Weaving Faith Into Life

44 KidsOwn Worship • Fall Quarter

Preschool

4Session

Worship Theme: God is worthy of honor.

Weaving Faith Into Life: Children will honor God through worship.

God Gives the Ten Commandments (Part 1)

Exodus 19:16–20:21

Session Sequence What Children Will Do Supplies

Let’s Praise God!

(up to 25 minutes)

Sing• “Praise Him” (track 19)• “God Is the King” (Psalm 47:7) (track 15)• “His Great Love” (Romans 5:8) (track 9)• “Trust and Obey” (track 8)• “To God Be the Glory” (track 18)• “Love the Lord” (Deuteronomy 6:4-9) (track 16)

KidsOwn Worship Kit:Songs From FaithWeaver

Classroom Supplies:CD player


Let’s Learn the Point!

(up to 25 minutes)

God Is the Best Find a blue ribbon, and award it to God to practice giving God honor.

Classroom Supplies:Prize ribbons, envelopes

The Ten CommandmentsNumber stones, and talk about what the first four commandments mean.

Classroom Supplies:Bible; bowl; 4 stones per child, 1 resealable bag, and 1 washable marker per child

We Honor GodSing a song about honoring God by following his commands.

Session 4 • KidsOwn Worship 45



(up to 25 minutes)

* “The Up Late Show”Watch a video about why God deserves honor..

KidsOwn Worship Kit:Lesson Videos DVD: “The Up Late Show”

Classroom Supplies:TV, DVD player

* “Report From Mount Sinai” Watch a news report about Moses receiving the Ten Commandments.

KidsOwn Worship Kit:Lesson Videos DVD: “Report From Mount Sinai”

Classroom Supplies:TV, DVD player

* What’s It Worth to You? Participate in a “game show” to explore why God is worthy of honor.

Classroom Supplies:Several wrapped boxes, marker, 1 small candy bar per child


Let’s Pray!(up to 10 minutes)

The Offering Listen to a song and give their gifts to God.

KidsOwn Worship Kit:Songs From FaithWeaver: “Take My Life and Let It Be” (track 12)

Classroom Supplies:CD player, offering bowls

God Is WorthyRead words to a prayer.

Classroom Supplies:Chalkboard or whiteboard

Closing Prayer Listen to a prayer.

Elementary

* Starred activities can be used successfully with preschool and elementary children together.

Customize your session to fit your needs. You can separate preschoolers and elementary children for Section 2.

Or, if you keep the children all together for the entire worship session, we suggest you choose from the starred activities.


Exodus 19:16–20:21

This week’s Bible Background concentrates on the events surrounding the giving of the Ten Commandments, while next week’s concentrates on the commandments themselves. You may want to read both Bible Backgrounds before beginning this session.

The Amalekites attacked the Israelites where they were camped. So the Israelites put together an army under the leadership of Joshua and went on the attack. Moses held high in the air the staff that had struck the rock to get water. As long as Moses held the staff in the air, the Israelites continued to win—so Aaron and Hur helped hold Moses’ hands up, and the Israelites defeated the Amalekites.

Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, came to visit after the battle with the Amalekites. Seeing Moses burdened with judging disagreements among the two million Israelites, Jethro gave Moses some good advice. He suggested that Moses appoint judges to serve the people so that Moses could concentrate on what was most important—being the people’s representative before God. Moses took the advice and then led the Israelites on to Mount Sinai, where Moses had earlier met God in the burning bush. They arrived at Mount Sinai three months to the day from the day they left Egypt.

A significant event is recorded in the next few verses (Exodus 19:3-9): God spoke to Moses and promised him that Israel would be his treasured possession, his holy people—if they would obey him. After Moses told the people what God had said, they responded gratefully: “We will do everything the Lord has said.” God responded by telling Moses that God himself would come down and speak with the Israelites from a cloud.

Why was God so concerned about people coming up the mountain to “see” him? Because he wanted them to realize the extent of his holiness and of their unholiness. Certainly his power and majesty were evident through the blast of the trumpet, the smoke and the fire, and the trembling of the earth. Most would not have needed a warning to stay away, but some well-meaning, faithful souls might have too boldly approached God without the warnings. Only Moses and Aaron were allowed to approach God, and then only as the people’s representatives, not on the basis of their own holiness.

