b. English Sword Play
Ready…Swords up… Romans 8:28.… CHARGE!
All things work together for the good of those who love
Him. (Romans 8:28a)
Optional:
Download English Bible Verse Visual
Aid
Jumble the 15 leaf shapes about and get the children
to put them in the correct order. Reciting the verse until the
children have learnt it |
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c. Teach the Lesson (15 minutes)
DOWNLOAD
Lesson #9 Shona Visual Aids
Optional: DOWNLOAD
Lesson #9 English Visual Aids
|
Optional:Downloads
'I am the vine video' English video
God shapes us and mould us into what he wants
us to be. Like a potter forms a pot, a gardener shapes a plant,
God is the gardener shaping our lives. |
Sometimes it might mean that God allows bad things
to happen to us to teach us a lesson, or so that we can help others
who go through the same thing. Sometimes He punishes us for disobedience
to Him.
Sometimes it doesn't feel good when God is shaping
our lives but He does it for our good. Parents sometimes have to
punish their children for disobedience, sometimes they have to prevent
us from doing something we want to do to protect us, etc. They do
all these things because they love us. God prunes us because He
loves us!
Object Lessons:
A. (The farmer wearing his hat come out with his pruning shears
and tools and explain exactly what a gardener does when they prune
their plants.) Pruning removes faded flowers. (Show a branch
with faded flowers. Take the shares and cut them off) This
allows the plant to use it's energy to produce more flowers. Pinching
allows you to direct the growth of the plant either up or sideways.
Sometimes a plant has dead leaves or branches. (Show a branch
with dead leaves. Take the shares and cut them off) By cutting
these off you help the plant to grow stronger and healthier.
This is what pruning is all about. That is why God
sometimes has to prune things out of our lives.
It's a little scary to prune a plant, because there is always the
fear that it will not grow back.
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Here is the Good News. As Jesus says, God is the master Gardener. He is constantly pruning us, taking way what is not good for us, and putting us in places where we can thrive.
1Ndini muzambiriŋga waɀokwaɗi, Ƃaɓa ʋaŋgu murimi. (JOHANE 15:1)
Download
Shona Bible Verse Visual Aid |
|
Here is the Good News. As Jesus says, God is the master Gardener. He is constantly pruning us, taking way what is not good for us, and putting us in places where we can thrive.
(John 15:1)
Options: Download
English Bible Verse Visual Aid |
Just as with a plant,
sometimes God's pruning of us can look wrong to us or make us feel
hurt or challenged. We may ask, God, why are you allowing this to
happen to me?
Remember: All things work together for the good
of those who love Him.
B. The first feeling of the vine after pruning is
a sense of relief, (hold up your vine plant) ahhhh “All my
dry leaves have been removed, all that dead wood that was breeding
disease and became a home for insects and bugs has gone!”
God does this for us after we give our lives to
Him, He removes our guilt of all the bad things we have done. He
cuts away the habits that bind us.
Pruning does not simply mean Spiritual surgery It
is not just the removal of what is dead. It can also mean cutting
away the good and the better so that we might enjoy the best. Jesus
knew that God often uses tragedy to cause people to look to God
for solutions to their problems. Jesus said, "Every branch
that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful."
(John 15:2)
Jesus knew that persecution and difficulties are a part of God’s
plan to help us mature in all areas of life. Jesus knew that hardship
and difficult times often happens so that we can see how the Lord
turns our grief to joy. Pruning hurts but it also helps. Remember
All things work together for the good of those who love Him. (Romans
8:28)
Discussion Questions
1. Who is the gardener? (God)
2. How does God shape our lives? (He prunes . away things that are
not good for us)
3. How does God uses tragedy? (To look to Him)
4. How do difficulties help us? (They mature us)
5. How do difficult times often help us? (We can see how the Lord
turns our grief to joy)
6. APPLICATION / ENCOUNTERING GOD:
Close with a time of worship. Let the children come forward. Ask
the Lord for greater endurance to withstand the tests, trials and
hardships that are a part of God’s plan for our lives. Ask
the Lord to help you see the silver lining behind every dark cloud
of adversity, to give you greater faith enabling you to see how
God can turn any grief into greater lasting joy. Ask the Lord to
give you greater insight into how the Lord uses everyone and everything
for His sovereign purposes.
CLOSING PRAYER
Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you for pruning us so that we may
bear fruit. Thank you Lord for pruning away certain habits and thoughts
enabling us to be more fruitful. Amen.
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SHONA TAKE HOME BIBLE VERSES:
Download
Shona ‘Take Home Bible Verses'
|
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ENGLISH TAKE HOME PAGE/ACTIVITY:
Optional:
Download English ‘Activity
Book’ available for the children and
can be downloaded from this website.
Optional: Download
English ‘Take Home Truth'
These should be photocopied prior to the Session
and available to take home. |
There are some fun games and quizzes that can
be downloaded to help the childen remember what they have been
taught.
Optional:
Download English quizzes
NEXT WEEK
We will learn how Christians need to "grow" the fruit
of the spirit in their lives. |
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CLICK
to view Session #10.
SOWING SEEDS OF SUCCESS - MORINGA CURRICULUM