Living in Peace. Session 1 December 2. Christmas Is About

Transcription

1 Christmas Is About Living in Peace Bible Verse The earth will surely be filled with the knowledge of the LORD. (Isaiah 11:9b) Session 1 December 2 Bible Story Isaiah 11:1-9 FaithDirection God wants us to live peacefully with our brothers and sisters. Before You Begin The prophets of Israel foretold the coming of a Savior. Some of these prophets described what this Savior would be like. Isaiah especially was very specific. In Isaiah 11:1-9 we find the reading commonly known as the Peaceable Kingdom. It is called this mainly because of the description of what the world will be like when all people are filled with the knowledge of God. When we prepare for Advent the words of the prophets are especially important to us. While the fourth candle of the Advent wreath is commonly the candle of the Prince of Peace and the first candle represents hope, these two are closely related. The prophets tell us of the hope the world has because of the Savior to come, and one of the biggest hopes is for the world at last to live in peace. But true peace does not mean just an absence of armed conflict; it means living together righteously, everyone treating all others as equals and with justice. (That justice does not mean an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.) This peace will not come from just working harder for it; this peace will come from all of us knowing God. Isaiah 11:9b says: The earth will surely be filled with the knowledge of the LORD. What does all of this mean for your tweens? It means that living peacefully requires knowing how God wants us to live. How do we know that? We know it through God s Word. We know it through the teachings and the example of Jesus. This period before Christmas gives us time to prepare our hearts for the true meaning of Christmas. Advent is also a time to anticipate and celebrate. Tweens sometimes have a difficult time at Christmas. They are past the pure unfettered excitement of early childhood and not ready to take on adult roles. Encourage them to have a good time, but also encourage them to actively participate in a church mission project and to develop a sense of the importance of Advent worship experiences. These will help tweens feel a sense of being an important part of the Christian community. TIP: Visit GrowProclaimServe. com/leaders to join the community with other leaders and find helpful weekly content and articles. Requires preparation. Winter Session 1 GrowProclaimServe.com 7

2 Choose from the following activities those that best suit your time and your tweens. Grow Together Decorate the Room for Advent Encourage active participation by your tweens in the Advent experience. Gather materials for decorating the room for Advent: purple (or deep blue) cloth for the worship table, a ready-made Advent wreath or materials to put together an Advent wreath, a Christmas tree or paper to make a tree to be taped to the wall (for use with Chrismons ). As tweens arrive, have them cover the worship table with the cloth and place the Advent wreath on the table (or assemble the wreath first). Ask others as they arrive to decorate the room with any other items you have available. TIP: Tweens love to decorate with crepe paper, you might wish to bring in some purple and/or white crepe paper and turn them loose with crepe paper and tape. Sacred Symbols Find Center on symbols of the Advent season. After the room is decorated, give each tween a copy of On the Go: a Magazine for Tweens and ask them to write their name on the front cover. Have them read the instructions for Sacred Symbols Find, which challenges them to think about which symbols of the season are sacred and which are secular. Go over the answers together (Magazine p. 23). Christ s Monogram Introduce Chrismons. Together read Christ s Monogram. TIP: If you are going to make Chrismons for your tree, you may choose to do that now (see p. 10). If your church has a Chrismon tree, you might want to take a trip to the sanctuary to look at it and the symbols. Do your tweens know what the different symbols mean? Talk About It Talk about Advent. Ask tweens if they have any special family traditions during Advent. (Some families light Advent wreaths, others do a service together, and so forth.) Stuff Decorate the Room for Advent purple (or deep blue) cloth for worship table Advent wreath and four purple (or dark blue) candles (one may be pink) Christmas tree or paper for making a paper tree for wall Optional: Nativity, crepe paper, tape, other decorations of your choice Stuff Sacred Symbols Find On the Go Magazine p. 3 pens or markers TIP: It is easier to use pens or markers than pencils on the slick pages of the magazine. Stuff Christ s Monogram On the Go Magazine p. 4 Stuff Talk About It none 8 December 2 On the GO Tween Leader s Guide

3 Proclaim the Word One Short Mystery Use this fun activity to introduce the Scripture for today and to encourage Bible usage. Download the Winter quarter challenges. For today, copy Challenge #17 ( One Short Mystery ), one for each tween. Give each tween a copy of Challenge #17, a pencil, and a Bible. Ask the tweens to solve the mystery. TIP: The tweens may work individually, in pairs, or in small groups. Stuff One Short Mystery Bibles (CEB) Challenge #17 (Tween Challenges CD-ROM, Winter) pencils TIP: For information about using the CD-ROM, see p. 4. A complete list of the contents is on p. 1. Bible Reading Experience reading one of the best known Old Testament prophecies. Make sure everyone has a Bible. SAY: We are going to dramatically read one of the most important prophecies by an Old Testament prophet concerning the nature of the Messiah who was to come. Ask everyone to find Isaiah 11:1-9. Divide tweens into two groups. TIP: Be sure that there are a couple strong readers in each group. You may wish to divide tweens into a boys group and a girls group. Assign one group to read all of the odd number verses and the other group to read all of the even number verses. Ask everyone to stand for the reading. TIP: If you have time, you may wish to switch assignments between the two groups and have them read it a second time. Stuff Bible Reading Bibles (CEB) Prayerful Option: Encourage each tween to make a Joys and Concerns Journal, which the tween will update each week. (Look in the Forms section of the Tween Challenges CD-ROM for Joys and Concerns pages and for details.) Winter Session 1 GrowProclaimServe.com 9

