Do you realize how important it is that we believe God always keeps His promises? If we don’t believe He keeps His promises, then we will question pretty much everything He tells us in His Word. If we know God keeps His promises, then we can face the future and our current circumstances without fear because He will never leave us and we know He wins in the end. As you do these activities with your kids this week, tell them how great it is to believe that God always keeps His promises!
HIGHLIGHTS from the Weekend…
This week your child learned that God always keeps His promises. The story of Noah and the flood is found in Genesis 6-8, where God sees that in the whole earth only Noah loves and obeys Him. By faith, Noah obeyed God by building the ark, even though his neighbors laughed at him. The ark was huge and took months to build, but it kept Noah, his family, and all the animals safe while the earth was flooded with rain for 40 days and nights. They were on the ark a long time, but finally the rain stopped. And when the flood water had dried up from the earth, Noah’s family and the animals were able to get off the ark. Then in Genesis 9, God made a promise to Noah. God promised He would never again destroy the earth by flood. As a sign of this covenant, He placed a colorful rainbow in the sky.
Teaching Truths:
1. God always keeps His promises.
2. God's way is the best way.
Memory Verse:
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1
3 Activities that Help Us Learn This Week's Teaching Truths:
1. Rainbow Mobile
Take a paper plate and cut it in half, tape or staple a long piece of string or yarn to the plate coming down from the center. Have you or your child cut wide strips of paper in each of the colors of the rainbow. On each strip, help your child write one thing that God promises in the Bible. Tape or staple these strips to the yarn in the order of the color of the rainbow. Have your child decorate the paper plate like the sky with clouds, sun, or birds.
2. Noah's Ark
Grab a brown paper lunch bag, turn it on its side and have your child decorate it as an ark. On a separate sheet of paper have your child color and cut out a rainbow. Using some animal crackers, have him act out the story of Noah’s ark. Open the paper bag, so he can march the animals inside the ark. Then pretend to have a rainstorm. Lastly, march all the animals out and tape the rainbow above the ark. Talk to your child about how God made a promise to never again flood the earth, that God always keeps His promises and the rainbow is our reminder of God’s promise.
- Who built the ark? Who told Noah to build it? How did Noah respond? (He obeyed without complaining.)
- Who was on the ark? How many of each animal were there?
- Does God keep His promises? (Yes!)
- Why did God send the rainbow? (It was a sign to Noah that He would never again flood the whole earth.)
- How do you think Noah felt when he saw God’s smile in the sky? (He felt loved, blessed, happy, comforted, relieved...)
- Discuss the importance of keeping our promises just like God keeps His.
3. Rainbow Colors Game
Take a blanket outside, go for a walk or have a "color hunt" inside. Play "I spy" with the colors of the rainbow. Try to find several things for each color before moving onto the next color. Take the time to savor all of God's beautiful creation if you are outside!
Pray
Pray a short, simple prayer thanking God for always keeping His promises.