Rhymes and Songs

Check out Daniellesplace (below link) for some simple rhymes and songs for Elijah. There are three songs about "Elijah and the Ravens" and one song "Elijah the Prophet".

Just scroll down til you see Rhymns & Songs (bottom).

http://www.daniellesplace.com/...mpleelijahraven.html

"Always Enough" Song

https://theriversvoice.bandcamp.com/releases has a song on Elijah and the widow called "Always Enough" on their "Seeds of Faith" album.

Peace,
Lisa

Moderator updated link.

At the State Street UMC G.R.E.A.T. Adventure, we are studying several prophets this summer, including Elijah. We're trying something new and alternating computer and video one week with building the story in Lego™ the next. Our attendance is typically lower in summer, so we have combined all our kids to do this. It's a little large and a bit complicated to have our younger kids and older kids together, especially for the Bible study portion of the lesson, but it's summer, it's different and so far it seems to be going ok. Attached is our first "Lego Building Lesson" for Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath. We'll do two more sessions -- Elijah and the Prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel and Elijah and Elisha: the passing of the mantle.

Elijah Fed by Ravens, and Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath

Brick Building Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

The children will use Lego™ to create scenes from parts of the story.

Scripture Reference:

1 Kings 17  (For our younger students we use Deep Blue Bible Storybook: “Elijah and the Ravens," page 158.)

Memory Verse:  “The Lord, He is God!”  1 Kings 18:39 (NIV)

Objectives and Life Application:

• Children will retell the story in their own words.
• 3-5 graders will identify the books of 1 and 2 Kings as books of Old Testament History.
• Children will identify the following characters in the story: Elijah, King Ahab, Elisha, Baal, Queen Jezebel.
• Children will describe a prophet. (one who tells God’s message)
• Children will understand that God wants to take first place in our lives.
• 3-5 graders will explore the concept of God’s sovereignty – how God uses situations to bring about his ultimate plan of good in the world.
• Children will memorize 1 Kings 18:39.

Themes: God provides what we need! There is only one, true God; we must worship only him.

Preparation and Room Set Up:

• Review the Background Information and Lesson plan.
• Read 1 Kings 17.
• Create story cards by enlarging the images from the Blankenbaker book (see Resources at end of lesson) and printing onto cardstock – one or two images per half sheet.
• Print out four copies of the Lego Building Directions (for adult helpers).
• Print out four scene titles:
  • Elijah visits King Ahab – drought is announced.
  • Elijah flees – ravens feed him.
  • Miracle - Elijah meets the widow of Zarephath, oil does not run out.
  • Miracle - Elijah brings the widow’s son back to life!
• Gather the following:
  • Lego style bricks – variety of bricks, including LOTS of people, landscapes and regular bricks
  • Small tubs or boxes (4 for the groups, plus others for sorting the types of bricks)
• Sort Lego into separate containers – people, landscape and regular blocks.
• Set out four empty tubs for each group.
• Write the following on the flip chart or white board:
  • Elijah visits King Ahab – drought
  • Elijah flees – ravens
  • Widow of Zarephath – Miracle!
  • The widow’s son – another miracle!

Lesson Plan

Welcome/Introduction

Welcome the children and introduce yourself. Make sure everyone is wearing a nametag. Please include the shepherd in introductions.

Opening Prayer
Light the Christ Candle and place in the middle of the table where all can see.

Say:  We light this candle to remind us that Jesus is the Light of the world. God is with us wherever we go. God is with us here in this place today.

Pray:  Heavenly Father, We thank you for today and this time together. This month we are learning about Elijah, an important prophet and how he listened and followed you. Help us to have open eyes, ears, minds and most of all hearts. Help us truly listen this month so we can draw closer to you. Thank you for loving us. Thank you for sending Jesus to save us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

(Note:  the candle should remain lit until the end of the session)

Important Teacher Notes:
Each workshop includes the Bible story. One of our primary goals is to improve the children’s Bible literacy! If children did not bring their Bibles from home, use the classroom Bibles. Shepherds should help the children locate the stories. Use the Background Information to help you introduce the story.

Remember that as the rotation progresses; the children will become more familiar with the story. When this happens, allow the children to tell you what they know. The children should still locate the story in their Bibles every week. Use the bold headings in their Bibles to guide your discussion. You may want to review some of the Bible notes as well. Be sure to fill in any missing information and add additional details using the Background Information to help you. One of the greatest advantages of this model is that children who come regularly learn the story in great depth.

Each lesson contains more Background Information and discussion questions than can be used in one session. Remember, children are studying this story for four weeks! Be sure to follow the time guidelines and leave ample time for the activity.

Introduce the Story
Say: Last month we talked about Samuel, who was a mighty prophet and judge. Remember that a judge was a leader, sort of like the major of the city. But the Israelite people wanted to have a king, like the other nations around them. And so, after many years being ruled by judges, Samuel anointed the first king of Israel. This began a real up and down time in Israel’s history. Some kings were good…. and some were not so good…. and some were just awful!!! This month our story will focus on a time when there was a really bad king who ruled and the story of the prophet who brought him God’s message.

Elijah was a great prophet of God. His name means “Yahweh is God.” What is a prophet? (a messenger for God)

Prophets brought God’s message to the kings and leaders – they listened closely to God and then shared God’s message. Often the prophets told the kings and leaders they were doing wrong and needed to turn back to God. Do you think this made them very popular with the kings? (No, in fact, prophets were often very Unpopular!)

