Mikal Keefer - 13 Very Awesome Promises and How God Always Keeps Them

13 VERY AWESOME PROMISES AND HOW GOD ALWAYS KEEPS THEM

Published by David C Cook

4050 Lee Vance Drive

Colorado Springs, CO 80918 U.S.A.

David C Cook U.K., Kingsway Communications

Eastbourne, East Sussex BN23 6NT, England

The graphic circle C logo is a registered trademark of David C Cook.

All rights reserved. Except for brief excerpts for review purposes, no part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form without written permission from the publisher.

All Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

LCCN 2017952584

ISBN 978-0-7847-3359-2

eISBN 978-0-8307-7296-4

2018 David C Cook

Developed by Standard Publishing.

The Team: Lindsay Black, Amy Konyndyk, Rachael Stevenson, Abby DeBenedittis, Susan Murdock

Cover Illustration/Design: Dennis Jones

The L ORD always keeps his promises; he is gracious in all he does.

Psalm 145:13

Nothing is too hard for God to do.

Exodus 6:18; 13:1718; 14:2131

We can trust God to keep his word.

Genesis 7:1724; 9:117

God keeps his promises, but we may have to wait.

Genesis 12:17; 13:1418; 21:15

God knows the future.

2 Samuel 23:5; 2 Chronicles 13:45; Matthew 1:1, 17

God sent Jesus for us.

Isaiah 9:67; Luke 1:6775

God does what he promises.

Luke 1:520, 5764

We can count on Jesuss power.

Luke 13:1013

Jesus is God.

Luke 9:2123; Matthew 28:17

God knows whats happening to us, and he cares.

Psalm 139:12; Matthew 10:2931

When we love and follow God, we end up okay.

Romans 8:28, 31

Were not in this aloneGod is with us.

1 Corinthians 10:13; Ephesians 6:1017

We dont need to be afraid.

Isaiah 46:9; Philippians 4:13; 1 John 4:4

We can live with Jesus in heaven forever.

John 14:23; Romans 6:23; 10:9

First, thanks. Thanks for caring about children and for helping them discover Gods awesome promises in these 13 sessions.

So have fun! Youll wow your kids with all the creative ways in which God keeps his word, and youll equip them to trust Gods promises and to keep their own.

These sessions for elementary kids are carefully designed to make your life easy. Theyre light on supplies, quick to prepare, and long on fun. Youll find most supplies in the churchs supply closet or kitchen or at home in your garage, pantry, or junk drawerno need to spend time ordering materials online.

Because these sessions are created so beginning teachers or mature teenagers can lead them confidently, you wont need highly trained teachers. And the variety of options in each session will snag the attention of first-grade through sixth-grade children, including the boys!

Best of all, youll see kids grow in their faith as they open their hearts to what God shares with them through these 13 sessions.

Preparation is easy too. Each week youll focus on one key Bible truth, which children will explore and apply. Youll drive that point home through Bible exploration, fun discussion, giggle-worthy games, and Oh, wow! activities that engage kids in multiple ways through multiple learning styles.

Each week your children will actually experience a Bible story. Theyll discuss it, ponder it, talk about it, pray about it, and apply what they learn. If thats what youre looking forfor your children to do Gods Word instead of just hear ityoure in exactly the right place. And heres a tip: supersize the learning by using a kid-friendly version of the Bible to make sure the stories are understood by children.

We get it: sometimes you have to punt. A sermon goes long or short. Kids are quick to dive into a lesson or need some time to warm up to being together. Older kids might zip through an activity while their younger friends take longer.

Relax. Weve got you covered.

You can use these sessions with kids in practically any setting: in Sunday school, childrens church, evening programs, or while kids parents are attending an adult class or small group. Theres maximum flexibility because each session is written to last 45 minutes and then provides enough extras to fill a full hour. These sessions stretch to fit exactly what you need, when you need it. Theyre

• multi-agedsuitable for mixed ages of elementary children;
• easily adaptedsessions work for just a couple kids or a packed classroom;
• relationalchildren grow close to Jesus and one another;
• flexiblebrimming with options to fit varying time frames; and
• funeven easily distracted kids can engage, learn, and grow.

So are you ready for some fun? Lets dive in!

The Point: Nothing is too hard for God to do.

Scripture Connect: Exodus 6:18; 13:1718; 14:2131

Supplies for all Session 1 activities options: pencils, prepared poster, paper, 2 rolls of pennies, metal spoons (2 per child), Bible, several coins, 1 plate, bucket of water, lightweight objects (see instructions)

Gods promise: hed free his people. People whod been slaves for hundreds of years, who were trapped within the borders of a superpower whose armies were more than able to keep them from escaping.

To pry loose those thousands of enslaved people, God sent one guy: Moses.

Well, Moses and Aaron. Two guys. Not great odds.

But with God, nothing is too hard. God kept his promise to his people, and hes keeping his awesome promises to his people still.

As you experience this session with your kids, consider whether you really believe that nothing is too hard for God. Because if thats trueand if God loves youwhat might you ask his help with this week?

Ask him and believe that God can do the impossible.

Time: about 5 minutes, depending on attendance

Supplies: pencils, prepared poster

Before kids arrive, draw a line on a poster. Write a 1 on the left end of the line, a 10 on the right, and a 5 in the middle. As kids arrive, ask them to pencil in their initials on the line.

Say: If this past week was so awful you wish youd slept through it, place your initials by the 1. If it was a great week you wish you could repeat, put your initials by the 10. Place your initials anywhere on the line that shows how you feel about this past weekexcept exactly on the 5. Because theres no such thing as a week thats exactly half good and half bad!

After kids have signed in, give them 30 seconds each to explain why they placed their initials where they did. Be sure to include your own initials and explain your placement on the line. Kids will begin to express themselves more over time, and hearing their stories will help you adapt this lesson to make it relevant to your kids lives.