I love the subtitle for The Jesus Storybook Bible – “every story whispers His name.” It delights my heart to find Jesus revealed all over the Old Testament from creation to Isaiah. There are some Old Testament stories, however, that do more than whisper Jesus’ name. Our current lesson in Starting Blocks is one of those that shouts the name of Jesus and gives a great preview of the Gospel. Take some time with your preschoolers this week to continue talking about the Plagues and Passover with the fun activities below.
HIGHLIGHTS from the Weekend…
Last week we heard the story about how God spoke to Moses through a burning bush. God told Moses to go back to Egypt and tell the king, or Pharaoh, to let His people go! Moses obeyed God and went to Pharaoh, telling him exactly what God told him to say. Pharaoh would not let the Israelites leave Egypt. His heart was unyielding. God sent Moses to tell Pharaoh that if His people were not released, plagues would come. Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and God sent 10 plagues before the people were freed. First, God turned Aaron's stick into a snake. Then there were the plagues of blood, frogs, gnats, flies, livestock, boils, hail, locusts, darkness and, finally, the death of firstborn children. God is all powerful. The Israelites were saved from this final plague as long as they obeyed God and took the blood of a lamb and painted it on the doorposts of their houses. If they did this, death would pass over their household. Pharaoh’s son died in this last plague and he finally let the Israelites go. Today Jesus is our Passover lamb! When we trust Jesus to forgive us for all the wrong things we have done, He saves us from our sin. (Exodus 7 - 12:36)
Teaching Truth:
- God is all powerful
- Jesus is our Passover Lamb
Memory Verse:
"Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9
3 Activities that Help Us Learn That God is All Powerful and Jesus is Our Passover Lamb:
1. Plagues Hopscotch
Draw a hopscotch game on your sidewalk, porch or driveway. First, put a number (1 - 10) in the top corner of each square. For each number/square, draw a picture of one of the plagues.
Here are some ideas:
- Blood - red river
- Frogs - green frogs/dots
- Gnats - tiny black dots
- Flies - black asterisks
- Livestock - grass on the bottom of square with brown animal stick figure dotted with red dots all over
- Boils - stick figure with red dots all over
- Hail - clouds at the top of square with gray diamond-shapes falling down
- Locusts - yellow ovals with “B”- shaped wings
- Darkness - color whole square black
- Firstborn children - sad faces (stick figure style).
Make sure your kiddo knows which plague each square represents by quizzing him every-so-often during the game. Play a traditional game of Hopscotch using a stone, bean bag, or some other type of marker.
2. God is Powerful
God sent Moses to ask Pharaoh to free His people, and 10 times Pharaoh said “No” before he let them go. Have your child count to 10 in several different ways and then shout, “God is all powerful!” Have your child do the following things:
- Count to 10
- Clap 10 times
- Take 10 side steps
- Jump 10 times
- Stomp 10 times
- Turn in a circle 10 times
- Take 10 huge steps
- Touch his toes 10 times
- Wave arms above his head 10 times
- Take 10 tiny steps
After each activity, remember to have your child shout, “God is all powerful!”
3. Jesus Is Our Passover Lamb
Grab a piece of construction paper and white paint, let your child make a circle full of white fingerprints on the paper. Glue two black rectangles below the circle for the legs of the sheep and glue an upside down black triangle in the center of the circle for the face. Glue google eyes on the triangle and add black ovals for the ears. On the top of the page write Jesus is our Passover Lamb! This is also a perfect opportunity to share the gospel story with your child!
Pray
God we thank you that you are all powerful- over everything! Thank you for how you love us and show your power to us every day. Help us to see your power, so that we can grow in our faith and trust in you! Thank you that Jesus is our Passover Lamb and everything we need to be saved and to know you. We love you!
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