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Everyone likes a clean slate, a fresh start or kid language a “do-over.” A new coloring book, fresh chalkboards are two “clean slate” examples kids look forward to. As children’s church leaders it is our joy to teach kids about the new start that Jesus gives us all. With the New Year approaching, many people will nobly focus in making changes, looking forward to a fresh start. This makes New Year’s, in fact, the entire month of January the perfect time teach kids about the salvation Jesus offers. Give kids the opportunity to receive new life with these New Year salvation object lessons. Add these mini lessons to your favorite salvation programs for visual impact.
Magnetic Display
For this object lesson, you will need two large magnets. In this object lesson, you will demonstrate how God’s holy nature is repelled by sin. Show two magnets with reverse polarity. Just turn one of the magnets backwards. Give kids a chance to handle the reverse magnets. Say this, “God is holy and he can’t bear to be around sin. Since everyone sins, God designed a way for men to come back to him. Jesus came to erase our sin. When our sin is erased by Jesus, (turn one of the magnets around) God is drawn to us, just like these two magnets. This New Year salvation object lesson has a favorite because kids can interact with it.
Box of Rocks
Before class, gather a few empty shoeboxes and 10 or more rocks. Have a black permanent marker handy too. Ask two volunteers to come before the class and hold the empty shoeboxes. Tell the class, “We were born to sin. No matter how good or wonderful a person is he or she will sin. Watch this demonstration.” Take a rock in one hand and say to the class, “Today, let’s pretend these rocks are different sins. Let’s label these sins. I want to remind you that my volunteers are pretending. I’m sure they haven’t committed these sins.”
Tell a story about a typical day for kids as you write the names of sins on rocks and add them to the two boxes. Start with waking up and getting ready for school. Mom asks, “Did you finish your homework last night?” You forgot but you want Mom to be happy and you want to avoid getting into trouble. You say, “Yes, ma’am.” Write “Lie” on the rock and place it in a box. Go through the pretend day adding rocks that read different words like steal, disobedience and cruelty. By the end each box will have a heavy load of rocks.
Tell the volunteers you have to carry that box around every day. Even though you can’t see them, your sins are always with you. Even you friend standing next to you can’t help you carry your box because he has a box of his own. Only one person can remove the rocks and give you an empty box. Who do you think that is?
Demonstrate how prayer and repentance unloads the boxes.
Related posts:
- Salvation Object Lesson
- Christmas Object Lessons for Children’s Church
- Why You Should Use Bible Object Lessons
- The Age of Accountability: Rethinking Children and Salvation
- What Can a 2-Year Old Teach You About Prayer?
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Blessings to you and your family for the New Year.
Thanks to you and everyone who puts all their time into making our prepartions to minister to children so much easier. I wait in anticipation to see just what will be offered to us next. We use a lot of your lessons in our Wednesday night Kidz Klub.
(ages 2 thru 6th grades)
God bless you as you continue to serve Him!
Loved the magnet lesson. I happened to have a magnetix set and let my class use the magnets to build/create designs. This was a great way to show how doing the right things can be built on in your life and how sin (a magnet going the wrong way) can derail you.
God bless you for putting this website together!
Our church is very small…average SS attendance is between 5 – 8 all ages. I recently volunteered to work with the Sunday School. I work full time and have numerous extracurricular activities and kids of my own – grown, but still need me. While I was surfing the web for resources I was amazed at how much is out there and a lot for free. But your website shines above all of them… I can’t thank you enough for what you have provided for me. There is another site whose materials I also admire, but once I paid (a small fee) to get the material, they are always dangling the carrot in front of me to get more. I love what they offer, but I can’t afford to pay any more. Your site offers a well rounded pallet plus leads me to “recommended” sites that I don’t have to weed through.
My Sunday School preps are so much richer because you are here. Thank you. With your help, I have the whole year planned, but am open to adding the wonderful teachings you put out there. Including the “rocks” object lesson.
thank you!
I love this website, I used the christmas pages for my lessons for the 4 sundays of the season. thank you for your resources.
I just wanted to say what a blessing it is to have found your website! I am a homeschool mom and am involved with a small co-op group. I am in charge of combining missions and geography and I have found this to be a wonderful resource! Each month I try to incorporate a different way to show the children to share the gospel with their friends- and your ideas are GREAT! Thank you so much!
I LOVED this lesson!! I use this site alot for my Sunday school class, but used this to do a full kids church lesson this past Sunday and the kids loved it. I used heavy bricks that I had handy instead of a box and rocks and the effect was amazing. One kid was even moved to tears while he was struggling to hold the brick and fully understood the depth of what the heavy weight meant in relation to our sins if we continue to carry them ourselves. We ended up w/ 4 salvations by the end of the service!!!
Thank you, thank you for helping get the year started off on such a positive step! God bless you!!
I love these ideas! I was looking for a way to talk about salvation with my Childrens Church kids (ages 3 through 12). Thanks for the post!