Parents Devo

The Creation

Week 01

BETA Version

You are the hero your kid's need!

You are the hero your kid's need!

If you haven't yet, take a few minutes and learn the heart behind The Hero Iniside!

Quick Prep

This week's Question: 

Who made me and everything I see?

Our good God made a good world, and He made you.
That's a short way to answer this week's question! What you want your child to learn is 1) there is a God, 2) He made everything and everyone, and 3) he is a good God. These three things flow naturally from the Bible Story you will read with your kids and lead to a powerful and foundational learning outcome:

God made me and loves me.

This simple truth is an essential building block in your child's developing faith. Help them understand it, repeat it, and internalize it. In time, it will become a major part of the foundation of their belief in Jesus, their inherent dignity as a person, and even their value in God's Kingdom and mission in the world. 
Note: Don't forget to emphasize the distinction we are making in point #3. Our God is a good God. His goodness is an important part of our understanding of God's character.

Kid's Lesson

The Creation

Kid's Lesson

The Creation

Ask the Question

Who made you and everything you see?

Read the Bible Story

In the beginning there was only God. There was no heaven or earth. No cloudy skies with birds flying high. No animals or mountains or rivers. And there were no people. Only our good God.
Then God created heaven and the earth. He made the stars in the sky and the birds that fly. He made the fish in the sea that swim and splash. He made the fields with flowers and the trees that tower above. He made alligators and ants and leaves that dance in the wind. Our good God made a beautiful world and called it good.
God's creation kept on creating. The animals had babies and made more animals the trees made seeds that would sprout in the ground and grow to become tall trees. God's creation was good, and it was growing. 
But creation was also waiting. The animals were waiting for someone to name them. All the plants, the wild flowers, and the grains in the fields were in the ground waiting for someone to help them grow. God filled his world with wonders, but some of them were still hidden. 
So God made someone to share His creation with, and to bring out everything He had hidden in His new world. God made people. He started with one man and one woman; Adam and Eve. 
God loved Adam and Eve and they loved Him. He gave them work to do. They were to watch over God's good world for Him, to care for His creation, and to give names to all God's animals. With Adam and Eve in charge, all the beauty and all the wonders God had hidden in His world could be revealed.
This is the story of the beginning of the world. Our good God made everything and all of us. Our good God made you. And He loves you, just like He loved Adam and Eve.

Learning Outcome

God made me and loves me.

Help us make it better!

Activities

Pick several to do throughout the week!

Don't forget to work the Question and the Learning Outcome into as many conversations as possible while you're doing the activities. Have your kids repeat the learning outcome often!

1. Play-dough

Our God is creative! Using play-dough, have your kids create something of their own. It can be their best attempt at their favorite animal, a shape, or something original.
For even more fun create your own play-dough!

2. Coloring page

This is the rough sketch from my illustrator. That's why it's not clean lines like a normal coloring page! 

Click to download

3. Go on a nature walk

On a walk through your neighborhood or on a nature trail, allow your kids to look at God's beautiful creation. Allow them to stop and examine simple things, listen for sounds, or pick wild flowers to bring home. Talk about the goodness and love of God as you walk. 

4. Gaze at the stars

Lay on a blanket and look at the heavens. Talk about the beauty of the stars and the greatness of the God who created them all. Have fun trying to find shapes, objects and animals in the stars.

5. Look at the clouds

Throw out a blanket or sit back in a lawn chair and look at the clouds.  Talk about the different shapes you see and how God made everything we see!

6. Make animal puppets

Make different animal puppets using a brown paper bag, construction paper, or popsicle sticks. Talk about how our loving God made all the different animals, and made us.

Scriptures

These are some of the scriptures emphasized in the Bible Story.

Genesis 1:1, NLT      In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Genesis 1:26, NLT   So God created human beings in his own image.
Genesis 2:4-5, NLT  This is the account of the creation of the heavens and the earth. When the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, 5 neither wild plants nor grains were growing on the earth. For the Lord God had not yet sent rain to water the earth, and there were no people to cultivate the soil.
Genesis 2:19-20a, NLT So the Lord God formed from the ground all the wild animals and all the birds of the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would call them, and the man chose a name for each one. 20 He gave names to all the livestock, all the birds of the sky, and all the wild animals.

Instructions

Parent's Devo

  1. Watch the video.
  2. Read the Quick Prep.
  3. Pray for you kids and over what you will be teaching them.
Tip: An effective way to use this curriculum is to read Parents Devo the day before you do the Lesson with your kids, giving you ample time to internalize and pray over what you will be teaching your kids! Go back through the Quick Prep right before doing the Lesson with your kids if you want to refresh your mind.

Quick Reminder

Remember the Question is where you begin. The Learning Outcome is where you're going. The Bible Story you will read with your kids, along with what you've learned in the Parent's Lesson, is how you get your kids from the Question to the Learning Outcome. Have fun reading the Bible Story and doing the Activities with your kids!

Instructions

Kid's Lesson

  1. Ask your kids the Question.
  2. Read the Bible Story, then ask the Question again.
  3. Guide them to the Learning Outcome by helping them process the Bible Story.
  4. Have fun doing one of the Activities!
  5. Work the Learning Outcome into as many things as possible throughout the week (e.g. additional activities, bedtime and mealtime prayers, conversations, etc.). 
  6. You can reread the Bible Story with them throughout the week as well if you would like!