by Kimber Bailey Scott
Mark 1:35; Matthew 14:23;
John 17
SING:
I Pray to God (Tune: Here we go
‘round the mulberry bush)
Jesus prayed in the ‘morning
‘morning, ‘morning
Jesus praying in the morning.
He prayed and talked to God.
I pray to God in the ‘morning.
Morning, morning.
I pray to God in the morning.
I pray and talk to God.
I pray to God in the evening.
Evening, evening.
I pray to God in the evening.
I pray and talk to God.
I Will Pray (Tune: London
Bridge)
*In the **morning, I will pray (fold
hands)
I will pray, I will pray.
*In the **morning, I will pray (fold
hands)
Thank you, God. (touch fingertips to
lips on “thank” and point upwards on “God”)
CHANT:
I Will Pray Today
I Will Pray Today (fold hand in prayer)
I will say Good morning, God (Yawn and
stretch)
I will say Thank You, God for my lunch
(pretend to eat)
I will say Good night, God (pretend to
sleep)
I will pray today. (fold hands in
prayer)
I Will Pray Today (fold hand in prayer)
I will say Help me do right (nod head
yes)
I will say Keep me from wrong (shake
head no)
I will say Thanks for listening, God
(cup hands behind ears)
I Will Pray Today (fold hand in prayer)
I Will Pray Today (fold hand in prayer)
I will say Help my family, God (make a
wide circle with arms)
I will say Help my friends, God (Touch
or hug a friend)
I will say Thanks for helping me, God
(point to self)
I Will Pray Today (fold hand in prayer)
RHYME:
When I Pray
When I pray, I fold my hands (fold
hands) and close my eyes. (close eyes)
I think about God & He hears
me. ~Jean Katt
PRAY:
What do you pray about? It’s great
that God hears and answers our prayers! (have them repeat you in
short segments) Thank you, God, that we can talk to You. Thank you
for listening to us. In Jesus name, Amen.
LESSON:
Jesus like to pray. He prayed to God
a lot. Let’s find out when Jesus liked to pray. I’m going to do
some actions that describe when Jesus liked to pray. You tell me what
part of the day someone would do them. Watch closely. Yawn and
stretch as if you were just getting out of bed in the morning. What
time of the day do people usually yawn and stretch? Let me see how
you yawn and stretch.
Now watch me again. Put palms of
hands together and place hands against your cheek. Lay your head to
the side as if sleeping. What time of day do people sleep? Let me
see how you sleep.
Now you know when Jesus liked to
pray. You are ready to help me tell the Bible story. When you hear
the word “morning,” I want you to yawn and stretch. When you hear
the word “nighttime,” I want you to pretend to sleep. And when I
say, “Jesus talked to God,” I want you to repeat those words
after me. Practice with the children. Open your Bible to Mark
1:35, Matthew 14:23 or John 17 and place it in your lap.
Jesus liked the morning time.
Children yawn and stretch. It was a good time to pray to God.
Jesus liked to pray in the quiet morning time. One day, Jesus got up
before the sun was up. He walked from the house to find a very quiet
place outside. Jesus got up early to pray to God. Jesus talked to
God. Children repeat. He talked to God at the beginning of the
day.
Jesus also liked the nighttime.
Children pretend to sleep. It was a good time to pray to God.
Jesus liked to pray in the quiet nighttime. Jesus talked to God.
Children repeat. One night, Jesus told His friends to get into
their boat and go across the lake. He told the other people to go
home. Jesus did this because it was time for Him to pray and talk to
God. Jesus talked to God. Children repeat. Jesus climbed up a
mountain. Jesus talked to God Children repeat at nighttime.
What did Jesus talk to God about in
the morning and at nighttime? He prayed for many things. He prayed
for himself. He asked God to help Him. He prayed for His friends. He
asked God to take care of His friends and watch over them. Jesus
asked God to help everyone—even you and me. Jesus talked to God.
Children repeat.
APPLY:
When did Jesus pray? Yes, He prayed
in the morning. Yawn and stretch. And He prayed at nighttime.
Pretend to sleep. When do you pray to God? Could you pray
before you get out of bed? Could you pray before you eat? Could you
pray before you go to bed? Sing “I Pray to God” using the
words “Morning” and “Evening.”