The law God gave spelled out how the Israelites were to honor him through their obedience. In the thousands of years that have passed since this event, one thing hasn’t changed: The best way we can honor God is by obeying him.

Bible Background for Leaders


Devotion for LeadersFollowing Jesus is not about obeying rules; it’s about knowing him. However, our obedience in honoring and glorifying God in our everyday lives allows our relationship with Jesus to grow.

Weaving Faith Into Your Life: Read Exodus 19:5-6. When have you felt favor from God? How did you experience his favor? How were you following God at the time? Who were the people involved? Were they aware of their involvement in God’s work in your life?

When we honor and follow God, blessings come to us and to the people around us. What blessings have you received from teaching these children? Pray that the ministry you are involved in today helps your students experience God’s blessing. May you see the fruit of God’s work through your obedience.

47 Session 4 • KidsOwn Worship

Why We Worship for LeadersPeople are accustomed to honoring individuals for achievements, such as climbing Mount Everest, making a great scientific discovery, or executing a daring rescue. But even our greatest achievements pale beside the worthiness of almighty God. God’s worth goes far beyond what we perceive as his achievements. God’s worth lies in who he is. Because of who God is, the honor due him is far greater than any honor bestowed on the most deserving person.

Today, we worship God because he is worthy of honor. The Bible text for today centers on the part of the Ten Commandments that focuses on honoring God. Let’s help the children go beyond understanding that we honor God to understanding why we honor God. We honor him because he is above us. We honor him because he is loving, just, patient, and forgiving. We honor him because he is Creator, Lord, and Redeemer. Everything about God’s character and his actions explains why he is entitled to our full devotion and our tireless service. Let’s help the children bring to God the honor that he richly deserves.

Easy Prep for Leaders“The Up Late Show”—Set up a TV and DVD player, and cue the Lesson Videos DVD to “The Up Late Show.” You’ll want to watch it at least once before the worship session.

“Report From Mount Sinai”—Watch “Report From Mount Sinai,” which leads kids in a discussion with Moses. Watch the clip several times so you can get a feel for how quickly you need to ask the questions in the time allowed by the DVD.

What’s It Worth to You?

• Wrap several large boxes.

• Use a marker to label each box as if it contained something your children would really want—a video game system, for example. Label one box “God,” and put it aside where the children can’t see it.

God Is Worthy—Copy the prayer at the end of this session onto a chalkboard or whiteboard.

Preschool Activities—Refer to the preschool pages for preparations.

Let’s Praise God!Play Songs From FaithWeaver, Fall 2015 as children arrive. Ask some children to stand at the door and welcome everyone who comes into the room. Ask the greeters to smile, shake hands, and say, “Welcome!”

When everyone has arrived, begin the worship session.

Say Hello, everyone! Welcome to children’s church.

Ask • Why do leaders make laws? (So people respect each other; to keep order in the country.)

For additional worship songs each week, check out the Sing & Praise DVD

included with your KidsOwn Worship kit!


Say Today we’re going to be talking about some laws that God made thousands of years ago. These laws are called the Ten Commandments.

Ask • Why do you think God gave us the Ten Commandments? (To help us know how to live; so we make him happy.)

Say Those are good ideas! One reason God gave us the Ten Commandments is so that we can bring him honor. That’s what we’re going to talk about today. We’re going to discover why God is worthy of honor and how we give honor to God. Let’s begin our discovery journey with some praise songs. Our first song will give us a clue about how we honor God with the Ten Commandments.

Sing “Praise Him.”

Lyrics are in the back of the book.

Ask • Did you notice that the song talks about praising God all throughout the day? How does what we do every day bring praise or honor to God? (Our actions can show others that we’re following Jesus; we can thank God for giving us everything; if we follow God, it shows that he’s important to us.)

Say Great ideas! How we spend our days shows what’s important to us. Paying attention to God’s commandments means that God’s important to us. God is the greatest. He’s the King of everything! Let’s sing together.

Sing “God Is the King” (Psalm 47:7).