 So our story begins with Elijah bringing an unwelcome message to King Ahab…

Let’s see what happens…..

Elijah lived many, many years before Jesus was born. Where would we find his story in the Bible? (Old Testament) The story of Elijah is found in the books of 1 and 2 Kings, which are books of history.

Bible Study: Grades K-5
NIV Adventure Bible and Deep Blue Bible Storybook

Say: As we review the story, watch for the following important scenes (written on the white board or flip chart). After the Bible study, we will build these scenes with lego.

1. Elijah visits King Ahab – drought is annouced
2. Elijah flees – ravens feed him
3. Elijah meets the widow of Zarephath – miracle of the oil
4. Elijah brings the widow’s son back to life – another miracle

 
Help the 3-5 graders locate 1 Kings 16:29 in the NIV Adventure Bible.
Help the K-2 graders turn to page 158 in the Deep Blue Bible Storybook.

Say: Elijah’s story is found in many chapters of the Bible, because he was such an important prophet. We will learn about several of Elijah’s adventures over the next few weeks.

NIV Bible: Have the 3-5 graders turn to 1 Kings 17 (Elijah Fed by Ravens). Children with their own Bibles should highlight the title of this story.

Deep Blue Bible Storybook: Have the K-2 turn to page 158 Elijah and the Ravens.

Say: This is where we find one of Elijah's stories in the Bible.

Place the Elijah story cards in the middle of the table. As you read the explanation, have children help you complete the information and locate the correct card. Place the cards in a line on the table.

Say: Let’s review the story using the story cards.

1. Israel gets a king – Who are these people? (Samuel and Saul and later David and Solomon). What is Samuel doing? (anointing – pouring oil on his head to indicate that he is chosen for an important job – being king)
2. Israel worships idols – What did the people do that was wrong? (worshiped idols). What is an idol? (something that you put before God – in this case it was a statue)
3. After King Solomon died, the country of Israel was divided into two parts. What are they? (Israel in the north and Judah in the south)
4. A series of good and bad kings followed, more BAD than good actually.
5. Perhaps the MOST evil king was King _________ (Ahab) and his equally wicked queen _______ (Jezebel). They built many idols and made everyone worship them instead of the one, true God.
6. God called Elijah to listen closely to him and to tell others God’s important message. Elijah was a __________ (prophet). Elijah went to meet with King Ahab. He told Ahab there would be a _______________ (drought, no dew or rain) in the land for several years.
7. Then God sent Elijah to the country near a brook, east of the Jordan river. God provided for Elijah’s needs. Elijah drank from the __________ (brook) and was fed by _____________ (ravens, birds).
8. Later the brook dried up (remember, no rain!) and God told Elijah to go to a town called ___________ (Zarephath) and to meet a widow (a woman whose husband had died) there who would give him food. She was almost out of food so she told Elijah, “Sorry I can’t help you.” True or False? (FALSE – even though she was nearly out of flour and oil, she fed Elijah first!)
9. The widow’s flour and oil did not run out! It was a ___________. (miracle)
10. Later Elijah performed another miracle. The widow’s ittle boy became very sick and died. What did Elijah do? (prayed, pressed himself onto the boy three times, and the boy came back to life!)
    
    

Memory Verse:  Review the verse with the children at this time.  “The Lord, He is God!” 1 Kings 18:39

Say: The widow learned to trust Elijah and to trust God. She learned that God cares for us always, even in times of trouble. God provides for us. She trusted God. She believed!

Sign the Verse
Lord – with index finger and thumb make “L” sign, place on opposite shoulder and bring across chest diagonally to right hip
God – raise right hand above head with palm facing head, bring hand down near side of face.

Brick-Building Story Scenes

Directions:

1. Divide the children into four groups. Assign an adult to each group.
2. Give each group one of the scene titles and a tub to hold their Lego pieces.
3. Explain that they will build a Lego scene that depicts that part of the story. Have them refer to their Bibles if needed for details.
4. Explain that this is a cooperative project -- everyone has a voice and they must work together to build the scene.
5. For each scene, ask:
   • Where did this take place? (palace, outside near a brook, town, widow’s house, etc.)
   • Who were the main characters in this scene? (King Ahab, Elijah, ravens, widow, widow’s son)
   • What is the most important thing that happened in this part of the story?
6. Groups will take turns coming to the Lego table to select the bricks and extras they need to build their part of the story.
7. Once all the groups have completed their structures, take turns visiting each group. Have the group members explain their building and answering the three questions posed above.

Note:  Leave the Lego structures intact for the remaining Elijah sessions. 

Closing prayer
Do:  Invite children to stand in a circle.

Say:  Today we continued our study of Elijah, one of God’s most powerful and amazing prophets. We built scenes from the story using Lego, so we will close with Lego prayers. Think about the scene that you built. What word reminds you of this part of Elijah’s story? As I go around the circle, please say that word as your prayer, asking God to help you remember this from the story.

Do:  Go around the circle asking for each child’s "prayer." Add your own. Then close with the Lord’s Prayer.

Resources:
Story cards created using images from What the Bible is All About for Young Explorers, Frances Blankenbaker, Gospel Light, 1998.

A lesson written by Jaymie Derden from State Street United Methodist Church G.R.E.A.T. Adventure, Bristol, VA
Photos Copyright 2017, State Street UMC

Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath story from the perspective of the widow’s son

Script by Carmen Peter 

(moved here by moderator to consolidate topic)

A long time ago, in a country far from here, a boy lived with his mother.

