Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
SELF DENIAL KIDS 2016
LEADER’S MATERIAL
1
WEEK 1WHAT IS SELF-DENIAL?
PURPOSE
• To explore what self-denial is
• To introduce the history of self-denial
• To encourage children to see beyond their own needs
CONSIDER & PREPARE
READ: MATTHEW 16:24 CEV
“Then Jesus said to his disciples: If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. You must take up your cross and follow me.”
THINGS YOU NEED TO CONSIDER
We encourage you to talk with the children’s parents. Let them know what will be involved in the next few weeks and discuss how you could work in partnership with them.
Be reminded that self-denial is not forgetting completely about yourself, it’s about balancing what works for you and how you can share God’s love through sharing your resources.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
Game
Coins cut out – enough for 20 per child plus about fifty extra coins
(Appendix A, A5 size) cut out
A dice
Small prize and bigger prize
Cards with statements – print enough copies of the table so that each child can have 2 or 3. Only give out 1 or 2 copies of the ‘Inheritance card’
The Main Thing
• Butchers paper
• Textas, pencils and pens
• Balloons
Memory Bible Verse
• Write the words of Matthew 16:24 on separate sheets of paper.
Prayer & Praise
• Map of the world, paper and textas, pencils or pens
Home & Beyond
• One copy of the Home & Beyond card per child
32
CONNECTING IN
GAME
Coin Giveaway
Aim
To give away as many coins as you can throughout the game
Preparation
Give each child 20 coins. Explain that they can give away coins at any point in the game but the winner at the end will be the person with the most coins. Anyone who loses all of their coins is out. Place the cards (Appendix A) in the centre of the circle.
You will need to keep track of any coins that children give away to each other throughout the game.
Ask the children to sit in a circle, place the cards and extra coins in the centre. The children can take turns rolling the dice. Each time someone rolls a ‘3’ or a ‘6’ they should take a card. Occasionally remind the children that they are allowed to give away coins if they would like to.
Ending the game
At the end of the game give a small prize to the person who has the most coins. Explain that in a way many people think the person who has the most money is the winner in life. But Jesus says that the person who gives out of what they have is the real winner. Give a bigger prize to the person who has given away the most coins.
Discussion
• How did it feel when you gave away coins?
• At any point in the game did you want to help another person win?
• How did you feel when you heard that the real winner of this game was the person who had the least coins?
• How can you and I put other people first?
Matthew 16:24 talks about Jesus calling for those who would be His followers to exercise self-denial:
What do you think self-denial means/is? (Allow children time to answer).
Self-denial is when we give up something we want for ourselves so that we can help someone else.
For example
• giving up part of your pocket money so that you can help a friend
• letting someone else have a turn first even though you know you might run out of time to have a turn yourself
• doing a job to help your family even though you would prefer to play
THE MAIN THING
One way of expressing self-denial is: putting Jesus first in life, others second, and ourselves last. It’s natural for us to think “If it feels good, do it”. Jesus challenged his disciples to do the complete opposite; Jesus wanted His disciples to understand that there are more important things in life than doing whatever they want to do.
People around the world have many different types of needs and we are
called not to give just our leftovers (the things we don’t use or like anymore). Jesus is calling us to something bigger. He wants us to be willing to give up some of what we have to make life better for other people.
Self-denial is joyfully giving up what we want for ourselves so that we can do good things for others. We stop being so worried about ourselves so that we can help other people to know and understand how much God loves them.
ACTIVITY
Encourage the children to think about how they already care for the people around them.
Write each of the following statements onto sheets of paper and place them around the room. Alternatively, place each sheet into a balloon; allow each group to choose and pop a balloon to select their brainstorming statement.
Divide the children into groups and ask them to Brainstorm possible endings to these statements.
Ask each group to share three of their answers by using charades.
• At school I care for my friends and teachers by:
• In the playground I put others first by:
• At church I connect with the adults and children by:
• Something I can give up to help someone else is:
• At home I support my family by:
TYING IN
The Salvation Army has been running an appeal called ‘Self Denial’ every year since 1886 to raise money for Salvation Army projects in overseas countries. These projects desperately need money to keep on running and they rely heavily on donations. Money given in the Self Denial Appeal helps overseas families and communities practically and spiritually.
Every year a whole bunch of people from right across the country choose to give up something for themselves to support those who seriously need it. We want you to be a part of it. Whether it’s through your actions or giving of money we know that what you do during Self Denial will benefit people’s lives.
This year we will be encouraging you to think about how you can help someone in need, whether it’s through your time, resources or the money you earn. At the back of the book there will be tokens that you can write what you did to help someone else. You can add these tokens to your Self Denial Kid’s Money Box.
MEMORY BIBLE VERSE
Write the words of Matthew 16:24 on separate sheets of paper. Mix up the order of the papers and hand them out to the children. Have a time limit to put the bible verse in order. Once the bible verse makes sense, place it on the floor and have the children read it out loud together. Make this a challenge to remember the whole verse. To make it more like a race you could time
54
them and see how fast they can work together to get the verse right.
PRAYER & PRAISE
Pray for The Salvation Army around the world, those who are involved in Self Denial, the leaders, the workers, the people denying themselves and the communities that will be transformed. Look at the map and ask God to show you a specific place and a need they have.
