28 Desember 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Carrie

Asst 1 : Jemima

Asst 2 : Awan

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Sianty & Dewi

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches : Tjipto S.

Thank You Jesus

1. LESSON: Thank you Jesus

• We’ve come to the end of 2014 ! There are many things that has happened in this year. And when we look back, there are many things we can thank God for. Maybe it’s the presents we got for Christmas. Or maybe it’s how He helped you in school. Or the holidays you went on. Or your parents who took care of you.
• Why and how do we give thanks to God?

• God is the Source of all our Blessings
  • James 1:17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights …
  • God wants us to have good things. He wants us to have fun, be happy and enjoy life through small and big blessings. All these come from Him — every good thing in our lives. They are gifts given with the Father’s love.
  • And most importantly, above all, He gave us new life in Jesus, who came to give His life on the cross for us. If He has given us the biggest and the best gift, would He withhold any good thing from us? (Romans 8:32)
  
  
• Our response is Thanksgiving
  • When we know that everything we have comes from God, our natural response is to say “Thank you!” Not just once a year but every day!
  • We are all blessed in many ways. Counting our blessings help us to be filled with gratitude. We don’t need to complain and compare when others have something we don’t have. We have direct access to the Giver of everything. So we look to Him instead of being sad or upset that others have more than we have.
  • We can give thanks even when things are not going so well (1 Thess 5:18). Because we know God is always working everything out for good for us (Rom 8:28).
  • Our thanksgiving can also overflow to bless others around us. We are blessed to be a blessing. There are so many others who are less fortunate than us. We can share the love of God to them also!
  
  
• Memory Verse: Psalm 107:1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.

2. ACTIVITY SUGGESTIONS

• Get kids to think and write down something they are thankful for this year. Encourage different ones to share what they’ve written.
• Open the Thanksgiving Box and distribute the thanksgiving notes they’ve written. Get them to stick them on coloured A4 paper as a record of what God has blessed them with this past year.

• Younger classes may need more guidance/help, e.g.:
  • Song: To the tune of “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.”
    (Have them repeat line by line with actions, then slowly combine the lines together.)I know God loves me every day (Hug self)
    God shows me in many ways (arms extended, separated lightly, palms up)
    My family and the friends I meet (hands over heart)
    And the good food that I eat. (Touch lips)
    God’s good blessings with me stay. (arms raised, palms open)
    I know God loves me every day (hug self)
  • Rhyme:
    (Ask kids to pat their knees in rhythm. Tell them they’re going to pat a prayer to a one-two beat. Ask the kids to repeat each line after you say it. Keep the rhythm going throughout the prayer)Thank you God,
    For these gifts:
    Food,
    Families,
    Friends,
    Our beatiful earth,
    Us,
    Jesus,
    He sure loves us,
    He calls us friends.
    Amen!

21 Desember 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Dewi

Asst 1 : Jemimah

Asst 2 : Kasey

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Iwan & Shevica

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches :  Savitri (Asst. Miguel)

14 Desember 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Junita

Asst 1 : Laila

Asst 2 : Felianti

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Lily Bun (Asst. Santi)

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches : Lusiana (Asst. Theresia)

JESUS God with us

1. HOOK: Save the Ants!

• (Show toy ant or picture of ant) Let’s say that for some strange reason, you really loved ants with all your heart. Let’s say that there was an ant colony near your house. You were careful not to step on those ants, and you would even leave food out for them. Let’s say that you loved each individual ant and wished that they could know that you loved them.One day, as the ants are venturing out in a line to forage for food, you notice that they are heading directly into a large pool of water, left behind by the thunderstorm. That would mean death for the ants! They would drown!How would you warn them? How in the world could you talk to an ant? (Let children offer their ideas.)Even if you waved your hands wildly, even if you got down on your belly and tried to look a teeny ant in the eye, you couldn’t make the ant understand.
  The only way that you’re going to get through to those ants, is to become an ant yourself. Can you imagine being an ant? Especially a very tiny one? It would be a dangerous experiment. You could get squashed.
  Maybe you would go through all that trouble to become an ant and they wouldn’t even listen to you. The ants that you love might drive you away. You might try to warn them about the pool of water and explain to them that you became an ant so that you could save them. Some might listen to you and others might not. But becoming an ant would be the only way to really communicate.
  A human becoming an ant? What a ridiculous story. But not as farfetched as a story about the Creator of Heaven and Earth becoming a helpless little baby, which is what happened 2,000 years ago, one Christmas day.

