Curriculum
The God of the Impossible
Memory Verse:
“With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” Mark 10:27
Bible Background
What Kids Will Learn
We cannot live life on our own—everyone needs help. There are countless things that are impossible when we try them, but only God makes them possible.
Scripture Summary
In Mark’s account, Jesus had just finished blessing young children and inviting them to come to Him. Jesus was then on His way to another place when a rich young man stopped Him and asked a question. The rich young man wanted to know what else he needed to do to have eternal life.
Jesus answered him and named a few of the commandments—no lying, no stealing, and honor your parents. The rich young man had kept these commandments. So Jesus got to the heart of the matter and addressed the greatest commandment—you should have no other gods before me. The rich young man knew there was something lacking in his life. He desperately wanted to be sure he secured eternal life, but he was unwilling to give up his riches. His riches were far more important than God was to him. So he went away sad.
As Jesus was explaining this to His disciples, He made an absurd comment about it being easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. There’s great debate whether or not there was an actual city gate in Jerusalem called the eye of the needle. It’s believed to be a smaller gate that opened after the main gate closed at night. Camels could barely squeeze through, after crouching down and offloading any cargo.
Whether or not there was an actual gate called the eye of the needle, Jesus’ point is clear. It’s impossible for a rich man to save himself. And the same is true for any of us. Only God makes it possible. Only God can save us and give us eternal life with Him. Unfortunately, those who are rich (in whatever way) are often tempted to depend on their own riches rather than God Himself.
Why Is This Important
We can be tempted to depend on lots of things in our life—money, jobs, relationships, titles, possessions, and achievements. But they will only carry us so far. They will run out or become obsolete. Only God can make the impossible possible. And He wants to save each of us.
Teacher Devotion
Scripture
“‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” (Luke 15:6-7)
I don’t like to lose things. Of course, no one does. Losing something makes everything else seem…off. Not too long ago, I lost a diamond out of a treasured ring. I was devastated.
For a few months before that, I noticed that the prongs on my ring were not quite right. I continued to dismiss the warning because there were multiple prongs. Surely they’d work together to keep the diamond secure.
I continued to wear my ring like nothing was wrong. In fact, I wore it while we were cleaning out the garage. We spent hours one Saturday going through stacks of boxes and items to get rid of. As I rested that evening, I realized my diamond had fallen out of my ring. Oh, I was sick to my stomach. I had not only lost my diamond, but I only had myself to blame for ignoring the warnings.
Not even five minutes later, I saw something on my lap catch the light. The lost diamond was just sitting there on my lap. There was no logical explanation.
And that’s just how God works. He’s the God of the impossible. That doesn’t always mean He provides a happy ending to a story, but God continues to work miraculously on our behalf.
- A prodigal child returns home.
- Peace, that doesn’t make any logical sense, in the midst of a storm.
- An unexplained check in the mail to cover an expense.
- Strength and hope to persevere through tragedy.
- Finding a treasure that was lost.
- A dream job or opportunity “falling into our lap.”
Take a moment to ponder how you’ve seen God at work in your life. How has He done the impossible in and for you? Thank God for all that He has done.
Prayer
Dear God, thank You for always being at work on my behalf. I know You love me, and it shows. Please help me be mindful of the many ways you make the impossible possible today. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Bible Memory Verse
You’ll Need: “All Things Are Possible” handout - one for every three to four kids, Cardstock, Scissors, Paper clips, Bibles - one per child
Get Ready: Before class, print the “All Things Are Possible” handout on cardstock, one for every three to four kids. Cut out the memory verse cards, mix up the order, and paper clip each set together. Make one set per team.
“Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.’” Mark 10:27
Lead kids in these steps to learn today’s Bible Memory Verse:
- Invite kids to open their Bibles to Mark 10:27.
- Form teams of three to four kids.
- Explain that when you say, “Go!” the first person in each team will place a memory verse card on their back and walk on all fours, like camels, to the other end of the room.
- There, they will take the card off their back and place it in the correct order, then return on all fours to their team.
- The team that gets all the pieces of their memory verse to the other side of the room and in order first wins.
SAY: You were some crazy camels today. Just think, you aren’t even the size of a camel. How hard would it be for you to fit through the eye of a needle? Remember, today we learn that with God all things are possible.
Interactive Bible Experience
You’ll Need: Bibles - one per child, A peeled, hard-boiled egg, A glass bottle with an opening slightly smaller than the egg (Note: We found that iced coffee bottles work best.), Matches, Vegetable oil
- Invite kids to open their Bibles to Mark 10.
