3rd & 4th Grade Guide Sunday School Edition - hwcdn.nethwcdn.net/d3u9i9g7/cds/tru/SamplesPage/TS_SS_1-11... · Experience Time Summary Supplies/Prepare ... sounds, images, and

Sunday School Edition

SCHEDULE

Connect5–10 minutes

Gather20–35 minutes

Respond15–20 minutes

Engage15–20 minutes

Bless5–10 minutes

L E S S O N

3rd & 4th Grade Guide

God Never Leaves His People

1.11

REMEMBER VERSEGod has given each of you

a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well

to serve one another. 1 Peter 4:10 (NLT)

Environment: SERVING The environment of SERVING can be seen through this week’s lesson in how God strategically placed His servants, Deborah, Barak, and Jael, to be His hands and feet to deliver His people from their oppressors.

Bible Passage: Judges 4—5(Deborah and Barak)

date:

© 2012 David C Cook. TruResources are developed in partnership with ROCKHARBOR Church and a national network of family and children’s ministry leaders. All rights reserved.


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© 2012 David C Cook


Patty SantosTruStory Team

InspireThe heat was stifling. I was drenched with sweat and the water I had poured over my head. My legs were wobbly and my feet hurt. I didn’t know how I was going to continue.

This wasn’t at all the experience I had during my first marathon. On a crisp January day, I sailed through the 26.2 miles completely free of pain. It was one of the best experiences of my life. But this race was torture. By mile 17, my feet hurt so badly I could only hobble—barely. On the more barren parts of the course, I felt completely alone. In my head I kept crying out to God. I desperately needed something big to carry me through the last few miles.

That’s when God met me. With less than 1.5 miles to go, my husband appeared out of nowhere and rode the rest of the course with me on his bike. When the officials wouldn’t let him ride any farther, he left his bike on the corner and walked me to the finish line. It was just what I needed to get me across—that personal touch, encouragement, and service from someone who loved me.

Through my husband, God showed me I wasn’t alone—and that He’d heard my cries for help. In my walk with Christ I’ve experienced times like these—times of pain when I felt like I was in a barren land. Yet, even at my worst, Christ has been my rescuer, redeemer, and strength. He comes at the least expected moment, when my life marathon exhausts me, and rescues me. He’s never left me alone.

N O T E S :

CONNECT | GATHER | RESPOND | ENGAGE | BLESS


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EquipGod never leaves His people. He stayed with the Israelites as He led them into the Promised Land. And He gave them very clear instructions: “Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land where you are going, or they will be a snare among you. Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones … Do not worship any other god” (Exodus 34:12–17). God repeated this command many more times.

The Israelites knew what needed to be done, but instead of obeying God, they broke the commandments by mixing with the people and worshipping false gods. Thus began a cycle of rebellion, repentance, and restoration that lasted for hundreds of years. Every time Israel “did evil in the eyes of the Lord” by worshipping other gods, God allowed enemies to conquer them (Judges 4:1–2). God used these nations to bring about repentance. The oppressed Israelites invariably realized their sin and repented. And God raised up deliverers, known as judges, to rescue the people.

But these “judges” weren’t like the judges of today. Though Deborah was a prophetess, judges were usually tribal rulers who also served as military leaders. The judges recorded in Scripture were charismatic individuals, but their charisma wasn’t what brought them victory. The Holy Spirit descended on at least four of the judges to empower them.

While it might seem that during the time of the judges God abandoned His people to their enemies, He didn’t. In fact, even though the Israelites continually disobeyed, God was there all the time, waiting to rush in and deliver them when they turned back to Him. In spite of what His people deserved, God never left them.

N O T E S :


Environment of SERVINGThis posture of the heart asks, “What needs to be done?” It allows the Holy Spirit to cultivate a sensitivity to others and focuses on a cause bigger than one individual life. It helps fulfill the mandate that as Christ-followers we’re to view our lives as living sacrifices that we generously give away.

The 10 environments guide us in creating a climate that puts God on display. Encourage your families to discover more about creating the environment of SERVING in their homes by checking out HomeFront: A Spiritual Parenting Resource and Spiritual Parenting by Michelle Anthony.


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SupportSometimes God seems far away. This feels especially true during times of trial or suffering. When things aren’t going right or something gets tough, it’s easy to wonder if God has left us. And it’s during these times that we need to stop and practice the spiritual discipline of remembering. We need to remember how God has been faithful to us in the past. How He has served us by providing for us in times of need, healing us during times of brokenness, and speaking words of truth into our hearts. When we reflect on the ways God has done what needed to be done for us—serving us with His love—throughout our lives, we see clearly that God has never left us, and He never will.

