Faith Game for Kids

I believe God spoke to me when I was planning my lesson to teach my 2nd and 3rd grade class at church. We are talking about faith and believing in Jesus when we cannot see Him. 

Our story is from John 20:19-31 about Thomas who needs proof that Jesus rose from the dead. Thomas has not yet seen Jesus and he says to the other disciples, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

Jesus appears to Thomas and shows him exactly what he requested. Jesus goes on to say to Thomas an encouraging word and a special message that is meant for all of us, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

We are blessed! We have not seen Jesus with our own eyes, but we still know Him to be real and alive. I'm so excited to share this lesson God gave me with each of you!

Our Bible verse today is Hebrews 11:1, "Faith is being sure of what we hope for. It is being certain of what we do not see." (NIRV)

To get the kids to really understand this, I planned a game for them that uses their memory verse. For the game to work, the kids MUST FIRST KNOW THEIR BIBLE VERSE. This game will not work properly if they aren't familiar with how the verse should read.

Work on the verse with the kids until they have it memorized. This is a simple verse, so it shouldn't be too hard for the kids to get quickly.

Hide the pieces of the verse around the room for the kids to find. I purposely left out the end of the verse.  You want the kids to spend a bit of time searching for it. Don't give the answer right away. Make them keep looking and searching.

I didn't have to force my kids to keep looking. These kids would not give up!!

They looked everywhere in the room. Because they had memorized the Bible verse they knew that piece of the puzzle existed. Therefore, it must be in the room! They had faith that it was there, and they didn't even realize or understand they were illustrating my point even further.

Finally, after several minutes of both teams searching and searching, I called them back to the table. Some of the kids didn't want to come willingly. They refused to give up on the missing piece.

We started to talk about the missing piece. I asked each team,

 "What piece is missing?"

They were surprised to be missing the same piece, "What we do not see". I asked the kids a question again, okay so you have, "Faith is being sure of what we hope for, and ...Faith is being certain of what?"

"What we do not see!"

Only one boy figured it out.

"The piece is not here, is it? Because we do not see it?!"

YES!

I began to ask the kids more questions about their search. 

Why did you want to keep looking? 

Because I didn't find the last piece.

I know what piece is missing.

I know what the Bible says!  

EXACTLY! We knew what promise God gave us. We found it in our Bibles today. However, we didn't find every piece of the puzzle in this room.

Just like this game we played, there are times in our life where we don't know what we are supposed to do, or how things will turn out. We ask God for help. We search for answers in our Bibles and try to find clues to help us. We pray. Sometimes God doesn't answer how we expect. God is silent. He doesn't give us an exact answer. Instead, He says, "Trust me. I know what I'm doing. Wait."

We must believe Him. Even when we cannot see the missing puzzle piece, or find the missing piece, we know that part of the puzzle exists. God promised it in our Bibles, so we know it is true. Just like He spoke to the men who wrote the Bible, God still speaks to each of us.

When we have a problem, we can be certain that God has an answer. We know that the answer exists. We know that God knows exactly where the missing piece is and when it will appear. It's up to us to have FAITH and wait, believing that it will happen.

Faith is being sure of what we hope for. Faith is being certain that missing puzzle piece exists and continuing to look for it because you know God is good and has the answer.

We believe in faith when we cannot see with our physical eyes,
but our spiritual eyes can see the promises of God.

My kids were so inspired by this faith game being walked out. One little boy told me, "That was a really good trick you played on us." The game hit especially home with him because for years he has prayed for a dad. He said he prayed a thousand times for this. He believed that God had a dad for him. He didn't know exactly who he was, or when he would come. But he sure did hope for it and believe it would be true. He even had a specific man he hoped to one day call Daddy. Two months ago, God gave him that missing puzzle piece. He gave him a dad he could call his own. God did a miracle for him, and this little boy never gave up believing that it would happen. He believed even when he could not see!

I printed my special version of Hebrews 11:1 on a piece of brightly colored paper. I had two sets of the puzzle on different colored papers, so the kids could work together in two separate teams. After they found the puzzle pieces, they would need to put the verse together.

I cut each line into a puzzle piece. I made sure to cut the edges of "It is being certain" and "Hebrews 11:1" differently so they do NOT connect. You want the kids to believe there is another piece in between them.

