Old Testament – Page 8 – Family Faith Companion

Cool Disciples Schedule: October 2012

Posted on September 27, 2012September 14, 2016 by Carol Hulbert

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On Saturday nights and on Sunday mornings at FUMC our “Sunday’s Cool” is a different sort of Christian education. We are a Workshop Rotation Model church. That means kids spend a month learning a particular Bible story, each week encountering a different kid-friendly multimedia workshop. In October we are starting a big story: Jacob and Esau. This is such a long story that we’ll be breaking it into two parts. (Part two will be in November.) Read part one in Genesis 25:19-34, 27:1-37, and 27:41-43.

For Sundays at the downtown location, here is the schedule of workshops for the end of September and for October…

Date	Art	Drama	Puppets	Games	Cooking	Video
	Room 212	Room 215	Room 204	Room 211	Social Hall	Pine Room
9/30	1st grade	5th grade	3rd grade	6th grade	4th grade	2nd grade
10/7	Worship and Communion with your family
10/14	2nd grade	4th grade	1st grade	5th grade	6th grade	3rd grade*
10/21	Attend worship: kids will help us to worship!
10/28	3rd grade	6th grade	2nd grade	4th grade	5th grade	1st grade

* On the 14th the 3rd graders will be having a special class on using their Bibles. Parents/guardians are encouraged to attend.

What’s happening in each workshop?

In the Art Workshop students will work cooperatively to create construction paper mosaics illustrating the story of Jacob and Esau. The mosaics will focus on characters and story sequence.
In the Cooking Workshop students will explore why Esau traded his birthright for a bowl of lentil stew, and in the process create and taste “some of that red stew.”
In the Drama Workshop students will enact the story and learn what happened when one brother tricked the other.
In the Games Workshop students will participate in a game of “Bible Baseball” – with the rules changing as the students play! What’s up with that?!
In the Puppet Workshop a puppet storytelling kit will be created and used to tell the story. Encourage your child to use their kit to tell the story at home.
In the Video Workshop students will watch portions of the video The Lion King, and explore what happens when we do things our way.

For Saturdays at the Green Wood location, here is the schedule for October. (For September 29th refer here.)

Date	Workshop
10/6	Puppets Workshop
10/13	Drama Workshop
10/20	No Workshop. Worship with your family.
10/27	Video Workshop

If you are in the area please join us for the fun learning at First United Methodist Church in Ann Arbor, MI

Photo credit: Click here for info on banner photo (not visible in readers or email).

All of Life is Worship

Posted on June 21, 2012June 21, 2012 by Carol Hulbert

What does this Bible verse tell us?

Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise.
Psalm 100:4 (NLT)

Is that Bible verse talking about the doors to a church?

It’s talking about what we do when we go to church to worship;
that is the spot to show our thanks. Right?

How about asking these questions at the family dinner table. (Or wherever your family is gathered together.) That verse above is from Psalm 100, which is our Rotation this month at FUMC. So it is only fitting to have dinner conversation that includes the topics of worship and Psalm 100.

As we dig into Psalm 100, our primary focus is to explore what this psalm tells us about why, and how we worship God. When we reflect on “worship” we immediately think of what we do once a week on Saturday or on Sunday – opening up those gates (okay, the doors) and entering church. We’ve looked at why we worship God; now let’s focus on how.

Grab a Bible. Before you read, ask everyone to listen for instructions in Psalm 100 that tell us how to worship. (You may ask everyone to turn their spoon over when they hear an answer.)

What did you hear? How should we worship? Psalm 100 is dishing out commands!

Shout for joy!
Worship with gladness.
Sing with joy.
Give thanks to him.
Praise his name.

So, here’s another question: Should such noisy worship be restricted to just during a weekly “worship service”?

What if we consider those “gates” referred to above as doors to each new day of life?

If expressing our love and our devotion to God — with joyous praise — can take place at any time and in any place, then the teachings of Psalm 100 can be applied, not just once a week, but to daily life!

Have you worshipped today?

Photo credits: Click here for info on banner photo (not visible in readers or email).
Church doors by Rodney Campbell, who licensed this photo under: Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.0 Generic.

Questioning worship?

Posted on June 14, 2012June 14, 2012 by Carol Hulbert

Have your kids ever asked why your family goes to church?

Because it’s a habit?
To refuel our soul?
To see your friends?
We were made to worship something; it might as well be God?
For some quiet time for the adults? (Because the kids spend part of the time in Sunday’s Cool.)

All of those are valid answers.

