Sacrifice of Praise
Key Verse
Psalm 100:1-5
Additional Verses
Joshua 6:16; Psalm 150:1-6; Hebrews 13:15
Materials Needed
- Trumpet or Ram’s horn
Object Lesson
I brought a trumpet with me today. Would you like to hear me play it? (Try to play it.) It didn’t sound that good did it? Well did you know that in the Bible wars were won by using trumpets? I know it sounds crazy, but it’s true!
Several times God send the Israelites into battle and guess what He said to do? He said to put the praisers on the front line! If you were going into battle who would you want to put on the front line? (Wait for responses.) Probably your strongest and most skilled warriors. But God told Joshua to march around the walls of Jericho and put the trumpet players on the front line! God also told Jehoshaphat to send the praisers out in front. Would you want to be on the front lines of a battle singing and playing music? Probably not!
Do you know what praising is? In Psalm 100:1-5 it says that praise is giving thanks to God. We often will do this by singing and playing instruments. Basically it is thanking God for the Good things He has done.
Wouldn’t that be wild going into battle and the very first thing you do if sing and give thanks to God? I think I would be pretty nervous!
Do you know what happened next??
When the trumpets blew and the people started to sing and shout giving praise to God and thanking Him for the things that He has done, God fought the battle for them! God tore the walls of Jericho down! God defeated the enemy!
Sometimes it isn’t easy to give thanks to God in the middle of a battle. In Hebrews 13:15 it says that we bring a “sacrifice of praise.” Why is it a sacrifice? Because it isn’t easy! It is hard to do! But when we begin to give thanks to God and praise Him then amazing things begin to happen. When we give thanks to God then He will fight out battles for us!
You may be facing a difficult situation in your life, but don’t be sad and discouraged! Start to sing! Start to praise God. Give thanks to our Lord! And let Him fight and win the battle for you!
Leftovers Relay
Materials Needed
- 2 large bowls of mashed potatoes
- 2 clear Tupperware containers
- 10 Plastic spoons
Setup
Fill two bowls with mashed potatoes and place them on a table. At the other end of the room place the empty storage containers.
How To Play
Here is a fun Thanksgiving-themed relay race where kids will try to fill their leftovers containers up. You will have two teams of five and give each person with a plastic spoon.
When you say “go” the first person in line will use their spoon to take a scoop of mashed potato and run to the container on the other side of the room. There they will deposit their scoop of potato into the container and run back and tag their teammate and then go tot he end of the line. The teammate will then scoop up come mashed potato and do the same thing.
You can give the players 60 – 90 seconds to run this relay.
Once the game is over measure to see who has the most mashed potato in their storage container.
Friendship Bracelets
Key Verse
Proverbs 18:24
Additional Verses
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12; John 15:13; Proverbs 17:17; Hebrews 10:24-25; Proverbs 27:17
Materials Needed
- Friendship bracelets (If you wanted to you could give one to everyone, or make them together as a craft)
Object Lesson
(Show your friendship bracelets.)
Has anyone ever give you one of these before? This is a friendship bracelet. Usually you will make them and then give them out to your friends. Have any of you made them and given them to someone before? (Let them show their bracelets if you want.)
The Bible says in Proverbs 18:24 that a good friend will stick closer than a brother. We all have acquaintances, friends that we see from time to time but are not very close to us. Those friends are nice to have, but they are not the people who you would call on when you are in trouble or you really need a hand, but there are people you can talk to, and is easy to make friends now a days if you go to a chat online.
A true close friend will stand by your side when no one else will. They will be there for you. They will support you. They will help you. They will even stick closer to you than a family member might. Have you ever had a friend like that?
I hope that you have a friend like that! I also hope that you are a good friend like that to someone! Even if you don’t have a friend that is that close to you we do have a friend in Jesus! He loved us so much that He died for our sin and came to set us free. He will NEVER leave us and never forsake us! He will always be there for us when we face trouble and difficulties.
From time to we may feel lonely like no one cares for us. Always remember that God does care for us and loves us more than anyone else ever could. He is our friend even if we feel like we don’t have any friends at all.
Ten Lepers
Key Verse
Luke 17:11-19
Additional Verses
1 Thessalonians 5:18; Psalm 136:1; James 1:17
Materials Needed
- Gauze or elastic bandage
Preparation
Wrap your arm up with the gauze or bandage.
Object Lesson
(Show your arm all wrapped up.)
Leprosy was a very bad skin disease that many people had long ago in the Bible times. It was very contagious so when someone had leprosy they would send them away from the town so that no one else would get infected. Whenever someone would walk by the lepers would yell “unclean” so that everyone knew that they should stay far away.