Planning this lesson, I know God spoke to my heart. There are dreams I have spent months believing for. I know God gave me a vision, and I have been prayerfully waiting to see it come to pass. There are days that I struggle with doubt and wonder if I heard from God correctly. And there are days like today where I feel God's presence so strongly that I am certain it will be. Both kinds of days bring me to my knees as I cry before God.  I needed this reminder probably even more than the kids in my class. God give me faith to be sure of the things that I hope for and make me certain of what I do not see.

Resurrection Bingo

I had the most wonderful time teaching my 2nd and 3rd grade class at church. We were learning about the resurrection for Easter. I wanted to give the kids a fun way to learn all the details. Normally, I share my Resurrection Eggs with the class, which they love. I decided to do a little twist on that this year.

We played Resurrection Bingo instead! It was so much fun and for the first time ever, the kids were so into the lesson that not a single child asked if it was snack time. Even by the time they all left to go home, no one remembered snack time. That has never happened! 

You can feel free to use the Resurrection Bingo for your own PERSONAL use.  But please be kind and do not claim these pictures as your own or offer them for downloads.  

If you would like to download a complete PDF set of Resurrection Bingo, you can scroll down to the bottom of this post. 

Each child will get ONE blank bingo card

And TWO sets of the small pictures. There are 25 squares of Bingo, and only 12 small pictures. The free space says Jesus is Alive!

Before playing the game, have each child make his or her own specialized Bingo playing card. Cut out the pictures and glue them onto each square of the Bingo card. There is no specific order and the more random the cards are the better. Each child should make their own Bingo card different from everyone else and try not to have two of the same picture in each column. For example, if they put both donkey pictures in column “B”, when it is called they will automatically have two marked off. To make it fair to all the kids, I made sure they only had one picture of each thing per column.

Cut apart the Bingo Calling Cards that you will be drawing from.  

To Play the Game:

When you hold up a card for the kids to see, allow a child who could mark the picture on their Bingo card to explain the purpose behind the card.  

For instance, I draw a card that looks like this:

The child would explain that it is a crown of thorns and that the soldiers placed it on Jesus’ head to mock him.

Stop and discuss each card until you have made it all the way through the 12 different cards. You will be repeating some of the cards, and it isn’t necessary to explain them again, unless you would like a new child to have the chance to share the importance behind the card.

If you need help with the description for each picture, I have included a list, along with scripture references for further discussion.

Donkey – A lowly donkey was given to Jesus to ride into Jerusalem just before his death. (Matthew 21:1-9)

30 Silver Coins – Judas accepted 30 silver coins for betraying Jesus into the hands of the Jewish leaders. (Matthew 26:14-16, 46-50, 27:1-5)

Passover Cup - At Jesus’ last supper with his disciples before he died on the cross, He used the cup of wine to explain his death. (Matthew 26:17-19, 26-28)

Praying Hands – Reminds us that Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray with His disciples. (Mark 14:32-42)

Leather Whip – After His trial by Pilate, the Roman soldiers used leather ropes with rocks and metal woven in to whip Jesus.  (John 19:1-15)

Crown of Thorns – The soldiers who crucified Jesus placed a crown of thorns on His head, so they could mock Him. (Matthew 27: 29-31)

Nails in the Cross – Three large nails were driven into Jesus’ hands and feet to nail Him to the cross. (John 19: 16-22)

Dice for Gambling – The Roman soldiers used dice to gamble for Jesus’ robe.  (John 19:23-25)

Soldier’s Spear – Roman soldiers used a spear to pierce Jesus’ side when He was on the cross. (John 19: 31-37)

Linen cloth – Joseph of Arimathea wrapped the body of Jesus in a linen cloth after He died on the cross. (Matthew 27: 57-61)

Stone at the Tomb – The huge stone that had covered the tomb was found rolled away by an angel. (Matthew 28:1-3)

Jesus Loves Me – The whole reason Jesus died and rose again was because of His great love for us! (John 3:16)

You can use anything for the markers. I used some pony beads. You could even have the kids color in each picture as it gets called.

You can download a PDF of Resurrection Bingo

Animals for God

You can feel free to use the coloring pages for your own PERSONAL use.  But please be kind and do not claim these pictures as your own or offer them for downloads.  It makes me sad to see my pictures on a coloring page website run by someone else.

Remember the growth capsules you used to get as a little kid? They looked like colored medicine, and when you put them in warm water, they grew into a sponge. You never knew exactly what you were getting. It was so fun to be surprised with a different shape. I don't remember doing anything with the sponges after they had grown; the whole point was watching them change.

