13 The Israelites Escape From Egypt
Session
Exodus 11:1–12:36
Worship Theme:
God’s freedom lasts forever.
Weaving Faith Into Life:
Children will praise God for setting them free from
the bondage of sins and burdens.
Session Sequence
Let’s Praise
God!
(about 25 minutes)
Session Sequence
What Children Will Do
Sing
• “Bigger Than Big!” (track 12)
• “ The Spirit Gives Me Life” (Romans 8:10b)
(track 11)
• “Those Who Hope” (Isaiah 40:31) (track 20)
• “Praise Him” (track 6)
• “Be Thou My Vision” (track 4)
• “He Is Powerful” (track 16)
• “To God Be the Glory” (track 13)
What Children Will Do
* Freed From Egypt
Follow “Moses” out of “Egypt.”
Let’s Learn
the Point!
(about 25 minutes)
KidsOwn Worship Kit:
Songs From FaithWeaver
Classroom Supplies:
Bible, a spool of thread, scissors,
handful of bubble gum, several sheets
of red paper, glue sticks, CD player,
poster board with song lyrics from
Session 1
Supplies
Classroom Supplies:
Walking stick, bathrobe, masking tape, newsprint, marker,
1 red crayon per 3 children
Free to Be
Form a human chain and try to do a job
together.
* Disappearing Problems
Paint a picture with disappearing ink, and thank
God for taking care of their troubles.
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Supplies
KidsOwn Worship • Summer Quarter
Classroom Supplies:
Laundry bluing, water, bowl, measuring spoon and cup,
paper, 1 paintbrush per child
Session Sequence
Let’s Learn
the Point!
(about 25 minutes)
What Children Will Do
Supplies
Trapped
Walk through the experiences of the Israelites as
they were set free.
KidsOwn Worship Kit:
Finger Traps
Classroom Supplies:
Bible, large black trash bag, paper
chain from Let’s Praise God!
* “Forever and Ever”
Watch a video about how people try to set
themselves free but can’t ever seem to do it.
KidsOwn Worship Kit:
Lesson Videos DVD: “Forever
and Ever”
Classroom Supplies:
TV, DVD player
Tangled Up
Tangle themselves and try to do a job.
Session Sequence
Let’s Pray!
What Children Will Do
Supplies
The Offering
Offer their gifts to God, and thank him for setting
them free.
Classroom Supplies:
Paper chain made on arrival, offering bowl
“Bigger Than Big!”
Form a human chain to sing “Bigger Than Big!”
KidsOwn Worship Kit:
Songs From FaithWeaver: “Bigger Than
Big!” (track 12)
Classroom Supplies:
CD player
(about 10 minutes)
Pick-Me-Up Praise
Help someone stand, and praise God for setting
them free.
* Starred activities can be used successfully with preschool and elementary children together.
Customize your session to fit your needs. You can separate preschoolers and elementary children for Section 2.
Or, if you keep the children all together for the entire worship session, we suggest you choose from the starred activities.
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Bible Background for Leaders
The Israelites Escape From Egypt
Exodus 11:1–12:36
In last week’s study, we looked at the plagues that God
inflicted on Egypt to demonstrate his power. This week we
take a close look at the last plague.
One of the first things to notice is that the last plague is
the only one in which God required that his people respond
in a particular way to be safe from the plague. We don’t know
if the Israelites suffered from other plagues. We do know that
the plague that killed many of the Egyptians’ animals didn’t
kill the Israelites’ livestock (Exodus 9:1-6). We also know that
the land of Goshen, where the Israelites lived, was not hit
by the plague of hail or the plague of darkness (Exodus
9:26; 10:23). However, up to this point, the protection God
provided for the Israelites didn’t require any faith or action
on their part. They had seen the devastation of the Egyptians
compared to their own safety; they had seen God’s power at
work. It was time for them to exhibit some faith!
The act of faith required by the Israelites was the sacrifice
of an innocent lamb, whose blood was to be displayed on the
doorposts. The lamb died in place of the firstborn child. This
sacrifice became a symbol that the Israelites understood:
An innocent life had to be taken to spare them from death.
Although they didn’t understand it at the time, that sacrifice
looked forward to the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, the Lamb
of God, who shed his blood and died so that all who believe
in him might be saved from spiritual death and eternity
apart from God.
