Main Idea: God’s church is a collection of God’s people worshipping, having fellowship and sharing the love of God with others. We all have a part to play!
Suggested Schedule: (90 mins)
- Welcome (5 mins)
- Game 1(5mins)
- Review Big Verse (5 mins)
- Set the Scene: Bible story/skit and review questions (10-15 mins)
- Object Lesson 1 talk (5mins)
- Game 2 (5 mins)
- Object Lesson 2 talk (5 mins)
- Game 3 (5 mins)
- Object Lesson 3 talk (10 mins)
- Connect the Dots Game(10 mins)
- Sense How You Feel – activity (10 – 25 mins)
- Seek God – prayer (5 mins)
Setting the Stage: This series is all about using our gifts and talents to serve those around us. At the center of service is God. Then come the people we are closest to, our family members and friends. Next come our church friends, and finally, our neighbors in the community and our neighbors in the world. You could show the circle of connections as a reminder of what you will be looking at over the next four weeks. You could set the stage like a subway, printing out different area’s (like underground stations) you will be connecting with each week (GOD, FAMILY, CHURCH, COMMUNITY).
Supplies:
- Cones
- picture of your family
- picture of your house
- picture of your church
- Quality streets (or other cellophane wrapped sweets)
- Envelopes
- Lollipop sticks
- Coloring pens
- Glue
- Fabric
- Playdough or clay
- Lego or construction toys
- Prayer tent materials – cushions, bibles, fairy lights, cross, candles etc
- All PowerPoint games with some way of showing them (i.e. laptop and screen)
SONG and BIBLE STORY VIDEO IDEAS available via our dedicated Pinterest Board.
GAME IDEAS:
GAME 1 ARRGGHHH CHALLENGE – 5 MINS
Description: One on One Game.
Supplies: Four Cones placed in a square with children sat in the middle.
Details: Arrgghh challenge. (regular/widescreen) The first child stands at one of the cones. They need say “arrgghh” continuously whilst running around each of the cones. If they have to take in a breath then they need to stop at the place that they took a breath. The winner is the whoever can go the furthest saying arrgghh in one breath.
GAME 2 SHOUT – 5 MINS
Description: Group Game.
Supplies: List of short phrases
Details: Shout. (regular/widescreen) Each child has to find a partner and then stand on the opposite side of the meeting area from them. Mix up the children on each side of the room and quietly give them a short phrase each (all different). Explain that when you say GO the whole group are going to shout out their phrases to their partners. Say GO and allow 30 seconds for them to shout! Now ask the shouters to be quiet and ask their partners to tell everyone what they were shouting. The winners are those who got the phrase correct!
GAME 3 HOW MANY GAME – 10 MINS
Description: Zoom Game
Supplies: No supplies needed
Details: How many Game (regular/widescreen). Set a time for 90 seconds and ask the children to come up with as many things about a specific topic as they can! For examples, how many books in the bible, things they would find in a park, different colours.
BIG VERSE: A Spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. 1 Corinthians 12:7.
(regular/widescreen) Download the Bible cards here (PDF).
SET THE SCENE: 10-15 MINS
Description: Bible story and questions
Supplies: Bible
Details: Say: How long do you think Church has existed for? (you could find out when your church was first built or began). Let’s find out what the very first church was like!
Read Acts 2: 41- 47.
REVIEW QUESTIONS:
1.Why do you think the church grew so fast?
2.What things did the Church do?
3.Do you understand what is meant by all of them – for instance: what is break-ing of bread?
4.Do we still do all these things?
5.Do you think that the Church should do all of these things?
6.Why do you think so many people were becoming Christians?
7.Why do you think things have changed?
SPOT THE SIMPLE MEANING:
1) WE ARE THE CHURCH- 5 MINS
Description: Object Lesson 1
Supplies: picture of your family, picture of your house, picture of your church
Details:
Say: Last week we were learning about our families – well let me show you a pic-ture of my family and where we live. (name all the people in the photo and where you live). Now is this my family? (show the picture of your house). Of course it isn’t! The house is only the building where my lives. Who is my family? (allow children to respond, then show a picture of your church). So is this our church? No it isn’t! This is only the building where church meets. Who is the church? (allow children to respond). That’s right it’s us. Many people think that the church is a building but just like our family isn’t our house, church is people. It’s all of us here!
2) WHAT DOES THAT DO? – 5 MINS
Description: Object Lesson 2
Supplies: Slide with following questions on it.
