Out of Darkness, Light
GOD IS THE BIGGEST AND STRONGEST
Bible Time: Day 4 & 5
DAY 4: GOD'S AMAZING POWER IN PRAYER!
Because GOD IS ALL-POWERFUL, (The Biggest and the Strongest), He can help me with anything.
Read or quote the memory verse:
O Sovereign Lord! You made the heavens and the earth by Your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is too hard for You. –Jeremiah 32:17
Remember when we discovered that God is a Personal Spirit and we can get to know Him better every day? One of the best ways to get to know Him is by talking with Him. Talking with God is called prayer, and prayer is one of the best ways for us to see God's power in action!
Listen to a story about one woman who didn't dare to ask God for a miracle and one woman who did.
FAITH IN THE POWER OF PRAYER
There is a story of a native woman living in a village deep in a rain forest in South America. She was a Christian.
One day her little daughter became very sick. Her fever was dangerously high and a missionary doctor said that if she weren't put in a bath of ice to cool her body down, the young girl would die.
The native woman told the missionary that she would pray and ask God to send ice. The missionary was concerned that this new Christian would be disappointed so she tried to discourage her. "We live far from any city or electricity. There has never been ice in the rain forest. I don't know how God would answer such a prayer."
The woman responded, "Didn't you tell me that God is powerful enough to do anything? If He is, then He can send ice to save my daughter, and I am going to ask Him for it."
That afternoon, the clouds over the rainforest became very dark. Soon, it seemed that the heavens opened up and hail poured down from the sky covering the ground with small ice pellets. The villagers quickly gathered the "ice," and they placed the little girl in a tub of very cold ice water. The fever finally came down and she got better.
Why didn't the missionary want to pray for ice? (She couldn't figure out how God would answer the prayer, and so the missionary decided not to even ask.)
Why did the native woman pray for ice? (She remembered that God has the power to make ice appear anywhere He wants -- no matter how hot it is.)
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Listen to what Jesus said about prayer: Read John 14:13,14.
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You can ask for anything in My name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask Me for anything in My name, and I will do it!
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Talk about power! But does this mean that prayer works like a magic wand...that you can ask for anything and "poof!" it appears? (No!) Why not? (NOTE: See what your children will say!)
Let's read the first part again:
Jesus said, "You may ask Me for anything in My name and I will do it."
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How are we supposed to pray? (In Jesus' name)
You can be totally honest with God; ask for anything and expect Him to do amazing things! But always remember that His will is perfect and so is He. He will never do anything if it is not the best for you. For instance, you may pray for a room full of candy, but I doubt He would think that would be best for you!!
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Do you think God would ever use His power to hurt you just for the fun of it? (No!) God can NEVER use His power against His other attributes. For instance:
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God loves us so much He will never use His power to hurt us unnecessarily.
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God is Totally Truthful and will never use His power to lie.
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God is Perfect and Clean and will never use His power to do evil.
You can be sure that God will always answer your prayers (with a yes, no, or wait) in a way that is perfect and best.
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Listen to a prayer from the Bible in Ephesians 3:16-18, 20.
I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit. Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is . . . Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.
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I'm going to pray that prayer for you in a minute, but first, is there anything you would like to ask God to do? (NOTE: Write down your students' prayer requests.)
Listen to this quote:
"Since nothing is too hard for God, we do not have a need too great for Him to meet nor a problem too complicated for Him to conquer. We can never pray a prayer too difficult for Him to answer." - Bill Bright
WHY DOES IT MATTER?
There is nothing too hard for God. You can take every problem to Him and know that He has the power to help.
TALK WITH GOD AND STAY CONNECTED TO THE VINE!
NOTE: Pray the following prayer from Ephesians 3:14-21 for your children and insert their names. If you have more than one child, you can either pray the prayer for each child or pray it once, inserting all the names as you pray.
"I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will empower (name) with inner strength through His Spirit. Then Christ will make His home in (name) hearts as you (they) trust in Him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is... Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think."
DAY 5: PUT ON THE ARMOR OF GOD AND BE READY TO STAND STRONG!
