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

Don t Look Back Bible: Don t Look Back (Israelites Long for Egypt) Exodus 16:2-21; 17:1-7 Bottom Line: Don t miss out on what you have now. Memory Verse: Then he said to them, Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions. Luke 12:15 (NIV) Life App: Contentment Deciding to be okay with what you have Basic Truth: I can trust God no matter what. Social: Providing Time for Fun Interaction (Small Groups, 15 minutes) Before kids arrive, take a few moments to pray for them. Ask God to give your group creative and fun ideas for ways they can be generous and rich in good deeds. Pray that God would remind you of ways your few can use their time, talents, and energy to be generous toward others. Thank God for giving you that opportunity through leading your group. 9:00 & 11:30 In the Moment What You Need: Popsicle sticks, marshmallows, a timer or a smartphone What You Do: Give each kid a Popsicle stick and a marshmallow, and let them practice holding the stick in their teeth at one end, and balancing a marshmallow on the other end. After a few practice rounds, set your timer for one minute and see if kids can balance the marshmallow for that long. For older kids, challenge them to stand on one foot, hold one hand behind their back, kneel and stand up, etc. What You Say: You really felt that whole minute while you were balancing that marshmallow! We can let minutes, days, or even our whole lives go by without noticing what God has given us. [Transition] Let s go hear about some people who stopped noticing how God had blessed them. Lead your group to the Large Group area. 2

10:15 Early Arriver Idea What You Need: Scratch paper, pen What You Do: Greet kids as they arrive. Ask them how much stuff they have on them. Does anyone have $100? A checkbook? Credit card? Gold bricks? We think these things are especially valuable, but we might miss what we do have if we re always looking for more. Assign point values to things kids do have on/with them: o Five points for shoes o Four points for shirts and pants, or a dress o Three points for a rock in their pocket o Four points each for any jewelry or hair accessories o Three points for each piece of Velcro on their clothes/shoes, or for each zipper o One point for each button o Six points for a Bible o Three points for a snack o Three points for a water bottle o Five points for a purse or bag/backpack o Five points for a sweater or coat o Three points for a rain jacket Explain that it might seem like we don't have anything, but your group together got [number] points! We don t always look at the right places to figure out the value of what we have. Lead your group to the Large Group area. 3

Don t Look Back Bible: Don t Look Back (Israelites Long for Egypt) Exodus 16:2-21; 17:1-7 Bottom Line: Don t miss out on what you have now. Memory Verse: Then he said to them, Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions. Luke 12:15 (NIV) Life App: Contentment Deciding to be okay with what you have Basic Truth: I can trust God no matter what. Bible: Communicating God s Truth in Engaging Ways (Large Group, 25 minutes) Engage kids hearts through a dynamic and interactive Bible Truth, worship, and prayer experience in a Large Group setting. CG: 10 Second count down CG: Theme Slide Host is on stage, welcoming the kids as they enter. Opener HOST: What s up, everybody? We ve had an amazing month so far talking about contentment. What IS contentment? Say it with me. CG: Contentment Slide HOST and KIDS: Contentment is deciding to be okay with what you have. HOST: Yes! Your stuff is good enough! What you hold is good as gold! What you own won t make you groan! Contentment is all about focusing what you already have, not on what you think you need. That s not easy for anyone. That s why we re getting some practice with our awesome game show: More or Less? Let me get four contestants who are ready to FEEL the contentment! SFX: Botanic Panic by Kristofer Maddigan Choose four kids. Bring them up on stage behind the table with the four banker s boxes. (To contestants) All right! On the table behind me are four boxes. Inside each box is a mystery prize. You can either play it safe and choose one of these boxes of Nerds... Hold up one of the boxes of Nerds.... OR you can take your chances and choose whatever s in your box. When I say, Go, each of you can put your arm through the hole and, without looking, try to figure out what you re touching. You ll all go at the same time. If you think you know what s in your box, and you think you want to keep it, you can, OR you can stick with the Nerds. (Hold up the box of Nerds.) Sound good? Then let s go! 5

