and place the page inside their paper cup. SAY, Just like we learned today in our story, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego weren t scared. They surrendered themselves to God s care, and he saved them from even the fiery furnace! SHOW the children how they can place the picture of the boys in the fiery furnace and then take the picture out, showing that the boys were unharmed. Option 2: Fiery Furnace Memory Game (10 min) Teacher Prep: This game is played exactly like Duck, Duck, Goose, except instead of saying, duck, you will say, fire ; and instead of saying goose, you will use one of the names of the three Hebrew children. When a child is tapped as Shadrach, Meshach, or Abednego, they must enter the middle of the circle (the fiery furnace) and recite their memory verse (help prompt the children if they have trouble saying all the words). When finished, that child can continue the game by going around the circle to choose another child to do the same. SAY, Today we will play a game to help us with our memory verse. REPEAT the verse together several times. Romans 12:1: When you offer your bodies to God, you are worshiping him in the right way. SAY, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego sacrificed their bodies to God, and he was very pleased. He saved them from the fire because they surrendered themselves to him. EXPLAIN the rules of the game to the children. PRACTICE saying the names of the three Hebrew children: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. PLAY the game until every child has had a turn. Option 3: Three Good Boys Action Song (5 min) The song is sung to the tune of Three Blind Mice. Three good boys, three good boys Prayed to their God, prayed to their God. (hold up three fingers) (clasp hands in prayer) LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL 6
And then the king got really mad. He threw them into a giant fire. But God saved them and kept them safe. Three good boys, three good boys. (make angry face and shake pointed finger) (make motion as if tossing something) (raise hands to praise God) (hold up three fingers) Option 4: Let s Color! (10 min) Supplies: Crayons or markers, Let s Color! sheet (one per child) Teacher Prep: Print and photocopy the Let s Color! sheet (one per child) GIVE each child a coloring page. PROVIDE a selection of crayons and/or markers for the children to share. DISCUSS this week s Key Idea as the children color. Option 5: Praise and Worship (15 min) My God Is So Big by Ruth Harms Calkin 1959, 2002 by Nuggets of Truth CCLI #2501437 Trust and Obey by Daniel Brink Towner Public domain CCLI #5252415 Option 6: Act It Out (10 min) Hard to Give Use two puppets, or a teacher and teacher s helper, to act out the following short skit. Characters Props Jordan McKell Two puppets (optional) Toys Donation box LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL 7
Jordan: Mom says we should clean out our toy box and give some toys to the children s hospital. Our church s youth group is going there Saturday to play with the kids and give them some toys. What do you want to give away? McKell: What? I don t want to give my toys away. Jordan: Not all of them. Just pick out a few things that you think would make the kids at the hospital happy. McKell: I don t even know those kids. Why should I give them my toys? Jordan: Well, because they are really sick, and some of them have to stay at the hospital for a really long time. I bet it gets boring. McKell: Here, what about this? (holds up a broken toy) Jordan: That s only good for the trash can. You can do better than that. McKell: I don t like this. I don t like the way I feel about giving my stuff away. Jordan: That s because you are making a sacrifice. Making a sacrifice doesn t always feel good. McKell: Then why do it? Jordan: Because you are not doing it to make yourself feel good; you are doing it because it helps someone else. Don t you want to be nice to someone else? God likes it when we help people and make them feel good, even if it s hard for us. McKell: I really don t think a few of my toys are going to make those kids feel any better about being sick. Jordan: It might not make their sickness go away, but it could make them happy for a little while. And that s something, isn t it? McKell: (starts putting small toys in the box, then stops and crosses arms) This is no fun. Jordan: What if I was one of the kids in the hospital and I had no toys? Wouldn t you want to make me smile? McKell: (quietly) If you were in the hospital? Well... yeah, sure. I d want to cheer you up, for sure! Jordan: Or imagine you re stuck in the hospital all day, with no friends and nothing to do. McKell: That would be awful. Jordan: Exactly! Now imagine that some kids show up to give you toys and play with you for a while. Would that cheer you up? McKell: Absolutely! I see what you mean. I want to make those sick kids happy. Jordan: There you go! That s the spirit. Now let s get this toy box cleaned out. LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL 8
