Author: Elaine Briefman

2 Samuel 6:12-21

Main Lesson

In life, we can choose to grumble and be selfish, or we can choose to be grateful. Everyday, we should praise God and give Him thanks. We can thank God when I worship and praise Him.

God’s people have a special container called the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark of the Covenant reminded people of the amazing things that God had done and how God was always with them. King David decided to bring the ark to the city of Jerusalem so that the people could always remember that God was with them.

The ark was heavy and needed to be handled special. David took men with him to carry the ark back to Jerusalem. As David and the men came to Jerusalem with the ark, David was so excited and he wanted to thank God. So David danced in the street. He had the people shout praise to God and play trumpets. Everyone was thanking God with worship.

David’s wife, whose name was Michel, watched all this from her window. She thought it was terrible that the king, her husband, was dancing in the street. When he came into the house, she made fun of him for dancing before God. David didn’t care; he wanted to thank God by worshiping him. There are many ways we can worship God. We can dance like King David. We can sing or paint pictures or pray or act out God’s story. Whatever way we choose, it’s our way of saying thank you to God. Always, I can thank God when I worship and praise Him.

Lets Move

https://youtu.be/9rPKRzK6XFE

Manna & Quail

Lesson

In life, we can choose to grumble and be selfish, or we can choose to be grateful. Every day we should praise God and give Him thanks. Instead of complaining, we can be thankful.

God had done an amazing thing! He had delivered God’s people from the evil Pharaoh in Egypt. But as they traveled through the desert, the people started to grumble and complain. They didn’t like the desert, and they were running out of food.

They didn’t thank God for watching over them. They didn’t trust that God would keep watching over them. No, they complained.

God loved them and provided food for them. Every morning, God gave them bread from heaven. This bread was called manna. In the evening, God provided quail for the peo- ple to eat. God never stopped taking care of his people.

God never stops taking care of us. We should thank him for all he does for us. Sometimes we want to complain and grumble too. We complain that we don’t have this toy, or we complain that we have to go to bed so early, or we complain about having to eat our vegetables.

THANK YOU: DON’T COMPLAIN

But let’s not be grumblers and complainers. Let’s remember all the good things that God has done. Let’s thank him for taking care of us. Let’s thank him for loving us. And when things aren’t going right, say “instead of complaining, I can be thankful.”

Lets Move

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_ewLEvA8_o

Activity

ITEMS NEEDED: Several packages of cotton balls, baskets (one for each kid) ADVANCED PREPARATION: None.

DIRECTIONS:

When God’s people, the Israelites, woke up every morning, there was manna covering the ground. The people simply had to gather up the manna, so that they would have enough to eat that day. They could trust that God would provide again the next day.

Show the kids the cotton balls.

Now, of course, we can’t eat this, but we’re going to pretend that we’re the Israelites and that this is manna.

Give each kid a basket. Toss the cotton balls everywhere around the room. Have kids collect the cotton balls.

Look at all that manna. Look at how God took care of the Israelites. God takes care of us too.

We don’t need to complain, we don’t need to grumble. God is good and he gives us good things. We should thank him always. Remember, instead of complaining, I can thank God.

Jesus Heals 10 Men

Lesson

In life, we can choose to grumble and be selfish, or we can choose to be grateful. Everyday, we should praise God and give Him thanks. When good things happen, we can say “thank you, God.”

One day while Jesus was walking, he came upon 10 men. All of these men were sick; they had a bad skin disease. From a far distance, the men called out to Jesus, “Master, have pity on us.”

Jesus loves us. Jesus loved these men. He told them, “go and show yourselves to the priests.” The men did what Jesus said. As they were walking, they realized that Jesus had healed them. The skin disease was gone.

One of the men went back and found Jesus. He fell at Jesus’ feet and thanked Him for healing him. All of the men were healed by God, but only one of them went back to thank Jesus.

When something good happens, we are happy. Of course! We should share our happiness with God. We can take the time to thank God.

When good things happen, I can say “thank you, God.”

Sing Along

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_ewLEvA8_o

Craft

Thankful feet
ITEMS NEEDED: Card stock, pen or marker, crayons ADVANCED PREPARATION: None.

DIRECTIONS: Have leaders trace the outline of each kids’ shoes onto a sheet of card stock. This can be done in one or two ways: Set the card stock on the ground and have kids step lightly onto the paper (one foot at a time so as not to damage the paper), or kids can take their shoes off and set them on the paper.

Remind kids that 10 men were healed but only 1 came back to thank Jesus. Only one man had “thankful feet.” Give kids crayons so that they can decorate their own “thankful feet.”

Matthew 5:13-16, Light of the World

A pumpkin is still a pumpkin until we put a light inside. Then they become something bright, shining a light for kids on Halloween. God wants us to let his light shine in our hearts so the world can know about Jesus.

Question

What do you do when you walk into a dark room and can’t see? You turn on the light, don’t you? The light helps you see and find your way.

