During the lesson, the information for you to know is written in regular type, and what we suggest speaking or reading aloud to children is in bold. All resources for this lesson, including the Teacher Guide, Student Page, Family Connection Card, and other resources can be downloaded in a ZIP file by clicking on the following link:
In some lessons you will find "resource articles." These are articles written by experts from around the world to help equip you for your work with children and adolescents. Share them with parents or guardians if you consider it appropriate.
Lord, God of my master Abraham, if you will, please grant success to the journey on which I have come.
Genesis 24:42 (emphasis added)
As you pray this week, make God’s will your first desire. His will is greater and more wonderful than our own plans could ever be! Asking for His will does not lessen the power of our prayers—it strengthens them! It helps align our hearts with His so that the things we hope for become those that are closest to God’s heart.
Praying for God’s help does not guarantee that our problems will end. God is not a good luck charm or a magician. He is all-loving, all-knowing, and all-powerful. God knows exactly what we need, and when we ask Him for help, that is what He gives us. When we pray to Him, He makes His good and perfect will happen in our situations. As you pray this week, pray the words Jesus taught His disciples in Matthew 6:10: “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
Let your students’ families know that this week their children are learning that they can ask God for help. Family members can also share situations in which they need help. If families are comfortable praying out loud, they can pray with their children about these situations.
Teacher Tip: If possible, email or text the Family Connection Card to the families of your students.
Welcome the children as they come to class today. Ask them if they used their rocks from the last class to remind them of God’s care over the last week. Pick three volunteers for the game.
Think of an object that the children are familiar with but are not likely to think of quickly. For example, you might think of something from your house like a blanket. Do not say it aloud. Tell the class that these volunteers will try to guess the object you are thinking of. Have the first volunteer say his guess. Do not respond to the guess yet. Then ask the second volunteer to say his guess. Again, do not respond yet.
Before the third volunteer tries to guess, whisper what the object is to her. Then allow her to guess. Allow the class to vote on who they think guessed correctly by clapping as you point to each volunteer. Then tell the class that the third volunteer guessed correctly. Be sure to act very proud and amazed as you congratulate this volunteer. the rest of the class will probably say this was not fair or that the third volunteer cheated.
Because you told the volunteer the answer!
Sometimes it is hard to know what the answer is to a difficult situation or question we might have. If you do not know the rules, you cannot play a game. If you are learning a new skill, you need someone to teach you.
In life, it can be hard to know how to live or get through hard times on our own. But the great thing is that we do not have to do it alone. God is available. We just need to take time to talk with Him and listen to Him.
Ask the children what qualities are important in a husband and a wife. They can think about married adults they know. As they call out each quality, ask them to explain why that particular quality is important to them. After about five minutes, explain that today they will hear a story about how God provided a wife for Isaac. Remind them that Isaac was the son God promised to Abraham and Sarah.
Many years have passed since the story in last week’s lesson. It was time for Isaac to get married. But Abraham did not want Isaac to marry one of the Canaanites in the place where they lived, probably because they did not worship the One True God.
Optional: If you are using The Action Bible, instead of doing the skit, have the children read the story on pages 64–67.
Ask the students who will be in the skit to come to the front of the class: Reporter, Abraham, Servant, and Rebekah. Explain to the children that this story is set up like a news report, and it imagines some details that are not in the account in Genesis. It is a fun way to learn this Bible story.
REPORTER: Hello, everyone. I am a reporter. of course I am not really in the Bible, but the story I will tell you is. First, let’s talk to Abraham.
ABRAHAM: My name is Abraham. I have learned to trust God. Many years ago, God called me to move here. Later He gave me a son, Isaac. When Isaac was grown, it was time for him to get married. But I did not want him to marry a woman from Canaan. the people here worship idols instead of the one true God. I wanted Isaac to have a wife from my homeland.
REPORTER: But it is a long trip back to your homeland. It would take several weeks to travel to get there.
ABRAHAM: Yes, and I was too old to travel that far. So I decided to send my servant. I could trust him with choosing a wife for my son. I told my servant that the Lord would take care of everything. You should talk to him, too.
SERVANT: Hello. I am Abraham’s servant. Abraham sent me back to his homeland to look for a wife for Isaac from among his relatives. He gave me expensive gifts to take to his relatives. After a long journey, I came to the town where Abraham’s relatives lived.
REPORTER: Did you go into the town where his relatives lived?
SERVANT: No. It was evening, and I stopped at the well outside of town. I saw the women of the town coming to get water. I immediately started to pray. I said to God, “oh Lord, God of my master Abraham. If it is Your will, give me success today. Help me find the right wife for Isaac.”
