Introduction

This curriculum series is based on the Great Commission given by Jesus in Matthew. "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you." Matthew 28:19,20. This verse is essential for our Christian walk, we have a responsibility to share the Good News. Christ has asked us to go to others and teach them. This is the goal of "The Zoo" program but it will also be the goal of these lessons. We will be trying to equip the children to go home and to school and share the message. This is the final phase of our yearly cycle. All year we have been teaching and introducing the kids to Jesus and now it is our task to equip them to share Jesus with others. (All lessons will be quite simple and will still include an evangelistic message for those children who might have missed this over the course of the summer months.)

The theme will be taken from the 1996 summer movie called "Mission Impossible". It will be a spy, espionage, intrigue kind of theme. The characters will be mysterious and dressed appropriately. The music and lighting will help contribute to the effect. The Zoo Bus Puppet Stage was decorated to go with the theme. We chose to use this theme while the movie was still fairly fresh in people's minds. During this series we will go back to using videos since the TV & VCR are available.

Props

CD of the "Mission Impossible" theme music

Lesson One - Mission Training

If you want to be able to carry out your mission you are going to need some basic training. You can't complete the mission unless you have been trained to handle it. In order to share the gospel, the Bible is an important tool. It contains the written message. It can be very helpful if you know how to use it. This lesson will focus on the scriptures; who wrote them and how do we use them.

Goals

• to teach the children that the Bible is God's word.
• to teach them how to look up verses.
• to encourage them to use the Bible in their own lives.
• to encourage them to share what they have learned about Jesus.

Opening

On "The Zoo" bus, the opening is usually a cartoon. While the children are loading on to the bus this video plays to occupy them. The boot system for taking off foot wear will no longer be used. In an area where over crowding is an issue, attendance will be taken. Children will enter according to where they live. The program will occur twice. It will be done the first time for one location and a second time for children living in another area. This seemed to be the most effective way to divide. If you encountered this problem in a building it would be easier to handle, you could simply use two rooms and divide by age.

Rules

The rules must be strict. Although it might be difficult it is very important to create a standard of expected behaviour. This is the only way that control will be maintained.

Prayer

Always open in prayer. Give the children an opportunity to see what prayer is all about. If the crowd is calm, it might be a time to ask for prayer requests.

Singing

Due to the limited space on "The Zoo" bus, we have found that sometimes adaptations need to be made. Singing is usually a high energy time. If the children seem too out of control, have them remain seated. It isn't as much fun but it is a good way to maintain order.

Games

Flash Card Game

Select two players; One boy/One girl. This game will be a flash card game and it will be played twice. In the first round the children will be given cards and asked to put them in order. The cards will have scripture references on them. They will all be in the same book but will need to be arranged by chapter. e.g. John 1:6; John 4:1; John 10:11. The child will arrange them.

In the second round of the game the contestants will be given different flash cards. This time they will be all from the same book and chapter but must be arranged by verse. e.g. John 4:1; John 4:3; John 4:10. Older children might find this easy. It is difficult to tell how quickly they will catch on.

This game will be done using the one minute timer. All of the cards must be arranged in one minute.

Memory Verse

The "Mission Possible" theme music comes on and the verse leader is standing outside of the puppet stage. A puppet sneaks up and hands the leader a verse. It is written in invisible ink. The leader must get it back and uncover the message. Once it is revealed it will be taught to the children.

"God has breathed life into all scripture. It is useful for teaching what is true, correcting our mistakes and training us to do what is right". 2 Timothy 3:16.

The Bible contains God's words. That is really exciting because it is a book that can tell us exactly what God wants us to do. It can teach us the truth, it can show us where we went wrong and it can help us to do the right thing. A book that can do all that is pretty amazing. That is why we need to know how to use it!

