The Unmerciful Servant - Christ Community Church



September 10, 2017

Bible Story Focus: When God is with me, I can be strong.

Esther • Esther 2:2–8:17

Memory Verse: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid . . . for the Lord your God goes with you.” Deuteronomy 31:6, NIV

Key Question: Who is always with you?

Bottom Line: God is always with me.

Basic Truth: God loves me.

SOCIAL: Providing Time for Fun Interaction

(Choose one or both of these activities)

1. Crown Match

Made to Play: An activity that encourages preschoolers to follow guidelines while having fun and learning new concepts

2. Dinner

Made to Imagine: An activity that lets preschoolers pretend, imagine, and role play to enhance their learning

STORY: Communicating God’s Truth in Engaging Ways

Engage kids’ hearts through a dynamic and interactive Bible story and prayer experience.

GROUPS: Creating a Safe Place to Connect

(Choose as many of these activities as you like)

1. Crown Verse

Hear from God | Memory Verse Review

Made to Imagine: An activity that lets preschoolers pretend, imagine, and role play to enhance their learning

2. Crown Toss

Live for God | Application Activity

Made to Move: An activity that uses a preschooler’s natural desire to move to help them learn

3. Strong Cuffs

Live for God | Application Activity

Made to Create: An activity that allows preschoolers to review the Bible story, Bottom Line, or memory verse by creating a craft to take home

September 10, 2017

Bible Story Focus: When God is with me, I can be strong.

Esther • Esther 2:2–8:17

Memory Verse: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid . . . for the Lord your God goes with you.” Deuteronomy 31:6, NIV

Key Question: Who is always with you?

Bottom Line: God is always with me.

Basic Truth: God loves me.

Social: Providing Time for Fun Interaction (Small Groups, 15 minutes)

Activities that encourage preschoolers to enter the classroom and begin engaging with peers and Small Group Leaders by providing age appropriate and hands on fun while introducing new concepts they will hear in the day’s Bible story.

Prepare to offer one or more of the following activities as your 2-year-olds arrive. Let one or two teachers lead small groups of children in activities throughout the room while another teacher greets parents and kids at the door. At this age not all children will participate, but most will want to be part of the fun.

1. Crown Match

Made to Play: An activity that encourages preschoolers to follow guidelines while having fun and learning new concepts

What You Need: “Crown Match” Activity Pages, white cardstock, scissors, and wall tape

What You Do:

Before the Activity: Copy the “Crown Match” Activity Pages onto the cardstock. Cut along the dotted lines. You should have two of each crown. Hang one of each pair of crowns on the wall and place the others on the floor or table.

During the Activity: Point to a crown on the wall and ask the children to look at the crowns on the floor or table and find the matching crown. When the children find the match, hang it on the wall with its match. Repeat with the remaining three crowns.

What You Say:

Before the Activity: “Let’s play a game!”

During the Activity: “There are crowns on the wall. (Point to one crown.) Look at this one. Now look at the crowns on the floor. (Point to crowns on the floor.) Do you see one on the floor that looks EXACTLY like this one? (Pause.) YES! Great job! You made a match! (Hang the matching crowns on the wall.) Let’s try another one!” (Continue with activity.)

After the Activity: “Great job matching the crowns! Crowns are what kings and queens wear. I bet there will be a king and queen in our Bible story today! Let’s see!”

Transition: Move to Bible story time by pretending to hold a crown on your head. Say, “Crowns are so pretty! Kings and queens wear crowns. Today in our story we are going to hear about someone who wears a crown! Let’s walk to Large Group while pretending to hold a crown on our head like this.” (Demonstrate by using your hands to make a triangle shape and hold it above your head.)

2 Story: Communicating God’s Truth in Engaging Ways

Engage kids’ hearts through a dynamic and interactive Bible story and prayer experience.

What You Need: Bible, “Esther” Activity Page, and white cardstock (Optional: Crayons)

What You Do:

Before the Story: Make one copy of “Esther” on a white piece of cardstock. If you print in black and white, color the picture before the story.

LEADER: (Sit down in a circle with the Bible.) “Come sit with me! I want to tell you a true story from the Bible. (Hold up Bible.) Touch your ears if you’re ready to listen. (Pause and touch your ears.) My ears are ready! Are your ears ready? Here we go!”