This was a very lonely life for the lepers because they had to leave their friends and families behind and life in the wilderness. Often the lepers would make friends with each other and start to live together, but they always wanted to go back home.
One day there were ten lepers who were wandering around and saw that Jesus as He was walking towards Jerusalem. They began to shout out to Jesus saying, “Jesus have mercy on us!”
When Jesus saw them he felt bad for them. They had bandages all over their body like this one that is on my arm. Jesus told them to go and show themselves to the high priests. Back in those days the priests would be the people who would decide if the person was healthy enough to be allowed to live in the village or not.
The ten men began to walk to the village to go and see the priest and as they walked back they realized that they were feeling better. (Unwrap your arm as you say the next part.) They unwrapped their bandages and realized that they had been healed! They were all so excited because they knew that meant they could go back home to their families and loved ones. They all began to run with excitement!
However, one of the men stopped running and he turned around and ran back to see Jesus. When he saw Jesus he fell down at His feet and he thanked Him. He was so grateful that Jesus had healed him. Jesus was happy that the man returned to thank Him, but He also wondered where the other men were, and why they didn’t return to say “thanks” as well.
How do you think that made Jesus feel when those nine people who He healed didn’t even bother to come back to say “thank you?” I would be pretty disappointed if I was Jesus. Do you thank Jesus for the things that He does in your life? Are you like that one that came back with a heart of gratitude or are you like the nine that were ungrateful?
Magnetic Thankfulness
Key Verse
Ephesians 5:20
Additional Verses
1 Thessalonians 5:18; 1 Chronicles 16:34; Psalm 107:1; Philippians 4:6; 2 Corinthians 2:14; Psalm 103:2
Materials Needed
- Magnet
- Several pieces of metal. Nails, screws, paperclips, etc.
Object Lesson
Have you ever given someone a gift before? How would it make you feel if they took your gift and didn’t thank you for it? Or if they just took it and threw it in the garbage? That wouldn’t make you feel very good would it? Would you ever want to get them a gift again? Probably not!
If that person was very thankful to you how would that make you feel? Probably a lot better. In fact, you would probably want to bless them even more because they were so thankful to you.
God blesses us in so many ways, but so often we just ignore his blessings. We don’t say “thank you.” We don’t express gratitude. We just go on and totally take it for granted.
Do you think that attracts God’s blessings? No!
(Show the magnet and spread out the objects.)
When we are grateful to God for the great things He has done for us it is like being a magnet for God’s blessing. (Wave the magnet over the objects and let the magnet pick the things up.)
When we tell God how thankful we are He will continue to bless us even more. W should have a heart of thankfulness like it says in Ephesians 5:20 and we show thanks to God continually. When we have this magnetic thankfulness God will pour His blessings on us even more because He loves it when we are grateful for the things He has done.
Whiter Than Snow
Key Verse
Psalm 51:7
Additional Verses
Isaiah 1:18; John 1:29; 1 John 1:7; Matthew 23:26
Materials Needed
- Sheet of Paper
- Scissors
Preparation
You will be making a paper snowflake so you may want to practice if you have never made one before. If you are teaching a class of kids you could also hand out pieces of paper and have them make the snowflakes as well.
Object Lesson
(Take out the piece of paper and being to fold it and cut it into the shape of a snowflake. You can do this while you talk.)
Have you ever made a paper snowflake before? They are a lot of fun to make, and they are a great way to decorate your house for winter. There is nothing so beautiful as freshly fallen snow. It is so white and pure. Whenever I see snow, or when I make a paper snowflake I think about Psalm 51:7 where is says “Wash me and I will be whiter than snow!”
Snow is very white isn’t it? Can you imaging anything more white than snow? God says that when he forgives our sins we are even whiter than snow!
Snow may look very white, but did you know that each snowflake has a dirty secret? When snowflakes form it actually forms around a very tiny piece of dust. The ice crystals grow on this piece of dust and it becomes a beautiful snowflake. But even though the snowflake it beautiful and white on the outside it is dirty inside. Many people are like that. They look nice and clean and happy on the outside, but inside they are sad and full of sin.
Jesus wants to clean us of that sin. He wants to save us and forgive us. He does not just want to clean us and make us look nice and white like a snowflake though. He wants to clean us on the inside. He wants to take that dirty heart and make it clean.
Jesus wants to make us not AS white as snow, but He wants to make us even WHITER than snow!
5 Kernels of Corn Thanksgiving
Key Verse
Ephesians 5:20
Additional Verses
Psalm 107:8; 1 Thessalonians 5:18; Philippians 4:16; Psalm 107:1; Psalm 100:1-5
Materials Needed
- Candy Corn (or real corn if you prefer)
- Small plastic bags (optional)
Preparation
Fill bags with 5 pieces of candy corn so you can pass them out to everyone.
