"Wild" Object Lessons (James 3:1-12, Jeremiah 29:32)

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Object Lessons about God's Love
Have you ever presented an object lesson to a class and had as much fun as the kids? I have and what an experience! There is nothing like seeing the “light bulbs” come on and hearing kids say, “Now I get it.” When I have success delivering God-moments to my children’s ministry, I write it down, including details about the lesson. Over the years, I have gathered my favorite wild object lessons into a binder but these object lessons are my absolute favorite.
If you need an unforgettable idea for your ministry, feel free to try these. It’s easy to find jungle or safari decorations for a cool backdrop for either.

The Wild Thing (James 3:1-12) Object Lesson

The book of James has some great teaching on the importance of controlling your tongue—a lesson we can all use. Before the object lesson, I placed fresh batteries in a Bumble Ball, a shaky toy for toddlers. I placed the toy in a lidded, brown gift box. For this object lesson, I used the box to draw kids’ interest. I told the children that inside the box I had captured the wildest creature they had ever seen. I slipped my hand in the box, acted as if the creature attacked me, (nicely, of course) turning the toy on.
Holding the lid in place, I let kids hold the box and guess what was inside. After everyone held the box, I turned off the toy discreetly and began to teach from James.
I asked kids what animals they had seen in the zoo. What animals have people tamed? The list was long, lions, tigers, a whale even dinosaurs. Then we read from the passage and kids discovered the answer.
We talked about tongues and how difficult it was to control our mouths.

Crazy Lab (Jeremiah 29:32) Object Lesson

Donning a lab coat and plastic goggles, I spent an exciting morning smashing things. I based my lesson on Jeremiah 29:32 focusing on the Word of God as a hammer. We took kids church outside for the day and lay tarps down to make clean up easy. I had a variety of foods, a balloon and other items to use as smashing subjects. I told kids that my rubber mallet was like the Word of God. It smashes the enemies’ lies and keeps us free. I made a negative statement, applying it to myself, then gave the kids the truth about what the Word of God says. For example, I said, “I’m so dumb — I can’t remember anything.” I placed a banana on the covered table and quoted a scripture that refuted that false statement. I tried to choose relatable quotes that kids might say themselves.
After a smashing day, kids felt empowered and excited about learning scriptures.
Read more from Mimi by visiting her blog, “Encouragement for Christians.”

2 thoughts on “"Wild" Object Lessons (James 3:1-12, Jeremiah 29:32)”

  1. I love everything about how Mimi teaches! I cannot however find her in the lesson printables in the search box? I have tried every way I know. And the link is missing within the write up in the actual lesson plan itself which makes it difficult.
    Help!

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