252 Groups
November 2014, Week 3
Small Group, K-1
Sour Grapes
Bible Story: Sour Grapes (Parable of the Vineyard Workers) • Matthew 20:1-15
Bottom Line: Take time to adjust your attitude.
Memory Verse: “Give thanks no matter what happens. God wants you to thank him because
you believe in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18, NIrV
Life App: Gratitude—letting others know you see how they’ve helped you.
Basic Truth: I can trust God no matter what.
Catch On: Make the Connection (Choose as many of these activities as you like.)
* If you don’t have time to do all these activities, be sure to do activity #2. Activities #1 and #3 are
particularly good for children who need to move in order to stay engaged.
Rock Around the Clock (review the Bible story / great for active learners)
 Print “Around the Clock” Activity Pages on cardstock; cut apart
 Bible marked at Matthew 20
Attitude Adjustment (application activity)
 Small paper plates; one per child; cut a 1-inch hole about 2 inches from the edge of each plate
 Print “Attitude Adjustment” Activity Page; 1 for each child
 Markers or crayons
 Scissors, glue sticks, and/or clear tape
 Plastic clothespins; 1 per child
A Bountiful Harvest (memory verse activity / great for active learners / optional large-group
activity)
 Bibles; for kindergarteners, mark Bibles at 1 Thessalonians 5
 Purple or green balloons (you can purchase balloons in bulk at orientaltrading.com or
amazon.com); inflate 10 balloons per Small Group (Note: Be aware of any possible latex
allergies! Post a sign outside your environment to alert parents.)
 Use a permanent marker to print the following Bible verse phrases on the balloons, one phrase
per balloon: Give thanks; no matter; what happens; God; wants you; to thank him; because you;
believe in; Christ Jesus.; 1 Thessalonians 5:18 NIrV. Tape the balloons to a focal wall to mimic
a cluster of grapes. You can even add a grape leaf and vine cut from green construction paper.
Prayer
 An “Attitude Adjustment” puppet from the activity above
Additional Resources:
 Make copies on cardstock of this week’s GodTime and Parent CUE cards.
 Tell parents about our additional family resources: Studio252.tv, CUE Box, and the Parent
CUE app. To find out more about these great resources, go to http://www.Studio252.tv/leaders.
©2014 The reThink Group, Inc. All rights reserved. • www.ThinkOrange.com
If you change the content of this document, please add to the copyright: Adapted by (your name/organization name/date).
1
252 Groups
November 2014, Week 3
Small Group, K-1
FOR LEADERS ONLY
GOD VIEW: the connection between GRATITUDE and
God's character, as shown through God's big story
Have you ever been watching a sporting event where one of the teams played like they were falling
apart at the seams? The team is a complete mess until finally the coach calls it: “Time out!” He brings
the team in, takes a moment to regroup. He adjusts and recalibrates to get his team ready get back on
the field and face their opponent.
The same goes for life.
It’s not a quick change. It may even happen so gradually over time that you hardly know it’s happening.
Then one day you realize that everyone is grumpy, complaining about every little thing.
The kids who were once happy and played together are now bickering and nagging each other over
nothing.
Something is off. Something is broken. Everyone needs a time out. There are just some things that
need an adjustment.
Take the idea of GRATITUDE, for example.
If we never take the time to acknowledge what God has done in our lives or how others have helped us,
we may develop an unhealthy ego or a growing frustration with the people around us. We might
become bitter and complain about everything little thing.
That’s why we’re taking this month to talk about what it means to take show GRATITUDE: letting others
know how they’ve helped you.
This month, let’s think about how:
(1) God is at work in our lives even though we may not understand.
(2) Our response of gratitude shows that we trust God in all circumstances.
This week, we’re discovering:
We'll dig into a parable Jesus told one day about some vineyard workers. In Matthew 20:1-5, we read
that a few of the workers started making comparisons to what others were getting paid and became
ungrateful and started complaining. Then at the end of the day, they had a bad attitude because they
thought, that's not fair.
Our Bottom Line for this week is: Take time to adjust your attitude. We change our whole outlook on
life if we take the time to think about all that we’ve been given instead of comparing ourselves to others.
Our memory verse is 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “Give thanks no matter what happens. God wants
you to thank him because you believe in Christ Jesus.” (NIrV) There are many times when we
don’t want to give thanks, but our hope in Jesus allows us to be thankful regardless of our
circumstances.
©2014 The reThink Group, Inc. All rights reserved. • www.ThinkOrange.com
If you change the content of this document, please add to the copyright: Adapted by (your name/organization name/date).
2
252 Groups
November 2014, Week 3
Small Group, K-1
Sour Grapes
Bible Story: Sour Grapes (Parable of the Vineyard Workers) • Matthew 20:1-15
Bottom Line: Take time to adjust your attitude.
Memory Verse: “Give thanks no matter what happens. God wants you to thank him because
you believe in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18, NIrV
Life App: Gratitude—letting others know you see how they’ve helped you.
Basic Truth: I can trust God no matter what.
Catch On: Make the Connection (Small Groups, 25-30 minutes)
Make the connection of how today’s Bible story applies to real life experiences through interactive
activities and discussion questions.
1. Rock Around the Clock (review the Bible story / great for active learners)
What You Need: “Around the Clock” (Activity Page), Bible marked at Matthew 20
What You Do:
Use the “Around the Clock” Activity Pages to create a giant clock on the floor. Guide one of the kids to
stand at 6:00 and invite a child to open the Bible to Matthew 20. Narrate the Bible story below in your
own words. As you name a time of day, have a different kid move to the appropriate hour on the clock
until the end of the story. (Note: If you have a small number of kids, you can have the entire group of
kids move to each hour listed in the story.)
“The kingdom of heaven is like a man who owned a large vineyard. One day he set out early in the
morning—about 6:00—to hire workers for his fields. He agreed to give the workers the usual pay for a
day’s work. Then he sent them into his vineyard.
“At about 9:00, the man went out again. When he saw more people who needed work, he said, ‘You also
go and work in my vineyard. I will pay you what is right.’ So they went.
“The owner went out again at 12:00 and 3:00 and did the same thing. Finally, he went out at 5:00 and
found still more workers standing around. ‘Why have you been standing here all day doing nothing?’ he
asked. ‘Because no one has hired us,’ they replied. The man said to them, ‘You also go and work in my
vineyard.’
“When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to the person who was in charge of the workers,
‘Call the workers and give them their money. Start with the last ones I hired. Then go to the first ones.’
“The workers who were hired at 5:00 came, and each received a full day’s pay! So when the workers who
were hired at 6:00 in the morning came, they expected to be paid more. But instead, they were also given
a day’s pay. When they received their money, they started to complain. ‘The people who were hired last
only worked one hour. You paid them the same as us! We did most of the work, and we were in the hot
sun ALL DAY LONG!’
“The owner answered one of them, ‘Friend, I’m being fair to you. Didn’t you agree to work for the usual
day’s pay? I want to give the ones I hired last the same amount of money that I gave you. Do you feel
cheated because I gave so generously to the others?’” (Matthew 20: 1-15, paraphrased)
©2014 The reThink Group, Inc. All rights reserved. • www.ThinkOrange.com
If you change the content of this document, please add to the copyright: Adapted by (your name/organization name/date).
3
252 Groups
November 2014, Week 3
Small Group, K-1
What You Say:
“In Jesus’ story, the workers learned that what THEY thought was fair or unfair wasn’t important. What
WAS important was choosing to be grateful instead of choosing to be ungrateful and miserable. The
same is true for us. [Apply] God doesn’t want us to compare what we have with what others have.
God wants us to be thankful for what He chooses to give us. It’s all about the attitude we
choose. We can CHOOSE to be thankful because we can trust that God is good, that God loves
us, and that He knows what’s best for us. So [Impress] take time to adjust your attitude. Choose
to be grateful.”
* 2. Attitude Adjustment (application activity)
What You Need: “Attitude Adjustment” Activity Pages, small paper plates, scissors, markers or
crayons, plastic clothespins, glue sticks or clear tape
What You Do:
Kids will make crazy happy/sad puppets to dramatize the truth that you need to [Impress] take time to
adjust your attitude. Distribute the “Attitude Adjustment” Activity Pages and guide kids to cut out the
eyes, ears, noses, and mouths of their choosing. Invite them to color the features any way they choose.
Next, give each child a paper plate and guide him to glue the eyes, ears, and nose to the plate, leaving
the hole as a space for the mouth. Next, lead kids to cut apart the lips of his mouth if they haven’t yet
done so. Show the kids how to insert the clip end of a clothespin through the hole so that the clip
comes out the “face” side of the plate. While the clothespin is through the hole, help the kids tape their
lips to the top and bottom ends of the clip. The kids can then press the “legs” of the clothespin together,
making the mouths move. They can also hold the clothespin by the “legs” and turn it so that the mouth
switches from a smile to a frown and vice versa.
Read the story below, guiding the kids to make their mouths “happy” or “sad” as the story dictates.
Afterwards, encourage the kids to improvise their own thankfulness stories with a partner.
Little Guy/Gal woke up to sunshine, blue skies, singing birds, and the tasty thought of eating a bowl of his
favorite cereal, Sugar Crunchies. Little Guy/Gal smiled and hopped out of bed. But when Little Guy/Gal
went downstairs, he/she discovered that his/her brother had eaten the LAST of the Sugar Crunchies!
Little Guy/Gal complained and cried, “That’s not fair! He always eats the last bowl of Sugar Crunchies!”
Little Guy’s/Gal’s smile turned to a frown. He/She stomped up to his/her room, slammed the door, and
flopped on his/her bed. The more Little Guy/Gal thought about the cereal, the more grumpy and
miserable he/she became.
Then Little Guy/Gal remembered to take TIME to adjust his/her attitude. He thought, “Well, at least I got
to eat some of the Sugar Crunchies. And, hey, at least I have a brother, even if he does eat the least bowl
of cereal. Thank You, God.” And with that thought, Little Guy/Gal smiled.
What You Say:
“Sometimes we can get so caught up in what’s fair that we forget to be thankful for what we DO have.
[Apply] What are some things you have that you can be thankful for? (Pause.) [Make It Personal]
(Tell an age-appropriate story about a time when you thought something wasn’t fair but you
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If you change the content of this document, please add to the copyright: Adapted by (your name/organization name/date).
4
252 Groups
November 2014, Week 3
Small Group, K-1
chose to adjust your attitude and be thankful.) So remember: [Impress] Take time to adjust your
attitude. It’s not always easy, but with God’s help, you can do it.”
3. A Bountiful Harvest (memory verse activity / great for active learners / optional large group
activity)
What You Need: Bibles, prepared balloons taped to your focal wall like a grape cluster
What You Do:
Guide the kids to get into teams of three to five and line up opposite the balloon clusters. At your signal,
the first child on each team will run to the “grapes,” “harvest” one from the wall, place it between his
knees, hop back to his team, and tag the next child in line. When a team has every balloon, guide the
kids to put the verse in order. Lead the kids to look up the verse using the navigation tips from week 1,
and then “read” the verse aloud together.
What You Say:
“God loves us and knows what’s best for us, so no matter what happens—even something that seems
unfair—we can take time to adjust our attitude and be thankful. So this week, [Apply] if you find
yourself getting grumpy or angry because it seems that someone else is getting more—or
getting away with more—than you are, [Impress] take time to adjust your attitude. Take time to
remember that God loves you and that He wants what is best for you. Let God handle what is fair and
unfair. Do YOUR part and [Impress] take time to adjust your attitude and be thankful. When you do,
you’ll show others who God is and what He is like! You’ll also show God that you love Him and trust
Him. So remember: [Impress] Take time to adjust your attitude and be grateful.”
Pray and Dismiss
What You Need: an “Attitude Adjustment” puppet from Catch On activity above
What You Do:
Hold up and manipulate an “Attitude Adjustment” puppet as you say the dialogue below in your own
words.
What You Say:
“In the parable Jesus told, the vineyard workers who worked all day focused more on what they thought
was fair than on what they had to be thankful for. And because they forgot to be thankful, they were
miserable. (Turn the mouth down.) God doesn’t want us to be miserable. He wants us to be thankful;
because when we’re thankful, we can be joyful and content. (Turn the mouth up.) So this week, don’t
be like the vineyard workers who chose to be ungrateful and miserable (turn the mouth down) because
they thought that their pay wasn’t fair. Instead, [Apply] take time to remember that God loves you
and that He wants what is best for you. Do YOUR part and [Impress] take time to adjust your
attitude and be thankful. (Turn the mouth up.) When you do, you’ll show others who God is and what
He is like! You’ll also show God that you love Him and trust Him. So remember: [Impress] Take time
to adjust your attitude and be thankful. Let’s pray.”
(Lead the kids to silently repeat each sentence of the prayer after you.)
©2014 The reThink Group, Inc. All rights reserved. • www.ThinkOrange.com
If you change the content of this document, please add to the copyright: Adapted by (your name/organization name/date).
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252 Groups
November 2014, Week 3
Small Group, K-1
“Dear God, You are good. You are kind. You are faithful. And You know what is best. Please help me
take time to adjust my attitude and be thankful. You love me, Lord, and I can trust You no matter what.
Thank You, Lord. I love You SO much. Amen.”
Give each child a GodTime card. Pass out Parent CUE cards as adults arrive to pick up.
©2014 The reThink Group, Inc. All rights reserved. • www.ThinkOrange.com
If you change the content of this document, please add to the copyright: Adapted by (your name/organization name/date).
6