MISSIONS MOMENT

DAY 3

WHAT YOU NEED:• Heart-shaped cookie cutter* • Cookie dough (store bought or homemade!) • Bags to pack your cookies*Don’t have this specific cookie cutter? Feel free to get creative! Try cutting out hand-drawn hearts from your dough with a paring knife, or use frosting to draw hearts onto another shape you do have!

WHAT YOU DO:Bake some cookies, decorate, and package them in a fun way! Then, take them to a neighbor to remind them they are loved! You could even include a note of encouragement or an invitation to join us for church online.

WHAT YOU SAY:“It’s been so much fun loving on our neighbors in creative ways this week. Today, we are going to do something yummy! Let’s make cookies for our neighbors. We’ll make our cookies in the shape of a heart so we can remember how much Jesus loves us and how we can love others, too. We’ll take them to them as a way to show them we care!”

PRAY:“God, thank you for showing us ways to love others because You love them, too! It’s been such a fun time this week loving on our neighbors! Will you help us remember to love others everyday? We love you. Amen.”

MISSIONS MOMENT

DAY 3

WHAT YOU NEED:• Heart-shaped cookie cutter* • Cookie dough (store bought or homemade!) • Bags to pack your cookies*Don’t have this specific cookie cutter? Feel free to get creative! Try cutting out hand-drawn hearts from your dough with a paring knife, or use frosting to draw hearts onto another shape you do have!

WHAT YOU DO:Bake some cookies, decorate, and package them in a fun way! Then, take them to a neighbor to remind them they are loved! You could even include a note of encouragement or an invitation to join us for church online.

WHAT YOU SAY:“It’s been so much fun loving on our neighbors in creative ways this week. Today, we are going to do something yummy! Let’s make cookies for our neighbors. We’ll make our cookies in the shape of a heart so we can remember how much Jesus loves us and how we can love others, too. We’ll take them to them as a way to show them we care!”

PRAY:“God, thank you for showing us ways to love others because You love them, too! It’s been such a fun time this week loving on our neighbors! Will you help us remember to love others everyday? We love you. Amen.”

333DAYDAYDAY

BIBLE STORY

The Greatest Commandment

Matthew 22:36-40; 1 Corinthians 13

MEMORY VERSE

“Let us keep looking to Jesus.”

Hebrews 12:2 (NIrV)

BOTTOM LINE

You can LIVE for God by loving others.

L O O K O F L O V EWHAT YOU NEED:• Flour, salt, and hot water• Large bowl, mixing spoon, and rolling pin• Heart-shaped cookie cutter• Pony beads, jewels, etc. for decoration• Small paper plates or a drying rack

WHAT YOU DO:• Add equal parts of flour and salt and 1/2 part hot water to the large bowl, then mix all ingredients together to form a dough.• Roll out the dough onto a clean counter or parchment paper on your table.• Allow the children to each press the cookie cutter into the salt dough and put their heart onto their plate. (If you don’t have a heart cookie cutter, you can free hand it and cut a heart out with them!)• Allow the children to decorate their salt dough heart with the beads and other decorations you have laid out.• Set plates somewhere where they will not be disturbed, and allow the hearts to fully air dry—this may take a few days, but you can check them every day while you’re waiting! We do not recommend baking these, as the beads and other decorations can melt in the oven.

WHAT YOU SAY:• “Let’s make a heart to decorate so you remember how much Jesus loves you and how you can love others, too! Make your heart special by adding these fun decorations to it.”• “Look at these hearts! They are all different, but each one is amazing! How can you love others this week? Can it be hard to love others? Loving others is important; we all need to be loved. When our salt dough hearts are dry, let’s put them somewhere you can see every day to remember VBS and how you can LIVE for God by loving others.”

333DAYDAYDAY

BIBLE STORY

The Greatest Commandment

Matthew 22:36-40; 1 Corinthians 13

MEMORY VERSE

“Let us keep looking to Jesus.”

Hebrews 12:2 (NIrV)

BOTTOM LINE

You can LIVE for God by loving others.