Their land was not good farmland. It looked worthless; it was mostly sand. Trees and crops only grew near rivers and creeks.

Their country had a king instead of a president. Their king quit believing in God. He built altars to Baal – an idol -- and he worshiped Baal, the god of rain. God became very angry because King Ahab was leading God’s people away from God. God sent many prophets to tell Ahab that he must quit worshiping Baal but Ahab did not listen.

Finally God told the prophet Elijah to go to Ahab. Elijah didn’t get to say “God says to quit idol worship.” He had to tell Ahab that God was going to stop the rain until Ahab quit worshiping Baal; they would be without rain for at least three years. Elijah did as God said.

What would you do if you were Elijah and had made the king VERY angry? That is what Elijah thought, too. God even told him a good place to hide, beside a creek east of the Jordan river. God arranged for a raven, a big black bird, to bring Elijah bread and meat every morning and every evening. He had water in the creek to drink. Where do you suppose that the raven got the bread and meat? I haven’t a clue, but if God can tell a raven to deliver food twice a day then I know that God can take care of me.

What do you think Elijah did while he was hiding? Did he wonder what God would want him to do next? Did he continue to trust God?

You are probably thinking that I have forgotten that this story is about a boy and his mom, but I haven‘t. After a while the creek where Elijah got his water dried up, because it had not rained. The Bible does not say that Elijah was worried and complained to God. It tells us that God came to Elijah and said, “I have found another place for you to live. I have commanded someone to take care of you.”

Elijah no longer had water so God probably wouldn’t expect him to walk very far to this new place - right?

But, Elijah had to walk 50 miles to his next safe place, Zarephath. The first thing he did when he got there was to ask for a drink of water.

(If desired, involve a puppet as the storyteller a this point or have it nod in agreement as you tell the story.)

Now I will tell you the story that the little boy, Benjamin, told me.
[or
I would like you to meet Benjamin; he has a story to tell you.]

Things were really bad at my house, we were almost out of food. Everybody was having trouble, but because my dad died last year we were more poor than our neighbors and we didn’t have as much grain in our storage jars as they did. Our jug of oil was almost empty, it didn’t even slosh. (You may use a jar for meal and a jug for oil as props.) Mom tried to be cheerful but I’m pretty smart and I knew she was worried.

Every day mom would go get a little water from the well and pick up dry sticks to make a fire to cook our food. It wasn’t hard for her to find dry sticks, everything was dry, and she didn’t need to find very many sticks because we didn’t have much to cook.

One day a traveler was at the well. Mom said he looked very tired and he was covered with dust. He asked her for a drink of water because he did not have a bucket to get water out of the well. Then he asked for bread. I told you that mom was really worried. She said that she got really upset and told him that with God as her witness “I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in jar, and a little oil in a jug.” She continued by telling him, “Actually I’m gathering a few sticks so I can cook one more meal for my son and myself - then we will starve to death.”

Boy, I knew things were bad but she hadn’t told me that we had only enough food for … one more meal.

The dusty stranger told mom not to worry. Boy, he must have been out in the sun too long; that didn‘t make any sense. Again he asked her to make a small piece of bread for him FIRST, then make bread for us. Finally mom said she would bake it for him because God has told us to be kind to travelers.

Then he told her something amazing. My mom believes in God. This man said that God promised that our jar of meal and our jug of oil will never be empty until God sends rain. She made bread for him and bread for us.

Mom said that the stranger could stay in our extra room on the roof. His name was Elijah. The neighbors didn’t trust him and they wondered why we didn’t run out of meal and oil.

I liked him; he had been many places. He even had seen King Ahab. It was fun to have someone in our house to tell stories.

One day I got very, very sick. I remember being sick but my mom told me what happened next. Mom said that I quit breathing. You know how moms get really upset when their kids need help and no one is helping? My mom yelled at Elijah and said that me being sick was his fault, that he had told God to punish my mother by making me sick. Some of the people in our town thought that God does that.

Elijah got really upset, picked me up and took me to the room where he stayed. The Bible says that Elijah yelled at God asking why I had gotten so sick that I died. Then he lay on top of me three times. I don’t know why he did that, but the Bible says that is what he said and did.

GOD LISTENED. I started to breath again. I remember Elijah picking me up and taking me down to my mother, I wondered how I had gotten to his room on the roof. He was so excited. He said to Mom, “See he is alive.” Mom cried and told Elijah that he truly was a prophet of the Lord. I knew that Elijah was a prophet; mom did too. But she must have forgotten when she was upset about me being dead.

Elijah stayed with us a while longer. One day he told us that God had another job for him to do but we shouldn’t worry. We would still have meal and oil until it rained. About a week after he left it rained. We heard that he was in a contest to prove that our God is most powerful. Elijah and God won, the prophets of Baal lost - but that is another story.

ELIJAH AND THE WIDOW OF ZAREPHATH

DRAMA WORKSHOP

PASSAGE

Story: 1 Kings 17
Key/Memory Verse: 1 Kings 17:24 (NLT)  "Then the woman told Elijah, 'Now I know for sure that you are a man of God, and that the LORD truly speaks through you.'”

PURPOSE

The children will be divided into groups and use their imaginations and a basket full of props to create skits of the different scenes in this story. They will focus on the characters’ emotions and on the relationship between Elijah, the widow, and God.