Say God is the greatest! He gives us wisdom, help, and encouragement when we need it. Most of all, though, he gives us his great love. You know, some people think that God’s commandments are kind of a drag. They think that following God’s laws means you can’t have fun. But the opposite is really true. God gives us commandments because he loves us. Think about that while we sing this next song.

Sing “His Great Love” (Romans 5:8).


Ask • How do God’s commandments show that he loves us? (The commandments protect us; they help us know how to love God and others.)

Say Let’s explore this idea some more. I need three volunteers: one to be a parent, one to be a toddler, and one to be a crazy teenager who just got a driver’s license.

Choose three volunteers, and have them come to the front of the room. Tell each of the volunteers which role they’ll play, and have them act out their roles in slow motion while you tell this story.

Track 19

Track 15

Track 9


Say One day a toddler was playing with a ball in his yard (pause) while the parent was planting flowers in the garden (pause).

The toddler bounced the ball (pause) and rolled the ball (pause). And the parent kept on planting flowers (pause). Oh no! The toddler rolled the ball too hard, and it landed in the street (pause). The toddler toddled after the ball (pause).

Meanwhile, the crazy teenager got into her little red sports car and revved the engine (pause). She was raring to go! The crazy teenager slammed the pedal to the floor and took off down the street (pause). The crazy teenager hit 75 miles per hour. And, at the very moment she passed the toddler’s house, the toddler was jumping off the curb to get the ball.

The parent looked up and saw the sports car about to hit the toddler (pause). The parent threw the flowers in the air (pause), jumped up (pause), and dashed out into the street just in time to snatch the toddler away from the wheels of the little red sports car (pause).

Whew! And everyone was safe!

Let’s give a round of applause to our actors!

Ask • What rules do you think the parent made for the toddler after this incident? (Never play in the street; if the ball goes in the street, let it go; ask before running after your ball.)

• Why was it necessary to make those rules? (To keep the toddler safe; because it was best for the toddler.)

• Now why do you think God gave us the Ten Commandments? (To keep us safe; because they’re best for us.)

Say One reason God gives us rules is to keep us safe, and that shows how much God loves us. We have a choice. We can decide to follow God’s rules or we can decide not to follow them. When we follow God’s rules, we’re saying we agree that God knows best—and we’re honoring God. Let’s tell God that we plan to honor him by trusting him and following his rules.

Sing “Trust and Obey.”


Say Part of worshipping God is bringing glory and honor to God’s name. We show through our worship that God is important and wonderful. Let’s sing “To God Be the Glory.” While we sing, think about how obeying God’s commandments gives him glory.

Sing “To God Be the Glory.”

Lyrics are in the back of this book.

Say God wants us to love him as much as he loves us. When we honor him by obeying his commandments, we show that we love God with all our heart. Let’s sing together.

Track 8

Track 18

Worship Leader Tip

Here’s a great way to get preschoolers more involved! Ask preschoolers what rules they have in their homes to keep them safe. They’ll be glad to tell you. If your preschool children don’t feel comfortable sharing in front of everyone, let them whisper to you. Then repeat what they say.


Sing “Love the Lord” (Deuteronomy 6:4-9).


Pray God, you are the greatest of all. You love us and care for us every day. You give us rules to keep us safe. We want to honor you by following those rules. We know that you are worthy of honor because you are such a great God. Help us learn more about you and how to give you the honor you deserve. In Jesus’ name, amen.


Preschool Activities, pages 53-54At this time, have the preschool leader invite the preschoolers to go to their own room for this section of activities. Tear out the Preschool Activities page, and give it to the preschool leader. Have the preschool leader bring the preschoolers back to participate in Let’s Pray! with the older children. If you prefer to keep all the children together, do the starred (*) activities. They will work well with both elementary and preschool children.

Elementary Activities

* “The Up Late Show”Show “The Up Late Show” on the Lesson Videos DVD. It uses a talk-show format to illustrate why God is worthy of honor.

After the DVD, have the children find a partner and discuss these questions.

Ask • What about God makes him worthy of being honored? (He protects us; he loves us; God is amazing in everything he does and is.)

• What has God done that makes him worthy of being honored like this? (Created everything; sent Jesus to die for us.)

• If you were to throw a party to honor God, what would your party be like? (Exciting; everyone in the world would be invited.)

