Exegetical Aim: To convey John the Baptist's understanding of compassion. Props: Two heavy coats. One worn on top of the other. Lesson: G-G-Good mmmorning! It's freezing out here. Aren't you cold? (response) You're not? My fingers are frozen. Blow your breath into your hands to warm them. Call one of the children up to sit beside you. You will be getting him or her to participate. Josh, come up he...
Exegetical Aim: To teach that baptism is a foundational event in the life of a Christian. Props: Bicycle training wheels. Lesson: Good morning. (response) What do I have in my hands? (response) How many of you have bicycles? (response) How old were you when you learned to ride? (response) Who taught you how to ride? (response) Before you learned to ride you had to use some special wheels. What wer...
Exegetical Aim: We should allow God direct access to our lives.
Props: Large map of your city, state, or country, and two large washable markers of different colors. One should be red. The red should easily overpower the other color. Unfold the map and place it on the ground before the children arrive. Have them sit around it. Make sure the markers are not permanent.
Lesson: Good morning! (respo...
Object: An Etch-a-Sketch pad or a blackboard Boys and girls, Just a few nights ago, people all over the world celebrated the coming of a new year, the year 2001. Some people went to parties, some people stayed up and watched the giant ball drop on television at midnight, some set off fireworks, and others celebrated in other ways, but New Year's Eve is one of the biggest celebration nights of the ...
Object: Bring a dust cloth and a can of furniture polish to use as an illustration. Option: Buy a package of dusting clothes so you can give each of the children a cloth.
Christmas is coming soon: Jesus' birthday. I always like to get the house cleaned and decorated to prepare for Christmas. We usually have company and a party. That is what this is for. Show the dust cloth and the furniture polis...
Object: a glass of water, some soap, and some disinfectant cleaner
Good morning, boys and girls. This morning we're going to talk about cleaning. Have you ever helped your mommy or daddy wash dishes? Or maybe you've helped wipe off the counters, or clean the floor? There are all sorts of things you can use to clean stuff. One thing you've got to have is water. Water helps to wash some of the dirt...
Object: None
Do any of you know someone who makes better grades than you do? . Do you know someone who is a better athlete? Someone who plays his or her horn better than you do? How do you feel about these people? Do you sometimes feel just a little jealous of their abilities? It takes a lot of strength to be happy for them, doesn't it? What if a new kid comes in to your class and gets all of the...
Object: A banana
Good morning, boys and girls. I brought my lucky banana with me this morning. Do you have a lucky banana? You don't? There are some places in the world where people make wishes on a banana. You have heard of a lucky four-leaf clover or a lucky horse-shoe, haven't you? How about making a wish on the first star or on a wish-bone in a turkey or before you blow out your birthday cand...
Object: alarm clock
Good morning, boys and girls. Do you have an alarm clock at home? What is this for? That's right, it's to help you wake up in the morning. Do you think this would wake you up? (Set off loud alarm) Whoa! That's loud! That would sure get me up!
The purpose of an alarm clock is to get us out of bed, to get us going for the day. If we didn't set our alarm clocks, we might sleep a...
Object: A microphone
Good morning, boys and girls. Suppose I came out here each Sunday morning and pretended I was a radio announcer. (Using microphone as an announcer) "Ladies and gentlemen. I want to welcome to you this morning's worship service here at the ___________ Church. We have a realllllly big service lined up for you today. We have our fabulous choir singing______________. We also have...
Object: a stack of mail (some bills, some cards, mostly junk mail)
Good morning, boys and girls. Does your mommy and daddy get a lot of mail every day? When they look in the mail box, I bet there's a stack of mail for them to go through. In that stack will be a few bills, which they have to pay. There might be a letter or a card from a friend. That's going to be really special. And then there's t...
Object: Some wormy apples
We are going to talk about something most of us know very little about, and I hope something that none of us ever experience. We are going to talk about hunger. Has anyone here ever been sick because they had nothing to eat? (Let them answer.) I don’t think so, but there are boys and girls all over the world who do not have anything to eat. Can you imagine yourself being...
Object: A child's hammer and a regular hammer.
Good morning, boys and girls! How many of you, especially the boys, received some tools for Christmas? Did anyone here receive a hammer like this one? (Hold up child's hammer.) This is a really neat toy, because you can help your father when he works in his shop. When he nails, you can nail, and I am sure that he enjoys how you work with him. Of cour...
Object: A banana.
Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you like bananas? (Let them answer.) A banana is one of my favorite fruits. I like to eat it on cereal, or I like to eat it all by itself. I guess my favorite way to eat a banana is in a banana split, but then I don't have those often. I brought a banana along today to see if you eat it the same way I do. Is there anyone here who would l...
Object: A broom.
Lesson: Advent; waiting; preparation; making room for Jesus.
Having invited the children to come to the front of the sanctuary, I turn to the steps leading into the chancel area and begin to sweep, using the broom I have brought for this purpose. As the children arrive, I move to one side so they can take their places on the steps. "What was I doing as you walked up here?" I beg...
Object: A big paddle that you can use for spanking.
Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you have ever done something that you feel really bad about? (Let them answer.) Are you sorry? (Let them answer.) Would you like to say that you are so sorry that you will never do it again? (Let them answer.) Have you ever done something so bad that you knew when you did it you would be spanked by your ...
Object: Sugar and sugar substitute; lemon and a lemon substitute.
Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you have ever watched a movie about some exciting place and wished that you could visit there some day? A movie is a good thing, but it could never be as good as being there yourself. Movies are substitutes for adventure and they do a good job, but the adventure itself is the thing that eve...
Object: Some sunglasses, a beach towel and a beach hat.
Good morning, boys and girls. Today we are going to have a little fun and I hope that you will enjoy this as much as I will. First, I need a volunteer. [Select someone who will not be embarrassed easily.] I think that you will make a fine volunteer. Now what I want you to do is to pretend that you are going to the beach for an afternoon of s...
Object: A soup pan, some water to pour into the pan and soup ingredients to be mixed with the water.
Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you like soup? (Let them answer.) Almost everybody likes soup. On a cold day soup tastes so good that I can hardly wait to eat it after I smell it cooking on the stove. Do you know what it takes to make soup? (Let them answer.) That's right, it takes water...