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GOD'S LOVE IS...

Week 1 - GOD’S LOVE IS FAB

This week’s material is based on the account of Nathanael’s encounter on meeting Jesus found in John’s Gospel chapter 2.

part 1   

Lead-in session Drama

Outline for Leaders

The purpose of this drama is to demonstrate how God’s love is ‘Fab’ because like a magnet, He wants everyone to be drawn towards Jesus His Son and that’s a Fab place to be!  

For the drama, you will need a giant magnet. Ideas for making one include: using a few layers of cardboard stuck together, and sandwiching a suitable light weight material between two pieces of cardboard. The characters Bill and Tom use the magnet to get up to their usual antics.

The drama needs to work in a way that enables Tom to be out of sight, then appear through a door, or from behind a screen, whilst Bill remains on stage. Tom uses his giant magnet to pull Bill around and eventually get him stuck to a wall.

Characters: Bill and Tom

Props: Big cardboard magnet, something lightweight and painted to look like a piece of metal. Appropriate sound effect for when the magnet pulls.

SKETCH - The 'Magnet'

Note: Play appropriate magnet sound every time Bill is pulled by the magnet Tom is holding.

(Bill walks across the stage whistling)  

Bill: Hi Kids, my name is Bill and it’s a lovely day isn’t it. Today I’m going to tell you...(suddenly Bill is sucked across the stage and gets stuck to the Kidz Klub backdrop.)

Bill: (Arms and legs stretched out flat against the backdrop) what on earth is going on here? This is scary and crazy!

(Suddenly, Bill feels that he is released, he shakes himself, scratches his head and looking puzzled comes back to the front of the stage.)

Bill: OK (looking around warily) now where was I? Oh, yes I was just about to tell you...

(Suddenly Bill is drawn to the other end of the stage again and is sucked against the back-drop.)

Bill: This is ridiculous, what on earth is going on here?

(As Bill looks towards the opposite end of the stage again he is released, simultaneously. Tom appears from around the end of the backdrop behind Bill. Bill can't see Tom who is carrying a giant magnet. As Bill turns around, Tom disappears behind the backdrop.)

Bill: Something’s going on here and I intend to find out what it is.   

(As Bill is speaking, Tom appears again holding the magnet, this time he’s at the other end of the stage. As Bill turns around Tom again disappears.)

(Bill turns back to the audience again, as Tom makes an appearance through the middle door waving the magnet. Bill turns around but Tom is gone again.)

Bill: I felt my belt pulling earlier, my belt has a metal buckle, I have an idea.

(Bill goes off stage and comes back on with an imitation piece of metal. Suddenly he’s being sucked again. This time he’s holding the piece of metal and it gets stuck to the backdrop. Bill releases the metal to which Tom with his magnet is now unknowingly connected to.)

Bill: (whispering to the kids) now I’ve Got him. 

(Bill takes off around to the rear of the back-drop chasing Tom, there’s a bit of a commotion…)

Bill: I knew it, I knew it – it was you all along.

(The two come back on stage via the centre door.)

Tom: Well kids we were actually just having a bit of fun, but magnets are very impressive things aren’t they.

Bill: Yes magnets are amazing.

Leader to round up after drama

Kids, we can’t see Jesus but He’s definitely there, in fact just like the magnet, Jesus wants to draw us to Himself, because He knows following Him is a great place to be. Real love pulls people together. Jesus loves everyone of us and He wants us to stick close to Him. He wants us to be His close friend and that really is Fab. 

Optional Additional magnet illustration. 
An additional little illustration to demonstrate God’s love being Fab, like a magnet.

Cut a spaceship shape out of cardboard and stick a metal washer on the back then using a suitable magnet behind a board, manoeuvre the spaceship to take-off and land. Don't be put off by the spaceship, a piece of coloured card will do - anything to show the magnet's power to move the card without it being seen.  

Although the kids can’t see the magnet it’s definitely there and is moving the space ship / card. The magnet is powerful! The magnet’s drawing power is just like God’s love.

part 2   

Bible Chat

God's Love is Fab - Nathanael Believes                                        John chapter 2 vs 43 - 51

Outline for Leaders

Nathanael came to believe in Jesus because He told him how He had seen him under the fig tree, and that he would see even greater things than this. Jesus sees us all and although we may physically not be able to see Him, this doesn’t mean He doesn’t see us, know us and love us.

The story of Nathanael may be presented to the children in various ways. Here it is given as a character sketch where Nathanael tells his own story. To do this, dress up as Nathanael (a simple dressing gown and head dress would do), Maybe take a branch from a tree and have a mat or blanket to sit on. You can also use the picture of the tree given below.)    