Object Lesson
(Show everyone the 5 kernels of corn.)
In the winter of the 1620s the Pilgrims came to New England on the Mayflower. They did not have very much food at all that winter and many days they were only allowed to eat 5 kernels of corn. Do you think that is enough food? No! But they were still thankful to God for allowing them to be in a new country. They continued to trust in God no one of them died that winter!
The following year they raised crops and livestock and when harvest time came they had more than enough food. God had truly blessed them. To show how thankful they were they had a celebration. At the beginning of the meal they all had five kernels of corn on their plate to remind them of when that was all that they had to eat.
Each person would give 5 things that they were thankful for, one for each kernel of corn.
What are you thankful for? (Give opportunity for people to respond with some of the things that they are thankful for.) Are you thankful for your home? Maybe you are grateful for the food and drink that you have to eat and drink? We can be thankful for our friends and family. How about being thankful for your church? Most importantly we should be thankful for Jesus and the sacrifice that He made for us!
This Thanksgiving maybe you could do that also? You can put 5 pieces of corn on each plate and have each person in your family list 5 things that they are thankful for. God has been so good to us and have blessed us in so many ways. We should give thanks to him for the great things He has done!
Distractions
Key Verse
Hebrews 12:2
Additional Verses
Psalm 119:15; Luke 10:28-32; Philippians 4:8
Materials Needed
- 2×4 Board
Object Lesson
(Come out carrying the 2×4 and lay it on the floor.)
Have any of you ever walked on a balance beam before? Do any of you think that you would be able to walk along this board without falling off? (Pick a volunteer to come up and help you out.)
All you have to do is walk across this board, but don’t fall off! I will stand at the far end and you just walk across the board towards me. (Let the person walk across the board towards you, it should be pretty easy.)
Was that very hard? (Wait for their response.) No, not at all. Because you were paying close attention on me and focusing on what you were trying to do. In Hebrews 12:2 it says that we should keep our eyes on Jesus. When we keep our eyes on Jesus we can walk our path in life, just like our volunteer walked along this balance beam pretty easily.
However, some people don’t want to look at Christ. They look at other things in the world. They look at jobs, school, relationships, money, and all kinds of other things. It isn’t that these things are necessarily bad but they are not the things that we should be focusing on.
We are now going to have our volunteer try to walk across the balance beam again. The big difference is that this time they will not be allowed to look at me they will have to look at everyone else. (Encourage everyone else to cheer or make noise, and tell your volunteer that they can only look out at the audience.)
(Have them walk across the board, this time they should fall off pretty quickly.)
That wasn’t as easy was it? Why not? (Wait for a response.) Because our volunteer was distracted and was focusing on other things other than what he should be focusing on. He didn’t do very well with all the distractions.
When we go through life we need to keep our eyes on Jesus and not get distracted by looking at the things around us. When we keep our eyes on Him He will help us to walk the path that He wants us to.
Sword of the Spirit
Key Verse
Ephesians 6:17
Additional Verses
Hebrews 4:12; Isaiah 49:2; Matthew 4:10-11
Materials Needed
- Sword
- Bible
Object Lesson
(Take out the sword and show everyone.)
Does anyone know what this is? It is a sword! Do you know what swords are used for? Fighting! In Ephesians 6:11 we are told to put on God’s armor and most of the armor listed is for our protection. But there is only one piece of armor that is used for fighting back. Do you know what is? The Sword of the Spirit!
Swords are sharp and they are used for cutting and the Bible says in Hebrews 4:12 that God’s Word is sharper than the sharpest knife! That means that it is powerful!
The Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God. The way that you use it is by memorizing and quoting Scripture when you need it. When Jesus was in the wilderness being tempted by the devil he overcame those temptations by quoting Scripture. When Jesus quoted those verses that was like he was taking some serious jabs at the devil and the devil couldn’t take it anymore and he ran away!
When we are being attacked by temptation and by things that come at us in life God has given us a weapon to fight back! It is the Sword of the Spirit. We should read God’s Word and memorize Scripture verse that apply to our lives. That way when we are facing trouble we can put that sword out and fight off our enemy!
Biblical Flight – Christmas
Joan asked her Sunday School class to draw pictures of their favorite Bible stories. She was puzzled by Jimmy’s picture. He had drawn four people on an airplane, so she asked him which story it was meant to represent.
“The flight to Egypt,” said Jimmy.
“I see. And that must be Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus?” the teacher asked. “But who’s the fourth person?”
“Oh, that’s Pontius-the Pilot.
D5 Creation