Objective(s) for rotation

Lesson Objectives – Participants will be able to:

• Find the story of Elijah in the Old Testament of the Bible.
• Know that Elijah was a prophet of God; that prophets were God's chosen messengers.
• Learn that when we are obedient, God provides.
• Understand that Elijah's time away hiding was a time to strengthen his trust in God, bigger challenges were coming in Elijah's life.
• Contrast Elijah and the woman's view of God at different points in the story. How did Elijah help the widow come to know God? Compare this to our own experiences in helping people to come to know God.

Materials List

• Bibles
• Laundry baskets, 3 -- each with an assortment of props and costume items relating to the three different Scripture passages
• Prop and costume items: have fun providing the kids with imagination-stimulating and odd items such as a crown, newspaper, umbrella, blue towel, bed sheets, a few big feathers or a feather boa, rolling pin, mixing bowl, oil bottle, flour canister, sticks, cups, water bottles, baby blanket, pillows, apron, costume jewelry, sunglasses, wigs, assorted hats, and scarves.
• Markers
• Newsprint pad or whiteboard
  
  

Advance Preparation Requirements

• Three adults (the Workshop Leader and two helpers or Shepherds) need to be prepared to facilitate the three drama “teams.” Touch base with the other adults to make sure they understand the lesson and their part in it.
• Label the three baskets and sort the prop and costume items into them for these three stories:

1 Kings 17:1-9: Elijah, the King, and the Ravens
1 Kings 17: 8-16: Elijah and the Widow Are Fed
1 Kings 17:17-24: Elijah Revives the Widow’s Son

• Write the memory verse on newsprint or whiteboard so all can see it.
• Room setup: You will want to provide the children with lots of space for their dramas. When the children arrive, the chairs should be in one big circle. The three groups can move their chairs into smaller circles at opposite ends of the room. Or better yet, see if one group can work in another space outside the classroom so they don’t distract each other.
• Learn the story to retell in your own words. A sample follows, or find it in a children’s story Bible. Note that it is too long to read the entire Scripture passage.

Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath - SAMPLE RETELLING

Story adapted for retelling by Amy Crane
Adapted from 1 Kings 17, New Revised Standard Version and Today’s English Version
Permission granted to freely distribute and use, provided the source is included.

Long ago, God called a man named Elijah the Tishbite to serve him as a prophet. Elijah was sent with a message for King Ahab, a leader who had given up the one true God in favor of Baal. “The LORD God of Israel says there will be no rain in the land for several years until I say it is time.”

The LORD then sent Elijah east to the Wadi Cherith to hide. “You will find water in the wadi, and I will send the ravens to feed you there,” said the LORD. Elijah went as the LORD commanded, and found water and was fed by birds. But after a while the wadi dried up, for there was no rain in the land.

Then the LORD said, “Go now to Zarephath and live there. I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” Elijah went as the LORD commanded.

When Elijah came to the city gate, he met a widow gathering firewood. He asked her for a drink of water. As she went to get it, he called out, “Bring me a bit of bread, too.”

She replied, “By your God, I have no bread. Only a bit of flour and oil – enough to make one last meal for my son and I. Then we must die.”

Elijah said to her, “Do not be afraid. Go and prepare your meal. But first, make a small loaf of bread for me. For the LORD God of Israel has said that the flour jar and the oil jug will not run out until I send rain upon the earth.” So the widow went and did as Elijah said. And she and her household ate for many, many days; and the oil and flour were not used up.

Some time later the widow’s son got sick. So sick that he died. The widow said to Elijah, “Why did you do this to me? You came here and reminded God of my sins, and now my son is dead!”

Elijah took the boy to his room. And he cried out to the LORD, “O LORD my God, why have you done such a terrible thing to this widow? She has been kind to me, and now her son is dead.” Then he stretched himself over the boy three times and prayed, “O LORD my God, restore this child to life!”

The LORD answered Elijah’s prayer and the life came into the boy again. Elijah took the boy back to his mother and said, “See, your son is alive!”

Then the woman told Elijah, “Now I know for sure that you are a man of God, and that the LORD truly speaks through you.”

TIPS FOR TELLING Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath

Read the story in several translations of the Bible and Bible storybooks to see other ways to tell it. Try to visualize the action, and then describe what you see in your own words. Make sure your retelling includes the memory verse.

This is a dramatic story. Tell it with amazement and excitement. The part about the boy dying should be quiet and solemn, followed by joy at the miracle of life returning to him.

Bring the story to life with your movements and emotions as well as the words. Be stern with the king, watch in amazement as the birds bring food, look at the flour jar and oil jug with wonderment, solemnly carry the dead boy.

If you cannot learn this story by heart, to tell it in your own words, read and reread it until you are very comfortable with it. Then you will be able to look up and make eye contact and interact with your listeners, which will help bring the story to life for them. Consider making your “cheat sheet” copy of the script into a scroll.

For additional information on retelling Bible Stories, see Amy Crane's manual on Biblical Storytelling in the rotation.org RESOURCES:  WORKSHOP DESIGN & TECHNIQUES: STORYTELLING: Biblical Storytelling at https://www.rotation.org/topic/biblical-storytelling

PRESENTATION

Open – Introduction

Open with prayer, such as “Lord, thank you for bringing us together today to hear your Word. Guide us as we dig into your Word. Help us to understand your meaning for each of us today. Amen.”

Explain the purpose of this workshop: Today you will hear the story of the prophet Elijah, a king, some birds, a widow, and her son. Then you will have an opportunity to put together a drama of part of that story.

