March Forward Without Fear

March Forward Without Fear BIBLE STORY Not Afraid Numbers 13:1 14:42 BIBLE TRUTH We do not have to be afraid to do what God wants us to do. This lesson will help early elementary children... Understand why Joshua and Caleb believed that Israel could defeat the Canaanites Remember what it means to trust and obey God Believe that God will give them courage to do whatever He asks them to do. VERSE-A-MONTH The Lord your God will be with you wherever you go (Joshua 1:9). LESSON HELPS HELPING HAND Tips for teachers. DIGGING DEEPER Important biblical and theological insights. 1 Reflect on the Word Read Numbers 13:1 14:42. It was in response to the Israelites request that God sent spies into the land of Canaan to see what it was like. God was very specific as to what they were to look for and what they were to bring back with them to show all the people. Twelve men, representing each of the 12 tribes, went as directed. All 12 saw the same thing. They even brought back proof of the bounty of the land, yet only 2 gave a positive report. The other 10 complained in fear about stepping forth with God s Apprehension, fear, and anxiety cannot sustain themselves in His presence. Fear always creates distance and divisions. But in the presence of God fear melts away. Compassion, by Nouwen, McNeill, and Morrison. Week 1 of 5 promise. How often are we, as Christians, like these 10 men? God calls us to a task, gives us the promise of His presence and blessing, and tells us to go forth and conquer in His name. Or we seek His will about a situation, and pray that He will direct us and lead us in the right path. He responds to our request and tells us to step out in faith. Sometimes when we take that step there are difficult people, situations, or uncertainties that still linger. Fear sets in that perhaps we misunderstood the Lord s direction or that we are not up to the task and might fail. The obstacles seem too large and we don t know what to do. Are we a Caleb or a grumbler? Are we overcome by the negatives and fear of the unknown to the point of surrender? Do we let our fears hold us back from fulfilling what God wants us to do? Or do we like Caleb, in spite of the challenges ahead, take God at His word and press forward to accomplish His will? Caleb told the people If the Lord is pleased with us, He will lead us... Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid... the Lord is with us (Numbers 14:8-9). Caleb s words are as relevant for the 21st century as they were then. God doesn t change. When He promises to be with His people, calls them and reveals His will, they can step forth to accomplish His will without fear. He is with them! Our God is up to the task. His promises are sure and we are more than victorious when we allow Him to fill us with His Spirit for the mission He has for us to do. Go in confidence into the future and service He has called you to do. Foundational words of the faith. OLD TESTAMENT Before Jesus Was Born H YOU ARE E E R The Creation Noah & The Ark Abraham & Sarah Exodus 10 Commandments Deborah & Barak Samuel Anoints David David and Goliath Elijah Fed by Ravens Jeremiah & Baruch 6

LESSON PLANNER Choose from these activities to support the Bible story. See Hear & Say Sing Do Solve Read & Write Attention Getters Bible Explorations Connections To Life Verse-a-Month Club Letters of Courage Resources, Item 2 Spy Scavenger Hunt Resources, Item 1 Optional Activity: All Wrapped Up Bible Story Bible Story Review Optional Activity: We Don t Have to be Afraid Resources, Item 1 What Are You Afraid Of? Connections, Sheet 1 Afraid? Of What? Connections, Sheet 1b Closing and Prayer Adventures; Parent Connections; Connections, Sheet 15 Optional Activity: Hammer Whammer PRE-SESSION POPPERS Spoon Puppets Before class, Gather supplies. You may not need a shoe box for each child. Children can share. In class, Invite children who arrive early to take a spoon and make a puppet. They can make faces with the eyes and paint and/or markers. The chenille wire can be used to make arms and curly hair straight hair can be made with the yarn. Use the fabric and ribbon to make clothes. Create a mini puppet stage out of the shoe box. Cut a large opening in the bottom of the shoe box. Glue the lid to the side of the shoe box lengthwise to create a base. Glue the edge Shoe box with a lid Glue Paper Chenille wires Plastic spoons Permanent markers or acrylic paint Colored felt pieces or fabric Narrow ribbon or string Googly eyes Yarn of the paper to the inside of the box to create a stage curtain. Encourage students to use the shoe box stage and spoon puppets to re-enact favorite Bible stories with each other. NOTES NEW TESTAMENT When Jesus Was On Earth After Jesus Went Back To Heaven Birth of Jesus Jesus As A Child Jesus Baptism Jesus Calms the Storm Jesus Raising Lazarus Mary Anointing Jesus Cross, Tomb & Ascension Disciples Praying Philip & the Ethiopian Mission Work 7

