God Gives Me Courage – David: Part 2 (LESSON)

Scriptures:    1 Samuel 17:1-51

Description:    This lesson tells the story of David & Goliath and focuses on how we can defeat the “giants” in our lives.

Rhyme Time:    Knocking down giants isn’t so tough.
God will help when things get rough!

Time:     30-45 minutes

Materials:
o    Computer, LCD projector and screen
o    PowerPoint file – “God Gives Me Courage – Maps.ppt” (available on Lesson and Material Downloads page at www.teachthem.wordpress.com )
o    Roll of wide masking tape
o    Tape measure
o    Thick black, red and green permanent markers
o    Stilt blocks for Goliath character (made with three 2”x4”s)
o    Tools for making stilts (saw, screws, drill)
o    Costume for Goliath character (adult size)
o    Costume for David character (child size)
o    Sling for David.
o    Five smooth stones.
o    Harp for David.
o    Shepherd’s staff for David.
o    Bags of “food” for David.
o    Armor for Saul
o    Notecards
o    Something (like a bean bag or a large pillow) to make a soft place for Goliath to land when he falls.

Preparation:
o    Use the wide masking tape to tape off a 10-foot vertical bar against the tallest point in the room.  (You may need to continue to tape across the ceiling if your room is shorter than 10 feet.)  Then, use the tape measure and a black permanent marker to mark off and label each foot, one to ten.  Use the red permanent marker to mark off and label Goliath’s height at 9.75 feet.  Use the green permanent marker to mark off other heights for comparison.  I recommend: Robert Pershing Wadlow – Tallest Man in the Guinness Book of World Records at 8’11”, Yao Ming – Tallest NBA player at 7’6”, Chewbacca – from Star Wars movies – 7’3”, Shaqille O’Neal – NBA player – 7’1”, Darth Vader – from Star Wars movies – 6’7”, Michael Jordan – NBA legend – 6’6”, The Rock – wrestler/actor – 6’5”, Abraham Lincoln – President of the U.S. – 6’4”.
o    To make the stilt blocks, drill three 2”x4” boards together (so that you now have the equivalent of a 6”x4” board) and cut them into 12” lengths. .  Screw a strap of belt to each one, and punch new holes through the leather so that the belt can be tied over Goliath’s feet.
o    Make a costume for Goliath.  You will need a shield, armor, spear, sword, helmet and shin guards (these can be made out of cardboard or cardboard tubing and painted).  You might also want a tunic (shirt) and skirt to complete the look.
o    Write Goliath’s lines on notecards.  You will want him to say, “Choose a man to come and fight me!” and then later “Am I a dog that you come at me with sticks? Come here, and I’ll feed you to the birds of the air!”
o    Ask a tall adult to be Goliath for you.  Have him dress in the costume.  Make sure he practices with the stilts.  When he comes into the room, try to have him walk in where his legs will be obscured by a table or some other obstacle so that the kids won’t see the stilts.  Give him his script on notecards.
o    Ask some adults or some of the older kids to be ready to help you with a chant when the Israelites come out to battle.  It’s the same chant as the football players used in the movie Remember the Titans, but you will exchange the word “Titans” with “Israelites.”  All they will need to know is that they should echo whatever you chant and that they should do it loudly from wherever they are in the room.
o    Make a costume for David.  A simple body-length piece of fabric with a hole cut in the middle to fit over his head will work.  He will need a belt to tie around his waste, and this can be a remnant from the fabric.  Sandals would be a plus, but he could go barefoot.  He will need a sling and five smooth stones.  The sling should be a strap of something leather-like with a wider piece in the middle to hold the stones.  It should be about 2 feet long when folded in half.
o    Make harp for David.  It can be a simple cardboard cutout with yarn or twine taped to one side to represent strings.
o    Make a shepherd’s staff for David.  It can be a long pole with a hook at the end.
o    Fill a few grocery bags with food – something anachronistic might get a laugh (like Fruit Loops or Pop Tarts.)
o    Make armor for Saul. You will need a shield, armor, spear, sword, helmet and shin guards (these can be made out of cardboard or cardboard tubing and painted).  Make them big so that they look huge on a child.
o    Write David’s lines on notecards, One should say, “I’ve killed the bear and the lion, and I’ll do the same to this Philistine.” Another should say, “You come against me with sword and spear, but I come in the name of the Lord!  Today, the Lord will hand you over to me, and I will strike you down.  Everyone will know that this battle belongs to the Lord.”
o    Put the five smooth stones somewhere where David can pick them up later.
o    Set up a soft landing place for Goliath to fall on.

Procedure:
Use the following script or modify to suit your needs:
o    “We are going to talk about a story that happened in the land of Israel.”
o    “You may not know where Israel is, so I’ve brought a map.”  (Show map of the world, and point out places the kids might recognize.  Then show the general area where Israel is located.  When you advance the slide, it will magnify the Middle East and then put a circle around Israel.  When you advance the next time, it will magnify Israel even more and outline it in red.)
o     “This is a map of Israel.”  (Show next slide in PowerPoint presentation.)
o    “In our story today, the army of Israel was at war with the Philistines, as usual.”  (Click PowerPoint slide to advance to next slide.)
o    “All of the activity in the story will take place in this part of Israel.”  (Click slide to show the red oval.)
o    “The Philistines had set up camp in a town called Sochoh.”  (Click to highlight Sochoh and bring in a Philistine soldier.)
o    “The armies of Israel were close by in the Valley of Elam.”  (Click to highlight the Valley of Elam and bring in an Israelite soldier.)
o    “Israel was on one hill and the Philistines were on another.”
o    “I said that they were at war, but there wasn’t much fighting going on.”
o    “Neither side wanted to get into a huge battle that would kill most of their men, so the Philistines offered an alternative.”
o    “They sent out their strongest warrior and offered to decide the winner of the war with a single battle the champions from each army.”
o    “But the Philistine’s champion was no ordinary warrior.”  (Click to bring out Goliath.)
o    “His name was Goliath, and he was over nine feet tall – a giant!”  (Point out the marked off masking tape you prepared earlier, and allow a few volunteers to come stand next to it in order to give it perspective.  Read off the heights of a few of the famous people you chose to label on the tape.)
o    “He was so big and strong that he could wear 125 lbs of armor, a helmet made of bronze, bronze shin guards (“greaves”), a bronze javelin and a huge spear that weighed over 30 lbs!  Just the iron point of the spear weighed 15 lbs!”  (Have your Goliath volunteer enter the room and say, ‘Choose a man to come and fight me!’  Have him wait for a few moments and then leave the room.)
o    “Now, you would think that King Saul would jump up and run to fight Goliath.”
o    “Saul was bigger and stronger than any other Israelite.  He had the best armor and the best weapons, but he was afraid.”
o    “When Goliath issued his challenge, Saul hid in his tent with the rest of the Israelites.”
o    “Day after day, Goliath would come out and issue the challenge again.”  (Have Goliath return and issue his challenge again, wait a few moments and then leave.)
o    “Morning and evening for 40 days – that’s 80 times Goliath dared the Israelites to a fight!”
o    “But no one was brave enough to go…at least….no one in the army was brave enough.”
o    “Do you remember the shepherd boy named David?  …the one that Samuel anointed to be the next king after Saul?”
o    “Well, a lot had happened in his life since that time.”
o    “After David’s anointing, he went back to shepherding his flock, but God had other plans for him.”
o    “King Saul began to lose his mind after he disobeyed God and the Spirit of the Lord left him.”
o    “The Bible says that he was tormented by a spirit, and he couldn’t find any relief from it.”
o    “But one of his servants had once heard a boy named David play the harp, and he was so impressed that he thought of David when the king complained of his distress.”  (Ask for volunteer to play David.  Put his costume on him, and give him the harp and the shepherd’s staff.)
o    “He suggested that King Saul call for the boy to come and play for him when he was feeling the worst, and Saul did.”
o    “He sent a messenger to David’s father, Jesse, and asked for David to be sent with his harp.”   (Have David set the shepherd’s staff down and go to another part of the room to pretend to visit Saul.)
o    “You see, David was a wonderful musician.  He wrote over 100 songs about his love for God and for His Word.”   (Have David pretend to play the harp.)
o    “They are published in the Bible in the book of Psalms so that we can still enjoy them today.”
o    “David would play songs about his love for God whenever Saul was having trouble, and the beautiful sounds would calm Saul’s spirit.”
o    “When Saul felt better, he would send David back to his father to watch the sheep, but whenever he wasn’t feeling well, he would call for David again.”  (Lead David by the shoulders to another part of the room, and give him the shepherd’s staff.)
o    “So, back to the story.  David’s father asked David to go see his three oldest brothers, who were in the Israelite army, and see how they were doing.  He sent him with a gift of food for their captain.”
o    “David was excited to get a break from tending sheep, and he was thrilled to see what was going on in the war, so he left right away.”  (Have David lay down his harp and pick up the bags of food.)
o    “When he arrived at the Israelite camp, he dropped off the food that his father had sent with him as a gift, and he rushed to talk to the soldiers.”  (Have David go to another part of the room and drop the food off – then rush to another part of the room.)
o    “He arrived just as they were going out to their battle positions shouting their war cry to get themselves ready for battle.”  (Lead the volunteers you spoke with earlier in the following chant.  They should echo what you chant.  If you know the movements from the movie, you might add those in, too.)
o    Everywhere we go (Everywhere we go)
o    People wanna know (People wanna know)
o    Who we are (Who we are)
o    So we tell them (So we tell them)
o    We Are The Israelites! (We Are The Israelites!)
o    The Mighty, mighty Israelites! (The Mighty, mighty Israelites!)
o    “But just as soon as they finished their chant, out came Goliath, issuing his daily challenge.”  (Have Goliath come out and issue his challenge.  He should stay this time.)
o    “And just like every other day, all the Israelites ran back to their tents.”  (Have all your volunteers sit down or run somewhere in the room to indicate their fear.)
o    “You might ask, why were they shouting a war cry when for 40 days, they had been hiding in their tents?”
o    “Touch your neighbor and say, ‘they were shoutin’ on the outside, but they were shakin’ on the inside.’”
o    “They hoped that all the shouting would give them courage to fight, but the only fighting this army was doing was in the lunch line.”
o    “So, Goliath issues his challenge, everyone runs for their tents, and David is left alone.”  (Tell your David to sniff his underarms just in case that’s the problem.)
o    “David couldn’t believe it!  God’s army was running from someone who didn’t even believe in God?”
o    “He started asking questions.  ‘What will the king do for the person who kills the giant?’”
o    “They told him that Saul would make him a prince and give him his daughter in marriage and never charge him taxes again.”
o    “When Saul heard that David was asking about Goliath, he called for him.”
o    “Imagine Saul’s surprise when he realized that it was David, the boy who would occasionally come to play harp for him?”
o    “Saul looked at David and said, ‘What are you thinking!?’” (Playfully knock David on the head.)
o    “’That giant is going to skewer you with that spear of his and roast you like a marshmallow!’”
o    “But David said…” (Give David the first notecard, and have him say, ‘I’ve killed the bear and the lion, and I’ll do the same to this Philistine.’)
o    “’Okey-dokey….but at least take my armor.’”  (Help David get suited up in the armor for Saul.)
o    “David tried it on, but it just didn’t fit.”
o    “You see, David wasn’t ready to be king yet.  He still had some growing to do.”
o    “So David made a very wise decision.  He decided to put his trust in God rather than a set of armor.”  (Help David get out of the armor.)
o    “He decided to just be himself rather than trying to someone else.”
o    “Goliath had strength, size, training, armor and deadly weapons.”
o    “His armor alone weighed more than David’s whole body.”
o    “But David had God on his side, and God plus one is always a majority!”
o    “Touch your neighbor and say, ‘All you need is God + one.’”
o    “David took his shepherd’s staff and went to the stream.  He chose five smooth stones and started toward Goliath.”  (Have David pick up five smooth stones.)
o    “Goliath saw that he was just a boy and hated him.”
o    “He saw David’s shepherd’s staff and said…”  (Have Goliath say the words on the second note card, “Am I a dog that you come at me with sticks?  Come here, and I’ll feed you to the birds of the air!”)
o    “Then David said…”  (Show David the second notecard, and have him say, “You come against me with sword and spear, but I come in the name of the Lord!  Today, the Lord will hand you over to me, and I will strike you down.  Everyone will know that this battle belongs to the Lord.”)
o    “Goliath was ticked!  He started to move closer to David.”  (Have Goliath stomp around to signify he’s coming for David.)
o    “David ran (not walked) toward the battle line.” (Have David run in place.)
o    “He reached into his bag, drew out a stone and put it in his sling.”  (Have David pretend to do this and then swing the sling around his head.)
o    “He slung it at Goliath, and it struck him in the forehead – one of the few places where he didn’t have armor – and he fell down dead.”  (Have David release the sling, and have Goliath pretend to get hit in the head and fall over (preferably onto something soft).)
o    “David ran and stood over the giant (OPTIONAL – and cut off his head).”
o    “All the Philistines realized that God was on the side of Israel, and they ran for their lives.”
o    “The Israelites chased them as far as Gath, Goliath’s home town.”  (Allow all your volunteers to take a seat.)
o    “So, who really won the battle? – God, of course!”
o    “All of Israel had God on their side, but only a shepherd boy trusted God enough to take the risk to fight the giant.”
o    “Here’s something else to think about.  If the armor had fit, and David had gone to fight Goliath wearing it, people might have said, ‘Of course he won.  He had on the king’s armor.’”
o    “When God joins someone in battle, He ties both hands behind His back, He stacks the deck against Himself, He takes away all excuses.  He wants to make sure that the odds are in favor of the enemy.”
o    “Then, when God’s man or woman wins, God gets the glory….not David, not Saul, not ‘Goliath was having a bad hair day’….God gets the glory!”
o    “God will use you in the same way if you trust him!”
o    “The sooner you trust Him, the sooner He will give you the victory against the giants in your life!”
o    “How many of you are going to trust God with the next problem in your life?” (Review the Rhyme Time for the day.)
o    “Let God help you with those giants!”

