Children's Prayer of Preparation
Getting Ready for Lesson Time
Before beginning lesson time, it is good to prepare the hearts and minds
of children through prayer. With this in mind, our class
has
begun saying a "Prayer of Preparation," as written on the poster,
above. Click here to
download the poster. And click
here to get the coloring page that personalizes the prayer.
We use hand motions to actively engage the children by pointing to the body part indicated in the prayer. When saying "love," we cross our arms over our hearts, and for "salvation"
we make the sign of the cross with our hands.
Explaining the Prayer
It's important for children to understand what they are praying. I suggest saying the prayer through one time with the hand motions,
and then explaining the
parts of the prayer.
Eyes to See
All of us have eyes that see. So, why do you suppose we're asking God to give us
"eyes to see"? (Receive answers.)
In this request, we are asking for spiritual eyes to see what God is doing in our lives. The Bible says,
"Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law" Psalm 119:18. We must read
God's Word and listen to our lesson to see God's plan for our lives.
Ears to Hear
Have you ever heard your mom or dad say something like, "Do you hear me
talking to you?" Usually they aren't asking you if you actually heard them.
What they want to know is if you understood what they said. Like before with our
eyes, we need spiritual ears too! When we listen to
God's Word or to a Bible lesson being taught, we must pray for ears to hear so
we understand what is being taught.
The Bible speaks of those who turn away from God as not having spiritual eyes and
ears. The Apostle Paul said some of the people he taught refused to believe.
He quoted the prophet Isaiah and said,
"You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.
'For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed . .
." Acts 28:26-27 (ESV). (Isaiah 6:10)
We should be people who want God to help us see and hear what he has for our lives!
Minds to Understand
When we become God's children, we are given the Holy Spirit to help us believe
and obey. As we grow in our relationship with God, the Holy Spirit helps us understand spiritual things. Our
Lord's half-brother, James, told us to ask God for wisdom. He said, "If any of you need wisdom, you should ask God, and it will be given to you. God is generous and won't correct you for
asking" James 1:5 (CEV). We can ask God to give us
understanding.
Hearts to Believe
It's not enough to just understand with our minds. We must also have hearts that
believe. This has to do with trusting in God and relying on him to care for us.
Jesus died to save us; he took our punishment for sinning against God, and then rose from the dead to give us life with God forever and ever. The Bible says,
"For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal
life" John 3:16 (GNT). This is the Good News message of the Bible!
Mouths to Tell Others
As God's children we are his ambassadors. This means we represent Jesus to our friends and family.
God wants us to love one another and tell others about God's love for them. After Jesus rose from the dead, and before he went into Heaven, he told his followers,
"So wherever you go in the world, tell everyone the Good News" Mark 16:15
(GNT). "Salvation is to be found through [Jesus] alone; in all the world there is no one else whom God has given who can save us" Acts 4:12 (GNT).
"For there is one God, and there is one who brings God and human beings together, the man Christ Jesus," 1 Timothy 2:5
(GNT). We need to tell everyone we meet this good news!
________________________________________
I hope this prayer helps prepare the children you teach for lesson time!
Serving God together,
Sarah Keith <><
Copyright 2019 Sarah A. Keith
Expand this lesson--teach
children to pray the Prayer of Jesus.
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