5/3 Kids + Family Worship Guide

See below for resources to use for your family worship time, including a song, coloring page, learning activities activities, teaching materials and ideas for ongoing family fun. Choose the activities that best suit your family or the amount of time you have. Be blessed!

Supplies:

These will depend on the activities you choose:
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Coloring Page (Bookmark)

"Parts of a Cake" ingredients
Craft supplies for "Stained Glass Cross"
String Cup Telephone supplies
Piece of Paper for "Story of the Cross"

Parent Prep (Scripture Notes)

The story of Jesus’ death of the cross does not seem like a positive experience but when we view it as part of a greater story, we see how amazing it truly was. Not only, does it pay the price for our sin, it redeems those who accept the awesome gift of salvation. It also empowered Jesus’ disciples to go into “all the world” and change the world by telling his story. 

​Romans 8:28 is a beautiful promise: "God causes all things to work together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His good purpose."

The Point

Those who saw Jesus on the cross were still the ones who would often change the world. We are part of that story too! ​

KEY VERSES

​ 46 Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”[e] When he had said this, he breathed his last.  (Luke 23)

To begin your Lesson:

SING:

Use this song to connect with this week's lesson. Also, choose your favorite songs to worship with your kids.

FAMILY ACTIVITIES (Introduce)

​Parts of a cake

Supplies:

Cake Mix, egg, oil, flour, sugar, ​(a finished cake if you do not want to bake one)

Key Point: In good and bad times, God is working it out to have a good result in the end. 
How many of you like to eat cake?
Why? (Possible answers may include:  it's sweet, tastes good, etc.)
Do any of you know what things go into a cake? [Give time for them to guess.]
Then all these things must be good - right?
Would you ever consider eating the ingredients of a cake separately?
A spoon of flour?
A raw egg?
A little oil? [Allow children to taste a little flour, oil or cocoa. Of course...not the raw egg; we sure don't want someone to possibly get sick!]
How did each taste? ...Yuk!
Of course there is sugar too - yum! :) Let each taste a bit of sugar; it will help get the "yucky" taste out.
Lesson: Life can be a lot like a cake!  . Separately there are some bitter times, some raw, hurtful times, and some dry, bland times.
Help them think of some "not-so-good" or tough times they have experienced or others may have experienced.  Share something from your own life too.  Remember your life is a wonderful living example for them!
But there are also the good times! Take a few minutes and have them think of some "good times". 
God is able to blend the good and the bad experiences in our lives together for our good.  All together they create a life that is meaningful, useful, and tasty!
Jesus’ death on the cross was a bitter time. However, God used “part” of the story to work together a wonderful ending.

If you want, use the ingredients to bake a cake with your child! 

Stained Glass Cross

Supplies:

• Black paper
  
• Paper scraps in various colors
  
• Glue
  
• Scissors
  

1)  Cut a cross from black paper.  Using scraps of paper, cut strips.  Your child can cut across the strips to make squares/rectangles.
2)  Glue squares onto the cross for a “stained glass” look.

String cup telephone

 Did God Forget About Jesus When He Was on the Cross?
Theme: God hears us when we cry.
Bible Reference: Mark 15:33-41
Supplies:

• a Bible,
• two disposable cups,
• string,
• scissors,
• and beads or washers.

The Lesson: Before the lesson, make a “telephone” by poking a small hole in the bottom of each cup. Cut one 10-foot length of the string, and thread it through the hole in the bottom of one cup. Tie a washer or bead to the end of the string inside the cup. Repeat this process with the other end of the string and the other cup.
Ask:

• Can you guess what these cups and string are for?

Say: I’ve made something like a telephone with them. Let’s see how it works.
Have each child hold a cup and carefully walk away from each other until the string is taught. Then as one child speaks into one cup, the other holds the cup to listen through it. Have volunteers take turns talking and listening.
Ask:

• Did my telephone always work?
• Could you always hear your partner?
• What made it easier or harder to hear the other person? 

Say: This phone may not have worked perfectly, but there is one type of communication that always works. There is one special “call” we can make that will always be heard—our prayers!

While Jesus was on the cross, he cried out to God. Read Mark 15:34 aloud. God heard Jesus’ prayer but didn’t take Jesus down from the cross and save him from death. Instead, he gave Jesus the strength to finish his task.
Ask:

• Have you ever cried out to God? Why?
• Did you hear or see God’s answer? 

Say: Sometimes God changes our problems so they’re not problems anymore, and sometimes he gives us the strength to make it through the problems. We can never be sure how God will answer our prayers. But one thing is for certain, God always hears us when we cry out to him! God heard Jesus and he hears us, too.

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TEACH

Use this video to share the story of Jesus on the cross OR read Luke 23:44-49.

Use Lesson 2 from this series to dig deeper into the story, memorize a verse, and explore a visual overview of Jesus' time on the cross. 

Jesus' Last Hours

MAKE IT PERSONAL

It seems like a really sad story, but its one of the greatest stories of all!  Jesus died knowing that you (--put in the children's names) would do things wrong (that is what a sin is) -- things that you're not supposed to -- not obeying your parents, saying something mean to your sister or brother, or not telling the truth.  He knew what you would do when He died so many years ago.  Jesus died for everybody's sins, so now when we ask God to forgive us, and we are truly sorry for what we've done, He will act like it never happened.  That's right He forgets what we did!  Now that doesn't mean we should ever make the same mistake again, because by doing that it's like we're hurting Jesus all over again.
So, next time you do something you're not supposed to, remember to say sorry to Jesus, and remember what He did for you! He has a plan especially for you.

FAMILY ACTIVITIES (REINFORCE)

Use this activity to reinforce the importance of today's lesson for all parts of life. 

Story of the Cross

See you all next week. Be Blessed!