L O O K O F L O V EWHAT YOU NEED:• Flour, salt, and hot water• Large bowl, mixing spoon, and rolling pin• Heart-shaped cookie cutter• Pony beads, jewels, etc. for decoration• Small paper plates or a drying rack

WHAT YOU DO:• Add equal parts of flour and salt and 1/2 part hot water to the large bowl, then mix all ingredients together to form a dough.• Roll out the dough onto a clean counter or parchment paper on your table.• Allow the children to each press the cookie cutter into the salt dough and put their heart onto their plate. (If you don’t have a heart cookie cutter, you can free hand it and cut a heart out with them!)• Allow the children to decorate their salt dough heart with the beads and other decorations you have laid out.• Set plates somewhere where they will not be disturbed, and allow the hearts to fully air dry—this may take a few days, but you can check them every day while you’re waiting! We do not recommend baking these, as the beads and other decorations can melt in the oven.

WHAT YOU SAY:• “Let’s make a heart to decorate so you remember how much Jesus loves you and how you can love others, too! Make your heart special by adding these fun decorations to it.”• “Look at these hearts! They are all different, but each one is amazing! How can you love others this week? Can it be hard to love others? Loving others is important; we all need to be loved. When our salt dough hearts are dry, let’s put them somewhere you can see every day to remember VBS and how you can LIVE for God by loving others.”

DAY 1DAY 1DAY 1

S P E E D S E A R C HWHAT YOU NEED:• Box or bin filled with colored balls, balloons or Starburst candies• Painter’s tape• Timer• MAKE IT MESSY: Use water balloons or balloons filled with shaving cream

WHAT YOU DO:• Tape a line on the floor to determine the starting position; line kids up behind it.• Place the box or bin at the other side of the room or a determined distance away.• Explain that there are a limited amount of red items in the bin. Red items are worth 50 points, and all other colors are worth 15 points.• On your “Go,” the first kid in line runs to the bin and has three seconds to grab any ONE object from the bin. Let each child have a set number of turns. • After taking a turn, kids can return to the end of the line and start a pile of their collected objects. The next child goes, and so on.• At the end of the time period, total up each kid’s points.• VARIATION FOR LARGE GROUPS: Divide the group into teams, and set a time for the whole game, rather than for each child’s turn. On their turn, kids can grab something quick, or take a longer time searching for a red item. Teams take as many turns as they can within the time limit of the game.

WHAT YOU SAY:• “In this game, you had the option of taking time to search for the red object

or just quickly grabbing another one that was not worth as many points. If your focus was completely on the color red, without getting distracted by all the other colors that were easier to grab, you probably could have quickly found the red and received more points. You needed to FOCUS on what you can see.” • “In our lives, we are going to have a lot of things that draw our attention away from the things God has for us, but in those times, we need to get our focus back on God. We need to FOCUS on what we can see that reminds us of God, who cares for us, who loves us, and who promises to always be there for us.”

DAY 1DAY 1DAY 1

S P E E D S E A R C HWHAT YOU NEED:• Box or bin filled with colored balls, balloons or Starburst candies• Painter’s tape• Timer• MAKE IT MESSY: Use water balloons or balloons filled with shaving cream

WHAT YOU DO:• Tape a line on the floor to determine the starting position; line kids up behind it.• Place the box or bin at the other side of the room or a determined distance away.• Explain that there are a limited amount of red items in the bin. Red items are worth 50 points, and all other colors are worth 15 points.• On your “Go,” the first kid in line runs to the bin and has three seconds to grab any ONE object from the bin. Let each child have a set number of turns. • After taking a turn, kids can return to the end of the line and start a pile of their collected objects. The next child goes, and so on.• At the end of the time period, total up each kid’s points.• VARIATION FOR LARGE GROUPS: Divide the group into teams, and set a time for the whole game, rather than for each child’s turn. On their turn, kids can grab something quick, or take a longer time searching for a red item. Teams take as many turns as they can within the time limit of the game.

WHAT YOU SAY:• “In this game, you had the option of taking time to search for the red object

or just quickly grabbing another one that was not worth as many points. If your focus was completely on the color red, without getting distracted by all the other colors that were easier to grab, you probably could have quickly found the red and received more points. You needed to FOCUS on what you can see.” • “In our lives, we are going to have a lot of things that draw our attention away from the things God has for us, but in those times, we need to get our focus back on God. We need to FOCUS on what we can see that reminds us of God, who cares for us, who loves us, and who promises to always be there for us.”