Attention Getters Use these activities to help focus the children s attention and prepare them to learn today s Bible Truth. Resources, Item 1 (use the title, honeycomb, and milk) Bulletin board paper and border Stapler and staples Plastic grasshopper or bug Plastic grapes (or real in bag) and fig Planting soil (small amount in a Ziploc bag) Lego building block Torn cloth Magnifying glass Gift bag White board Dry marker and eraser Laminator or clear Con-Tact paper Lesson 1 O ption Verse-a-Month Club Letters of Courage Before class, Punch out the Verse-a-Month Club letters. Laminate or cover with clear Con-Tact paper for added durability. Add magnetic tape to the back of each one. Set up the magnetic board. Mix up and add the letters to the magnetic board. In class, Have the children gather in a circle on the floor around the magnetic board. Ask, Does anyone know what word is on the magnetic board? Let s take turns changing the letters around and see if we can figure out the word. Let the children take turns moving letters around. Encourage everyone to get involved in the guessing process. The word is courage. After you have the letters in order, say, All our stories in this unit have to do with courage. Let s say the Verse-a-Month Club Bible verse together. Say the verse two or three times. TRANSITION: Say, God promises to be with us wherever we go. And, God will give us courage to do what He asks us to do. God s people, the Israelites, did not have much courage even though God promised to be with them. Let s see what happens. Spy Scavenger Hunt Before class, Punch out the bulletin board pieces from Resources, Item 1. Cover the bulletin board with paper and add the border. Put the title strip, God s Fearless Followers, on the board. Use the diagram on the Resources sheet as an example. Hide the nine items around the room: the milk (picture from Resources, Item 1), the honeycomb (picture from Resources, Item 1), grasshopper or bug, fig, grapes, soil, Lego, torn cloth, and magnifying glass. Make a list on the white board of the hidden items. Check off each item as it is found. You will use these items in the optional telling of the Bible story. In class, Read the list of items to the children. Say, These six items are hidden in our classroom. Let s work together to find all six. After all the items have been found gather everyone around the bulletin board. Add the milk and honeycomb to the bulletin board. Place the other items in the gift bag for telling the optional Bible story. TRANSITION: Say, All of the items you found today are related to the Bible story. In this story 12 spies go into a foreign land. Let s find out what each of these items has to do with their adventure. All Wrapped Up Before class, Wrap up any-sized empty box in the wrapping paper. In class, Show children the gift. Ask, What is this? Have you ever been given a present before? What was your favorite present ever? (Let children share.) Ask, Have you ever been scared of a present? Does this present look scary? Would you be afraid to open it? (Let children respond.) Resources, Item 2 Magnetic board Magnetic tape Laminator or clear Con-Tact paper Box Wrapping paper and bow Tape TRANSITION: Say, God gave the Israelites a gift, but they were too afraid to accept it. Let s find out what it was and why they were so afraid. 8

Bible Story Before class, Gather supplies. Set out enough paper plates and cups for each child. Put grapes on each plate and a cracker spread with honey. Pour a little milk in each cup, water for those allergic to milk. In class, Gather the children for the Bible story. Give each child a snack. Say, The grapes, milk, and honey are all part of our story today. Listen for these things to be mentioned in the Bible story. When they are mentioned you can eat or drink what you have. Grapes (edible) Small paper plates and cups Crackers Honey Wet wipes Plastic knives Milk and water Use these activities to help the children learn from the Bible story. Not Afraid Numbers 13:1 14:42 God told Mosses to send some men to explore Canaan, the land He had promised to the Israelites. He sent one leader from each of the 12 tribes of Israel. These men were to find out everything they could about the land (soil) and the people who lived there. He told them to bring back some fruit from the land. After 40 days of scouting out the land, they returned home. They reported to Moses, Aaron, and the Israelite community, The land does flow with milk and honey (pictures of milk and honeycomb; children eat honey and cracker, sip milk). Look at this fruit. They held up a cluster of grapes (grape; children eat the grapes), some figs (fig), and pomegranates. They described the people who lived in the land as powerful and the cities as large and fortified. The cities are surrounded by strong walls (Lego building block). Caleb, from the tribe of Judah, silenced everyone. He said, Let s go and take this land now. We can do it. But 10 of the men who had gone along with Caleb said, We can t attack those people; they are stronger than we are. These men scared the Israelites by spreading bad reports about the land they had explored. They said, The land we explored swallows people whole. All the people we saw there were giants (magnifying glass). Beside them, we felt like grasshoppers (grasshopper or bug). The whole community was scared and upset. They grumbled against Moses and Aaron saying, If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this desert! Why has the Lord brought us to this country to kill us? We should just go back to Egypt. Soon, they all agreed. Let s choose a leader to take us back to Egypt, they said. Moses and Aaron fell on their faces in front of the entire community. Joshua and Caleb tore their clothes (torn cloth) and said to the entire community, The land we explored was a very good land. God will lead us into that land, and He will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the Lord, and do not be afraid of the people of the land. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them. But the people continued to be afraid. Then God spoke to Moses and Aaron: How long will all this grumbling go on? I have heard the complaints of the Israelites. The Lord warned them that no one 20 years old or older who had grumbled would enter the land of Canaan. He said they would die in the desert. When Moses reported this to the people, they cried. Early the next morning they went up toward the high hill country saying, We have sinned. We will go to the land God promised us. But Moses said, Why are you disobeying God s command again? Do not go up, because the Lord is not with you. You will be beaten by your enemies. So of the 12 men that Moses sent to explore the land, only Caleb and Joshua survived. The other 10 died of a plague because they had not trusted God. After the story, Ask, How many spies went into the land of Canaan? How many were ready to take the land? How many were afraid to do so? (Let children answer.) 9

God s power: Power that is greater and stronger than anyone or anything. God can do all things. God uses His power to care for the world and people. WISDOM: Using what we know to make right choices. Wisdom comes from God. Photocopy the Faith Word for each child from page 89. Allow them to color the word card and write the definition on the back. Talk about how God s power can help them. Choose from these activities to help students connect the Bible Truth to life. 10 Lesson 1 O ption Bible Story Review In class, Have all the children stand on one side of the room. Say, I will be reading some true/false statements about the Bible story. If the sentence I read is true, raise your hand; if the sentence is false, sit down. Everyone who answers correctly takes two steps forward. If you answer incorrectly, you take one step back. Questions: 1. Moses sent 10 spies to explore the land of Canaan. (False, 12) 2. The spies were gone for 40 days. (True) 3. The spies were supposed to check and see what the land was like, what food was there, and what the people were like. (True) 4. The spies came back and said that the people who lived there were so big that the spies felt like grasshoppers. (True) 5. None of the spies wanted to go and take possession of the Promised Land. (False, Caleb and Joshua were willing) 6. God was going to lead His people to a land flowing with milk and sugar. (False, milk and honey) 7. Joshua and Caleb told the people to trust in God and He would help them take over the land. (True) 8. When God s people complained and didn t trust Him, He was happy. (False, this made God extremely disappointed and unhappy. He would send a plague and those who did not trust would not be allowed into Canaan.) 9. The people moved into the land of Canaan because they were afraid of God s anger. (False, they wanted to go into the land, but Moses stopped them.) 10. All 12 spies were killed by the plague. (False, Caleb and Joshua lived.) We Don t Have to be Afraid Before class, If you have not already done so, punch out the bulletin board pieces from Resources, Item 1. Collect the other items on the list. Put all the items in a gift bag and set it by your chair. In class, Gather the children around you to hear the Bible story. These items are underlined in the story. Bring out each item as it comes up in the story. Show the item, and then pass it around the group. What Are You Afraid Of? Before class, Remove Connections, Sheet 1 from the Connections books. Set out the Connections sheets and a pencil for each child. In class, Give each child a Connections sheet. Resources, Item 1 Planting soil Magnifying glass Plastic grapes and fig (or real) Plastic grasshopper or bug Piece of torn cloth Gift bag Laminator or clear Con-Tact paper Connections, Sheet 1 Pencils Ask, What kinds of things make you feel afraid? Ten of the spies who went into Canaan came back afraid. What were they afraid of? (Let children answer.) All of us are afraid of something. Sometimes it is hard to admit it. It is OK to be afraid, but it is important that we trust God no matter how afraid we might feel. On your Connections sheet you will see five grasshoppers. Write underneath each one something that makes you feel afraid. This is just for you to see. When everyone is finished have them complete the Bible Truth and trace the trace word. Read the Bible Truth together. Say, Whenever you are afraid, you can talk with God. We can trust that He is with us. We can know if God wants us to do something that we can do it. For God uses His power to help His people.