God Chooses Me – David – Part 1 (LESSON)

Scriptures:    1 Samuel 9 – 1 Samuel 16

Description:    This lesson leads up to and covers David’s anointing to be king and focuses on how God looks at the heart of a person rather than his outward appearance.  It starts with Saul’s anointing as king and covers the history of what happens in the early years of his leadership.  The lesson is part of a series that deals with David, so you might want to cut parts to tighten it up if you are just focusing on how God chooses leaders.

Rhyme Time:    No matter how strong; no matter how smart;
God picks me; He knows my heart!

Time:    30-45 minutes

Materials:
o    Crown, scepter and cape for the king
o    “X-ray machine” (see instructions below for making it)
o    “X-ray images” from the “God Chooses Me – X-Ray Hearts.ppt” file (see the Lesson Materials and Downloads page on www.teachthem.wordpress.com).
o    PowerPoint file with maps and animations – called “God Chooses Me – Maps.ppt (see the Lesson Materials and Downloads page on www.teachthem.wordpress.com)
o    Laptop/desktop computer, projection screen and LCD projector (alternatively, you could draw a map of Israel on a flipchart or whiteboard and cut out the pictures mentioned in the lesson to stick to the map as you tell the story.  You can find the clip art pictures in the file named, “God Chooses Me – Pictures.ppt on the Lesson Materials and Downloads page on www.teachthem.wordpress.com)
o    Olive oil to anoint David.  (You can put it in a bowl or a flask, depending upon whether you want to pour it over the volunteer’s head or just smear it across his forehead.  If you pour it over his head, do so sparingly.  It’s difficult to get the oil off afterward, and you will want to be careful not to get it into carpeting.)
o    A towel or something that the David volunteer can use to wipe off the oil after the anointing.

Preparation:
o    Create “x-ray machine.”  Take a piece of poster board and cut an 8”x11” hole in it.  Draw some knobs and buttons on this frame to make it look like a machine.  Tape a clear, plastic sheet protector onto the backside so that it covers the hole.  Print the x-rays from the “God Chooses Me – X-Ray Hearts.ppt” file (see the Lesson Materials and Downloads page on www.teachthem.wordpress.com).  Organize these in the same order that they are in inside the PowerPoint file, and slip them into the sheet protector.
o    Put oil into a container and set it where you can get to it.
o    Put the towel somewhere close by.
o    Set up your LCD projector, screen and laptop/desktop or draw a map of Israel on a flipchart or whiteboard (In this lesson, when it talks about putting up pictures, it means you should advance the slide if you are using the PowerPoint.)
o    Print out the pictures to use while telling the story (if you are using a flipchart or whiteboard)

Procedure:
Use the following script or modify to suit your needs:
o    “We are going to talk about a story that happened in the land of Israel.”
o    “You may not know where Israel is, so I’ve brought a map.”  (Show map of the world, and point out places the kids might recognize.  Then show the general area where Israel is located.  When you advance the slide, it will magnify the Middle East and then put a circle around Israel.  When you advance the next time, it will magnify Israel even more and outline it in red.)
o    “Many years ago, a man named Samuel was a prophet and the leader of Israel.”
o    “He lived in Shiloh, where the tabernacle of the Lord was.”  (Put “Samuel” picture on Shiloh on the map.)
o    “But people weren’t happy with just a prophet leader.”
o    “The surrounding nations had kings, and that was what the Israelites thought that they needed to be strong and mighty as a people.”
o    “So, they asked Samuel for a king, and Samuel asked God.”
o    “God showed Samuel that he wanted a man named Saul to be the first king of Israel.”
o    “Saul was the tallest man in all of Israel.”  (Invite the tallest person in the room to come forward.)
o    “He was the tallest; he was strong, and he was good looking, too!”
o    “He really looked like a king!”
o    “Now, God doesn’t generally choose people because of how tall or how good looking or how smart they are, but He wanted to teach the Israelites a lesson.”
o    “They wanted a king who looked like a king, so God gave them what they wanted.”
o    “Remember this: be careful what you ask for!”
o    “Saul might have looked like a king, but he wasn’t what they were hoping for.”
o    “They had problems with him from the very beginning.”
o    “On the day that he was being crowned king in Mizpah, Saul went missing.”
o    “They found him hiding in some equipment – too afraid to come accept his responsibility as the new king.”  (Have your Saul hide behind something.)
o    “But they went and got him and crowned him king anyway.”  (Put the crown on his head, the cape around his neck and the scepter in his hand.  Then have him strut around like a proud king.  On the map, show the “crown” picture in Mizpah.)
o    “Samuel told Saul and all the people what king’s should do.  Then, he sent them all home.”
o    “Even Saul went to his home in Gibeah, and he kept living his life like normal.”  (Move “crown” picture to Gibeah on the map.  Have “Saul” sit back down.)
o    “But then, the Ammonites attacked Jabesh-Gilead!”  (Put an “explosion” to mark the battle at Jabesh-Gilead.)
o    “The Ammonites were one of Israel’s enemies, and they lived in the East.”  (Point out Ammonite territory in the eastern part of the map.)
o    “The people of Jabesh-Gilead sent messengers to Gibeah to beg for Saul’s help.”  (Draw dotted line from Jabesh-Gilead to Gibeah.)
o    “Saul came to their aid and defeated the Ammonites at Jabesh-Gilead.”  (Draw dotted line from Gibeah to Jabesh Gilead, and add another “explosion.”)
o    “This made him more confident as a king, so he set up his kingdom in Gilgal.”  (Put “king on throne” in Gilgal.)
o    “Here, he began to assemble his army, and he chose 3,000 fighting men.”  (Put pictures of soldiers near Gilgal.)
o    “Saul gave his son Jonathan an army of 1,000 men, and he kept 2,000 for himself.”
o    “After a few years, the Philistines began to threaten Israel.”  (Show Philistine territory in the southern part of the map.)
o    “They gathered 30,000 chariots and 6,000 horsemen and many fighters at a place called Michmash.”  (Put “soldiers” in Michmash on the map.)
o    “This was a major problem for the Israelites!”
o    “They only had 3,000 fighting men!”
o    “Even worse than that, they only had two swords in their entire army – one for Saul and one for Jonathan!”
o    “The reason for this is that the Philistines were much stronger than Israel and wouldn’t allow any Israelites to be blacksmiths.”
o    “If an Israelite wanted something done with metal, they had to go to the Philistine blacksmiths to get it done, and the Philistine blacksmiths would never make weapons for them – only farming tools.”
o    “So the Israelites are being threatened by an army much, much bigger than theirs.”
o    “It has chariots and horses and swords and other weapons that the Israelites don’t have.”
o    “Things looked bad for Israel.”
o    “But then Jonathan did a very courageous thing.”
o    “He took his armor bearer (the man who carried his shield and some of his weapons) and said, ‘Let’s go to Michmash and see what the Lord will do!’”  (Put picture of Jonathan and armor bearer at Michmash.)
o    “His armor bearer bravely followed, and they went to the pass at Michmash to challenge the 600 Philistines that were guarding the path through the mountains there.”
o    “Jonathan said to his armor bearer, ‘If the Philistines call us and ask us to come up to them when they see us, God has given us the victory, and we will climb up and attack them.  But if they tell us to wait where we are at for them to come down, we will not go up after them.’”
o    “When the Philistines saw them at the bottom of the pass, they called out, ‘Come up here!  We have something to show you!’”
o    “So Jonathan and his armor bearer climbed to the top of the pass.”
o    “When they got there, they began to fight against the Philistines and quickly killed 20 men.”  (Put an “explosion” at Michmash.)
o    “At that moment, God sent an earthquake that fiercely shook the ground, and the Philistines were terrified!”
o    “They began fighting each other in their confusion, and Jonathan and his armor bearer pursued them.”
o    “Saul and the Israelites were startled by the earthquake and looked across the valley to see the Philistine army melting away.”
o    “When Saul realized that his son was the reason for the Philistine retreat, he called all the Israelites to war.”
o    “They drove the Philistines back from Michmash all the way to Aijalon, picking up the weapons that the Philistines dropped as they retreated.”  (Move “soldiers” to Aijalon.)
o    “After defeating the Philistines in this battle, Saul and his army had many swords and other weapons.”
o    “Over the following months and years, Saul’s army grew.”
o    “He led his soldiers in wars against all the enemies of the Israelites – the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Amalekites and Philistines.”  (Show these nations on the map.)
o    “But then Saul made a huge mistake.”
o    “God told him to attack the Amalekites in s a very specific way, but Saul didn’t follow God’s directions.” (Put a dotted line from Gilgal to the Amalekites’ territory and then add an “explosion” on the Amalekites’ territory.)
o    “So, God sent Samuel, the prophet, to meet Saul in Gilgal.”  (Put “Samuel” on Gilgal on the map next to Saul on his throne.)
o    “Samuel told Saul that because he had not followed God’s directions, God would one day take the kingdom of Israel away from him.”
o    “Samuel returned home to Shiloh, where the tabernacle of the Lord was located, and he was sad that Saul was disobedient to God.” (Move “Samuel” to Shiloh on the map.)
o    “God spoke to Samuel and told him that He had selected the next king.”
o    “God told Samuel to fill his horn with oil and head to Bethlehem, where he would anoint the next king.”
o    “Anointing was a ceremony where someone was set apart to do God’s work.”
o    “It involved pouring oil over their heads or spreading oil over their foreheads.”
o    “It said to the person and to the world that this person had a special purpose for God.”
o    “So Samuel left for Bethlehem and went to the house of a man named Jesse.”  (Move “Samuel” to Bethlehem.  Ask for seven volunteers to come up.)
o    “He asked Jesse if he could see his sons, and Jesse brought out each of his sons one-by-one starting from the oldest.”  (Organize the volunteers in a line from tallest to shortest facing the rest of the kids.  The tallest one needs to be a boy, but the rest can be girls or boys.)
o    “Samuel inspected the first one (the oldest/tallest) and thought, ‘Ah! This is the king!  He’s handsome and strong!’”
o    “But God said, ‘Uh, uh….nope!  That’s not him.  Take a look at his heart.’”  (Use “x-ray machine” to look at his heart.  The first picture is of a chest x-ray with a Valentine’s Day candy that says, “Kiss Me.”)
o    “Nope, God’s right…this one only cares about the girls.  Let’s look at the next one.”   (Between volunteers, discreetly slip out the top page from the sheet protector in the “x-ray machine,” and lay it to the side.  The second picture has a very small heart.)
o    “Oh, this one’s heart is way too small.  He can’t be the king.  Let’s look at the next one.”  (Slip the top page out of the sheet protector.  The next picture is a cluster of party balloons.)
o    “No, this one just wants to party.  How about the next one.”  (Slip the top page out.  The next picture is a hamburger.”)
o    “This one has too much cholesterol in his diet.  I’m afraid he won’t last too long if he becomes king.”  (Go to the next volunteer.  Slip out the top page.  The next picture is a set of office equipment.)
o    “Wow!  This one is a workaholic!  He’s too busy to be king.”  (Slip the top page out.  The next picture is a piggy bank.)
o    “Just what I was afraid of…this one loves money too much.”  (Slip the top page out.  The next picture is a chicken.)
o    “This one’s too chicken to be king.  Oh, no!  That’s the last one, and none of them are qualified to be king.”
o    “After the last one, Samuel asked Jesse, ‘Is this it?  Don’t you have any other boys?’”
o    “Jesse said, ‘No, I have one more, but he’s my youngest, and he’s just a shepherd.’”
o    “Samuel thought he had to be better than the rest, so he had the boy sent for.”  (Call up one more volunteer from the audience.  Pick someone small.)
o    “When he saw him, he knew.  This was the boy God had chosen.”
o    “It wasn’t that he was the biggest or the strongest – he wasn’t.”
o    “Samuel could just tell that he was a boy after God’s own heart.”  (Pull out the top sheet from the “x-ray machine.”  The final picture is a big heart with a cross in the middle to signify that David has the heart of God.)
o    “So, recognizing David as the one God had chosen, Samuel anointed David with oil right there in front of his brothers.”  (Pour a little oil on the volunteer’s head or smear some across his forehead to signify his anointing.)
o    “Remember, this told everyone that David had been set aside for serving the Lord in a special way.” (Thank your volunteers, and let them return to their seats.)
o    “We often look at the outside of a person to judge how important or successful they are.”
o    “If they are tall and handsome or beautiful and talented, we often admire them.”
o    “Sometimes we even want to be like them, but God says in His Word that that’s not how he judges a person.”
o    “In 1 Samuel 16:7, God says to Samuel about Jesse’s oldest son, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.’”
o    “God looks at our hearts!  Isn’t that amazing!”
o    “He knows that many of us are not the most beautiful or the most talented or the strongest or the most popular, and it’s okay with Him.”
o    “He doesn’t care so much about what we are like on the outside – He cares about what we are like on the inside!”
o    “That’s where beauty really counts!  Beauty on the inside!”
o    “If you are beautiful on the inside, then it makes your outside beauty even more beautiful!”
o    “Saul was a mess as a king, because his heart was a mess!”
o    “His son Jonathan would have made a much better king than he did, because He had a heart for God and was willing to trust God with his life.”
o    “God allowed the people to have a king that was impressive looking first so that they would appreciate David as a king with the heart of God.”
o    “We will learn more about David as king in another lesson, but for now, I want you to remember that God cares much less about your outside than He does about your inside.”  (Have volunteer read 1 Corinthians 1:26-29.)
o    “God often chooses the people that no one else would think to choose, because then He gets the glory for what we do.”
o    “If God chose the most talented or the strongest or the most beautiful or the wealthiest, they might say that they accomplished on their own what really God accomplished through them.”
o    “So no matter how strong or beautiful or smart you are, be committed to God in your heart, and give Him the glory for all you do.”
o    “Then God will set you aside (will anoint you) for His purposes!”  (You might want to practice the Rhyme Time from the beginning of the lesson at this point.)

