KIDS BIBLE LESSON & GAME ON COURAGE

Here’s a free kid’s ministry Bible lesson on courage, based on 1 Corinthians 16:13, that includes a fun opening game.

The big idea: God will give you the courage you need every day.

Enjoy the lesson!

– Nick Diliberto, Ministry to Youth

Looking for kid’s ministry curriculum?

ONE YEAR CHILDREN’S MINISTRY CURRICULUM, VOL 1 – Save 72% on one year of children’s ministry curriculum for 1st-5th grade helping kids fall in love with Jesus and discover what it means to follow him!

KID’S MINISTRY GAME ON COURAGE

Bible: 1 Corinthians 16:13 (NLT)

Bottom Line: God will give you the courage you need every day.

SUPPLIES

• Paper plates (one per kid)
• Ping pong ball (one for each group of 10 kids)
• Black Sharpie

GAME PREP

Before kids arrive, divide a pack of paper plates into groups of ten.

Write the word “safe” on the bottom of two plates in each group.

Divide kids into groups of ten or less.

As kids are forming groups, lay the paper plates (top side up) in circles on the ground.

Have each group sit on their circle of paper plates, facing outward.

Next, choose one person to hold his or her plate and stand in the middle of the circle.

Give one kid in each circle a ping pong ball.

HOW TO PLAY THE GAME

Say: Look at the person sitting beside you on your right.

Raise your right hand if you know his or her name.

Now, look at the person sitting on your left.

Raise your left hand if you know that person’s name.

Here’s a question: do you know the first, middle, and last names of the people beside you?

You have 30-seconds, starting right now, to learn the first, middle, and last name of the people on either side of you.

Allow 30-seconds and then call STOP!

Okay, time is up.

I hope you were paying very close attention when they told you their names!

In each of your circles, a person is standing in the middle.

When I say GO, the person in the middle will cover his or her face with the paper plate.

Everyone in the circle will begin passing the ping pong ball around until the person in the middle will say “STOP!”

The person in the middle will walk to the outside of the circle and face the person holding the ping pong ball.

Then, the middle person will say “RIGHT” or “LEFT.”

The person holding the ping pong ball will have five seconds to say the first, middle, and last name of that person.

If that person gives an incorrect name, or can’t do it in the time allotted, he or she will become the person in the middle.

OR when the person in the middle says “RIGHT” or “LEFT,” the person holding the ping pong ball can choose to look under his or her plate instead.

If the plate says, SAFE, then that person is safe.

If it is blank, then that person is automatically in the middle.

Play as many rounds as you would like and then move into the TEACH portion of the game.

TEACH

Say: That was a lot of fun!

Raise your hand if you were never the person in the middle.

That means that you were either really good at remembering everyone’s names OR you had the courage to look under your plate to see if it said the word SAFE.

Ask: What is courage?

Allow a few responses from kids.

Courage is “the ability to do something that you know is difficult or dangerous.”

On the count of three, I need everyone to tell me how old they are…1 – 2 – 3!

Have kids shout their age as loud as they can.

Now, I said that courage is doing something that is hard or requires you to be brave.

This time on the count of three, I want you to tell me how many times in your life that you have been brave…1 – 2 – 3!

Have kids shout a number that represents how many times they feel they have been brave.
Some of you shouted some really high numbers and some shouted out low numbers.

Having courage can be difficult, especially if you try to do it in your own strength and without God’s help.

Ask: Can you list a few things that you do every day that do not require much courage?

Here are a few examples: holding a pencil, sitting in a chair, or brushing your teeth.

What are some other examples of things you do that don’t take much courage?

Allow a few responses from kids.

Ask: Now, can you tell me some things that you do that take a lot of courage?

Here are some examples of things that might take courage: being kind to someone who is mean to you, telling the truth, or praying out loud. Any more examples?

Allow a few responses from kids.

Courage is different for everyone.

You might have heard someone name something that takes a lot of courage for him or her but that doesn’t take any courage at all for you.

For some people, talking in front of your class at school might be terrifying.

Other people might think it’s a lot of fun!

Or maybe you enjoy making new friends and talking to people you don’t know, while your friends might think that is the scariest thing ever!

Let’s read a Bible verse that talks about courage and strength.

Read 1 Corinthians 16:13. (NLT)

Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong.

The Book of 1st Corinthians is a letter that the apostle Paul wrote to the leaders of a church in the city of Corinth.

During that time in history, over 2,000 years ago, you really had to have courage if you were a follower of Jesus.

Jesus was God’s Son who lived on the earth, died, and rose from the dead, but there were still people who didn’t believe He was who He said He was.

So, when you said you were a “Christian,” it meant that some people didn’t like you.

In the Bible verse that I just read, Paul is encouraging Christians.

First, he says, “be on guard.”

That means to be aware of what is going on.

“Stand firm in the faith” means knowing what you believe and believing in God.

“Be courageous” means giving it all you’ve got and not being afraid because God is with you.

And lastly, “be strong” means to love without stopping, no matter what happens.

God can give you the strength, as you stand firm in your faith, to have the boldness to do the things that require courage.

With God’s help, you will have all the courage you will ever need.

End Lesson

Looking for kid’s ministry curriculum?

ONE YEAR CHILDREN’S MINISTRY CURRICULUM, VOL 1 – Save 72% on one year of children’s ministry curriculum for 1st-5th grade helping kids fall in love with Jesus and discover what it means to follow him!

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