Joshua Succeeds Moses
Deuteronomy 31:8—"The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."
Embedded Files
Introduction
Introduction
What do you remember about Moses and his life/journey so far? (Baby moses, he grew up in royalty, he messed up and ran away, God told him to return through a burning bush, he returned to free the Israelites from captivity but the king wouldn't listen so the plagues came, he parted the red sea and led the Israelites to the wilderness for 40 years, he went up on the mountain and carved the ten commandments into two stones, he separated the people into 12 tribes and sent 12 spies into the promise land to make sure it was livable, and last week we learned about Moses giving a speeches to the new generation of Israelites about how they should live.)
Overview: Remembering God is with us.
**Bible Story: ** Joshua is to succeed Moses.
Bible Background : Deuteronomy 31:1-8; Joshua 1:1-10
**Key Verse: ** Deuteronomy 31:8—"The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."
**Aim: ** That your children will remember that God is with them always.
Today we are going to learn about Moses becoming so old that he knew he had to give his leadership to someone else because his time was coming to an end. Before he died, God directed Moses to call upon Joshua to be the next leader. Now Joshua was just an ordinary man and when he heard that God had called him to be a leader he was a little scared of walking into that calling over his life. As he was about to take Moses' place, what do you think Joshua might have been afraid of? Do you think it helped him to know that God would always be with him?
God never fails to keep His covenant promises—including giving His people their inheritance of land. For Israel, the land had been a living hope for four hundred years. And when Moses died, God, in His sovereign timing, appointed Joshua to "lead these people to inherit the land [He] swore to their forefathers to give them" (Joshua 1:6).
Before Moses died, he laid hands on Joshua so that he was "filled with the spirit of wisdom …" (Deuteronomy 34:9). God also affirmed to Joshua that "No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you …" (Joshua 1:5). Even the people affirmed, "Just as we fully obeyed Moses, so we will obey you. Only may the LORD your God be with you as he was with Moses" (v. 17).
God commanded Joshua not to plan strategy or lead armies because God Himself would do that. Instead, Joshua was to meditate on God's Word and model this to the Israelites. This was how God wanted Joshua to lead the people. God said in Joshua 1:8, "Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful."
What are some of your biggest fears or worries?
Why are some things scarier when you're alone?
How do you deal with your fears?
How do you think Joshua felt after Moses died and he was left to lead the Israelites?
What did God say to comfort him? In Joshua 1:1-10, the phrase "be strong and courageous"
Why is it so important for a leader to be strong and courageous?
Why is it important for godly leaders to remember that God is with them?
When do you most need to remember that God is with you? Why?
Why do leaders need to meditate on God's word and model it daily to others?
Activities
Activities
Activity 1 "Walk Confidently in Your Calling"
Activity 1 "Walk Confidently in Your Calling"
Time: 10-20 minutes
Materials needed from the cart (varies based on the game you choose):
Construction paper
Scissors
Markers
Get the details by clicking here!
Directions
Give each child two pieces of construction paper.
Have them remove their shoes and socks and place them on the rug for a game later.
Have them trace their feet on the construction paper and make FOUR footprints.
Let them cut out their FOUR footprints and decorate them. (It would good to put the scripture Deuteronomy 31:8—"The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." on them!)
Activity 2 "Following in God's Calling on your Life Game"
Activity 2 "Following in God's Calling on your Life Game"
Time: 10-20 minutes
Materials needed from the cart (varies based on the game you choose):
Four footprints
Start and Finish line
Get the details by clicking here!
Directions
You have to have a lot of room for this game. Break the children into teams of two. Have one member on one side of the room and the other on the opposite side. Lay four feet in a row in front of one member of each team. On the word "go" a child from each team walks across the room by placing his feet on the paper feet and then picking up the paper feet behind him and placing it in front of himself. He then places his back foot on the paper foot he just placed in front of himself and picks up the one behind him and places it in front. When the first team member gets to the other side of the room his team mate does the same thing to get back to the "finish/start" line. The first team to make it to the finish line wins.
Activity 3 "Shoe Race"
Activity 3 "Shoe Race"
Time: 10-20 minutes
Materials needed from the cart:
None
Get the details by clicking here!
Directions
Have all of the kids remove their socks and shoes and place them in one large pile.
Divide the kids into two teams.
Have one teammate at a time race down to the pile, put on ONE item (so one sock for the first trip down) and then come back and tag the next teammate. Each child should get 4 turns to race down (one time for each sock and one time for each shoe) and the team that completes the relay first wins!
Activity 4 "The Books of Law"
Activity 4 "The Books of Law"
Time: 10-20 minutes
Materials needed from the cart:
Printer paper or construction paper
Tape
Markers
Craft sticks
Get the details by clicking here!
Directions
Let the kids get 4 craft sticks and tape two sets of them together doubling the height. This will create the scroll handles as you see in the picture.
Let the kids pick two pieces of printer paper or two piece of construction paper and wrinkle them up.
lay the two piece of construction side by side laying horizontal and tape them together to double the width of them.
Place the sticks on each side of the paper and tape them down.
Roll the sticks inward towards each other until they get to the middle.
Now that the scroll is created, have the kids unroll it and write "The Books of the Law" and list the first five books of the Bible as seen in the picture.
While you are doing this, recap each one and ask them why these five books are considered the five books of the law? Tell them to be proud that they have learned the first five books of the Bible!
Activity 5 "Follow God's Direction Game"
Activity 5 "Follow God's Direction Game"
Time: 10-20 minutes
Materials needed from the cart (varies based on the game you choose):
christian just dance videos below
If they don't want to play the Christian Just Dance game they can play follow the leader.
Wrap It Up!
Wrap It Up!
**Snacks can be given at this time, if needed**
**Snacks can be given at this time, if needed**
-Come together and sit in a circle to talk about what they learned today. Ask them the same questions that you asked at the beginning of the day. How are their answers different now that they know more? Talk about what they can go home and tell their family. This is also a time they can update their journals (big kids only) or color the pictures (littles).
-Come together and sit in a circle to talk about what they learned today. Ask them the same questions that you asked at the beginning of the day. How are their answers different now that they know more? Talk about what they can go home and tell their family. This is also a time they can update their journals (big kids only) or color the pictures (littles).
-Ask if anyone has a prayer request/praise report. Pray over requests.
-Ask if anyone has a prayer request/praise report. Pray over requests.
-Worship time- Have the kids go find a spot to themselves and have some time with God (play the song below for around 3/5 minutes).
-Worship time- Have the kids go find a spot to themselves and have some time with God (play the song below for around 3/5 minutes).
Worship
Worship
Energy Release!
Energy Release!
Last Minute Filler Ideas
Last Minute Filler Ideas
-Have them gather around the table and draw a picture or write a letter to their families about what they learned today.
-Play a game of some sort. (If you have the hula hoops, have them join hands in a circle and pass the hula hoop around the circle without breaking their hands)
Page updated
Report abuse