Capture Every Thought (GAME)

Time
30-45 minutes

Description
This game helps participants understand how important it is to capture every thought and take it captive before Christ.  It is loosely based on the game of Othello ® (Gabriel Industries, Inc.) or Reversi.

Audience
Children, youth

Materials
•    Gameboard (can be printed from the file “Capture Every Thought – Game Board and Pieces.ppt” located on the Lesson and Material Downloads page of www.teachthem.wordpress.com.)
•    Game pieces (can be printed from the file “Capture Every Thought – Game Board and Pieces.ppt” located on the Lesson and Material Downloads page of www.teachthem.wordpress.com.)
•    “Starting Positions” Gameboard (can be printed from the file “Capture Every Thought – Game Board and Pieces.ppt” located on the Lesson and Material Downloads page of www.teachthem.wordpress.com.)
•    “Move #1, #2 & #3” slide (can be printed from the file “Capture Every Thought – Game Board and Pieces.ppt” located on the Lesson and Material Downloads page of www.teachthem.wordpress.com.)
•    Glue stick
•    Scissors or cutting board
•    (Optional) Prizes for winners

Preparation
•    Make copies of the “Debrief Questions” page at the end of this lesson (one copy per table group).
•    Print copies of the game boards (1 for every two people)
•    Print copies of the game pieces (60 for ever two people – 1 page makes 60 pieces)
•    Print one copy each of the “Starting Positions” slide and the “Move #1, #2 & #3” example slide.
•    Fold the game piece pages along the blue line that divides the two colors.  Crease the page well along this fold.
•    Use a glue stick to stick the two pages together.  Make sure that the entire surface is covered.
•    Use the scissors or the cutting board to cut out each of the rectangular game pieces.  (They should now be a different color on each side.  Cut closely to the rectangles, because if the pieces are too big, they are difficult to flip on the gamebaord.)
•    Practice the script.

Procedure
Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):
•    “The Bible has a lot to say about what we think.”
•    “Our minds are a major battlefield for the spiritual war between Satan and God.”
•    “God wants our minds to be filled with good things that honor Him, because He knows that these things will bless us and help us live fulfilling lives.”
•    “Satan wants our minds to be filled with bad things that dishonor God, because he hates God and hates that we are made in God’s image.”
•    “Satan knows that he can’t do anything to diminish God, so he tries to hurt the Creator through His creation – and that’s us.”
•    “Let’s read a few of the Scriptures related to our thoughts.”  (Have volunteers read the following Scriptures out loud.)
o    Romans 8:6 (mind of sinful man is death; mind of the Spirit is life)
o    Proverbs 15:26 (the Lord detests thoughts of the wicked but is pleased by thoughts of the pure)
o    Isaiah 55:8-9 (God’s thoughts are higher than our thoughts)
o    Colossians 3:2 (set minds on things above, not on earthly things)
o    Philippians 4:8 (think about excellent, praiseworthy….things)
o    2 Corinthians 10:5 (take every thought captive)
•    “So, we are to think about the things God thinks about and not about sinful things.”
•    “This is really hard to do, and it takes a lot of prayer and practice, because Satan is going to try to mess up our thoughts as much as possible.”
•    “He whispers evil thoughts to us from the spiritual realm, and if we aren’t careful, we accept his thoughts as our own.”
•    “That’s terribly dangerous, because the Bible says that everything Satan ever says is a lie.  Lying is his native language and the only language he speaks.”  (John 8:44)
•    “2 Corinthians 10:5 says that we are to take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ.”
•    “This means that when we have a bad thought or even a thought we aren’t sure about, we should ask God about it.”
•    “If is something true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy, God will confirm it for you.”
•    “But if it’s a lie from Satan, God will replace it with the truth.”
•    “We’re going to play a game that will help us to remember to take every thought captive to Christ.”  (Divide group into pairs, and hand out the gameboards and game pieces for each pair.)
•    “You have a gameboard in front of you.  It has 64 spaces on it.”
•    “You also have 64 colored game pieces.  They are blue on one side and yellow on the other.”
•    “Each person should take 30 game pieces for himself and decide if he wants to be either blue or yellow.”  (Have them divide the pieces and pick a color.)
•    “Alright, everyone who chose blue, raise your hands.”  (Demonstrate.)
•    “In this battle, you represent the devil.  Sorry about that.”
•    “Everyone who chose yellow, you represent God.”
•    “The gameboard represents a human mind, and the game pieces each represent thoughts.”
•    “Dark blue pieces represent the bad thoughts and lies Satan tries to get us to believe and take as our own.”
•    “Yellow pieces represent the good thoughts and truth God wants us to believe and act on.”
•    “Each player starts with two thoughts (game pieces) on the board in the center squares.  They should look like this.”  (Show the “Starting Positions” slide.  Have all players put two of their game pieces down.)
•    “The goal of each player is to trap your opponents pieces between two of your own.”
•    “If you have one piece down already and then lay another one, you capture all of your opponent’s pieces that are between your two pieces.  You can then flip all those captured pieces over so that they are now your color.”  (Show “Move #1, #2 and #3” slide to give them examples.)
•    “You can capture pieces diagonally, horizontally or vertically.”
•    “You capture all the opponents’ pieces between your two pieces, so as the game progresses, you should be able to capture two, three, four or more pieces at a time.”
•    “You can even capture pieces in two or more directions at the same time as long as they are all between two of your pieces.”
•    “It’s important to know that you cannot play on spaces unless it allow you to capture at least one of your opponent’s pieces.”
•    “The winner is the person who has the most of their colored pieces on the board when it gets to a point that no one can make a move.”
•    “Dark blue pieces get to go first.”
•    “Do you have any questions about how to play?”  (Answer questions, and then allow them to play a round.  If they finish the first round quickly and you have the time, let them play several rounds.  Then, award a prize to the winners if you choose.  Pass out the Debrief Questions sheet to each group, and allow them 10-15 minutes to talk about the questions.  Then ask the large group for any general insights from the activity.)