Ask the children to trace around their own hand on the map or on a large piece of paper. Write the name of the country that they want to pray for on their hand print and pray for that country.
HOME & BEYOND
Share with those around your school, church, home etc. that you are on a journey to look into what denying your self means and how you can be a part of impacting people’s lives.
Share with your friends and family each week about what you are learning through Self Denial and next week come back and share with the group.
Remember to talk to your family about what you would like to give this Self Denial. Don’t forget to write down the things you are doing to help others on the tokens at the back of your book.
WEEK 2 WHY SHOULD WE BE GENEROUS?
PURPOSE
• To explore what generosity looks like
• To understand how generosity can link with our everyday life
CONSIDER & PREPARE
READ: 1 KING 17:8-16 CEV WITH FOCUS ON VS 14
The Lord God of Israel has promised that your jar of flour won’t run out and your bottle of oil won’t dry up before he sends rain for the crops.
THINGS YOU NEED TO CONSIDER
Consider where you have seen God supply for your own needs. Take the time to acknowledge the provision of God.
Generosity is not about just your money, or giving away the things we don’t want anymore. It’s about how we live each day.
We want to begin by acknowledging the generous ways our children are already living. Some children will need help identifying the areas in which they are already generous.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
For Reverse ‘Rob the Nest’
• A number of small objects; approximately five per child (or per team); you could use small bean bags, rocks, balloons or simply scrunch up sheets of paper
• A hoola hoop, washing basket or similar box or tub to place the objects in
• Masking tape or chalk to mark out the ‘nest’ areas
For The Main Thing
• Poster paper and markers
• Option 1: technology, app, projector required to create a word cloud
• Option 2: dominoes
• 3 copies of the role play script in Appendix B
• One A4 copy per child of the table in Appendix C
• Markers or pencils or pens
Tying In
• White board with markers and eraser
Prayer and Praise
• A disposable cup per child
• Blank strips of coloured construction paper
• Glue
• Markers or pencils or pens
Appendix A
You have lost your job Pay 2 coins
You have 12 childrenPay 3 coins
You have been promoted Take 2 coins
You have been given a gift Take 1 coin
You have been sick Pay 1 coin
Your rent just went upPay 2 coins
Interest paid on your bank accountTake 3 coins
Government PaymentTake 1 coin
You had a car accidentPay 2 coins
You have grown your own vegetablesTake 2 coins
Your water has been pollutedPay 3 coins
Tax TimePay 2 coins
Your children are sickPay 2 coins
You have extra workTake 3 coins
You have retiredPay 1 coin
Electricity BillPay 1 coin
You have sold an artworkTake 2 coins
You have received an inheritanceTake 6 coins
76
Home and Beyond
• One copy of the Home & Beyond card per child
CONNECTING IN
GAME
Reverse ‘Rob the Nest’
Aim
to give away as many objects as possible to another team
Preparation
Mark out your ‘nest’ areas using masking tape or chalk. If you have a large group, divide the children into teams and assign each team to a ‘nest’. If you have a smaller number of children then assign each of them their own ‘nest’. Place the objects that people will be taking in the middle of the room inside a hoola hoop or container.
• Place all the objects in the middle of your play area
• Each player should have their own nest in front of them which is currently empty.
• On ‘Go’ each player runs to the objects in the middle, takes one and places it in someone else’s nest. Then they return to collect another one.
• Once there are no objects remaining in the middle, they must go back to their own nest and take them to put in other peoples nests.
• Each player can only be holding one object at a time
• The winner is the nest that has least amount of objects in their nest when the game is finished.
Note: If you have plenty of time you might like to play a second round of traditional ‘Rob the Nest’ – use the same rules but each player must collect as many objects as possible instead of giving them away.
Discussion
• Do you feel it was easier or harder to give away the objects in your nest rather than keep them?
• Was there any part of you that wanted to just keep what you got for yourself? Or were you happy to be generous with what you had?
• What do you think being generous actually means?
THE MAIN THING
As fast as you can, call out any words that you think of when I say the word
• ‘Kind’
• ‘Mean’
• ‘Generous’
Note: Use the words ‘Kind’ and ‘Mean’ as practices.
As the children respond for ‘Generous’ write the words up on a sheet of poster paper.
Option 1: If you have access to the technology you could use an app to create a word cloud and project it onto a screen instead of using poster paper
Put these words together and try to make a definition of what your group thinks generosity is.
Here is what the dictionary says:
Generosity is a quality that’s a lot like unselfishness — someone showing
generosity is happy to give to or share time, money, food, or whatever with others.
Generosity is a quality — like honesty and patience — that we all probably wish we had more of. When you show generosity, you might give away things or money or put others before yourself. But generosity is about more than cash and belongings. When you’re forgiving and gentle to people, you show generosity of spirit. If you give others help or credit, that shows generosity. The world would certainly be a better place if more people showed generosity to others.
Generosity is giving of your time to others in need.
Being generous, truly generous, is giving freely of your time, money or efforts without worrying about what you might get in return.
Ask children to share about a time when someone gave them a great gift or shared something with them.
• What was it like for you to receive that gift?
Ask children to share about a time when they gave someone a gift or shared something, or did something special for someone else.
