Sunday School Lessons for Kids

Kids, have you done anything that was really hard to do? How about an assignment in school? a test in Math or Science? Do you simply give up? Let's see at a story of Jacob and a lesson about never giving up.

In the last lesson, Jacob just married Leah and Rachel. He worked for another 7 years for Laban and had many children. Afterward, he decided that he wanted to finally take his whole family and possessions and go back to his homeland. At first, they fled from Laban but Laban caught up with them. At the end, they agreed that they would part peacefully.

Jacob wrestles with a man. Wikipedia.

Jacob sent messengers to his brother Esau that he is coming home. When they returned, they told Jacob that Esau is coming with 400 men. In great fear, Jacob divided into groups all the people with him including the flocks, herds and camels and sent them ahead of him. He also sent ahead of him his wives, maid servants and children. So, he was left that night in the camp.

When Jacob as alone, a man wrestled with him until daybreak. Do you know what to wrestle mean? It's like fighting and overpowering another person by holding.

When the man saw that he cannot overpower Jacob, he touched the socket of his hip and it was dislocated. Who do you think is this man that he could do that to Jacob's hip by just touching it?

Though Jacob is now limping, he did not let the man go. So the man said, "Let me go for it is daybreak." Jacob answered, "I will not let you go unless you bless me." The man asked, "What is your name?" He said, "Jacob." The man then said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome."

Jacob called that place "Peniel" because he saw God face to face and yet lived to tell about it. As he went to be with his family, he walked limping.

Read this story in Genesis 32:24-32.

KIDS DISCUSSION

What did Jacob want to do after working for Laban for a very long time?
Do you remember what happened between Jacob and Esau in the past?
Why was Jacob afraid when the messengers returned from Esau?
What did Jacob do to the people with him?
What happened when Jacob was left alone in the camp?
Who is the man Jacob wrestled with?
What happened to Jacob while they were wrestling?
Why is it that Jacob still doesn't want to let the man go?
Did Jacob receive what he wanted? Why? (Jacob knew what he wanted; he did not give up)
What lesson can we learn from this story of Jacob? (We should not give up; God is always there to help)

MEMORY VERSE: Psalm 145:18
The Lord is near to all who call upon Him.

KIDS' ACTIVITY

Coloring page: Jacob Wrestles with God
Jacob Wrestles with God worksheet: This is for bigger kids who know how to read and write.
Can you do this? This is a simple activity that the children can do. Ask them to do some action like: stand on one foot; say his or her name extending the last syllable as long as he or she could; balance a book on the head, etc. The purpose is to show that if they can't do it the first time, if they do not give up and try again, they could do it especially with the help of God.
Name game: Remembering that the angel asked Jacob his name, ask the children what is their name. Then, describe each child and let the children guess the name of the person being described. Example: I am short, with black hair, my father is a fireman, my mother is a nurse. I am ____. You can also do this name game with Bible characters previously learned by the children.

The stories in the whole Bible, including both Old and New Testament stories, is connected to Jesus in some way. As we teach our children the different stories and poems, different characters and different events in the Bible, I hope we could pinpoint them to Jesus. If we could connect Jesus to every story they hear, they would understand how the plan of God unfolds from Genesis to Revelation.

I did not receive a review copy of this book The Gospel Story: Discovering Jesus in the Old and New Testaments, but when I saw the preview pages (embedded below), I thought of sharing this with you. This new beautifully illustrated Bible Story book does what I have mentioned above - connect Jesus to every story. In addition, at the end of every story, the author has put in simple questions for the kids to explore. This is certainly a wonderful resource for every Christian family who wants to teach their kids the Bible at home, for every Sunday School class or Christian school.

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

You never know when I might play a wild card on you!

