The Fruit of the Spirit

Peace

Galatians 5:22 & 23

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy , peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. Against this there is no law".

"When a person accepts Christ, the Holy Spirit comes to live in their heart. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit produces Christian virtues in the believer's life. These virtues are the fruit of the Spirit and we become more Christ-like. We will exhibit the fruit whether we are aware of it or not, it happens completely through the work of the Holy Spirit. We can't produce fruit by our own effort, it comes from God's presence and interaction in our lives."

Offner, Hazel. Fruit of the Spirit. Downers Grove, Ill: Intervarsity Press, 1987

Objective: The objective of The Zoo Children's Ministry is to reach kids with the Gospel message and to teach them about God's love and how to live as Christians in today's world.

The purpose of this particular series is to present salvation and explain that when they make a decision for Christ the Holy Spirit will live in their hearts. They can have the fruit of the Spirit begin to show in their lives.

Themes: We have chosen to divide the fruit of the Spirit into sets of three. With each set there will be a different theme. All props and stories will teach the lesson but incorporate the theme.

Jungle Theme

Preparation: The theme is "Jungle Days". In order to create this atmosphere props and costumes can be used. The volunteers or teachers are encouraged to wear safari outfits. All of the puppets used are jungle animals or safari characters. The puppet stage can be decorated with vines and palm trees. Use you imagination!

Lesson Three PEACE
Philippians 4:7

God's peace is an assurance that we are his children and He will take care of us. The holy Spirit is the source of this peace. No matter what circumstances we find ourselves in God is always there. His peace will see us through.

Goals

• To teach the children that peace comes from God.
• To help them to trust God with their problems and concerns.

Opening

This opening activity will be a puppet song about peace. There are a variety of songs that deal with the Fruit of the Spirit which may be useful.

Rules

Review the rules each lesson. It sounds repetitious and it is but it is essential if you want to remain in control.

Prayer

Use this prayer time to dedicate your Sunday School to God's service. It is also an opportunity to teach the children about prayer. Tell the children that they can talk to God anytime and show them that they can do it in their own words.

Music

This is an excellent chance to burn off some energy and get excited about God. Explain the content of the songs. The kids like to know what they are singing about.

Games

All games will have the jungle theme

Tarzan Relay

Select two teams with four players on each. This is a relay race. The first contestant will pick up a jungle snake (rubber snake) put it between their knees and run up to a jar and drop the snake in. Then the contestant runs to the end of the line where there is a vine. They will do a very loud Tarzan call and then skip the vine ten times. When they complete that they run back to their team and the next contestant goes. (The vine is a skipping rope with pieces of vine tied to it.)

Monkey Target

Select eight children, placing four on each team. The team is given some plastic bananas. They have to line up and try to throw the bananas into the monkey's mouth. (The monkey was drawn on bristol board and a large hole was cut for a mouth.) Whoever gets the most bananas in wins.

Memory Verse

Write out the verse on bristol board to make it easier to teach. "And God's peace will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7
It will be a skit between Einstein the Elephant and the group leader. The elephant is very forgetful and struggles to remember the verse.

Einstein: Hi everybody, I'm back and I'm smarter than ever! Today, I will have no trouble remembering the verse.

Leader: Ok Einstein. We are glad that you are back. I think we should let you try the verse.

Einstein: I'm ready, lets hear it.

Leader: Ok kids lets read the verse to Einstein and see if he can remember it. "And God's peace will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7

Einstein: No problem. I can definitely remember this one without any trouble. Let me see ... And God's geese will keep your cart and minds in the jungle forever. Philippians 4:7

Leader: Well that was a good try but I think you made some of it up. We will say it again for you. "And God's peace will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7

Einstein: I think I have it now. Let me try... And God's peace will keep your hearts and minds in Christ's jungle. Philippians 4:7

Leader: You did much better this time. We are talking about peace today so you got that right, but I don't think the verse said anything about the jungle.

Einstein: OK I'll try it one more time...."And God's peace will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7 See I didn't even bring up the jungle.

Leader: That's it you got it Einstein! Thanks Einstein you did a great job.

Einstein: See I told you I was really smart.

Leader: You sure are.

The memory verse skit is designed to be an interaction between the puppet and the leaders. It may help if you do not memorize the skit. It is simply a guideline. Be creative, let your own personality shine through!

Object Lesson

The object lesson is called "The Burning Bible". It is a magic trick from a company called "The Train Depot"

The word worry is written on a piece of flash paper. The children are asked if they have any problems, concerns or worries.

The burning Bible is opened up and a real flame can be seen. The teacher will explain that the Word of God is very powerful. It is something we can rely on in times of trouble. The flash paper with the word on it catches fire and disappears. The children are usually quite impressed and it is important to stress that that is how powerful God is. He can get rid of all of our worries. He can bring us peace.

Story

This story was told by a puppet and his monkey friend. It also had hand drawn pictures to illustrate the situations the two found themselves in.

Hi, my name is Safari Solomon. I came to share my story with you today. I live in an apartment building. It is very similar to the kind of places where you guys live. Only my place is right next to the jungle. Not just any jungle but a huge jungle full of amazing animals. There are elephants, birds, zebras and all kinds of animals but there are also monkeys.

This is my friend Chatty. He is really special, we do everything together. We like soccer and basketball - don't we Chatty? Let me tell you about the day when I first met Chatty. Chatty was sitting on a tree stump in the jungle crying. I went over to him and asked him what was the matter. That was when he told me about what had been happening to him at school. Chatty was a friendly monkey and just like all of the other monkeys he loved bananas. He had lots of friends but there were a few big monkeys at school that picked on him. They said they didn't like his fur. They said he was too small and they said he cried too much. Everyday they teased him, making fun of him the whole day. Chatty began to feel worse and worse. He told me he didn't want to go to school anymore. The other monkeys were too mean. That is when I told Chatty about peace. I told him about God's peace. I said.... Chatty sometimes really bad things happen. Sometimes we get our feelings hurt or people are mean to us. We need to remember that Jesus is always with us. He gives us peace in the middle of hard times. Chatty, those mean monkeys might hurt your feelings but you need to remember that Jesus is right there with you. He will give you a special kind of peace.

Leader's conclusion:
Thanks Solomon. That was an excellent story. How many of you kids have ever been picked on? Have you ever had your feelings hurt? What about a bad day, have you ever had one? In Solomon's story Chatty wasn't having a very fun time. Sometimes things are like that for us. If we have Jesus in our hearts He can help us have peace all the time.

Copyright 1996, Bread of Life Ministries