For 400 years, the people of Israel had lived in a foreign land,
and they must have been very familiar with the Egyptians’
gods. But through the plagues, God showed the Israelites
what he could and would do for them. When the time came
for them to step out in an act of faith, they were ready.
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It appeared that God had finally gotten through
to Pharaoh and the Egyptians. The hurried nighttime
departure of the Israelites was not just their attempt to
get away before Pharaoh changed his mind again. The
Egyptians wanted them to leave because they feared that
God would kill all the Egyptians if the Israelites weren’t
freed (Exodus 12:33).
At God’s direction the baking of unleavened bread
became a tradition among the Hebrew people. God wanted
them to eat unleavened bread each year at the time of the
Passover to remind them of what he had done to free them
from slavery in Egypt.
On that horrible and wonderful night, “the Lord kept vigil”
to free his people from slavery in Egypt. Isn’t it wonderful to
know that we serve a God who keeps a vigil over us, freeing
us from sin through his Son, Jesus, and protecting us from
those who would draw us away from him? What a wonderful
and mighty God we serve!
Devotion for Leaders
We are all slaves until God sets us free. Because of Jesus,
we have new life and can grow closer to him every day.
Weaving Faith Into Your Life: Reread this week’s Bible
Background on this page. More than another Bible
story, this is our story. Once we were slaves to sin and
living in darkness. Now Jesus’ blood protects us from
death and assures our eternal life. Pray: “Thank you,
Jesus, for your sacrifice, for my freedom, and for my life.”
Why We Worship for Leaders
The children of Israel desperately needed a deliverer. God sent Moses to set them
free after more than 400 years of slavery. As Christians we know that God still
wants to set his people free. We’re familiar with the frustrations and bondage that
come when we’re caught up in habits of sin, worry, or fear. God’s plan was to send
Jesus to us to set us free and to restore our lives with his forgiveness and healing
touch.
In this session kids will discover that God wants to set us free as he did the
Israelites long ago. They will identify areas of their lives where they need Jesus’
help and freedom. Use this session to lead kids in praising a God who loves them
so much that he came to set them free forever.
Easy Prep for Leaders
Let’s Praise God!—Make a paper chain with about half a dozen red links. Tape the
chain to the top of the door frame inside the worship room. Cut extra strips for
kids to use to add to the chain as they arrive. You’ll need at least one strip for each
child. Set the extra strips and glue sticks near the doorway.
“Forever and Ever”—Set up a TV and DVD player. Set the Lesson Videos DVD to
play the segment titled “Forever and Ever.” Watch the segment at least once before
the children arrive.
Preschool Activities—Refer to the preschool pages for preparations.
Let’s Praise God!
Play Songs From FaithWeaver, Summer 2015 as children arrive. Ask some children to
stand at the door and welcome everyone who comes into the room. Ask them to
smile and shake hands and say “Welcome!” Have them invite kids to make a paper
link and add it to the paper chain hung at the doorway. This will be used later
during offering time.
When everyone has arrived, begin the worship session.
ello, everyone! I’m excited to be at children’s church today
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because we’re going to worship God for setting us free! God’s
freedom lasts forever. Think with me for a moment about
freedom. There’s the kind of freedom that the slaves needed
before the Civil War—they needed to be set free from the
slave owners. There’s the kind of freedom teenagers want
when they graduate from high school and want to live on
their own. But I’m not talking about those kinds of freedoms.
I’m talking about the freedom God wants us to have on the
inside.
• What are some things we might need to be free from on the
inside? (Sins; things we’re afraid of; worries; sadness.)
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ins, worries, and fears are all things that can keep us from
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being free. They make us feel unhappy, sad, or worried. They
keep us from being able to praise God and freely receive
his love. Let me show you what I mean. I need a volunteer—
someone who thinks he or she is strong.
Have a volunteer come to the front and stand with his or her hands together.
Wrap a strand of thread around the volunteer’s wrists to handcuff them, and tie
it.
ometimes we think one little sin—let’s say telling a lie—is
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no big deal. This thread represents that one little lie. You can
probably break free of one little lie.
Have the child break the thread. Then, as you continue speaking, wind the
thread around the volunteer’s wrists 10 to 12 times.
ut then one lie leads to another. And another. And another.
B
Pretty soon you’re tangled up in a web of lies. You might still
think it’s not a big deal. But it is.
Ask the volunteer to try to break the threads.
