Big Idea: God gives us the Holy Spirit to help us follow Jesus.
Bible Basis: Acts 2:1-41
Key Verse: “But the Father will send the Friend in my name to help you. The Friend is the Holy Spirit.” John 14:26 (NIrV)
OPENING PRAYER
Lord, open now my heart to hear, And through your Word to me draw near. Let me your Word ever pure retain; Let me your child and heir remain. All this I ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.
THUMBS UP, THUMBS DOWN
Simply ask your child to share one good thing that happened today or this week (thumbs up) and one not-so-good thing (thumbs down). This is a great way to share celebrations and struggles with one another.
BIBLE LESSON VIDEO
ASK THESE QUESTIONS
For younger kids:
What was your favorite part of this story?
How do you think the Holy Spirit helped the crowd of people learn about Jesus?
For older kids:
What does this story teach you about the Holy Spirit?
In what ways did the Holy Spirit help the followers of Jesus?
REFLECT AND RESPOND
After the video, have your child pick one or more of the prompts on the GO! Home Guide.
Prayer Station prompt: Write a prayer to God and thank Him for giving us our Friend, the Holy Spirit.
Journal Station prompt: Has the Holy Spirit ever helped you? Has He filled you with joy, helped you remember God’s Word, guided you to do what’s right, or given you a spiritual gift or talent? Write about it.
Bible Station prompt: Read it for yourself: Acts 2:1–41. Draw a picture of the story or write to God about your favorite part of the story. Tell Him why you liked it.
Art Station prompt: Draw a picture of the believers with small flames above their heads. While you’re drawing, thank God for giving us the gift of the Holy Spirit.
LEARNING ACTIVITIES
+ Strike a Pose Community Builder
- Directions: Tell the kids that on the count of 3, you want them to strike a pose like they’ve just seen the craziest thing ever. After striking a pose, tell the kids to take a seat.
- Say: Today we’re going to hear a story about something kind of crazy that happened to the early followers of Jesus. The people who saw it couldn’t believe it was happening.
- Question: Has anything really crazy or unbelievable ever happened to you? Tell us about it.
+ A Rishing Wind (Application Activity)
- Set Up: For each small group, print the 4 “Rushing Wind” questions on 8½ x 11 paper. Each question will be on a separate piece of paper. Crumple each piece of paper into a ball so that the question is not visible. Next, place 3 tape lines on the floor. The lines should be parallel to one another with about 2 feet (.6 meters) in-between each line (for a total of 4 feet between the two outer lines.)
- Say: In today’s story, we heard how the Holy Spirit arrived during Pentecost like a rushing wind. The Holy Spirit now lives in the hearts of people who love and follow Jesus. We’re going to play a game right now that will help us think about 4 different ways the Holy Spirit guides and helps us.
- Directions: Divide your small group into 2 teams. Have each team sit facing each other behind one of the outer lines on the floor. Give each kid a paper plate. When ready, toss one of the 4 crumpled pieces of paper onto the middle line. Tell the kids that they have 20 seconds to blow the paper onto the opposing team’s side using only the paper plate. They may not strike the paper with their plate. Use a stopwatch or smartphone to keep track of time. After 20 seconds, determine which side of the line the paper was on and award a point to the other team. Next, un-crumple the paper and read the question. Allow the winning team to answer first, followed by the other team. When finished, set that paper aside and play another round using one of the other crumpled pieces of paper. Continue until all of the questions (listed below) have been discussed.
- Rishing Wind Questions:
- The Holy Spirit comforts us and gives us joy. Can you think of a time that the Holy Spirit did that for you? Tell about it.
- The Holy Spirit helps us understand and remember God’s Word. Has He ever done that for you? What Bible verse or story did He remind you of and how did it help you?
- The Holy Spirit guides us in doing what is right. Has there ever been a time when you were about to make a bad choice and the Holy Spirit nudged you toward doing the right thing?
- The Holy Spirit gives us spiritual gifts or talents that we can use to help other people follow Jesus. Has the Holy Spirit made you really good at something? How can you use that talent to help other people?
- Say: During that game, we created quite a bit of wind. Do you remember how the Holy Spirit is kind of like the wind? (Answer: Even though we can’t see the wind, we know it’s real because we can feel it and see what it does. In the same way, we can’t see the Holy Spirit, but we can feel how He comforts us and see how He helps us remember God’s Word, guides us in doing what’s right, and gives us spiritual gifts.)
+ Meteor Shower (Bible Memorization Activity)
- Set-Up: Use tape to create a square on the floor that is about 8 feet (2.5 meters) in width. Crumple 10 pieces of paper into balls.
- Directions: Place the Bible verse sign in the middle of the group and read it carefully with your kids several times so they can begin to memorize it. Today’s Bible verse says: “But the Father will send the Friend in my name to help you. The Friend is the Holy Spirit.” John 14:26. When ready, have the kids stay seated but spread out within the square. Tell them that the square is their space station and the crumpled pieces of paper are meteors. Their mission is to protect the space station from getting hit by the meteors. Count to 3 and throw all 10 meteors simultaneously into the air above the space station. The kids will have to catch or swat the meteors out of the air, but some meteors will inevitably get through. Once a meteor has touched the floor, it cannot be moved. Count how many meteors landed in the space station and have the group recite the verse together that many times. Continue playing rounds for as long as you would like.
- Question: Can you think of a time that the Holy Spirit has helped you? Tell us about it.
+ Shark Man (Prayer Activity)
- Directions: Have your group sit in a circle. Place the “Shark Man” game sheet in the middle of the group. Play “Shark Man” the same way you would play “Hangman.” The game sheet will have blanks for the words (not including the Book name or numbers) in the following Bible verse: “Give thanks to the Lord.” Psalm 136:1. If kids guess a letter that is in the puzzle, fill in the appropriate blank. If they guess a letter that is not in the puzzle, draw one part of a man (head, body, arm, leg, etc.) attached to the parachute. For younger kids, you may want to include a circle for each hand and foot in order to give them more chances. If they can say the verse before the man is completed, they win. If the man is completed before they can say the verse correctly, the game is over. Finish the verse for them
- Say: Psalm 136:1 tells us that God is good! He gives us so many things to be thankful for. What has God given you that you’re thankful for?
- Directions: Allow the kids to talk about what they’re thankful for. When everyone has had a chance to share, lead your group in a closing prayer. Encourage the kids to thank God for the things they shared.
(Due to copyright restrictions, the printable materials described in the activities above are only available to those who have registered for Our Savior’s Kids. To register your child(ren), click the button below)
CLOSING PRAYER
Dear Jesus, thank you for sending me your Holy Spirit so that I can know and believe in you. Amen.
DURING THE WEEK
Read in the Bible the story that was the basis for this week’s lesson:
Acts 2:1-41
Do more of the activities list above with your child.
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE LESSON?
Leave them in the comments below!