I Will Pray (Tune:
London Bridge)
*In the **morning, I will
pray (fold hands)
I will pray, I will pray.
*In the **morning, I will
pray (fold hands)
Thank you, God. (touch
fingertips to lips on “thank” and point upwards on “God”)
MEMORY VERSE:
The Bible tells us that God made the
world. The Bible says, “I pray to you, Lord.“ Psalm 69:13 Can you
say those words with me? Say them louder. Say them softer.
SNACK:
OPTION 1: If you want to use finger
gelatin, prepare it before class. To make finger gelatin, boil 4 cups
of water. Add 3 pkgs of gelatin and 4 envelopes of unflavored gelatin
and dissolve in a 9x13 pan. Put in the refrigerator to set. Cut
gelatin squares slightly larger than the largest cookie cutter. Place
each square on a paper plate. Provide cookie cutters in shapes from
nature such as stars, flowers, animals and so forth.
OPTION 2: If you want to use bread
instead, get a loaf of white or white wheat bread. Bring peanut
butter or jelly and a plastic knife. Provide cookie cutters in shapes
from nature such as stars, flowers, animals and so forth to cut a
shape out of the bread.
Show the children the cookie cutters.
Here are the shapes of some things from God’s world. Let’s
name these things. Do you have a kitty at home? You can say “Thank
You, God, for kitties.” Do you see the stars in the sky at night?
You can say “Thank You, God, for the pretty stars.” Our Bible
verse says “I pray to you, Lord.” Let’s say our Bible verse
together. Help the kids cut a shape from a piece of bread or from
the gelatin. Help them spread peanut butter or jelly on the bread. As
the children prepare the snack, talk about food. Do you like peanut
butter? What food do you like? God gives us our food. We can thank
God for our food.
ART/CRAFT:
Before class, prepare stickers by
following the directions on the instruction sheet included. Draw a
line across each piece of paper to divide the horizon from the
ground. What color should we color the sky? What color should we
color the ground? While the children color the sky and ground,
What are some things you see in the sky? What are some things you
see in the sky? Give children the sun and bird stickers to add to
their picture. Jesus liked to talk to God. Let’s add our sticker
of Jesus praying to God. Tell me what Jesus might be saying to God.
Children may want to draw other things in the sky or on the
ground.
GAME:
Jesus liked to talk to God. The
Bible says that Jesus prayed in the morning. And the Bible says that
Jesus prayed at nighttime. Lead them in singing:
I Will Pray (Tune:
London Bridge)
*In the **morning, I will
pray (fold hands)
I will pray, I will pray.
*In the **morning, I will
pray (fold hands)
Thank you, God. (touch
fingertips to lips on “thank” and point upwards on “God”)
Before class, put the pictures in a
paper sack. Let a child pull out a picture. Sing: I Will Pray
using the picture as a guide to singing the song. If a picture of
food was pulled out, sing “for my food, I will pray, etc.” If a
picture of a family was pulled out, sing “For my family, I will
pray, etc.” We can be like Jesus. We can pray to God. When can
we pray to God? We can pray in the morning. We can pray at nighttime.
We can pray anytime!
NEED:
Heavy white paper
Markers, crayons or watercolors and
brushes
Stickers on instruction sheet
Snack Option 1: make finger gelatin
before class (boiling water, 3 pkgs jello, 4 envelopes of unflavored
gelatin, 9x13 pan, knife), paper plates, cookie cutters in shapes
from nature such as stars, flowers, animal, etc.
Snack Option 2: loaf of white or white
wheat bread, paper plates, knife, peanut butter or jelly, cookie
cutters in shapes from nature such as stars, flowers, animals, etc.
Napkins
Paper sack
Pictures of food, families, boys,
girls, houses, etc
You'll need:
Have the child(ren) paint or decorate the pot. Terracotta is very easy to paint with qtips. Taking 2 twigs at a time, cross them and wrap X or the connecting part with twine or yarn. Secure with a double knot and trim extra pieces. Continue until you have 3 crosses. Have the child(ren) paint those as well. Dig a small opening in the ground for the pot. The dirt you unearthed, pack around pot. Pour soil over and around pot. Place rocks/pebbles around the front of the pot. Plant grass seeds, flower seeds or place Spanish moss if desired around the top soil. Stick the crosses into the soil. Place the rock or piece of pottery slightly in front of the pot opening.