DAY 1DAY 1DAY 1

S P E E D S E A R C HWHAT YOU NEED:• Box or bin filled with colored balls, balloons or Starburst candies• Painter’s tape• Timer• MAKE IT MESSY: Use water balloons or balloons filled with shaving cream

WHAT YOU DO:• Tape a line on the floor to determine the starting position; line kids up behind it.• Place the box or bin at the other side of the room or a determined distance away.• Explain that there are a limited amount of red items in the bin. Red items are worth 50 points, and all other colors are worth 15 points.• On your “Go,” the first kid in line runs to the bin and has three seconds to grab any ONE object from the bin. Let each child have a set number of turns. • After taking a turn, kids can return to the end of the line and start a pile of their collected objects. The next child goes, and so on.• At the end of the time period, total up each kid’s points.• VARIATION FOR LARGE GROUPS: Divide the group into teams, and set a time for the whole game, rather than for each child’s turn. On their turn, kids can grab something quick, or take a longer time searching for a red item. Teams take as many turns as they can within the time limit of the game.

WHAT YOU SAY:• “In this game, you had the option of taking time to search for the red object

or just quickly grabbing another one that was not worth as many points. If your focus was completely on the color red, without getting distracted by all the other colors that were easier to grab, you probably could have quickly found the red and received more points. You needed to FOCUS on what you can see.” • “In our lives, we are going to have a lot of things that draw our attention away from the things God has for us, but in those times, we need to get our focus back on God. We need to FOCUS on what we can see that reminds us of God, who cares for us, who loves us, and who promises to always be there for us.”

DAY 1DAY 1DAY 1

S P E E D S E A R C HWHAT YOU NEED:• Box or bin filled with colored balls, balloons or Starburst candies• Painter’s tape• Timer• MAKE IT MESSY: Use water balloons or balloons filled with shaving cream

WHAT YOU DO:• Tape a line on the floor to determine the starting position; line kids up behind it.• Place the box or bin at the other side of the room or a determined distance away.• Explain that there are a limited amount of red items in the bin. Red items are worth 50 points, and all other colors are worth 15 points.• On your “Go,” the first kid in line runs to the bin and has three seconds to grab any ONE object from the bin. Let each child have a set number of turns. • After taking a turn, kids can return to the end of the line and start a pile of their collected objects. The next child goes, and so on.• At the end of the time period, total up each kid’s points.• VARIATION FOR LARGE GROUPS: Divide the group into teams, and set a time for the whole game, rather than for each child’s turn. On their turn, kids can grab something quick, or take a longer time searching for a red item. Teams take as many turns as they can within the time limit of the game.

WHAT YOU SAY:• “In this game, you had the option of taking time to search for the red object

or just quickly grabbing another one that was not worth as many points. If your focus was completely on the color red, without getting distracted by all the other colors that were easier to grab, you probably could have quickly found the red and received more points. You needed to FOCUS on what you can see.” • “In our lives, we are going to have a lot of things that draw our attention away from the things God has for us, but in those times, we need to get our focus back on God. We need to FOCUS on what we can see that reminds us of God, who cares for us, who loves us, and who promises to always be there for us.”

DAY 1DAY 1DAY 1

S P E E D S E A R C HWHAT YOU NEED:• Box or bin filled with colored balls, balloons or Starburst candies• Painter’s tape• Timer• MAKE IT MESSY: Use water balloons or balloons filled with shaving cream

WHAT YOU DO:• Tape a line on the floor to determine the starting position; line kids up behind it.• Place the box or bin at the other side of the room or a determined distance away.• Explain that there are a limited amount of red items in the bin. Red items are worth 50 points, and all other colors are worth 15 points.• On your “Go,” the first kid in line runs to the bin and has three seconds to grab any ONE object from the bin. Let each child have a set number of turns. • After taking a turn, kids can return to the end of the line and start a pile of their collected objects. The next child goes, and so on.• At the end of the time period, total up each kid’s points.• VARIATION FOR LARGE GROUPS: Divide the group into teams, and set a time for the whole game, rather than for each child’s turn. On their turn, kids can grab something quick, or take a longer time searching for a red item. Teams take as many turns as they can within the time limit of the game.