Each year I look forward to the first week I get to teach in the new year. We get to be animals for God. The kids love it, and I love making it happen. I bring several of the growth capsules with me to my class. The kids choose a color, and the animal is a complete surprise. We soak them in warm water at the beginning of class, and by the end they have an animal that only they get to be. 

Each animal has a theme Bible verse for the year, and a couple characteristics that describe the animal. Every year the list of animals grows. The first year I did this, we started out with only 6 animals. Now we are up to 18 different animals to choose from. I love the excitement the kids get as they discover which animal they are, and what special things God has planned for them this upcoming year. 

Enjoy!

"Be alert. be present. I'm about to do something band new!" Isaiah 43:19

Crafts for Easter

It's been a fantastic two weeks of teaching! The kids are learning, and fully engaged in the story of Jesus crucifixion and resurrection. Each Wednesday, I dedicated the entire day to planning my lesson. Our pastor loves to say each year at this time, "Easter is the Super Bowl for Christians." It should be one of our biggest weeks for attendance. If someone is considering going to church, they will most likely say yes to an invitation this weekend!

Last week we focused primarily on the death of Jesus. I did make sure to share the good news of His resurrection, however the focus of that would be the following week. My favorite way to teach this lesson is by using Resurrection Eggs. I don't know how long they've been around, but they are genius! Kids love hands on stuff to help them learn. I bought my set when my daughter was 2 years old, and we've been using them each year since. That's 14 years of Easter fun!!

Every egg has a piece of the story hidden inside. When you buy the set, they also come with a booklet that gives scriptures to read, and helpful information to tell. I typically don't follow the book. It's pretty wordy, and I prefer to share from my heart about each piece of the story. They might have updated the book since I originally bought my set. I do like to follow along with reading the different passages from the Bible. 

Whenever I bring the eggs to my class at church, the kids are enthralled. They LOVE to take turns opening each egg. I have found these eggs even interest my kids who usually need special attention. Everyone listens. Everyone learns. 

To go along with the story, I like to plan a craft. Kids really enjoy using their hands. After we had gone through all the eggs, the kids got to make their own resurrection pie wheel to bring home with them. This pie wheel has all the same things they learned through the eggs. The kids were very excited to make this. Now they would be able to share the same story with their family and friends. 

To make the resurrection pie, you print both pages, and simply use a brass fastener in the center to keep them together. You cut out the pie piece on the top paper to provide a hole for viewing through. The bottom pie wheel should easily turn through the viewing screen. I left an area blank above each description so the kids can draw a picture in of what the object is we talked about. 

There are twelve pieces of the wheel, one for each resurrection egg. On the front wheel piece, you can see a list of all twelve things, along with their scriptures that we referenced. This was very easy to make, and the kids had a lot of fun with it!

Feel free to use any coloring sheets I put together, and post. That's why I share them online. I'm always happy to let anyone use what I have created. My goal is to teach all kids about Jesus, including ones I've never met! As always, if you click on the picture it will allow you to save a much larger file size.  

*UPDATE 2018* I have a new game you can play called Resurrection Bingo! It is very similar to doing the Resurrection eggs.

This week my lesson focused much more on the resurrection of Jesus instead of His death. I was so excited to teach about this. I prepared my thoughts and heart all day long. I showed a 13-minute video to the class of some clips I edited together from A.D. The Bible Continues. The video content is very well done, but a bit harsh and violent to show young children.  I put together several different, kid friendly clips to make a short video. A picture is worth a thousand words, and the kids were so into the movie. I think they were disappointed when the lights came back on. Some had never seen this acted out before. They had lots of questions, and we could have some really good discussion afterwards. Why did Peter lie that he didn't know Jesus? Was that Pharaoh in the movie? So cute and sweet!

After our lively discussion, the kids had a quiet time of journaling. I keep a journal for each kid in my class. I never look in these journals. It's between them and Jesus. The journals stay in my supply cabinet, and only get removed during class time when the child who it belongs to is there. When the kids graduate from my class, they get to take the journal home with them. Parents love these! It's neat to see their kid's heart and growth through the two-year time span they are in my classroom. We do all kinds of writing in this journal. Sometimes it's as simple as copying a Bible verse, other times it's drawing a picture of something I prompt them to think about. Often we glue workbook pages into the book, and lots of prayers are wrote inside. The list is endless...