Now you’re stuck. You can’t stop lying, and you’ve created
trouble and hurt for yourself and others. But you might think
to yourself, “Maybe if I try again, really, really hard, I can stop all
this lying.”
Have the child try to break free again.
o matter how hard you try, you can’t stop. Guess what? You
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need to be set free! And God is just the one to do it!
Cut the threads with scissors.
od forgives you when you say you’re sorry. God lets you start
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fresh. You might need to go to people and say you’re sorry.
At first that might be hard to do, but in the end it makes you
feel even freer! The same is true for worries and fears. If we
let ourselves worry all the time or be afraid, pretty soon we
can’t stop. Worries wind around and bind us just as the thread
bound [name of person]’s hands. But God can help you and set
you free. He will keep helping you every day. His freedom lasts
forever.
Our next song says that God is stronger than strong. That
means that God has the power to set us free from the things
that bind us up. Let’s stand and sing “Bigger Than Big!”
Sing ”Bigger Than Big!”
Track 12
Lyrics are in the back of this book.
Heads up everyone! Catch!
Toss a small handful of bubble gum, about five or six pieces, to kids.
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Those of you who caught the bubble gum: If you know how to
blow bubbles, unwrap the gum and start chewing. I need you
to come up to the front. You’re going to blow some really big
bubbles for us, but not until I tell you. Come up now, and get
ready. If you don’t know how to blow bubbles, find someone
close to you who can and give that person the gum.
The Israelites had it tough. They had been slaves for over 400
years, and they desperately needed God to save them. When God
sent Moses, the people followed him. But they didn’t know from
one day to the next what would happen. They had to trust God
and trust Moses. They got in many sticky situations, but God set
them free. Let’s see if our bubble blowers are ready now.
Encourage the kids with bubble gum to blow the biggest bubbles they can.
Have kids keep blowing bubbles until someone gets bubble gum stuck to his or
her face from a burst bubble. Have the child clean the bubble gum off his or her
face. Thank the bubble blowers, and have them sit down.
ALLERGY ALERT
See Session 1.
• Do you ever get bubble gum stuck to your face? What do you
do about it? (All the time, but I just wipe it off; I have to peel it off.)
ometimes our lives are like bubble gum on our faces. We get
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into sticky situations, and we can’t get ourselves free. But God
promises to set us free just as he set the Israelites free. John
8:36 says, “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”
We need to put our faith and trust in Jesus and believe that he’ll
set us free just as he said he would. Let’s stand and sing “The
Spirit Gives Me Life.”
Sing “The Spirit Gives Me Life” (Romans 8:10b).
Track 11
Lyrics are in the back of this book.
The Israelites followed Moses out of Egypt. There were times
they got scared and tired and worried. But they obeyed God
and Moses. When we get tired and worried, God wants to
encourage us and help us. Our next song tells what happens
when we hope in the Lord. Let’s sing “Those Who Hope.”
Sing “Those Who Hope” (Isaiah 40:31).
For additional
worship songs
each week, check
out the Sing
& Praise DVD
included with your KidsOwn
Worship kit!
Track 20
Lyrics are in the back of this book.
When God freed the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, he led
them through the desert until they reached the Promised Land.
God promises to lead us, too. Let’s praise him for that.
Sing “Praise Him.”
Track 6
Lyrics are in the back of this book.
Show the lyrics to the hymn “Be Thou My Vision” that you used in Session 1.
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Our next song is a hymn written a long time ago. Some of the
words are ones we don’t use anymore in everyday English. The
words thou and thy are often used in hymns. What do those
words mean? (Pause.)
The phrase “Be thou my vision, oh Lord of my heart” means that
we want God to be what we dream and think about. Naught
means nothing.
The next line is “Naught be all else to me save that thou art.”
That’s a tough sentence to figure out. It means “nothing
is important to me except God” or “nothing is important
compared to God.” When we discover God’s love and realize that
his freedom lasts forever, we realize nothing is as important as
God. Let’s sing the hymn together now and worship God.
Sing “Be Thou My Vision.”
Track 4
Lyrics are also in the back of this book.
Our next song is “He Is Powerful.” Listen while I read the lyrics,
and be ready to tell us some ways that God used his power to
help his people.
Read the lyrics of “He Is Powerful.” Then give children time to respond. Be
ready to help them discover how God faithfully helped his people.