4 Wolf/Lambs Tag Create an opportunity for your physical learners and give your other learners a brain break. Name one person the WOLF and all other players LAMBS. Play a game of Freeze Tag. (When the WOLF touches a LAMB, the LAMB must stay frozen in place until another LAMB unfreezes her by touching her on the shoulder.) Play rounds as time allows. (A round is over when more than two LAMBS are frozen at the same time.) Bring everyone together and ask what today s Bible prophecy says about the lion and the lamb. ASK: Isaiah named a lot of natural enemies getting along. What do you think he is trying to tell us? (Accept all reasonable answers.) Make a ChiRho Chrismon If you choose to do this activity, you will make a different symbol of Jesus each week to decorate the tree in your room (or to add to your church s Chrismon tree). Choose one of the two methods described on page 38 to make your Chrismons, and gather the materials listed. Copy the ChiRho pattern (Reproducible 1c), and cut off the other pattern to save for next week. Make a sample Chrismon. SAY: We celebrate Christmas as Jesus birthday, so it is important to remember Jesus at this time. This month we are going to make Chrismons. Explain that they may work individually or in pairs to make a ChiRho Chrismon for your tree (or to decorate the worship area, if you have no tree). When they finish their Chrismons, have them hang them on the tree. TIP: Depending on the style of Chrismon you are having them make, the Chrismons may need to be set aside to dry and be put on the tree or in the worship area at closing worship. Add to The Bible is about Poster Continue adding to the ongoing visual reminder of the importance of the Bible to the lives of your tweens. Even visiting tweens will be able to see from the growing poster that the Bible is about everything. Familiarize yourself with the directions for using The Bible is about poster. They are in the Poster Words section of the CD-ROM. Ask a volunteer to cut around the words LIVING IN PEACE and add it somewhere around the poster, making it an extension of the poster. COOL OPTION: If tweens have been designing the words, ask a volunteer to write the words LIVING IN PEACE on paper and decorate it with any craft supplies on hand before adding it to the wall. TIP: The unit title is Christmas Is About ; however, what we know about Christmas we discover from the Bible, so it is not necessary to add the unit title. Stuff Wolf/Lambs Tag Optional: Bible Timeline (see information inside the back cover) COOL OPTION: If you have a copy of the book Bible Timeline, have tweens look to see approximately when Isaiah would have made his prophecy. TIP: A brain break (change in activity level) will jump start the learning process for your tweens. Stuff Make a ChiRho Chrismon Reproducibles 1b (p. 38) and 1c (p. 39, top) scissors craft supplies listed on page 38 for the method chosen Stuff Add to The Bible is about Poster The Bible is about poster word cards and directions for poster (Tween Challenges CD-ROM, Poster Words section) scissors adhesive Optional: paper, craft supplies 10 December 2 On the GO Tween Leader s Guide

5 Serve With Love Opposites Consider how our actions and our world would be different if we were living in peace. Copy and cut apart Reproducible 1a ( Opposites Cards ). Mix up the cards and lay them face-up on a table. SAY: We are told that God s kingdom will be a peaceable kingdom. We ve read about how the animals will act, but that is a way of explaining what peace should be like among people. We re going to look more closely at what that means for what we should do. Have tweens work together to race the clock to see how quickly they can match the cards into pairs of opposites. Can they beat three minutes? TIP: The opposites are side by side on Reproducible 1a. Let tweens pick two or three opposites (depending on time), and ask them what it would be like to live God s way. If they have any trouble figuring out which is God s way, have a volunteer look up the appropriate Bible passage and read it aloud. Matthew 7:12 (bully/respect) Matthew 12:18-19 (argue/discuss) Isaiah 16:5 (injustice/justice; sin/righteousness) Matthew 6:19 (hoard); 1 Timothy 6:18 (share) Romans 12:19 (revenge); Matthew 18:21-22 (forgive) Romans 12:21 (evil/good) Stuff Opposites Bibles (CEB) Reproducible 1a (p. 37) scissors timer or watch with a second hand Peaceable Kingdom Prayers Look at prayer from multiple points of view. Together read Peaceable Kingdom Prayers. If you have time, ask each tween to choose an animal and write a prayer. Allow those who wish to do so to share a prayer. TIP: These prayers my be held and used for closing worship. Stuff Peaceable Kingdom Prayers Bibles (CEB) On the Go Magazine p. 5 pens or markers paper Winter Session 1 GrowProclaimServe.com 11

