BIG IDEA: TO TEACH KIDS THAT GOD PROVIDES THE BEST.
AIM:
SONG IDEAS:
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GAME IDEAS:
1. Juice slurp! (team game)
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BIG VERSE: Every good and perfect gift is from above. James 1:17
Create skit to tell the story
SET the Scene:
SPOT the Simple Meaning:
1. OBJECT LESSON: GOD IS GOOD – HE BRINGS GOOD NEWS!
(Newspaper reporting miracle)
I try to find time to read what’s going on in the news every day. It is a good way to keep up with what is happening in the world around us. Have you ever thought about being a newspaper reporter when you grow up? Just think! If you were a sports reporter, you would get to go to all of the sports events. Not only that, you would get in free get paid for going! If you were a news reporter, you could just walk around town and see what was going on, then you would write a news story about it.
I thought it would be fun to take our Bible lesson today and re-write it as if I were a reporter writing an article in a daily newspaper. The story is actually from the gospel of John, but the word gospel means “good news,” so let’s imagine that we are reading an article from the “Daily Galilean” or perhaps “The Jerusalem Times.”
Wow! Listen to this headline! “Wedding guest turns water into wine.” Hmmm…That sounds interesting. Let’s read the rest of the story! On Tuesday, a woman named Mary was in Cana to attend a wedding. A large number of guests, including her son, a man named Jesus, also attended the wedding. Guests at the wedding were reportedly having a good time until the host ran out of wine. At that point, it seemed that the happy celebration might turn into a disaster.
Some of the wedding guests thought that perhaps Jesus might have a solution to the problem, so they reported to him that they were out of wine. When told about the problem, Jesus at first seemed unwilling to do anything, but after some encouragement from his mother, he finally agreed to help. Eye witnesses at the wedding reported that Jesus noticed several large water jars nearby and instructed some servants to fill them with water. After the jars had been filled with water, he told them to dip some of the water out of the jars and take it to the man who was in charge of serving the wine. When the wine steward tasted the water, he discovered that the water had been turned into wine. Wedding guests were amazed at the turn of events and said that the wine was the best that they had ever tasted. As a result of this miraculous event, many people are following Jesus everywhere he goes, and many believe that he might even be the long-awaited Messiah.
Well, that made a pretty good news story, didn’t it? Do you know what is really great about this story? That when all the wine had gone Jesus saved the day! When everyone heard the bad news that there was no wine left Jesus brought good news that he could give new wine. That’s because God is good and He gives good things and He brings good news! This was the first miracle that Jesus performed and it showed everyone that God was good and He cared about what people needed – He gives good things!!!!!!
2. OBJECT LESSON: GOD GIVES US THE BEST
Juice tasting- lots of different juices – can they taste which is the best and most expensive?? !
We used juice to do a juice tasting but in Bible times I’m sure they knew what a good wine was and what a bad wine tasted like. Even today we have wine tasters, but in the old days they had to drink wine and fruit juices because they didn’t have all the coke and lemonade and fanta we have now! The wedding guests would have expected the worst drinks to be served at the end of the night. Why? Because when you drink a little wine you stop thinking clearly and anything tastes good! Yet this wedding saved the best until last! That’s because Jesus provided it!
God isn’t just a good god but He is the BEST God that there has ever been or will ever be! And He gives us the best gifts too! Even at times when we might be happy with the worst. The miracle of the water into wine reminds us that God doesn’t just give us the dregs; what’s left in life, but He promises the best! So when we need something He will provide us with the best. He gives us His Holy Spirit who is the best friend we will ever have! He is way better than the kind of alcoholic spirits your parents might buy from the off license. The Holy Spirit can help you live for God and do great things for Him!
Now, Mary could have told the servants not to listen to Jesus because he was going to take too long sorting the wine out. But she decided to wait – and get the best! So if you’re waiting for God to give you something, or you’re worried God won’t give you the best just remember He saved the best for last and He gives good gifts – the best!!!
3. OBJECT LESSON: GOD KNOWS THE RIGHT GIFTS TO GIVE US
Skit: Choosing a present or card for someone. A girl chooses a present for a boy but can’t decide whether to get him the football or the basketball.
You know, sometimes we might think we know what is best for us. We may think we know ourselves better than God knows us. Maybe we don’t think the gifts He has given us are the best – but He knows what we need to learn and how we need to learn it. God is our Creator – He knows exactly what we need and when we need it! He knows us individually as a father knows and loves his children as individuals – for who they are. So we can trust that God will not only give good gifts, but He will give us what we need at a time that we need it!
RESPONSE TIME: Thank you God for giving me the best!
CRAFT IDEA:
‘God has given me…’ collage of pictures???!! !!!