WHAT YOU SAY:• “In this game, you had the option of taking time to search for the red object

or just quickly grabbing another one that was not worth as many points. If your focus was completely on the color red, without getting distracted by all the other colors that were easier to grab, you probably could have quickly found the red and received more points. You needed to FOCUS on what you can see.” • “In our lives, we are going to have a lot of things that draw our attention away from the things God has for us, but in those times, we need to get our focus back on God. We need to FOCUS on what we can see that reminds us of God, who cares for us, who loves us, and who promises to always be there for us.”

DAY 3DAY 3DAY 3

T H E G R E A T E S T S H O TWHAT YOU NEED:• Empty bin/bucket/basket• A bin full of throwables (balls, beanbags, paper wads, stuffed animals, etc.) • Painters or masking tape• MAKE IT MESSY: Set a sprinkler at the edge of your throwing lines and/or allow opposing players to distract one another by spraying water at each other.

WHAT YOU DO:• Set the empty bin at one end of your space• Starting at about 5 feet away, use tape to mark three lines at different distances from the bin. Determine a point system based on how far a line is from the empty bin. Communicate the point system to the kids.• Kids can play individually, or can be split into teams.• Each child (or team) shoots as many times as they can in a specified time period. Then the other kid (or team) takes a turn.• Just before you begin, tell kids that they can try to silently distract the person shooting, as long as they don’t get between the shooter and the bin. • The person/team with the most points wins!

WHAT YOU SAY:• “Great job! You guys are really good at this game and should start playing some basketball. In this game, you had to focus on what was most important, even with all the distractions. In real life, there are many things that can distract us from what is most important. Jesus made it simple by telling us the most important things to focus on: loving God and loving others. You can LIVE for God by loving others. When we love others, we show our love for God. [Make It Personal: Talk about when someone showed you the love of Jesus and how it made you feel.] When we show people the love of Jesus by how we treat them, we can point them to Jesus. One of the best ways to LIVE for God is by loving others.”

DAY 1DAY 1DAY 1

S P E E D S E A R C HWHAT YOU NEED:• Box or bin filled with colored balls, balloons or Starburst candies• Painter’s tape• Timer• MAKE IT MESSY: Use water balloons or balloons filled with shaving cream

WHAT YOU DO:• Tape a line on the floor to determine the starting position; line kids up behind it.• Place the box or bin at the other side of the room or a determined distance away.• Explain that there are a limited amount of red items in the bin. Red items are worth 50 points, and all other colors are worth 15 points.• On your “Go,” the first kid in line runs to the bin and has three seconds to grab any ONE object from the bin. Let each child have a set number of turns. • After taking a turn, kids can return to the end of the line and start a pile of their collected objects. The next child goes, and so on.• At the end of the time period, total up each kid’s points.• VARIATION FOR LARGE GROUPS: Divide the group into teams, and set a time for the whole game, rather than for each child’s turn. On their turn, kids can grab something quick, or take a longer time searching for a red item. Teams take as many turns as they can within the time limit of the game.

WHAT YOU SAY:• “In this game, you had the option of taking time to search for the red object

or just quickly grabbing another one that was not worth as many points. If your focus was completely on the color red, without getting distracted by all the other colors that were easier to grab, you probably could have quickly found the red and received more points. You needed to FOCUS on what you can see.” • “In our lives, we are going to have a lot of things that draw our attention away from the things God has for us, but in those times, we need to get our focus back on God. We need to FOCUS on what we can see that reminds us of God, who cares for us, who loves us, and who promises to always be there for us.”

