Hello, boys and girls! Today, we're going to learn a story from the Bible about God's people and a shiny golden calf they made! It's a story about waiting and being patient.
let's Pray!
Dear God, Help us to explore the story of Moses and your people. May we learn and understand the importance of following your Word. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
sing, dance!
Song Title: When I look
the story
A long time ago, God chose a special leader named Moses to help the people of Israel. Moses led them out of a place called Egypt, where they had to work very hard for a very mean King!
But one day, Moses had to go up on a big mountain called Sinai (Sai-Nai) to talk to God. He told the people he would be back soon, but Moses took longer than they thought!
The people started to feel scared, worried and impatient! They did not know where Moses was and didn't know what to do. So, they had an idea and told Moses' older brother Aaron, "Moses led us out of Egypt. But we don’t know what has happened to him. So make us gods who will lead us."
They decided to make a shiny golden calf out of their gold jewelry. Aaron said, “Tear off the gold rings and bring them to me.”, so the people of God brought him their jewelries. Aaron melted them and built the people a Golden Calf! After making the Golden Calf, Aaron said, "Then the people said, “Israel! These are your gods who brought you out of the land of Egypt!”
They thought it would make them feel better and give them something to love, but they made a terrible choice! Because they were afraid, they did not trust God. They turned away from Him and started worshiping the Golden Calf that Aaron made. They started dancing and singing around it, but this made God angry & sad! He had helped them so much, but they forgot about him and made something else to love and worship.
In God's anger, He wanted to send a terrible disaster upon them! But Moses prayed to God and asked God to remember the Promise He made to His people. When God heard Moses, He changed his mind and did not destroy the people. Moses was very upset because the people were behaving very badly. So, he asked everyone who loves God to come and join him. Some people, called the Levites, came to help Moses.
Moses told these helpers to go around and stop anyone who was doing bad things, even if they were friends or family. They listened to Moses, and because of this, they were chosen for a special job to serve and help lead the people.
The next day, Moses went up on the mountain once again to ask God to forgive His people. Moses even told God that He could just erase his name from the Book of people who loves Him. But God said, “I will erase from My book the names of the people who sin against me. So now, go. Lead the people where I have told you. My angel will lead you. When the time comes to punish, I will punish them for their sin.”
let's review!
1. Who was the special leader that God chose to help the people of Israel? (Moses)
2. Where did Moses go to talk to God? (Up a big mountain called Sinai)
3. What did the people decide to make while Moses was away? (A shiny golden calf)
4. Why did the people make the golden calf? (Because Moses was gone for a long time & did not know what happened to him)
5. How did the people feel when Moses took longer than they thought? (Worried, scared and
impatient)
6. What did the people do when they finished making the golden calf? (They started
dancing and singing around it)
7. How did God feel when the people made the golden calf? (Sad & Angry)
8. Who was Aaron's older Brother? (Aaron)
9. What did the people think the golden calf would do for them? (that it would lead them in the wilderness)
10. What did the people forget about when they made the golden calf? (They forgot that God had loved and helped them so much)
let's Play!
Let's play "Moses Says!"
Game Objective:
The main goal is for the children to follow Moses' instructions exactly, but only when they start with the phrase "Moses says." If Moses gives a command without saying "Moses says" first, the children should not follow it.
How to Play:
• Choose a Leader.
• Explain the Key Phrase: Teach the children that they must only follow the instructions if they start with the words "Moses says." If these words are not used before the instruction, they should not move.
• Starting the Game: Have all the children stand facing Moses. Moses then gives commands, such as "Moses says jump," or simply "jump." The children must jump only if the command starts with "Moses says."
• If a Child Makes a Mistake: If a child follows a command that doesn't start with "Moses says," they can sit down to indicate they are out for the rest of the round, or you can just remind them of the rule and continue playing to keep everyone involved.
• End of the Game: The game can continue as long as you like or until there is one child left who has correctly followed all the instructions. This child can be named the winner, or you can play multiple rounds allowing different children to win.
Use these Commands:
• Moses says, "Climb a mountain."
• Moses says, "Pray to God."
• Make a Golden Calf!
• Moses says, "March like a Soldier!"
• Moses says, "Say, Sorry!"
• Take all of your Jewelry.
• Moses says "Sit Down!"
• Look afraid!
let's make!
Things you'll need:
- Construction Papers
- Glue Sticks
- Pictures or Magazines
- Scissors or Craft Scissors
Let's draw a picture of a mountain. We can use crayons or markers to color it, and as we draw, we can talk about how we can be patient and trust God when we have to wait.
let's Pray!