God is always faithful. He never changes. He wanted to set
his people free long ago, and he wants to set you and me free
today. When we did the thread demonstration, we saw how
sin and worry and fear can bind us and make us like prisoners.
Close your eyes for a moment, and let’s get quiet.
Think of something in your life that you need God to free you
from. Maybe it’s lying, the example we used in the thread
demonstration. Maybe you constantly worry about a certain
situation. Maybe you’re always afraid. God wants to come and
help you.
Pause a few moments to let children think.
Open your eyes now, and let’s sing “He Is Powerful.” As we sing,
give your situation to the Lord. Ask him to set you free. Worship
him because his freedom lasts forever.
Sing “He Is Powerful.”
Track 16
Lyrics are in the back of this book.
When God sets us free, we often feel joyful and happy. It makes
us love him and want to worship him. Let’s lift our hearts to God
now and praise him for giving us freedom that lasts forever. If
you want, lift your hands in the air as we give God glory.
Sing “To God Be the Glory.”
Lyrics are in the back of this book.
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Track 13
od, we thank you so much that you sent Jesus to set us free.
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We give you our lives today and ask you to work in us. We want
your freedom, God. We love you and thank you because your
freedom lasts forever. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Let’s Learn the Point!
Preschool Activities, pages 181-182
At this time, have the preschool leader invite the preschoolers to go to
their own room for this section of activities. Tear out the Preschool Activities
page, and give it to the preschool leader. Have the preschool leader bring the
preschoolers back to participate in Let’s Pray! with the older children. If you
prefer to keep all the children together, do the starred (*) activities. They will
work well with both elementary and preschool children.
Elementary Activities
Trapped
Have kids form six groups.
Give each group a Finger Trap from the KidsOwn Worship Kit. Have kids in
each group experiment with the trap. Tell them to put their fingers in the tube
and try to pull them out. Have children find ways to free themselves from the
trap.
• How did you feel when you couldn’t get your fingers out of the
Finger Trap? (I was worried I wouldn’t be able to get them out; it
felt weird; I knew I’d figure it out eventually.)
• How did you feel when one person knew how but you didn’t? (I
thought I should have known; I was glad someone told me how.)
• What’s the secret of getting out of the Finger Trap? (Pushing in;
twisting your fingers.)
When you pull straight out, the design of the trap causes it to
lock all the harder around your fingers. To get out you have
to do something unexpected. You have to push your fingers
together and twist your fingers in the opposite direction to
make it loosen up.
• How are our sins, worries, and fears like the Finger Trap?
(There’s only one way to get out of them; the more we try to pull
ourselves out, the harder it gets.)
• What’s the secret to getting out of life’s traps? (Trusting God;
having a relationship with Jesus.)
• What kind of freedom does God give us? (Freedom from sins;
freedom to love him; God gives us a way to deal with problems.)
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Our problems—our sins, fears, and worries—are like traps. They
seem to choke us. The harder we try to get away from them,
the more difficult it is to get free. We think it should be easy,
just like getting out of the finger trap seemed so easy, and we
think we can do it on our own. But often we can’t. The secret to
getting free inside is something that some people don’t expect.
The secret is this: We can’t do it ourselves. We need God’s help
and forgiveness. Then he sets us free.
Gather kids near the doorway with the red chain attached to the door frame.
Long ago, God’s people, the Israelites, were trapped in Egypt
by Pharaoh, the wicked ruler. He made them work as slaves for
more than 400 years. God’s people cried out for help, and God
finally answered them!
God sent Moses to set his people free. He sent nine plagues
upon the Egyptians, but Pharaoh still refused to let the people
go. The 10th and final plague was a horrible one. God said
the firstborn son of every family that did not obey him would
die. Pharaoh and most of the Egyptians didn’t believe Moses’
message. Let’s pretend you’re the Egyptian families now and
show us how they might have looked. (Pause.)
God had a plan to protect his people and anyone who believed
him. He told Moses to have each family kill a perfect lamb and
put some of the blood on the top and on both sides of the door
frame of their house. The plague would pass over every house
that had blood on it, and those houses would not be harmed.
• Why do you think God told them to use the blood of a lamb?
(Because it was perfect; it would die in place of the firstborn child.)
The lamb, which was innocent, died so they could be protected
and saved. This was a symbol of what was to come—the true
Lamb of God, Jesus, who died on a cross to free us from our sins.
