Sunday School Edition LESSON 4.4 date: Bible Passage: Acts 12:1 19 (Peter Delivered from Prison) God Answers Prayer REMEMBER VERSE So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10. TruResources are developed in partnership with ROCKHARBOR Church and a national network of family and children s ministry leaders. All rights reserved.
Tru Mission Statement Tru helps kids and their families connect to God, find their place in His big story, and respond to Him through the power of the Holy Spirit. Lesson Path: Seeing the Mission Statement in a Tru Lesson Connecting leaders to God... Connects kids and their families to God His big story And invites them to respond to Him Through the power of the Holy Spirit. Inspire, Equip, and Support HomeFront Weekly Connect Gather Respond and Engage Bless Navigating Lesson 4.4 Below you will find additional information to enhance lesson sections as needed. Connect Gather Respond Engage Bless Connecting with Your Kids Encourage leaders to participate in the CONNECT time and share stories and facts from their own lives. Engaging with the children in this way encourages relationship and helps kids feel connected to the adults in their lives. Small Group Enhancement Finish the Sentence activities are available for this lesson. Premium, Unlimited, and Combo users may access these activities in the Resource Files. HomeFront Magazine: A Spiritual Parenting Resource This magazine gives families ideas for creating fun, spiritually forming times in their homes setting aside a sacred space for family in the midst of their active, everyday lives! To provide printed copies of the new issue when it becomes available each month, order print subscriptions at www.homefrontmag.com or download it. Families may also visit the website to have each month s issue emailed directly to their inboxes and they may access each issue through apps for iphone, ipad, or Android devices. 2
Connect// 5 10 min. Children develop relationships with their leaders and one another through the use of simple supplies and conversation starters. When Peter was thrown into prison, God s people gathered together to pray for his release. God answered their prayers, and they got a surprise visit from Peter! CONNECT QUESTION: Welcome and greet children. Open your time by asking this question: What s a time when you were together in one place with a lot of people? All My Friends SUPPLIES chairs (1 per child, minus 1) SET UP Place chairs in a circle. RELATE I like hearing about when you were with others in one place. Let s come together and play a game today. Have children gather around the circle of chairs. Choose one child to stand in the center of the circle, and have the rest of the group sit on the chairs. The child in the center says, All my friends and adds something he s wearing or something he has done. For example: All my friends are wearing tennis shoes. The child in the middle and all other children who relate to the statement get up from their chairs and move to another chair in the circle. The child left without a chair is the next one to stand in the center of the circle and share something. Continue for several rounds. Developmentally Speaking Children in this age group love to talk and sometimes even exaggerate. This activity allows children to share something personal and gives them an opportunity to talk in front of the class. 3
Gather//20 35 min. Children experience and learn more about God through prayer, storytelling from The Big God Story, an investigation into God s Word, and creative ways to memorize Scripture. Prayer Gather your children into a circle. Encourage them to hold their hands in front of them, palms up, as a posture of receiving what God might speak to them today. Before you pray, designate a leader (or two) to open and close the time of prayer. Encourage the children to participate in this time of prayer if they d like. Remind them that praying is simply talking and listening to God and that He always hears us when we pray. As you pray, leave space between prayers for the children to take the opportunity to pray, in case some may be apprehensive and need a little more time. Pray that God would bless the day s lesson as you re in His Word. Pray that God would speak to the hearts of His children, revealing to them the truth of today s Ponder Point, that God Answers Prayer. Storytelling Bible Passage: Acts 12:1 19 Storytelling Technique: Acrostic and Images SUPPLIES Bibles (1 per leader and 1 per child) Peter and Angel images (see Resource Files) magazines (several, age-appropriate) scissors butcher paper (3 ) tape marker PREPARE AHEAD Print the Peter and Angel images and cut them apart. Go through the magazines and cut out pictures of the following: an open door, a person who looks excited, a picture of someone yelling, a cross. On the sheet of butcher paper, write the word PRAYER vertically down the left side of the page, so that you can fill in an acrostic later. SET UP Tape the butcher paper to the wall at a height the kids can easily reach. RELATE In the book of Acts, the message that Jesus came to set us free from our sins began to spread all over people started believing in Jesus! Whom did Peter tell about Jesus in last week s portion of The Big God Story? Allow answers. Yes, it was Cornelius. Jesus followers trusted that no matter what happened, it was worth telling everyone about Jesus and His love. Because they had the Holy Spirit in them and because they knew God answers prayer, they were brave and talked about Jesus with everyone they met. Have children turn to one another and ask, Have you heard about Jesus? 4