• What do you think is the best way to give God the honor he deserves? (Worship him; live a life that honors him.)

Have volunteers share their insights with the rest of the group.

Say There are lots of ways to honor people. Sometimes we throw parties for people. Other times we might give them awards or a pat on the back. The Bible tells us about something special we can do to honor God. Let’s find out more about it.

Track 16


* “Report From Mount Sinai”Show “Report From Mount Sinai” on the Lesson Videos DVD. In this segment, Moses is interviewed by a reporter and explains how God gave him the Ten Commandments. Be prepared, though! This is an interactive DVD. You’ll have the opportunity to ask “Moses” the questions listed below. Be sure you know how quickly you need to ask the questions to stay with the DVD.

Say (to Moses) We’d like to know why the people were so scared of God.

Ask (Moses) • God doesn’t speak to us so that we can hear him. Why did God speak to the people like this?

• Why are you on your way up the mountain?

When the segment is over, have the children discuss these questions:

Ask • Why do you think God gave the commandments to the people? (They needed guidance; to protect them; to show them how to love God and others.)

• Why is it that God is honored when we obey the Ten Commandments? (Because it shows that what’s important to God is important to us; it shows our love for God.)

• How do you think God feels when we don’t obey him? (Hurt; sad; angry.)

Say God’s commandments are important. Moses climbed to the top of Mount Sinai and actually received the commandments from God himself. We may not fully understand why God chose to give us the Ten Commandments to follow, but we can know for certain what the result is when we follow them. When we follow the Ten Commandments, we can know that we’re pleasing God and bringing honor to him. Let’s find out more about why God is worthy of honor.

* What’s It Worth to You?Set out all the wrapped boxes except the one marked “God.”

Say Let’s play a game called What’s It Worth to You? Several of you will be offered the opportunity of a lifetime. Who’d like to volunteer to play the game?

Put the first box on a table, and ask for a volunteer who’d really like to have what the box indicates is inside. In your best game-show-host voice,

Say Now it’s time to get to the truth. Just how much do you want this item? Please keep in mind that there isn’t really a [what the label says] inside this box. We’re simply playing the game to explore what this item might be worth to you. Rest assured you do have the opportunity to win a prize, but our lawyers insist that we cannot make it appear that you may win a [what the label says] today. With that in mind, let’s find out what it’s worth to you. I have a just few simple questions for you.

52 KidsOwn Worship • Fall Quarter52 KidsOwn Worship • Fall Quarter

Ask • Would you be willing to scratch and hoot like a monkey to win this fabulous prize?

• Would you be willing to do your best friend’s chores for a month to win this fabulous prize?

• Would you be willing to give your allowance for one year to win this fabulous prize?

• Would you be willing to give us all your possessions to win this prize?

If the answer to all four questions is yes,

Ask • Would you be willing to give us everything you own, and everything your parents own, including your house and the family car, all the money you’ll earn in your entire lifetime, and the family dog to win this fabulous prize?

Continue to raise the stakes until the contestant bows out. When the child says “no,”

Say Well, I’m sorry, but it’s not worth enough to you. You don’t win the fabulous prize today, but you will receive a lovely parting gift. Let’s thank our contestant for playing What’s It Worth to You?

Give the child a candy bar or other prize, and have him or her return to the group.

Play the game at least once more, asking similar questions and raising the stakes until the child bows out. Give each contestant a candy bar or another prize, but suggest that the contestants allow your assistant (an adult helper) to keep the candy until the end of the session.

For the last contestant, put the box labeled “God” on the table.

Say Now we’re down to our last contestant. Let’s see how much the grand prize is worth to this contestant.

To the contestant,

Say We’d like to know just how much this fabulous prize is worth to you.

Ask • Tell us, is this fabulous prize worthy of praise?

• Is this fabulous prize worthy of honor?

• Is this fabulous prize worthy of glory?

• Is this fabulous prize worthy of obedience?

• Is this fabulous prize worthy of devotion?

Say Well congratulations, contestant! You’ve just won this round of What’s It Worth to You? You’ve won candy for everyone in the studio audience. Let’s give our winning contestant a round of applause.

Pass out small candy bars to everyone.

Say Let’s talk about this game.