(Hold up “Esther” picture. Encourage the children to do the motions with you.)

“This is a story

about Esther the Strong. (hold up both arms in a strong muscle pose)

She loved her family (hug yourself)

all day long.

“Her love was stronger

than fear that day, (stand up, walk in place, sit down)

when she walked right in

to the king to say . . .

“‘My people are in trouble!

Please do what you can!’ (put hands together in a begging pose)

Then the king saved Esther’s family

with his helping hands. (clap hands)

“It was Esther’s love for God (hug yourself)

that made her SUPER strong. (hold up both arms in a strong muscle pose)

Had she not talked to the king,

her family would be gone!

“God was with Esther.

God is with you too! (point to the children)

You can be SUPER strong

because GOD LOVES YOU!” (give yourself a hug)

LEADER: “Who loves you?”

CHILDREN and LEADER: [Basic Truth] “God loves me!”

LEADER: “And who is always with you?”

CHILDREN and LEADER: [Bottom Line] “God is always with me!”

LEADER: “Yes! God is always with you, because God loves you! Let’s talk to God and ask Him to help us be SUPER strong like Esther. Put your hands together like this (demonstrate) and close your eyes while I pray.”

Prayer

LEADER: “Dear God, thank You for loving (name each child). I pray they will grow up believing that You are always with them. I pray they will love You with all their hearts and that Your love will help them be SUPER strong. We love You, God. In Jesus’ name, amen.”

. Dinner

Made to Imagine: An activity that lets preschoolers pretend, imagine, and role play to enhance their learning

What You Need: Play food, play dishes, child-sized table, and play kitchen

What You Do:

Before the Activity: Place all of the supplies in the activity area.

During the Activity: Encourage the children to work together and pretend to make a meal. Encourage the children to serve the meal to each other on the table.

What You Say:

Before the Activity: “I am hungry! Let’s work together and make a meal!”

During the Activity: “We have lots of food for you to cook. When it is all done, you can put it on the plates and serve it at the table for everyone to enjoy!” (Do activity.)

After the Activity: “YUM! You are great cooks! You made a wonderful meal. In our Bible story today, there is a dinner where something really important happens. I cannot wait for you to hear it!”

Transition: Play the “Pick It Up” song as the children clean up the play food and dishes. Say, “Oh, I hear the ‘Pick It Up’ song! Let’s pick up our play food so we can head to Large Group!”

Story: Communicating God’s Truth in Engaging Ways

Engage kids’ hearts through a dynamic and interactive Bible story and prayer experience.

What You Need: Bible, “Esther” Activity Page, and white cardstock (Optional: Crayons)

What You Do:

Before the Story: Make one copy of “Esther” on a white piece of cardstock. If you print in black and white, color the picture before the story.

LEADER: (Sit down in a circle with the Bible.) “Come sit with me! I want to tell you a true story from the Bible. (Hold up Bible.) Touch your ears if you’re ready to listen. (Pause and touch your ears.) My ears are ready! Are your ears ready? Here we go!”

(Hold up “Esther” picture. Encourage the children to do the motions with you.)

“This is a story

about Esther the Strong. (hold up both arms in a strong muscle pose)

She loved her family (hug yourself)

all day long.

“Her love was stronger

than fear that day, (stand up, walk in place, sit down)

when she walked right in

to the king to say . . .

“‘My people are in trouble!

Please do what you can!’ (put hands together in a begging pose)

Then the king saved Esther’s family

with his helping hands. (clap hands)

“It was Esther’s love for God (hug yourself)

that made her SUPER strong. (hold up both arms in a strong muscle pose)

Had she not talked to the king,

her family would be gone!

“God was with Esther.

God is with you too! (point to the children)

You can be SUPER strong

because GOD LOVES YOU!” (give yourself a hug)

LEADER: “Who loves you?”

CHILDREN and LEADER: [Basic Truth] “God loves me!”

LEADER: “And who is always with you?”

CHILDREN and LEADER: [Bottom Line] “God is always with me!”

