(This is a lesson from Here a Little, There a Little, a compilation of Bible activities I created to use with my preschool children. It was designed to spend a week memorizing the verse and reinforcing it through Bible lessons and activities.)
Trust
Bible Verse: What time I am afraid I will trust in God. Psalm 56:3
Bible Stories:
Psalm 56 Some mean men were fighting against David. They wanted to hurt him. David became afraid, but he remembered that when he was afraid he could trust God. So David said, “What time I am afraid I will trust in God..” Then David knew that it didn’t matter what men tried to do to him because God was protecting him.
Luke 2:8-14 Remember the shepherds watching the sheep the night Jesus was born? The Bible said that they were afraid when they saw the angel that appeared to them. The angel said, “Don’t be afraid for I bring you good news about Jesus.” The shepherds learned what time they were afraid to trust in God.
2 Corinthians 11 – 12:10 Paul went through many problems. He was in prison; he was beaten; he had a wreck in a boat 3 times; some men took all he had and hurt him. Paul had times of being hungry, thirsty, and cold. But through all that, even though he was afraid many times, he knew to trust God to make him strong in the midst of all these problems. Paul learned what time he was afraid to trust in God.
Genesis 14 A bad king had taken Abraham’s nephew, Lot. Abraham knew he must do something to help Lot. The bad king had many, many men to help him, but Abraham had only a few to help him. However, Abraham received a promise from God that He would take care of his enemies. Abraham didn’t have to be afraid of all those men who were going to help the bad king, he could trust God to take care of him and his family.
Daniel 6:7-23 The king gave an order that no one was to pray to anyone but him or they would be put in the lions den. Daniel loved God very much and he knew that the Bible said to always pray to God and only God – no one else. So Daniel continued to pray to God and the king threw him into the lions den. Daniel knew that when he was afraid he could trust in God, so he trusted God right there in the lions den and do you know what happened? Instead of the lions biting Daniel like the king thought they would, God shut the mouths of the lions so they couldn’t hurt Daniel!!!
Prayer: Thank you, God, that we can trust in You at all times in every situation.
Activities:
Make a clock face out of a paper plate and a brad to hold the clock hands on. Write the Bible verse on the clock and hang it in a prominent place like on the refrigerator door.
Pretend together with toys, dolls, stuffed animals and that one of them is afraid. Talk about trusting in God whenever he’s afraid.
Spend time all week talking to God about a problem the child or family has. (ex. going to potty, finances, afraid of the dark, etc) Talk about trusting God to take care of the problem. Talk about trusting God anytime, anywhere, and with any problem.
Act out Genesis 14 with army men using many to represent king’s army and only a few for David’s.
Act out Daniel 6:7-23 in the lions den. You could use stuffed animals for lions or make lion masks out of paper plates and yarn for the manes.
Songs:
Put the verse to music for easy memorizing. Compose your own tune or use a familiar one. Here’s mine to the tune of ‘Mary Had a Little Lamb’: What Time I Am Afraid
You can find cd’s of scripture put to music. Steve Green has some especially for children:
Hide ’em in Your Heart Vol. 1
Hide ’em in Your Heart Vol. 2
Steve Green: Hide ’em in Your Heart: 13 Bible Memory Music Videos for Children of All Ages [VHS]
Books:
Find these stories in a children’s Bible. If you don’t have one, check here or here for some good ones. Below are two of my favorites:
The Bible in Pictures for Little Eyes
Read and Share Bible
Arch Books has a book about many, many Bible stories. Begin building your library with these colorfully illustrated paperbacks
Daniel in the Lions Den: Daniel 6 for Children (Arch Books)