Go over some background material before reading the Scripture. Make sure the children know what a prophet, wadi, drought, and famine are and understand them in context of this story.

Tell the story: “In a moment we will break into groups and read a small portion of a long story. But first, listen as I retell the story from the Bible.” [Retell the story in your own words, emphasizing that the story comes from the Old Testament in the Bible; holding your Bible while you tell is a reminder to the children that they are hearing God’s Word. A sample retelling is included under Advance Preparation. Make sure your retelling includes the memory verse.]

Review the story.  

Ask: Why did Elijah go to Zarephath? (brook had dried up, God told him to) Say: Elijah trusted God. He was obedient to God. 

Ask: What about the widow, when she first met Elijah do you suppose that she trusted God? Do you suppose she knew who God was? (allow all answers)
Say: As we dig further into our lesson lets think about the woman’s relationship with God. 

Talk about the different characters in the stories. Encourage the children to reflect upon what the characters were feeling and thinking as the story progressed.

Read the memory verse together. Discuss what it means and how it shows a change in attitude towards God on the part of the widow.

Warm-up exercises: Just as athletes, dancers and musicians warm up before doing their activities, actors need to warm up. Let’s exercise our drama muscles -- our imaginations.
Everyone mime:

• Elijah telling the king there will be no rain for several years,
• Elijah getting food from the ravens,
• Elijah drinking from the wadi (stream) and watching it dry up,
• the widow using what she thought were her last bits of oil and flour to make bread for Elijah,
• the widow discovering there is more oil and flour,
• the widow when her son was sick,
• Elijah responding to the news that the widow’s son had died,
• the widow reacting to her son’s being restored to her.

Dig - Main Content

Divide the class into three “teams.” Team One will act out 1 Kings 17:1-9: Elijah, the King, and the Ravens. Team Two will dramatize 1 Kings 17: 8-16: Elijah and the Widow Are Fed. Team Three will depict 1 Kings 17:17-24: Elijah Revives the Widow’s Son. Give each drama team a basket of supplies and instruct them that EVERYTHING in it must be used to act out their portion of the story. How they use the supplies is up to them. The dramas do not need to be long, but they should tell as much of the story that the children have been assigned as possible.

An adult should work with each group. Each group should first sit down and read their assigned Scripture. [If time is short, the adult should retell the appropriate portion of the story, reading key verses from the Bible.] The adults should keep the process and planning moving along and should help negotiate when there is a difference of opinion. Make sure the children don’t leave out a part of the story, but let the kids plan the drama. Remind the children to think about what each character was feeling in each part of the story and show that with their actions and words. Group three needs to include the memory verse in their drama.

After about 10-15 minutes of planning, have each team perform its story for the group. Remind the other groups to watch with the same courtesy they expect when it is their turn to perform.

Reflect - Closure

Say: Let’s check in with how we think our characters view God. 
Ask: What about Elijah? (he is still trusting God) 
Do you suppose that he continues to daily learn about God, that God can be trusted? 
What happened when the widow shared her flour and oil with Elijah? (did not run out)
Do you suppose Elijah was surprised at this event? (allow all answers)
What about the widow, how do you suppose she feels about God? 

Say: The widow gets a daily reminder that she can trust God to provide for her needs. But, the biggest test is yet to come. 
Ask: What happens to her son? (he gets sick & dies)

Ask: How do you suppose Elijah felt when the boy died? (verse 20)
What happened when Elijah cried out to the Lord? (the Lord heard his cry & brought the boy back to life)
What did the widow say about Elijah when her boy was returned to her? (refer to key Bible verse)
How has the widow’s attitude changed towards God?
How do you suppose that Elijah helped the widow come to know God?
Do you suppose he talked to her about God in their daily living?
How is this story like our own experiences in helping people to come to know God?

If time permits, read the memory verse together again. Ask for volunteers to say it from memory. Congratulate all attempts.

Ask for prayer requests and close with prayer.

ADDITIONAL SUGGESTIONS

You will need to decide how best to adjust the lesson for older and younger students and for shorter class times or smaller classes. Keep the children active and involved in activity. Do what works for you and the children. Some ideas in addition to those included in the lesson plan:

Adaptations - Time is short

Leave out the drama warm-ups.

Limit the props and costume items in the baskets or don’t require that everything be used.
The adult facilitators for each group need to help them stay focused on their portion of Scripture by helping them outline their story and assign parts.

Adaptations - Smaller class size

Each of the three drama “teams” should have at least 3 people. If there are less than 9 people in the class, form only 2 groups and do the first two story segments. Then have the entire class work together on the third skits.

Adaptations - Younger Children

For classes composed primarily of pre-readers, show the children how to find the passage in the Bible and then have them do it. After everyone has found the passage, have them close their Bibles, set them aside, and listen while you read.

Give them more guidance for creating their laundry basket dramas.

Adaptations - Older Children

Have them use their Bibles for some of the lines spoken by the actors and create additional dialog.

Elijah Fed by Ravens

Puppetry Workshop

Summary

Construct puppets and act out the story of Elijah and the ravens to remember that Elijah trusted God to provide for his needs.

Scripture

Story: 1 Kings 17
Key/Memory Verse: 1 Kings 17:24 (NLT)

Objective(s) for rotation

Participants will be able to:

• Find the story of Elijah in the Old Testament of the Bible.
• Know that Elijah was a prophet of God; that prophets were God's chosen messengers.
• Learn that when we are obedient, God provides.
• Understand that Elijah's time away hiding was a time to strengthen his trust in God, bigger challenges were coming in Elijah's life.
  