STEP 4 Going Home (5 min) Supplies: Family Page (one per child) Teacher Prep: Print and photocopy the Family Page (one per child). GIVE each child a copy of this week s Family Page. SAY, Give this page to your family when they pick you up. It will remind you to tell your family what you learned about sacrifice and putting God first. HAVE the children practice telling you the story of the three Hebrew children. REVIEW this week s Key Verse as well as today s story and Key Idea from the Believe Storybook Bible as you wait for the children to get picked up. MAKE sure each child remembers to take home any activity sheets or craft projects and the Family Page. LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL 9
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LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL Boys in the Fire Template
Let s Color! Name: [Coloring page to come] LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL
FAMILY PAGE Lesson 15: Total Surrender Bible Basis: Daniel 3; Acts 6:8 7:60 Key Verse: Romans 12:1: When you offer your bodies to God, you are worshiping him in the right way. Key Question: How do I grow a life of sacrificial ser vice? Key Idea: I dedicate my life to God s plan. Resource: Believe Storybook Bible, Chapter 15, Total Surrender How to Use This Page This week, your family can either read the story from the Believe Storybook Bible or read the Bible Basis passages from your Bible to help your child remember the lesson. Use the Table Talk questions below to start a discussion around the dinner table, while driving in the car, or just about anywhere. The Living Faith activity is designed to remind your child of the Bible lesson through a drama or other engaging activity. The Extra Mile idea provides interactive ways for your child to connect with the story. Table Talk 1. When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were told to worship a false God, did they obey? (No) When the angry people wanted Stephen to stop preaching, did he obey them? (No) 2. What does sacrifice mean? (It means to do something even when you don t want to; it s when you decide to do something that will be hard on you) 3. What are some things at home that you need to do but sometimes don t want to do? (Answers will vary) 4. Why is it important to sacrifice at home? (It s important to practice sacrifice and ser vice with the people closest to us; it s a way to love our family well and model Christ for one another; it s good to help one another in daily activities, even when we don t feel like cleaning or doing our chores) LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL
Living Faith Option 1 The story of the fiery furnace is a fun one for children to act out. Use ripped up red, orange, and yellow tissue or construction paper to make a furnace, and use dolls or toy figurines to represent Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Help your child pray for their safety, and then show how God protected them when they were in the furnace. They walked out unharmed, and the king praised God. Option 2 As another option, you and your child can play the Secret Servant game at home this week. See if you and your child can perform sacrificial ser vices, such as making the other person s bed or performing someone else s chore, without the other person finding out. If your child has a hard time coming up with sacrificial ser vice ideas, you can brainstorm together and form a tag team to help out another member of your family instead. Extra Mile Acquainting your child at an early age with sacrificial giving is an important way to teach them humility and generosity. Donating food to a food bank, clothes to a shelter, or toys for toy drives will give your child a hands-on experience in giving. When children give away personal belongings, it helps them to understand the concept of sacrifice and the satisfaction of giving to others. Sacrifice does not just apply to things. Often, sacrificing at home involves sacrificing our wants, our time, and ourselves. Take time to point out to your child certain things that seem hard for him or her to do for others, such as sharing, participating in chores, or obeying quickly. Explain how sacrificing what they want in order to serve others can be pleasing to God. Make this more concrete by explaining some of the sacrifices you make for your child, such as, I sacrifice sleeping in late on Saturday mornings because it makes you so happy when I wake up early and make you pancakes! During family prayer time, make sure to mention the importance of sacrificing our things and our time on behalf of other people. LESSON 15: Total Surrender PRESCHOOL