• What was it like for you to give something to someone else?
In the role play we are about to watch, a lady was asked to give a self-less gift to a stranger, let’s see what happened.
ROLE PLAY 1 KINGS 17:8-16
Roles to be filled: Narrator; Elijah; Widow; God;
Note: If you have more children wanting to help act it out, have them pretend to be animals walking past or a tree in the background.
Note: Before you begin, help the narrator to pronounce ‘Zarephath’ and ‘Sidon’
Elijah Helps a Widow in Zarephath
Narrator: The Lord told Elijah,
God: Go to the town of Zarephath in Sidon and live there. I’ve told a widow in that town to give you food.”
Narrator: When Elijah came near the town gate of Zarephath, he saw a widow gathering sticks for a fire.
Elijah: Would you please bring me a cup of water?
Narrator: As she left to get it, he asked,
Elijah: Would you also please bring me a piece of bread?
Narrator: The widow answered,
Widow: In the name of the living Lord your God, I swear that I don’t have any bread. All I have is a handful of flour and a little olive oil. I’m on my way home now with these few sticks to cook what I have for my son and me. After that, we will starve to death.
Elijah: Everything will be fine. Do what you said. Go home and fix something for you and your son. But first, please make a small piece of bread and bring it to me. The Lord God of Israel has promised that your jar of flour won’t run out and your bottle of oil won’t dry up before he sends rain for the crops.
98
Narrator: The widow went home and did exactly what Elijah had told her. She and Elijah and her family had enough food for a long time. The Lord kept the promise that his prophet Elijah had made, and she did not run out of flour or oil.
WHY SHOULD WE BE GENEROUS?
Note: If you are using Option 1… If you have a child who requires extra attention you might like to give them the task of quietly setting up the dominoes in a line as you talk 1. In Matthew 22:37 it speak about the greatest commandment ever given
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” God wants us to love Him with everything we have, including our money, time and resources. We should give what we can because we love Him and want to follow Jesus’ example.
2. Be generous because you want to be, because you can.
Generosity brightens other people’s lives. The point of generosity is to have a positive effect on the world.
3. Being generous helps people, it’s contagious - people are more willing to help you (and other people) in return. Generosity shifts your focus from yourself to those who you connect with. It’s a bit like a ‘domino effect’.
Option 2: If you have time, set up some dominoes here and demonstrate what a domino effect is.
Who should I be generous with?
Be generous to all people, not just the sick, poor and hurting. Sometimes we think that we only have to do good to those who are poor. Look out for any opportunity to be generous and share God’s love with people you see throughout your day.
You could be anonymous with your generosity to a friend, family member, teacher or leader. Anonymous means that we do something secretly. No one else needs to know about your kindness
What can I do?
Generosity happens all around us. We just have to be aware of what it is and how we can join in with being generous. You may see your parents or friends being generous without even knowing that there’re being generous. It’s about thinking outside the box into what you could do to be generous. It doesn’t have to be something huge; it can be a simple gesture. You could give your money or your time or even things that you have that you want to bless someone else with.
Generosity Match-Up
It’s not always about giving your money. Think about helping others with what you are good at doing.
Give each child a piece of paper with 6 boxes (see Appendix C).
Call out a ‘Generosity Statement’. Wait about fifteen seconds after each one. If a child can think of a way they can give in this area then they write an example in a box (children may prefer to do a quick drawing in the box instead of
using words). If they cannot think of an example then they can wait for the next statement and try again. When a child has filled in all their boxes they can call out ‘Generosity’.
If you have time, you could share how they would do each action.
Generosity Statements
Ask: ‘How can I be’…
• Generous in the library
• Generous in the classroom
• Generous at the canteen or shops
• Generous in the kitchen
• Generous in my home
• Generous with my family
• Generous with visitors
• Generous outside
• Generous with food
• Generous with my belongings
• Generous in my church
TYING IN
The first country we are looking at is Jamaica.
Some people who live in Jamaica never get to see their beautiful country because about 1% of the population is blind. That’s about 27,000 people and many of them are children. The Salvation Army owns a school for the blind and visually impaired and Self Denial funds helps places like this. Keep filling up your Self Denial Kids Money Box, because with your generosity with giving money and Tokens we can help people who need it.
MEMORY BIBLE VERSE
1 Kings 17:14 “The Lord God of Israel has promised that your jar of flour won’t run out and your bottle of oil won’t dry up before he sends rain for the crops.”
Write the verse on a board and recite it together with your children. Either cover up one of the words with a piece of paper or erase it from the board.
Ask the children to read the verse again. Continue to eliminate more words between each round and have the children recite the verse.
Uncover or rewrite a word if they have trouble remembering it. Repeat the process until all the words are covered up or erased and they have the verse memorized.
PRAYER & PRAISE
PRAYER CUP
Each child can be given a cup and little pieces of coloured construction paper. Children can write on the slips of paper things that they want to pray for PERSISTENCE IN PRAYER, DON’T GIVE UP, PRAYER, FRIENDS, FAMILY, SCHOOL TEACHERS, POOR CHILDREN, SICK PEOPLE, etc. and glue them onto the outside of the cup.
Place extra blank strips of paper inside the cup.