  

Materials List

• Bibles
• Bird puppet pattern 
• Supplies for each child to make a bird (such as black construction paper, black craft feathers, craft sticks or paint stirrer sticks, material for eyes [googly eyes, gel pens, chalk, white crayons, sticker dots], glue, scissors)
• Puppet (or a doll) to be Elijah (or the children can take turns being Elijah and interacting with the puppets) 
• Puppet stage (a table covered with a tablecloth that the children can hide behind will be adequate)
  
  

Advance Preparation Requirements

• Find a simple paper bird puppet pattern (such as  “Bird Puppet Craft” by Carolyn Warvel at http://www.daniellesplace.com/html/birdcrafts.html). This should be a quick and easy craft to allow plenty of class time to work with the puppets and the story. Most puppets can be made into ravens by substituting black construction paper or fun foam and adding some black craft feathers.
• Make a sample puppet following the instructions. 

Lesson

Open – Introduction

Open with prayer. Ask for a volunteer to pray; if no one volunteers, pray for the group to be enlightened about God’s will and provision as the story of Elijah is studied.

Explain that today the students will look at a story of how God provided for one of God’s servants who had faith that God would provide, and how God used an unusual means to provide. Puppets will be made and then used to tell the story.

Introduce the story of Elijah :

Say: In order to understand our lesson there are some words we need to understand. 
Ask: What is an idol? (something that is greatly admired)
What are some examples of idols? (name of someone in sports or entertainment)
When is it bad to have idols? (allow all answers)

Say: It is bad to have idols when we worship them, especially when we give the idols a higher ranking than God. Our story takes place at a time when the Israelites, the people of Israel, had fallen into worshiping idols. They had been encouraged to worship idols by their king, King Ahab and his wife, Queen Jezebel. The type of idol they were worshiping was called Baal (pronounced BAY-uhl). Baal was considered the god of weather, supposedly determining when it would rain.

Say: There is one more word I want us to understand.
Ask: What is a prophet? (a messenger of God)
Say: Now that we understand some of those words we are ready to read our Bible story.

Say: As we tell the story, listen for the different ways God provided for Elijah.

Show the children where to find the story in the book of 1 Kings in the Old Testament. Ask for volunteers or read the scripture to the children: 1 Kings 17. 

Have the children keep a Bible nearby and open in case they want to consult it during the discussion/review questions.

Dig - Main Content

Say to the children, “Let’s discuss what we just read while we make our puppets.”

Make Puppets:

Pass out materials and make the puppets as described in Advance Preparation.

Review and discuss the story while the children are making their puppets and the glue is setting:

• Who was king of Israel at the time this story takes place?
• What did the prophet Elijah tell King Ahab?
• I wonder why Elijah told Ahab there would be no rain?
• What did the LORD tell Elijah to do after he told Ahab there would be no rain?
• I wonder why the LORD told Elijah to go hide?
• What did Elijah do? Do you think he hesitated? [No. Reread verse 5 if necessary.]
• How do you think you would react if God told you to go live by a mostly dry stream [a wadi is a stream bed that contains water only in the rainy season] and wait for birds to bring you your dinner?
• I wonder why Elijah went without complaint or comment?
• I wonder what the ravens brought Elijah to eat? Do you think it was yummy?
• Do you think the ravens talked to Elijah? Remember, God can do anything; nothing is impossible. [And certainly if God can make a bird deliver food, he might decide to make it talk, also.] If the birds spoke, what do you think they might have said? What might Elijah have said?

Practice using raven puppets:

At this point, let the children practice using the puppets to flap their wings and fly around the room. Ravens flap and then glide. Have them make raven sounds, such as a croaking sound.

Have the children sit down again. Tell the children, “Let’s have some fun with our story, now. The part about the ravens is only a few verses long. So you will need to use your imaginations and pretend the birds did talk to Elijah. What kind of voices do you think they had?” Have them say “hello” in a croaking sort of raven voice.

Act out the story:

Choose someone to be Elijah. Everyone else will be a raven. The teacher is the narrator. Reread, or summarize, verses 1-6 and then let the children act out what happened by the wadi each mealtime.

If they need help, ask some questions to help them shape their drama and note that there are no right or wrong answers. Did one raven at a time bring food, or a flock? Was Elijah surprised the first time? How did he react? Did he become friends with the ravens? What might they have talked about – the weather, the news back in Israel, how good the food is, where the food came from? Have the ravens met God? What do they think of God? How are they managing during this famine?

Allow the children to act out the scenario several times with different people being Elijah and different assumptions about how the ravens did their job.

Reflect – Closure

I wonder why God took such good care of Elijah? [Talk about obedience – go back and reread verse 5 if necessary. Talk about how God had a plan.]

I wonder how Elijah responded?

What do you think he did all day while he lived by the wadi? [Talk about prayer and worship if the children do not bring it up.]

Do you think God still sends birds with food to feed people?

How does God take care of us?

Has God ever provided for your needs at a time of trouble? Would you like to tell us about it?

If time permits, review the memory verse. Remind the children that it comes from a different part of this rotation’s story about Elijah. Ask, How is the fact that Elijah is visibly a man of God reflected in this story?

