To me, they were just lights. I had seen them a million times before. Besides, I had potholes to dodge, detour signs to follow, and taxi drivers cruising along faster than I would like. To our kids, the city lights created quite the stir. Spontaneous applause erupted from the car seat gallery, shrieks of disbelief, and a conflict of estimates. Our three year old thought there might be seven lights or maybe sixty-three. The four year old
This Sunday School lesson is based on Acts 6 where the church chose seven men to serve. This is often considered the beginning of the office of deacon in the New Testament church. In this lesson plan, children will learn that every believer has a responsibility to serve. This lesson was first prepared for an older elementary Sunday School class but can be modified to fit your ministry context. Bible Story: Seven Men are Chosen to Minister
This printable lesson plan is designed to teach preschool aged children about the story of Joseph and his family. It could be used in any setting with children age 2-5 at church, including a preschool Sunday School class or a preschool children’s church class. As always, consider your own ministry context and modify it as needed. Please leave any feedback or suggestions for improvement in the comment box at the bottom of this page. We also have
This post is part 1 of 3 of our special interview with Ken Ham, the president of Answers in Genesis. Here are the links to read part two and part three. Ministry to Children (MtC): Please tell our readers a little about yourself and your ministry. Ken Ham (Ken): I like to call myself “a missionary from Australia to America” – particularly to the American church, calling it back to the authority of the Word of God beginning
This lesson plan is designed to teach preschool aged children about the story of Abraham and Sarah and the miracle of the birth of Isaac. It could be used in any setting with children age 2-5 at church, including a preschool Sunday School class or a preschool children’s church class. It highlights the need to trust God and wait for Him to keep his promises. As always, consider your own ministry context and modify it as needed.
This free Children’s Church lesson plan was first written for children age 5 – 11. It covers the story of Abraham and Sarah as well as the miracle of Isaac. This story highlights the need to trust God and be patient while waiting for his promises to come true. This material could could also be used as the Bible lesson for children’s Sunday school. Be sure to consider your own ministry context and modify it as needed.
Here are some simple ways for Christian families to celebrate the Christmas season together. This post was written by Doug Wolter, the Pastor of Children & Education at LaGrange Baptist Church. You can read more from Doug at his blog Life Together. Our hope during the Christmas season is to intentionally pass on to our own children the love of Christ in creative ways. Children love traditions because they love repetition. They look forward to fun and familiar
This lesson is taken from the story in 2 Kings 5 where Naaman the Syrian learns about Elisha the prophet of God from an Israelite slave girl in his home. The lesson is prepared for upper elementary school age students. It can be simplified for younger children and can also be used as a children’s church lesson. At the end of the lesson additional resources to personalize your class are available. Scripture: 2 Kings 5:1-19 Learning Objective: Students will
This lesson is based on the story where a Shunammite woman provides a room for Elisha to stay. God rewards her kindness by giving her a son. The son dies and God raises him through Elisha. The lesson is prepared for upper elementary age students and can be modified for younger students or used for Children’s Church. Be sure to check out the additional resources linked at the end of this lesson plan. Target Age: 3rd-5th Grade
This is a live blog by Terry Delaney during the Connecting Church and Home Conference March 2009 at Brentwood Baptist Church in Nashville. You can also read confernce notes on the Soujour Kids blog or from the Thoughts On The Word Session #3: The Next Step-Family Strategy of Brentwood (Jay Struther) And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor.” And she said to her, “Go,
Try our collection of free printable craft ideas for Sunday School. Download the PDF directions and watch the videos below. These activities are a perfect companion to our Thanksgiving Sunday School lessons for children. Thanksgiving Craft Projects & Activities Scroll down to see many more ideas for crafting thankfulness with your Sunday School class. We’re adding new ideas each week throughout November 2019, so check back for updates each Monday! Wreath Craft Project “Thankful to God” The
This message explains that we need to remain constantly connected to Christ. As a branch needs to be connected to the main part of the plant in order to live, we need to be “attached” to the Lord. What does this mean? Being rooted in prayer and Bible reading should be components of our daily life, providing the fuel we need to grow and stay healthy in our faith. This message uses a “fruity” object lesson to
Teach children to love God’s Word with these free Bible lessons and resources from Ministry to Children. Find engaging lessons for toddlers to preteens, covering topics like Jesus’ life, the Armor of God, and the Fruit of the Spirit. Bible Lessons for Kids Free Bible Studies for Kids Download over 700+ Bible lesson plans for children’s church or other kids’ ministry programs. Days of Creation – 7 lessons Fruit of the Spirit (9 lessons) Parables of Jesus
“Hello there Crafters, this week we have some creative creation crafts for you. We’re talking about Genesis chapter one and how God made everything. So we are going to make not quite everything but a couple of things in honor of the creation story. So let’s get right to work, we have a couple of really great things today. The first one we’re going to do is just sort of a little reminder of you of what
Finding God on the Mountain… Children’s Message on God’s Presence in All Places Main Objective: Mountains are pretty incredible places, and can be inspirational for Christians seeking deeper faith. The Bible contains a lot of significant stories involving mountains, and this message highlights a few of them. God often chose to meet people in special places, and made or renewed covenants there. However, mountains aren’t the only way to grow closer to God. He is everywhere! His
As Christian parents, we are called to train our children up in the way of the Lord (Proverbs 22:6). The Bible says a lot about children and our calling to lead them to Jesus. But what does that actually look like? How can we instill godly wisdom in our kids on a daily basis? In this blog post, we’ll explore some practical ways to teach your kids about God and help them grow in their faith. We’ll
This post continues Steve’s story about resisting God’s calling and finding spiritual purpose by becoming like a child. As Jesus says in Matthew 18:2 “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Why did I start sitting in the front of the church during worship? My three young daughters, my unencumbered smiling children, pulled me to the front. They got used to going to the front
Have you ever been in a situation where God was calling you to do something, but you hesitated? Maybe you were worried about what others would think, or maybe you just weren’t sure if it was the right thing to do. In this blog post, we will discuss the importance of answering God’s call when he calls us. We will also share a personal story about how we failed to act when God called us. We hope
Have some bread! In this day of gluten-free, carb friendly diet consciousness, we might lose sight of how essential bread has been historically to life. It is a food staple that sees variations throughout time and culture, but which nourishes and strengthens us physically. Understanding that Jesus is our “bread” reminds us that He provides what we need for spiritual strength and health. We need more than just food to survive in life. We need Jesus! Lesson
We see bread appear several times in the Bible…God gave the Israelites manna in the wilderness. Christ used loaves and fish to feed crowds. Most significantly, the savior gave His body for us on the cross, and calls us to remember that with the bread of Communion. What does it mean that Jesus calls Himself the bread of life? Just as we are physically fed by food, we recognize that we need spiritual nourishment. We obtain that
Despite modern concerns of gluten-free or keto-friendly diets, bread has historically been a nutrition staple, and continues to provide energy and life to those who eat it! Bread also serves as a simple and fun visual for this children’s message. Use whatever variety of bread might be relevant to your students (maybe even donuts!) to explain how important bread is. Jesus called Himself the “bread of life”, and we recognize that we need Him for fuel and
We know that Jesus is divine…and we are “de branches”! These fruit-themed crafts remind students of the importance of staying rooted in and connected to Christ. When we stay close to Him, we bear spiritual fruit. Apart from that “vine”, we wither and wane. These crafts include grape themes galore. A grapes versus raisins collage imparts the truth that, while raisins cannot turn back into grapes, we can turn back to God when we stray. A collective
There are several Biblical references that involve sheep. The lifestyle of the first century made this an applicable metaphor, as there were many who were involved in the business of livestock care. Even with that familiarity, people did not always readily understand sheep stories (“This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.” -John 10:6). Sheep are entirely dependent on the shepherd, as we are dependent on God. Jesus
This message reminds students that God loves and cares for us, and that He protects us at all times. Just as a shepherd watches out for the needs of the lambs and sees that they have what they need, God provides for us. Jesus gave His life for His sheep, willing to sacrifice for those He loves. The Bible uses many beautiful reminders of this shepherd analogy, and explaining those passages helps children understand and appreciate the