This week, take some time to make a list of times when you’ve felt God was with you. Be specific. Write another list of times when you’ve felt God was absent or far away. Take these two lists to the Lord in prayer. Invite Him to deepen your understanding about the truth that He has never ever been away from you—that He has always done what needed to be done and served you in love. Place your first list in a visible place, such as on the mirror or the refrigerator, as a reminder that God will never leave you.


TIM

ELIN

E

JESUS

OUR FUTURE WITH JESUS

YOU & ME

ADAM & EVE

NOAHABRAHAM

JACOBJOSEPH

MOSES

JOSHUA

EHUDDEBORAH



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Connect// 5–10 min.

Designed to allow children to develop relationships with their leaders and one another.

Forgetting and RememberingOdds and Ends• bed sheet or large piece of fabric• paper • pencils or pens• 20 random, unrelated items (e.g., ruler, spoon,

book, baseball, bubbles, coffee mug, toothpick, etc.)• stopwatch or timer

Gather// 20–35 min.

Children will gather together to experience and learn more about God through communal and personal prayer, a creative telling of the day’s portion of The Big God Story, an investigation into God’s Word through word studies, and more.

Prayer • none

Storytelling• Bibles (1 per child) • craft sticks• people cutouts: Jael, Deborah, Storyteller,

and Barak (see Resource Folder)• scissors• glue• yarn• construction paper

Investigate • discussion questions

Remember Verse • none

Respond// 15–20min.

Kids will worship collaboratively, individually, through many media, and with an eye to the greater faith community. The “So what? Now what?” component.

God Never Leaves UsRocks of Remembrance• Bibles• verse sheets (see Resource Folder)• rocks• permanent markers

Engage// 15–20min.

Kids will engage with one another through various forms of play including interactive games and activities, engaging projects and experiments, and more.

God DeliversJailbreak• none

Bless// 5–10 min.

This time of blessing will allow children the opportunity to take new steps toward living out their part of The Big God Story. It is designed to lead them to go forth with a posture of responding to what they’ve learned and received from God by sharing and giving away their knowledge and blessings to others.

• Bible (for the blessing)• HomeFront Weekly (1 per child; see Resource Folder)• HomeFront: A Spiritual Parenting Resource

Lesson Overview

Experience Time Summary Supplies/Prepare (Master Supply List under Resource Tab)



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Forgetting and RememberingThroughout the book of Judges, we see the same pattern: the Israelites forgot what they needed to do—to worship God only. Because of this, God allowed them to be conquered by their enemies. After a while, the Israelites cried out to God and repented, and He restored them through a judge or deliverer who knew God and whom God led to ask, “What needs to be done?” The cycle of the Israelites’ forgetting God and remembering Him happened over and over again. Today’s part of The Big God Story highlights the story of Deborah—one of the judges whom God appointed to lead Israel back to Him.

CONNECT QUESTION: Welcome and greet children. Open your time by asking this question: What is one of your favorite memories?

Odds and EndsSUPPLIES• bed sheet or large piece of fabric• paper • pencils or pens• 20 random, unrelated items (e.g., ruler, spoon, book, baseball, bubbles, coffee mug,

toothpick, etc.)• stopwatch or timer

PREPAREArrange the 20 objects on the ground and place a sheet over them, covering the items completely.

RELATEInvite your kids to break up into groups of two or three. Uncover the items and give the kids 60 seconds to look at all the items under the sheet. When the 60 seconds are up, cover up the items again. Then pass out a paper and pen to each team and have them try to write down as many items as they can remember. See who can remember all of them!

Afterward, uncover the items. Allow each of the kids to pick out their favorite item and describe why it’s their favorite.

Connect// 5–10 min.

ConneCt encourages kids to develop relationships with their leaders and one another. Within a free-flowing setting that utilizes simple supplies and conversation starters, ConneCt gives kids and leaders the opportunity to get to know one another better.


Developmentally SpeakingKids enjoy comparing and contrasting different sights, sounds, images, and movements. As they develop more and more understanding about their world and the items and actions in it, they become more and more adept at categorizing and remembering components of what they see and experience. Memory games such as “Odds and Ends” play into their ability to memorize as well as their enjoyment of categorizing items in their world.