Suggest to the children that whenever they see a bird this week, they remember the story of Elijah being fed by the ravens, and take a moment right then to say a brief prayer of thanks to God for all they have been provided with. Remind them that we can pray whenever and wherever we are and that we don’t have to close our eyes to pray.

Close with prayer

Have the children help clean up before dismissal. Make sure they take their raven puppets home with them. Suggest they use the puppets to tell their family members about Elijah’s obedience and trust.

Additional Suggestions

Adaptations - Younger Children

Precut the puppets.

Tell the story to the younger children using the The Beginner’s Bible which tells verses 1-16 (does not include the part about the woman’s son dying). 

Have an adult be Elijah and ask questions to encourage the ravens (children) to come up with creative answers.

Adaptations - Older Children

Invite a preschool or kindergarten class to see the performance.

Bring in bird books or encyclopedias and let the children find out a bit more about ravens – where they live, what they eat, what they sound like, how they fly – to make their puppets move and act more realistically.

SOURCES

Warvel, Carolyn. “Bird Puppet Craft.” Danielle’s Place of Crafts and Activities: 2000. http://www.daniellesplace.com/html/birdcrafts.html

Elijah and The Widow of Zarephath

Creative Writing Workshop

Summary

Explore the feelings of Elijah, as well as the widow, through  a variety of creative writing activities.

Passage

Bible Story: 1 Kings 17

Key/Memory Verse: 1 Kings 17:24 (NLT)

Objectives for Workshop

Children will:

• Find the story of Elijah in the Old Testament of the Bible;
• Know that Elijah was a prophet of God: that prophets were God’s chosen messengers;
• Learn that when we are obedient, God provides;
• Understand that Elijah’s time away hiding was a time to strengthen his trust in God; bigger challenges were coming in Elijah’s life;
• Explore the feelings of Elijah and the widow.

PREPARATION

Read Bible Background.

Materials List

• Calligraphy pens, markers, and permanent markers
• Chalk
• Chalkboard, newsprint pad, or white board
• Handout of Poetry Patterns
• Index cards, 3” x 5” – 28 cards
• Paper, 8 ½” x 11” white
• Optional
  • Water color paints or water color pencils
  • Colored cardstock

Advance Preparation

• Duplicate a copy the Poetry Pattern Handout for each child.
• Set out markers and paper for each child.
• Prepare the Name Cards by writing the words Elijah, Widow, King, Ahab, and Zarephath on the index cards, one letter per card. If the class is large, prepare several sets of cards.
• Scramble each set of name cards -- Elijah cards in one set, Widow cards in one set, and so forth -- and set them out on the table.

PRESENTATION

Welcome and introduction

As children arrive, greet them and direct them to the scrambled name cards on the table. Have the children unscramble the cards so they spell the name of a character from the Bible story.

Say: Were you able to unscramble the name cards? What were the names you discovered?

Today’s Bible story is about these people. Elijah was a great Old Testament prophet. What is a prophet? [A person who brings God’s message to others.]

Now in order to understand today’s story, we need to go back a little in history. Elijah lived during the time in history when the kingdom of Israel had been divided into two kingdoms – a northern kingdom called Israel and a southern kingdom called Judah. Elijah lived in the northern kingdom. Most of the kings who ruled during this time had turned away from God. They were worshiping false idols. And so, God sent prophets to bring a message to the kings, telling them to repent, and to worship the one, true God again. Elijah was one of these prophets.

Now the King of the northern kingdom at that time was King Ahab, one of the most evil of all the kings! Elijah tried very hard to convince King Ahab to change his ways but King Ahab wouldn’t listen. God even stopped the rains from coming and there was a terrible drought in the land. But still King Ahab didn’t listen. Instead he tried to kill Elijah. Elijah was forced to run for his life!

But God took care of Elijah. God sent Elijah to live by a brook where there was water and God sent ravens to feed Elijah bread and meat.

But remember there was no rain, and so after some time, the brook dried up. Now there was no water for Elijah. What will he do? Let’s see what happens to the prophet Elijah.

Bible story

Help the children locate 1 Kings 17 in their Bibles. Read, or paraphrase, 1 Kings 17:7-24 as the children follow along.

Ask:

What was Elijah’s job? [To be a prophet]

Why did Elijah go to Zarephath? [Brook had dried up, God told him to]

What did Elijah ask of the Widow? [Some water and bread]

How do you think the widow felt as she shared her last bit of flour and oil with a stranger?

What happened when the widow shared her flour and oil with Elijah? [Her oil and flour did not run out]

Have you ever been asked to give up something very important to you and give it to someone else? Describe what happened and how you felt.

What other amazing miracle happened while Elijah stayed with the widow? [Her little boy died and Elijah raised him from the dead.]

How do you think Elijah felt when the boy died? What about the widow?

What happened when Elijah cried out to the Lord? [The Lord heard his cry and brought the boy back to life.]

What did the widow say about Elijah when her boy was returned to her? [Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord from your mouth is true!]

ELIJAH POEMS

Tell the class that they are going to create poems about Elijah and the widow of Zarephath. Poetry is a type of writing that helps us understand our feelings and the feelings of others. Let’s think about some of the feelings of the characters in today’s lesson.

Using the board or newsprint, make a category for Elijah and one for the widow. Brainstorm information about the two characters to write in each category. Encourage the children to include descriptive words about the characters – how they looked, how they felt, and what they did.