(continued on page 55)

ALLERGY ALERT See Session 2.


4Preschool Activities

Session

Worship Theme:

God is worthy of honor.

Easy Prep for Leaders

God Is the Best—Obtain prize-type ribbons in different colors (or make prize ribbons out of construction paper) so you have one for each child. The ribbons can be of any color, but two should be blue. Put each ribbon (except one blue ribbon) in an envelope opaque enough to conceal the ribbon’s color. Don’t seal the envelopes.

Using TheoConsider using Theophilus the FaithRetriever puppet today in these ways:

• Have Theo lead the preschoolers from the main worship area to the preschool room.

• Have Theo help the children sing the two songs.

• See the KidsOwn Worship Kit for a puppet skit written for today’s worship session.

God Is the BestAsk • Have you ever heard your parents say that the

Bible says we should honor our parents?

• How do we honor our parents?

Say Those are good ideas. We honor our parents by paying attention to what they say and doing what they tell us to do. But there are other ways to honor people. We might honor a firefighter for rescuing someone by giving a medal. We honor someone who wins a race by giving the winner a blue ribbon or a trophy. Hold up a blue ribbon. Giving someone a ribbon means the person did something great—it’s a way to give the person honor.

God does many great things, and God is great. We honor God by worshipping him and obeying him. We honor God because he’s done so many great things. God is worthy because he is God!

Ask • What are some things you know about God that make him worthy of getting the blue ribbon of honor?

Say We’re going to worship God with a game we’ll play to bring him honor. We can bring God honor by what we do with our hands and where we go with our feet.

Have the children sit in a circle. Explain that you’ll pass out envelopes and that inside each envelope is a ribbon. Pass the envelopes around the circle while you help the children sing the following song. After the song, have the children take the ribbons from the envelopes. Have the child with the blue ribbon say, “The first-place honor goes to God.” Have the other children say, “We praise God.”

Sing these lyrics to the tune of “This Old Man.”

God is great!

God is good!

God is best—he’s number one!

The Ten Commandments help us honor our good God;

I’ll obey his rules today.

Play the game several times.

Say Great job, everyone! God is worthy of honor. That means that God deserves first prize. He is a good God. Let’s learn more about the commandments he gave us to help us honor him.


Exodus 19:16–20:21

The Ten CommandmentsYou’ll need a Bible; washable markers; a large bow; four small, round stones per child; and small resealable plastic bags.

Open your Bible to Exodus.

Say Our Bible story tells us about a man named Moses. Moses climbed the mountain to worship God. Let’s pretend to climb the mountain. Have the children march in place. Let’s get on our knees to worship God. Have the children kneel.

When Moses got to the top, God was there. God talked to Moses! God told Moses ten important things. We call these things the Ten Commandments. Can you say that? Pause.

One of the Ten Commandments tells us to honor God. God wrote the commandments on big stones so that Moses and the Israelites would remember what they were. Let’s write some of the commandments on stones, too, to help us remember.

Put the washable markers and the bowl of stones in the middle of the group. Give each child a resealable plastic bag.

Say The first commandment tells us that God is more important than anyone else. God is number one. Let’s all take a stone and write a one on it.

Have each child choose one stone and write “1” on the stone. Have the children put the stones in a plastic bag. While the children are working, talk with them about what the first commandment means.

Say The second commandment tells us to never make an idol to worship. Sometimes people in those days would carve a stone or a piece of wood to

look like a person. Then they’d pretend that it was God. Isn’t that silly? God wanted them to remember that he’s the only real God. Let’s all take another stone and write a two on it to help us remember the second commandment.

Have each child choose one stone and write “2” on it. Have the children put these stones in their plastic bags. While the children are working, talk with them about what the second commandment means.

Say The third commandment God gave to Moses was that people should be careful how they used God’s name. God is important. It wouldn’t be right to be silly with God’s name or to use God’s name in anger. Let’s take another stone and write a three on it to help us remember the third commandment.

Have each child choose one stone and write “3” on it. Have the children put the stones in the plastic bags with the other two stones. While the children are working, talk with them about what the third commandment means.

Say The fourth commandment is to keep one day a week as a special day to worship God—that’s the day we come to church. Let’s take another stone and write a four on it to help us remember the fourth commandment.