Afraid? Of What? Before class, If you have not already done so, remove Connections, Sheet 1b (back of Sheet 1) from the Connections books. Set out Connections sheets and crayons. In class, Give each child a Connections sheet. Ask, What kinds of words do you say when you are afraid? (Let children share.) There are words Connections, Sheet 1b Crayons that can help us when we are afraid, words of trust. Ten of the 12 men who were sent to check out the land of Canaan were afraid; 2 were not because they trusted God to help them. Say, Read the words on the grapes. Color the grapes with words of fear, red. Color the grapes with words of trust, green. You can do what God wants you to do. You can be like Caleb and Joshua. You can trust God. Closing and Prayer Gather the children in a circle. Ask, Who will help us when we are afraid? (God) Say, He will always give us help and courage. Let s ask Him to help us not to let fear keep us from trusting in Him, and thank Him that He is always with us. Ask for volunteers to pray sentence prayers of help and thanks. Hand out Adventures, Parent Connections, and Verse-a-Month Club verse reminder from Connections, Sheet 15, for each child to take home and enjoy with family. Hammer Whammer Hammer Nails Piece of wood Pair of men s small, heavy-duty work gloves Adventures for each child Parent Connections Verse-a-Month Club verse reminder (Connections, Sheet 15) Before class, Gather supplies. In class, Say, The Israelites grumbled and complained to Moses and to God. Sometimes we complain too. Give me some examples of ways we complain. (Too much homework, don t like the food, don t want to go to bed, etc.) Hammer the nail into the piece of wood just getting it started. Then have each child come up and name one thing he or she grumbles about and hammer on the nail once. The nail does not have to be hammered completely in. Say, Even after the Israelites said they were sorry, they still were punished. Sometimes when we say we are sorry, there are still consequences for our complaining. Pull the nails out, and show the holes that are left. We can t put this wood back into these holes. Our complaints may mean we are not trusting God, and even when we say we are sorry, we can t take back the complaints. God wants us to be careful what we say and trust in Him. However, even if we complain and grumble, we can be sorry for our attitudes, and ask God for His forgiveness. God will forgive us when we are sorry and ask Him. Note: Have each child wear the work gloves when hammering. Connections to Life Lesson 1 O ption Parent Connections for families of young children God s Fearless Followers Bible Truth: God gives courage and help to people who trust in Him. These five lessons will help children think about God s power and wisdom, understand that God gives courage and help when we trust and obey Him, grow in their own willingness to do whatever God asks them to do, and be an example to others as they trust and obey God. Verse-a-Month Club Bible Memory Verse: The Lord your God will be with you wherever you go (Joshua 1:9). Faith Words: God s power power that is greater and stronger than anyone or anything. God can do all things. God uses His power to care for the world and people. WIsdoM Using what we know to make right choices. Wisdom comes from God. summer 2010 We e ks 1 t h r o u g h 5 Recycled Itty Bitty Crayon Collection Dear Parent, It is an honor to teach your child about God s heroes. We are excited to introduce a Do you know a child who keeps a box of broken crayons? Maybe couple of courageous men from the Old Testament. These are men who put their trust you did so. Maybe your child does so. It can be hard to throw away crayons. Have you ever melted crayon pieces to color candles? That is one possible use. Here is another great idea for recycling broken in God and were empowered by God to do or small pieces of crayons. courageous things. This unit focuses mainly on Joshua, but in both the first and last lessons of the unit we see the courage of Caleb as he trusted in God s power and provision. You may not know it, but you are a courageous person. It takes a lot of courage to be a parent. At times it can be overwhelming, but God wants to give you the strength and courage to be the parent you hope to be. Remember you are your child s hero. 1. Remove any paper label left on the crayon. 2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 3. Put a handful of crayon pieces in each muffin cup. 4. Put the crayon filled muffin pan into the oven. Bake for 3-5 minutes or until the crayons have turned to mostly liquid, leaving a few solid chunks in the center to prevent burning. 5. Remove pan from the oven and put it in the freezer to cool. After the pan is completely cooled pop the crayons out of the muffin pan. Now your child has fun shaped crayon rounds in a rainbow of colors. 11