Bible Chat

Hey kids, take a look at the picture of the tree on screen. What can you tell me about this tree? Ask the children how they think this tree might be useful. Lead them into suggesting that it might be a nice shady place to take a nap.

Well kids that’s exactly what the guy was doing who we are going to hear about now. Oh, by the way, do you like being woken up when you are asleep? Well he didn’t either. I’m going to pretend I’m him.

Hi there, my name is Nathanael and I’d like to tell you of a strange thing that happened to me a long time ago.

There I was minding my own business sitting under a fig tree, needing some shade in the afternoon sun and having a dose. Suddenly, bounding towards me comes my mate Philip all excited and panting out of breath saying, “Hey, wake up sleepy-bones, I’ve got some really cool news to tell you.” Well I was in a real daze, I don’t like being woken up in a hurry like that, gives me a bit of a shock, ‘’Nathanael, Nathanael Philip shouted, someone really special has turned up. It’s so exciting, He’s got so much to tell us - His name is Jesus - and He’s from Nazareth.”

I wasn’t impressed, I mean Nazareth of all places. “Someone special from Nazareth – you gotta be joking. Come on Philip, get real, no one special is going to come from Nazareth,” I said.

But Philip insisted and wasn’t going to be put off, “it’s true, I tell you, come and see for yourself.”

Well what could I do, I really didn’t believe this business about someone special coming from Nazareth, but I’d got nothing to lose and Philip was one of my best mates, so I went along with Him.

As we came towards Jesus He looked at me and said, “now here’s an honest man” I was a bit shocked at this greeting, I mean He was looking at me as if he’d met me before and I’d never seen Jesus in my life, “how do you know anything about me,” I said.

Jesus told me that He’d seen me sitting under a fig tree even before my mate Philip had come across and found me earlier. I gasped, wow! I’d never seen Jesus before in my whole life, but He had known exactly where I was and knew all about me. As Jesus talked with me suddenly I just knew, I really knew, this was God’s Son, the one whom people had been waiting for, for hundreds of years. Jesus had come to us!

“You are the Son of God,” I said to Jesus.

Jesus had come to show us God’s love. He’d come to show us how to live a wholesome life of love, truth and forgiveness.

And that’s how I first came to meet Jesus and the more I got to know Him, the more I came to realise how FAB God’s love is.

Kids, Jesus knows all about you too. He knows when you are happy and when you are sad. He knows when life is difficult, Jesus knows when things are just great. But he also knows about any troubles we have. Jesus is interested in you and me ISN'T THAT FAB! And, Jesus wants us to believe in Him. Do you believe in Jesus? I do.

Just like a magnet draws a metal object towards itself, so Jesus wants to draw us to Himself too. It’s really Fab that Jesus is so interested in you and me isn’t it.

Jesus told one man that he believed because he had seen Jesus face to face but how happy are those people, who believe without seeing Him face to face (John chapter 20 verse 29).

part 3  

Response Time (in small groups) 

Just because we can’t see Jesus doesn’t mean that He is not real. He cares for each one of us very much. Use the questions to discuss with the children ways in which we see Jesus for ourselves today.

 (As this week has been all about how fab God’s love is, you may like to ask the children if they know what fab means – fabulous, excellent, extremely good, amazing, awesome, marvellous, terrific... Some of the older children could write down what they think ‘fab’ means.)  

1.    Ask the children if they can think of anything that is like a magnet which demonstrates power, even though you can’t see it. You might like to use one or two simple demonstrations as follows:

(a)  Gravity (b) Wind (small battery fan or hand held fan to demonstrate) (c) Radio waves

Another demo is to get the children to hold their hand a short distance away from their mouths and breathe on it. You can’t see your breath, but it is our very life.

2.    Although we can’t see Jesus He is always with us. Affirm how Jesus has been with you since you became a Christian. You might comment as to how although you’ve never seen Jesus, you’ve felt His presence, known His love, experienced Him working in your life.

3.    Discuss how Fabulous it is that Jesus wants every one of us to be drawn to Himself so that He can be our Saviour and friend. 

4.    We can’t see Jesus physically but there are loads of ways we know He is alive, give examples such as: (1) Bible (2) At work in our lives (3) History (4) Amazing testimonies (5) Christianity – 2.3 billion believers across the world (6) Miracles (7) Revelation (8) Message through generations (9) His presence is felt (10) He gives us strength (11) We can talk to Him (12) He answers prayer. 

Week 1 DOWNLOADS

Drama Script, Bible Chat and Response Time Leaders’ Notes
PowerPoint Week 1 - Key Phrase Slide
PowerPoint Picture of Shady Tree