Because GOD IS ALL-POWERFUL, (The Biggest and the Strongest), He can help me with anything.
Read or quote memory verse:
O Sovereign Lord! You made the heavens and the earth by Your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is too hard for You. --Jeremiah 32:17
We don't always take advantage of the power God has given us. A young Japanese boy once showed his courage in a very simple but brave way. Listen to his story:
THE BRAVE JAPANESE BOY
The boy attended a school in Nagasaki, Japan, and of the 150 students, he was the only Christian.
Every day before he ate his lunch, the young boy dared to fold his hands and ask God's blessing before he ate.
Some of the other kids considered themselves his enemy, and they were out to get him. They went to the Headmaster of the school one day and accused the boy of "doing something in the way of magic." The Headmaster called the boy in to the office to explain himself.
With brave confidence, the boy explained to the Headmaster that he was a Christian and that he had been thanking God for his lunch and asking Him to bless the food. The Headmaster began to cry, and he put his head down on the desk.
"My boy," he said, "I too am a Christian, but I was afraid to tell anyone. Now, with God's help, I will try to live as a Christian ought to live."
Who do you relate to most, the boy or the Headmaster?
What does it mean to truly be a Christian? (Parents: Refer to the 4 Keys 4Kids to help your child understand how to begin life as a Christian.)
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Jesus told His disciples that the Holy Spirit was going to come, live within them, and give them His power to do whatever He asked them to do.
Read Acts 1:8.
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But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about Me everywhere -- in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
The minute you ask Jesus into your life, to forgive your sins, and to help you obey Him, the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of you. You have His power in you to do whatever He asks you to do!
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PUT ON YOUR POWER TOOLS!
God always gives us what we need in order to do what He asks us to do. In the Bible, He tells us exactly what tools we need to be strong. He uses the example of a soldier to show us how these tools protect us and give us strength.
I'm going to read Ephesians 6:10-11,13. Listen for who God says is our enemy . . .
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A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. Therefore, put on every piece of God's armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.
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Who is our true enemy? (The devil)
What will God's armor help you do? (Stand firm against the devil's schemes.)
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Let's be clear about what the devil wants.
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The devil doesn't necessarily want to beat up your body.
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He wants to beat up your soul. He wants to discourage you and make you feel bad about yourself.
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He wants to fill your heart and mind with lies and make you doubt God.
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Remember: Once you accept Jesus as your Savior, the devil can't take that away, but he does try hard to make you stop talking with God and hurt your relationship with Him!
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Satan doesn't want you to help others have a relationship with God; and
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He doesn't want you to be happy. If you're happy, others might want to know why... Satan definitely doesn't want that!
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So let's check out our armor! Ephesians 6:14-17 says:
Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God's Righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.
What pieces of armor did you hear talked about in the verses? (NOTE: You can print a picture of a soldier from the bonus activities to point to the pieces of armor to help your kids visualize the principles)
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Explain each piece as follows:
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Belt of truth (Knowing what God's truth is and living by it)
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Breastplate of righteousness (Knowing what God says is right and doing it)
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Feet ready with the gospel of peace (Being ready to tell others about His message of peace)
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Shield of faith (Trusting that God really is who He says He is)
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Helmet of salvation (Accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior)
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Sword of the Spirit (Knowing God's Word, the Bible, and reading it everyday. It is our greatest weapon against the devil.)
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What piece of armor would be particularly helpful for you right now?
What is one way you can stand strong (with His power) for God and tell others about Him?
WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Because God is the strongest, His strength will be enough to help you do whatever He asks you to do.
Remember: There is nothing too hard for God. You can take every problem to Him and know that He has the power to help.
TALK WITH GOD AND STAY CONNECTED TO THE VINE!
Thank God today for providing the armor needed in order to stand strong against Satan and his evil tricks. Choose a piece of armor that you need to put on today, and ask God to help you put that piece of armor on to stand strong for God!
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ACTION POINT:
Because God is All-Powerful (Biggest and Strongest), I will ____________.
(Note: Fill in the blank by sharing a specific action point.)