In their journals this time they wrote a prayer to Jesus. They confessed a sin they struggle with, and asked for forgiveness. The prayer was ended with thanksgiving. We were recognizing Jesus for His sacrifice, and giving thanks to Him. 

Once their prayer time was complete, the kids came back one by one to a table in the back of the room where I had supplies to pot a plant. We all potted some flower seeds. I made it an object lesson for the kids. I explained why we had these plants. It was about more than a pretty flower. It was about a lesson I was trying to teach them.

Each kid got to decorate their plastic pot with permanent markers. They could write the Bible verse. They could draw a picture that reminds them of Jesus. It could be a word that Jesus gave them. It could be something He wants them to remember. I try to get the kids to always think for themselves. I want them to get in the habit of talking to Jesus about EVERYTHING! It's about getting truth down deep in their heart. It's not good enough to have head knowledge. We all need some heart wisdom. And we all need to learn how to hear God's voice. 

 

My lesson about our potted plants was that we all sin and miss the mark. Our sin is something we usually hide. We are often ashamed of it. The soil is dark like our sin, and dark like the way we feel about it.

The seed we plant is Jesus. He comes in to the dark places of our hearts. He takes our sin upon Himself. He is innocent, yet He still takes our punishment.

When Jesus was with His disciples He broke bread, gave it to them and said, "This is my body, which is given for you." Luke 22:19. Just like the bread broke, symbolizing Jesus' body, the seed coat must break open for the seed to begin to grow and sprout. Jesus gave up His life for us because He loved us so much.

The seed in a way goes through a transformation from death into new life. It must change for it to become a new flower. Just like the flower rises out of the soil, Jesus rose from the dead. He is alive. Because of this new life, we too can rise out of the darkness. Our sin no longer has a claim on us. We are forgiven. We are free. We are beautiful. We are a new creation. We are a flower that soaks up the "Son."

The night was amazing. We were all connecting with Jesus. That is something to get excited about! I am so honored to be a voice for Jesus with these kids. I love them with all my heart!

More Animals for God

My class loved being animals for God a couple of years ago.

In fact, as we were all gathered around our glasses of water this year, watching the sponges transform into animals, a former student from my class walked into the room. She remarked to everyone, "I still have my animal! I miss being in this class." High praise indeed.

Remember the growth capsules you used to get as a little kid? They looked like colored medicine, and when you put them in warm water, they grew into a sponge. You never knew exactly what you were getting. It was so fun to be surprised with a different shape. I don't remember doing anything with the sponges after they had grown; the whole point was watching them change.

I found a pack of 12 capsules at the Toy Store. Dollar Tree was completely out of their packs. I spent a little more for my animals, but I also got a bigger variety. Everyone in my class got to be a different animal for God this time.

Again, after much prayer, and help from my mother and Gabriel, I came up with index cards of information for each animal. I used this as an object lesson on growth for my second and third grade class at church. The kids were going to have the opportunity to be a safari animal for God. I found a Bible verse to go with each animal, and I tried to highlight different characteristics I thought the animal might exhibit.

When you see the capsules, you have no idea what animal you will be getting. You choose what color you like, and the animal is a surprise, a theme for the year. The kids in my class got so into this. Everyone was excited to see what God had for them this year.

If you would like to download a PDF version of the files, click here.

The anticipation for the kids in finding out their animal was great! They loved it. I hope and pray they continue to walk in the footsteps of their animal.

My son is part of the 2nd and 3rd grade class that I teach. He too came home with an animal for God. He brought home the anteater. His card was a little weathered and worn by the time I got to take a picture of it. But that makes it more special. His card was placed in a spot of honor that he could daily look at. I love that God gave him the anteater. The anteater will gobble up God's word, and has a sticky tongue to quickly remember all the promises of God. THIS IS SO TRUE! My son loves to memorize scriptures more than anyone else I know. He has a definite hunger for the word of God. AND he always seems to remember the verses that he has learned. My son really does have a sticky tongue for God's promises!

These animals might seem a little silly, but God can use the silly to speak to our hearts. There is no limit to the way God works. I love the innocence of children. This makes them very trusting. Their ears and eyes are open to all the ways of God, even if it's a little sponge capsule that reveals an animal with a message.  They hear God's voice, and answer to His call.

New Coloring Page Printables for Each Animal