"I'm Proud of You"
Group Activities

Sermon Title: "Make Your Father Proud"

Scripture Reading: Mark 1:9-11

GOD IS PLEASED PHOTO ALBUM:

Give the children several pieces of paper to create a small booklet. Let them use their imagination to make a booklet about today's lesson writing "In You I Am Well Pleased" on the front cover and then on the following pages have them write things that would make our Heavenly Father proud. For example: BE HONEST; BE FAITHFUL; BE TRUTHFUL; RESPECT OTHERS; BE FAIR; LOVE ONE ANOTHER; OBEY YOUR PARENTS. The pages of the album can then be stapled together or hole punched and tied together with ribbon or yarn.

BAPTISM BANNER:

Have the children create a banner saying "BAPTISM: A PICTURE OF A CHILD OF GOD" or something similar. Let them decorate with a picture of someone being baptized. Add a prayer at the bottom of the banner asking God to help us to be the kind of child of whom he can be proud.

CLOUD POSTER:

Let the children make a large cloud shape out of poster board and glue some cotton around the edges. Using colored markers, have them write "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased." Mark 1:11. The clouds can then be tacked to the classroom wall.

PROUD OF ME PICTURE:

Give each child a piece of construction paper. Have various cut outs of circles, rectangles, triangles and squares for children to use having fun forming a picture of themselves by gluing the different shapes onto the construction paper. The children will draw a face, hair, and other features on their "child" to make it look like themselves. Under the picture they have created, have them write JESUS IS PROUD OF ME. Have a discussion about things that make Jesus proud of us as his children!

DO WHAT I DO GAME:

Let the children take turns being the LEADER and have the other children will copy whatever the leader does. Continue to play until all the children have had a turn being the leader. The faster this goes, the more fun it will be for the children. Tell the children that it is always important for us to do whatever Jesus taught us to do in the Bible.

PROUD OF YOU RELAY:

Divide the children into teams. Have the children run to a basket containing slips of paper with a type of behavior written on it. (Examples: tell the truth; be polite; obey your parents; be honest; be bossy; being rude; cheating) The child will take one, read it, and tape it to a poster board under the heading of GOOD or BAD depending on whether they think the activity would make Jesus PROUD of them. When the activities have all been posted, discuss why they think the activities would, or would not, make Jesus proud of them.

PROUD CLOUD:

Have the children trace and cut out a cloud from construction paper and glue some thin wisps of a cotton ball around the edges. Give children markers to write today's Bible verse in the "PROUD CLOUD" and hang from the ceiling around the classroom with ribbon or thin wire.

CLOUDS TREAT:

Give each child some colored or white marshmallows as a treat and talk about the voice that came out of the heavens in our story! Although it might be a bit messy, you might choose to give the children a toothpick to stick into the marshmallows and dip them in chocolate, caramel or some other topping.

Song: "I Have Decided to Follow Jesus"

Song Sheet (PDF)

- Music and lyrics

Piano Accompaniment (MP3)

Song: "To Be Like Jesus"

Song Sheet (PDF)

- Music and lyrics

Piano Accompaniment (MP3)