Debrief Questions

o    How does this game reflect the battle between God and Satan for your mind?
o    Why would some bad thoughts from Satan change your good thoughts to bad ones (like capturing pieces in the game)?
o    The corners are the most strategic spaces on the gameboard, because they cannot be trapped once they belong to someone.  What might these represent in the battle for your mind?
o    Why is it important to guard your mind against Satan’s influence?  How can you do this?
o    How could you capture more thoughts for Christ?

Catch! (Obj Lesson)

Time
10-15 minutes

Description
This object lesson illustrates how Satan tries to fill our minds with worries, fears, doubts and many other things so that there is no room for God’s truth, peace and joy.

Audience
Children, youth and adults

Materials
•    Tennis balls (9-12)
•    Permanent marker
•    Posterboard (1 sheet should do)
•    Scissors or some other cutting device
•    Block pattern (You can find this in the file “Catch – Block Pattern.ppt” located on the Lesson and Material Downloads page at www.teachthem.wordpress.com.)
•    Clear tape

Preparation
•    Write a different label on each of the tennis balls.  They should read: Worry, Fear, Jealousy, Anger, Doubt, Entertainment, Video Games, Depression, Obsessions, Fatigue, Hatred, Self, Regret, Embarrassment, Cute Boy, Cute Girl (or whatever you think appropriate – they should be things that Satan might use to fill up our minds so that we don’t have room to think about things God wants us to think about)
•    Make several blocks out of posterboard using the block pattern mentioned above and the clear tape
•    Label the blocks: Truth, Love, Joy, Peace, Wisdom, Vision, Faith, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, Self-Control, Righteousness, Hope (or whatever you think appropriate – they should be things that God wants to fill our mind with).  You could also focus on Philippians 4:8 and do blocks that say “True, Noble, Right, Pure, Lovely, Admirable.”  You will need 9-12 blocks.
•    Practice the script.

Procedure
Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):
o    “I want to show you an illustration of the battle for your mind.”
o    “Satan and God are in a war.  It’s evil against Good.”
o    “Your mind and heart are the battlefields on which this war is waged.”
o    “Satan knows that he can’t do anything to damage God, so He tries to hurt the Creator through his creation, and that’s us.”
o    “Satan first wants to hold as many of us prisoner as possible, so that we never get to join God’s army.”
o    “But even after we become Christians and join God’s side, Satan doesn’t give up.”
o    “If he can’t have us on his side, he will at least try to make us ineffective by pulling our minds and hearts away from God.”
o    “Satan knows that if he can win the battle for our mind, we will be ineffective for God.”
o    “So the tactic we are going to talk about is how Satan tries to fill our mind with lots of things so that there is no room for what God wants to put in there.”  (Ask for a volunteer to come forward.)
o    “Let’s pretend that this person represents our minds.”
o    “And let’s pretend that these tennis balls each represent something that Satan want to fill our mind with so that we don’t think about Godly things.”  (Read on of the balls out loud, and show it to the group.  Then hand it to your volunteer.)
o    “If that one doesn’t completely occupy our minds, Satan will give us more things to think about.  (Read several more balls, and hand them to the volunteer.)
o    “He will keep this up, filling our minds with all kinds of junk until they are completely full.”  (Read off the rest of the balls, and hand them to the volunteer, who should be having trouble holding them all.  If he/she drops any, pick them up, and hand them back to the volunteer.)
o    “When our minds are full like this, there is not room for what God wants to put in.”  (Pick up one of the blocks, and read it off.  Try to fit it into the volunteer’s hands, but give up in frustration.)
o    “But who ever said that we have to hold anything that Satan gives to us?”  (Instruct volunteer to drop all the balls and to take the block.)
o    “Now, without all the junk that Satan tries to fill our minds with, there is plenty of room for what God wants to fill our mind with.”  (Read off each of the blocks, and then stack them neatly in the volunteer’s hands.  Keep one for the next part of the lesson.)
o    “Notice how much easier it is to hold the things that God gives us rather than the things Satan tries to fill our minds with.”  (Pick up a few of the balls off the floor, and toss them at the volunteer while saying, “Catch!”  Hopefully, the volunteer will drop everything to catch the balls.  If he/she does, then ask, “Why did you drop all God’s good things to catch what Satan threw you?”  If the volunteer doesn’t fall for the trick, keep tossing balls in his/her direction.  Then say, “It was good that you didn’t fall for Satan’s trick.  He won’t give up.  He will keep tossing bad thoughts at you, and you have to be careful to not accept them.”
o    “If Satan does succeed in getting in one of his thought bombs, the Bible tells us clearly what to do about it.”  (Have volunteer read 2 Corinthians 10:3-5.)
o    “The war we fight is different than most wars.  It’s a thought war.”
o    “When one of Satan’s thought bombs gets in, we are to take it captive to Christ.”  (Have volunteer take one of the thought bombs and hold it up like he/she is giving it to God.)
o    “God will then take that thought bomb and replace it with one of His truths.” (Exchange the ball for a block.)
o    “This war is difficult, and it’s long.  You have to keep fighting all your life to keep your thoughts pure and true.” (Have volunteer read Romans 12:2.)
o    “God wants us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.  That means taking evil and ungodly thoughts captive every time we have them and exchanging them for truth and wisdom with God.”
o    “You see, when God saved us, he gave us a completely new heart, but we have the same mind that we had before we were saved.”
o    “In order to get a new mind, we have to exchange the bad thoughts one by one for good thoughts.”
o    “Maybe a good way to think about it is this: our hearts after trusting Christ are like moving into a brand new house, but our minds after trusting Christ are like moving into an old house that needs a lot of renovation work.”
o    “The good news is that God will help us with all the renovation.  He will be our general contractor, who guides us in all the work.”  (Thank volunteer, and let him/her have a seat.)

Ups and Downs of Teambuilding (GAME)

Time
25-45 minutes

Description
This is game that helps participants understand the dynamics of teams.  It uses Bruce Tuckman’s “Forming – Storming – Norming – Performing” model and combines it with the children’s game of Chutes and Ladders ® (a.k.a. Snakes and Ladders).

If you want to add a spiritual element to this lesson, you can have participants review the Scriptures at the end of the lesson and try to determine what stage of team building they represent.  Add 30-45 minutes to the lesson if you do this.

Audience
Anyone who leads teams (but usually adults or youth)

Materials
•    If you want to use a regularly-sized gameboard, you can find one on the Lesson and Material Downloads page at www.teachthem.wordpress.com.  It’s called: “Ups and Downs of Teambuilding – Gameboard.ppt.”  (You will need something to act as game pieces for each player – maybe candy or coins or something else that is small.)
•    For a life-sized game, you will need masking tape, rope or some other material to mark off the gameboard.  How much you need depends upon the size of the gameboard.  I like to make it big when I do the game outdoors, so I typically use 22 ropes of about 20 ft each.  (If you have access to a tile floor, you can use that and not have to mark off the spaces.)  For the life-sized version, the participants become the game pieces.
•    Tent stakes (44 – if you are outdoors and using rope to mark off your gameboard)
•    Dice (two – the bigger, the better, if you are playing this as a life-sized game)
•    Sticky notes (100) to number the game spaces (if you are indoors and playing on a smooth surface)
•    Note cards (100) to number the game spaces (if you are outdoors)
•    Golf tees (100) to hold the note cards to the ground (if you are outdoors)
•    Colored marker
•    Printed copy of “Ups and Downs of Teambuilding – Game Spaces.doc”  (Available on the Lesson and Material Downloads page at www.teachthem.wordpress.com.)
•    (Optional) Printed copy of “Ups and Downs of Teambuilding – Game Cards.doc” (Available on the Lesson and Material Downloads page at www.teachthem.wordpress.com.)

Preparation
•    Print or mark off your gameboard.  You need a 10 space by 10 space grid.  If you do the life-sized version, you should make the squares large enough for several people to fit in them, because it is possible for more than one person to land on the same space during a turn.
•    Number your spaces 1-100 using the sticky notes or the notecards and golf tees.  The numbering should go back and forth.  For example, the first row is numbered left to right (1-10).  The second row is numbered right to left so that the 11 space is right above the 10 space, and the 20 space is right above the 1 space.  The third row is then numbered left to right again, and so on.  (If this is confusing, take a look at the “Ups and Downs of Teambuilding – Gameboard.ppt” on the Lesson and Material Downloads page at www.teachthem.wordpress.com.)
•    Use the colored marker to put a dot on all the sticky notes or notecards that have a corresponding note in the “Ups and Downs of Teambuilding – Game Spaces.doc” file.  For example, space #3 has a note in the document that indicates that something good has happened and that the player can move up.  Put a green (or whatever color you chose) dot next to the number on the sticky note or notecard for space #3.  (You don’t need to do this step if you tape the game cards in the spaces.)
•    Print off the documents (mentioned above) that you need.
•    If you print out the “Ups and Downs of Teambuilding – Game Cards,” you can tape these in the squares designated by the number on the cards.  This will prevent you from having to read them yourself.  You can tape them right-side-up or upside-down.  It’s up to you.
•    Practice the script.

Procedure
Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):
•    “We’re going to play a game that will help you to understand how teams grow and develop.”
•    “Bruce Tuckman developed a model that involves four stages.  They are, “Forming, Storming, Norming and Performing.”
•    “Forming is the first stage, and it’s where everyone in a team comes together.  Everyone is on their best behavior and trying to make the new group work, but trust is low, because we don’t know each other yet.”
•    “Storming is the second stage, and it involves conflict and struggles.  Individuals may disagree over roles or methods or any number of things.  This can be a painful stage, but it’s necessary to help the team members get honest with each other and build trust.  If conflict is handled well, the team will be stronger when it comes through this stage.”
•    “Norming is the third stage.  The team is starting to understand and appreciate individuals more.  They are recognizing the strengths and weaknesses of each team member, and they are experiencing some success.”
•    “Performing is the forth stage.  The team now is at it’s highest level of productivity and synergy.  Team members are interdependent and work together to see tasks or projects completed well.  Leadership is often shared and assumed by the person who has the greatest strengths for each particular task.”
•    “If you look at any professional sport team that has won a championship, you can tell that maintaining the ‘Performing’ stage is very difficult.”
•    “Very few championship teams repeat the following year.  Fewer repeat the third year.  It’s just too difficult to stay in ‘Performing’ that long.”
•    “Factors outside the team may prevent the team from continuing.  Things like budget cuts, down economies, competitor tactics, new technology, time constraints, etc. can dethrone champion teams.”
•    “Likewise, factors inside the team also work against continued success.  Team members leave the team, experience personal crises, become dissatisfied, have conflicts and go through a long list of other problems and can’t continue to perform at the highest level.  There are also leadership changes, vision/mission changes, mistakes, failures, etc.”
•    “So, teams don’t stay at ‘Performing’ indefinitely once they get there.”
•    “More often what happens is that teams move up and down through the four stages – sometimes going from ‘Performing’ all the way back to ‘Forming’ (i.e., if an important team member leaves) or from ‘Storming’ to ‘Performing” (i.e., if a major breakthrough is experienced).”
•    “The game we are about to play will illustrate some of the factors (both inside and outside the team) that cause teams to move up and down through the levels.”
•    “It’s a game similar to the children’s game of Chutes and Ladders ® or Snakes and Ladders.”
•    “Have any of you played that before?”  (Listen to responses.)
•    “The gameboard has one hundred spaces.”
•    “The objective of the game is to be the first person to reach the 100th space.”
•    “Players will roll the dice (two) to see how many spaces they move.”
•    “On some spaces, there is a green dot (or whatever color you choose.  If you taped game cards in each space, you can skip this instruction and just have the participants read the card when they step on the space.)”
•    “This dot indicates that there is either an “UP” or a “DOWN” on the space.”
•    “I will read out a note related to that space, and the note will tell you about something that has happened to your team.  Sometimes it’s good; sometimes it’s bad.  If it’s good, you will get to move up to another space.  If it’s bad, you will have to move down.”
•    “Once you get close to the 100th space, you will need to get a perfect roll to win.  That means that if you are four spaces away, you have to roll a 4, a 3, a 2, or a 1 to move.  (You can choose to roll only one die at this time.)”
•    “If you roll higher than the number of spaces left, you lose your turn and must wait in your place.”
•    “Does anyone have any questions?”  (Answer questions.  Then start the game.  Everyone starts off the gameboard.  You can have them roll the dice to see who goes first.  Highest roll is first, second highest is second…  After someone wins, have the group answer the debrief questions (next page) together.)
•    NOTE: If you have a large group, you might want to divide them into pairs and have one person act as the game piece and another roll the dice.  If you have a really big group, divide them into teams, have one game piece, one dice roller and a large fan club.

