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Dec. 02, 2018 The Lord Will Provide

Luke 1:26–55 (Mary)

Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come to his people and redeemed them.

Luke 1:68

DATE PONDER POINT

THE BIG GOD STORY REMEMBER VERSE

Welcome and Worship (15 minutes)

Begins class creating an inviting atmosphere for kids to feel welcome and engage kids in worship through singing and communion.

The Big God Story (18 minutes)

Creates space for children to hear God’s word and prepare respond to the Holy Spirit in small groups

Small Groups (20 minutes)

Kids will build relationships with each other and their leaders, and respond to what they learned in the Big God Story as well as how to apply it to their lives

Bless & Dismiss (4 minutes)

Bless kids to send them out with a sense of peace so they can be a blessing to others.

• The large group room will be divided into three sections. Please help kids find which section they should sit in according to their grade: 1st-2nd, 3rd-4th & 5th-6th.

• Toward the end of small group time, A/V Tech will play the 2 minute warning sound followed by a song. During or immediately following the song please regroup in the large group meeting space (not before).

• 5th & 6th graders can go directly to Snack Shack after small group time, rather than regrouping in the large group space.

Host Administrative To Do’s: • Make sure no group is too large • Make sure each group has enough supplies • Close curtains and divider wall for small groups

at 9:00 and 10:15 (and re-open after 9:00) • Cue the tech when to play the 2 minute warning

with song. • Call names for dismissal after blessing

SCHEDULE Large Group

Small Group

2 Min Warn.

Regroup/Dismiss 5th-6th

1st Service (9:00) 9:00 9:33 9:53 10:00

2nd Service (10:15) 10:15 10:48 11:08 11:15

3rd Service (11:30) 11:30 12:03 12:23 12:30

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GOAL: Worship & welcome is all about engaging kids and helping them enter into worship, letting

them know that class has begun preparing their minds for what they are going to hear.

WELCOME (Host):

Stage Lights On VIDEO LOOPS: Welcome Loop, 5 Min Countdown, Welcome Image

We are so glad you are here today. Welcome the kids in your own words then say the following

to the kids: Let’s all stand and hear God’s word and sing our praise to Him…

OPENING WORSHIP SONG (Worship Leader):

Turn out main overhead lights REMEMBER VERSE VIDEO

WORSHIP VIDEO 1: Emmanuel

WORSHIP VIDEO 2: Oh What a Glorious Night

(Direct kids to get with their groups and circle up with their small group leader before sitting down)

SMALL GROUP CONNECT IMAGE

CONNECT QUESTIONS (Host): 4 MINUTE COUNTDOWN VIDEO

• What is one thing you use every day? (examples: shoes, toothbrush)

• What is one thing you find hard to believe?

• What is one of your favorite Christmas traditions?

TIMELINE VIDEO

(Storyteller)

The Big God Story: Point out that what kids are about to hear is true and is recorded in the Bi-

ble. Open your Bible to the passage and leave it open and visible throughout The Big God Sto-

ry. Invite kids to open their Bibles and follow along as you storytell. Children respond to what the

Holy Spirit is teaching them as they reflect on the day’s portion of The Big God Story.

The Prayer of Release: This allows children and leaders to pause, be still, and ask God to quiet

their hearts and minds. Before you pray, you might ask the kids to hold out their hands, palms

up, in a spirit of releasing their worries and distractions in order to better receive what the Holy

Spirit might have for them today. Then encourage the kids to quiet their voices, take a seat, and

pray with you.

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The Big God Story:

Big God Story Images

Storyteller Script

God is our provider. He provides for us because He loves us very much! Long ago in The Big God Story, God promised He would send His Son, Jesus, into the world to be our Savior, Redeemer, and King. Before we go further, let’s ask God to teach us more about Him today. Lead children in a Prayer of Release to pause, be still, and ask the Holy Spirit to quiet their hearts and minds.

After 400 years of waiting, God spoke through an angel to a priest named Zechariah. God told Zechariah that he and his wife, Elizabeth, would have a son. Their son, John (also known as John the Baptist), would prepare the way for Jesus, the promised Redeemer. And by announcing the birth of John, God showed that His promise to provide the Redeemer was coming true!

Not long after Zechariah saw an angel, a messenger angel told a young woman she would have a baby. This part of The Big God Story starts in Luke 1:26. Have children open their Bibles to Luke 1:26. It begins with a young woman named Mary. Mary was a teenager when she was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph. One day God sent an angel named Gabriel to speak to Mary. Gabriel said to her … Tech: Cue Luke 1:28 image. “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you” (Luke 1:28). Wow! An angel gave this amazing greeting to Mary! Think about what that must have been like for her?

Well, when the angel spoke to Mary, she felt afraid. Why would an angel visit her of all people? So the angel said to her … Tech: Cue Luke 1:30–33 image. “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will … give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David … his kingdom will never end” (vv. 30–33).

Do you remember talking last week about how God prepared the way for His Son, Jesus, to be born and that God told His people He would give them a king? Invite responses. Through Mary, God kept His promise to provide the Redeemer and King! From the very beginning of The Big God Story, when sin entered the world in the garden of Eden, God promised He would send the Redeemer to rescue His people and bring them back into relationship with Him. Mary was going to be the mother of the Redeemer!

Mary wondered how this could happen. How would God provide this? So the angel told her that the Holy Spirit would make it possible, and it would be a miracle! Gabriel also told Mary that her cousin, Elizabeth, who was thought to be too old to have a child, would also have a baby! The angel said to Mary … Tech: Cue Luke 1:37 image. “For no word from God will ever fail” (Luke 1:37). Nothing from God fails because God always keeps His word. He is always able to provide for His people.

Tech: Cue Luke 1:38 image. “‘I am the Lord’s servant,’ Mary answered. ‘May your word to me be fulfilled.’ Then the angel left her” (Luke 1:38). Mary was willing to do whatever God called her to

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do. She trusted the Lord would provide for her and for His people in this time.

Then, Mary went to Elizabeth’s house to tell her the good news. As soon as Mary entered Elizabeth’s home and said hello, the baby inside Elizabeth leaped. Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, said … Tech: Cue Luke 1:42, 45 image. “In a loud voice she exclaimed: ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear … Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!’” (vv. 42, 45). Elizabeth instantly recognized that God was with Mary.

After Mary met with Elizabeth, she sang praises to God. Mary praised God for allowing her to carry the Messiah. She praised Him for His work throughout all of history. The Lord kept His promises and provided for His people.

God loved His people so much that He wanted to send them the Redeemer and bring them back into a restored relationship with Him. Because of God’s great love for His people, He provided Jesus as a King and Redeemer to save us from our sins and rule over us, and He provided what Mary needed to be Jesus’ mother. The story of Jesus is just beginning. Share a personal story about how you’ve experienced the Lord as provider in your own life.

Tell the kids we are going to close the Big God Story by worshipping him. Ask the kids to wait until they are asked to come forward to take communion.

WORSHIP VIDEO 3: The First Noel

After a time of worshipping have kids come and take communion if they have been baptized, and bring their offering.

Fade out song slowly at Worship Leader’s prompting.

(As the song comes to a close Worship Leader tells groups to head to their small group space. Say something like, “Let’s continue responding to what God is teaching us as we dismiss to our small groups. Please follow your small group leader at this time.”)

IMAGE: It’s time for small groups

Turn main overhead lights on

Dismiss for small groups—refer to map for small group locations

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At the end of small groups...

Tech cue: 2 minute warning with exit song, using ceiling speakers, at the host’s prompting

Turn speakers back to wall speakers for blessing, closing song and dismissal.

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GOAL: Kids build relationships with each other and their leader as they respond to what they heard

in the Big God Story.

COFFEE FILTER ANGELS (for grades 1-2 only)

SUPPLIES • Angel instruction card • Pleated coffee filters (3 per child) • Cotton balls (2 per child) • Ribbon (gold or silver, 12'' per child) • Rubber bands (1 per child) • Chenille wires or plastic gold rings (1 per child) • Scissors • Glue

ENGAGE Today, help the kids create their very own angels out of coffee filters by following the instructions. Talk with them about angels as they create. Ask them: What do you think angels look like? How does the Bible describe angels? As kids work on the angels, you can choose from the discussion questions below to keep the conversation going.

THE LORD WILL PROVIDE DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

(for grades 3-6) ENGAGE

Encourage the kids to open their Bibles and read the suggested passages as you go through the questions.

What do you think it was like for people to hear from God after 400 years of silence?

