November 30,, 2014Grades 2-5 –Unit 23, Session 3

Morning – At – Glance

SESSION TITLE: Mary Visited Elizabeth

Bible Passage: Luke 1:39-56

BIG PICTURE QUESTION & ANSWER

What was special about Mary’s baby? Jesus is God’s Son.

UNIT CHRIST CONNECTION As prophesied in Isaiah 40:3 and Malachi 3:1, John the Baptist prepared the people for the coming Messiah.

MEMORY VERSE ****NEW just for December

“God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him would not be lost but have eternal life.”

John 3:16 (ERV translation)

9:00/11:00 – 9:25/11:25WELCOME & CONNECT

SUPPLIES: SG Binder, Books of the Bible Cards, memory verse cards, dry erase board & marker, whiffle ball

OfferingTake Attendance

Books of the Bible Memory Verse Review

9:25/11:25 – 9:30/11:30PLUG IN & OPENING QUESTION

SUPPLIES: Shepherding Guide (for answers to opening question), activity sheets, markers, velcro strips

Invite kids to share the names of cities or states where their relatives live. How often do they visit? How do they travel there?

9:30/11:30 – 10:10/12:10LARGE GROUP & PRAYER

Take your SG Binder with you – Attendance Roster and Shepherding Guide are inside

10:10/12:10 – 10:25/12:25BIBLE STORY REVIEW

SUPPLIES: Bibles, timeline, bean bags

10:20/12:20 – 10:25/12:25PREPARE FOR PARENT PICK-UP

Hand-out Big Picture Cards & connect with parents

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November 30,, 2014Grades 2-5 –Unit 23, Session 3

BIBLE STORY: Mary Visited ElizabethLuke 1:39-56

The angel Gabriel had appeared to Mary and said that Mary was going to have a baby. Gabriel said that the baby would be God’s Son! He also told Mary that her relative Elizabeth was going to have a baby too, even though Elizabeth was old.

Mary hurried to the town in Judah where her relative Elizabeth lived. When Mary got there, she went into the house and called out to Elizabeth. When Mary came in the house, Elizabeth’s baby leaped in her belly, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.

Elizabeth said, “You are blessed, Mary! And your baby will be blessed!”

Elizabeth could hardly believe what was happening. These things were so wonderful! “How could the mother of God’s Son come to me?” she wondered. Then Elizabeth said, “As soon as I heard you, Mary, the baby inside me leaped for joy!” Elizabeth said that Mary would be blessed for believing God’s words. Everything God said would happen would really happen.

Mary was so happy. She praised God with a song about how great He is. The song went like this:

The Lord is great and my spirit rejoices in Him!He has looked on me—His humble servant—with favor.

Surely, from now on, all people will call me blessed because God has done great things for me.

His name is holy.He shows mercy to all who have faith in Him—who believe in Him without seeing Him.

With His mighty arm, God has scattered people who are proud.He has taken mighty kings off their thrones,

and He has given the people who are ordinary and poor places of honor.He has filled up people who are hungry with good things,

and He sent the rich people away with nothing.God has helped His servant—the nation of Israel—

and He has remembered the promise He made to Abraham and his descendants.

Mary knew every family in the future would say she was blessed because God was going to do great things for her through Jesus. God was keeping His promise to bless the whole world through Jesus. Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months, and then she went back to her home in Nazareth.

Christ Connection: God kept His promise to Abraham and his descendants. The coming of the promised Savior was good news! Before Jesus was born, people rejoiced and praised God for His Son. Mary and Elizabeth worshiped God because of Jesus.

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November 30,, 2014Grades 2-5 –Unit 23, Session 3

BIBLE STUDY

God’s people did not hear a clear message from God for hundreds of years. Then one day, Gabriel—an angel of the Lord—told a man that his wife, Elizabeth, was going to have a baby. The baby’s name would be John. Then the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and told her that she would have a baby, and He would be God’s Son.

Mary and Elizabeth were relatives. Elizabeth was old and barren; she and her husband, Zechariah, had no children. Mary was a young girl—likely in her early teens. She was a virgin, engaged to be married to Joseph. The announcements of these pregnancies were miraculous for both women. Both babies had been foretold by the prophet Isaiah—John in Isaiah 40:3 and Jesus in Isaiah 7:14.

The angel Gabriel told Mary that Elizabeth was pregnant too, and Mary hurried to see her. The journey would not have been easy. Mary traveled nearly one hundred miles to see Elizabeth, and her arrival brought great joy to both Elizabeth and Elizabeth’s unborn baby. In the presence of the unborn Messiah, John leaped in Elizabeth’s belly. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she said, “Mary, you are blessed!”