Object Lesson

In this series an amateur video was made to go with each lesson. They were designed to reinforce the lesson. The lessons will include the script from each video. In this lesson the "SPY GUY" will teach the children to look things up in the Bible. Music starts, video camera follows black foot prints to desk (very slowly) Video stops on desk - music fades Spy guy appears.... Shhh! Be very quiet. Do you hear anything? Are you sure you weren't followed? Ok it looks like the coast is clear. Now I can begin... I am Spy Guy, of course that is not my real name . It is my undercover name. By now I'm sure that you know I have figured out the code and that is what I'm going to share with you today.

See this book, I bet some of you have one at home. It is very important. This book contains God's word and I have figured out how to use it. I know the code, I'll tell you how it works...

The Bible is divided into two parts. The first one is the Old Testament, the second one is the New Testament. Each section is divided into smaller pieces called books. The names of these books are what you see on the memory verse each week. (There is a knock at the door) Oh look it is Scotty. He is a secret agent too. He is going to help me show you the code. (Scotty will hold the cards that have the verse on it and the bible page.) See on the memory verse it has the book name Second Timothy right after First Timothy. To help explain this to you I have enlarged a page from the Bible. At the top of the page it says Second Timothy just like the verse. Match them up and you will know that you are in the right place.

Every week when you do a memory verse it has a book name that you can find in the Bible. After the name of the book there are some numbers. The first number is the chapter, it is the big number. It puts you in the right place. After the two dots: you'll find the small numbers. They show you exactly where to find that verse. Let's look at the Bible page again. See the big number three, it is the chapter number that we are looking for and the small number 16 shows you exactly where the verse is. It is exactly what is written on your verse.

Believe it or nor it gets easier, if you practise! But there is a little tip to help. You might be thinking, "Spy Guy", but there are too may books in the Bible with big names. Don't worry, I've got it cased. At the front of the Bible there is a list of all the books and where to find them. Try this one - Nehemiah. I just look in the front of the Bible and it tells me where to find the part of the bible called Nehemiah. See not so bad. That's how you do it. Keep trying!

Story

This story was read and acted out by puppets in the background.

Introduction: Did you pay attention to the video? Do you think you would be able to look something up in the Bible? Well, I have a story for you. It is a story about an undercover agent. He was on a mission. He was assigned to break the code.

Special Agent Orangeo was on the case. He knew that he could figure out the code. If he did figure it out then he could share it with other agents, what a breakthrough that would be!

All his boss had given him was a dirty, worn out Bible taken from a hotel room. The boss told him to figure it out. He also gave him a note.

Orangeo unfolded the paper. It said take your Bible and meet the girl in the Dallas Cowboys Sweater, under the tree at the corner of Federal and Romans Ave. So Orangeo snuck up to the corner. He saw the girl and he walked over to her. She handed him a briefcase. When Orangeo opened it, he found a cord with an example of the code on it. It said Matthew 28:19. The girl told Orangeo it was like an address for a person but it is an address for a verse. Then she left quickly.

Orangeo was confused. He didn't know what that meant. He thought for a long time. He walked down the street while he was thinking. He looked at the houses. Each one had a special number on it. The number tells you where on the street to find a house. Hmmmm.

Just then Orangeo had an idea. He ran to the phone booth and opened up the phone book. He started looking for the address on the card, it didn't work. Now Orangeo was getting depressed.

He decided to call his friend Garbonzo who had been to Sunday School before. Orangeo explained the problem and Garbonzo had an answer.

Garbonzo told Orangeo that a Bible verse is like an address. It tells you exactly where to find the sentence you are looking for. If you look in the front of the Bible there is a list of all the different sections (streets) in the Bible, they are called books.

First you look up the right street or book so you know you are close. If you were looking for a house you would have to know the street but you would also have to know what number so you could find it. The numbers are in order. So first of all we know that we are in the book called Matthew, so we are close. But we want to find the right house or chapter. The verse says Matthew 28:19. So we need to find 28. That is all there is to it.

When Orangeo got off the phone he was really happy. He had completed his assignment and it was a lot easier than he thought it would be. He had to hurry back to meet his boss and share the good news. Now Orangeo was a good agent and he could look things up in the Bible anytime he wanted to.

Dismissal

Quiet seat prizes and treats for everyone.

Copyright 1997, Bread of Life Ministries