Asking God
WELCOME TO WEEK 4
We all have lots of questions everyday that we sometimes don’t know who we should ask. God wants us to ask him! We can bring our questions to God no matter how big or how small we think they are.
BIBLE STORY
When we have a question we want someone to give us the answer or we want to be able to find the answer. Usually children ask adults the questions but today I have a few questions I want you to answer. Listen to the questions about the following animals and see if you can give me the animal I’m asking for.
-What animal lives in the ocean, has no teeth or stomach, and likes to swim in pairs with their tails linked together. (Seahorse)
-what animal can sleep both lying down and standing up, can live around 25 years, and can gallop around 27 mph (horse)
-what animal lives mostly on the Plains of North America, has a large hump on their back, and their thick brown cut keeps them warm. (Buffalo)
-what animal has black spots that can’t be seen, is actually a Jaguar, and is a great swimmer. (Black panther)
-what is the only cat that lives in groups, their females are the hunters, and they do not live in the jungle. (Lion)
-what animal has excellent eyesight, is a bird of prey, and can fly really fast. (Falcon)
Read or listen to the scripture Nehemiah 2:1-20
Who did Nehemiah work for? (King Artaxerxes)
What did the king notice about Nehemiah? ( that he was sad)
What did Nehemiah want to do? (Go back to Judah to rebuild it)
What was wrong with The wall of Jerusalem? (They were broken down and it’s gates were burned with fire)
When Nehemiah was laughed at, how did he respond? (God would prosper them and they would arise and build)
BIBLE STORY ACTIVITY
In our story for this week, Daniel was sent to the Lion’s Den for doing what he had always done, pray to God. He followed God rather than follow man, even though he knew he would be in trouble. God helped him through by sending the angels. We also can trust God to help us, even if it’s not in the way we thought He would.
Activity
Sometimes we need to ask questions to clarify the way we see things. Getting answers from God can clarify our perspective, the way we see things. Sometimes one picture can be seen two different ways. Look at these pictures and see if you can find more than one way to see it.
Materials: perspective pictures
Alternate
We all have questions that we need answers to. Some questions are easy and some are hard. Print the following cards of questions and take turns answering the questions. See how many questions you can answer!
Materials: printed questions cut into strips
Materials: bowl, jar or bucket, art supplies, strips of paper
Independent activity:
Create your own wall to sequence the events in the story of Nehemiah. Then write the questions you may have for God on the bricks at the top of the wall. Cut and paste the bricks on the wall that describe events that happened with Nehemiah building the wall.
Materials: printed wall of sequence, glue, scissors,
ARTS & CAFTS
CRAFT 1
Use large popsicle sticks to create a wall. Line up 6 popsicle sticks side by side vertically and then a popsicle stick horizontally at the top and one on the bottom. Collect small stones and hot glue them to the popsicle wall.
Materials: large craft sticks, glue or hot glue, small pebbles
Craft 2
Coloring page
Materials: printed coloring sheet, crayons
FOLLOW-UP
Have you ever been in the middle of something scary or new and had lots of questions for God? Read the story of Peter walking on water in Matthew 14:23-32. While Peter was walking on the water he was probably thinking many things. He was surely excited while he was walking on the water and then maybe started having doubts in his mind. we often have doubts about the things God has asked us to do or doubts about the things we see happening all around us. God wants us bring our questions to Him so he can give us his answers. God is the source for all our questions, He always has the best answer. Jesus was right there for Peter when he started to doubt and Jesus will be there for us too.
When is a time you have had doubts?
Did you ask your questions to God?
Who do you usually seek answers from?
How can God help change your perspective in the difficult things you face?
Why is it important to get a new perspective when we don’t understand something we are seeing.
Practical Application at Home
Peter started to have questions while walking on the water which made him have doubts. We don’t know for sure what questions Peter had in his mind but we can probably guess what he was thinking. Jesus knew that Peter had questions and doubts while walking on water but Jesus did not get upset at Peters questioning but instead came to rescue home and oull him out of the water. Jesus doesn’t get upset that we have questions or even doubts, he wants us seek him for our answers. There are a lot of places people can go to get answers and even get the answers they want their, but God is the source of knowledge and wisdom. He can help us see and understand our difficult situations in a new way.
Think about what Peter must have thought and felt while walking on the water. Draw a picture of Peter walking on the water with Jesus. Add your own caption or thinking bubble about peter’s head and add a question or two of what you think Peter may have been asking while he was walking on water or beginning to sink.
Additional Resources
Outings to Reinforce Lesson
Go to a park and spend time in worship and prayer. Ask God to show you ways to trust him and listen to his voice.