2. LESSON: Jesus God with Us (Matthew 1:22-25)

• Matthew 1:22-2522 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will callhim Immanuel”(which means “God with us”). 24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
• In the past few weeks, we learned a few identities of Jesus. The angel Gabriel appeared to Joseph and told him about the baby Mary was carrying. He would be:
  • King
  • Saviour
  • And as we learn today, Emmanuel — God with us!
• All of us were like the ants. We were in danger. What were we in danger of? Death — the punishment for our sin.
• But thankfully, we had Someone who loved us so very much and who wanted us to know how much He loved us. And this Someone wanted not only to warn us of danger but to save us from sin and death.
• Who is this Someone? God! The Almighty Creator and Lord of everything.
• Through the years, God sent people (prophets) to tell His people how much He loved them. But that was not enough. The prophets couldn’t save the people from sin.
• So God had to make Himself as tiny and helpless as a baby, to be born a man, Jesus. He came so that He could talk to us, and tell us how much He loved us, and to give His life for us. He became Emmanuel — God with us!
• Only a perfect man could take our punishment and die for our sins. And only God was perfect. He came to earth, to live a perfect, sinless life, to prove that He qualifies to be the sacrifice for our sins.
• And after He died, He rose again and went to heaven. He sent His Spirit to come to live inside each and every one of us so that every moment, every day, wherever we are, God is with us! We are never alone anymore. He is truly Emmanuel!
• God came to earth at Christmas and that is why we celebrate. Merry Christmas everyone! Dear Lord, thank you for sending your son, Jesus to our earth to show us how very much you love us. And thank you for being with us every moment, every day!

3. Activity Suggestions

• Song: Emmanuel: lyrics | actions | lyric video

7 Desember 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Susan

Asst 1 : Tasya

Asst 2 : Felicia

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Susi Tjio (Asst. Fenny)

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches : Swanky

JESUS Savior

1. HOOK: Lifesavers

• Prepare paper plate lifesaver rings (cut a hole in the middle of the paper plate) for about half the number of children in your class.
  

  

• Divide the kids into 2 groups — each standing on each side of the room. One side is the shore. The other is the ocean.
• Kids standing on the shore hold the lifesavers. And they have to throw the lifesavers like a Frisbee to those in the ocean. Whoever catches the lifsaver gets to be “saved” and come on shore. (practice with the plate to make sure it can fly etc)
• How did the lifesavers help you play the game? <save us and bring us back to shore>
• What’s the importance of lifesavers when you’re swimming? <help you to float and not sink>
• Do you know you have a Life Saver who’s with you every day? <Jesus>
• Jesus is our Life Saver. Our Saviour.

2. LESSON: Jesus Saviour (Matthew 1:18-21)

• Matthew 1:18-2118 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. 20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
• The angel told Joseph to name the baby Jesus. The name Jesus means “God is Salvation”, that means Jesus is the Lord who saves, our Saviour.
• What is a Savior?A savior is a deliver and preserver. For example, if you were sleeping in a burning house, and a fireman comes in and carries you to safety, he is your savior.
• The word “save” comes from “sozo”, which also means to heal, protect and make whole. When Jesus saves us, He doesn’t just save us from our sins but He also makes us whole in every way.
• How can Jesus be our Saviour?
  • The angel told Joseph that Jesus will save His people from their sins. How is that possible?
  • Even though Joseph was his earthly father, Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin — miracle birth. He was both man and God — a human birth through Mary, but divine nature through Holy Spirit.
  • Babies are born to have life. But Jesus was the only baby born to die. His sole aim in coming to earth is to give His life for you and for me.
  • In the Old Covenant, people would bring animals to be sacrificed at the temple for their sins. The animal had to be perfect without any blemish. Jesus was the perfect man … He lived a sinless life, and only He could save us from our sin. (If He had His own sin, He couldn’t pay for our sins; just like if someone can’t swim himself, he cannot save a drowning swimmer).
  • We all have sinned. We have all missed God’s mark of perfection.
  • <can play a simple target shooting game to illustrate, if time permits>
  • We deserve the punishment of death. But in His great love, Jesus, the perfect man, took our place in death and punishment on the cross.
  • But He didn’t stay dead. He rose from the death to show that He had final victory over death and sin. He paid the full price that we couldn’t pay!
• Jesus saves forever!
  • Jesus’ work on the Cross was complete. He cried out, “It is Finished!”
  • Jesus’ death on the Cross paid for ALL our sins — past, present and future. What we did in the past, and what we do today and tomorrow and the years to come.
  • When we accept Jesus, His life and Spirit lives in us. We are a NEW Creation. We are born as a Child of God. And God never, ever lets us go. We are His children FOREVER.
  • This Christmas, let’s remember and celebrate the little baby Jesus that was born to save all of us from our sins and give us new life in Him forever!