When you arrived today, you added to the red chain on the
doorway. That chain will represent the blood of the lamb. We’re
going to pretend we’re an Israelite family. Hold up the large black
trash bag. This piece of black plastic represents the last plague. I’m
going to pass it over each of you. As this plague passes over you, I
want you to say out loud, “God protects me and frees me!”
As you move around the room, quickly wave the black plastic just over each
person’s head. Then put it away, out of kids’ reach.
Spread out around the room now. Choose a spot to stand in by
yourself.
Wait while children find a spot.
Close your eyes. Think about the Israelites. Think about how
they were slaves and prisoners for more than 400 years. How
did they feel waiting that long? (Pause.)
(continued on page 183)
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Preschool Activities
The Israelites Escape From Egypt
Worship Theme:
13
Session
Exodus 11:1–12:36
God’s freedom lasts forever.
Easy Prep for Leaders
Freed From Egypt
• Use tape to mark a circle on the floor adjacent to a wall. Make the circle
large enough for kids to sit on the floor in distinct groups of three or
four.
• You’ll need a walking stick and a bathrobe for Moses’ costume.
• Draw a doorway on newsprint, and tape it to the wall next to the circle.
Using Theo
Consider using Theophilus the FaithRetriever puppet
today in these ways:
• Have Theo lead the preschoolers from the
main worship area to the
preschool room.
• Have Theo join a family
in “Freed From Egypt.”
• See the KidsOwn
Worship Kit for a puppet
skit written for today’s
worship session.
Disappearing Problems
• Mix 1/8 teaspoon laundry bluing with one cup of water, and pour
the mixture into a shallow bowl or pie tin. Bluing can be found in the
laundry section of most grocery stores.
• You’ll also need small paintbrushes or cotton-tipped swabs (one per
child) and white paper.
* Freed From Egypt
Help children form groups of three or four, and have them sit on the
floor.
Let’s pretend your group is an Israelite family.
Can you count how many people are in your
family? (Pause.) Good job! That’s a nice size
family.
Remember, the Israelites were slaves and
prisoners of the wicked Pharaoh for a long,
long time. Everybody get inside the circle now
and pretend you’re in Egypt.
Choose someone to be Moses, and have him or her stand
outside the circle holding the walking stick and wearing the robe.
The Israelites—that’s all of you families—were
slaves to Pharaoh. They had to work very, very
hard making bricks for Pharaoh’s buildings.
Show me how you would make bricks. (Pause.)
Mean old Pharaoh says, “Work harder!
Everyone! Work harder now!” (Pause.) The
people became so tired, many were sick, and
everyone was sad. Show me how you would
look if you were sick and sad and tired. (Pause.)
Oh, so sad! You need help!
The people prayed that God would set them
free. Have children kneel and pretend to pray.
So God told Moses to tell Pharaoh to let his
people go. Have Moses say to you, “Let my people
go!” But Pharaoh wouldn’t listen. So God did
some miracles to try to change Pharaoh’s mind.
He sent bad things, called plagues, to Pharaoh
and the Egyptians. But God kept the Israelites
free from the plagues.
God sent little flying bugs and flies to bother
the people of Egypt. Have children pretend to
swat flies. He sent flying grasshoppers to eat
their food. Have children pretend to brush away
bugs near them.
God sent a bad storm that rained hail on the
people. Have children cover their heads. And
God even made it nighttime during the day.
Turn off the lights for a moment and then turn
them back on.
But Pharaoh would not believe. So God sent
one last plague on Egypt. God told his people
that if they would put a red mark on the
doorway of their house, then no one inside
would be hurt.
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Preschool Activities
* Freed From Egypt (continued)
Give one child in each “family” a red crayon. Have the “family” walk
to the newsprint doorway, and have the child with the crayon put a
mark on it.
Pharaoh and the Egyptians could choose to be
protected, too, but they didn’t believe Moses.
When the last plague came, God protected all
the Israelite people because they put a mark on
their doors. Then Pharaoh finally let them go.
Instruct Moses to leave and to lead the children around
the room, winding around tables and chairs, then back to the
masking-tape circle.
Free to Be
Have children form a straight line and link arms with one another.
Wow!
You look like one long human chain! Keep
your arms linked now. Listen to my directions,
and then do what I say without letting go of each
other’s arms. Remember: Don’t let go!
