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8th week of our Journey - Sharing your testimony

This week’s destination: CARING AND SHARING!
• The children will be able to put into their own words their personal testimony.

MATERIALS:
Games: Print Hearts for Game 1, Music or drum. Print off two large hearts for Game 2 markers/pencils or pens.
Teaching: Print Visual Aids and Music Song Sheets from Visual Aid Manual. Photocopy Sword Play Tracks. A blank piece of 8”X11” paper. Photocopy heart handout, Two Heart, Print ‘Jesus Makes the Difference’

‘Mystery Clue’ Witnessing Tool:
• Heart testimony (For younger children)
• Blank piece of paper 8”X11 (For older children)

AS KIDS ARRIVE PRIOR TO THE LESSON:
Welcome Teacher/Trainers, Trainers and students.

1. OPENING GAME: (10 minutes)
Hopping Hearts: Lay the cut out hearts with the actions face down around the room. Start the music the children have to run from one heart to another, once the music stops they have to act out what is on their heart. Eg: Skip, Hop, Run. Once music starts the game recommences continue on and off until the children have had fun, expect lots of laughter and noise.

2. TEAM GAMES: (10 minutes)
Heart race: Pin the two large hearts at far end of room or place them on two small tables with two markers. Divide the group into two teams. At start get each child run up to the heart and write on the heart what they want to thank God for eg My family, brothers, friends, good school, teachers, Pastor, good health, food on the table etc.

3. ACTIVE PRAISE CHORUS: (10 minutes)
Give your heart to Jesus (Use music video and lyrics from Visual Aid Manual)

4. INTIMATE WORSHIP: (5 minutes)
Heart of Worship (Use music video and lyrics from Visual Aid Manual)
Lord I lift your name on High (Use music video and lyrics from Visual Aid Manual)

Prayer: Dear God thank you for my family, my friends, thank you for my school and all my teachers. I pray for those that are not able to go to school. Thank you for my Pastor and all my church family. Thank you for good health for food on the table and all the good things you bless me with. Thank you.

5. TEACHING:
a) “Back Track”
• Did you spend your dollar?
• Did you go on a “Fishing Trip”? Who wants to come up and share with the class?
• In our Sword Play Revelation 1:16 we learnt about Jesus’ second coming.
• What did He hold in His right hand? (Seven stars)
• What was coming out of his mouth? (Double-edged sword)
• Last week we learnt about being called to be Fishers of Men.

Optional: Sing - I will make you fishers of men (Use video music)

b) Sword Play
Ready…Swords up… Matthew 5: 13a … CHARGE!
“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? (Matt 5: 13a)
(Give out the Sword Play Tracks one for each child, junior and senior)

Salt is used to season and preserve fish. We want your testimonies to be Short, Salty and Sticky!!
SHORT: Because people are short of time
SALTY: Because we want them to be thirsty to hear more about Jesus.
STICKY: Because we want them to remember what God has done in your life and what He can do in their life.

The Bible says: Let your conversation be always be full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. (Col 4 v 6)

c) Teaching the lesson

This week we are going to help you learn how to share your testimony. Last week we saw how we can use the one door dollar bill to create a bridge into our testimony.

How to share your testimony:
Sometimes how you say something is more important than what you say! The emphasis on a word can change the meaning of a sentence.

1. She said she did not take his money. (It was not someone else who said it.)
2. She said she did not take his money. (But someone else did.)
3. She said she did not take his money. (And thus she is still poor.)
4. She said she did not take his money. (But she won it gambling.)
5. She said she did not take his money. (But she took someone else's.)
6. She said she did not take his money. (But she did take something else of his)

Don’t you see I said exactly the same thing each time but I put the emphasis in different places which changed the meaning completely.

As you can see the emphasis we place on words and the emotion we say them effects the way the listener receives them. So if we present our personal testimony with the wrong type of emotion it will effect the way it is received by the listener.

The Scripture says ‘That we overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony’. (Rev 12 v 11)

Therefore our personal testimony is very powerful because it demonstrates how powerful God is. God is a able to take away our sins, transform us and make us new creations.

The Bible says “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Cor 5 v17)

When people see that our lives are changed they know that God is real. When we use our personal testimonies it shows the world God’s power to change a sinful heart.

When God changes us it is a miracle. We can use our personal testimonies as a bridge into the Gospel Presentation. It will prepare their hearts as they listen to what God has done in our personal lives the listener will see how God can work in their life as well.

Your personal testimony tells what God has done for you and no one can dispute what God has done in your life.

This week we are going to help you write and practice your Testimony.

Introduction to your Personal Testimony:
(Teacher/Trainer will say the introduction and the children will repeat after them)
May I tell you what God has done in my life?
Let me use this piece of paper to explain… give your personal testimony.

Mystery Clue’ Witnessing Tool

• Imagine this blank piece of paper represents my life. This is how my life started, it’s the way God made me, it was a clean slate.(Write ME in the middle bottom ) But as I grew up I began to take control of my life. I started turning to my own way and doing what I wanted to do instead of what God wanted me to do.