With sin and sadness, the world is a pretty dark place. Jesus is the light of the world. The good news of the Bible is that Jesus came to save us and that we can follow him. Jesus had a group of friends who loved him and followed him everywhere. One day, Jesus said to his friends: “You are the light of the world.”

When we love and follow Jesus, his light shines inside of us. Everywhere we go, the love of Jesus shines out for others to see.

Jesus said, you wouldn’t hide a light under a bowl. You would put it on a stand, so that the light could be seen by everyone. Jesus wants us to shine our light. He doesn’t want us to hide our light. When we do good for other people and when we tell others about Jesus, we shine our light. Then other people can start to follow Jesus and shine their own light too.

The world is dark. But Jesus is the light of the world. His gives his light to his friends and followers. I can shine for Jesus.

Object Lesson

Craft

Torches
ITEMS NEEDED: Cardboard tubes (from a paper towel roll), glue, marker, and red,

yellow, and orange tissue paper.

ADVANCED PREPARATION: Write onto each cardboard tube “I am the light of the world.”

DIRECTIONS: Give each kid a cardboard tube. Demonstrate how the tissue paper can be ripped into smaller pieces. Glue the torn tissue paper into one end of the tube, so that the paper hangs out, like the flame from a torch.

Torches give light so that we can see in the dark and have warmth in the cold. Jesus has put his light inside every person who follows him. We are the light of the world.

I can shine for Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5:16-21, New Creation

Lesson Snapshot

BOTTOM LINE:

Jesus forgives sin and makes us new.

OBJECTIVE:

Kids will say, “I can be forgiven.”

KEY PASSAGE:

2 Corinthians 5:16-21, New Creation

MEMORY VERSE:

“When anyone lives in Christ, the new creation has come. The old is gone! The new is here!” 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIrV)

SUMMARY:

Pumpkins are full of goop and gunk when we first open them. In order to use pumpkins as a light to the world, we have to clean them out. When we accept Jesus, he cleans out the gunk we call sin and makes us into something new!

LESSON:

Today’s story comes to us from the Bible. The Bible is God’s word to us, so we know that everything it says is true. 

Paul was a man who loved Jesus. He traveled all over the world telling everyone about Jesus. Everywhere he went, he would start a church, so people could worship Jesus. Paul would write letters to all of the churches, telling them all the good things about Jesus. We can read some of Paul’s letters in the Bible.

Paul wrote a letter to the church of the Corinthians. He told the people: every one of us has done bad things. We’ve done things our own way instead of God’s way. Those bad things are called sin. Each of us have sinned, except Jesus.

Sin separates us from God. But then Jesus came to earth. He never sinned. He died for us and rose again. When we believe that and decide to follow Jesus, Jesus forgives our sins. Paul says we become like whole new people.

When Jesus forgives our sins, we are new creations. The old life goes away and we become clean and fresh and new. Jesus can forgive me. I can be forgiven. I can be made new.

Sing/Dance/Move

Parent Participation

Pumpkin Gunk
ITEMS NEEDED: Large pumpkin, knife, scoop, bowl

ADVANCED PREPARATION: Cut open the top of the pumpkin as if starting a Jack-o- Lantern.

DIRECTIONS:

Bring out the pumpkin. Ask the kids to identify the object.
Say: “That’s right. This is a pumpkin. What is something you can do with a pumpkin?” Wait for someone to mention jack-o-lanterns.

Say: “You can make a jack-o-lantern with a pumpkin, where you carve a face or a picture into the pumpkin. Then you put a light inside that shines out for all to see. But before you carve a pumpkin, you have to empty it out. Pumpkins are full of goop and gunk when we first open them. All of that has to be cleaned out.”

Have kids come up and look inside the pumpkin. Demonstrate how you scoop out the goop inside. Allow every kid who wants to come up and empty one or two scoopfuls of pumpkin into the bowl.

Say: “Pretty gross, right? We are like this pumpkin. We may want to shine bright for Jesus, like a jack-o-lantern, but we are too filled up with goop and gunk. Our sin – the bad things we have done – stay with us on the inside. It needs to be cleaned out. Only Jesus can clean us up. When we decide to follow Jesus, he comes, forgives our sin, and cleans out all the gunk. Jesus makes us into something new.”

“With Jesus, I can be forgiven.”

Children’s Craft Idea

New Hearts

ITEMS NEEDED: Construction paper, scissors, marker, cotton balls, liquid glue, plates

ADVANCED PREPARATION: Cut each sheet of construction paper into a large heart.

DIRECTIONS: Give each kid a heart. Explain that when we sin, it makes our heart dirty and unclean. Go around to each heart and mark it up with the marker.

Bring out the cotton balls. Place a healthy amount of glue onto the plates. Have kids dip each cotton ball into the glue and then place it on the heart. Encourage kids to cover their entire heart with the cotton balls. (For a more colorful display, this could be done with small pieces of tissue paper wadded up, rather than cotton balls.)

Explain that when we decide to follow Jesus, he makes our hearts new. Not only does he take away our sin, but he fills up our hearts with Himself.

I can be forgiven.