The children can take their cup home and add to the cup during the week
This week, as you think of prayer needs or names of people who you would like to pray for, add them to your prayer cup using the extra strips of paper.
1110
Encourage the children to LOOK for things to pray for and to have all of their slips of paper written on by next class time.
HOME & BEYOND
Think of ways that your friends and family could help bring love and life to those around you who are hurting. You could write a card or make a small gift for someone you know who is having a hard time.
Remember to keep working on your prayer cup.
Don’t forget to write down the things you are doing to help others on the tokens at the back of your book.
Appendix B
Elijah Helps a Widow in Zarephath
Narrator: The Lord told Elijah,
God: Go to the town of Zarephath in Sidon and live there. I’ve told a widow in that town to give you food.”
Narrator: When Elijah came near the town gate of Zarephath, he saw a widow gathering sticks for a fire.
Elijah: Would you please bring me a cup of water?
Narrator: As she left to get it, he asked,
Elijah: Would you also please bring me a piece of bread?
Narrator: The widow answered,
Widow: In the name of the living Lord your God, I swear that I don’t have any bread. All I have is a handful of flour and a little olive oil. I’m on my way home now with these few sticks to cook what I have for my son and me. After that, we will starve to death.
Elijah: Everything will be fine. Do what you said. Go home and fix something for you and your son. But first, please make a small piece of bread and bring it to me. The Lord God of Israel has promised that your jar of flour won’t run out and your bottle of oil won’t dry up before he sends rain for the crops.
Narrator: The widow went home and did exactly what Elijah had told her. She and Elijah and her family had enough food for a long time. The Lord kept the promise that his prophet Elijah had made, and she did not run out of flour or oil.
Appendix C
Generosity
Generosity
1312
WEEK 3 WHAT DOES GOD DO WITH WHAT WE GIVE?
PURPOSE
• To help children understand where the money they give goes.
• To teach children that God uses and increases what we give to support and encourage more than just our own communities.
CONSIDER & PREPARE
READ: 2 CORINTHIANS 9:10-12 (CEV)
God gives seed to farmers and provides everyone with food. He will increase what you have, so that you can give even more to those in need. You will be blessed in every way, and you will be able to keep on being generous. Then many people will thank God when we deliver your gift. What you are doing is much more than a service that supplies God’s people with what they need. It is something that will make many others thank God.
THINGS YOU NEED TO CONSIDER
Some children may have never had the opportunity to talk about how God can and does increase the gifts that we give him. Encourage the children to make this an everyday opportunity. Or those who can only think of negative things that happen to them, pre think of good things that God does for everyone.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
Activity
Popcorn already popped or a kernel ready to pop
The Main Thing
• Soft ball
• Paper and pens
Memory Bible Verse
• Bible to look up 2 Corinthians 9:10
• A list of other Bible verses you have learnt
• A ball
Prayer & Praise
• At least four different coloured jelly beans or M&M’s
Home & Beyond
• One copy of the Home & Beyond card per child
CONNECTING IN
ACTIVITY
Aim
To demonstrate that God can take what we give and do more with it than we could imagine.
Preparation
Use popcorn to illustrate how a small kernel can turn into a much larger piece of popcorn in the right conditions.
You can either make the popcorn before the session or you could make
it with the children if you have the right facilities.
Show the children the Small kernel before you then show them the popcorn.
Explain that just like this piece of small kernel turning into a piece of popcorn God can take what we give and do more with it than we could imagine.
Discussion
You can share some of the popcorn as you do the illustration and discussion.
Note: Be aware of any food allergies
What was the difference between the uncooked kernels compared to the popped corn?
Can you think of a way that God can create something more out of what we give?
What are some examples of what we could give to God that he could increase it for His Glory e.g. – talking kindly to our friends, giving a small amount of pocket money, making my bed for my sister or brother etc.
THE MAIN THING
God can increase whatever you choose to give to impact families, friends, communities and countries. Giving to God is much more than giving money to God it’s something that impacts everyone.
But what does God do with what we give?
GAME: DODGE BALL
Large group: Have children form two teams – have the teams face the other team.
Create boundaries of where children can and can’t go and explain that each team has the opportunity to throw the soft ball at the other team, only throw the ball to hit the kids below the waist. If a ball is thrown and hits someone above the waist, the thrower is out for 3 throws. The object is not to throw the ball hard, but accurately in order to hit someone trying to dodge the ball.
Small group: play this game against a wall and have every player for themselves. Everyone lines up and one person throws the ball at the wall in an attempt to hit someone below the waist. If they do, then that person must now throw the ball.
Aim: Each team should try to dodge the ball being thrown at them, if someone gets hit by the ball the whole team needs to work together to think of something that God uses our money and resources for. They can either write it on some paper or call it out to the ref.
Encourage the children to think about the church building, electricity, running water, renovations, people who don’t have food, programs that run at the church etc.
When you feel that the game is finished have the children sit down and talk through what each team came up with.
All these things that you mentioned are some of the ways our money is used when we give it to God. God uses our money for things like, Electricity, lighting up the church, having running water, doing different programs, helping people with disasters that happen, Red Shield, Self Denial, Christmas appeals, sometimes it helps to pay for someone’s job etc.
1514
Without the funds that people give some of the churches and programs would no longer run because they need money to exist. God uses our resources to love people, support communities, encourage families and build healthy environments for people who come into contact with them.
