Free Children's Ministry Curriculum Written by Sheryl Coats
Bugs Bugs and More Bugs
Hillbilly Days
Wonderfair
The Wacky Worship Workshop
The Celebration Medical Centre
The Celebration City Courthouse
Growing in God's Garden
The Armour of God
The Wild Wild West
Theme: We will be in the wild west discovering Godly Character traits for kids.
The Set: Set up the class room to look like a town in the wild west. Decorate with cardboard cactus, stick horses, a jail house, a place to park horses, a hotel, wanted posters, etc.
Sheriff Sam - a good guy, the sharpest shooter in the west. Deputy Do Good - a dumb deputy who is good at heart and always tries to do good. Reckless Rex - a mean outlaw Pauly Peddler - a traveling saleswoman who always has something for sale she thinks will save the day. Miss Daisy - the waitress at the local restaurant One Eyed Will - a puppet who has only one eye. He is the memory verse bandit and is always lurking around waiting to steal the memory verse. Bobo - a big hairy puppet that is always getting himself into trouble.
This week: Kids will be introduced to the theme and discover the importance of being content.
The children will learn:
Have kids spend 1-2 minutes at their seats in prayer and then allow Deputy Do good to open in group prayer. This time is very important as it teaches the kids not only how to pray but also that they can pray.
Add a western spin to the rules this week. The sheriff can come out and explain the rules.
Start the worship with a cowboy puppet song. Encourage the kids to sing along with the puppets. Worship is a special time. Encourage the kids to worship with their hands, hearts, and voices.
Miss Daisy comes running out of the town restaurant. She is very excited and frightened. She informs the sheriff, deputy and the peddler that she's just learned from One Eyed Will that Reckless Rex is headed for town and he's real unhappy. Everyone is trembling in their boots. Reckless Rex shows up riding a pink stick horse. He is miserably unhappy that his horse is not as wonderful as everyone else's. He grumbles and complains and carries on about it. The town peddler steps forward and announces that she has just what he needs to fix his problem. She has a much nicer horse for sale. He buys the horse and discovers that he is still miserably discontent. The others have much nicer boots or nicer hair...etc.
Deputy Do good tries to explain to Reckless Rex that contentment and joy come from our relationship with Christ and not from things, or people, or circumstances. Reckless Rex rejects Deputy Do's statements as horse hockey and heads out of town on his new horse.
Miss Daisy tells the story of Naamans servant girl who despite her circumstances of being enslaved was content and continue on through the story to Gahazi, Elijahs servant, who was not content with what he had and sought to deceive Naaman so he could have all the wonderful things.
The pony express (a horse puppet) delivers the memory verse written on brown paper wrapped around a brick and tied with twine. The deputy unwraps it and teaches it to the children. As he is teaching it the memory verse bandit One Eyed Will sneaks up and steals it. The deputy freaks out and the sheriff comes running. The deputy doesn't know what to do. How will the kids learn the verse? Thankfully the sheriff happens to know this verse and finishes up teaching it to the kids. They then post a wanted poster up of One Eyed Will.
You will need a clothes line up on stage and one line for each pod group, note cards and plenty of clothes pins. Take a few minutes to talk about grumbling and discontentment. As kids volunteer some things to grumble about write them on the note cards and pin them to the clothes line.
Break into pod groups. Give each pod leader a clothes line, note cards, pen, and clothes pins. In their pod groups have kids continue to list thing they grumble about. Pod leaders pin them to their clothes line. Then pod leaders can wrap the kids up in the clothes line. Have kids discuss what it is like to be tied up. Pod leaders should explain that complaints tie us down. Unwrap the kids and spend a few minutes thanking God for his blessings.
Bobo comes up with a roll of toilet paper.
Leader: Hi Bobo, I hate to ask this but why do you have that roll of toilet paper?
Bobo: um, this roll right here?
Leader: Yes, that's the one.
Bobo: would you believe I am taking it out to the outhouse?
Leader: that seems logical enough except that the outhouse is in the other direction.
Bobo: Well, alright then! I'll just tell you why I have this roll of toilet paper! I have this roll of toilet paper because I am going over to the sheriffs house to toilet paper it. There! Now you know. Now out of my way. I have business to take care of.
Leader: Oh Bobo. Why would you want to do that for?
Bobo: The sheriff invited me over for thanksgiving dinner last Thursday.
Leader: that was so nice of him. Why would you want to be so mean to him after his kindness to you?
Bobo: Oh that's just the beginning. You see, it was thanksgiving. And do you know that he didn't bother to make me any stuffing?
Leader: It seems to me you have plenty of stuffing.
Bobo: (getting agitated) Not that kind of stuffing!! The kind that you eat. How can you have thanksgiving dinner with no stuffing? Of all the nerve!!
Leader: What did you have?
Bobo: there was turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, green bean casserole, rolls, jello, salad, yams, cranberry sauce, apple pie, pumpkin pie, custard, ice cream, and my favourite chocolate éclairs!!
Leader: You mean to tell me that you are all upset that you didn't get stuffing when you got stuffed with all that other good food??
Bobo: Well, yeah.....I like stuffing.
Leader: Bobo, Bobo, Bobo....
Bobo: UM, there's just one of me. That would be just one Bobo.
Leader: Bobo. I am disappointed with you. Rather than being thankful with all you had you focused in on what you didn't have. The Bible tells us that we should be content whatever comes our way. You have so much to be content and joyful about and you decided to be discontent. Aren't you ashamed of yourself?
Bobo: Now that you put it that way....I am soooo ashamed. Please take this toilet paper away from me. I never want to see another roll of toilet paper again as long as I live.
Leader: Oh I don't think you mean that. Toilet paper is very useful when it is used properly. Maybe you should just say you are so sorry and are going to work on being content with what God sends your way.
Bobo: Ok. That does sound better.
Leader: Here, take this toilet paper and go put it in the outhouse now.
Bobo: No problem. Thanks for setting me straight.
Cactus toss. You will need some large cardboard cactus (made from appliance boxes) and some rings. Pin cards on the cactus arms that have complaints or noncomplaints on them. Have several volunteers from each team come forward to compete for their team. The point is to ring as many of the good things as possible without ringing the complaints. Each player tosses one ring toward the cactus and then runs to the end of the line. The first team to ring all the good things wins. (Each time a bad thing is ringed a good thing ring is removed).
You will need some worms (real or rubber)
We can learn several things from worms.
We can learn from the worms that even though life may not be the greatest all the time we don't have to complain about it. We can be content knowing that God is in control and know exactly what the future holds. We must find our contentment in life from our relationship with Christ.
Tell the kids that when we are sad or discouraged we can come to Christ and ask him to fill us with his joy and contentment despite our circumstances. Encourage kids to come to the alter to repent of their grumbling and to seek to be filled with the joy of the Lord.
Copyright 1999, Sheryl Coats