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PrayerGather your children into a circle. Encourage them to hold their hands in front of them as a posture of receiving what God might speak to them today. Before you pray, designate a leader (or two) to open and close the time of prayer. Tell the children they are encouraged to participate in this time of prayer if they would like to. Remind them that praying is simply talking and listening to God, and that He always hears us when we pray.

As you pray, leave space between prayers for the children to take the opportunity to pray, in case some may be apprehensive and need a little more time. Pray that God would bless the day’s lesson as you are in His Word. Pray that God would speak to the hearts of His children, revealing to them the truth of today’s Ponder Point, that “God Never Leaves His People.”

StorytellingStorytelling Technique: Craft-Stick Puppets

SUPPLIES• Bibles (1 per child)• craft sticks• people cutouts: Jael, Deborah, Storyteller, and Barak (see Resource Folder)• scissors• glue• yarn• construction paper

PREPARE Cut out the people cutouts and glue each one to a craft stick. Optional: Invite the kids to help decorate the puppets using yarn and colored construction paper. For this storytelling technique, the kids can participate in the storytelling by reading the lines as the puppets or simply watching the Storyteller act out the story using the craft stick puppets.

RELATEBefore you begin the storytelling section, invite the kids to act like mini chariots. To do this, pair the kids off. One child will be on his hands and knees while the second child picks up her partner’s ankles. They will walk together—one child on his hands, the other on her feet. Encourage the pairs to try to make it across the room!

Great job! Today, The Big God Story will feature 900 chariots! The last time we were together we heard how God used a left-handed judge named Ehud to deliver the people of Israel from King Eglon. We are at a point in The Big God Story that was a difficult time in Israel’s history. God’s people were stuck in a terrible cycle. What was

Gather//20–35 min.

During Gather, kids will experience and learn more about God through communal and personal prayer, a creative storytelling of the day’s portion of the Big God Story, and an investigation into God’s Word, which may include word studies, Scripture cross-referencing, and a look into the context surrounding the passage.

In this section, your children will often act as detectives and investigators—working together to understand the mysteries and truths found in the Bible.



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the cycle? (Allow answers.) Yes, the people rebelled (make fist) against God (or turned away from Him) by worshipping other gods. Because of this, God allowed their enemies to conquer them. The nations that conquered them treated them badly. Because of this, the Israelites remembered that the God they worshipped was so good to them—and loved them very much. They longed to worship Him again, so they repented (or turned away from their sins) (put palms together). Because God never leaves His people and because He loves His people so much, He always restored (clasp hands) His people by raising up a judge who worshipped God and desired to serve God with his or her life. God led this judge to deliver His people from their enemies.

After Ehud died, the people chose not to serve God or worship only Him. They rebelled (make fist), and God allowed the King of Canaan (cay-nan) to defeat them. After being treated badly for 20 years, the people repented (put palms together) and cried out to God! Because God never leaves His people and because He hears His people’s cries, He raised up another judge—named Deborah—to deliver them and restore (clasp hands) them to freedom.

One day Deborah called a man named Barak to come see her …

Deborah (as puppet): Barak, God told me He wants you to lead an army to defeat our enemies.

Storyteller: Do you think Barak was excited? No, he wasn’t. Let’s open our Bibles and read why (Judges 4:3). Barak knew that the enemy king had a general named Sisera (siss-er-uh), who had 900 iron chariots! How many chariots do you think Israel had? (Allow answers.) None! That’s not very fair is it? That would be like a professional basketball team coming to your school to play against your school basketball team! No, Barak was not very excited to face that army. But what did Barak forget? (Allow answers.) He forgot that God never leaves His people. He forgot that God gives His people what they need to serve Him when they trust and obey Him. So Barak said to Deborah:

Barak (as puppet): I will go, but you have to go with me.

Deborah (as puppet): Okay, I will go, but you won’t get the credit for the victory.

Storyteller: Then Barak took the army from Israel and went out to fight against Sisera and his chariots. Can you imagine how loud it was when 900 chariots were coming at them in battle? (Invite kids to drum on their table or stomp their feet loudly.) Wow, that’s really loud! That might have been what it was like for Barak and the army.

N O T E S :



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Even though the odds were completely against them, God gave the Israelites victory! (Invite the kids to read this in Judges 4:15.) The Bible says that the Lord defeated the whole army of Sisera, while Sisera himself ran away and hid in the tent of a woman named Jael (jie-el). Jael pretended to be Sisera’s friend, but she was really on the side of the God of Israel! So Jael told Sisera:

Jael (as puppet): Come, hide in my tent, and I will keep you safe.

