Where in the World?

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July 17th, 2016 .:. .:. Room 301

Pathways Kids Weekend Small Groups

This curriculum is for the 6, 7 and 8 year olds

This Weeks Scope

Signed, Sealed, Forgiven

Bible Story: Signed, Sealed, Forgiven (Forgiveness principle) Ephesians 4:32
Bottom Line: The story of Jesus changes how I forgive others.
Memory Verse: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith --and this is not from yourselves,
it is the gift of God. Ephesians 2:8, NIV
Life App: Faithbelieving what Jesus did can change me.
Basic Truth: I should treat others the way I want to be treated.

Welcome Time & Bible Story

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 that your kids would start to understand what it means to forgive others as a
response to what Christ has done for them. Ask God to give you wisdom to bring these huge concepts
down to their level so they might experience a change in their relationships.
Ask and discuss this with your kids:
Do you know who Paul is? He was one of the writers of the Bible. He was in prison and wrote letters
that are in the Bible. One of these letters is Ephesians. Do you know where Ephesians is in the Bible?
(You can point it out to the kids). Paul wanted to help believers learn more about God and how He
wants us to live.
Read Ephesians 4:32 to your kids: Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other,
just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:32 NIV
Ask your kids what they think this means. The believersof all peopleneeded to forgive each other
What does forgiveness look like when you know the story of Jesus? Is there someone you need to
forgive? Help them remember the theme of forgiveness for small group.

Activity #1
What You Need: markers and paper
What You Do:
Encourage kids to name times they might need to forgive others. (When a sibling takes the last
cookie or favorite snack; when a parent or aunt/uncle forgets to come to your game; when a
friend doesnt want to play with you.)
Distribute the markers/paper and lead kids to draw how they feel in those situations. Kids can
express their emotions with realistic drawings, emoji-like symbols, or even unintelligible
scribbles. Expression trumps form!
Next, ask kids to tell ways they could show forgiveness to the people who hurt their feelings or
made them mad. (Say, I forgive you; give a hug; say, Thats OK; pray for the person; do or
say something nice for the person.)
Finally, guide kids to draw large hearts over their drawings. Use the conversation below as a
guide to correlate the heart with forgiveness.
What You Say:
Since God showed His incredible kindness and love to us by forgiving us because of what Jesus did,
we can show Gods kindness and love to others by forgiving them, too. Forgiveness is choosing to love
others even when they hurt us. And when we choose to love others with Gods love, His love helps
cover over the hurt and sadness and anger we feel, just like the hearts you drew covered over the
things that hurt you.
Is it always easy to forgive others? No, its not. But [Bottom Line] the story of Jesus changes how I
forgive others. Since God showed His kindness and love to me by forgiving me because of what
Jesus did, I can show His kindness and love to others by forgiving them, too.

Activity #2
What You Need: Bible marked at Ephesians 2, timer on phone
What You Do:
Lead the kids in a few impossible Minute to Win It-style challenges. Give kids 30 seconds to:
o Stand by a wall and jump to touch a mark placed well beyond reach
o Stand and jump to a mark 10 feet away
What You Say:
Was it possible to do the challenges I gave you? (No!) Just like the challenges I gave you were
impossible to do, its IMPOSSIBLE for us to do ANYTHING to earn Gods forgiveness and salvation.
(Open your Bible to Ephesians 2.) Ephesians 2:8 tells us that For it is by grace you have been saved,
through faith --and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. Ephesians 2:8, NIV
So where DOES our salvation come from? (Pause.) Yes, our salvation comes from Jesus. Jesus loves
us SO much that He died on the cross to take the punishment for our sins. When we believe in Jesus
and ask Him to forgive us for the things we do that hurt Him or make Him sad, He will. And when God
forgives us through Jesus, we have Gods promise that we will live forever with Him.

Prayer
Opposites

Time

What You Need: No supplies needed

What You Do:
Remind the kids of todays Bottom Line: [Bottom Line] The story of Jesus changes how I
forgive others.
Explain that God forgives us all the time. Since He is our example, we should do our best to
forgive others all the time, too.
Ask the kids to think of one person they need to forgive. It may be a family member or a friend
who treated them unfairly or said something hurtful.
[Make It Personal] (Tell kids an age-appropriate story about a time when you had to
forgive someone. How did you feel before you forgave them? How did you feel
afterward?)
Tell the kids youre going to lead them in a prayer, and they can just pray silently by repeating
your words and adding their own details.
What You Say:
Dear God, thank You for forgiving me and helping me learn how to forgive others. (Pause.) I know You
want me to forgive like You forgive me. (Pause.) Sometimes thats hard, especially when Im angry, but
I want to follow your example. (Pause.) Help me to forgive the person Im thinking of right now. (Pause.)
In Jesus name, amen.
Lead your kids to large group.