ZECHARIAH 1st & 2nd Grade Guide But some people didn t like that Jesus followers were telling others about Him. They began persecuting Christians treating them badly, putting them in prison, and sometimes even killing them. But Jesus followers continued to share His story and pray that God would do amazing things. They were right to do this because God answers prayer! Let s take a minute to pray to God ourselves He always listens to us and answers us with truth. Lead the children in a Prayer of Release. Invite kids to open their Bibles to Acts 12 so they can follow along. King Herod began arresting people who were following Jesus. He arrested a man named James and had him killed. This made some of the religious leaders who didn t like the Christians happy. Herod wanted more people to like him, so he continued to arrest other Christians. One of those people was Jesus disciple, Peter. Peter was a leader in the church, and Herod planned to keep him in jail until after the holiday of Passover then Herod wanted to kill him! Write the word Peter next to the P on the acrostic. Ask a volunteer to come tape the Peter image next to the name. Herod had heard about some of the miracles that our God does, and he was afraid Peter might escape. He had more than 16 people guarding Peter to make sure he stayed in jail. Read Acts 12:5 aloud. God s followers knew that He answers prayer, so they prayed continually for Peter. They trusted that God could do amazing things and that He hears our prayers. The night before Peter was supposed to go to trial, he was sleeping in the jail. Herod was so worried that Peter might escape that he had him tied up with two chains, and Peter was between two guards! While Peter was sleeping, something amazing happened. Read Acts 12:7 aloud. God s people had been praying for Peter, and an angel came to set him free! Write the word Angel next to the A on the acrostic. Invite a volunteer to tape the Angel image next to it. The angel told Peter to get up and put on his clothes and sandals. Then, the angel led Peter out of the prison, but Peter thought he was having a dream. They left the prison and went out the gate of the city the gate opened all on its own! Peter was free! God answered the prayers of His people. Peter was released! Write Released next to the first R on the acrostic. Invite a volunteer to tape the picture of the open door next to the word. Peter was amazed at what God had done. Read Acts 12:11 aloud. God answers prayer! Peter was so excited about God helping him escape. He immediately went to the house where he knew all the Christians would be together praying. He knocked on the door, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer it. Read Acts 12:14 aloud. Rhoda was so excited she didn t even open the door! Write Excited next to the E on the acrostic and invite a volunteer to tape the picture of the excited person next to the word. Rhoda ran into the house to tell all the people that Peter was at the door. They thought she was crazy! They knew Peter was in prison and that he was going to trial the next day. They had no idea that God had answered their prayers in such an amazing way. ADAM & EVE ABRAHAM MOSES JOSHUA SAMUEL KING DAVID ELIJAH KING JOSIAH JEREMIAH SHADRACH/MESHACH/ABEDNEGO DANIEL ESTHER NEHEMIAH 400 YEARS OF WAITING JESUS SIMEON/ANNA ZACCHAEUS MARY PHILIP PETER JAMES JOHN APOSTLES CORNELIUS LYDIA PAUL YOU & ME OUR FUTURE WITH JESUS 5
Peter kept knocking on the door, and they finally opened it and saw it was him! They must have yelled, because Peter had to tell them to be quiet. Write Yelled next to the Y on the acrostic, and invite a volunteer to tape the picture of the person yelling next to the word. Peter explained about how the angel came and freed him from prison. He told them how God answered their prayers and rescued him! Write Rescued next to the second R on the acrostic. Invite a volunteer to tape the picture of the cross next to the word. Peter told everyone to share the good news that he was rescued from prison with all the other Christians. Then he left to go to another place because he knew Herod would be looking for him. The next morning, everyone at the jail was so confused and shocked when they discovered that Peter was gone! God did an amazing thing for Peter that night. The Christians prayed for Peter, and God answered their prayers. God always listens to us and answers us when we pray to Him. Sometimes He doesn t answer the way we want Him to, but He always answers us in the very best way. He has an amazing plan, and He loves us so much. It s so good to know that God listens to us and answers our prayers. Share about a time when God answered your prayer. Investigate Discussion Questions Whom did Herod put into prison? Acts 12:3 4 What were the believers doing while Peter was in prison? Acts 12:5 What are some other times that God answered prayer in The Big God Story? God Always Answers We can always turn to God and trust that He will answer us! Read Psalm 17:6 aloud. What are some things you pray about? How does it feel to know God hears you when you talk with Him? Don t Worry Pray! Peter was in a scary situation. The Bible tells us that instead of worrying, we can pray to God. Read Philippians 4:6 aloud. What are some things you worry about? How does praying help us when we re worried? Remember Verse Each week children will spend time memorizing a portion of Scripture together. The Remember Verse focuses on a character trait of God that s highlighted in today s portion of The Big God Story. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10 6