Storyteller: When Sisera fell asleep, Jael took a tent peg and she killed him! When Barak arrived, Jael came out and told Barak the good news.

Jael (as puppet): Sisera is dead, and Israel is free!

Storyteller: Though her actions might seem strange to us today, Jael knew that Sisera was the enemy of God. God gave her the strength to serve Him by doing what needed to be done!

After this, the people all celebrated the victory and sang a song of praise to the Lord. (Invite the kids to read part of the victory song in Judges 5:1–3.) Through this song, they praised God who had restored (clasp hands) His people! Even though His people had rebelled (make fist) and had to suffer consequences for their actions, He had never left them! Invite your kids to celebrate by dancing around and cheering as if they were the Israelites.

So what do you think? Did the people keep trusting God and worshipping only Him? (Allow answers.) No, they didn’t. Sadly, they eventually started that cycle all over again! (Make hand motions.)

Though it can be easy to point fingers at the Israelites, we can all rebel (make fist) against God. We can forget to worship only Him—over everything else in our life. (Share a story of time when you put other things before God.) Sometimes we disobey Him. When we do, does He abandon us? No, God never leaves us alone. When we repent (turn away from our sins) (put palms together), He is faithful to restore us (clasp hands). (Tell an age-appropriate story of a time God restored you.)

We serve a God who is gracious to us even when we choose not to worship only Him. We serve a God who daily forms us into people who have hearts of service—hearts of worship for only Him. We also serve a God who never leaves us, even when we have disobeyed Him or when we go through hard times. It’s wonderful to serve a God who never leaves His people.

N O T E S :



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InvestigateDiscussion Questions• What cycle did the Israelites repeat over and over again? (Judges 4:1) • Did God ever leave the Israelites? How do you know? (Judges 4:3, 6–7)• How did Deborah, Barak, and Jael serve God? (Judges 4:4, 14–15, 21)• How do you think the Israelites and Barak felt when they went to fight Sisera

and his chariots?• How did God act as a warrior for Israel? (Judges 4:14; 5:4–5)• How can God lead you to worship Him through service? What does it mean to

serve God?

God Never Leaves His PeopleScripture is full of promises about how God never leaves His people. Whether life is difficult or easy, it is helpful to read these Scriptures and remember the truth that God will never leave you. Invite your kids to read the following Scriptures: Joshua 1:9, Psalm 73:23–26.

• What was your favorite part/word/idea from these Scriptures?• Do you ever feel like God has left you or forgotten you? What is that like?• Do you think it’s difficult to continue to serve God when we feel like He is not

there, or when prayers aren’t answered the way we hoped? Why or why not?• How do you feel knowing that God promises that He will never leave you?• What do these portions of God’s Word make you think about God? How do you

want to respond to Him?


N O T E S :

BONUS INVESTIGATE: Remembering God’s GoodnessFor each and every one of us, it’s difficult sometimes to remember God’s past faithfulness or goodness when we are in a time of distress. Yet God calls us to serve Him by worshipping Him only and offering ourselves as living sacrifices to Him. Ask the kids:

• What are some ways that God has been good to you? Faithful to you?

• Can you tell us about a time when you knew God was with you?

• How can we help ourselves remember in practical ways that God has been good and faithful to us when we are in the midst of hard times?

• Do you think God wants us to remember His goodness in the midst of difficult times? Why or why not?


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Remember VerseEach week children will spend time memorizing a portion of Scripture together. Remember Verses are chosen according to the 10 environments. This week we are highlighting the environment of SERVING, which asks, “What needs to be done?”

SERVING Remember Verse: God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. 1 Peter 4:10 (NLT)

Game: Verse Song/RapSUPPLIES• none

RELATERead the Remember Verse to the kids a few times. Split the kids into groups and ask them to come up with a rap or song with the words of the Remember Verse. They can use the melody of a familiar tune such as “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” or come up with a brand new melody of their own. They can also turn the Remember Verse into a cheer! After a few minutes, invite the kids to come back together and sing, rap, or cheer the Remember Verse for the group.


N O T E S :

Space for the Holy SpiritThe Holy Spirit longs to speak to His children. Allow time and space for your kids to respond to what God might be speaking to their hearts.

To create space for children to hear from and respond to Him, ask the kids a few simple questions:

• After all you’ve seen, heard, and experienced today through God’s Word, what do you know about God?

• How does that make you feel?• What does this mean for your life?• How do you want to respond to God right now?

As you lead the kids through this time of reflection, pause and ask God to give you the strength and faith to be flexible as you give the children the space to respond in the way that God leads.


