Chapel with Small Children

Weekly Lessons with Preschoolers

September Week 3

The Bible has Stories
picture from http://www.coloring.ws/

Materials needed: You will need that same material as last week. Plus, enlarged the pictures included in this lesson.
Lesson:
Read scripture. Ask the children why the person who sang those words was happy. (wait) By this time the children will likely have an answer that has something to do with learning about the Bible. Then say something like “Let’s think together about our Bible. We learned that our Bible is like a library, it is made of many books, like this set of Golden Books. It looks like it is all one book but it is really many books that have been put together. We also learned that these books are divided into two parts. The story before Jesus is born and the story after Jesus is born. That is like my picture album of me and my children. Today, I want to tell you about how our Bible has many stories in all these books. Some of the stories you might know and some you might not. ( Use one or more of the stories as time allows)

Here is a picture that an artist imagined might look like Queen Esther. Did you know that our Bible tells a story of a young woman who saved all her people. It was way back in the part of our Bible that comes before Jesus is born. The story tells how King Xerxes trusted his prime minister Haman but Haman did not like Jewish people. When Esther became the queen , Haman did not know that she was part of the Jewish family. There were scary moments, but in the end, Queen Esther saved all her people because she did the right thing not the easy thing. Did you ever have to do something that was scary or difficult but you knew it was the right thing to do? (wait) Did you ever have to tell a grown up something that you thought would make them angry? Or did you ever have to tell your mom or dad something that you didn’t want to tell? That’s what Queen Esther had to do. And because she did the right thing - not the easy thing, all her people and all her family were safe. And it is a story in our Bible. Pretty cool, huh!

Here is another story that comes in the time before Jesus is born.

(Show the children the picture of Jonah and the Great Fish. Be prepared that the children may bring up Pinocchio) Once upon a time a man named Jonah was told by God to travel to a far away land and tell the people there that God was angry at them for doing so many bad things. Jonah thought they were the worst people in the world. Did you ever have someone you didn’t like? (wait) Well, Jonah did (too). Jonah did not like the people of Nineveh. Jonah wanted God to stay mad at them. But God wanted the people to change. Jonah tried to run away from God which is impossible to do as God is everywhere. Jonah got on a ship to sail away from God but God sent a great fish that swallowed Jonah and took him to Nineveh. When Jonah told the people that they had to change - and you know what?! They did change which made Jonah very angry and God very happy. And God still loved Jonah, too. Did you know that story is in our Bible ( very likely some children will say that they did. Tell them that they are amazing children.)

Here are two more stories that come from Jesus. One is about how much God loves us and one is about how God wants us to care for each other.

The first is a story of a shepherd who goes in search of a lost sheep. Anyone here ever been lost? ( wait) It is a terrible feeling! God understands. In the story of the lost sheep, Jesus says that God wants to know everyone in all the world, no matter who they are or how old they are or where they live. God is like a shepherd who loves everyone.

And in this story, ( hold up the next picture) Jesus tells us that we are to be kind to one another. Jesus tells a story about a Samaritan, a person that many people in Jesus’ time did not like. There was a man who was hurt on a roadside and two important people came but they did not help the man who was hurt. But the Samaritan, the person the others did not like, he helped the man. Jesus said that that is what everyone needs to do, help others.

Our Bible has many, many more stories.
So, let’s sing our song about our Bible.

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