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Reply to "GIDEON'S Trumpet Lesson Set - By Augustana Lutheran Church, Saint James, MN"

Gideon’s Trumpets

Game Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Students will set up dominoes and cause them to fall in sequence to demonstrate the importance of each person in God's Plan.

 

Scripture Reference:

Judges 6-8.


Memory Verse:

Don’t be afraid. I am with you. Don’t tremble with fear. I am your God. I will make you strong.” (Isaiah 41:10a, CEV)

 

Lesson Objectives:

  1. Students will learn that God can use regular people like you and me to do his important work.
  2. Students will learn the story of Gideon and how God used a small number of people to defeat a large army because they listened to God and obeyed.

Supplies List:

  • Children’s Bible
  • water glasses: some plastic and some glass
  • straws
  • ice cubes in a bowl
  • pitchers of water and Kool-Aid
  • Set of Dominoes

Advanced preparation:

  • Put the pitchers of water and Kool-Aid, the ice cubes and the various cups and straw on the table for the children to view.
  • Read the scripture ahead of time.
  • Gather the materials.
  • Look over the rules of the game.


 

Presentation

Opening-Welcome and Lesson introduction:

Welcome each of the students to the games theme room.
Say:
I would like each of you to get something to drink. You have a number of choices, you can have water or Kool-Aid and you may use any cup or straw that’s on the table. Feel free to put some ice in your drink if you like.
(After the students have selected their drink and have begun to consume it.)

 

Say:
Please look around you and notice all the different ways that the students in your class drank their refreshment. (Describe all the different ways each chose to drink.)

 

Say:
Today you are going to hear a story about a man named Gideon. He was chosen by God to lead an army to fight the Israelite’s enemies. He was told by God to select the men who would fight in his army according to way they drank their water. He invited them to go down to a river and drink. **The men who cupped water into their hands and drank were sent home. Only the men who drank water from the river like a dog would drink (putting their faces in the water) would be allowed to fight in the army.** Let's read more about Gideon and how God helped him.

  • Note** Because of the variations of this story between the translations, here are the scriptures quoted from two difference sources:

Dig-Main Content and Reflection:


Judges 7:5-7 "So he brought the troops down to the water; and the Lord said to Gideon,'All those who lap the water with their tongues, as a dog laps, you shall put to one side; all those who kneel down to drink, putting their hands to their mouths, you shall put to the other side.' The number of those that lapped was three hundred, but all the rest of the troops knelt down to drink water. Then the Lord said to Gideon, 'With three hundred that lapped I will deliver you, and give the Midianites into you hand. Let all the others go to their homes.'" NRSV

Judges 7:5-7: "Gideon took the men down to the water, and the Lord told him, 'Separate everyone who laps up the water with his tongue like a dog, from everyone who gets down on his knees to drink.' There were three hundred men who scooped up water in their hands and lapped it; all the others got down on their knees to drink. The Lord said to Gideon, 'I will rescue you and give you victory over the Midianites with the three hundred men who lapped the water. Tell everyone else to go home.'" TEV

Take turns reading the story from the Bibles, Judges 6:33-7:22


Game One-Chain Gang
Overview- The students will use the things they brought to your class to make a huge chain.


How to Play- Have the kids form two groups. If there are a small number of students, have them in one group and try to get the longest chain possible.


Say: Gideon had a very large number of men who volunteered to fight the Midianites. God, however, didn’t want such a large group, because then the men could brag about their strength and battle skills and not give credit to God. God told Gideon to first tell all the men to go home that were afraid. Twenty-two thousand men went home. But there was still too many, so God separated the men by how they drank. Finally only three hundred men remained. Using trumpets, jars and lights, God allowed the Israelites to scare the Midianites into thinking that a larger group was attacking them.


Say: Using items the members of your group brought to class, make the longest chain possible. It may not seem that you have many items, but if you are creative, you may be surprised at what you can do. God used Gideon and only 300 men to defeat the large Midianite Army. You can use a small number of items and creative something greater as well. The only rules are that you must keep on the clothes covering your shoulders to your knees and that every item in the chain must be connected to the items on either side. For example you can add your shoelaces, belt, hair ribbon, socks, sandals, etc. Be creative and let’s see who comes up with the longest chain.

 

  • Allow the groups a few minutes to work. Then see how long each of the chains is. The longest chain is the winner.
  • After a winner has been declared untie the chain and return the items to their owners.


Game Two-The Domino Effect
Directions- All the students will help to set up the dominoes in the shape of a “G” for Gideon. Encourage the group to work together to get all the dominoes to stand up before any are accidentally knocked over. This may take a few tries. Then as a group, shout out loud- and set the first domino in motion and watch.


Say: God used one ordinary man, Gideon, and only 300 men to defeat the very large Midianite army. The Bible says that when the Israelites blew their trumpets and broke their jars, it threw the enemy camp into confusion and they started to attack each other with their swords. Then they began to run away. You are going to use dominoes to symbolize the enemy army. You are going to set them up in the figure of a capitol letter G. When they are all in position the group will yell and one person will set the enemy dominoes in motion to fall and be defeated. Start building!

Journal Time:
Write about a time when you were on an “underdog” team who wasn’t expected to win, but did. You can also write about a professional sports team who wasn’t favored to win, but did. How did it make you or the team members feel? Did you attribute your win to God?


Closing:


Dear God, we thank you for using even ordinary, sinful people to do your amazing work. Help us to always obey you and give you all the glory! Amen!


A lesson written by Alison from: Augustana Lutheran Church

St. James, MN

 

A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.

 

Last edited by Rotation.org Lesson Forma-teer
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