Debrief Questions

1.    What can the game teach us about team building?

2.    Why is it so difficult to maintain the “Performing” stage?

3.    On your team, what internal influences (things inside your team) could send you back down? What can you do about it?

4.    On your team, what external influences (things outside your team) could send you back down?  What can you do about it?

5.    How can you move your team to the next level (or keep them at “Performing”)?

Biblical Reflection
Review these Scriptures, and try to determine which stage of teambuilding they represent.

o    Matthew 4:18-23
o    Matthew 8:23-27
o    Matthew 9:9
o    Matthew 10:5-10
o    Matthew 14:10
o    Matthew 14:15-21
o    Matthew 16:21-23
o    Matthew 17:1-8
o    Matthew 17:14-18
o    Matthew 18:1
o    Matthew 20:20-24
o    Matthew 26:6-9
o    Matthew 26:14-16
o    Matthew 26:31-34
o    Matthew 26:47
o    Matthew 26:56
o    Matthew 26:69-75
o    Matthew 27:35
o    Matthew 28:16-20
o    Mark 3:13-19
o    Mark 6:45-52
o    Mark 8:27-30
o    Mark 9:33-34
o    John 6:66-69
o    John 21:15-17
o    Acts 2:1-7
o    Acts 2:46-47
o    Acts 3:1-10

Biblical Reflection: ANSWERS
Review these Scriptures, and try to determine which stage of teambuilding they represent.

o    Matthew 4:18-23 (Forming)
o    Matthew 8:23-27 (Storming)
o    Matthew 9:9 (Forming)
o    Matthew 10:5-10 (Norming)
o    Matthew 14:10 (Storming)
o    Matthew 14:15-21 (Storming)
o    Matthew 16:21-23 (Performing then Storming)
o    Matthew 17:1-8 (Norming)
o    Matthew 17:14-18 (Storming)
o    Matthew 18:1 (Storming)
o    Matthew 20:20-24 (Storming)
o    Matthew 26:6-9 (Storming)
o    Matthew 26:14-16 (Storming)
o    Matthew 26:31-34 (Norming)

o    Matthew 26:47 (Storming)
o    Matthew 26:56 (Storming)
o    Matthew 26:69-75 (Storming)
o    Matthew 27:35 (Storming)
o    Matthew 28:16-20 (Norming)
o    Mark 3:13-19 (Forming)
o    Mark 6:45-52 (Storming)
o    Mark 8:27-30 (Norming or Performing)
o    Mark 9:33-34 (Storming)
o    John 6:66-69 (Forming)
o    John 21:15-17 (Norming)
o    Acts 2:1-7 (Performing and Forming)
o    Acts 2:46-47 (Performing)
o    Acts 3:1-10 (Performing)

Debrief

o    “What do you notice when you look at all the stages?”  (If they don’t mention it, point out that most of the examples are “Storming.”  This is from as fair a sampling of the Scriptures as I could do, so I think it is representative.)
o    “Why do you think that is?”  (Listen to responses. Then, add the next point if necessary.)
o    “Jesus often allowed his disciples to go through ‘Storming’ times.”
o    “Probably these experiences were designed as a tool and a test for them.”
o    “As a tool, the experiences shaped them to be more like Christ.  They cut away the pride and the selfishness.”
o    “As a test, they revealed the character of each disciple’s heart and indicated whether or not they were learning from their experiences.”
o    “The disciples didn’t experience extended periods of ‘Performing’ until after Pentecost, and even then, they still went back to the ‘Storming’ stage on occasion.”
o    “Failure is a much better teacher than success.”
o    “All these ‘Storming’ times prepared the disciples for the incredible ministries they would have one day.”
o    “So, when you are leading a team, don’t be afraid to allow them to make some mistakes or to experience failure.”
o    “It will most likely teach them more than any successes ever would.”

God Cares for Me – Psalm 23 (LESSON)

Audience: Children, (possibly youth if you ham it up quite a bit to engage them)

Scriptures:    Psalm 23

Description:    This lesson teaches about a shepherd and how he cares for his sheep.  It makes comparisons to Jesus as The Shepherd who cares for His sheep (those who believe in Him).  It also briefly introduces David as a shepherd in anticipation of beginning his story during the next lesson.

Rhyme Time:    God loves me; I’m under His care.
Wherever I go; He’s always there!

Time:    30-45 minutes

Materials:
o    Shepherd’s costume (sheet with a hole for your head to go through, belt made out of a piece of fabric, 3 ft x 2 ft piece of fabric to go over your head, headband made out of fabric)
o    Something to act as a shepherd’s staff  (The size and shape of the staff are important, because it will be part of the lesson.  It should be a long, slender stick (maybe 6 ft or longer), with a hook on one end.  It can be natural or manmade.)
o    Something to act as a shepherd’s rod (The size and shape of the rod are important, because it will be part of the lesson.  It should be a straight, long (4 ft or longer) and about 2 inches in diameter, with a knob at one end.  This knob helps the shepherd use the rod for defense.)
o    Sheep hats (can be as simple as headbands with cotton ball ears) for the kids who will help you with your lesson.  (I recommend 6-8.)
o    Snake, wolf, bear, lion and fly hats (differently colored headbands with ears that represent each animal – one of each)
o    A Ziplock bag full of good, green grass and a Ziplock bag full of dead grass or weeds.
o    A glass off clean water and a glass of muddy water.
o    Olive oil (one bottle)
o    Mustard powder (one can / bottle)
o    Cinnamon or other powder in spice form (one can / bottle)
o    Bowl for mixing oil and powders
o    Spoon for mixing oil and powders
o    A bag with some rock salt in it.
o    Optional – A “wool coat” – a large piece of fabric with cotton balls on it to represent wool.

Preparation:
o    Most of the information for this lesson was taken from a book entitled, A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23 by Phillip Keller (1970, HarperCollinsPublishers).  It’s a good read and a good story if you have the time and can find a copy.
o    Make costumes, and have them on-hand.
o    Set out bowl, spoon, oil and powders.  You will mix them during the lesson.
o    Find all the Scriptures from the lesson and bookmark them in a Bible for your reading volunteer.
o    Gather some good grass and some bad grass, and fill two Ziplock bags with them.
o    Pour some clean water in two glasses, and make one of them dirty with a little dirt.
o    Optional – if you use the “wool coat,” you will need to make it out of a piece of fabric with some cotton balls glued to it.  After you’ve made it, drag it through the soil and grass to make it dirty and clogged.