- Read aloud Mark 10:17-21.
ASK:
- What do you think made Jesus’ request hard for the man?
Read aloud Mark 10:22-27.
SAY: Let’s watch something that will seem impossible, like a camel fitting through the eye of a needle.
- Put the glass bottle on the table.
- Grease the mouth of the bottle with vegetable oil.
- Place the egg on the neck of the bottle. Point out that the egg cannot be pushed into the bottle without destroying the egg. Remove the egg.
- Light three matches at once and drop them into the bottle.
- Quickly place the egg over the mouth of the bottle.
- Watch carefully as the egg gets sucked into the bottle.
ASK:
- What were you thinking before, during, and after this experiment?
- How is this like or unlike what Jesus said about God, the God of the impossible?
SAY: The matches changed the pressure in the bottle and it went through the smaller opening. The matches made it possible. In life we will face things that we think are impossible. But remember, with God all things are possible.
Snack
Camel Snack
You’ll Need: Paper plates - one per child, Napkins - one per child, Toothpicks - nine per child, Bananas, Strawberries, Blueberries, Mandarin orange slices
Get Ready: Before class, peel the bananas and cut into thirds. Cut the stems off the strawberries.
Follow these steps to make the “Camel Snack”:
- Give each child a paper plate, a napkin, and nine toothpicks. Make all of the fruit accessible in the center of the workspace.
- Instruct kids to attach three strawberries together in a straight line using two toothpicks. The flat tops of the strawberries should all be facing down.
- To make the camel’s legs, attach two toothpicks to the bottom of the first strawberry, and two toothpicks to the bottom of the third strawberry.
- Invite kids to line all four “legs” with blueberries.
- Attach the banana third to the first strawberry using a toothpick to make the camel’s neck.
- Instruct kids to break one toothpick in half. On one half of the toothpick, sandwich one mandarin orange slice between two blueberries to make the camel’s head and eyes.
- Use the second half of the toothpick to fasten the mandarin orange to the top of the banana.
- Instruct kids to break one more toothpick in half. Stick each of the toothpick halves into the tops of the second and third straw- berries, then attach a mandarin orange slice on each to make the camel’s humps.
- Enjoy!
SAY: Jesus said getting into heaven on our own is as hard as getting a camel through the eye of a needle. But when we believe in God, we have His help, and with God, all things are possible.
Game
Camel Racing
You’ll Need: Small paper cups, Water, Masking tape, Six chairs
Get Ready: Before class, mark the start and finish lines using masking tape. Space out three chairs in a line for each of the teams.
To play the “Camel Racing” game, have kids follow these steps:
- Form two teams and have teams line up at the starting line.
- Give each child a small paper cup filled halfway with water. Ex- plain that because camels live in the desert, their bodies need a way to store water. They do that in their humps. Tell kids they’ll pretend to be camels in this race, but they’ll carry water in a cup instead of a hump.
- Explain that when you say, “Go!” the first person in line will start the camel race by crawling underneath the first chair, stepping over or around the second chair, and crawling under the third chair.
- When they reach the finish line, the next person can go.
- The team that has the most water left in their cups at the end of the camel race, wins.
SAY: When we think about camels, we certainly don’t think about putting one through the eye of a needle. Jesus used a good example by saying, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
Craft
Possible Banner
You’ll Need: Large banner paper, Markers
Get Ready: Before class, draw the outline of the letters for the following phrase: WITH GOD, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE.
Have kids follow these steps to make the “Possible Banner” craft:
- Invite children to circle around the banner.
- Challenge each child to fill in a letter with color, shapes, or designs.
- Once the banner is complete, hang the banner in a place that will be the most encouragement to your church or community.
ASK:
- What does it mean to you when you hear, “With God, all things are possible”?
- Who do you know who could be encouraged by this message?
SAY: When we have good news to share, we can’t help but share it. Knowing that nothing is impossible with God can be such a comfort and encouragement to so many.
Prayer
Threaded Prayers
You’ll Need: Fabric samples, A threaded needle, Markers
Get ready: Cut small fabric squares for each child.
- Give each child a fabric square and a marker.
- Invite kids to write the names of people they want to pray for on their pieces of fabric.
- Invite kids to pray silently for each name on their piece of fabric.
- As children finish praying, collect the pieces of fabric and quickly stitch them together using large stitches.
- Display the fabric squares in your room.
PRAY: Dear God, You are the God of the impossible. We thank You that through Jesus, we can be saved. Help us to trust You. Please be with each name written on these pieces of fabric. In Jesus’ name, amen.
