Circle time
10 minutes
As the children arrive, sit everyone down in a circle. Ask the children to have fun thinking about what they would do if they were king or queen for a day! Make sure everyone who wants to has a chance to speak.
Game: David says
10 minutes
The game is like ‘Simon says’ but with David instead! As you’re discovering about David being king, ask the children to take it in turns being David! Start with a leader being David, so that the children get a feel for the game. The leader says: “David says…” followed by an action (eg “…do a star jump” or “nod your head”), and the children should copy. If the leader just says an action (eg “Stamp your feet” or “Clap your hands”), the children shouldn’t do it. Anyone who does so is out. Swap to allow the children to be David. Encourage them to come up with creative actions to do!
Bible story
20 minutes
You will need: copies of 2 Samuel 7 from The Message, printed out in a large font for each member of the group; felt-tip pens
Fill the group on the story since the previous session. After David defeated Goliath, God chose him to be the next king of Israel. King Saul didn’t like this, and for some time tried to kill David! After a
difficult time between David and Saul, David became king. At the part of the Bible you’re reading today, everything is going smoothly for David. He and his army have won some battles, and the Ark of the Covenant (a holy box that was a symbol that God was with his people) has been brought back to David’s city, Jerusalem.
In 2 Samuel 7, we read about God talking to David and David talking to God about how God wants things to be in the kingdom of the Israelites. Give out copies of the passage to each child, explaining that The Message version of the Bible is a copy using words that makes it easier for us to understand using ‘everyday’ language.
Ask for volunteers to read it out and split the passage into chunks to give them all a turn at reading together. Be patient and encourage the group to listen carefully to each other. Once you have finished, recap what the story is all about, so that the children are happy with the events they have just read.
Ask the children to go through the passage again. Tell them to draw smiley faces next to those things that make them happy. They should draw wiggly lines under anything that confuses them and question marks next to anything they have a question about. Get leaders to help those children who find reading difficult. Once you have finished, compare smiley faces, wiggly lines and question marks and get feedback on why children marked up the passage as they did.
Chatting together
10 minutes
Ask the children these questions, making sure everyone has the chance to contribute:
- How do you think David felt about all the things God promised to help him with?
- Do you think it would be difficult to stay humble when you’ve been made the king?
- What does this story tell you about God?
- What difference might this make to your life this week?
- How do we know that God is our true king?
Creative response
15 minutes
You will need: pipe cleaners; coloured material or paper; large sheets of paper; gluesticks
Invite the young people to choose one of these two activities in order to subjectively engage with the passage.
Pipe cleaners
The group must create an object or sculpture out of pipe cleaners that represents how one of the main characters was feeling, or how they personally feel in regards to the story.
Coloured paper
They should create a moodboard by sticking down different pieces of material - perhaps in the shape of temple, to represent different parts of the story and how different characters felt. For example, red could represent danger, anger or alarm; green is more peaceful, calm and safe.
Prayer
5 minutes
Create a quiet reflective atmosphere with some soft worship music in the background. Encourage the young people to find space around the room on their own to spend a few minutes praying and thinking through the four main characters in the story. Lead them in a simple prayerful meditation by describing simply the role in the story of David, Uzzah, Obed and Michal. Who do they identify with? Who does God want them to learn something from? Prompt them to speak to Jesus in their own hearts about this and to invite the Holy Spirit to speak to them and change them.
