Connecting your child every weekend to the Word of God through story

P WEEK #3 SEPTEMBER 16/17 2017 PARENT DEVOTIONAL GUIDE

Joseph, Potiphar’s Slave Bought by the grandsons of Ishmael from his brothers, Joseph was sold for 20 pieces of silver and taken 200 miles away from his home as a slave. He was just 17 years old.

HEY PARENTS… DID YOU KNOW? Have you ever had something unfair happen to you like being thrown into a pit and then sold into slavery to your distant cousins by your brothers? Then you take a deep breath, 200 miles away from home in a place that looks and feels totally foreign, and start over … working, making it hard to do well and say no to sin. You meet a totally indulged, spoiled person who lies about you and then you are punished again. Would you find it hard to continue to follow the Lord and work hard? Would you find it hard to keep a positive attitude? This is a great thing to tell our kids. Keep going for the Lord even when things aren’t looking great, especially when we aren’t treated fairly. This is ordinary and what God makes special.

Joseph, Potiphar’s Manager When Joseph got to Egypt he was resold to the great and powerful Potiphar. Joseph worked hard and made a lot of money for Potiphar. So Potiphar put him in charge of everything and worried about nothing… because the hand of the Lord was on Joseph.

Potiphar’s Wife Or “Mrs. Potiphar” as we like to call her … got her way with everything and everyone except Joseph. Because he refused to spend time with her, she lied about him and her husband threw in him prison.

ASK YOUR CHILD: What do you like to save? (Think of things that are specific to your child.) DISCOVER & LEARN: OPEN YOUR BIBLE TO PSALM 119:11. That’s the very middle of your Bible. Read out loud. IMAGINE & SOLVE: Just like you want to save __________ because it is im-portant to you, God says His Word is important to you too. How can you save or store up God’s Word? We can memorize it by saying it again and again. IMPROVE & TRY AGAIN: Read another verse. Turn to Isaiah 40:8. How long will the Word of God last? Because God’s Word will last longer than anything we like to save, let’s say Psalm 119:11 five times. PRAY OVER YOUR CHILD: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word. Please help ________ and I to store up Your Word in our hearts. In Jesus’ name, amen.

ASK YOUR CHILD: Why does God’s Word help us make good choices? DISCOVER & LEARN: OPEN YOUR BIBLE TO PSALM 119:11. Read out loud one more time. IMAGINE & SOLVE: When we want to make something special, we follow the instructions. (Give an example from the last week.) God’s Word tell us how our lives can be special. We just need to follow His plan. IMPROVE & TRY AGAIN: Read more. Turn to Matthew 7:24. Do we want our lives to built on safe ground or unsafe ground? PRAY OVER YOUR CHILD: Heavenly Father, protect us from sin. Help us to work hard for you and give us the courage to say no to sinfulness.. Thank you for helping us follow You. In Jesus’ name, amen.

WHAT IS THE WEEKLY WORD? Children of all ages are able

to learn ten new words a

day! During ORDINARY KIDS we ar

e teaching children nine new words

in 11 weeks.

These words are intentionally chos

en to enrich a child’s experience an

d grow them in

their young faith.

PARENT: It’s important to engage your child with God’s Word everyday. Here are three days to guide you and then you share for three days about what God is teaching you. Save day seven to talk about what you learned in church this weekend. This is storing up God’s Word in their hearts.

WORD: Actually spoken and 100%

true

(See parent devo week 3 for mo

re

explanation.)

ASK YOUR CHILD: We have our own Bible right here. Did you know that the Bible is God’s Word? DISCOVER & LEARN: OPEN YOUR BIBLE TO PSALM 119:11. That’s the very middle of your Bible. Read out loud. IMAGINE & SOLVE: Why do we want to store up God’s Word in our heart? What does it mean to “store up God’s Word?” It means we will keep learning them and memorizing them because we need God’s Word everyday. IMPROVE & TRY AGAIN: Read another verse. Turn to Psalm 119:105. Why do we need a lamp when it’s dark out? PRAY OVER YOUR CHILD: Heavenly Father, help __________ and I to love Your Word and trust Your Word. Everyday. In Jesus’ name, amen.

WHAT DID WE DO THIS WEEKEND?

We learned that Joseph was sold into slavery by the Ishmaelite's to Poti-

phar. Joseph worked hard and said no to sin but still was falsely accused

and went to prison. In prison, Joseph worked hard again. It is ordinary for

things to not go our way but God takes all of that and makes it special.

Your child will not be able to answer questions on their own. You are

training them.

Psalm 119:11 (ESV)

I have stored Action: Pull both hands to your chest like a gathering motion

up your word Action: Hands in front together like a Bible

in my heart Action: Hands over heart

that I Action: Two thumbs to self

might not sin Action: Shake head “no”

against you. Action: Point upward

BEYOND THE WORDS: STORED: Saved up for when you need it the most

WORD: Actually spoken out loud as a command

HEART: The center of everything inside a person … feelings + knowledge

SIN: To miss the mark. To forfeit (think about forfeiting a game, we say “I give up. I can’t win.”)

AGAINST: Above, over, upon

THREE STEPS to BEING SPECIAL for YOUNG CHILDREN 1. Become God’s child. (John 3) Motion: start at the top of your head

and move hands over body

2. Learn God’s Word. (Psalm 119:9) Motion: place hands over your heart

3. Ask the Lord to teach you. (Psalm 119:12) Motion: fold hands in praying position