Where in the World?

July 3rd, 2016 .:. .:. Room 301

Pathways Kids Weekend Small Groups

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This curriculum is for the 9, 10, 11 and 12 year olds.

This Weeks Scope

Bible Story: Gentiles on My Mind (Jerusalem Council) Acts 15:1-35
Bottom Line: The story of Jesus is for everybody.
Memory Verse: Gods grace has saved you because of your faith in Christ. Your salvation doesnt
come from anything you do. It is Gods gift. Ephesians 2:8, NIrV
Life App: Faithbelieving what Jesus did can change me.
Basic Truth: I can trust God no matter what.

Welcome Time
Welcome kids and spend time engaging in conversation and catching up. Get ready to experience
todays story.
Before kids arrive, pray for each regular attendee by name. Pray for those who might visit your group
for the first time. Pray for the kids who dont have a personal relationship with Jesus yet. Ask God to
plant seeds in their hearts through todays story and message. Pray for the kids who already have a
relationship with Christ; pray that they would be an encouragement to those around them who dont yet
know Jesus.
What You Need: candy
What You Do:
Tell the kids you have a gift to give them.
Give out the treats, but make them conditional. Only people who can whistle or speak French or
who floss twice a day can have a gift. Offer a few gifts to kids who happen to match the criteria.
What You Say:
That didnt seem fair at all! When someone gives you a gift, what should you have to do to get it?
(Pause.) Nothing! Thats right; you just accept the gift. Gifts are given, not earned. (Give all the kids a
treat regardless of your previous conditions.)

Activity #1
4/5/6 Challenge
What You Do:
Tell kids youre going to list some places they typically go during the week.
Point to the far left of your area and say, If you think the place should have no rules, you will go
and stand over there.
Point to the far right of your area and say, If you think the place should have have lots of rules,
you will go stand on this side.
Point to the middle of your area and say, If you think this place should have a balance or a few
rules, then you will stand here in the center.
To start the game, ask kids, How many rules do you think HOME should have? Go and stand to
show me your answer.
Once they have had a chance to move, ask for a spokesperson for the group to share why the
people standing in that spot think this is true.
Repeat for all three options: no rules, some rules, and lots of rules.
Then ask about other places such as: school, outside (at playground or on sports fields), and
church.
If time allows, take suggestions on other places.
Ask kids if people tend to like places with a lot of rules or places with just enough rules.
What You Say:
Why are we talking so much about rules? In our Bible story this week, the Jewish believers followed a
very specific set of moral rules and they wanted everyone who believed in Jesus to follow those rules.
But believers in other places, who had not been Jewish, had different rules that they followed. Who
could make the call on which rules were necessary so it wasnt overwhelming and didnt turn people off
to Jesus? When Paul and the Jerusalem council prayed and talked it became very clear to them that
the rules werent the most important thing about following Jesus; Jesus Himself is the most important
thing. Jesus is the most important part of any of our lives and thats why [Bottom Line] the story of
Jesus is for everybody.

Activity #2
What You Need: Find a Friend Activity Pages; 1 for each kid, pencils, timer on phone (optional)
What You Do:
Give each kid an Activity Page and a pencil or marker.
Set a timer (optional) and let kids find friends to sign their page for each category.
Circle up for discussion.
4/5/6 Challenge
What You Need: Blank Find a Friend Activity Pages; 1 for each kid, pencils, timer (optional)
What You Do:
Hand out blank Activity Pages and pencils and encourage students to each fill in their own with
possible categories before going on a hunt to find people.
Brainstorm a couple options with them and show the original Find a Friend Activity Page to
help them get started.
Do the activity as described above.
What You Say:
We all have a lot of differences. This sheet covers a lot of categories! But were all here because of
Jesus. We all come to church, usually with our families and friends, because someone somewhere
invited a person that you know to become part of the story of Jesus. None of us is the exact same; we
eat different things, learn different things, watch different things, and have different experiences in
school and at home. When you see someone at school or in your community who is different than you,
you can remember you already have something in common with them. Just like you, God loves them;
and just like you, Jesus came to rescue them. It can be hard to make friends with people who are
different than youpeople who think differently about food and activities and ideas and clothes and
entertainment. But its important to remember [Bottom Line] the story of Jesus is for everybody.

Prayer Time

Opposites
4/5/6 Challenge:
What You Need: paper, pens
What You Do:
Allow kids to ask questions about things theyre pondering; is there anything theyre now
thinking about because of what youve been talking about this summer at church?
Hand out the paper and pens and tell kids they can write their questions on the cards.
Encourage kids to spread out as much as possible or to turn their bodies to get some privacy.
Remind them that questions are good and God can handle any question we have.
Tell them if you dont know the answers to their questions, you will ask around.
Assure them that they dont need to write their name on the card, if they dont want anyone else
to know what their questions are.
Give kids a few minutes to write their questions. Instruct them to fold the paper in half before
handing them to you.
You could skim through the questions and see if youre prepared to answer any now or if you
need more time to process and talk to your leader about how to handle.
Note: Dont panic if your kids dont ask a lot of questions or if they ask really heavy/deep
questions you cant answer! Both scenarios are very plausible at this age. They might not be
struggling with their faith or theology right now. Or they might be asking about really deep stuff.
Dont pretend to have all the answers. You create authenticity by allowing them to see that you
dont know everything. If you create a place for kids to safely express their questions you will
gain a lot of trust!
If you lead mostly older kids, consider asking these discussion questions:
Have you ever been worried about not being good enough for God? What does this verse say
about that? How is that different from other relationships?
If you can say, [Bottom Line] The story of Jesus is for everybody, that means you can say,
The story of Jesus is for me. What does that mean to you? (This may be a good time to
explore the topic of salvation. Be sensitive to kids who want to talk more about this and follow
whatever procedure your church has for salvation in kids ministry. If you know your kids
parents are believers and would want to lead their kids in a salvation moment, take care to
encourage those kids to talk with their parents today.)

Pray and Large Group

What You Do:
Gather the group in a circle and review the Bottom Line.
Tell them that during the prayer, youll cue them to say the Bottom Line with you as part of the
prayer.
What You Say:
Dear God, thank You for sending Jesus and for listening to us. This week, when we see people who
are different, help us to remember [Bottom Line] the story of Jesus is for everybody. When we
meet kids at school who learn differently, help us to show them by our kindness that [Bottom Line] the
story of Jesus is for everybody. When we notice people who seem alone in our community, help us
find ways to include them and show them that [Bottom Line] the story of Jesus is for everybody.
When our friends or siblings do things that we dont understand, give us patience to remember that

[Bottom Line] the story of Jesus is for everybody. When we feel like were not good enough,
encourage us with the truth that [Bottom Line] the story of Jesus is for everybodyeven us. Thank
You for the grace Youve given through Jesus for everyone. Amen.