(Begin to share times in your life when you took control of your life or were disobedient as you share begin to fold the paper. Turn the top right hand corner over as seen in the illustration.)

(Continue to share your testimony and fold the top left corner over as seen in the illustration. Remember this is YOUR testimony so no one can argue with you and it is interesting because it tells others something personal about you.) And soon I no longer looked the way God made me. Look I’m a different shape all together. As my life went on, I made yet another turn in my life and now I am completely different to how God intended me to be.

(Fold the paper in half as you start to explain that sin had your life trapped and). The sin in my life has me folded up and doubled over in knots. In fact, I am separated from God because of my disobedience. A friend shared the Gospel (expand here if possible) and Jesus come into my life and turned my life upside down.

(You begin to explain) He began to tear away the things from my life that separated me from God. (Tear off section 1 and throw it on the ground). There were some people that needed to be remove and He is still working on me. (Tear off section 2 throw that on the ground. Leaving only section 3) This is the most important part of my life. (Place it in your top left hand pocket or next to your heart) I hid this in my heart. Let’s take a look at all the stuff that Jesus cut off from my life. (Kneel on the floor and start to put the pieces together.) What is all this stuff down here? This was the sin that Jesus tore away from my life, now let’s look more closely and see what see what this looks like (start arranging it) All of this sin was separating me from God and was going to send me straight to … HELL.

But here in my pocket next to my heart was all that I needed. (Unfold the section 3)

This is what I am trusting in. You see Jesus is God, he came from Heaven to earth, He lived a perfect life, He died on the cross to pay the penalty of our sins, He rose from the dead and He is in Heaven now preparing a place for me. I am trusting in Jesus ALONE for my eternal life. Does this make sense to you? Have you ever asked Jesus to come into your heart…?

He will change your destination from HELL to LIFE! (Convert HELL to LIFE, you will have one piece left over place it under LIFE like a line)

Heart Testimony
Write your personal testimony on the heart sheets provided.(Photocopy prior to session) Start with this statement:

• May I tell you what God has done in my life?
• There was a time in my life… give your personal testimony.

Let’s get to the Heart of the matter:
To tell someone our testimony we can use two contrasting ideas like fear and lack of fear.

For example: There was a time in my life when I was afraid I didn’t know what would happen if I died. But now I know for sure that I will be with God in Heaven someday forever.

This contrasts or compares two ideas my FEAR of death and now my CONFIDNECE that I have Eternal Life.
So now in our personal testimony let’s contrast sadness and joy.

Example two: There was a time in my life when I was very sad I didn’t know if I had any friends. But now I have the best friend that anyone can have and I have joy.

This contrasts or compares two ideas my SADNESS and now my JOY that I now have with my best friend Jesus.
(Trainers can now share their Personal Testimonies to their group of children and then assist them in writing their own testimonies on the heart handout start off by writing on how Jesus helped them in one area in their life. Start off by writing on the heart There was a time in my life when I was very ……… (lost) but now I am………………(found)

(See Jesus makes the difference Visual Aids in Handbook to help teach this session)

FEAR – CONFIDENCE
SADNESS – JOY
WORRIED - PEACEFUL
UNLOVED – LOVED
DARKNESS – LIGHT
HURT – HEALED

• Photocopy the ‘Two Hearts’ and get the smaller children to write the appropriate description, before and after that best describes their change of life following their Salvation.

Plan “Fishing Trips” – ‘On-the-Journey Training’ (OJT) Learn it, use it or loose it! Its simple…identify opportunities to have safe and successful Fishing Trips (On the Job Training)
Enabling children to share the Gospel in Sunday school classes for younger children, schools, orphanages, other churches, Bible clubs, and other children’s events using the ‘Mystery Clue’ Witnessing Tool: The Power Swore, Treasure Map, The 6 Diamonds, Wiggling Fingers, The Bridge, Lak-A-Word Booklet, Dollar Bill, etc

6) APPLICATION/ENCOUNTERING GOD: Get some of the children to come up and share their testimonies “May I tell you what God has done in my life?...”

Refer to our Encountering God Handbook for ideas for this important section of the session. Experience the Holy Spirit Learning Centers creating an atmosphere for this experience.

Examples:
“Once I felt rejected like nobody loved my, now I feel loved because God so loved me He sent His only Son Jesus…”
“Once I was hurt but Jesus healed me…”
“I was lost but Jesus found me…”
“My life was empty but now Jesus has filled me with purpose…”
“Once I was sad but Jesus has given me lasting joy…”
“I use to always worry but now I have peace…:
“I use to be very fearful about sharing my faith but now I am bold…”
“I use to doubt but now I believe…”

CLOSING PRAYER:
• Pray for opportunities for the children to share their testimony
• For courage to share their faith using their ‘Mystery Clue’ Witnessing Tool:

TAKE HOME PAGE: Heart testimony

NEXT WEEK: The children must understand the Spiritual condition about the person they are about to share with.

CLICK to view Session #9.