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Zipatso Zazikulu - Gawo #9

(To be translated into Chichewa)

DOWNLOAD Gawo #9

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT - GENTLENESS This week we’re going to learn about "Kufatsa” Paul tells the Philippians “Kufatsa kwanu kuzioneka pamaso pa anthu onse.” Afilipi 4: 5a MATERIALS: Photocopy the Bible Verse and 6 footsteps cut them out prior to class. Photocopy Fruit Flash Cards. crayons. Dolly. 2 hard boiled eggs, 2 spoons. Breadfruit and Super Fruit handout one for each family.

AS KIDS ARRIVE PRIOR TO THE LESSON
Get the children to colour the Bible Verse Card, footsteps and colouring pages prior to the lesson.

Remember when your Moringa was just a small plant, how gentle you needed to be with it or branches would break off and you could damage it.
(Hold up an egg) Eggs are also very fragile and can easily break you have to be very gently when handling eggs.

1. GAMES: (10 minutes)
Hold your hand behind your back “Guess which hand I am holding the egg”

2. TEAM GAMES: (10 minutes)

Split the group up into two teams. Split each team into 2 and position at opposite ends of the room or field.

Explain to the children they have to be very gentle to balance the egg on their spoon and run down to the other group, they then have to very gently hand the egg and spoon over to the next child who runs down to the far group and repeats until everyone in the team has run with the egg The first group to finish wins.

5. TEACHING
a. Review

Last week you learnt about "Faithfulness” God is faithful. He took the first step in your Salvation, He called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus. He is not going to abandon what He started. He will bring it across the finish line because God is faithful. Even if we are unfaithful or faithless, He remains faithful.

FOOTPRINT GAME:

Photocopy 3 left and 3 right foot prints and write one word of the Bible verse on each footprint.

c. Teach the Lesson (15 minutes)

DOWNLOAD Super Fruits Lesson #9 Chichewa Visual Aids

Gentleness as a Fruit of the Spirit is an outward action but it comes from a person’s inner attitude – being humble. Some might think that being gentle is a sign of weakness, but the truth is, it is “God’s power used in love.”

Bible Story: (1 Samuel 25)

David and his friends were in the Desert. While they were there, they were kind to the shepherds who were with them in the fields. Those shepherds were servants of a rich but foolish man named Nabal, his wife was named Abigail.

When it was time to shear the sheep, David sent some of his men to Nabal to ask him for a gift which he would be kind enough to give, considering that David and his men helped protect his sheep in the fields. Instead of giving a gift, Nabal insulted David, and this made David so mad that he planned to kill Nabal in revenge. When Abigail heard about this, she acted quickly and wisely. She gathered food and other supplies and went to David to make peace for Nabal.

With kind and gentle words coming from a humble heart, Abigail helped David to see it would be wrong for him to kill Nabal. She asked for forgiveness in behalf of her husband and through her careful gentle words, David’s heart was changed. Read 1 Samuel 25: 32-34

When a meek or humble person decides to speak to an angry or highly emotional person, his initial goal would not be to prove who is right or wrong, but simply to show respect and kindness, even if the other person is using very hurtful words. This kind of gentleness is something that comes from the Holy Spirit, and to attempt to do it using only our own human abilities would be futile. It takes time and prayer and allowing the Spirit to mould us in order to bear His fruits.

Even in correcting others, the Bible tells us to do it gently – because God calls us to be humble and recognize that none of us are perfect.

Therefore, we leave it up to God to judge; our role is to encourage one another and to be gentle and kind and most of all, to pray that God will touch people’s hearts and bring them to repentance and belief in Jesus Christ so that they might be saved.

Object Lesson:
Gently pick up dolly and start to rock her in our arms. Do any of you have a baby brother or sister? (Allow time for them to respond.) How do we handle babies? (Allow time for response. Continue to rock dolly) Babies are fragile. We have to be careful with them. We are never rough with babies because it will hurt them. We treat them with gentleness. God desires for us to be gentle in our actions, our words, and our attitudes!

6. APPLICATION / ENCOUNTERING GOD
Have a time of silence. Ask the following questions: Is gentleness a part of who you are right now?
Do your words show gentleness or are they harsh? Do you show gentleness with your actions?
Are you a protector, a listener, a comforter to your friends and your family?

Let’s ask God together to grow the fruit of gentleness in our hearts this week. During your prayer, thank God for His gentle way with us, for His son, for it is only through Him that we can be changed and produce the Fruit of the Spirit.

Remember the specific situations your children are going through. Invite them to share afterwards their needs. Praise God for the Fruit of the Holy Spirit, the gentleness we are able to have because He lives within us and for His great gentleness to us.

CLOSING PRAYER

Remember to check your Nsangowa, can you measure and see how tall it has grown? Take a picture with you standing next to your Nsangowa tree, next week we will have a prize for the tallest tree!

SUPER FRUIT:

Breadfruit: Breadfruit contains moderate levels of essential vitamins and minerals the Breadfruit Leaves also have great healing powers such as lowering blood pressure, it’s great for inflammation, preventing cancer, cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, and much more. Optional: Download 'Breadfruit Super Fruit' Handbook

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