ELEMENTARY KIDS & FAMILIES
For this Sunday: January 24, 2016
This resource is designed to allow your family to have time in God’s Word
BEFORE your children attend church. Because God’s plan is for parents to be
the primary spiritual nurturers of their children’s faith, we want YOU to be the
one to introduce this part of The Big God Story to them.
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DID YOU KNOW?
• As Naomi’s daughter-in-law, Ruth had the option to return to her homeland and
family when her husband passed away.
• Ruth chose to remain with Naomi, despite the fact that they were both widows
and the famine caused their situation to be desperate.
• A kinsman-redeemer was a male relative who could act sacrificially to help
someone who was in trouble, in danger, or in need of vindication.
• As Ruth’s kinsman-redeemer, Boaz offered protection, love, kindness, and,
ultimately, salvation from her desperate situation.
GOD IS REDEEMER
Part of The Big God Story
Ruth 1–4
When Ruth followed her mother-in-law Naomi to her homeland, the two women
were widows and had no money. In order to find food, Ruth gleaned in a nearby
field, where she met Boaz. In Ruth and Naomi’s lives, God wove every detail
together. He did this so He could graciously redeem them and allow them to play
a part in The Big God Story.
JUST FOR FUN
Gather some grains (such as barley or oats), cotton balls, and paper (folded into
a fan). Explain to your children that in Bible times, when harvesting grain, the
workers would toss heavy grain into the air to separate it from their stems. The
stems would blow away in the wind, and the grains would fall to the ground.
Encourage your kids to wave the paper fan over the cotton balls and the grains.
Because the cotton is light, it will blow away, but the grains will remain. Share
with your children that workers would pick up the grains and smash them to
make flour. Then read Ruth 2.
YOUNGER KIDS
The book of Ruth contains some vocabulary and concepts that may be difficult
for a young child to understand. As you tell this story to your child, take time to
explain words and concepts such as kinsman, redeemer, and threshing floor,
using a Bible dictionary if necessary.
OLDER KIDS
Your child is beginning to think abstractly. Ask her to find comparisons in Ruth’s
story of loss, loyalty, and salvation to her own “God” story. Encourage her to
stretch her mind as she discovers for herself how God has redeemed her.
© 2015 David C Cook. TruResources are developed in partnership with ROCKHARBOR Church
and a national network of family and children’s ministry leaders. All rights reserved.
2.5
REMEMBER VERSE
Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has
come to his people and redeemed them.
Luke 1:68
TEACHABLE MOMENTS
After reading Scripture, discuss the following together:
• Why do you think Boaz was so nice to Ruth?
• What does it mean to redeem something? What was the meaning
of the phrase “kinsman-redeemer” in Ruth 4:6–7?
• How do you think Boaz, as Ruth’s kinsman-redeemer, is a symbol for how
Jesus is our Redeemer?
BLESSING
For more information about blessing your child see the Blessing section in
HomeFront: A Spiritual Parenting Resource.
A blessing to pray over your child:
(Child’s name), may you know how much God cares for you. May you
experience Him as your Redeemer this week.