Start a family discussion around the family dinner table. (Or wherever your family is gathered together.) Say: “I am curious to hear your answers… Why do we go to church?”

Accept any replies and then ask another question: We go to church for many reasons, but why do we worship?

Again, be open to all the answers you get. Then steer the questioning towards what is worship? I like this definition:

(Worship) is a mysterious way of coming into God’s presence with people of my community. Carolyn C. Brown

Mysterious?

Yes. Then there is this mystery:

For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;  
his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Psalm 100:5

I love it! We go to church to worship God because God is good, all the time!

Photo credits: Click here for info on banner photo (not visible in readers or email).
Questioning girl by trazomfreak, who licensed this photo on Flickr under a Creative Commons License.

Etch the words into your heart

Posted on April 26, 2012March 26, 2017 by Carol Hulbert

Water stories?

In this Bible verse from Deuteronomy 11:18a, Moses is admonishing the Israelites to always remember what God has done for them.

So keep my words in your hearts and minds.

As our kids learned earlier this year, God provided freedom from slavery in Egypt. Moses goes on to instruct the Israelites to teach their children about these liberation stories.

Teaching these stories is still today a priority for us as parents/caregivers. But not only the specific stories of Moses; we also need to ensure that our children grasp the reality of God’s love. You’re probably already doing this task through many avenues:

Reading and telling Bible stories,
Praying with your kids,
Teaching service to others,
Naming instances you see in the world of God’s love and grace, etc, etc.

Here’s another way:

Encouraging the memorization of scripture.

And the perfect spot to start: John 3:16. (Read it in different Bible versions here.)

A heart shape with God written in it

Etching God’s words of love into our children’s hearts.

This is not memorizing like you would learn facts for a test. This is a different sort of learning, for a different purpose. Tell your children: “We are keeping God’s word in our heart.”

That’s right, I said we. Because you’ll want your kids to do as you do. It will be a much more powerful lesson if you are working on this as well.

Learning God’s words by heart makes it instantly available when you need it. Your mind can pull them up faster than a smart phone, right?

How to go about this task? Here are some ideas:

Refer to this past post for hints. (No sense in repeating myself!)
Start ’em young: Age 2 has been suggested. (But it’s never too late to start! Though it does get harder with age.)
Say it differently: Try a fun way of saying the verse. Use a cowboy voice, cheerleader style, opera style, referee style, or baby style. What other ways can you think of?
More games: If you have a dry-erase or a chalk board, write out the verse. Then erase one word and say the verse with the missing word. Continue until all the words are gone. Don’t have such a resource? Arm your child with a stack of Post-it Notes. Write out the verse on a sheet of paper and use the Post-it’s to cover up the verse a word at a time.
More songs: Try this one on YouTube to learn John 3:16-17. Search for other verses to find songs.
Catch them on video: Once your child can say part of a verse, video them. I’ll bet they’ll like watching themselves, and saying the verse with themselves!
After you’ve mastered John 3:16, learn verses based on the alphabet. Try these ABC Scripture cards.

What are your hints for etching God’s word upon our heart?

Photo credits:
Water stories by Abigail Keenan, via Unsplash.
Heart clip art by rygle, via Openclipart.org.
Both licensed under CC0 1.0 Public Domain.

Our Moses workshops – pictures!

Posted on March 9, 2012February 11, 2018 by Carol Hulbert

We’ve just finished up a couple of Rotations on Moses. We started in January with Moses’ birth, his trip through the bulrushes in a basket and his adult experience with a burning bush. Then in February we continued the Moses story with the plagues on Egypt and the very first Passover. (I love how this will tie into our March Rotation on the Last Supper.) Here is a review of our study of Moses, with lots of pictures!

Each workshop starts off with reading the story in the Bible. By the third week everyone knows the story! But finding it in the Bible is still important.
(This photo from our Green Wood location.)

In January there was a Games Workshop using our life-sized board game. Kids played a game modeled after the board game, Cranium.
1st grade use the large game board in the Games Workshop


See that cube thing? (At the orange arrow). That is the game die. A team tosses it and depending on the picture they roll, they have a certain type of activity that they need to do.	Here the card might have said “Using Playdoh, see how quickly team members can create a pair of sandals.” Of course, meanwhile the leader was asking everyone, how sandals enter into the story.

There was a Storytelling Workshop…

Moses visits in the Storytelling Workshop

“Moses” visits the Storytelling Workshop downtown (for 4th-6th graders)

And “Moses” at Green Wood.

