January 10, 2021 Sis Michelle Harris
We’ve started a new series all about talking — talking to God—because when we pray, we’re talking to Him. There are so many ways we can talk to God, and that’s what we need to know today! So let me hear you say this after me: I Can Talk to God in Any Way
At number one, draw what you think the judge may have looked like.
A widow who didn’t have a husband or any money came to the judge asking for help. Someone was treating her unfairly, so she came to the judge over and over begging him to help her. On the count of three, let me hear you say, “Please,” as many times as you can until I say, “Stop.” One, two, three! (Allow kids to say, “Please,” until you say, “Stop!”)
Finally, the judge decided to help the widow. He helped her even though he didn’t care about God or people. But Jesus explained that our God does care about us, and He hears us every time we pray to Him. Because He cares about us, when we pray in any way, even if we are begging like the widow, God promises to help us.
At number two, draw the praying hands to remind you that you can pray in any way!
Jesus told another parable to some people. These people were sure that they were perfect and good in God’s eyes. But Jesus knew that they looked down on everyone else, and He wanted them to know that wasn’t OK. So Jesus said, “Two men went up to the temple to pray.” One man was a Pharisee. (Pronounced: Fair-uh-see) A Pharisee was a religious leader who thought they loved God more than anyone else. The other man who went to pray was a tax collector. Tax collectors took money from people to give to the king, and everyone hated them.
The Pharisee stood where everyone could see him and prayed loudly so everyone could hear, “Oh God, I thank You that I’m not like other people.” The Pharisee also told God about all of the good things he had done. But the tax collector stood far away from everyone, and he wouldn’t even look up to heaven because he was sad about all the wrong things he had done. The tax collector prayed, “God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner.”
At number three, draw a heart and color it your favorite colors.
Jesus wanted the people to see that the tax collector’s heart was humble when he admitted he had sinned. And God is always ready to forgive us when we ask Him! But when we do wrong things and don’t admit it, our pride hurts our friendship with God. Unfortunately, that’s what happened with the Pharisee. His heart was full of pride because the only thing he talked to God about was how good he was! God always listens when we talk, but when our hearts are humble it grows our friendship with Him.
There are many ways we can pray, but sometimes you may have a hard time knowing what to say. Whenever that happens, you can remember the word “PRAY”!
At number four, write and color the letters of PRAY as you read about them.
- P stands for “Praise”! You can praise God by telling Him how awesome He is and thanking Him for different things in your life.
- R is for “Repent.” Repent means you tell God you’re sorry for doing wrong things and ask Him to help you not do them anymore.
- A is for “Ask.” You can ask God for whatever you want and need! You can be sure that God will give you what He knows is best for you because He loves you so much!
- Y is for “Yes!” We can tell God “Yes,” to whatever He says is best for us!
At number five, finish the Need to Know by writing the words “Any Way”.
Now, let’s say what we need to know together: I Can Talk to God in Any Way
Discussion Questions