Instruct children to walk to the other end of the room. On their
way across the room, have them stop and turn around without
letting go of one another’s arms. Have them do this several times.
Good
job trying, everyone! Now let go of one
another’s arms. This time walk by yourself to the
other side of the room, and then come back.
Wait while children follow your instructions. Then have them
sit down around you.
• How did it feel to do something while you
were chained to the others?
• How did it feel when you could move all by
yourself?
• How do you feel when you do bad things?
Sometimes we feel sad or mad when we do bad
things. Sometimes we feel scared and we worry.
We get all tied up on the inside, the way we were
when we were chained together, arm-in-arm.
Then it’s hard to do what we’re supposed to do.
* Disappearing Problems
We just told one another about things that we
worry about and that scare us. Those things
are “problems.” When Jesus helps us, he makes
our problems disappear. I have some special
paint today that will help us remember this. It
disappears when it dries, and Jesus makes our
problems disappear when we trust him!
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You’ve been on a long journey! Let’s sit down
and take a rest.
• How did God set the Israelites free?
• Why do you think God set them free?
• How does God set us free?
God set his people free by sending Moses to tell
Pharaoh to let them go. He did it because he
loved the people so much. God sets us free, too.
He wants to take care of our worries and fears
and help us do right things. God’s freedom lasts
forever!
• What are
some
things
you worry
about?
• What are
some
things
you’re
afraid of?
Preschool
Leader Tip
If your class is large, have
children form small groups
of six to eight.
When you
worry or are afraid, it makes things harder, just
like it was harder to move when you were linked
to everyone else. You could move better and
faster when you were free to move by yourself.
God doesn’t want you to worry or be afraid.
If you ask God to help you, he’ll come and be
with you so you won’t be afraid or worried. And
when you do bad things, he’ll forgive you.
That’s so exciting it makes me want to jump
up and down! Let’s do that together. When we
jump up and down, let’s shout, “God’s freedom
lasts forever!”
Encourage children to shout, “God’s freedom lasts forever,” as
they jump up and down.
While we paint designs on our papers, let’s
take turns thanking God for taking care of our
troubles. He forgives us when we do wrong, and
he helps us when we’re afraid or worried. We
can thank him for his freedom that lasts forever.
As children paint with the laundry bluing, encourage each
child to say a simple prayer to thank God for his help and freedom.
Lay the paintings aside. Have the children take them home.
(continued from page 180)
Then God sent Moses to convince Pharaoh to let them go
free. Imagine how they felt when the first nine plagues didn’t
convince Pharaoh. Were they scared? frustrated? (Pause.)
Now imagine the Israelites as the last plague passes over their
homes, destroying the Egyptian families. How did the Israelites
feel as the plague passed over them? Answer that to yourself.
(Pause.)
Imagine the Israelites as Moses comes to them and tells them to
follow him out of Egypt. Put yourself in their position. Someone
just told you that you were free after all that time in bondage.
No more Pharaoh, no more slavery, no more unfair work. How
do you think they felt? Answer that to yourself. (Pause.)
God wants to help you in your life in a similar way. He sent Jesus
to set you free, too. Think of an area of your life where you need
God’s freedom. What kind of a trap are you in? A trap of lying?
cheating? Are you a slave to talking back to your parents, and
no matter how hard you try you can’t seem to stop? Are you in a
trap of worry? About your family? your future? Are you afraid of
something? everything? Take the first thing that comes to your
mind. If you don’t feel like you’re in a trap, think of someone
you know who is. (Pause.) Now talk to God, and ask him to set
you (or the person you’re thinking of) free in that area.
Give children a few moments to talk to God.
J ohn 8:36 says, “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free
indeed.” I’m going to go up to one of you, tap you on the
shoulder, and say, “The Son sets you free indeed.” When you get
tapped, go to someone else, tap that person, and say, “The Son
sets you free indeed.” Let’s do that until everyone is set free.
* “Forever and Ever”
Show the DVD segment titled “Forever and Ever.” It explores how a perpetual-motion
machine works. The video will explain how people have tried for years to create a
machine that would last forever, but no one can really make a perpetual motion
machine. Only God can make things that truly last forever. The video will explain how
people try to set themselves free rather than depend on God for freedom.
• How does the perpetual motion machine work? (It keeps
moving; once it’s started, it doesn’t ever have to be restarted.)
• Why doesn’t a perpetual motion machine work perfectly?