What does it mean that God upholds us with His right hand? How does it make you feel to know we can always count on God to strengthen and help us? Game: Team Scramble SUPPLIES Bible index cards (36) pen optional: Remember Verse cards and printable image (see Resource Files) PREPARE AHEAD Write the following phrases on index cards. Create two sets. So/ do not / fear,/ for I am/ with you;/ do not / be dismayed,/ for I am/ your God./ I will/ strengthen you/ and help you;/ I will/uphold you/ with my/ righteous/ right hand./ Isaiah 41:10 RELATE Review the Remember Verse with the class a few times so they become familiar with it. Then, break up your group into two teams. Give each team a set of index cards with the phrases of the Remember Verse on it and have them race to put the verse in its correct order. The first team to successfully put the verse in order wins. Space for the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit longs to speak to His children. Allow time and space for your children to respond to what God might be speaking to their hearts. To create space for children to hear from and respond to Him, ask the children a few simple questions: After all you ve seen, heard, and experienced today through God s Word, what do you know about Him? How does this make you feel? What does this mean for your life? How do you want to respond to God right now? As you lead the children through this time of reflection, pause and ask God to give you the strength and faith to be flexible as you give the children the space to respond in the way that God leads. 7
Respond// 15 20 min. Children process what the Holy Spirit has been teaching them and respond to God through individual and collaborative worship. Praying Hands SUPPLIES Hand cutouts (see Resource Files) scissors crayons or colored pencils hole punch yarn or string (4, plus 6 per child) tape PREPARE AHEAD Print a Hand cutout for each child and cut it out. Tape a four-foot piece of yarn (or string) to the wall horizontally and cut the remaining yarn into six-inch pieces. RELATE Have children put away Remember Verse index cards and gather together. God answers the prayers of His people. He knows about everything in our lives, good and bad, and He cares about each of us. What do you want to talk with God about today? What do you need Him to help you with? Encourage children to spend a moment closing their eyes and talking with God about a request for themselves or someone else. Next, give a Hand cutout to each child and invite the kids to write or draw pictures related to their prayers. Punch a hole in the top of each hand and allow children to string their yarn through the hole and tie their cutouts to the longer yarn on the wall. Display the praying hands for the next REMEMBER & CELEBRATE weekend. 8
Engage// 15 20 min. Children participate in various forms of play, including interactive games, activities, experiments, and more. Quiet Escape SUPPLIES masking tape SET UP Create a masking tape line on one side of the classroom and another on the other side of the classroom. RELATE Have children help put away supplies from RESPOND and sit together. God answered the prayers of Peter s friends, and Peter was miraculously freed from prison and able to quietly escape to where the other believers had gathered. We re going to play a quiet escape game. To begin, I need a volunteer to be the jailer. Everyone else will be prisoners trying to escape. Have prisoners line up on the masking tape line on one side of the room. The guard will stand in the middle of the room facing the opposite direction of the prisoners with his eyes closed. The prisoners will quietly try to cross to the other side of the room without waking up the guard. Once the guard thinks prisoners might be escaping, he can try to tag them before they make it to the safety line. When a child is tagged, he ll have to sit down on the floor and help tag other prisoners as they escape. Choose another child to be the jailer and play another round if you have time. After the game, discuss: How do you think Peter felt in prison? How did God answer the prayers of His people? How has God helped you in a hard situation? 9
Bless// 5 10 min. Children receive a blessing from their leaders and sometimes one another. A blessing can be a prayer of commission, a portion of Scripture, or words to encourage and guide. Invite your children to stand together as you read the blessing from Philippians 4:6b-7: In every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Bless each child individually by placing your hand on her shoulder and saying, (Child s name), may you know that God answers prayer. When you finish blessing each child, say a blessing over the whole group with these words: May you take every worry and every situation in your life to God. May you know that He listens to your prayers and answers you. WEEKLY Be sure to send home the HomeFront Weekly for next week s lesson! This preteaching tool for parents encourages families to spend time in God s Word together before children arrive at church. 10