Today's Wild Card author is:

Marty Machowski

Illustrated by:

A. E. Macha

and the book:

The Gospel Story Bible:

Discovering Jesus in the Old and New Testaments

New Growth Press (December 5, 2011)

***Special thanks to Audra Jennings – The B&B Media Group – for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Marty Machowski is a Family Life Pastor at Covenant Fellowship Church, a Sovereign Grace Ministries church in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania, where he has served on the pastoral staff for twenty-three years. Marty leads Promise Kingdom, the children’s ministry of Covenant Fellowship. He is also the author of Long Story Short: Ten-Minute Devotions to Draw Your Family to God and the forthcoming Gospel Story Sunday school curriculum. He and his wife Lois and their six children reside in West Chester, Pennsylvania.

Visit the author's Facebook Page.

ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR:

I have never been the best at anything. This has given me the freedom to really enjoy alot of things; perfection is not on the line. So my drawing is not clean, my patchwork corners don’t really match up, and my cooking is always an adventure. I was raised by a single mom who has an exhausting amount of creative energy. My brother and I were taught how to create our own entertainment and seek adventure in the everyday.

When I was in Jr High, both my parents remarried and let’s just say things have never been boring. A foster brother, two step sisters, and a half brother were added to the mix. I have aunts and uncles who have been beyond generous and helped raise me in many ways. I have been blessed to travel overseas and even live in Prague for six months. My dad and stepmom run a special needs home in Guatemala where I have spent time and really fallen in love with the culture. My brother and his wife run a shoe company out of Guatemala. Everywhere I have been, even a dirt floor hut in the hills of Guatemala, there has been art: design and color. I believe as humans we are created in the image of The Creator, and so we all have some creative effort to put forth.

I have a BFA in Illustration because after all the studio classes one takes to finish an Art Education degree, I found what I really like to do is draw. I doodle. Alot.

Presently, I am married with two little ones, living in the Germantown section of Philadelphia. I teach art part time at a sweet little christian school, grow tomatoes and beets, and sew or draw when I get the chance.

My first illustration project is coming out in the fall, 156 illustrated Bible stories in the “Gospel Story Bible” by Marty Machowski, published by New Growth Press.

Visit the illustrator's Website.

SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Sometimes it’s easy to forget Jesus in the midst of frantic schedules, family squabbles and conflicting priorities. For many Christians, God often becomes little more than an afterthought after days absorbed and depleted by the busyness of life. But the truth is that he is the hero of every story—including the mundane, ordinary ones we experience on a regular basis. That is why Marty Machowski beckons families to take time out from the daily grind to be transformed by the message of the Good News in his latest release, The Gospel Story Bible: Discovering Jesus in the Old and New Testaments (New Growth Press, November 2011).

Based on the ESV Bible, this uniquely illustrated Bible storybook uses 156 stories to present God’s plan of salvation in Christ from its opening narrative in Genesis to its finale in Revelation. This easy-to-read storybook written for children from preschool to high school introduces readers to many captivating people, places and events from the Bible’s Old and New Testaments. At the same time, Machowski skillfully connects the individual stories to the overall gospel narrative of how God redeemed a broken world through sending his son Jesus to save his people. Each story ends by connecting to Jesus and his gospel of grace. By sharing these Bible stories with each other, young and old will learn together the life-changing habit of recognizing the presence and workings of Christ in every moment of their day.

“The gospel is deep enough to keep the oldest and wisest parents learning and growing all their lives, yet simple enough to change the heart of the first grader who has just begun to read,” says Machowski. “That’s what makes The Gospel Story Bible ideal as a storybook for a preschooler, a devotional for a grade school student, a refresher for the adult believer or an introduction for the new one. Parents and children will learn together to read the whole Bible as one story, with one hero—Jesus Christ.”

Vibrant illustrations by A. E. Macha, child-friendly discussion questions and Scripture references accompany each story to help lead families in exploring the Bible. Parents and teachers will be delighted to discover how easily even a young child can understand the original text of a story that he or she has already come to love. A companion to the family devotional Long Story Short: Ten-Minute Devotions to Draw Your Family to God and the soon-to-be-released Gospel Story Sunday school curriculum (February 2012), The Gospel Story Bible is also a great resource for churches, Sunday school classes, home-schoolers and Christian schools who want to teach their children to apply the gospel to every situation and make Jesus the most important part of their everyday lives.

Product Details: