A Reputation of Strength
The Prophet of Daniel (Lesson 1)
Lesson Objective: Kids will learn that constantly living a pure and holy life builds a
strong, Godly reputation.
Arrival Activity (10 minutes): Hand kids copies of “What’s My Reputation”
activity sheets. After they complete the activity, explain to them how easy it is to
get a reputation, and how some reputations are good and some are bad. Ask them
to consider their own reputations.
Memory Work (10 minutes):”Even a child is known by his actions, by whether his
conduct is pure and right.” Proverbs 20:11
Before class write each word of the verse on separate index cards. Say the verse
together as a group several times. Divide kids into two teams and have a race to
see which team can put the verse in the correct order in the shortest time.
Bible Story (15 minutes): Ask the class if anyone knows what “reputation” means.
Have someone look up the word in the dictionary (there should be one in your
bucket). “What people think of someone because of their attitude, actions, or what
he or she has said.”
What would you do if some of your friends at school wanted you to try a cigarette?
What would your first reaction be? (Allow time for discussion) How about
something not as harmful, but still wrong like a friend urging you to watch a PG-13
movie without permission from your parent? Would you immediately say no? What
we do at times like these gives us a reputation, either a good or a bad one. If we
give in a do what is wrong, our reputation for doing good is very weak. If we quickly
say no and stand firm for what if morally right, we build a strong reputation for
doing good.
Daniel 1:1-21 (Daniel chooses to honor God) Read the passage to children as
they follow along in their Bibles. (A eunuch in this instance means an officer or
steward who rules or is in charge of a lord’s household when he is absent.)
Discussion Questions (10 minutes):
1. Why did the servant want Daniel and his companions to eat the king’s food?
(So they would be strong and healthy like the others.)
2. Because he didn’t want to eat or drink anything unclean, what did Daniel ask
to be served instead? (Vegetables and water)
3. How did Daniel prove he and his companions didn’t need to eat the kings
food? (After a 10 day test, they were stronger and looked better than those
who ate the king’s food.)
4. How was Daniel rewarded for having a strong reputation of one who honors
God? (He was given knowledge and wisdom and allowed to serve before the
king.)
5. “In Daniel’s time,” certain foods were considered unclean and forbidden.
What kind of things do we have in our life today that might be considered
unclean and forbidden? (answers will vary)
Class exercise (7 minutes): see Cutting Corners activity
Alternate class exercise (4 minutes): see Known By Our Fruits activity
Application (2 minutes):Give each child a sheet of paper and a pencil, and ask them
to write down at least ten ways they can build a strong reputation for doing good.
If time permits you can write down each child’s tenth item on the board. Also have
them take this list home to show their parents (example provided).
Conclude the lesson with the following thought: A reputation is built by doing
something over and over. If you do what is right over and over, you build a
reputation for doing good. If you do what is not right over and over, you build a
reputation for doing what is wrong. The stronger your reputation is for doing what
is right, the closer you will feel to God, and the easier it will be to continue doing
what is right. Also, others will see you as a strong Christian, someone they can look
up to. Daniel’s reputation was obviously strong. No matter the situation in which he
found himself, he always honored God and did not let evil enter his life. We can all
learn a valuable lesson from Daniel about building a strong and Godly reputation.
You may even want to take an extra serving of vegetables tonight at dinner 
Next week: How can you make your friends fireproof? Find our next week!
Closing Prayer (2 minutes):
Pass out take home sheet
Cutting Corners
Materials: 2 treasure maps, scissors
Time: about 7 minutes
Preparations: Print two copies of the treasure map. Fold each map in half-length
wise, and then fold the maps in half again. Fold the maps in such a way that the
treasure chest is located in one of the corners. Make sure that you cut off nough
of the corners so that the treasure chest is no longer on the map.
What you do: As you tell the story, slowly clip off the four corners of one of the
maps that will represent the dishonest salesman’s product.
What you say: Let’s suppose two salesmen were just hired by a company called
Old World Treasure Maps. The salesmen’s names were Bob and Fred. Initially, both
salesmen worked very hard. Both of them would arrive at work early and work late
into the night. They were so dedicated that they ate lunch at their desks while
they continued to work. Soon both Bob and Fred had many customers.
One night after getting home from work, Fred thought to himself, “Why am I
knocking myself out at work? I have plenty of customers. I think I’ll start taking it
easy.” The next day Fred was late for work. Fred started taking more and more
coffee breaks during the day and did not answer his phone calls. Fred was getting
lazy. (Clip one corner off the folded map.)
Soon Fred was taking long lunches and charging them to the company, stating that
he was taking customers to lunch, when in fact this was true only half the time.
Fred was becoming dishonest. (Clip another corner off the folded map.)
The boss noticed that Fred’s sales were steadily decreasing and mentioned that he
was falling way behind the company’s star salesman, Bob. Fred began to sell his
customer’s cheaper products at a higher price to try to make it look like he was
making a lot of money for the company. Fred began to cheat his customers. (Clip
another corner off the folded map.)
Fred’s evil plan did not work and he was still losing customers. The boss called Fred
into his office and asked Fred why he was losing so many customers. Fred thought
for a moment and then lied, “It’s Bob’s fault! He’s stealing all my customers.” The
boss soon found out that Fred had lied to him and fired him on the spot. Fred had
also become a liar. (Clip off the last corner of the map. Then unfold both
treasure maps and hold them up, so all the kids can see.)
Which map would you rather buy, the map that is complete or the map that has
many missing pieces? Why? (Allow for answers)
In our story today, we saw how easy it is to become defiled. In other words, lose or
ruin our integrity and reputation. When we defile ourselves, we defile ourselves
before men and God. As Christians, we should continually strive to follow God’s laws
and commandments. When we follow God we can rest assured that our reputations
are safe.
Known by Our Fruits
Materials: pictures of god and rotten bananas (or a real ones if you want)
Time: about 4 minutes
What you will do: Show the kids the bad banana first and get their reaction. Then
show the good banana and get a different reaction.
What you say: Who would like to eat this banana? (bad one) Why not? How can
you tell this banana wouldn’t taste very good?
(Good banana) Now who would like to eat this banana? Why? How can you tell this
banana would taste good?
Our lives are like one of these two pieces of fruit. Read Matthew 7:17-20
People will know who we are by the type of fruit we produce. What kind of fruit do
you want to produce? Will the fruit of your life be good, like this good banana, or
not so good, like this rotten banana?
HTKids University Take Home Page
This page lets you know what your child learned at HTKids U today. In addition, you
will find this week’s memory verse, a suggested activity, and a short prayer to
reinforce the lesson. Being involved and interacting with your child can be very
rewarding for both of you.
What we learned:
Today we learned about reputations, and that consistently living a pure
and holy live builds a strong, Godly reputation. In Daniel 1:1-21 we read
how Daniel chose to honor God.
Memory verse:
“Even a child is known by his actions, by whether his conduct is pure and
right.” Proverbs 20:11
Memorize this verse with your child. Ask your child what actions define
him or her to others.
Suggested Parent/Child Activity:
As you and your family go through your normal routines this week, take
time to point out some of the reputations that those around you are
projections. You may observe these behaviors at sporting events, malls,
church, school, and on T.V.
Take time to explain how your child can build and protect a good
reputation. Discuss why a person’s reputation is so valuable.
Daily Prayer:
“Dear God, nay we honor You with the lives we live, just as Daniel did so
many years ago. Give us the wisdom to make the right choices each and
every day. May we have a good and Godly reputation. Amen.”