As kids leave, remind them to play their memory games in order to connect with God this week.

Connect Time (15 minutes): Five minutes after the service begins, split kids into groups and begin their activity. Large Group (30 minutes): Begin 20 minutes after the service starts. Model what it looks like to be engaged in large group. Small Group (15 minutes): Keep kids in small groups until parents arrive. If you have extra time at the end, you can review the video and songs together.

Small group may take a little longer today. Kids will be creating “memory” games. Everyone will have time to create their own deck of cards for the game, but not everyone will have time to play the game with a partner. They will be able to take their decks home to play with a friend or family member. If you are running out of time to play, make sure everyone knows how to play before they leave.

Paul decided to change his life entirely and follow God. He worked hard to get to know God in order to grow close to him. He began focusing on knowing God and spreading his good news about Jesus. We can work hard to connect with God, grow closer to him, and share the good news, just like Paul did!

May 13-14, 2017

Acts 6-9, 12-28 God wants us to get to know him so we can share his good news with others

Paul

GOAL: Connect Time is all about engaging kids in an activity that allows them to connect with each other right away while simultaneously piquing their curiosity for Large Group and preparing their minds for what they’re going to hear.

ORDER UP!● Divide the kids into small groups. Pick a theme and have the kids arrange

themselves in “order” of first to last, tallest to shortest, most to least, etc. For example, if the group has to arrange in order of birthdays, they should try to get in a line with January at the beginning, and December at the end.

● Topics for the group to get in order:○ Favorite colors arranged in the order of the rainbow ○ Birth month from first to last○ Number of siblings from most to least○ Number of pets from least to most

● Time groups on your phone if you want to add an extra challenge and encourage kids to get in order as quick as they can!

● Use the topics suggested or have groups come up with topics on their own. The goal today is to get to know each other, so try to pick topics that will help teams learn about each other

● Younger age groups will need help from a leader, but older kids will be able to do more on their own.

TALK ABOUT IT● Who are your closest friends?● What do you do together?

Before you go to Large Group, you can ask kids how their week went. You can also remind kids of the expectations for Large Group behavior: (1) be kind, (2) listen when somebody speaks, and (3) follow the leader’s instructions.

Goal: Kids will (1) recall ways that Paul got to know God and (2) identify ways to get to know God

Why? So they can grow closer to God and share his good news, just like Paul.

Tips: Have kids label their deck of cards with their initials in case they get mixed up in the game.

REVIEW THE STORY1. Today we talked about a guy named Paul who was close to God. Before we talk

about him, let’s remember the special job Jesus gave his followers in Matthew 28:18- 20:Then Jesus came to them. He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. So you must go and make disciples of all nations. Baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.Teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And you can be sure that I am always with you, to the very end.”

2. Did Paul do this special job? Explain.3. Paul knew that if he was to tell people about Jesus, he had to get to know Jesus

closely! What are some ways Paul got closer to God?4. What are some ways you get close to God (or would like to)? 5. Do you spend a lot of time with your best friend? Could God be like your best friend?

How?

MEMORY GAME ACTIVITY● Give each kid two memory card sheets and markers. (Kids will have their own set

of 12 cards to make a memory card game. Each card shows a “get-to-know-God” idea and image.)

● Each card will have one of the “get-to-know-God” ideas on one side. On the same side, have kids write or draw a specific example of how they could connect with God in the way listed on the card. (Younger kids might need specific ideas for this, or they can just color the image.)

● (Since there are two cards for each of the 6 ideas, kids will hopefully have 2 different pictures that will go together as a match for each idea. However, if they only come up with one idea, they may draw that one twice.)

(Continued on next page.)

● If time remains, they can then cut out their cards with scissors and play Memory with a friend (directions below). Once they find a match, partners will share their drawings or words and explain what they plan to do in the coming week.

● If kids had time to cut their memory cards apart, give them a Ziplock bag to take home the pieces.

● How to play “memory”:○ Mix up the 12 cards and place them face down in a rectangle (or another

shape or design if desired).○ Kids will take turns turning over 2 cards per turn, looking for a match. If they

do not find a match, the turn is over, but they should try to remember the locations of the cards that were turned up.

○ When they do find a match, each player gets to keep the match and try again for another match.

○ Since each player will have his or her own deck to take home, partners will have to play side by side, each with his or her own deck. Rules remain the same, but each player only turns cards from his/her own rectangle on each turn. When kids go home they will be able to play with family members using just one deck.

Extra time? Do a coloring sheet!

Check out this week’s music videos:

More Like You Are:https://vimeo.com/154219576

Brave-a-ree: https://vimeo.com/49923937

Watch today’s video here!

God’s Story / Paul:https://vimeo.com/30378739

*Click to play intro music.● Say: Hey everyone, welcome to Kid’s Club! We are so glad

you are here! So did you like our new game? Raise your hand if…

○ You made a new friend or met someone new? ○ You found out something new about an old friend?○ You got to know each other while you were playing?

● (Call on 2-3 kids to share something that they learned about a friend during the game.) It sounds like you learned some cool stuff about people today!

● Say: Now that you all know each other better, I have some important questions for you to think about during today’s lesson. As I read each question, you can show me what you think by putting your thumb up or down. If you are not sure about one, that’s okay. Just think about it while we talk and we will come back to it later.

○ Do you think learning more about someone and really getting to know them well helps you to be closer to them?

○ Could this also be true with God?○ Could we grow closer to God by learning more about

him and spending more time with him each day?● Say: We’ll come back to these questions a little bit later in

the lesson, but you can keep thinking about them.

WELCOME AND INTRO

Main Goal: Review Connect Time and introduce the lesson.