TYING IN HERE
The Salvation Army works at empowering the people of Myanmar to help overcome poverty in this area. They loan money to poor people in the community so they can start their own businesses. People attend a self-help group and with the money they are loaned they are able to buy animals, like goats and ducks. They use these animals for food to breed or sell. This gives people a chance to get on their feet and support themselves and their families. Don’t forget to put your money and tokens in you Self Denial Kids Money Box because what you give goes towards supporting countries start their own businesses.
MEMORY BIBLE VERSE
Look up 2 Corinthians 9:10 and have the children try to memorize it together- Get in a circle and pass the ball around to the children who want a turn of trying to recite the memory verse. Keep throwing the ball around the group so everyone can have a chance to recite some of the Bible verse. You could also have the children recite Bible verses that they have remembered over the last few weeks.
PRAYER & PRAISE
Have four different coloured jelly beans or M&M’s and ask the children to choose one colour.
Each colour represents something to pray for:
Green: Pray for those who need a job to support their families.
Yellow: Pray that you and your family would be generous givers.
Red: Pray that God will increase the money that people give to impact generations to come.
Black: Pray that the money and resources given in your churches would change the lives of your community.
HOME & BEYOND
With your family and friends take notice of the things that God has given you, write a list, or draw pictures of things that you are thankful for everyday for a week. Praise Jesus for the good gifts that he gives you every day.
WEEK 4 HOW MUCH DO I GIVE?
PURPOSE
• To educate children that giving is something between you and God
• To encourage children to continue talking about what they would like to give
CONSIDER & PREPARE
READ: 2 CORINTHIANS 9:7 CEV
Each of you must make up your own mind about how much to give. But don’t feel sorry that you must give and don’t feel that you are forced to give. God loves people who love to give. God loves people who love to give.
THINGS YOU NEED TO CONSIDER
Many children may not have thought about how much they should give to God. Ensure this is a time where children are able to open up conversations and begin to understand that giving is a personal thing. Help them to understand that giving can help us to grow closer to God.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
For Connecting In
• 1 block of chocolate (two blocks if you have a large group) and knife, fork and plate
• Option 1 - If you have children in your group who cannot eat chocolate you could use jellybeans, chopsticks and a bowl instead
• A dice
• Dress up clothes - Suggested items are hats, scarves, gloves, or jewellery
For The Main Thing
• Ten coins or ten pebbles etc.
• Jelly Beans
For Memory Verse
• White board or butchers paper and markers
• Pen and paper
• Choose some children’s trivia questions. You might like to check the following websites for ideas
http://www.knowalot.org/
http://www.free-for-kids.com/childrens-a-to-z-quiz-questions.shtml
http://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com/20-bible-quiz-questions-for-kids/
http://www.dltk-bible.com/quiz.htm
http://ministry-to-children.com/kids-bible-trivia/
For Prayer & Praise
• A couple of prayers, each written on separate index card
Home and Beyond
• One copy of the Home & Beyond card per child
1716
CONNECTING IN
GAME: CHOCOLATE GAME
Chocolate game giving away who has the most
Aim
• To cut squares of chocolate to eat or give away OR
• Option 1: To pick up jellybeans with chopsticks to eat or give away.
Place the bar of chocolate (or jellybeans) in the middle of the table. The chocolate should be kept in its original foil and paper wrapper. Have everyone sit in a circle around the wrapped chocolate bar. Place the chocolate bar on a plate (or jellybeans in a bowl). Have a couple of dress up clothes ready in the circle.
Explain the rules to the children
• The dice will be passed around the circle and each person will take turns rolling it
• If you roll a 6 then shout out “6” and run to the middle of the circle or you might choose someone else to take your turn.
• The dice will continue to move around the circle as you have your turn
• Put on all the dress up items first
• Then you may use the knife and fork to cut squares of chocolate (chopsticks to pick up jellybeans)
• You must not use your hands!
• You can only take one square of chocolate (jellybean) at a time
• You can decide whether to eat the
chocolate (jellybean) or give it away to someone else in the circle.
• As soon as another person shouts “6” you must stop, remove the dress up items and return to your place in the circle
Note: Be cautious of any allergies in your group
Discusion:
• Did anyone want to eat all of the chocolate (jellybeans) themselves?
• How did it feel to give up your turn or share your chocolate (jellybeans)?
• How did you decide who to share with?
• What are some things that you give away to help people?
THE MAIN THING
God doesn’t usually ask us to give away everything we have to help other people, we still need enough to live ourselves; it’s about having a good balance. We can stop and think about what we need and what we could do without.
Have a think for a moment what you have that you could do without?
In the Bible, God often asks people to give one tenth of what they get to the church to help other people, this gives us an idea of how much to give if we are unsure. Does anyone know what one tenth is?
One tenth means if we had ten dollars, we might give away one dollar (demonstrate this by using ten one dollar coins or ten pebbles etc.).
Give the children a pile of jelly beans. Ask them to divide the jelly beans into groups of ten. Then take one jelly bean out of each pile. This is one tenth of the jelly beans.
If we have ten hours to play each week (that’s two hours after school each day), we might use one hour in the week to help someone else.
This would be what you would give away if you wanted to give one tenth away each week.
No one can tell you what to give to God. Each of us should talk to God and make our own mind up about how much to give. If you would like help with this you could talk to one your leaders or your parents.
You don’t need to feel forced to give. God wants you to give to show Him how thankful you are for all the good things in your life. Think about all the good things God has given to you, including his love. This will help you to want to give good things to other people.
ACTIVITY
Have your group line up in the middle of the room, explain that you will ask them a question and then give them two options. Those who choose option 1 will run to the left side of the room and those who choose option 2 will run to the right side of the room.
The question is ‘why is giving to God important’?
Share the below options or make your own up and have the children make a choice. You can make it harder or easier by changing the sides of the room they run to for each question.
Giving shows my thankfulness to God
Giving shows God is a priority in my life
Giving only helps poor people
Giving helps others
I have to tell everyone how much I have given
Giving shows how good I am
Giving shows God that I have heaps of stuff
Giving is a privilege to help others
Giving doesn’t help other people
Only God needs to know how much I give
No one needs to know how much you give, It’s between you and God. Giving is not just financial giving. Maybe you have books, toys or clothing that you can give to other children that don’t have much. Maybe you could talk to your parents or Sunday school teacher about how you can apply this to your life.
Remember: Giving is from the heart.
TYING IN
Moldova is sadly Europe’s poorest country. The temperatures can get below minus 20 degrees. People in Moldova can get sick or even die from the freezing cold temperatures, not having enough food or drinking bad water.
Fortunately, The Salvation Army is here in Moldova and delivers much-needed
1918
aid with medical clinics that travel from village to village, helping about 9000 people each year.
The programme started 15 years ago and it helps everyone – from little newborn babies to the very, very old.
So remember keep placing your money and tokens in your Self Denial Kids Money Box to help people who need it.
MEMORY BIBLE VERSE
HUMAN BUZZER
Using 2 Corinthians 9:7 and a white board, put underscore dashes on the board or butchers paper for every letter in each word of the memory verse e.g. Jesus wept = _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _.
Divide the children into 2 groups. Each group elects someone to be the buzzer and another to be the contestant. The ‘buzzer sits on a chair out the front while the contestant stands behind them with their hands on the head of the buzzer.
When they want to answer a question, the contestant must lightly press the buzzer to make the sound for that team.
Play the game in rounds so that each person in the team has an opportunity to be the buzzer or contestant.
When a contestant gets a question right they are allowed to select 1 letter of the alphabet (apart from vowels) to be uncovered on the board.
Have special rounds where contestants are allowed to choose vowels or solve the memory verse. You will need to prepare some questions for the game
and they can include bible questions, celebrity questions, etc.
PRAYER & PRAISE
PRAYER SARDINES
Turn a game of Sardines into a group prayer session by writing a prayer on an index card or other piece of paper. Give the prayer to the person who is chosen to be “it,” and have the rest of the players hide their eyes while that person hides with the prayer. All the other players must try to find the person hiding. Once one of the players finds the hider, they must join him in the hiding place. Each person that finds the hidden players must also hide with them until all the players are packed into the hiding place like sardines. Once all the players are in place, they all pray the prayer that is written on the card as a group.
HOME & BEYOND
Work out how many hours of free time you usually have in your week.
Decide how much time you would like to ‘give away’ this week to help someone else.
You might like to report back next week about how you used your time and who you helped.
WEEK 5 HEALTH CARE/ EDUCATION
PURPOSE
• To bring awareness to children around what Self Denial is and how they can be a part of serving God through this mission.
• To become aware of how we can serve others when they are unwell or struggling.
CONSIDER & PREPARE
READ: PSALM 41:3
You always heal them and restore their strength when they are sick.
THINGS YOU NEED TO CONSIDER
God does heal and restore people from their sickness or disabilities, it happens in God’s timing. Be sensitive with all children as some may find this difficult to understand if they have lost someone close to them or are surrounded by sick people with a terminal illness or who don’t believe in miracles. Follow the children’s leading on this topic and pray for those who are struggling with long term pain, mental illness and other sickness. Be especially mindful of children in your group who have a disability or a serious illness.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
Connecting In
• Bandages (or an equivalent like toilet paper, newspaper, cellophane paper etc), sticky tape.
Memory Verse
• Psalm 41:3 written out for children to see
Prayer & Praise
• Signs or pictures of a HOME, a FIREHOUSE, a SCHOOL, a CHURCH, an APARTMENT COMPLEX.
Home & Beyond
• One copy of the Home & Beyond card per child
CONNECTING IN
GAME: BANDAGE YOUR TEAM
Aim
To be the first team to work together, encourage each other to bandage and help the whole team across the river.
Preparation
Bandages- (or something equivalent like toilet paper, newspaper, cellophane paper etc), sticky tape.
Set up an obstacle course.
How to Play
Split your group into two teams, each team member must choose a body part that they will have bandaged up. The bandaged part cannot be used in the game (You should have at least one person with a broken leg, another with a broken arm, foot, hand or head etc.).
When the game begins each team has to bandage each other up. Once the
2120
bandages have been applied they must work together to get everyone to the other side of the room.
The first team finished wins.
Discussion
What did you like about this game?
Was there anything you found difficult?