(Okay, so it wasn’t really Moses. Just a couple of guys who did a great job portraying Moses!)

In the Drama Workshop kids acted out the burning bush portion of the story…

the 5th grade poses on stage at the Drama Workshop

Nice burning bush. Notice all the sheep? There were lots of props. Which ones can you name?

Meanwhile, in the “Greenhouse” (ages 3 years old to kindergarteners) they were learning about Moses as well. Here they learned about unleavened bread.

In February it was on to the Plagues and Passover portion of the Moses story. There was a different Games Workshop. This one was Bible Bowling. Here the 1st and the 6th graders work together in teams. Teams had names like “the Gnats” and “the Frogs.”


Kids sure do know the answers to the questions!	When the team answered correctly, they got a chance to knock down the pins.

There was a Cooking Workshop…

Mixing up some unleavened bread – in a hurry!

And there was an Art Workshop where kids made comics using thumbprints…




Can you tell the story using these thumbprint drawings?	What part of the story does this one tell?

What was your favorite Workshop?

Photo credits: Click here for info on banner photo (not visible in readers or email).
Other photos by Beth Pascoe, Carol Hulbert and folks at Green Wood. Used by permission.

Breaking down the Moses, Plagues to Passover story

Posted on February 9, 2012February 11, 2018 by Carol Hulbert

Moses and Aaron before Pharaoh

We are about to embark on a follow-up Rotation on Moses. Last month we covered Moses from his birth to his encounter with God in a burning bush.

That was a lot of ground to cover in the Bible, as is part two: Plagues and Passover. But have no fear! Here is a reading plan for your family group to use, to break down this month’s story into manageable chunks. (For the part one reading plan click here.)

Might I suggest covering our story over several days? Start off with a review of God’s call to Moses. (The Burning Bush!) The next day, read about Moses and Aaron’s first encounter with Pharaoh. (See picture above.) On subsequent days you can read about each plague, as God displays his power to Egypt. Eventually you’ll read about the first Passover and about how a lamb’s blood saved the Israelites.

As an added bonus there are questions for discussion at the family dinner table. (Or wherever your family is gathered together.)

If you’d like to print out this reading plan/discussion guide (I’ve tried to squeeze it into a one-page document!) click here.

Read	Discussion question
Exodus 3:1-6	Why take off your sandals? What sort of relationship to God does this imply?
Exodus 3:7-15	What does God want Moses to do? How many different ways does God identify himself?
Exodus 4:1-17	Does Moses sound like he is whining? When was the last time you whined? Reread verse 11. Which of your perceived limitations needs this sort of talking to?
Exodus 5:1-18	How did you expect Pharaoh would react to Moses’ request? Tell about a time you asked for something and were turned down. What can help you to keep in mind that God is with you in times of stress?
Exodus 5:22-6:8	Do you suppose Moses is ready to give up? So soon? When have you felt this way?
Exodus 7:1-7	Why do you suppose God “hardened” Pharaoh’s heart? Or did Pharaoh harden his own heart? What do you hope to be able to accomplish at age 80?
Exodus 7:8-13	How do you suppose Moses and Aaron felt when Pharaoh’s magicians made their staffs into snakes? Who (in your opinion) “won” this round?
Exodus 7:14-24	To the Egyptians the Nile River was a god. What does this say about God’s power? Do you see “magicians” in society who try to mimic God’s power?
Exodus 8:1-15	How do you suppose it would feel to find frogs in your oven and in your mixing bowls? Why do you suppose the magicians didn’t try to stop the frogs?
Exodus 8:16-19	Starting with this plague, the magicians were no longer able to reproduce a plague. Why do you suppose this didn’t have an affect on Pharaoh?
Exodus 8:20-32	What sort of pattern of behavior is happening? Starting with this plague, the Hebrews were unaffected. What sort of message did this send to Pharaoh? To the Hebrews?
Exodus 9:1-7	How do you suppose Pharaoh planned to recover Egypt from these plagues?
Exodus 9:8-12	God didn’t tell Moses how many plagues would happen. How is Moses likely feeling?
Exodus 9:13-35	What does the warning in verse 19 say about God? How about verse 32?
Exodus 10:3-20	If God knows that Pharaoh will change his mind, why does he keep stopping a plague when Pharaoh says he will let them go? Why does Pharaoh ignore his officials advice?
Exodus 10:21-29	The sun was a god to the Egyptians. What does this story teach you about your allegiance to the “gods” of today’s society?
Exodus 11:1, 12:1-13	Why do you suppose there are such explicit directions for a Passover feast? How does Jesus’ Last Supper relate to this story? How about Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross?
Exodus 12:21-30	In the manner of verse 26, discuss your family traditions.
Exodus 12:31-42	What sort of blessing do you suppose Moses gave Pharaoh? Have you ever received a blessing? How do you suppose the Hebrews felt as they left town in a hurry?