Say: Let’s create a poem about Elijah using some of these words. Poetry does not have to rhyme. In fact, the poetry in the Bible doesn’t rhyme at all! In Hebrew poetry, ideas are repeated, instead of sounds! We are going to create a special type of poem called a Cinquain poem. Cinquain is a French word. Cinq means five in French. Cinquain poems have five lines and follow the pattern below:

Line 1: 1 word noun used as title
Line 2: 2 adjectives that describe the title
Line 3: 3 action words
Line 4: 4 feeling words in a phrase
Line 5: 1 word synonym for the title

Brainstorm together a Cinquain poem about Elijah. Write the poem on the board or paper.

Pass out the Poetry Handouts, paper, and markers.

Explain that there are many types of poetry. Have the children choose one type from the Poetry Handout and create their own poem about Elijah or the Widow of Zarephath.

If time allows, the children may wish to illustrate their poem using watercolor paints or watercolor pencils.

Reflect

Ask for volunteers to read one or more of the poems.

Close in prayer, “Thank you God for the amazing story of Elijah and the Widow. Thank you for providing for Elijah and providing for us, too. Amen.”

ADDITIONAL SUGGESTIONS

Make copies of the children’s poems and compile them into a booklet.

Have the children read some of their poetry during worship.

Use one of the poems and illustrations as a worship bulletin cover.

Adaptation – Younger Children

Use the “Shape Poems,” “God’s Eyes Poems” or “Sensory Poems” for the youngest children.

Adaptations – Older Children

Have the children write poems for more than one character.

Have the participants use several different types of poetry to create more than one poem.

RESOURCE

Poetry for Kids:   http://www.kathimitchell.com/poemtypes.html

HANDOUT – POETRY PATTERNS and TYPES

Cinquain

Cinquains have five lines

Line 1: Title (noun) - 1 word
Line 2: Description (adjectives) - 2 words
Line 3: Action - 3 words
Line 4: Feeling (phrase) - 4 words
Line 5: Title (synonym for the title) - 1 word

Write a Cinquain poem about one of the characters from the story such as Elijah, the widow, God, or King Ahab.

Diamonte

The Diamonte is a form similar to the Cinquain. The text forms the shape of a diamond.

Line 1: Noun or subject - 1 word
Line 2: Two adjectives that describe line 1
Line 3: Three 'ing words that describe line 1
Line 4: Four nouns - the first two are connected with line 1; the last two are connected with line 7
Line 5: Three 'ing words that describe line 7
Line 6: Two adjectives that describe line 7
Line 7: Noun Synonym for the subject

Write a Diamonte poem about one of the characters from the story such as Elijah, the widow, God, or King Ahab.

Acrostic

The first letters of lines in acrostic poems form a word vertically.

Example:

Daring
Obedient
Good friend

Write an Acrostic poem about one of the characters or objects from the story such as Elijah, the widow, God, King Ahab, oil, or flour.

Biographical

Write a poem about a character.

Line 1: Character’s Name
Line 2: 3 descriptions of person ______ _______ ______
Line 3: Related to _________
Line 4: Who lives _______
Line 5: Who loves _______ ______ and ________(3 people, things or ideas)
Line 6: Who feels _______ about _______ (1 emotion about 1 thing)
Line 7: Who needs ______ ________ and _______ (3 things needed)
Line 8: Who gives ______ _______ and ________ (3 things given or shared)
Line 9: Who dreams _____ ______ and ______ (3 dreams or wishes)
Line 10: Name or Nickname

Write a Biographical poem about one of the characters from the story such as Elijah, the widow, God, or King Ahab.

Shape Poem

Shape poems are made up of words that have been placed in such a way that they make the shape of an object and also use words to describe the object.

Draw a simple outline of the shape or object. Make the drawing large enough to fill the paper. Go over the drawing with a dark marker. Write a sentence that tells about the shape. Include feeling and action words. Next, place a piece of paper over the shape. Write the sentence over and over again so that they outline the shape and fit well together.

Choose a shape from the story like a jar of oil, a raven, a face, or a simple paper doll style or human body shape, and create a shape poem about Elijah or the widow.

Sensory Poem

Sensory poems use the five senses to describe a subject, person or feeling.

Line 1: Describe what the subject looks like.
Line 2: Describe what the subject sounds like.
Line 3: Describe what the subject tastes like.
Line 4: Describe what the subject smells like.
Line 5: Describe what the subject feels like or how it makes you feel.

Write a Sensory Poem about one of the characters or events in the story such as Elijah, the Widow, the little boy, God, King Ahab, Elijah running away, Elijah by the brook, Elijah at the Widow’s house, the little boy dying, and so forth.

Example:

Elijah Runs
Running away looks fast, like everything is a blur.
Running away sounds loud, like your heart pounding in your chest and rushing in your ears.
Running away tastes salty, and wet, as your sweat drips into your mouth.
Running away smells like fear.
Running away feels lonely and empty and so tired you just want to stop running…

God’s Eye

God’s Eye poems tell about things that God is able to see and understand and that might be hard for us to see. God’s Eye poems tell what is really happening because God knows what is really happening even when we might not.

(Based on Third Eye Poetry – Poetry for Kids, by Kathi Mitchell
http://www.kathimitchell.com/poemtypes.html)

Example:

God’s eyes see when others are mean to you and you feel all alone.
God’s eyes see when you are tired and lonely and need a friend.
God’s eyes saw Elijah when he was hungry and thirsty.

Write a God’s Eye poem about what God might be seeing in the story of Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath.

Written by Jaymie Derden  for Rotation.org

Copyright 2006 Rotation.org

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