Curriculum
A Bride for Isaaac
Memory Verse:
“Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he married Rebekah.” Genesis 24:67
Bible Background
What Kids Will Learn
God has a plan for each of us, a plan that includes both the big and little details of life. He’s willing to make His plan clear to us because He loves us and wants only what’s best for us.
Scripture Summary
Abraham loved, trusted, and obeyed God for years. God told Abraham to leave his home in Ur and travel to Haran and then to Shechem in Canaan. Abraham obeyed. God promised to make Abraham and Sarah into a great nation and decades later gave them a son, Isaac. And Abraham believed.
Later on, Abraham again obeyed God when He commanded him to sacrifice his son Isaac. And God provided a ram to sacrifice, instead of Isaac, at the last minute as Abraham encountered a deeper obedience and trust in God.
Abraham continued to listen to and trust God throughout the years and to provide a wife for Isaac. He wanted Isaac to marry within the family, which was customary to avoid intermarriage with a family of nonbelievers. The son’s parents typically chose his wife for him. And Abraham sent his servant, Eliezer, in search of a wife for Isaac. As Abraham gave instructions, he and Eliezer sealed the deal with the placement of a hand under the thigh (similar to a handshake in today’s time).
Eliezer, just as his master Abraham, trusted God and asked for His guidance in selecting a wife for Isaac. He wanted to follow God’s plan so badly that Eliezer asked for a specific sign confirming God’s chosen bride. If she offered to not only give water to Eliezer but to his animals as well, this would be a sign of Rebekah’s inner beauty.
When God confirmed that Rebekah was His chosen bride for Isaac, Eliezer thanked and worshipped God for His provision. When recounting the story, Eliezer openly shared God’s goodness with Laban, Rebekah’s brother.
Why Is This Important
Just like Abraham and Eliezer, we can trust God to provide for our needs and future steps. He will make His way clear–especially when we ask Him.
Teacher Devotion
Scripture
Making Big Decisions
“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’” (Isaiah 40:31)
Life is full of decisions. Psychologists estimate that we make an average of 35,000 decisions each day. Many of those decisions are quite small (where to focus our eyes, words we choose to complete a sentence, sandwich or salad for lunch), yet we have bigger decisions to make as well (how to encourage a friend, whether we should accept the job offer, where to seek intervention for our child’s education).
Imagine if we each had an actual earpiece where someone would audibly speak into our ear telling us which decision is best. How would you react to such a voice? Do you imagine you’d pay more attention to a voice prompting the right way for each and every decision or just the bigger decisions? What determines what makes a decision “big”?
God promised such a voice of guidance to His people of Jerusalem. When they left His path, He lovingly corrected them, and He will do the same for us. He wants to be that voice encouraging us, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”
He might not give input on the sandwich or salad decision over lunch, but He so desires to be consulted as we navigate each day. As you consider making a decision, remember that God’s way is in line with His Word and character. You may experience sensing God directing you in a certain way. Feel free to boldly ask for God’s confirmation. Remember, God is “not the author of confusion but of peace” (1 Corinthians 14:33).
There’s a saying that you can’t steer a parked car. We can become paralyzed when trying to make the right decision. God is willing and able to help us make decisions. Trust Him to speak and provide, and walk in His confidence.
Prayer
Dear God, thank You for always knowing what’s best for me. Please help me seek Your will as I navigate the big and little decisions in life. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Bible Memory Verse
You’ll Need: Small tent
Get Ready: Gather the kids inside the tent.
“Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he married Rebekah.” Genesis 24:67
Explain that you are going to say a phrase from the memory verse while clapping and the children will repeat after you.
- Isaac brought
- her into
- the tent
- of his
- mother Sarah
- and he
- married Rebekah
- Genesis
- 24:67
Repeat this process several times.
THEN SAY: God knew exactly who Isaac was to marry. God has a plan for every detail of our lives. That is good news.
Interactive Bible Experience
You’ll Need: Pictures of the following: A tent A well A bride A came
Hang each of the pictures in one of the four corners of the room. Explain to the children you are going to ask a question about today’s Bible lesson and they will go to the picture in the corner they believe is the right answer. Give hints to guide each child to the right corner.
ASK:
- What was the worker seeking for Isaac?
- Where did the worker meet Rebekah?
- Where did Rebekah get a drink that made the worker know she was the one?
- Where did Isaac marry her?
SAY: Did you know that God knew all these things were going to happen? God had a plan because He provides for us. Today we learned that God provided a bride for Isaac.
Snack
Tent Treat
You’ll Need: Graham Crackers (three squares per child), Marshmallow cream or cake icing, Plastic knives, Plates
SAY: In today’s Bible lesson, we learn that Isaac brought Rebekah into his mother Sarah’s tent and he married her. Let’s make some tents out of graham crackers today.
Have kids follow these steps to make their Tent Treat.
- Place three graham cracker squares on your plate.
- Use the marshmallow cream or cake icing to hold the graham crackers together to make a triangle that looks like a tent.
- Enjoy.
Game
Well Relay
You’ll Need: Two large buckets, Two smaller buckets, A small paper cup per child, A place to play outside
Place the large buckets, full of water, on one side of the room and the small, empty buckets across from each bucket on the other side of the room. Divide the class into two teams.
Play the game as follows:
- Have the teams line up in a straight line with each person going only when the player before them returns.
- Each player walks down to the “well,” the large bucket of water, and scoops water into their cup. They hold the cup over their head as they walk back.
- When they make it back to their team’s empty bucket, they pour their cup of water into the bucket.
- Once all players have gone, see which team has more water in their home bucket.
SAY: A well played an important role in today’s Bible lesson. The servant went to the well and prayed that God would send the girl he was to bring back for Isaac to marry. The servant would know it was the girl if she offered him and his camels something to drink. This is exactly what Rebekah did and the servant knew she was to be Isaac’s wife.
Craft
Find the Bride
You’ll Need: “Find the Bride” handout (one per child) Crayons
Give each child a “Find the Bride” handout. Have kids connect the numbers to find the bride.
AFTERWARD, ASK:
- What do you see after connecting all the numbers?
- What did you find in your picture today?
SAY: Isaac’s servant had the hard job of finding a bride for him.
He didn’t get to just connect the dots to find a bride. The servant prayed to God. And God answered his prayer and provided a wife for Isaac.
Prayer
Bubble Prayers
You’ll Need: Bubbles
SAY: Sometimes when a bride and groom are leaving their wedding, their friends and family blow bubbles for them to run through as they get in their car. Today we are going to use bubbles to pray to God.
Follow these steps:
- Have kids scatter around the room.
- Explain that you are going to blow bubbles.
- When a bubble comes into their space, they are to think of something they need from God. (For example, help, love, com- fort, food, family, house, etc.)
- When they think of something, they will say it aloud as they pop the bubble.
- Pray as long as time allows.
SAY: Today’s Bible lesson teaches us that God answers prayer and provides for us! God provided for Isaac and God will provide for us, too.