Interview the kids as they all reach inside their boxes. Get them to describe what they re touching. (To the first kid) [Kid s name], you re up first. Are you going to go for the Nerds, or are you going to go with what s in your box? (Pause for response.) What do you think IS in your box? (Pause for response.) Let s find out! Open the box and hold up what s inside. Do this for all four contestants. If any of them end up with a not-great prize (like the dog food), give them some fun-size candy as a consolation prize. (To contestants) That was great! Thanks for playing, contestants. Hopefully you can be content with your choices. I think you all got something good! Dismiss contestants to their seats. (To audience) Now all of you put your hands together for [Historyteller s Name]! Host exits. Historyteller enters. SETTING UP THE BIBLE TRUTH HISTORYTELLER: Hey, everybody! I ve got [Host s name] here to help me, because we need lots of audience participation for today s Bible Truth. You re going to act like a live studio audience on a TV show. Have you ever watched a show where it sounds like people are laughing in the background? Well, that s your job today! When [Host s name] holds up a sign, you just do what it says on the sign. Then you ll stop when he puts it down again. Let s give it a try. Excellent! You re ready to go! Host holds up the APPLAUSE sign. Then he holds up the GROAN sign. Then he holds up the LAUGHTER sign. We re picking up our Bible Truth today with God s people, the Israelites. They had lived as slaves in Egypt for HUNDREDS of years. The Egyptians fed them well to keep their strength up, but they were still slaves. Host holds up the BOO sign. They were forced to do hard work every day for hours in the hot sun. It was basically a prison work camp with a meal plan. WE RE ALL DUNED HISTORYTELLER: But that all changed when Moses led them all out of slavery. God protected His people as they escaped from the Egyptians. He even guided them through the middle of the Red Sea! God had prepared a special land for them the Promised Land. That was great, but they had to travel through the desert to get there. 6

In the desert, it s hot. And there s no shade and not much to eat. It s not like there s a desert Starbucks right around the dune. So the people got hungry! They told Moses and his brother Aaron they weren t very happy with them. Listen to what the Israelites said to Moses and Aaron. We wish the LORD had put us to death in Egypt. Host holds up the COMPLAIN QUIETLY sign. Then he puts the sign down forcefully to cue the kids to stop complaining. (You may need to remind them to do this.) Open the Bible to Exodus 16:3 (NIrV) and read. Host holds up the COMPLAIN LOUDER sign. Then he puts it down to quiet the kids. There we sat around pots of meat. We ate all the food we wanted. But you have brought us out into this desert. You must want this entire community to die of hunger. Host holds up the COMPLAIN EVEN LOUDER sign. Then he puts it down to quiet the kids. Host holds up the COMPLAIN LOUDEST sign. Then he puts it down to quiet the kids. Wow. The people REALLY weren t happy. Can you believe they told Moses and Aaron that they d rather die in Egypt as slaves than be where they were right then? That s crazy! Host holds up the GASP sign. However, God had a plan for Moses, Aaron, and the people of Israel. Here s what God said. Open the Bible to Exodus 16:4-5 (NIrV) and read. I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people must go out each day. Have them gather enough bread for that day. Here is how I will test them. I will see if they will follow my directions. On the sixth day they must prepare what they bring in. On that day they must gather twice as much as on the other days. Well, that s pretty great! The people complained that they were hungry, and BAM God said He would send bread from heaven! All they had to do was make sure they gathered up enough on the sixth day of the week so they d have leftovers on the seventh day. 7

WHINY ISRAELITES HISTORYTELLER: So that s exactly what Moses and Aaron told the people. They said that God would send the meat in the evening and bread in the morning. And get this the glory of the Lord appeared in the clouds! Host holds up the OOOOH / AHHHHHH sign and then the APPLAUSE sign. That very evening, ANOTHER amazing thing happened. Thousands of quail came and covered the camp. These birds were delicious to eat! Host holds up the YUMMY YUM YUM sign. Then, in the morning, after the morning dew was gone, there was a flaky substance left on the desert floor. It was manna bread flakes that tasted like honey straight from heaven. Each person got to take three pounds of it for each person living in their tents. Host holds up the YUMMY YUM YUM sign. QUENCH YOUR BELLYACHING HISTORYTELLER: While God provided bread every morning and quail every evening, He kept leading the Israelites through the desert, camping at different places. One such place was called Rephidim. But when God s people got there, they found that there wasn t any water to drink. So can you guess what they did? (Pause for response.) Yep, they started to complain and argue with Moses again. They whined about how thirsty they were. They told Moses they weren t happy with him. Host holds up the COMPLAIN QUIETLY sign and then puts it down. Host holds up the COMPLAIN LOUDER sign and then puts it down. Host holds up the COMPLAIN EVEN LOUDER sign and then puts it down. Open the Bible to Exodus 17:3 (NIrV) and read. They said: Why did you bring us out of Egypt? Did you want us, our children and our livestock to die of thirst? Host holds up the COMPLAIN LOUDEST sign and then puts it down. 8

