God fights the battle for me!

1. Hook:

• Option 1: Ready, Get set, Go!
• How many of you like to run? Who thinks they can run the fastest?
• Imagine you have to take part in a race. It’s a big competition. All the best runners will be there. What do you do? 
• You exercise every day. [get kids to do some stretching exercises, e.g. right hand over head and bend to the left, 1-2-3-4; the other side, 2-2-2-4; the other side, 3-2-3-4 etc] 
• You train hard. [get kids to run on the spot for 10 seconds]
• You build up your strength [get kids to show you their muscles. Biggest muscles or most creative pose wins prize?]
• [get kids to sit down. Give everyone a clap] 

• Option 2: Biggest, strongest, tallest
• Get children into 2 or more groups.
• Issue a challenge and each group has to send their best contender. Each kid can only come up once until all have had a chance to participate.
• Examples of challenges: the longest hair, the biggest smile, the widest palm, the largest shoe etc.
• To make it more exciting (esp for older kids), you can just give the adjective first. E.g. “I am looking for the ‘longest’ … ”. Team contenders come forward. Then only you reveal, “I am looking for the longest hair.”
• The winning contender scores one point for his/her team. Team with most points wins.

• Conclusion: 
• Yes, when you take part in a competition or race, you want to be the strongest, fastest and the best.
• But do you know, children, that sometimes God uses the weakest and the slowest to do His work? 
• Why would God do that? Why doesn’t He choose the strongest, the fastest and the best?
• Because when the weak and the slow win, everyone will know that it’s God who won it for them!
• Today we will learn that God fights the battle for you and for me!

Thank you God for all the great things you have done for me!

1. Hook:

• Memory matching game


• Prepare 12 rock-shaped cards. Behind the cards, print/draw 6 pairs of images; 2 of a kind.
• Mix up the cards and paste the image-side onto the wall with blu tack.
• Get kids to come one by one to choose a card and attempt to find its pair.
• Once a match is made, the cards are removed.
• Game continues until all 6 matches are made. 
• Conclusion: All of you have good memory! God gave us the ability to remember things and events that happened and lessons we’ve learnt. Let’s learn about how He helped the Israelites to remember a very important lesson in their lives. 

God stopped the waters for the Israelites. God can do anything for me!

1. Hook:

• Water pouring 
• Bring a pitcher of water, a large bowl and a large towel.
• Show how you will pour the water into the bowl. Just pour a trickle of water into the bowl. 
• Then ask for volunteers to come try to stop the small trickle of water coming out of the pitcher. The children can try all kinds of ways of doing it, but it won’t be able to be done. 
• Explain to the children that they could not stop even a trickle. But God is able to stop a whole river that was overflowing. That’s the amazing God we have!

2. Story (based on Joshua 3) 

• Last week we learned about the 2 spies that went to spy out the Promised Land. They returned and told Joshua, “Yes, God has given us the land!”

God liked Rahab; God likes me too … always!

1. Lesson (based on Joshua 2): Rahab & the 2 Spies

• Game: “I spy with my little eye”

• Hook:
• Have you ever felt that nobody liked you?
• Maybe some other kids don’t like you because you are different — the clothes you wear, or the way you speak. Maybe they think you are weird. Maybe they tell their friends not to be your friend. Maybe they don’t want to share their toys with you or to play with you. Maybe it’s because you once did something wrong that made them unhappy.
• It’s tough when you feel nobody likes you. It’s tough when you think you are not good enough. You can feel lonely, or sad, or angry. Sometimes we all feel this way.
• But do you know that there’s Someone who likes you ALL the time. He doesn’t care about what you wear, or how your talk or what you’ve done. Even if you made other people really, really mad. He’s there for you. And He loves you always.
• What’s His name? Jesus!
• 
  

• Story:
• Once upon a time, there was a woman called Rahab. She lived in a town called Jericho. People in the town did not like her very much. Because she did things that were not very good.
• One day, she met two men. They were Israelites from the desert. They wanted to find out some information about Jericho. They were spies.

God was with Joshua (Part 2)

1. Lesson (based on Joshua 1)

• Hook:
• Have your parents or teachers ever asked you to do a big and important job? Perhaps it was to perform on stage or give a speech in front of many people. Or to organize an event. Or to lead a group to do something big. Maybe it feels too difficult for you. Maybe you were afraid. What would you do?
• What if someone big came to help you? Say an experienced senior, your parents or your teacher? This person not only helps you but even prepares everything you need to do the big job. All you had to do was just to follow the person and trust that they will take care of everything. Suddenly the BIG job seems smaller and easier. Wouldn’t that be great?

• Story:
• Let me tell you about someone who had to take over a BIG job.

God is with Joshua

1. Story (based on Numbers 13:1-30)

• God’s special people, the Israelites, were slaves in Egypt for 400 years.
• One day, God saved them and brought them out of Egypt. He was going to bring them into the Promised Land, the special place that He had reserved for them.
• But first, they had to cross a desert. So for many months they walked, until one day, they were near the Promised Land.
• Then God told Moses, “Send spies into Canaan, the country I am giving you. Tell them to see what sort of land it is. Find out what the people are like who live there.”
• Moses did as God asked. He choice one man from each of the 12 tribes of Israel. Moses raised his hand and blessed the 12 men as they left camp.

Jesus Goes Up to Heaven

1. Story (based on Luke 24:44-53)

•  Last week we learnt about how Jesus appeared his disciples. What was the name of the disciple who wanted proof that Jesus was alive? (Thomas) And who did Jesus say was more blessed because they believed without seeing? (All of us)
• Over the next 40 days, Jesus met and talked with His disciples and explained many things to them.
• He explained to them about what all the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms were talking about — they were talking about Jesus. Everything that happened to Him — His life, His death and His resurrection — had already been planned by God from the beginning of time.