Have each child choose one stone, write “4” on it, and put it in the plastic bag. While the children are working, talk with them about what the fourth commandment means.

Say When we do all these things, we show God that we think he’s extra special. That means that we bring honor to God. That pleases God because it helps him know that we love him very much. Let’s show God how much we love him right now.

We Honor GodSay God is honored by the things we do and the

things we say.

Ask • What kinds of things could we do to honor God?

• What kinds of things could we say to honor God?

Say Let’s sing a song about honoring God. In this song, we’ll clap our hands to show that we know there are things we can do to honor God. We’ll say “amen” to show that we know there are things we can say to honor God. Ready? Let’s sing!

Sing this song to the tune of “If You’re Happy and You Know It.” If you’d like, lead the children on a march around the room while singing this song.

If you want to honor God, clap your hands. (Clap, clap.)


If you want to honor God, then you’ll follow his commands.


If you want to honor God, say “amen.” (Amen!)


If you want to honor God, then you’ll follow his commands.


Preschool Activities


Preschool Activities

Ask • When you see something you really want in the store, how do you decide how much you’re willing to pay for it? (I think about how much it’s worth to me; I think about how much money I have.)

• There are some things in the world that are very valuable. What are some valuable things? (Diamonds; gold; money; sports cars.)

• There are some things in the world that really aren’t worth much. What are some of those things? (Pennies; torn or bent baseball cards; broken-down cars.)

Say Let’s say you saw a huge candy bar sitting in the store window. And let’s say that sitting next to it was a tiny little saltine cracker.

Ask • Which item would you be willing to pay more for? Why? (The candy bar, because it’s bigger and better; the candy bar, because it tastes better.)

Say We’d probably think that a candy bar was worth more than a cracker. When we say that God is worthy, we’re saying that he’s very valuable.

Ask • What makes God worthy? (He’s awesome; he’s done so much for us; he loves everyone.)

Say God is worthy of honor because of how wonderful he is and because of the great things he does. God is the best there is. He’s worth more than the biggest diamond in the world. He’s worth more than all the gold there is. God is worthy of our devotion, our praise, and our honor. By following the first four commandments, we’re saying that God is more valuable to us than anything else ever could be. That’s what it means to give God honor.

Let’s Pray!The Offering

Say As we give our gifts to God today, we’ll listen to the song “Take My Life and Let It Be.” This song is about giving our lives to God. When we sing it, we’re telling God that we promise to dedicate ourselves to following him and honoring him with our lives. While you’re waiting for your turn to give your offering, listen carefully to the words and talk to God about how you can live your life to honor him.

Play “Take My Life and Let It Be” and take the offering. Track 12


(continued from page 52)


God Is WorthyShow kids the prayer you prepared before the session on the chalkboard.

Say Pray this prayer along with me. I’ll read the leader parts alone. You read the parts marked “all.”

Closing PrayerPray God, today we’ve learned that you are worthy of our honor

and our devotion. We want to worship you, not only with the words that we say, but also with our thoughts and with our actions. God, we are your children and we love you. Help us every day to worship you by living our lives in honor of you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

All: God, you are worthy.

Leader: God, we know that means that you are precious and valuable. Help us to remember your worth.

All: God, you deserve power, wealth, wisdom, and strength.

Leader: God, we know that you are all powerful. All the money in the world belongs to you. You are wiser than we can understand, and you are so strong that you will always win.

All: God, you deserve honor, glory, and praise!

Leader: God, you created us, and we see how great and mighty you are. You are worthy of our worship! Help us remember to worship you by giving you honor, glory, and praise every day.

All: In Jesus’ name, amen!

Encouragement for

Leaders

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart

and with all your soul and with all your

strength. These commandments that I give

you today are to be upon your hearts. Im-

press them on your children. Talk about them

when you sit at home and when you walk

along the road, when you lie down and when

you get up” (Deuteronomy 6:5-7).

Thank you for listening to God’s Word and sharing him with the

children in your class.

From Heartfelt Thanks for Sunday School Teachers.

Copyright © 2003 Group Publishing, Inc., Loveland, CO.

Documents

Weaving Faith Into Life