6 Advent Wreath Worship Ask a volunteer to light the first Advent candle. SAY: We light this candle as a symbol of Christ our Hope, the one who will lead us into a kingdom of peace. Ask a volunteer to read Isaiah 11:9b. PRAY: God, the creator of all, we give thanks for hope and for the possibility of peace through our Savior. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Extinguish the candle. Plan for Next Week On a dry-erase board or large sheet of paper, write the following: bread to rise, cookies to bake, paint to dry. Copy Challenge #18 ( Third Letter ), one for each tween. On each index card, write a simple sentence that can easily be illustrated. (examples: Put the book on the table. The sun came up at 6:00 a.m.) Copy the Winter drama, Blessed Family of God (on the CD-ROM), one per tween. Choose one of the two methods described on page 38 to make your Chrismons, and gather the materials listed. Copy the fish pattern (Reproducible 2a), and cut off the other pattern. Make a sample Chrismon. Copy and cut apart Reproducible 2b ( Spin the Bottle Assignments ). Fold them in half and place them in a container or basket. Find a bottle to spin. Stuff Advent Wreath Worship Bible (CEB) Advent wreath with four candles (purple or royal blue, one may be pink) candle and butane lighter (or matches) Optional: reproducible Tween Worship Helps for December 2 (p. 6) WEBSITE Have each tween tear the card out of the middle of their On the Go magazine. This card will direct them to the website (GrowProclaimServe.com/ OntheGo), where they will discover a game, links to music, riddles, polls, and articles. Explain that each week you will suggest something for them to do or to discover on this website. This week suggest that they try to unscramble the names of the three prophets. Ask them to bring the answers next week. 12 December 2 On the GO Tween Leader s Guide

7 Tween Worship Helps! December 2 Light the first Advent candle. SAY: We light this candle as a symbol of Christ our Hope, the one who will lead us into a kingdom of peace. Read Isaiah 11:9b PRAY: God, the creator of all, we give thanks for hope and for the possibility of peace through our Savior. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Extinguish the candle. December 9 Light the first Advent candle. SAY: We light this candle as a symbol of Christ our Hope. Light the second Advent candle. SAY: We light this candle as a symbol of Christ of Love. Read Luke 1:20a. PRAY: God, the creator of all, we give thanks for the hope and love Christ brings to us. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Extinguish the candles. December 16 Light three Advent candles. SAY: The first two candles stand for hope and love. Today, we light the candle of Joy. joy. Read Luke 11:38a. Read Luke 1:45. PRAY: God of all, we come to you today filled with hope, love, and joy, because we know you love us all enough to send us Jesus. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Extinguish the candles. December 23 Light three of the Advent candles. ASK: What do these three candles represent? (hope, love, joy) Light the fourth Advent candle. SAY: Today, we light the candle of peace, representing Christ, the Prince of Peace. Read Luke 2:10. Read Isaiah 9:6-7. PRAY: God of us all, we come to you today filled with hope, love, and joy. We pray for peace. We praise you for sending us Christ, the Prince of Peace. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Extinguish the candles. December 30 If you are using the Advent wreath, light the four Advent wreath candles. SAY: We are now in the season of Christmas. Christ is born. Christ is King, and so we light the Christ candle. Light the Christ candle. Read Matthew 2:2. PRAY: O Lord, today we come to honor Jesus, your Son, the king of our hearts and lives. We will try to honor Jesus this week in the way we live our lives. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Extinguish the candle(s). 6 Winter On the GO Tween Leader s Guide

8 Reproducible 1a (Opposites Cards)! bully respect argue discuss injustice justice talk listen hoard (keep for yourself) share avenge (get revenge) forgive evil good sin righteousness Winter GrowProclaimServe.com 37

9 Reproducible 1b (Chrismon Directions) Felt and Braid Chrismons Place pattern on a piece of white felt. Outline the pattern lightly with a pencil. Cut out the pattern. Trim the symbol in gold by gluing gold braid around the entire edge of the symbol. Make a large loop of gold braid and glue it to the back of the top part of the symbol as a tree hanger. OPTION: You may sew the braid to the symbol, or sew just the braid hanger. TIP: For the Fish Chrismon, have tweens write the letters with glue and use either gold braid or glitter to cover the glue. Posterboard and Glitter Chrismons Place pattern on a piece of white posterboard. Outline the pattern lightly with a pencil. Cut out the pattern. Outline the symbol with glue and sprinkle heavily with gold glitter. Make a large loop of gold braid or yarn and glue it to the back of the top part of the symbol as a tree hanger. NOTE: Styrofoam may be used to make the Chrismons. We usually do not suggest this, because Styrofoam does not break down in landfills. However, if you have extra Styrofoam, you may use a knife to cut it into symbols. This makes Chrismons that can be reused for many years. Stuff Felt and Braid Chrismons Chrismon patterns (pp. 39, 41) white felt (can be purchased in small white squares) pencils scissors gold braid fabric glue Optional: needle and thread Stuff Posterboard and Glitter Chrismons Chrismon patterns (pp. 39, 41) white posterboard pencils scissors glue gold glitter gold braid or gold yarn 38 Winter On the GO Tween Leader s Guide

10 Reproducible 1c (ChiRho Chrismon Pattern)! Reproducible 2a (Fish Chrismon Pattern) Winter GrowProclaimServe.com 39