3. Activity Suggestions:

• Music Videos:
  • Jesus called Him Jesus 
  • Jesus the Saviour is Born 
  • Mary did you know?  (older kids)

30 November 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Carrie

Asst 1 : Junita

Asst 2 : Laila

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Iwan & Shevica

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches : Yungcien

JESUS KING

1. LESSON: Jesus King (Matthew 1:1-17)

• It’s December already!
• We’re entering the Christmas season. Why do we celebrate Christmas? <invite response>
• Christmas comes once a year, and we usually start preparing for it around this time.
• But do you know God prepared for Christmas a long, long time ago? He planned and prepared for the coming of His son, Jesus, into this world even from the very beginning.
• It was not an afterthought, a last-minute decision or a Plan B.
• God always knew that He would have to send His one and only begotten Son to come to give His life to save the world He loves.
• The 1st chapter of Matthew traces Jesus’ lineage from Abraham, to whom God promised to make the Father of many nations and from whom will come a Seed who will bless the whole world. (Gen 12:3)

REVIEW: JESUS’ LINEAGE

• So this Christmas, we can celebrate this King who came to give His life for us so that we can be Princes and Princesses of God!

2. Suggested Activities

• King-related activity/craft

23 November 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Ci Dewi

Asst 1 : Adeline

Asst 2 : Tasya

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Susi Tjio (asst. Fenny)

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches : Tjipto S.

NEW Covenant Family

1. Hook

• Younger kids: Stack ‘em UpGet kids to stack blocks as high as they can.
• Younger kids: Farmyard NoisesPrepare cards with pictures of 3 different farm animals. Tell the kids they have to make the animal sounds and find others in the same “family”.
• Older kids: Human knotEveryone stands in a circle. Put their arms across and grabs the hands of someone else (each hand must be a different person). Then try to untangle themselves.

2. LESSON: New Covenant Family

• What is church? <invite responses>
• Church is not just a group of people coming together every week. It is not an exclusive organisation or country club.
• The church is the body of people who believe in Jesus — they become a big family.

• What did the early church (Jesus’ disciples) do?
  • Acts 2:42-47 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
  • They gathered together to fellowship and listen to the teaching about Jesus; they had Holy Communion and prayed.
  • They shared what they had with those who needed.
  • They praised God.
  • God performed many miracles and brought many to the church who accepted Jesus.
  
  
• Why do we need to be part of this family?
• We are all part of a body
  • Church is a living, growing body with Jesus as the head.
  • All of us are part of this body, and we all have parts to play. (1 Cor 12:12-26)
  • 15 Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
  • Use 1 of these ideas/activities to expand this point
  
  
  • We all need one another
  • In Kyoto, Japan, there is a magnificent bamboo grove, with bamboo trees growing tall, up to 30m, in one season!
  • A bamboo is tall and thin. How does it grow so tall without toppling over?
  • First, all the bamboo trees are connected by a underground network — all its roots are connected to one another, so they hold each other steady underground.
  • Secondly, once it’s reached its full height, they start branching out and their leaves also grow widespread, holding on to each other on the top.
  • So on our own, we cannot stand. We need to support and encourage each other so we can grow strong and tall together.
  
  
  • Jesus holds us all together
  • We’ve learned that Jesus is the head of the body. Without the head, the body cannot function. Have you seen anyone walking around without a head
  • In a building, all the bricks need to “interlock” with each other to be secure(illustrate with Megabloks or Lego pieces). The Bible also tells us that Jesus is the Chief Cornerstone — the main/first stone that is laid so that all the other bricks can be aligned to it. It’s the most important brick in the whole building, because without it, the walls will not be straight.
  
• Conclusion: Jesus came to die on the cross so that we can have a relationship with God the Father. All of us who belong to Jesus can call God Daddy. And on earth, we have a whole family of brothers and sisters who can support and encourage us to grow more and more in Jesus’ love.