LEADER: “Yes! God is always with you, because God loves you! Let’s talk to God and ask Him to help us be SUPER strong like Esther. Put your hands together like this (demonstrate) and close your eyes while I pray.”

Prayer

LEADER: “Dear God, thank You for loving (name each child). I pray they will grow up believing that You are always with them. I pray they will love You with all their hearts and that Your love will help them be SUPER strong. We love You, God. In Jesus’ name, amen.”

Groups: Creating a Safe Place to Connect (Small Groups, 25 minutes)

Create a safe place to connect through activities that are written to reach every learning style while reinforcing the Bottom Line that was introduced during the Bible Story and applying it to real life experiences. In addition, these activities provide preschoolers with an opportunity to build relationships with their Small Group Leader.

Prepare to offer one or more of the following activities after the Bible Story. Let one or two teachers lead small groups of children in activities throughout the room. At this age not all children will participate, but most will want to be part of the fun.

1. Crown Verse

Hear from God | Memory Verse Review

Made to Imagine: An activity that lets preschoolers pretend, imagine, and role play to enhance their learning

What You Need: A crown for each child (Note: These can be toy crowns, crowns from fast food restaurants, or homemade crowns. If you are choosing to make your own crowns, you can use bulletin board border, cardboard, or cardstock.)

What You Do:

Before the Activity: Give each child a crown to wear.

During the Activity: Say the memory verse several times while the children are wearing their crowns.

After the Activity: Have the children take off their crowns and put them in a safe place.

What You Say:

Before the Activity: “We talked about Esther today. She was a QUEEN!”

During the Activity: “Let’s pretend that we are Queen Esther and wear a crown. (Put on crowns.) Perfect! Now let’s say our memory verse together. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid . . . for the Lord your God goes with you, Deuteronomy 31:6. Great job!” (Repeat several times.)

After the Activity: “You all did an awesome job acting like Esther. Our memory verse tells us that we can be strong like Esther, because God is always with us! Who is always with you? [Bottom Line] God is always with me.”

2. Crown Toss

Live for God | Application Activity

Made to Move: An activity that uses a preschooler’s natural desire to move to help them learn

What You Need: “Crown Toss” Activity Page, purple cardstock, floor tape, scissors, and 3 beanbags

What You Do:

Before the Activity: Copy the “Crown Toss” Activity Page onto the purple cardstock. Cut along the dotted lines. Tape the crown to the floor in the activity area.

During the Activity: Have the children stand about five feet in front of the crown and try to throw the beanbags onto the crown. Give each child three tries. Be sure each child has a turn to toss the beanbags.

What You Say:

Before the Activity: “Look! There is a crown on the floor.” (Point.)

During the Activity: “Let’s see if we can toss these beanbags (hold up) onto the crown.” (Do activity.)

After the Activity: “Great job tossing the beanbags onto the crown! In our Bible story today, Esther wore a crown, because she was the queen. She was strong because she knew that God was always with her. God is always with us too! Who is always with you? [Bottom Line] God is always with me.”

3. Strong Cuffs

Live for God | Application Activity

Made to Create: An activity that allows preschoolers to review the Bible story, Bottom Line, or memory verse by creating a craft to take home

What You Need: “Cuff Label” Activity Page, Avery® #5160 labels or equivalent, empty toilet paper tubes, scissors, and stickers

What You Do:

Before the Activity: Copy the “Cuff Label” Activity Page onto the labels. Set aside. Cut the tubes horizontally into four equal pieces. Make a cut in each piece so that is no longer a complete ring. It should look like a cuff that slips over a child’s wrist. Each child will need two cuffs.

During the Activity: Give each child two cuffs and one label. Help the children place the label onto one of the cuffs. Allow the children place stickers on both of the cuffs.

What You Say:

Before the Activity: “You are all SUPER KIDS!”

During the Activity: “Last week we made capes, so this week we are going to make cuffs to wear to show that we are STRONG!” (Do activity.)

After Activity: “SUPER! I love your cuffs! Now you can go home and put on your cuffs AND your capes to show your families that you are SUPER KIDS! We can all be SUPER just like Esther, because God is always with us! Who is always with you? [Bottom Line] God is always with me.”

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