This week, your student learned that Paul and Barnabas taught about God in the Jewish synagogues. Many people accepted Christ as Savior but others were angry at this teaching. Nevertheless, Paul and Barnabas continued to share the gospel with others until they were run out of town by an angry mob. Help your student memorize Isaiah 41:10a.Listen to God: Read Acts 13:44-52 This passage reminds us that the good news of Jesus resulted in rejection and rejoicing. Nearly the whole city gathered to hear Paul and Barnabas tell about the good news. Many were excited and embraced the message that Jesus was the Messiah. Others were not willing to accept it and actually became hostile about it. This did not put a damper on the zeal of those who rejoiced. These verses tell us that Paul and Barnabas made their way 90 miles down the road to Iconium and the believers left behind lived in God’s joy. Lead your family in a discussion about how the good news of Jesus is received today. How does it affect some Christians and their efforts to share the good news anyway? Talk to God Familiarity with Christianity is not the same as being a disciple of Christ. Challenge your family members to consider this question: Do you know Christ or do you merely know Christianity? It’s not enough to go to church (or a Christian school). We need to experience a growing relationship with the Lord. Lead your family in a time of prayer and ask the Lord to help each one of you know Him in a personal way—not just know about Him. Walk With God Option 1: Do you remember the first time you heard the gospel? Bringing others to Christ should be our top priority in this life. Write a list of verses that tell the plan of salvation (John 3:16, Romans 10:9-10, etc.) Discuss how you can share these verses with your neighbors, friends, and family. You could leave tracts on a neighbor’s doorstep, invite a friend to church, or share with someone how God has changed your life. Don’t just experience the good news; share it with those around you. Option 2: Ask family members to name celebrities or well-known people nearly everyone could identify. Select one or two and ask additional questions: Where is this person from? How many siblings does this person have? What kind of food does he or she like? What does he or she do for fun? Even though nearly everyone knows the celebrity’s name, we don’t always know anything truly personal about him or her. Discuss this question: What is the difference between knowing someone’s name, and knowing him or her personally? Challenge your family members to get to know the Lord better this week. Consider a group study of the characteristics of Christ, but also encourage one-on-one time with the Lord and His Word.

Early Elementary Today your student learned how Jesus healed ten lepers. Only one of the ten came back to thank Jesus. When our prayers are answered, we should show God our thankfulness. Our attitude and thankfulness show God how much we love Him. Encourage your child to share with others what God does for him or her. Upper Elementary Today your student learned how Jesus healed ten lepers. Only one of the ten came back to thank Jesus. When our prayers are answered, we should show God our thankfulness. Our attitude and thankfulness show God how much we love Him. Encourage your student to share with you what God does for him or her. Make a list of blessings God has given your family. Listen to God: Read Luke 17:11-19 Thankfulness is always a proper response to God’s grace and mercy, yet true thankfulness for God’s blessings is pretty rare. Luke 17 contains a classic illustration of both a lack of thankfulness and true gratitude. Lead your family in a discussion about the best ways to express thankfulness and why it’s important to do so. Talk to God We have much to be thankful for and God continues to bless us daily. Too often we fail to be thankful for God’s blessings because our focus is on self. Spend some time together in prayer being sure to thank God for specific blessings He has given your family—spiritual and physical blessings alike. Walk With God Option 1: Make a thankfulness journal together. Designate a special notebook or a section of one for things your family is thankful for. Encourage family members to add to the list often. Make it a habit (maybe the first of every month) to look over the list and recall the many things listed. It’s a great way for kids to have a visual reminder of things God has done even when circumstances may be less than positive at the time. Consider designating every Thursday as a thankful day. Encourage family members to intentionally express thankfulness to each other and to God in special ways that day (leave notes in lunchboxes, write on the mirror with a dry erase marker, share publicly at meal times, offer to do someone’s chore for them in honor of your appreciation, etc.) Option 2: Identify verses and songs that correlate with the theme of thankfulness. Gather your family together for a special time of thanksgiving to God. For fun, you could even fix a traditional recipe associated with the holiday. Spend time reading the verses together and singing the songs. Include all family members who are able to read. If you are feeling really creative, write a Thankfulness song together to a popular tune. Have fun with the activity as you reinforce this important lesson. Week 13 May 27, 2012 D6 Family Theme: thankfulness The Point: Giving thanks is the proper response to receiving God’s mercy.

Home Connection

Listen to God: Read John 11:1-45
John 11 contains a detailed account of one of Christ’s greatest miracles—raising Lazarus
from the dead. This passage is a powerful illustration of how God uses our difficult
situations for His ultimate glory. It is also a poignant reminder that whatever our
circumstance, God is at work in and through us. Lead your family in a discussion about
how God gets glory from our circumstances and the ways we navigate them.
Talk to God
The passage of Scripture today reveals the story of Lazarus—a man who
died, was dead for four days, but didn’t stay that way. Understandably,
he became an instant celebrity. His testimony, however, was not about
his survival but how Christ gave him new life. It should be our goal to
point people to Christ. We should intentionally give God glory whenever
we can in life. Lead your family in a prayer of praise to God for being so
amazing and so worthy of all praise.
Walk With God
Option 1: Human beings are naturally selfish in varying degrees. We often think of ourselves
before considering anyone else. Play this game with your family to help illustrate the need
to deflect attention sometimes. Encourage each family member to spend one minute telling
something that happened in the last few days. Without announcing you are doing so, make
note of how many times each person uses a personal pronoun (I, me, my, mine) while telling
the account. After each person has had a chance to go, announce the “scores.” Many times, the
events of our lives should be about the glory of God instead of our personal experiences. Obviously, it’s not
wrong to use personal pronouns when we talk, but it’s always good to be reminded that it’s not about us. We
should point others to the glory of God.
Option 2: Beforehand, or as a family activity, cut facial expressions from magazine pages. The focus should be on
the emotion being expressed in the picture. Nothing else matters for this activity. Put them all in a container and
encourage family members to take turns picking one and describing the emotion they feel is being expressed.
It might be fun to allow them to add a funny anecdote as to why the feelings are as they are. After they have all
been discussed, remind your family that emotions cannot be the basis of our spiritual life. Our emotions can be
misleading because they come from a human perspective. We must base our spiritual life on facts related to the
Lord and His Word.
Week 12
May 20, 2012
D6 Family Theme: glory of god
The Point: Our understanding is limited; our God is not.
The one page for every age

Early Elementary Your student learned that Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus healed a blind man and he received his sight. Jesus heals us from spiritual darkness as well. The man had lived in darkness with his sin, but now he believed and worshipped Jesus as the Son of God. Talk with your child about accepting God’s forgiveness. Upper Elementary Your student learned that Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus healed a blind man and he was able to see. Jesus heals us from spiritual darkness as well. The man had lived in darkness, but now he believed and worshiped Jesus as the Son of God. Talk with your student about accepting God’s forgiveness.