The story of Mary’s visit with Elizabeth gives us a remarkable picture of women living by faith. Being a young, unwed pregnant woman could have caused Mary to worry. Instead, her response is marked by her trust in God. Mary’s song reflects her knowledge of God’s Word and her understanding of who God is.

Mary worshiped God because the coming of the promised Savior was good news! People had been waiting hundreds of years for the Messiah. “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,” Mary sang. Being the mother of Jesus was no small task, but Mary trusted that God was in charge.

The words of Mary’s song were a testimony of God’s mercy, might, grace, generosity, and faithfulness. Mary knew these things, and that is why she sang.

3 ©: The Gospel Project, edited by Tandi Thomas

November 30,, 2014Grades 2-5 –Unit 23, Session 3

9:00/11:00 – 9:15/11:15 WELCOME & CONNECT 15 minutesSUPPLIES: SG Binder, Books of the Bible cards, Big Picture Concentration cards, memory verse cards, Dry Erase board & markers, whiffle Ball

❖ Offering: As kids arrive, have them place their offering in the basket on the stage.❖ Take Attendance: Fill out the attendance roster with the children’s first & last names. ONLY children

who are not listed on your printed roster should be added to the “GraceKids Roster.” Please be sure to check each child’s tag to see if they are in the correct group. If a tag says “Unassigned”, please talk with the parents at drop-off and pick-up to find out which service time they will be regularly attending so that we can “assign” their child to a small group.

**Remember, the focus of the opening time is to build relationships. Do not worry if you are not able to complete all of the activities. But try and complete one to prepare the kids for the Bible story.

❖ Books of the Bible: Begin learning the NT books.❖ Big Picture Concentration: This activity will review last month’s Bible stories and the Big Picture

Question and Answer for each story. First, lay out all the cards FACE UP. Review the Question and the Answer of each Bible Story. Then, turn the cards FACE DOWN, and mix them up. Each child takes a turn flipping over 2 cards, trying to match the question with the answer. The child who makes the most “matches” wins.

❖ Memory Verse Review: (Choose ONE)➢ Card Mix-Up: (Supplies: Memory Verse Cards) Scramble the cards with the words of the

memory verse. Time the kids to see how quickly they can place them in order.➢ Missing Card: (Supplies: Memory Verse Cards) Lay the memory verse cards on the floor.

Have the kids read the verse several times. Then, remove several cards and have the kids try again. Remove cards and recite the verse until all the cards are gone.

➢ Concentration: (Supplies: Memory Verse Cards) Lay the memory verse cards face down. Each child takes turns turning over two cards. If one of those are the first words of the verse, they set them out and can go again. Each child takes turns turning over two cards and setting out the next words of the verse.

➢ Dry Erase-A-Word: (Supplies: Dry erase board, dry erase marker, paper towel) Write out the words of the memory verse on the board. Have the kids recite the verse. Then, erase one or two words and have the kids recite the verse. Continue erasing and reciting until all the words are gone and the kids have the verse memorized.

➢ Whiffle Ball Games: (Supplies: Whiffle ball) As you throw the ball, each child says the next word of the verse when they catch the ball.

9:15/11:15 – 9:30/11:30 PLUG IN & OPENING QUESTION 15 minutesSUPPLIES: Shepherding Guide (for answers to opening question), activity sheets, markers, velcro strips

Opening Question -- Invite kids to share the names of cities or states where their relatives live. How often do they visit? How do they travel there? Connect to the lesson: Today we’ll be learning about two relatives who visited each during a very important time of their lives. Who do you think those relatives might be?

Plug-In Activity #1 – “The Birth of Jesus Foretold”: Help kids to complete the activity page. Connect to the lesson: Do you remember to whom an angel appeared in our story last week? (Zechariah) In today’s

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November 30,, 2014Grades 2-5 –Unit 23, Session 3

story, we’ll hear about another angel appearance. God was speaking clearly to the people that something special was happening. We’ll be learning more about that in our Bible story today.

Plug-In Activity #2 – “Jump Around”: Lay out starting and finishing lines with velcro strips. Line up the kids on the starting line. Explain that the kids are going to be in a jumping contest to get to the finishing line. You will give the command of left, right, forward, or back. (You may need to point for left and right.) The kids will respond by taking two small jumps in that direction. Demonstrate what a small jump is. start slowly with the commands and increase speed as the game goes on. You may choose to eliminate kids who jump the wrong direction. As you give a command, make sure kids have enough room to follow the commands safely. Connect to the Lesson: Somebody in our story is going to jump. Who do you think that might be?