Procedure:
Use the following script or modify to suit your needs:
o    “There is a very famous psalm that many people have memorized, because it gives them peace and calm when they are going through difficult times.”
o    “Does anyone know which psalm it is?”  (Take responses if there are any.)
o    “Right, it’s Psalm 23.  It’s very short, but it has a lot of meaning.”
o    “It was written by David, the most famous and loved king of the Israelites.”
o    “It’s a poem about God that describes Him as a Shepherd watching over a flock of sheep.”
o    “David, of course, knew all about shepherds and sheep, because he was a shepherd boy until the time that he killed Goliath, the giant.”
o    “So, using everything David knew about being a shepherd, he tells us what God is like.”
o    “Jesus liked the metaphor, too, because He said to His disciples in John 10:11, ‘I am the good Shepherd.  The good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.’”
o    “So, let’s take a look at Psalm 23 and see what it tells us about God from a shepherd’s point of view.”  (Ask for several volunteers to come up and be your sheep.  Put the hats on them, and have them get down on all fours in a “flock.”  Ask other volunteers to act as a wolf, lion and bear.  Put the hats on them, and tell them that their job is to go to the edges of the room and only come to attack the sheep if they wander away from the others.  Then, have a volunteer read Psalm 23:1.)
o    “The first part of that scripture says, ‘the Lord is my Shepherd.’  Sheep can’t just take care of themselves.  They need a shepherd.”
o    “If they are left alone, they wander off and get into trouble.”  (Ask your volunteers to wander around by crawling to different places in the room.  When one wanders near the “snake,” the “wolf,” the “bear” or the “lion,” rush to save it.  The “snake,” “wolf,” “bear,” and “lion” should pretend to attack the sheep.)
o    “We are like those sheep.  We often get ourselves into trouble when we go wandering away from our Good Shepherd, Jesus.”
o    “It’s also important to follow only the Good Shepherd.  We must know His voice so that we don’t follow the wrong shepherd.  Jesus talked to His disciples about this.”  (Have volunteer read John 10:1-5.)
o    “The LORD is my Shepherd – not Satan or anyone working for him.  We only listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd, and we only follow Him.”  (Have volunteer read Psalm 23:1 again.)
o    “The Scripture says ‘I shall not be in want.’  That means that, because the Lord is my Shepherd, I will have everything I need.”
o    “It doesn’t mean that I’ll get everything that I want to have – just that I’ll have everything I need to have.”
o    “A good shepherd gets up early every morning and goes to inspect his flock.”
o    “He examines them to make sure that they are healthy and happy and able to stay on their feet.”  (Pretend to look over your sheep to make sure they are okay.)
o    “He can easily tell if they are sick or if they need special attention.”
o    “His sheep don’t need anything, because a good shepherd takes care of everything that is necessary for them.”  (Have volunteer read Psalm 23:2.)
o    “It is almost impossible for sheep to be made to lie down unless four needs are met.”
o    “#1 – They must not be afraid.”
o    “Sheep are afraid of many things and for good reason.”
o    “They have no way to defend themselves.”
o    “Their only means of protection is to run.”  (Allow wild animals to attack, and have the sheep run away in all directions.  Then have the wild animals return to their places, and go gather up your flock.)
o    “Nothing makes sheep feel more secure than to see their good shepherd in the field with them.”
o    “For us, we can be calm and free from fear, because we know that Jesus, the Good Shepherd, is always with us.”  (Have volunteer read Deuteronomy 31:6.)
o    “God says that He will never leave us nor forsake us.  In other words, He will never give up on us, even if we mess up sometimes.”
o    “Because of this, we can be strong and courageous!  God is all-powerful, and He will protect us!”
o    “#2 – If you want your sheep to lie down, they can’t be in fights with other sheep.”
o    “Sheep are mean to each other.”
o    “You would think that with all their other enemies, they would be nice to one another, but they aren’t.”
o    “Older sheep stiffen their legs, tilt their heads, arch their necks and butt the young ones as hard as they can.”  (Demonstrate this behavior playfully with your flock.)
o    “And rams are even worse.  When they are fighting over girlfriends, their necks swell and get strong.”
o    “They furiously butt their heads and horns together to see who is the strongest, and some even die this way.”
o    “When the young sheep are worried about bullies, they start to get edgy and lose weight, so a good shepherd will defend the weaker ones.”
o    “With the rams, he puts grease on their heads so that they slip off each other when they collide.  That way, none of them get hurt.”  (Playfully demonstrate this with two of your flock.)
o    “Our Good Shepherd knows about the bullies in our live, but He says in His Word that He will take care of us.”  (Have volunteer read Ezekiel 34:15-16 and then Ezekiel 34:20-22.)
o    “The third thing that needs to happen for sheep to lie down and rest is that the sheep must be free from flies and other insects.”  (Ask for a volunteer to come up and put on the fly hat.)
o    “There is a certain type of insect, called a nose fly.  They love sheep and buzz all around their heads, trying to deposit their eggs in the wet places on the sheeps’ noses.”
o    “If the flies lay their eggs in the sheeps’ noses, worms will hatch and crawl up into the sheeps’ heads, causing irritation and inflammation.”  (Have fly volunteer ‘buzz’ around the sheep and pester them.)
o    “It drives the sheep crazy!  To get relief, they will beat their heads against trees, rocks, posts, bushes…anything.  They will rub them on the ground, and some even kill themselves just to get rid of the feeling.”
o    “A good shepherd will dip the sheep in chemicals and coat their heads in oil to keep the flies off of them.”   (Shoo away your fly volunteer, but don’t have them sit down just yet.)
o    “For us, the flies represent our worries, our fears, and our frustrations that keep us from resting and having peace.”
o    “They buzz around in our heads, looking for a place to land and lay their eggs.”  (Have your fly volunteer buzz around you.)
o    “If we allow them to stay, these fears and worries will paralyze us and keep us from doing all the things God wants us to do.”
o    “Our Good Shepherd knows about these, and He offers us perfect peace if we will just trust in Him.”  (Have volunteer read 2 Corinthians 10:5.)
o    “Every time we have a negative thought, He asks us to capture it and take it prisoner until our thinking becomes obedient to God.”  (“Capture” your fly volunteer, and hold him/her still for a moment.)
o    “You see, Satan is the father of lies.  He lies to us all the time.  In fact, he can’t even tell the truth, because his native language is lying.”
o    “But God will always tell us the truth.”
o    “When we have a negative thought, we should ask God about it.  He will tell us if it is true or not.”  (Have fly volunteer have a seat.)
o    “The fourth and final thing that a good shepherd has to do to help the sheep rest is to make sure they aren’t hungry.”
o    “Sheep will eat bad grass and drink bad water even when good grass and good water are available, because….well….they just aren’t that smart.”  (Offer your flock a choice between the Ziplock bags of good grass and bad grass.  Then offer them a choice between the clean water and the dirty water.  Try to really sell the bad stuff.)
o    “I’m sorry to say this, but we are a lot like those dumb sheep.”
o    “Our spirit is thirsty for what God calls ‘living water.’”
o    “Living Water is the Word of God – the Bible.”
o    “It satisfies our spiritual thirst and gives us peace and joy.”  (Take a drink of the clean water.)
o    “Unfortunately, we will drink just about anything but Living Water in order to satisfy our thirst.”
o    “We want sticky, sweet things, and we try to satisfy our spiritual thirst with money or entertainment or other things that can sometimes be bad for us.”
o    “We drink lots and lots of them, because even after we drink, we are still thirsty.”
o    “The only thing that can satisfy our spiritual thirst is God and His Word.”  (Have volunteer read Psalm 23:2 again.)
o    “The second part of that verse talks about quiet waters.  Some Bible translations call them ‘still’ waters.”
o    “You see, sheep need quiet or still waters, because rivers and streams are dangerous for a 300 lb washcloth with ears.”
o    “If the sheep slips into the water, it will start soaking up water and sink to the bottom.”  (You might sprinkle some water on the sheep just for laughs at this point.)
o    “So the shepherd would go to the stream and use stones to divert some of the water into a pool.” (Pretend to use rocks to divert a stream.)
o    “There, the sheep could drink without being afraid.”  (Have your flock pretend to drink.)
o    Water in Scripture often points to God’s Word.  I told you that it is sometimes called, ‘Living Water.’”
o    “We need to drink deeply of God’s Living Water every day during the still hours of the morning.”
o    “If we will make the time for Him, He will divert some special truths for us and teach us wonderful things.” (Have volunteer read Psalm 23:3.)
o    “Sheep sometimes get ‘cast down,’ a term that means they get turned upside down like a turtle.”  (Demonstrate with one of your flock.)
o    “Sheep get cast down when their wool gets too heavy or when they lie down in a place that isn’t level.”
o    “When they realize that they can’t get up, they panic and start kicking their legs frantically.”  (Demonstrate with your flock.)
o    “This causes gasses to build up in its body and cut off the blood supply to its legs.”
o    “If the shepherd doesn’t ‘restore’ the sheep to its feet soon, it will die.”
o    “He restores it by gently rolling it on its side and massaging its legs.” (Demonstrate.)
o    “Sometimes, we get ‘cast down.’”
o    “We feel sad, depressed or hopeless, but we can’t get back on our feet.”
o    “God comes along during those times and encourages us through prayer, His Word or through other people.”
o     “I mentioned that a sheep would often get cast down because of the heavy weight of his wool coat.”  (If you have it, put the imitation wool coat on one of your flock.)
o    “To prevent this, the shepherd would shear the sheep.”  (Pretend to shear your flock.)
o    “Sheep hate being sheared, and they will fight it with all their energy sometimes.”
o    “But once it’s over, they feel so good, because their wool coat is always caked with mud and poo and fleas and ticks and burrs.”
o    “Wool represents our sinful nature.  Priests were not allowed to wear it into the Temple of God for this reason.”
o    “Our sinful nature gets so clogged up with dirt and nasty stuff that it’s a huge relief when God takes the shearing clippers to us, but we don’t like to be sheared.”  (Show children the clogged wool coat.)
o    “Shearing represents God’s discipline in our lives.  It’s uncomfortable and sometimes painful, but it is very necessary to help us get free from our sin.”  (Have volunteer read Psalm 23:3 again.)
o    “Sheep are creatures of habit, and they will blindly follow a sheep in front of them even if they are going in the wrong direction.”  (Have flock demonstrate by getting a “lead” sheep to walk in circles.)
o    “We do that sometimes, too, but God will lead us down new, righteous paths that honor Him.”  (Have volunteer read Psalm 23:4.)
o    “Sheep are low on the food chain, and almost everything is a threat to them.”
o    “Wherever they go, they are surrounded by enemies.”  (Have “enemies” circle in close to the sheep.)
o    “Christians, too, have enemies everywhere.  Satan attacks us whenever he sees a chance.”
o    “But God is with us, and we never need to be afraid.”  (Have volunteer read Psalm 23:4 again.)
o    “A shepherd has two main tools for leading the sheep – a rod and a staff.”
o    “A rod looked like this.”  (Show rod.)
o    “It was typically cut from a young tree and carved to specifically fit a young shepherd’s hand.”
o    “A young shepherd boy would spend hours and hours practicing his throw with his club, learning how to send it whistling through the air with speed and accuracy.”
o    “This way, he could defend the sheep from their enemies (pretend to scare away some of the enemies with the rod) and keep the sheep from going into places they shouldn’t.” (Demonstrate how you could use the rod to scare a sheep away from a place where one of their enemies (i.e., a snake) could be hiding.)
o    “The shepherd’s staff was entirely different.”
o    “It was designed like this (show staff) in order to be of the most help to the sheep.”
o    “It was a long, slender stick with a hook at the end.”
o    “The hook was used to bring sheep closer for inspection or to unite a new lamb with its mother without getting the scent of a man on it.”  (Demonstrate.)
o    “It was used to guide the sheep along the right path or as a gentle way to let the sheep know that the shepherd was near.”  (Demonstrate.)
o    “This is a picture of God’s justice and His mercy – of His discipline and His grace – of His protection and His care.”
o    “The rod represents God’s authority, power and discipline, and the staff represents His grace and unconditional love.”
o    “Some people think of God as only power, justice and discipline; some think of Him as only love.”
o    “Neither are a complete picture.  God is both justice and mercy – both discipline and grace – and all of it is done because of His love for us.” (Have volunteer read Psalm 23:5.)
o    “A table to a shepherd is a table mesa – a high place in mountain country, where sheep are led to graze in the summer months.”
o    “The shepherd goes ahead of the sheep and prepares the area by pulling poisonous weeds and scouting the area for dangers.”
o    “He takes salt and minerals and spreads them over the whole area so that the sheep will eat them and improve their diet.”  (Pretend to spread the minerals, and then have your sheep graze.)
o    “God does the same for us.  He blesses us even in the middle of all our enemies.”
o    “And Jesus told us in John 14:1-4 that He is preparing a place for us in heaven.”
o    “He said that He’s coming back to get us and that He will lead us to that place He has prepared.”  (Have volunteer read Psalm 23:5 again.)
o     “David, the writer of the psalm, is talking about a few things in the last part of this verse.”
o    “When guests came to your home for dinner in Israel, your responsibility to them included anointing their heads with oil and to making sure they had plenty to drink.”
o    “The anointing was to moisten the skin, since Israel is surrounded by desert.”
o    “But it was also a token to say that this person is special.”
o    “Shepherds used anointing, too.”
o    “Remember about the nose flies I told you about?”
o    “Remember how the shepherd would put oil on the sheep’s head to keep the flies away?”
o    “The shepherd would mix olive oil or linseed oil with sulfur and tar.”  (Mix oil, cinnamon and mustard powder in the bowl, and then smear a little on the forehead of each of your sheep.)
o    “The flies couldn’t land, so the sheep stayed calm.”
o    “God anoints us – not with oil typically but with the Holy Spirit.”
o    “This anointing sets us apart as special to God.  It marks us as His children, and it protects us from Satan’s evil plans.”  (Have volunteer read Psalm 23:6.)
o    “Sheep have really good poo.  It’s so good that they are sometimes called, ‘the animals with the golden hooves.’”
o    “After they have left a grazing place, all their poo fertilizes the ground and makes it even better for growing things.”
o    “So when David talks about ‘goodness following him all the days of his life, it’s kinda funny.”
o    “The sheep poo; everything grows – goodness follows them everywhere they go.”  (Have your flock walk around, and follow them.  Say, ‘A little goodness here; a little goodness there.  Goodness, goodness, everywhere.  Thanks, little guys!’)
o    “For us as Christians, we ought to leave everything better than we found it.  By doing that, we leave goodness and mercy everywhere.”
o    “Finally, David tells us that he will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
o    “This will be true for any Christian – especially when we get to heaven.”
o    “But with the sheep, this last line tells about how sheep are safe if they stay with the good shepherd.”
o    “As they dwell in his house (a shelter from the weather), they can be sure of their safety.”  (Dismiss volunteers, and thank them.)
o    “We are all a lot like sheep.  The Bible says that we are all like sheep who go astray (Isaiah 53:6).  That’s why we need a Good Shepherd to lead us and to help us in this world.”

