To remember that Jesus is our hope for eternal life.
Objectives for rotation
See Bible background.
Objectives for Prayer/Worship Workshop
Children will learn that:
Jesus is always with us Jesus was human, had friends, and felt sadness Jesus demonstrated his power over death God was glorified
Additional objective:
Children will learn how to pray through the Scriptures in a responsive prayer
PREPARATION
Read Bible background.
Materials List
Bibles Candle, battery-operated or electric Cassette tape or compact disk of hymns [Optional] Cassette tape or compact disk player Markers or chalk Newsprint or chalkboard
Advance Preparation Set up the worship space. Place the battery-operated or electric "candle" on a table in the front of the room. Set up the newsprint or chalkboard near the front. At the top, write out the response to the litany. You may also want to write out the memory verse.
Litany response:
Don't be afraid, my love is stronger, My love is stronger than your fear. Don't be afraid, my love is stronger, And I have promised to be always near.
PRESENTATION
Open – Introduction
As the children arrive, have a recording of hymns playing quietly in the background. When the participants have been seated, turn on the candle.
Ask: Do you ever think about the future? Some people do. They use cards or fortunetellers to try to find out what will happen to them. Is this a smart thing to do? Do you think it works?
Dig – Main Content
Explain that we can't predict everything, but there is one thing we can be sure of: God loves us, and is always with us. Let's name some feelings associated with these everyday events:
When a friend comes to visit When someone we love dies When we make a new friend When we expected someone to come, but they didn't When we need a friend.
Write their responses on the newsprint. These will be used in the responsive prayer at the end.
Distribute Bibles. Say: Today we will read a story about Jesus' friends - Lazarus and his sisters Mary and Martha. Turn in your Bible to the book of John, chapter 11. This is a long story, and a lot of things happen, so we'll break it down.
Read or paraphrase John 11:1-16. Ask:
What happened in this part of the story? Why did Jesus stay away?
Read verses 17-37. Ask:
How long has Lazarus been dead? Who came to Jesus first? What did she say to him? What was Jesus' response?
This is a good time to reinforce the memory verse.
Read verses 38-44. Ask:
What happened to Lazarus? What might you have felt if you had been there?
This was an amazing story! We are now going to create a responsive prayer using the list we made earlier. You may also add responses from the Bible reading.
To do the responsive prayer, divide the group in half. Have one half name an everyday situation, for example, "I was sad when my grandparent died." The other half will answer with the litany response printed on the newsprint, "Don't be afraid …"
Some variations could include:
one person could read the list and the entire group does the response;
several children take turns saying the first part of the prayer, then the entire group responds. For example, a girl might say, "Lord, if you had been here my brother would not have died." Then the entire group responds with the "Don't be afraid" part.
When the prayer is finished, have the children sit quietly for a few minutes in reflection, then say "Amen."
ADDITIONAL SUGGESTIONS
Adaptations -- Younger Children
Show them where the book of John is and paraphrase the story.
Adaptations – Older Children
For Older children, it might be good to explore deeper feelings with them.
SOURCES
Prayer adapted from "Come All You People - Shorter Songs for Worship" by the Wild Goose Worship Group, 1995 WGRG, Iona Community. Published and distributed in North America exclusively by GIA Publications, Inc. Chicago, IL.
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