DAY 1DAY 1DAY 1

S P E E D S E A R C HWHAT YOU NEED:• Box or bin filled with colored balls, balloons or Starburst candies• Painter’s tape• Timer• MAKE IT MESSY: Use water balloons or balloons filled with shaving cream

WHAT YOU DO:• Tape a line on the floor to determine the starting position; line kids up behind it.• Place the box or bin at the other side of the room or a determined distance away.• Explain that there are a limited amount of red items in the bin. Red items are worth 50 points, and all other colors are worth 15 points.• On your “Go,” the first kid in line runs to the bin and has three seconds to grab any ONE object from the bin. Let each child have a set number of turns. • After taking a turn, kids can return to the end of the line and start a pile of their collected objects. The next child goes, and so on.• At the end of the time period, total up each kid’s points.• VARIATION FOR LARGE GROUPS: Divide the group into teams, and set a time for the whole game, rather than for each child’s turn. On their turn, kids can grab something quick, or take a longer time searching for a red item. Teams take as many turns as they can within the time limit of the game.

WHAT YOU SAY:• “In this game, you had the option of taking time to search for the red object

or just quickly grabbing another one that was not worth as many points. If your focus was completely on the color red, without getting distracted by all the other colors that were easier to grab, you probably could have quickly found the red and received more points. You needed to FOCUS on what you can see.” • “In our lives, we are going to have a lot of things that draw our attention away from the things God has for us, but in those times, we need to get our focus back on God. We need to FOCUS on what we can see that reminds us of God, who cares for us, who loves us, and who promises to always be there for us.”

DAY 1DAY 1DAY 1

S P E E D S E A R C HWHAT YOU NEED:• Box or bin filled with colored balls, balloons or Starburst candies• Painter’s tape• Timer• MAKE IT MESSY: Use water balloons or balloons filled with shaving cream

WHAT YOU DO:• Tape a line on the floor to determine the starting position; line kids up behind it.• Place the box or bin at the other side of the room or a determined distance away.• Explain that there are a limited amount of red items in the bin. Red items are worth 50 points, and all other colors are worth 15 points.• On your “Go,” the first kid in line runs to the bin and has three seconds to grab any ONE object from the bin. Let each child have a set number of turns. • After taking a turn, kids can return to the end of the line and start a pile of their collected objects. The next child goes, and so on.• At the end of the time period, total up each kid’s points.• VARIATION FOR LARGE GROUPS: Divide the group into teams, and set a time for the whole game, rather than for each child’s turn. On their turn, kids can grab something quick, or take a longer time searching for a red item. Teams take as many turns as they can within the time limit of the game.

WHAT YOU SAY:• “In this game, you had the option of taking time to search for the red object

or just quickly grabbing another one that was not worth as many points. If your focus was completely on the color red, without getting distracted by all the other colors that were easier to grab, you probably could have quickly found the red and received more points. You needed to FOCUS on what you can see.” • “In our lives, we are going to have a lot of things that draw our attention away from the things God has for us, but in those times, we need to get our focus back on God. We need to FOCUS on what we can see that reminds us of God, who cares for us, who loves us, and who promises to always be there for us.”

DAY 3DAY 3DAY 3

T H E G R E A T E S T S H O TWHAT YOU NEED:• Empty bin/bucket/basket• A bin full of throwables (balls, beanbags, paper wads, stuffed animals, etc.) • Painters or masking tape• MAKE IT MESSY: Set a sprinkler at the edge of your throwing lines and/or allow opposing players to distract one another by spraying water at each other.

WHAT YOU DO:• Set the empty bin at one end of your space• Starting at about 5 feet away, use tape to mark three lines at different distances from the bin. Determine a point system based on how far a line is from the empty bin. Communicate the point system to the kids.• Kids can play individually, or can be split into teams.• Each child (or team) shoots as many times as they can in a specified time period. Then the other kid (or team) takes a turn.• Just before you begin, tell kids that they can try to silently distract the person shooting, as long as they don’t get between the shooter and the bin. • The person/team with the most points wins!

WHAT YOU SAY:• “Great job! You guys are really good at this game and should start playing some basketball. In this game, you had to focus on what was most important, even with all the distractions. In real life, there are many things that can distract us from what is most important. Jesus made it simple by telling us the most important things to focus on: loving God and loving others. You can LIVE for God by loving others. When we love others, we show our love for God. [Make It Personal: Talk about when someone showed you the love of Jesus and how it made you feel.] When we show people the love of Jesus by how we treat them, we can point them to Jesus. One of the best ways to LIVE for God is by loving others.”