Rotation.org Writing Team

DEBORAH

PUPPETRY

PASSAGE

Bible Story: Judges 4:1–5:31

Key/Memory Verse: Judges 5:31

PURPOSE

The children will use LEGO® bricks to create manipulatives to retell the story of Deborah as Object Theater. They will consider the actions of the characters in the story based on their obedience to and trust in God and will extrapolate this to making judgments about their own choices.

Objective(s) for rotation

At the end of this lesson, participants will be able to:

Locate the story in the Bible; identify the book of Judges as an Old Testament book of history.

Recognize the characters in the story and know something about them -- Deborah: a judge, obedient to God, confident in her faith; Barak: military leader summoned by Deborah; Sisera: enemy general; Jael: a woman who hid Sisera but then killed him.

Explain the role and meaning of a judge in Old Testament times.

Examine the cyclical structure of the background to this story: people go astray, there is suffering, the people ask God for help, God sends a judge who delivers, then the deliverer dies -- and the cycle begins again. Discover a foreshadowing of the need for a leader who wouldn’t die – Jesus.

Judge the actions of the characters in the story based on their obedience to God; extrapolate this to making judgments about our own choices.

Additional objectives for puppetry workshop

At the end of this lesson, participants will be able to:

Retell the story in order.

Remember that all the credit for all the wonderful deeds was given to the Lord.

Realize that they, too, must put their trust in the Lord for aid in battles small and large.

PREPARATION

Read the Bible Background. This is a complex story with many different characters; take time to understand who is who.

Materials List

• Bags, zipper or lunch bags - one for each group of 4
  
• Digital camera and printer [Optional]
  
• DUPLO® bricks (the larger, preschooler-sized LEGO bricks) [Optional]
  
• LEGO® bricks - assorted sizes, shapes, and colors including people (if Mini Figures are not available, the children can make simple figures from bricks and add paper faces or leave them faceless)
  
• Markers, permanent and washable
  
• Masking tape [Optional]
  
• Poster board
  
• Table (to be used as puppet stage)
  
• Whiteboard or newsprint flipchart
  

Advance Preparation Requirements

Look at the Brick Testament version of the story (//www.thebricktestament.com/judges/massacre_of_the_canaanites/jg04_01.html) to see how a Bible story can be told with LEGO bricks. However, do not show the children the pictures, as it would stifle their creativity. They would try to copy what was done rather than create their own retellings.

Note the copyright restrictions for use of the Brick Testament and make sure you comply: http://www.thebricktestament.com/churches/index.html.

Prepare bricks for the memory verse game. Use DUPLO bricks if possible (they are the preschooler-sized bricks and are larger and easier to fit words on). Write one word of the memory verse plus the citation on 31 bricks for each set, and put each memory verse set in a separate bag. (If you borrowed the bricks and don’t want to write on them using permanent marker, put a piece of masking tape on each brick and write the word on the tape.) Make one set of memory verse bricks for every four children.

Write the memory verse on a piece of poster board and hang it in the room.

PRESENTATION

Open – Introduction

Welcome the children and open with prayer.

Share background information on the judges as leaders in Israel, especially in the early weeks of the rotation.

Before reading the Scripture, list the names of all of the major characters on the flipchart or whiteboard. Share a synopsis of the story with the children, and as you mention each name, write (or have the assistant teacher write) one or two words next to his or her name to help the children keep straight who is who. For example, “Deborah - judge, prophet of God” and “Sisera - Canaanite (enemy) army leader.”

Have the children open their Bibles to the Old Testament and find Judges. Explain that it is the second book of History after the five books of Moses/Law. Read the Scripture: Judges 4.

Review the story. Ask questions such as:

Who had a more powerful army? What did they have? [Chariots]
Who won the battle? Why? What advantage did they have? [The Lord was on their side]
What part did Deborah play in the battle?
What part did Jael play in the battle?

Have the children list the key scenes in order. Write this outline on the whiteboard or flipchart so that all can see it as they work on their presentations. Make sure the list of characters is also visible.

Dig - Main Content

Explain that a puppet does not have to be something made from fabric that you put your hand inside to move and retell the story. Tell the children that they will be using LEGO bricks to build the characters (and also scenery and props, if time permits) from the story. They will use them to retell the story of Deborah, Barak, Sisera, and Jael for the class. Identify or provide the LEGO bricks that they may use for their skits. Tell the class how much time they have, and remind them that they will need to use part of that time to practice retelling the story with their creations. If the class is large, divide the children into groups of 4 or 5 and have each group create figures and retell the story.

At the end of the allotted time, have each group present the story to the rest of the class. Appreciate the differences and creativity in each group’s retelling.

If time permits, you may wish to take pictures of each scene and allow the children to make posters or a booklet with captions explaining the action.

Reflect – Closure

Tell the class that you will read Psalm 20:7 to them and that you would like them to reflect quietly on it before you discuss the story: “Some take pride in chariots, and some in horses, but our pride is in the name of the Lord our God.” (NRSV)

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

I wonder why Barak wanted Deborah to accompany him into the battle?
I wonder why Sisera trusted Jael?
I wonder why Jael killed Sisera?
How could the small Israelite army defeat a large army with chariots?
I wonder how the Israelites felt before going into battle?
When do you feel outnumbered or overpowered? What can you do?
What did Barak and Deborah do immediately after the battle? (If the class has not been in a workshop that focused on Judges 5, take time to read Judges 5:1-3, 31 now.)

MEMORY VERSE REVIEW

Read the verse together from the poster, and then put the poster where the children cannot see it.

Divide the class into groups of four and give each group a bag with the memory verse bricks. Have each group sort the bricks and build a tower with the verse in order, with “So” on the top brick and “31" (the verse number) on the bottom brick. If after a few minutes of working on the sorting, the children are having trouble, show them the poster with the verse. Read the verse together and congratulate all on a job well done. If time permits, have them take their towers apart and see if they can rebuild them in order more quickly.

PRAYER

Close with a prayer/benediction from Psalm 20 (NIrV).

May the Lord answer you when you are in trouble. May the God of Jacob keep you safe. May he send you help from the sacred tent. May he give you aid from Zion. May he remember all of your sacrifices. May he accept your burnt offerings. May he give you what your heart longs for. May he make all of your plans succeed. We will shout with joy when you win the battle. We will lift up our flags in the name of our God. May the Lord give you everything you ask for.

Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed king. He answers him from his holy heaven. The power of God's right hand saves the king. Some trust in chariots. Some trust in horses. But we trust in the Lord our God. They are brought to their knees and fall down. But we get up and stand firm. Lord, save the king! Answer us when we call out to you! Amen.

ADDITIONAL SUGGESTIONS
Adaptations - Younger Children

Shorten the memory verse to the middle section only: “But may your friends be like the sun as it rises in its might.”

Have each group use LEGO bricks to create just one or two assigned scenes from the story (so that the class as a whole presents the entire story).

Adaptations - Older Children

Barak seemed to not immediately and wholeheartedly obey God when Deborah told him what the LORD commanded. Journal or discuss:

Times I obeyed God.
Times I wish I had obeyed God.

SOURCES

The Brick Testament:http: http://www.thebricktestament.com/index.html (Deborah’s story may be found at //www.thebricktestament.com/judges/massacre_of_the_canaanites/jg04_01.html)

NIrV: Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, New International Reader's Version®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

CONTRIBUTOR: Amy Crane