ABRAHAM: That was a wise thing for you to do.
SERVANT: Then I had an idea! I think God gave me this idea. I decided to ask one of the women, “Please give me a drink from your jar of water.” If she agreed and offered to water my camels too, then I would know she was the right woman for Isaac. While I was still praying, Rebekah came to the well. She should tell the rest of the story.
REPORTER: Hello, Rebekah. Did you know this was Abraham’s servant?
REBEKAH: Hello. no, I just wanted to help a tired stranger.
SERVANT: But you offered to give water to my camels, too! That is hard work.
REBEKAH: Yes. I knew that God is pleased when we serve others.
SERVANT: I asked Rebekah about her family. they were relatives of Abraham! God let me know that this was the woman He wanted Isaac to marry. I was so happy. I bowed down right there and worshipped the Lord! God guided me when I asked for His help.
REPORTER: What did your family think, Rebekah?
REBEKAH: When they heard the servant’s story, they knew it was from the Lord. they agreed that I should marry Isaac. We left the next day.
REPORTER: It is true. God does help us when we ask. I can see that you are a very good choice of a wife for Isaac. God is so great!
Encourage everyone to clap for the actors.
Abraham’s servant prayed to God for help, and God gave him a wonderful idea for choosing the right woman.
Share an example of answered prayer from your own life. It might be when God answered your prayer exactly as you had hoped. or it might be when God answered your prayer in a different way or in different timing than you had hoped for.
God always hears us when we pray, and He always answers our prayers. Sometimes He answers them exactly the way we thought He would. Sometimes He answers our prayers in other ways. The Bible tells us that God is all-knowing and all-powerful. He is also loving and always wants what is best for us, even if what is best is not what is easiest. His answers to our prayers are always good, but sometimes they are different than what we had thought they would be.
I will tell you some situations. In each one, a child prays to God. Think about different ways that God might answer each child’s prayer, but remember that sometimes God’s answers are different than what we could ever imagine! But God’s answers always agree with the Bible!
Those were some very good ideas of how God might answer these children’s prayers. God always hears our prayers and answers them. Sometimes God answers our prayers by saving us from bad or painful situations. Other times He answers our prayers by giving us comfort, peace, and strength during the hard times. God loves you and hears you. His answers always are the best, even if we do not understand them.
Let’s praise God together as we learn this wonderful verse.
Read Psalm 66:20 directly from your Bible.
Show the Memory Verse poster if you are using it.
Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!
Psalm 66:20
Say each phrase of the verse and have the children recite it after you. Repeat this a couple of times. Explain that this is a good verse to memorize.
Let’s learn some ways to talk with God. We will learn to use our fingers to remind us to pray for different people. You will finish each prayer sentence silently so it is just between you and God. If you are not ready to pray to God because you do not know Him yet, you can think of a question to ask God with each finger instead.
Have the children repeat the actions and words as you do and say them. Pause after each one for the children to fill in the specific request.
Hold up your thumb and pray:
God, I pray for someone in my family. Help this person …
Add your index finger and pray:
God, I pray for my friend. Help this person …
Add your middle finger and pray:
God, I pray for someone who is sick. Help this person …
Add your ring finger and pray:
God, I pray for a leader such as a teacher, pastor, or president. Help this person …
Add your pinkie finger and pray:
God, I pray for myself. Help me…
The Bible tells us to be persistent in prayer. To be persistent means to continue and not to give up. God does not always answer our prayers immediately, but He always answers them. You can be persistent in prayer by continuing to pray every day for the things you just prayed for.
Ask each child to think of a specific time of day to pray. For example, when he wakes up, at midday, or at bedtime. Explain that it is easy to remember to pray to God if you pray at the same time each day.
Have the children think of simple motions to use as a reminder. For example, if they want to pray when they wake up, they can stretch. If they want to pray when they eat a meal, they can pretend to eat. Every day they can talk to God at this same time. they can also ask for His help with other situations they will experience during the day and the coming week. Ask a few volunteers to share their motions and why they chose the times of day that they did.
Optional: If you are using the Student Pages, there is space for children to respond through drawing or writing.
Close class by praying this blessing based on Ephesians 3:20:
Blessing: God hears your prayers, and He answers them. As you ask Him for help each day, may He do more than you could ask or imagine according to His amazing power and love!
Lead the students in singing this quarter’s song, if possible.
Life on Life ©2020 David C Cook. Reproducible for home or classroom use only. All other uses require written permission from David C Cook [email protected]. All rights reserved.