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God Never Leaves UsRocks of RemembranceSUPPLIES• Bibles• verse sheets (see Resource Folder)• rocks• permanent markers

RELATEToday in The Big God Story, we heard how God clearly showed the Israelites what needed to be done to serve Him. He gave them the Ten Commandments through which He commanded them to worship only Him. Though the Israelites often rebelled (turned away) from what God commanded them, they repented (turned away from their sins) after their enemies took them over. Every time they repented, God, in His grace, restored them to a time of peace. We can see through the cycle of the Judges that even though God’s people may have thought He’d abandoned them, He never had. God never leaves His people.

We serve a God who will never leave us. Though life is difficult, confusing, or scary sometimes—and sometimes we may struggle with feeling God has left us—His Word gives us reminders that He will never leave us. His Word reminds us that God always stays close to us.

Spend some time with your kids reading Scriptures that express the fact that God never leaves His people. Allow the kids to look these Scriptures up in their Bibles and then take turns reading the verses out loud:

• Deuteronomy 31:6: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified … the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

• Matthew 28:20b: Jesus said, “... surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”• Hebrews 13:5b–6: “‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’ So we say with

confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid …’”

Give the kids a chance to sit quietly and talk with God as you read this Scripture and prayer over them (also found in the Resource Folder): God says in Hebrews 13:5b–6: “‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’ So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid … ’” I pray that you will not be afraid or confused. God is with you wherever you go. He never leaves His people.

Allow the children to ponder this Scripture and blessing as they talk with God. Invite them to ask Him to daily reveal to them the truth that He never leaves His people.

During reSponD, kids will have the opportunity to process what the holy Spirit has been teaching them.

they will be encouraged to demonstrate their response to God in a time of hands-on worship, to express themselves individually through the use of many media, and to worship collaboratively with a mindset focused on the greater community.

Respond// 15–20 min.



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N O T E S : Pass out the sheet on which these verses are written as jumping-off points for kids’ discussions with God.

DEMONSTRATEOnce the kids have spent time reflecting on Scripture, allow them to create their own “Rocks of Remembrance.” Invite the kids to write a short sentence, word, or symbol that describes how God will never leave them. Once kids have finished, ask them to take their rock home and put it somewhere they will see it often. When your kids go through hard times, their rocks can act as reminders that God will never leave them.



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God Delivers JailbreakSUPPLIES• none

RELATEBefore the kids play, choose one child to be “it” and also designate a “jail” or holding area for those who are caught. Designate two spots in the room to be “safe” areas.

To play, have the person who is “it” close his eyes and count to twenty while everyone else finds a hiding spot. After this, “it” will look for everyone else. When “it” finds a hider, the hider will attempt to run to the “safe” area. NOTE: A child can only remain in the “safe” area for five seconds. If “it” tags her first, she will be sent to “jail.” Those hiding can leave their spaces to tag those in jail and set them free. Once everyone is in “jail,” the last person caught will be “it.”

NOTE: For safety, ask the children to play this game while crawling or walking on their knees or tiptoes.

the enGaGe section gives kids time to play, laugh, and explore together through interactive games and activities, engaging projects, experiments, and more.

Engage// 15–20 min.

N O T E S :



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Before you bless the children in your group, pray about the blessing that God would have you give to them.

Gather the children together and read the blessing from Deuteronomy 31:6: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

May you have no fear because you know without a doubt that God is with you always—and that He will never leave you.

Invite your kids to stand in a circle together holding hands and closing their eyes as they hear the blessing.

Bless// 5–10 min.

as followers of Christ, we’ve been blessed to be a blessing to others. this BleSS time will allow children to take new steps toward living out their part of the Big God Story.

this time will lead kids to go out into the community and respond to what they’ve learned and received from God by sharing and giving away their knowledge and blessings to others.

HomeFront Weekly: Be sure to send home the HomeFront Weekly for next week’s lesson! This preteaching tool for parents encourages families to spend time in God’s Word together before children arrive at church.

HomeFront: A Spiritual Parenting Resource: Each month we highlight one of the 10 environments. This resource gives families ideas for how to live in the environment while creating fun, spiritually forming times in their homes—setting aside a sacred space for family in the midst of their active, everyday lives!


Documents

3rd & 4th Grade Guide Sunday School Edition - hwcdn.nethwcdn.net/d3u9i9g7/cds/tru/SamplesPage/TS_SS_1-11... · Experience Time Summary Supplies/Prepare ... sounds, images, and