16 November 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Junita

Asst 1 : Awan

Asst 2 : Felicia

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Iwan & Shevica

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches :  Savitri (Asst. Miguel)

NEW Covenant Worship

1. LESSON: New Covenant Worship

• What is worship? <invite responses>
• Non-Christians also worship their gods and idols.
• Under the Old Covenant, the Jews also worshipped God.
• But the reasons for worshipping may be out of fear.
• There were also a lot of rules, regulations and procedures. E.g. Do you remember Solomon’s Temple? There were elaborate rituals and sacrifices that had to be made from the outer courts, and only the High Priest could enter the Holy of Holies, where God’s presence was manifest.
• When Jesus came, He wanted to show us a new way to worship God.
• One day, Jesus was resting at a well in Samaria (John 4). A woman came to draw water from the well, and they started talking.The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.”
  21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.
  22 You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.
  23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.
  24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
  25 The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us all things.”
  26 Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”
• The Samaritan woman said that the Jews worship at the temple in Jerusalem, whereas the Samaritans worship on a mountain. But Jesus told her that the time was coming where it didn’t matter where you worshipped God because you could worship Him in spirit and in truth.
• Truth: Jesus is the truth.Spirit: When we have Jesus, His Holy Spirit lives in us.So when we have Jesus, we can worship Him in spirit and in truth. You don’t have to be big or tall before you can worship Jesus. If Jesus lives in you, you can worship Him! He loves it when you do.

• Why do we worship Jesus?
  • The word “worship” = worth-ship; acknowledgment of worth
  • We worship Jesus because He is worthy of worship — His finished work on the Cross. It’s an outflow of thanksgiving from our hearts!
  • Jesus is God
    • Jesus died for us on the cross, taking our sins and punishment
    • Jesus gave us eternal life and His righteousness
    • In Jesus, we have everything! All of God’s blessings.
• How do we worship Jesus?
  • Worship songs: with our voices (sing), talents (music), hands (clapping/raising hands); when we sing, we declare what Jesus has done and tell everyone why He is worthy of worship
  • But more than just singing, we worship Jesus with our Lives:
  • When we allow the Holy Spirit to work in us and transform us from the inside out, our lives reflect Jesus — giving Him all the praise and glory. We worship Jesus when we go to school, when we come home, when we meet with friends etc.
• So the difference between Old Covenant worship and New Covenant worship is:
  • Old Covenant: have to enter from outside and move into the Holy of Holies
  • New Covenant: God’s Spirit dwells in us already. And it flows out from us as we respond to what Jesus has done for us in worship. 

2. Suggested Activities

• Worship: choose 1-2 (age-appropriate) songs. Go through the lyrics with the children to show them how it reflects Jesus’ glory and gives Him worth. And lead them to sing it together. Encourage them to lift their hands/clap/pray in thanksgiving to Jesus.
• Song: I Worship You
• Ask the children to complete the following poem (sung to the rune of “Row Your Boat”), ending with a rhyming word.
  • Jesus, you are good,
    I will worship you.
    ________________,
    ________________.
• Close in prayer

9 November 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Susan

Asst 1 : Felianti

Asst 2 : Jemima

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Lily Bun (Asst. Santi)

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches : Lusiana (Asst. Theresia)

NEW Covenant Prayer

1. HOOK: Sullen Joe

• Choose one kid to be Sullen Joe — must be poker-faced
• Another kid has 30sec to do anything to try to get a response from Sullen Joe (sing, dance, funny faces etc)
  • Without touching
  • From a short distance away
• If unsuccessful, another kid gets to try.

2. LESSON: New Covenant Prayer

• When praying, many people think God is like Sullen Joe. We have to do all sorts of tricks to get His attention. We say, “Please” and beg and cry to get what we want.
• Under the New Covenant, prayer is not begging God. It’s not even like writing a wish list to Santa Claus. It’s a conversation with our Father in Heaven.
• Jesus told this story once:
• Luke 11 5 Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6 a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ 7 And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.
• A common misinterpretation of this story is that we have to be persistent to beg Goduntil He answers.
• This comes from a wrong image/picture of God:
  • God is reluctant to answer
  • God is probably asleep and doesn’t want to get up

• However the truth is:
• God is not a reluctant friend but a Loving Father
  • He is ever ready to hear us and bless us.
  • He is not grumpy; don’t have to be pestered
  • We can go boldly and freely to Him anytime(e.g. son of the President of the USA doesn’t need appointment to see his dad)
  • Knowing God as Father changes the way we pray.

• God has given us all things through Jesus’ Finished Work on the Cross
  • Romans 8:32 He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all—how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?
  • We don’t pray to ask God to do something. We look back to the Cross and claim what Jesus has done for us already! We speak it into our lives and see it come to being.
  • Our prayers move from “Please God” to “Thank you God”. We thank God for what He has done for us.

• New Covenant Prayer:
  • Knowing who our Father is
  • Declaring what Christ has done and expressing our thankfulness

3. Suggested Activities

• Break into groups to share and get kids to pray for their/each other’s various needs.
• Close in prayer