How would things be different in your life if you really could not use that part of your body?
Note: If you have any children with a physical disability in your group then you might like to ask them to share about how it affects their life and how they overcome the challenges.
THE MAIN THING
There are many times in the Bible where God healed people!
Can anyone name a story they know where God healed people?
(Cleansing a Leper, Healing a Paralytic, Restoring a Man’s Withered Hand, Healing a Woman’s Haemorrhage, Restoring Sight to Blind Men, Healing a Deaf Mute, Restoring a Woman Crippled for Eighteen Years, Cleansing Men of Leprosy, Healing a Man at the Pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem, Healing a Slave’s Severed Ear).
Why do you think these people were healed?
Sometimes God heals through miracles. Sometimes God uses people and medicines to heal others. Sometimes we don’t see healing happen and this can be confusing and upsetting. God is full of mystery and we don’t always understand his ways.
What we can be sure of is that whatever happens, God loves his people and wants the very best for us.
In some countries, when people get sick they can do to the doctor or hospital for help and buy medicines to make them well again. But many people around the world live on less than $1 per day. So, when someone gets sick, there’s no money to pay for a doctor or for medicines.
The money we give to Self Denial helps The Salvation Army to provide help to some of the poorest people. This money helps to supply what is needed to keep hospitals open and give them better equipment.
It’s important that we look after our bodies so that we don’t get sick, but some people still have diseases and sickness and need constant treatment and healing.
• When you are sick, what makes you feel better? (Lollies, special drinks, medicine, praying etc.)
What would it cost a person to…
1. Get better from the Flu? Visit to the doctor + antibiotics + pain medication + days of bed rest where you don’t earn any money.
2. Get better from a broken arm? Hospital visit + cast + limited mobility so can’t earn as much + pain medication + return visit to hospital to get cast off.
God promises that He will look after us but when we are sick it can still be a big struggle.
Be aware of those around you who are
sick, pray for them, give them a friendly smile and let them know you are thinking of them.
• How can we look after each other and be compassionate to others with sickness or diseases?
• How can we influence people’s lives for the better?
Spreading God’s love to people who are sick is a huge blessing, it will strengthen them and give them a reason to keep fighting and asking for healing. God doesn’t always seem to heal but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t ask for healing.
MEMORY VERSE
Have the children get into pairs and have them come up with some actions to put alongside Psalm 41:3 have the children share what they have created with the group.
TYING IN
India is the second most populated country in the world and almost one third of that population lives below the poverty line.
In other words, over 400 MILLION people in India are very poor. It’s especially hard on women and children if they are alone. It’s easy for people to take advantage of them, but the good news is The Salvation Army runs a number of shelters for women and children which provide a home, education and food. It also gives them someone to talk to and teaches them skills to be able to look after themselves.
With the use of your Self Denial money The Salvation Army continues to set up and staff hospitals and shelters all around the world.
Remember to continue to put money and tokens into your Self Denial Kids Money Box so The Salvation Army can keep these projects running.
PRAYER & PRAISE
PRAYER WALK
The teacher can place signs on the wall in a designated area. The pictures can be of a HOME, a FIREHOUSE, a SCHOOL, a CHURCH, an APARTMENT COMPLEX, etc. Children will walk from picture to picture and say a short prayer, (either silently or together as a group), for the health and safety of people who live or work in each place!
HOME & BEYOND
• As a family write a letter to the hospital in your community, encourage the nurses, doctors and everyone who is involved in looking after the people who are sick.
• Draw pictures or write a card for someone who is sick that you know.
• Prayer for healing and strength for families with members who are sick.
2322
WEEK 6WRAP UP
PURPOSE
• To gain awareness of what the children have learnt over the last few weeks.
• To have children continue to place their trust in God, who provides everything we need.
• To learn how to use our resources for good.
CONSIDER & PREPARE
READ: 1 TIMOTHY 6:17-19
Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always being ready to share with others. By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future so that they may experience true life.
THINGS YOU NEED TO CONSIDER
Be aware that some of the children in your group may not have understood the full concept of being generous and some may not have chosen to give to Self Denial. Ensure that children feel safe and accepted, no matter what decision they have made. Remind the children that they still have many opportunities to be generous including
doing something that is kind or helpful for their friends and family.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
Game
• Tarpaulin or mat that is only just big enough to fit all of your children on (you might need two if you have a large group)
• Cones or objects to place around the tarp to mark out a boundary
Trust in God not in money – money is unreliable
• Choose a destination in or around your space. Create multiple copies of two sets of instructions and place each in an envelope. You will need a total of one set for every four children
• The first set of instructions should fail to lead them to the correct destination – these instructions are untrustworthy
• The second set of instructions should lead them to the correct destination – these instructions are trustworthy
God gives us all we need
• Paper and crayons, modelling clay, play dough or any craft material that is helpful
Use Money, time and talents to do good
• Paper, markers and pens
Being generous
• Cooking material or craft to give to other people
Home & Beyond
• One copy of the Home & Beyond card per child
CONNECTING IN
GAME
Aim
To work with the people in your group to help everyone onto the tarpaulin without stepping in the ‘lava’.
Preparation
Place your tarpaulin or mat on the ground.
Place cones or objects to mark a boundary about 50 cm around the tarpaulin.