Notes:

WHO’S IMPORTANT TO YOU?

Main Goal: Understand who’s important to us, and WHY.

HOW CAN WE GROW CLOSER TO SOMEONE?

Main Goal: Use a game to help kids understand how we can become closer to someone.

● (Image: people) Let’s think for a minute about our own lives. Who are the people who are important to you? For me … (Model brainstorming for the kids. Count on your fingers as you list examples: parents, brothers or sisters, best friends, grandparents, cousins, etc.)

● Ask: Who are the people that are most important to YOU? (Let a few kids respond.)

● Say: Now think of one of those people. Why are they important to you? (Allow kids a minute to think about the answer, then call on 2-3 to share out loud.) Wow, you all have a lot of very special people in your lives!

● Say: We are going to play a short game now. The game will help you realize how you got to know these special people in the first place. I am going to share something you could do with someone, and I want you to decide if each idea will help you get closer to someone or not.

● Say: If you think my idea is a way to get closer to someone, put two thumbs up and call out “Oh Yeah!” If you think the idea would NOT help you get closer to a friend, cross your arms in an X and make a buzzer sound like this: ERRRRRRR! Here we go:

○ Spending time with a friend○ Learning new things about each other○ Canceling plans with a friend○ Helping a friend○ Ignoring or forgetting about a friend○ Having fun together ○ Showing love to a friend by giving up what we want

to do and letting a friend choose○ Not paying attention to what a friend tells you○ Telling everyone how great a friend is and how

much you care about them● Say: Great job with that game! You guys are awesome at

picking out ideas that would help you grow closer to someone.

● Say: When we learn a lot about someone and get to know them really well, we become closer to them and our relationship grows stronger!

PAUL GREW CLOSE TO GOD

Main Goal: See all the specific ways that Paul spent time with God and grew closer to him.

WE CAN GROW CLOSER TO GOD TOO!

Main Goal: Identify specific ways we can be closer to God!

● Say: This was true for someone in the Bible named Paul. We are going to watch a video all about Paul’s life. While we watch this video, you will see how Paul decided to follow God… And it completely changed him.

● Say: Once Paul learned all about God, he worked really hard to get close to him and he was willing to do anything to spread the good news about Jesus! As we watch, see if you can figure out how getting to know God changed Paul’s life.

● Video: God’s Story / Paul● Ask: Wow, Paul was really willing to do a lot to get to know

God and to spread the good news about Jesus, wasn’t he? How did Paul’s life change in that story? (Call on a few kids to answer.)

● Say: That’s right, he decided to follow God, he stopped doing wrong things, and he focused his life entirely on telling others the great news about Jesus!

● Say: And remember, Paul knew that if he really wanted to tell people about Jesus, he had to get close to God... How did Paul get closer to God? Any ideas? (Allow kids to share or give them hints if needed.) Yeah, he spent time with God, talked to him, listened to him, even gave up things like food for him!

● Say: Hmmm, you know what this reminds me of? This reminds me of the ideas we shared earlier about the GOOD ways for us to get closer to our friends…

● Say: So we can grow closer to God in the same ways we grow closer to our family and best friends! Let’s think of some more real life ways we can do that! (Let kids respond to each prompt below. Give suggestions if kids are stuck.) How could we…

○ (Image: clock) Spend time with God (talk to God, go to church, pray, journal, listen)

○ (Image: Bible) Learn new things about God (Read the Bible, Bible study, Journey group)

○ (Image: helping hands) Help God (Show love to others, tell others about God)

○ (Loop: confetti) Have fun with God (Sing/Worship, Kids’ Club)

○ (Loop: hearts) Show love to God (Pray, love others, sing, give up something for someone else)

● Say: We can all grow closer to God, no matter if we’re young or old, or if we’ve followed him for a short time or a long time. If you’re glad that God wants to be close to you, and be your friend, give me a loud “Hooray!” (Let kids respond.) Good job! Now let’s spend time with God right now, and talk to him.

● Pray: Hey God! Thank you for loving us so much, that you want to spend time us and get to know us. We love you, and can’t wait to get closer to you! Amen.

● Say: We can actually start growing closer to God right now! We can get to know him together through worship, so get ready to sing and dance as loud and big as you can!

● Music Video: More Like You Are● Music Video: Brave-a-ree

Dismiss kids to small groups.

PRAYER AND WORSHIP

Main Goal: Close the lesson with prayer and worship.

Tell me about Paul. How can we get close to God?

Kindergarten-2ndMay 13-14, 2017

Connect TimeItem Usage Details Provided by

Small GroupItem Usage Details Provided by

Markers 1 set per small group, reused site

Coloring Page - Helping hands 1 per kidPage 10, white paper, black &

whitesite

Memory Card Page 2 per kid 8.5x11 white cardstock; b&w; double sided; Pages 11-12 site

Scissors 1 set per small group, reused site

Ziploc bag 1 per kid Sam’s Club; Ziploc bags; Item# 472200 KC Central

Large GroupItem Usage Details Provided by

Adventure Bible for Early Readers 1 per room site

Memory card side 1

Memory card side 2

1. Song slide: for when kids enter the room (All that You Need instrumental; mp3 only; can be downloaded on website)

1. Image: People2. Video: God’s Story / Paul (https://vimeo.com/30378739)3. Image: clock 4. Image: Bible5. Image: helping hands6. Image: confetti (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-eRoIrVtp8) 7. Image: hearts (3:10-3:16; https://vimeo.com/127265602; no sound) 8. Music Video: More Like You Are (https://vimeo.com/154219576)9. Music Video: Brave-a-ree (https://vimeo.com/49923937)

Kindergarten-2nd