(Nothing goes on forever; other things make it stop working.)
• How is working to create a perfect machine like trying to
free ourselves from sin? (It doesn’t work; we’ll fail every time;
it’s impossible to free ourselves from sin just as it’s impossible to
create a perfect machine.)
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• Why do we need God to set us free? (God is the only one who’s
perfect; God is powerful enough to set us free from anything.)
• Why does God’s freedom last forever? (Because God lasts
forever; God wants to be with us in heaven forever.)
here are some things no human being will ever be strong
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enough to do. One of those things is to have power over sin and
to set people free. Only Jesus is strong enough to do that. That’s
why we need him to set us free. God’s freedom lasts forever.
Tangled Up
Have kids form groups of at least four. Have children in each group “knot” and twist
themselves together so that each person is connected to the others in some way.
Challenge them to get as tangled as possible. Suggest joining hands, wrapping an
arm around a head, grabbing someone’s shoulder, and then stepping a leg over
someone’s arms, and so on.
When everyone is twisted up, give each group a “job” to do. For example, ask two
groups to trade places, or ask a group to move across the room to turn on or off the
lights or open or close the door. Make sure kids don’t disentangle while they do their
job. When everyone has had a chance to do a job while tangled up, continue.
Good job, everyone! Untangle yourselves now, and form one big
circle. Turn a quarter-turn to your right so that you’re standing
behind one another, but still in a circle. Good job! Let’s all sit
down…now scratch the back of the person in front of you!
Scratch backs for a few minutes; then have everyone turn toward the center
of the circle.
• How did it feel to do a job when you’re all tangled up together
compared to doing a job when you could move on your own?
(It was harder when I was tangled up; I needed the freedom to
move around.)
It’s difficult to do a job when you’re all “bound up.” Life is like
that sometimes—it’s hard to do what we’re supposed to do
when we’re bound up in fears and worries and sins. John 8:36
says, “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”
• What does it mean for God to set us free? (He helps us not worry
about things; he takes our sins away; he sent Jesus to take the
punishment for our sins for us.)
• What do our lives look like when we’re free? (We worship God
for setting us free; people can tell that we’re following Jesus; we’re
more joyful when we’re free.)
As Christians, we live lives free from the punishment and the
bondage of sin. And we know that God’s freedom lasts forever!
Let’s give God our offerings of thanksgiving for setting us free.
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Let’s Pray!
The Offering
Remove the paper chain from the doorway. Place it on a table with the offering
bowl.
We’ve been talking today about giving our sins, worries, and
fears to God so that he can set us free. The chain we made
represents the things that bind us or keep us locked up inside.
Each link represents a sin, fear, or worry we’re giving to God. As
each of you comes up to the table, tear one of the links off the
chain and put it in the offering bowl along with your offering if
you brought one. As you do that, give your troubles to the Lord.
Then thank God for setting you free as you return to your seat.
Have the children walk to the front to give their offerings.
“Bigger Than Big!”
Have kids link arms, forming a human chain across the room.
et’s sing “Bigger Than Big!” Keep your arms linked until we
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get to the words, “I can’t imagine just how big you are!” When
we sing those words, raise your hands in the air. When we sing
“Your love is bigger than it all,” shake your hands in the air, and
then link your arms again.
Sing “Bigger Than Big!”
Track 12
Lyrics are at the back of the book.
Pick-Me-Up Praise
Have the children sit down.
e’ve had opportunities today to talk to God about the things
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that “bind us” and keep us prisoners. We’ve asked him to set us
free. Let’s take time now to thank him for the freedom he gives
us. Let’s praise him in a way that’s sure to pick us up and put
us on your feet! First, take a moment to silently thank God for
taking care of the things you gave him today.
Give children a few moments to pray silently.
et’s praise God now because he truly sets us free. That’s sure to
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pick you up even if you’re having a down day!
Take a child’s hand and pull the child to his or her feet.
ou are free indeed! Now you pull someone up and say the
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same thing. Whoever you help up will pull someone else up and
say, “You are free indeed.” Continue until all of us are standing.
Let’s praise God for his freedom!
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od, we praise you for sending Jesus to set us free! We love you
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and want to walk with you forever. Lead us in your way, step
by step, God. Help us to ask you for help as soon as we need it.
Thank you for your freedom that lasts forever. In Jesus’ name,
amen.
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