Explain to the children that they must work together to get every person on the tarpaulin without falling in the area around the tarpaulin - the ‘lava’. If someone falls in the lava, or steps off the tarpaulin the whole team has to start again.
You can make it harder by reducing the size of the tarpaulin or increasing the size of the boundary. Give children clues on how they could work together better – e.g. strongest person jump on the mat first – leave the smallest until last, or the one with longest legs jumps first etc.
Discussion
• Did anyone fall into the lava?
• How did you find working together?
• What worked and what was a struggle?
• Without the people in your group would you have been able to complete the challenge?
We need each other to grow in our relationship with Jesus; we each need to support our families and friends. On our own we are not as effective as we can be together.
THE MAIN THING
Over the last few weeks we have been learning about what generosity is; how we can make a difference in the lives of the people around the world and in our own communities. We have talked about how God uses the money and resources that we give and have had the opportunity to make a decision on what we could give in Self Denial.
TRUST IN GOD NOT IN MONEY – MONEY IS UNRELIABLE
Choose a destination in or around your space. Create multiple copies of two sets of instructions and place each in an envelope. You will need a total of one set for every four children
• The first set of instructions should fail to lead them to the correct destination – these instructions are untrustworthy
• The second set of instructions should lead them to the correct destination – these instructions are trustworthy
Divide the children into teams of four and give each team a set of instructions.
2524
Ask the children to follow the instructions to the destination.
Explain to the children that some of the teams had instructions that took them exactly where they needed to go. These were trustworthy instructions. Other groups had instructions that had them going around in circles. These were untrustworthy instructions because they didn’t help them to get where they needed to go.
Just like this game of following instructions we need to remember what our end goal is and what we are following.
1 Timothy 6:17 says that we should not trust in money because it is unreliable. Money will not take us where we need to go in life.
We don’t have to put our trust in what we earn or give or receive. Our goal is life with Jesus. We can trust in God and follow His instructions.
GOD GIVES US ALL WE NEED
Supply paper and crayons, modelling clay, play dough or any craft material that you think is helpful.
In groups have the children choose from the material that you provided to create a picture or object that represents something that God gives us.
Eg. Food, clothing, shelter, transport, love, others, Jesus, life
While the kids are creating, encourage them to talk about what God has given them and why this is important to them.
God blesses each of us with so much;
He gives us what we need; He is our provider; He is our king; He will never leave us alone. Putting God first and trusting our needs to Him can be hard especially when we really want something or believe that we need it.
God sees our hearts; He sees our needs and does provide for us.
USE MONEY, TIME AND TALENTS TO DO GOOD.
In groups, brainstorm all the ways that the money you give, the resources that you share or the time that you offer could be used to help people in your community and overseas.
E.g. Those who have no food can feed their families, those who are alone could have company. People can gain skills through programs that teach them life skills etc.
Make space for each group to share their ideas.
Our money, resources, time and skills are all gifts from God to encourage and support people who need help. What an awesome opportunity we have been given to share our resources with people who need it. Look through your lists that you made and choose a couple of them to put into action over the next few weeks.
BEING GENEROUS
Being generous doesn’t mean that you have to give everything that you have all the time. Generosity should be an expression of your love, joy, and gratitude towards God. Being generous to God is one of the greatest ways you can worship God, it’s an act of your
HEART, done with great love and joy. Everything we own and everything we have comes from God. So, when we give, we simply offer him a very small part of all the goodness he has already given to us.
BAKE OR CREATE
Make something with the children that you can give away to some of the people in your church to show that you want to encourage and support people in your community.
You could bake cupcakes, decorate biscuits, create cards of encouragements, or make book marks.
Think of something that the kids in your group would love to do to show the church how much they care and love encouraging others.
TYING IN
Over the last few weeks we have been able to talk about different countries that the Self Denial Appeal helps. The money that you raise for Self Denial Appeal goes towards helping people who need encouragement and hope for the future. As a group try to remember what countries we talked about and how The Salvation Army helps those countries.
Don’t forget to bring your Self Denial Kids Money Box to Self Denial Sunday.
MEMORY BIBLE VERSE
As a group, have the children make up a song and actions to one or two of the verses from 1 Timothy 6:17-19. Encourage the children to use different sounds and facial expressions.
PRAYER & PRAISE
Five Finger Prayer
Ask the children to hold their hands together in prayer, using each finger as a guide:
Thumb: Pray for the work in The Salvation Army hospitals & health education
Pointer: Pray for those who live in poverty
Middle: Pray for those who don’t get medical supplies easily
Ring: Pray for those who give to the Self Denial Appeal
Pinky: Pray for those who are blind or have a disability
HOME & BEYOND
Even though the Self Denial lessons are finished, it does not mean that you have to stop being generous. Talk to your family or friends about how you can continue to be generous with what you have. It might be helping with making dinner, mowing the lawn, helping someone at the shops or caring for someone who feels alone. Talk to God about how you could glorify him in serving your community. If you need help in making this happen than ask one of your teachers, family members or church leaders to help you .
Original material written by Territorial Children’s Department, Australia Eastern Territory.
Edited by Territorial Children’s Mission Department, New Zealand Fiji and Tonga Territory.
Email us at [email protected] for more information.