Photo credits:
Moses and Aaron before Pharaoh by Benjamin West (1738-1820) in the Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Moses: Let My People Go!

Posted on February 2, 2012April 26, 2017 by Carol Hulbert

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Hebrews are enslaved in Egypt — Let my people go!

On Saturday nights and on Sunday mornings at FUMC our Cool Disciples experience Rotation Model Christian education. They learn about Bible stories and concepts through kid-friendly workshops that each focus on different learning styles.

In February 2012, we are continuing the story of Moses. Last month we learned about Moses from his watery beginning in a papyrus basket, to his dramatic experience as an adult meeting God in a burning bush. God wanted Moses to bring his people, the Israelites, out of Egypt to the Promised Land (Exodus 3:9-10).

We saw Moses reluctantly agree to lead God’s people to freedom. And this is where we pick up our story for this month. As we will see, freeing the Hebrews from Pharaoh’s grip is not an easy task. It involves frogs, and gnats, and flies! And a mysterious “passing over” with protection provided by the blood of a lamb. Read about our story in Exodus 5:1-6:13, 7:1-12:42. (It’s another long one. ~~Stay tuned for~~ Here is another reading plan to break it into manageable chunks!)

This is where the “Schedule” used to appear — which grades were visiting which workshops over the course of this Rotation. However it was removed as it was sort of out of date 🙂 Our current schedule of workshops, for whatever Rotation we are currently on, can be found on this page.

For prosperity, here is what we did in each workshop for this story: (Be sure to catch pictures of the action!)

In the Art Workshop students will create comic strips that tell the story using their thumbprints (Ed Emberley style).
In the Cooking Workshop students will make unleavened bread and discuss the Passover and the Israelites’ departure from Egypt.
In the Games Workshop students will participate in a Bible Bowling game as they learn story characters, events and story sequence. Which team will win – the Gnats, or the Flies, or the Frogs?
In the Music Workshop students will learn a silly song about the story. The words to B-I-N-G-O never sounded like this!
In the Video Workshop students will watch portions of the animated video The Prince of Eygpt. I wonder how closely the creators of video follow the story as told in the Bible?

If you are in the area please join us for the fun learning at First United Methodist Church in Ann Arbor, MI

Photo credits:
Line drawing of Hebrews enslaved, from the book The Big Picture Bible Time Line by Gospel Light. Used with permission.

I dare you to notice God at work

Posted on February 1, 2012May 14, 2015 by Carol Hulbert

Now that we are turning the calendar page to February, how are your New Year’s resolutions coming? I personally have already given up on daily exercise. (Such lofty thoughts!) There is one area however, where I am going full speed ahead: Noticing and counting God’s gifts.

I’m pursuing the “Joy Dare”

A real dare! It goes like this: in 2012 can I make a conscious effort to write down one thousand gifts? (That means roughly three a day!) These gifts are more than just things, they are graces from God.

Can I mark that many ways that God shows me love?

I’ve been writing down gifts for the last three years. But my annotations were intermittent. (It took me two years to get to 500.) Climbing to one thousand more in 2012 takes an effort! But this dare is aptly named: A Joy Dare, because I’m finding real joy even on days filled with chaos and confusion; I look for beauty in the ugly mess. It’s become for me a habit: repeatedly giving God praise – for everything.

Then it occurred to me that this tallying of thankfuls is a way to notice God in our lives! Exactly what we are trying to teach kids in our current Rotation on Moses.

It’s not too late to start this dare. Perhaps it could be reworded?

I dare you to notice God at work in your life.

Click on this button to find out more about the dare.

Some of my list (from its beginnings back in November 2008 but with up-to-date photos)…

a family gathering

6. A healthy family

11. Authentic refried beans

35. Blue sky days

a blue sky fall day

702. Texting blessings

279. Family discussion with tears

833. Smiles noted when someone unexpectedly lends a helping hand

1010. Foot pain

1013. A cheerleading friend.

Want to start this dare in your family but worried about where to find God’s graces? Might I point you to help? Click here for a wonderful list – a way to capture God’s gifts – three a day all through February!

Photo credits:
Photos are from my archives.
Button from onethousandgifts.com

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