Details: Say: I want to show you this slide and tell me if the correct answer is 1, 2 or 3!
• Where would you find your funny bone? Elbow, knee, hand. (1)
• Where would you find your metatarsals? Feet, ankles, fingers. (1)
• What is your scalp? Your skull, the skin on your head, the back of your neck (2)
• Where is your coccyx? In your neck, your tummy ,the bottom of your spine (3)
• Where is your appendix? In the bottom left of your tummy, bottom right of your tummy, top of your tummy. (2)
• Where is your diaphragm? In your leg, under your lungs, on top of your lungs (2)
• Where would you find your tympanic membrane?In your ear, in your nose, in your throat (1)
• Which is biggest? Your heart, your liver, your kidneys. (2)
• Where is your pituitary gland? your throat, your stomach Your brain (3)
• Which part of your eye is the iris? The middle bit, the coloured bit, the whi-te bit. (2)
Which part of the body do you think is the most important? Are there any bits that we could do without? God says that the church is like a body! Every mem-ber has a different job to do and every member is just as important! We are all different but everyones gift is important and no one’s gift is more im-portant than someone else’s!
3) BETTER TOGETHER – 5 MINS
Description: Object Lesson 3
Supplies: Celophane wrapped candy or chocolate
Details: Give each child a wrapped sweet (but be aware of those with allergies!) – the children can eat the sweet but need to keep hold of the wrap-per.
Now that you have all got a wrapper, I want you to put your wrappers on the floor in a space (then move to the side). Look at the spread-out wrappers. What do they look like? Are they pretty? No, it just looks like rubbish.
Now I want you to pick up your cellophane and make a picture or a pattern. (They may need to eat more sweets to finish the picture)
Look at the picture now. Now the paper is doing a job and it is part of something big. It doesn’t look like rubbish anymore! That’s just like us. We need to spend time with our church family, working with each other so that we are more power-ful together and complete.
SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES:
CONNECT THE DOTS GAME – 10 MINS
Description: Connect the dots scripture game.
Supplies: Connect the dots printables (JPeg/PDF), bibles.
Details: Join the dots and then find the scriptures to see the different ways God wants to connect with us. Invite the children to come take a dot to dot printable. Once they have found the bible reference they should look the verse up and share with the rest of the group.
Connect the dots verses:
• 1 Corinthians 12:27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. • Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another.
• I Corinthians 3:9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building Then discuss the questions below.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1.What do you love about your church?
2.What would you want to change about your church?
3.Talk about all the different roles there are within the church.
4.What gifts and talents do you have and how can you use them at church?
5.Why should Christians spend time together?
SENSE HOW YOU FEEL – 10 MINS EACH OR IN TANDEM/ROTATION
Encourage the children to think about the questions above as they do one of the activities:
Description: Craft.
Supplies: Envelope, Church Craft PDF, pens, lollipop sticks, coloring pens, fabric, glue.
Details: Create a church using an envelope that is opened. Create people using the lollipop sticks, fabric and pens and then glue them inside the envelope. Write on the envelope 1 Corinthians 12:27 “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”
Description: Moulding activity.
Supplies: Playdough or clay.
Details: Mould something that you could do to serve others in your church.
Description: Building activity.
Supplies: Lego or construction toys.
Details: Build the scene of your church.
Description: Sensory activity.
Supplies: Create a prayer tent space using cushions, lights, a cross and tent if you have one. Have some quiet music playing.
Details: Encourage the children to spend some time chatting and listening to God. Have some scriptures around to help focus them. Allow time to draw or write anything that they have heard.
Description: Activity Booklets.
Supplies: 5-7s (PDF) and 8-11s booklets (PDF) (included in download), markers.
Details: Fill in or color the 5-7s and 8-11s booklets
SEEK GOD: 5 MINS
Description: Prayer/Encounter activity
Supplies: Soft worship music, paper, pens
Details: Ask the children to stand. Play some quiet music in the background
Say: Today we have learnt how we are the church and we all have a part to play.
As the music plays give the children the opportunity to spend some time with God asking Him how they can serve and what He wants them to do.
If there is time, ask some of the church leaders to come to the group and allow the children to pray for them.
Say: Dear God, Thank you that you invite us to be part of your church. Thank you for the gifts and talents that you give us. We pray that our church would work to-gether to love you and those around us. AMEN.
ZOOM FRIENDLY LESSON:
NAME THAT TUNE ZOOM GAME (regular/widescreen)
Click here for the title image.
Click here foe the widescreen image.
Click here for the social media image.