Clean Up and Transition to Large Group**Kids should use the bathroom BEFORE Large Group – NOT during Large Group.

9:30/11:30 – 10:10/12:10WORSHIP & BIBLE STORY & PRAYER 40 minutesSUPPLIES: Small Group Binder

Prayer Time will be directed from the Bible Story Teacher at the end of Large Group. You will have time at the very end of prayer to take requests from the kids in your group. Record the date, child’s

name and request on the Shepherding Guide in your SG Binder.

When you are finished praying with your group, quietly return to your small group area.

10:10/12:10 –10:25/12:25 BIBLE STORY REVIEW 15 minutesSUPPLIES: Bibles, timeline, bean bags, velcro strips, adhesive dots

Our Bible story is found in the book of Luke in the New Testament. Luke is one of the four books called the Gospels. Can you name all the books called the Gospels? (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) Encourage the kids to look up Luke 1 in their Bibles. You may want to read Luke 1:39-56 together to review the story.

Show: Using the timeline, show the kids when this story occurs.

Explain: Mary and Elizabeth were blessed. Jesus was part of a more than 1,000 year old promise in the Old Testament and part of a plan before the world even existed. John was mentioned hundreds of years earlier by the prophets Isaiah and Malachi. The birth of John and Jesus would be an incredible time in all of history. Mary had reason to sing and praise God -- she was pregnant with God’s Son.

Discuss: Do you think Mary’s friends believed she had seen an angel? Do you think Mary was encouraged by being with her older cousin, Elizabeth? How can older Christians encourage and help us?

**Optional – “Standing Leaps”: Give each kid an adhesive dot. Using your starting line from the opening activity, have kids take turns standing on the starting line and leaping as far as they can. They will take turns leaping past the start line as far as they can. Each kid should use his adhesive dot to mark where he lands. When every kid has had a turn, recognize the kid who leaped the farthest. If time allows, play again or play a variation of the game by marking intervals on a wall and seeing who can leap the highest. Kids should stand next to the wall and leap as high as they can to position their adhesive dot onto the wall. Connect to the 5 ©: The Gospel Project, edited by Tandi Thomas

November 30,, 2014Grades 2-5 –Unit 23, Session 3

lesson: You are all great leapers! Even before the babies were born, Elizabeth’s baby was happy about Mary’s baby. John leaped in Elizabeth’s belly when he heard Mary’s voice. What was special about Mary’s baby? Jesus is God’s Son.

**Optional – Bible Beanbag Grab: Create two teams. Have the teams line up facing each other behind two Velcro strips placed about 5 ft. or more apart. Number the members of the teams. Both teams should have a one, two, etc. If there is an odd number either: give one person two numbers, have the extra person read the questions, or you can play. Place two beanbags in the middle of the two teams separated by about one ft. Read the Bible Beanbag question and then call out one of the assigned numbers. The person on each team who has that number must run to the middle, grab the bean bag, get back across the Velcro line, and hold the bean bag in the air above their head. The first one to do this, gets a chance to answer the question. If they get it correct, their team gets a point. If they miss it, the other team gets a chance to steal the point. Repeat calling numbers at random.

● What was the name of the angel that appeared to Mary? (Gabriel)

● Elizabeth lived on (A) the flat prairie / (B) in the hill country. ((B) in the hill country, Luke 1:39)

● Elizabeth lived (A) alone / (B) with her husband, Zechariah. ((B) with Zechariah, Luke 1:40)

● When Elizabeth’s baby heard Mary, he (A) leaped / (B) took a nap. (leaped, Luke 1:41)

● Elizabeth said that Mary and her baby were (A) cursed / (B) blessed. (blessed, Luke 1:42)

● Elizabeth was glad to get a visit from (A) the mother of her Lord / (B) the town doctor. (the mother of her Lord, Luke 1:43)

● When Mary visited Elizabeth and was so happy about God’s blessing, what did she do? (She praised God with a song about how great He is.)

● What did Mary know about every family in the future? (They would be blessed because God was going to do great things for her through Jesus.)

● In which testament is the book of Luke? (New Testament)

● Name the 4 Gospels. (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John)

10:25/12:25 PARENT PICK-UP SUPPLIES: Big Picture Cards

Try to connect with each parent as they arrive to pick-up their child. Mention something their child said, how they answered questions, learned part of the memory verse, etc.

Please return supplies to the correct bin in the Small Group closet -- as NEATLY as possible!Your Behind-the-Scenes team really appreciates it when you do

6 ©: The Gospel Project, edited by Tandi Thomas