God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense (GAME)

Time
30 minutes

Description
This game teaches that we have God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense (G.R.A.C.E.), but we have to keep returning to God every time we sin in order to keep the relationship strong.  If we don’t, we wander further and further from God.

Audience
Children, youth

Materials
•    Copies of the Grace or Guilt Gameboard (See the file, “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense – Gameboard.ppt” on the “Lesson and Material Downloads” page.)
•    Copies of “Grace Cards” (included at the end of this lesson text) – You will need a set for every group of six.
•    A copy of the “Debrief Questions” at the end of this lesson.  You will need one printout per group.
•    Something to act as game pieces.  You can use coins, torn pieces of paper, poker chips…  You will need enough for all the children to have one.
•    Dice (one per group)
•    Optional – Prizes for the winners.

Preparation
•    Print the “Grace or Guilt – Gameboard,” and tape the two pages end-to-end.  You will need one gameboard for each group of up to six children.
•    Print out a copy of the “Grace Cards” at the end of the lesson, and cut them out. Place them face down beside the gameboard.
•    Print out a copy of the Debrief Question (one per group).
•    Practice the script

Procedure
Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):
•    “We’re going to play a game to help us understand how sin takes us away from God and the many blessings He wants us to have.”
•    “It’s called, ‘God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.”
•    “First, I’ll need to divide you into small groups.”  (Divide children into small groups of no more than six each.  Then, hand out the gameboards and game pieces.)
•    “Here’s the way this game is played.
o    First, you will all roll the die (singular for dice) to see who goes first.  The highest role wins and goes first.  The next-highest roll goes second and so on.  If you get a tie, those people should re-roll until someone rolls a higher number.
o    Players should put their game pieces on the paths that match their playing order.  For example, Path 1 for the first player, Path 2 for the second, and so on.
o    Next, you will roll the die to see how many spaces to move your game piece.
o    Each player starts in the “God’s Riches” space.
o    At the end of every turn, you will draw a card.
o    The card has a letter (or letters) on it.
o    You want to collect all the letters in the word, “GRACE.”
o    It’s okay if you have extra letters, but you need to have at least one of each of the letters on your cards.
o    If you get the right letters to spell, “GRACE,” you can return to the “God’s Riches” space.
o    You should put any cards you used to spell “GRACE” in a discard pile.  If the group draws all the card in the draw pile, the discard pile will be shuffled and used as the new draw pile.
o    The game ends when someone rolls a number that forces them to move more spaces than are left on the path.
o    The winner of the game is the person who is closest to “God’s Riches.”
o    In the event of a tie, you can let the tied players roll again to see who is the closest to “God’s Riches” after the roll.”
•    “Does anyone have questions about how you will play?”  (Answer questions.  Then, let them get started.  When they are done, award a prize for the winners if you like, and hand out a copy of the Debrief Questions on the next page.  Give groups ten minutes to discuss the debrief questions, and then talk with the entire group about their answers.)

Debrief Questions

o    Why is the game called, “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense?
o    What are “God’s Riches?”
o    What does “Christ’s Expense” mean?
o    How is this game like our Christian walk?
o    Read Proverbs 4:14-15.  What do you think the spaces represented?
o    Read Proverbs 4:26-27.  What do you think it means?
o    Grace allows us to return to God after we have sinned, but what do we actually need to do to return to Him?

Connect Four Sin Solution (Obj Lesson)

Time
15 minutes

Description
This object lesson demonstrates that the blood of Jesus paid for our sins – those we have done and those we have yet to do. It uses the Connect Four ® game by Milton Bradley.

Audience
Children, youth, adults

Materials
• Connect Four game
• Two sets of black checkers (Note: you may want to avoid the use of black checkers as a symbol for sin. It can sometimes send the wrong message to children of color. Most other colors will work if you can find them.)
• One red checker
• Bag
• Optional – 18 white checkers and 24 red checkers – only if you want to make the heart shape at the end

Preparation
• Put all the black checkers into the bag. Only use enough so that the black checkers can fill all but one space on the Connect Four ® frame. (Leave one spot empty for a red checker.)
• Put the red checker into your pocket.
• Set up the Connect Four ® frame (with no checkers in it).
• Practice the script.

Procedure
Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):
• “This is a Connect Four ® game. How many of you have played this game before?” (Look for responses.)
• “Well we are going to use the game to teach us something about God and how He has dealt with sin.” (Invite a volunteer to come help you demonstrate.)
• “The frame for the game represents your heart.”
• “The black checkers will represent sin, and the red checkers will represent the blood of Christ.”
• “I’ve put checkers into this bag, and I want you to draw them out and put them into the frame.” (Have volunteer draw out the first checker. As he/she drops it into the frame, mention a sin that kids his/her age might commit. Each time he/she drops a black checker in, mention a new sin. Some are suggested below.)
o Told a lie.
o Stole something from a friend.
o Picked on a younger kid.
o Fought with my brother.
o Didn’t tell my sister about the candy Mom bought for us.
o Never apologized for yelling at friend.
o Didn’t do my homework.
o Stayed up past my bedtime.
o Said something mean to my mom.
o Used something without asking.
o Pretended I was sick.
o Didn’t do my chores.
o Spent my offering on a Coke.
o Dented the car with my bike.
o Forgot to feed the dog.
o Showed disrespect to my teacher.
o Cheated on a test.
o Ate an extra desert when Dad wasn’t looking.
• (After the volunteer has put in 20 or so black checkers, secretly drop the red checker into the bag so that he/she will draw it out soon. When the volunteer draws the red checker and drops it in, stop him/her and remind everyone that it represents the blood of Christ.)
• “Remember, the red checker represents the blood of Christ.”
• “This is important, because the Bible says that the blood of Christ washes us of all our sin.”
• “Let’s look at a few Scriptures.” (Ask volunteers to read Matthew 26:28, Romans 5:9, Ephesians 2:13, Hebrews 9:22, 1 John 1:7-9.)
• “The blood of Christ earns us forgiveness, it justifies us and saves us from God’s wrath, it brings us near to God, and it purifies us from all sin.”
• “That’s powerful stuff!”
• “So, here’s a picture of what the blood of Christ does for our hearts when we accept Jesus as our Savior.” (Show the volunteer how to trigger the release at the bottom of the frame so that all the dominoes spill out.)
• “Our hearts become completely new! Cleaned out of all that sin!”
• “It’s like getting a fresh start. All our past sin is gone.”
• “But you know us…even when we are Christians, we still sin sometimes.” (Close the release at the bottom of the frame, and have volunteer begin to put black checkers back in.)
• “We can’t lose our salvation, but each time we sin, the sin takes the place in our hearts where Jesus should be.”
• “Hopefully, we should be sinning less often now, so our hearts don’t fill up as fast.”
• “But you don’t need to wait for it to fill up, because Jesus’ blood didn’t just pay for the sins we did in the past. It pays for the ones we haven’t even done yet.” (Have volunteer add the red checker and then release all the checkers from the bottom.)
• “Each time you sin, it’s paid for already. The only problem is, all those sins hurt your relationship with God.” (Have volunteer add black checkers back in after closing the release at the bottom.)
• “As quickly as you realize you have sinned, ask God for forgiveness so that you can make your relationship healthy again.” (Have volunteer add a red checker and then release all the checkers one last time. Thank and dismiss volunteer.)
• “It’s that easy! But it’s even better if we remember what Jesus did for us and don’t get into sin in the first place.” (OPTIONAL: As you are saying this, add red checkers to the frame (seal the bottom first) in the pattern of a heart. See image below. You will need a few white checkers to go under the red ones in a few columns.)

Win-Lose (GAME)

Time
20-30 minutes

Description
This game helps participants understand different responses to conflict.  (You can also use this as a game to illustrate the different strategies in negotiation.)

Audience
Children, youth, adults

Materials
•    Beads (20 per person plus 40 per group – in other words, if you have six people in a group, you will need 160 beads – 20 per person and 40 to go in the middle).  You can also use coins, rice, beans… anything that you have lots and lots of.
•    Dice (one per group – I recommend fuzzy dice.  They are more fun to play with.)
•    Flipchart or whiteboard
•    Marker
•    Copies of the “Debrief Questions” page at the end of this lesson
•    (Optional) A prizes(s) for the winning team(s)

Preparation
•    Make copies of the “Debrief Questions” page at the end of this lesson (one copy per table group).
•    Count out the beads, and put enough for the gate at each table.
•    Put a die at each table.
•    Write the following on a flipchart or whiteboard:
o    1 – Win-Win (Everyone gets 1 bead from center.)
o    2 – Win-Lose (Everyone gives you 1 bead.)
o    3 – Lose-Win (You give everyone 1 bead.)
o    4 – Lose-Lose (Everyone puts 1 bead in the center.)
o    5 – Compromise (You give 1 bead to the center and pick 2 other people to put one bead in the center.)
o    6 – You Choose (Choose your own conflict response, and do what it says.)
•    Practice the script.

Procedure
Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):
•    (Divide the participants into table groups of 4-6 people each.)
•    “We’re going to play a game that will illustrate peoples’ different responses to conflict.”
•    “Different people respond in different ways when they come into conflict.”
•    “Many go for ‘Win-Lose.’  ‘I win; you lose.’  They want to win the conflict even if it means that the other person has to lose.”
•    “Many others go for ‘Lose-Win.’  ‘I lose; you win.’  They just let the other person win, because they don’t like conflict or confrontation.  It’s easier just to give up the fight.”
•    “Some go for ‘Compromise.’  ‘We both lose some of what we wanted, but at least we get a resolution to the conflict.’  Neither party gets exactly what they wanted in ‘Compromise,’ but the conflict gets resolved or the task gets done.  Sometimes that’s enough.”
•    “Some even go for ‘Lose-Lose.’ ‘I lose; you lose.’  This one seems crazy, but people will often choose this response when they are upset that they can’t win.  It’s like they are saying, ‘If I can’t have what I want, I’ll make sure no one gets what they want!’”
•    “And a very few people go for ‘Win-Win.’  ‘I win; you win.’  I say very few people go for it, because it’s very difficult to do.  It takes patience, creativity and a willingness to truly listen and understand to the other person before making a decision.  However, this is usually the best response to conflict, because everyone gets what they want (or even something better).”
•    “On your table, you have lots of beads.”
•    “I would like for everyone at the table to count out 20 beads for himself or herself.”  (Wait for everyone to count out his or her beads.  There should be at least 40 left in the middle of the table.)
•    “The game we are about to play is called, ‘Win-Lose,’ and your objective is to win.”
•    “The person at the table who first collects 40 beads is the winner.”
•    “You gain or lose beads by rolling the die (singular for dice) and doing one of six things listed on the flipchart / whiteboard.”
•    “If you roll a one, you choose a Win-Win response to conflict, and everyone at the table benefits by getting a bead from the center.”
•    “If you roll a two, you choose a Win-Lose response to conflict, and everyone gives you one of their beads.”
•    “If you roll a three, you choose a Lose-Win response to conflict, and you give everyone at the table one bead.”
•    “If you roll a four, you choose a Lose-Lose response to conflict, and everyone had to put a bead back into the center.”
•    “If you roll a five, you choose a Compromise response to conflict, and you need to put a bead in the center.  You will also pick two other people to put a bead in the center.”
•    “If you roll a six, you get to pick your conflict response.  You then have to do what the flipchart / whiteboard says for that conflict response.  For example, if you choose ‘Win-Lose,’ then you should collect a bead from everyone at the table.”
•    “To determine who goes first, you will each roll the die.  The highest roll goes first.  If you have a tie for the highest roll, have just those people continue to roll to determine who goes first.”
•    “After the first person goes, the person on his/her left will go next, and play will continue clockwise around the table.”
•    “Play continues until someone accumulates 40 beads.  That person is the winner.”
•    “Does anyone have any questions about how to play?”  (Answer questions.)
•    “Okay, then you can start rolling the die to see who goes first.”  (If they finish the first round quickly and you have the time, let them play several rounds.  Then, award a prize to the winners if you choose.  Pass out the Debrief Questions sheet to each group, and allow them 10-15 minutes to talk about the questions.  Then ask the large group for any general insights from the activity.”

