Preschool Bible Lesson - The Greatest Commandment (Part 1) - Prayer

Lesson Overview

9:45 - sign in, free play time
10:05 - opening prayer, Game: God Hears Me
10:15 - Bible Story Lesson: Jesus teaches us to pray
10:40 - snack
10:45 - Bible Craft: Prayer Mat
11:15 - circle prayer time and story "Thank You Prayer"
11:20 - story: History of the Pretzel, hand out fresh bread pretzels
11:30 - closing prayer, coloring sheets, free play time 
11:45 - pick up

 Bible Story Lesson

 

Jesus teaches that w can show love to God by giving to the poor, by praying and by having faith that God will meet our needs.

Today we are going to learn how God would like us to pray. In Matthew 6:5-15 Jesus talks to us about prayer.

The first thing that Jesus tells us about prayer is that we should not show off when we pray. He says to go find a quiet place to pray to God.

The second thing that Jesus says is not to use meaningless words when we pray. Jesus says that God wants us to pray to him using simple, meaningful words because God knows what you need before you ask him.

Then Jesus told us how to pray. You may not understand the Lord's prayer when you first hear it or say it, but we are going to go through it and I will try to explain what each part means.

Our Father which art in heaven - this means that we are praying to our father in heaven. It reminds us that we are praying to God and it reminds us that we are not alone. God is our loving father and we are his special children.

Hallowed be thy name. - means that God's name is holy. We need to treat him special because he is God. We also need to be respectful to him when we pray. We show respect by folding our hands, bowing our heads and closing our eyes.


Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. - This part of the prayer means that we are praying for heaven to come so that there will be peace and love on earth like there is right now in heaven.


Give us this day our daily bread. - means that we ask God to give us everything we need to live - food, water, clothing, and shelter. We don't need a toy or lots of money, but we do need food and water to live.

And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. - this is the part of the prayer where we ask God to forgive us for hurting others. (Asking for forgiveness means that we are sorry and do not want to do the mistake again.) The second part to this is that we have to forgive others who have hurt us. If we don't forgive others who hurt us, Jesus says that God can't forgive us. God will only forgive us in the same way that we forgive others.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil - sometimes it seems like it is more fun to do something else rather than to obey. This is called temptation. In this part of the prayer, we are asking God to help us do the right things.

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever - The last part of the prayer means that we know the Earth and Heaven is God's and that God has all the power and the glory over them for ever.

Amen - closes the prayer. It means "Truly, Indeed, I agree."

(For Bible Story lesson visuals, use Betty Lukens Bible in Felt visuals. Can be purchased from http://www.thefeltsource.com/BibleStories.html )

(Search for Bible text in any version at http://www.biblegateway.com/)

Bible Craft

Prayer mat

Materials (per each student)
1 solid color cloth place mat (preferably in light color) with the words "(child's name) Prayer Mat" written on it in black.
fabric paint, tempera paint or permanent markers
no-sew iron on appliques (for older children ages 6+)

Instructions
Have the child decorate the prayer mat as desired. Once it is completed and dry, recommend that the child place it by his/her bed to remind them to kneel down and pray a prayer to God when they first wake up and before they go to bed.