What did Mary think when the angel Gabriel spoke to her? Luke 1:29

Who was the baby God promised to give Mary? Luke 1:31–33

How did Mary respond when the angel told her she would have a baby? Luke 1:38, 46–55

What are some other times God provided for His people in The Big God Story?

What was the promise about the Redeemer that God made to His people long ago?

Why do you think God provides for His people?

What do you need God to provide for you today?

BLESSINGS Close your small group time reading a final scripture and blessing your kids using the Blessing Card from your supply bin in your cart.

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GOAL: Bless kids to send them out with a sense of peace so they can be a blessing to others.

CLOSING REMARKS/ANNOUNCEMENTS (Host):

Wall Speakers On

TRANSITION ACTIVITIES (HOST):

The videos listed below are 12-13 minutes long. Please play as listed below and feel free to stop the video whenever it’s time to start the next service.

After 9:00 service play - Transition Compilation 1

After 10:15 service play - Transition Compilation 2

DISMISSAL (STORYTELLER):

Call names of kids as parent come to pick up and welcome kids who are being dropped off.

Encourage parents to enter the room and encourage kids and parents to exit out the middle door

(103)

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For a teacher, the last day of the school year is one of satisfying completion. But one year, the last day brought an unwelcome shock. I remember running to grab my purse en route to an ice cream party for my class when the director of the school walked into the classroom and informed me, “Today is your last day.” I was out of a job and had one hour to pack up my entire room.

Afterward, I began to wonder how the Lord would provide. I had no idea God’s plan for my life would involve so many twists and trials. Sometimes God demonstrates His love for us in peculiar ways—He still has our best interests in mind, but the events feel strangely wrong at the time. It wasn’t until I experienced a full year of financial uncertainty, depression, and desperate searching that God made His plans for me clear.

The Lord led me back to my childhood church—back to people who’d showered my life with prayer and blessing for years. He provided a full-time ministry position that allowed me to use all of my specialized training and personal experiences. Through this job, God fulfilled the desires of my heart and honored me with the opportunity to be a blessing to others. Though it was a difficult time in my life, it developed in me an unshakable hope and trust in the fact that God guides and loves me. The Lord will provide.

Ashley Anderson Harbor Trinity Baptist Church

Because of His great love for His people, the Lord provides. From the beginning, God promised to send a Redeemer who would restore peace and conquer sin. After the fall of man, God told the serpent that one day an offspring of a woman would “crush [its] head” (Genesis 3:15).

Throughout the Old Testament, God promised to provide the Redeemer and revealed more details about the Redeemer’s life and ministry. Isaiah described the Messiah as a child who would be the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). In the first few pages of the New Testament, God repeated this promise to Mary.

Mary descended from the line of David, and she was a virgin. God sent the angel Gabriel to tell Mary she’d been chosen to bear a son who would fulfill God’s promises and prophesies. Gabriel told her this son would be the Son of God, who would reign on the throne of David and bring an everlasting kingdom of peace (Luke 1:31–33).

Mary asked one question: “How will this be?” (v. 34). Gabriel’s response: “The Holy Spirit will come on you” (v. 35). This explanation was enough for Mary. In faith, she believed God would keep His promise to provide the Redeemer. When Mary went to her cousin, Elizabeth, to share the news, Elizabeth declared, “Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!” (v. 45).

Throughout The Big God Story, God showed His intent to keep His promise to His people. Through Jesus, God fulfilled His promises to Israel. Through Jesus, God fulfills His promise to us too—He sent us Jesus to redeem us from sin and to bring us into relationship with Him forever. God is able to keep His promises and provide what we need.

Although God doesn’t always do this in the way we would like or in the timing we’d expect, God pro-

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vides for His children in all kinds of ways each day and in every season. How has God been provid-ing for you, your family, and your church lately? As you get ready to minister this truth about God to your kids this week, carve out some time alone (or perhaps with a spouse or close friend) to reflect on God’s provision in your life. Read through Mary’s song of praise in Luke 1:46–55, and then grab a piece of paper and create a poem or psalm of praise of your own, glorifying the Lord for how He has blessed you and cared for your needs.

If you’re like most of us, you probably have unanswered prayers as well … things you are still asking God to provide for you. When you’ve finished your psalm of praise, flip the page over and talk with the Lord about those requests as well. Call upon the God who hears you and cares for you, and then close by rereading your psalm of praise out loud. God has provided in the past, and He will continue to provide again and again.