Ugh! So much drama! As you might imagine, Moses was getting pretty frustrated with the way they were acting. He went to the Lord and was like, What in the world am I supposed to do with these people? God told him to take his staff and hit the rock at Mount Horeb. Then water would come out of it for the people to drink. Moses did what God said. He took his staff and struck the rock, and sure enough, water poured out for the Israelites to drink! Host holds up the GASP sign, the SLURP sign and then the APPLAUSE sign in rapid succession. Wow. Can we give [Host s name] a round of applause for holding up all those signs? Thanks, buddy! Host holds up the YOU RE WELCOME sign and exits. WRAPPING UP THE BIBLE TRUTH HISTORYTELLER: All along the way, God gave His people what they needed when they needed it. He never left them alone. He never forgot about them. Each time, He provided for them. But for some reason, they were so focused on what they had back in Egypt that they kept missing what God was giving them right then and there! We do that too. We get caught up in the way things used to be or the way we wish they could be. We forget to pay attention to what God is doing in our lives right now. CG: Bottom Line Slide [Bottom Line] Don t miss out on what you have now. Let s talk to God and ask Him to help us focus on what He s doing right in front of us. We need His help to be able to choose to be content! Let s pray. CG: Blank Bottom Line Slide Pray HISTORYTELLER: God, thank You for giving us what we need when we need it. We know [Basic Truth] we can trust You no matter what! Please help us to focus on You and see all the ways You re there for us. When we wish things in our lives could be different, help us to stop and choose to be content with what You ve given us. Help us to see all the great things You re doing in our lives right now. We love You, and we ask these things in Jesus name, amen. If you have an offering with you today, you can bring that on up now. Now, up on your feet and give some mad respect to our Power Praise team! Power Praise team enters as Historyteller exits. 9

Worship SFX: We Shine SFX: No Other Love SFX: Glory to God Host enters as Power Praise Team exits. Closer HOST: Honestly, it isn t always easy to choose to be content. Sometimes it s downright hard especially when you miss the way things used to be. If you ve ever had to move to a new town and a new school, you know what it s like to miss your old friends. Most of you probably have a new teacher or a new coach this year, and things probably aren t like they were last year. Sometimes we can spend so much time focusing on how things used to be that we lose sight of how things are right now. The Israelites whined about not having food and water, but they totally missed out on the fact that they weren t slaves anymore. They were free! God had protected them; He had given them a miraculous escape from the Egyptian army. When they were hungry, He provided quail and bread for them to eat. When they were thirsty, He provided water from a rock. But they didn t stop to appreciate all that He was doing for them. All they could think to do was complain! The good news is, you can learn from their mistakes. You can remember that God is always with you and He always loves you. You can trust Him every step of the way! CG: Bottom Line Slide Remember, [Bottom Line] don t miss out on what you have now. Pay attention, so you don t miss all the ways that God is providing for you. Take a moment and think about what you have right now. CG: Memory Verse Slide Then he said to them, Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions. Luke 12:15 (NIV) HOST: Be on your guard. When you recognize that you need to shift your focus, do it. Pray and shift the focus. It may not be instant but the more you practice it the more natural it will come to you and then one day, you will find yourself having to check your focus less and less because your focus will be on God. Think of something God is doing for you, your family, or your friends, and get ready to talk about it back in Small Group! Dismiss children to their Small Groups. CG: Small Group Slide 10

