Overview
SAY THIS
Celebrate what God has done.
BIBLE STORY
2 Samuel 6:12b-22a - David Dances
MEMORY VERSE
“Give thanks to the Lord, because he is good. His faithful love continues forever.”
Psalm 136:1, NIrV
LIFE APP
Gratitude is letting others know you see how they've helped you.
Opening
Opening Activity
Made to Move: an activity that increases the oxygen in the brain and taps into the energy in the body
What You Need: Music player or phone and music
What You Do:
· Play upbeat music.
· Ask kids to move or dance very slowly to the fast music.
· After a couple of minutes, switch to slower music.
· Ask the kids to move or dance very quickly to the slow music.
· If time allows, play Freeze Dance. Explain the rules:
o The kids dance as you play music, moving quickly to the slow music and slowly to the fast music.
o When you pause the music abruptly, anyone who doesn’t freeze in place must sit out until the next round.
What You Say:
“I’m a big fan of dancing! Did you feel strange, dancing a different pace than the music? Have you ever done that before? Did you worry about looking a little silly, flossing (or other cool dance moves) to a slow song? [Transition] We’re going to hear about someone who didn’t care how silly he looked to people when he danced because he wasn’t dancing for the people.”
We will watch video/recap story.
Activity
Dancin’ Davids
[Talk about God | Bible Story Review]
Made to Create: an activity that explores ideas through the process of drawing, building, designing, and problem-solving
What You Need: “Dancin’ Davids” Activity Page, pipe cleaners, paper towels, scissors, (optional) wooden or plastic beads
What You Do:
· Give each kid a pipe cleaner. They will make their pipe cleaners into the shape of a person. Follow along with the directions on the Activity Page.
o First, make the head by twisting a loop in the center. Shape the loop so it’s round like a head. There will be two long ends underneath the head.
o Next, make the arms. Just under the head, fold each end towards the center about half an inch, and twist the part that is folded over. There should be two ends under the arms, sticking out like an X.
o Next, make the body. Twist the ends together for 3-4 twists, about an inch long. There should be two short ends below the body.
o Finally, make the legs. Fold each end in over itself, and twist together.
o Kids can bend the end of the legs 90 degrees to make feet. With some twisting/ maneuvering, the little person will stand.
· Give each kid a piece of paper towel that’s long enough to cover their David.
· Direct the kids to fold the piece of paper towel in half lengthwise and rip a very small hole in the center fold.
· Instruct the kids to slip the head of their David through the hole so that he’s “wearing” the paper towel robe.
· If you have older or “crafty” kids, they can slide beads onto the body stem of their David before they twist the legs. They can also use beads to adorn the head before they twist the body.
What You Say:
“These are simple little Davids made of pipe cleaners—David doesn’t look much like a king. He doesn’t have a crown, and he’s wearing simple clothes. It reminds me of how David must have looked when he danced in our Bible story. How did his wife feel about him when he didn’t look much like a king? (Invite answers. She didn’t like that David wasn’t dignified and serious like a king.)
“David was thinking more about how to [Bottom Line] celebrate what God has done than how he looked. He set aside everything else—all the worries about being king and all the worries about what people thought of him, so that he could concentrate on celebrating what God had done.
“I don’t know if you’ve ever danced to [Bottom Line] celebrate what God has done, but there are a lot of ways we can celebrate. What is a way you can think of to celebrate? (Invite answers. Sing worship songs in church or at home; pray to thank God for what He has done; tell other people about the good things God has done in our lives.)
“Let’s keep thinking about all the ways we could [Bottom Line] celebrate what God has done.”
Closing
Song and Dance
[Hear from God | Memory Verse Activity]
Made to Create: an activity that explores ideas through the process of drawing, building, designing, and problem-solving
What You Need: Bibles, music player or phone, upbeat music
What You Do:
· Read Psalm 136:1 out loud from the Bible.
· If you have mostly older kids, separate them into groups.
o Ask each group to create something to help remember this verse: a song, a poem, motions, or a dance.
o After 5-7 minutes, gather the groups together.
o Ask for volunteers who want to perform their verse for the group.
· If you have mostly younger kids, say the verse out loud together while dancing to the upbeat worship music. Continue as long as their attention holds.
What You Say:
“This verse reminds us that no matter what happens, we can [Bottom Line] celebrate what God has done. Because God has sent us Jesus, we are never alone, and that means that we always have a reason to be grateful to God.
“God has done many things for His people, like we talked about before. (If time allows, let kids share about the Bible stories they know where God took care of His people.) But the most important thing God did was send Jesus so that we could have a relationship with Him that lasts forever. We can always be grateful for that and [Bottom Line] celebrate what God has done!”
(If time allows, more dancing at this point would be fun! Try to connect dancing and celebration with worship through your song choices. Choose a worship song to dance and sing to. And join in! Dance around and be silly with the kids, especially if you have older ones. Embarrassing yourself a little bit is the quickest way to get them to join in.)