Debrief Questions

o    How does this game reflect real conflict situations?
o    When people got to choose the conflict response they used, what did they usually choose?  Why?  What can you learn from this?
o    What consequences are there for people who always use the following approaches to conflict?
•    Win-Lose
•    Lose-Win
•    Lose-Lose
•    Compromise
o    How do people generally feel about others who use these conflict responses on a regular basis?
o    Why don’t more people approach conflict from a Win-Win perspective?
o    What are the benefits of using a Win-Win approach?
o    What could you do to increase the frequency with which you use Win-win?

Emotional Banking

Time
30-45 minutes

Description
This game helps participants understand the concept of Emotional Bank Accounts (EBAs).

Audience
Children, youth, adults

Materials
•    500 “Credits” for each team in the following denominations and amounts (100 Credit Bill (1), 50 Credit Bills (4), 20 Credit Bills (5), 10 Credit Bills (10)).  See the file “Emotional Banking Credits Currency” on the Lesson and Material Downloads page for printouts of the credits.
•    Copy of “Give a Big Hug” cards (two for each team – they are in the same file as above.)
•    Copy of “Emotional Banking Rule” (one per team – see printout at the end of this lesson)
•    Copy of “Debrief Questions” (one per team – see printout at the end of this lesson)
•    Envelopes for each team (one per team)
•    Markers
•    Flipchart
•    (Optional) A prizes(s) for the winning team(s)

Preparation
•    Prepare an envelope for each team.
o    Count out 500 “Credits” in the following denominations and amounts (100 Credit Bill (1), 50 Credit Bills (4), 20 Credit Bills (5), 10 Credit Bills (10)).
o    Place all “Credits” in the team’s envelope.
o    Place one “Give a Big Hug” card in the team’s envelope.
•    Prepare a Scoring flipchart or whiteboard for each round like the one pictured below.  (You will need five (5) total scoring grids.)
•    Practice the script.

ROUND 1    Team 1    Team 2    Team 3    Team 4
Starting
Balance
Deposit Made
(-)
Deposit Received (+)
Winner?
(Y/N)
Bonus
(+)
Penalty
(-)
Net
Balance

Procedure
Use the following script (or modify to suit your needs):
•    (Divide group into an even number of teams, and number or name the teams.  Group sizes are best between 4-6, but you could run the game with a “team” as small as one person.  Teams will be competing against each other to have the largest remaining balance.)
•    “We are going to play a game that will help us to understand some of the ideas behind an Emotional Bank Account (EBA).”
•    “If you are familiar with what a normal bank account is, you’ll be able to easily understand what an EBA is.”
•    “An EBA is an account that a person sets up in their mind when they meet someone.”
•    “Just like with a normal bank account, they then make deposits into that account and take withdrawals from it.”
•    “The balance in the account goes up and down depending upon whether or not the two people have good or bad experiences with each other.”
•    “Good experiences become deposits in the EBA, and the people will feel good about each other.
•    “Bad experiences become withdrawals from the EBA, and the people will feel bad about each other.”
•    “Does this make sense?” (Answer questions if anyone is lost.)
•    “EBAs are important for Christians to think about, because we want build relationships with other Christians and with people outside the Church.”
•    “If we are always taking withdrawals from other peoples’ accounts, it will be difficult for us to worship with them, work with them, minister to them or get them to trust our Savior.”
•    “As much as possible, we should be making deposits in their accounts.”
•    “This is likely to happen if we are showing them unconditional love in the same way that Jesus has shown unconditional love to us.”
•    “So, back to our game…”
•    “Each group is a team, and each team is in competition with every other team to end the game with the most “Credits” in your EBA.”
•    “’Credits’ look like these (show a few Credits), and each team is receiving an envelope with exactly 500 Credits in it.”  (Pass out envelopes.)
•    “While you are competing against all other teams for your final EBA balance, you will only be exchanging envelopes with one other team during each round.”
•    “Which team that is could change from round to round, but you will only exchange with one other team.”  (Designate which teams will pair with which other teams during Round 1.  You can simply pick the teams that are closest to each other.)
•    “Before you exchange envelopes each round, you will put a deposit of Credits into it.”
•    “It is important that you make a bigger deposit in your envelope than the deposit the other team makes to you, because an additional bonus will be awarded to the team giving the highest deposit between the two of you.”
•    “This will help us demonstrate the principle of sowing and reaping from Galatians 6:9-10, where Paul tells: ‘Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.’
•    “If you do good to the team you trade with, you will reap a harvest when I announce the bonus for that round.”  (If they ask, you can tell them that the bonus amount will change each round.)
•    “But Paul also says in Galatians 6:7-8, ‘Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.’”
•    “If you do bad to the team you trade with, you will reap destruction when I announce the bonus for that round, because you will have to pay it out of your Credits.”
•    “So, the team making the biggest deposit will reap a bonus, and the team making the smallest deposit will reap a penalty.”
•    “Does that make sense to everyone?”  (Check for understanding.)
•    “A few rules for the exchanges:
o    “A team cannot make a deposit to another team that is more than the total amount of Credits they have.  For example, if the other team has 200 Credits, you cannot make a deposit of 250 Credits.  That wouldn’t be fair to them.”
o    “Teams have each received in their envelopes two cards that say, ‘Give a Big Hug,’ on them.  They can put this card in the envelope with their deposit if they want to, but it will only be effective if there is a tie between the two teams.  In the event of a tie (i.e., both teams gave the same deposit), the team who ‘gave a big hug’ will receive the win.”
o    “Teams can reuse ‘Give a Big Hug’ cards given to them by other teams.”
•    “I will keep totals for each round on the flipcharts / whiteboard at the front of the room.”
•    “Here’s a copy of the rules of the game to help you strategize as a team.”  (Hand out ‘Emotional Banking Rules’ sheet to each team.)
•    “Are there any questions?”
•    “Then, let’s begin.  You have three minutes to come up with your team’s strategy for Round 1.”  (Allow three minutes for strategy.  At the end of the strategy time, have them put their deposits in the envelopes and trade with the team with which you paired them.  Have someone from each team come up to the flipchart / whiteboard and write in the ‘Deposit Made’ and ‘Deposit Received’ for their team.)
•    (If there is a tie, ask if anyone ‘gave a big hug.’  The team that ‘gave a big hug’ gets the win.  Mark the winning teams on the flipchart / whiteboard.)
•    (Announce the Bonus / Penalty for the round according to the following amounts:
o    Round 1 – 50 Credits
o    Round 2 – 200 Credits
o    Round 3 – 120 Credits
o    Round 4 – 240 Credits
o    Round 5 – 350 Credits
•    (Add these amounts as a Bonus to the winning teams and as a Penalty to the losing teams.  Then, tally the scores for the round, and announce them to the teams.  Follow this process after each round.)
•    (Between rounds, allow three minutes each time for strategic planning.)
•    (You can have the same teams trade with each other each round, or you can mix it up.  If you decide to change which teams are paired for each round, be sure you remember which teams are paired when you do the scoring.)
•    (After the final round, announce the winning team and award a prize if you choose.  Pass out the ‘Debrief Questions’ sheet to each team, and ask them to spend ten minutes going through the questions.)
•    (Then, as a large group, ask for general insights about Emotional Bank Accounts.  Some points that you might want to bring out if they aren’t mentioned are:
o    “Even large deposits can be a withdrawal from the other person’s account if they are less than we are expecting or less than we feel we have put into the relationship.  For example, you might be disappointed if you thought your reward for cleaning the garage was going to be a trip to an amusement park but then found out it was just a week without chores.”
o    “While the amounts we used for the game were measureable, the size of deposits and withdrawals in real life EBAs is highly subjective and based on each person’s expectations and what they tell themselves about WHY we did what we did.  For example, you might tell someone that they look very nice today and be surprised to find that they interpreted that as a withdrawal from their account, because they suspected that you only complimented them in order to get something in return.”
o    “Sometimes we get so far behind in a relationship that it is impossible to catch up without many, many consistent deposits over a long time.  However, we can also hope for forgiveness, which restores our deposits to our account right away.”
o    “Making deposits in other peoples’ accounts is not really about strategy; it’s about a genuine motive to improve the relationship.  This activity was a simulation to help us experience just a few of the aspects of EBAs, but it wasn’t supposed to be a perfect picture of them.”

Debrief Questions

1.    How was this activity like making deposits and withdrawals from Emotional Bank Accounts (EBAs)?
2.    When you believe you’ve given more to a relationship than the other person, how does this affect your feelings about the relationship?
3.    When you believe you’ve given less to a relationship than the other person, how does this affect your feelings about the relationship?
4.    How did the other team’s history of giving impact your level of giving?  Does this relate to real relationships in any way?
5.    If this had not been a competitive activity, what would have changed about your strategy?
6.    Was there anything about the “Give a Big Hug” option that was similar to real life?
7.    What additional lessons can you take away from this activity?

Emotional Banking Rules

o    Your goal is to finish the game with the most “Credits” in y our Emotional Bank Account (EBA).
o    There will be five rounds.
o    The amount of deposit you choose to make is entirely up to you (as long as it doesn’t break the next rule), but the team should have consensus about it.
o    You cannot make a deposit greater than the total of the other team’s balance.
o    Your deposit should be placed in your envelope before trading begins.
o    If you choose to “Give a Big Hug,” put the “Give a Big Hug” card in the envelope with your deposit.
o    Envelopes will be exchanged at the same time so that not team has an advantage.
o    Scoring will be done as follows:
o    The team making the largest of the two deposits will receive a bonus.  (The amount will change each round, and the facilitator will not reveal how much it is until the round is completed.)
o    The team making the smallest of the two deposits will receive a penalty.  It will be the same amount as the bonus of the winning team.
o    The team receiving the penalty will pay the other team their bonus.
o    In the event of a tie, a team that “gave a big hug” will receive the win.
o    Teams can reuse the “Give a Big Hug” cards that they get from other teams.
o    The facilitator will keep a record of all deposits, bonuses and penalties on a score chart.