Don t Look Back Bible: Don t Look Back (Israelites Long for Egypt) Exodus 16:2-21; 17:1-7 Bottom Line: Don t miss out on what you have now. Memory Verse: Then he said to them, Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions. Luke 12:15 (NIV) Life App: Contentment Deciding to be okay with what you have Basic Truth: I can trust God no matter what. Groups: Creating a Safe Place to Connect (10 minutes) 9:00 & 11:30 Be on Guard What You Need: Shields, 5 rolls of 2.5 masking tape, strips of cardstock, ping-pong balls, masking tape, markers, Bibles, finished sample shield What You Do: Recite this month s memory verse together. Hand out the markers and instruct kids to write your preferred translation of the Be on your guard section of the memory verse. Help kids use the cardstock strips to create a handle for their shields. o Fold the strip in half lengthwise to reinforce it. o o Tape one end of the strip several inches from the top of the back of the shield. Create an arch with the strip, and tape the other end so it leaves some room in the middle to grab onto the handle. When everyone has finished, divide your group into two teams. Create a masking tape line down the center of the two teams. Give each team half of the ping-pong balls, and instruct them to divide them evenly amongst the teammates. When you say, Go they will get to throw ping-pong balls at the other team, but they also have to use their shields to dodge the ping-pong balls being thrown at them! Make sure kids know not to step over the line in the middle of the teams. What You Say: I m not sure what you all were better at throwing the ping-pong balls or dodging them! Awesome job. You know, you all just displayed a perfect example of what our verse has been talking about this entire month. We want to be on guard against wanting more and more things. We want to dodge and avoid the wants and wishes that create discontentment in our hearts. Keep defending your heart, and [Bottom Line] don t miss out on what you have now. 11

10:15 Past, Present, Future What You Need: Past, Present, Future Activity Page, light-colored construction paper, markers What You Do: Set out the sheets of construction paper in a line across the center of your small group area and line your group up along it. Tell them that the line of paper represents RIGHT NOW the age/grade/size they are in the present. Explain that behind the paper (point to one side) is the past and in front of it is the future. Read the statements from the Activity Page, and encourage kids to stand on the paper or move into the future or past accordingly. For older kids, encourage them to move ahead/back proportionally as far into the future/past as the statements indicate (driving is a couple steps ahead, being a baby is all the way to the back of the room, etc.) When you ve finished the list, let each kid choose a piece of the construction paper and draw or write one thing they are thankful they have or can do right now in their lives. Encourage kids to think about aspects of their lives that are unique to this time: their teachers, friends, interests, etc. Gather the group and let them share what they are thankful for RIGHT NOW. What You Say: Time flies! What you were looking forward to last year may have already happened; what you are waiting for 10 years down the road will someday just be a memory as an adult. You ll never go back to being a baby or a preschooler, either. Kids wish they were adults, adults wish they were kids; we all wish time would move faster or slower. That s why it s important that you [Bottom Line] don t miss out on what you have now. Don t pine over the past or rush to the future. Be content with the age you are now, the blessings you have now, and the people you spend all that time with. [Make It Personal] (Share about a time when you almost missed what was going on in the present by being wrapped up in the past or future. How did it feel to realize you were missing out on the present? Have you done anything differently since then?) 12

All Service Times Pray and Dismiss (10 minutes) What You Need: Timer What You Do: Guide kids to get comfortable in a circle. Tell them that they will be praying silently for a whole two minutes, telling God how thankful they are for the blessings they have right now. They can think prayers to God, who knows everything, and He will hear them. If they worry about running out of things to say, suggest they thank God individually for each person who loves them, each place where they feel safe, each sport or color or food they enjoy. Direct kids to be reverent and not to move around or talk or poke anyone else. It might be wise to encourage them to get into a traditional prayer pose: kneeling comfortably with folded hands and closed eyes. Do not close your own eyes. You may choose to play quiet worship music while kids pray. When the time is up, guide kids to take a deep breath in and out and say, Amen, together. What You Say: That was a good prayer time! Many people pray silently at different times of the day. This week, when you feel like your day is blah and boring, or if you find yourself wishing you were somewhere else, stop and pray so that you [Bottom Line] don t miss out on what you have now. 13

Driving a car Eating baby food Riding a bike Riding in a stroller Going to high school Going to preschool Going to middle school Going to elementary school Getting a job Getting an allowance Next Christmas Last Christmas Your birthday School vacation The first day of kindergarten The last day of high school Getting a cell phone Carrying a toy phone everywhere Using a pacifier Using a computer at school Doing your own taxes Mowing the lawn Reading books Writing books Getting dentures you can keep by the bed in a glass Becoming a parent Becoming a grandparent Traveling alone What to Do: Print one for each small group. Past, Present, Future October 2018, Week 4, K-5 Starter 2018 The rethink Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

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