Aim to understand the importance of listening to parents and learning God’s way

Aim
* to understand the importance of listening to parents and learning God’s way
* to learn to do things in the right way with care

Materials
* Children’s Bible story – The Wise & Foolish Builders (Matt 7:24-27)
* a picture to colour
* lego pieces, a base board to act as the rock, plastic sheet to act as sand

Lesson Outline
1. Introduction
2. The Wise and Foolish Builders
3. Discussion
4. Activities – build a lego house, draw a picture, colour a picture
5. Review the aims
6. Prayer

1) Introduction
* Ask the children if they listen to their parents and do what they say. Talk about how parents want us to be good children and learn to do things in the right way – God’s way, Do they do things carefully or sloppily? Ask the children if they know the right and wrong way to do the following things:
1) Food (eat everything or waste food, complain or say thank you, eat healthy food or only what you like) Parents want us to have good eating habits
2) Toys (tidy up or leave out, put way carefully or carelessly) Parents want us to take care of our toys
3) Clothes – (fold them neatly or grab them in an untidy pile, put them carefully in the right place in the wardrobe or put them anywhere.) Parents want us to take care of our clothes
4) Making things (colouring, drawing, cutting, glueing carefully or sloppily)

Today’s story is about two men and how they built a house

2) The Wise and Foolish Builders
Matthew 7:24-27
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.

But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

Key points
The wise man built his house on a rock foundation
1. The house withstood rain, floods and strong winds because it had a strong foundation.
2. Jesus said everyone who hears his words and puts them into practice is like the wise builder.

The foolish man built his house on sand
1. Rain, floods and winds also beat on this house.
2. The foolish man’s house was destroyed because the foundation was weak.
3. Jesus said everyone who hears his words and does not put them into practice is like the foolish builder.

3) Discussion
* Why did the house built on sand fall down? The wind and rain took the sand away. The man didn’t build it properly. He was in a hurry
* Why did the house on rock not fall down? The rock is strong, so the house is strong. The man was very careful and took his time.
* We should build a house properly, then it won’t fall down. Our homes have foundations underground, which makes them very strong. If we want something to last and be good and strong, we have to do it carefully. 
* It is important to do things in the right way with care
1) Food – eat healthy food, eat everything, take plate away, say thank you,
2) Toys – tidy-up, put them in the right place carefully
3) Clothes – fold them neatly, put them in the right place in the wardrobe
4) Making things – colouring, drawing, cutting, glueing carefully, then we can make beautiful things.

*It is also so important to listen to parents and do what they say. Parents want to teach you the right way to do things, God’s way. Jesus taught God’s way. He wanted us to listen to him and do what he said. Parents teach children to talk politely, to say thank you, please, sorry, excuse me. 
Children must be good children to their parents. This is God’s way. Then children can be strong like the house built on the rock.

4) Activities
* Build lego houses
Ask the children build two houses using lego pieces, one on the board, one on a plastic sheet. When they are made try to make the houses fall. Move the board, but the walls are fixed to the
board, so nothing breaks. Then move the plastic. The pieces separate, because they aren’t attached, so the pieces break up

* Colour a picture of the two houses carefully
*Draw a picture of a house on a rock

5) Review the aims
* to understand the importance of listening to parents and learning God’s way
* to learn to do things in the right way with care

6) Prayer
* Say a prayer to thank God for all the good things we have; food, toys, clothes. Ask God to help us to take care of things. Say thank you to our parents for teaching us right and wrong. Promise to listen to them and do what they say, so we can be strong like the house built on rock