Everything Has Changed

-Wednesday Treehouse

Bible Story: Everything Has Changed (Zacchaeus) • Luke 19:1-10 Bottom Line: When you forgive others, it can change them. Memory Verse: Put up with one another. Forgive one another if you are holding something against someone. Forgive, just as the Lord forgave you. Colossians 3:13 (NIrV) Life App: Forgiveness—Deciding that someone who has wronged you doesn't have to pay Basic Truth: I should treat others the way I want to be treated.

Hand Motions: Put: Hold left hand up like you are holding a platter. up: Hold right hand up like you are holding a platter. with one another: Point quickly to your friends around you.

Forgive: Open hands like you are reading a book. one another: Point quickly to your friends around you. if you are holding something against someone: Cross left arm over right to form an X.

Forgive: Open hands like you are reading a book. just as the Lord: Point up with both hands. forgave you: Point to each other.

Colossians 3:1 (NIrV)

-Wednesday Treehouse

PLUGINS 1. Art – Zacchaeus in the Tree - Robby

What You Need: Paper Plate half, Zacchaeus figures (cut), green paper scraps, glue sticks, large tongue depressors painted brown

Before class, hot glue or staple sticks to the paper plates.

What You Do: 1. Have children color Zacchaeus figures. 2. Show children how to tear green paper and glue it onto paper plate. 3. Have children glue Zacchaeus into tree.

What You Say: “Today our story is about a man named Zacchaeus. Does anyone remember what his job was? (To collect money from people) Was he always nice and honest? (Pause.) No, sometimes he lied and asked for extra money so he could keep it.

“Why is the tree in our craft? (Zacchaeus climbed a tree.) Who was coming into town? (Jesus) That’s right! Zacchaeus climbed high up in a tree so he could see Jesus above the crowd.

“Jesus found Zacchaeus high up in the tree, and what did He say? (Come down from the tree because I am coming to your house for dinner.) Jesus wanted to go to Zacchaeus’ house for dinner. How crazy is that? Everyone was shocked! Why was everyone so surprised? (Jesus was having dinner with a sinner.)

“In our story, Zacchaeus’s heart was changed because he met Jesus. Jesus forgave Zacchaeus, and Zacchaeus changed the way he treated people. His story will remind you that [Bottom Line] when you forgive others, it can change them.”

-Wednesday Treehouse

2. Sticky Side Up - Mark [Hear from God | Memory Verse Activity] Made to Move: an activity that increases the oxygen in the brain and taps into the energy in the body

What You Need: “Monthly Memory Verse Cards” (Activity Page); two lengths of duct tape; Bibles

What You Do:  Set the two pieces of duct tape at one end of the room, sticky side up.  Place the memory verse cards at the opposite side of the room.  Divide the group into two teams and line them up in the middle of the room, facing each other, between the tape and cards.  The first kid from each team must run to the cards, find the first one, run to the duct tape, stick the card in place at one end, and then run back to his team.  Then it’s the next kid’s turn to do the same thing.  Teams keep going in this way until the memory verse is complete.  The first team to finish their verse, sit in a circle around their tape, and look up the verse in the Bible is the winner.

What You Say: “That was a sticky situation! But it shows us a little bit how forgiveness works. The reverse side of the tape isn’t very useful. It can’t attach things together or change broken things into whole; only the sticky side can do that. When we live a life of forgiveness, we’re ready to let go of our anger and mend our relationships. We’re sticky like duct tape, and we all know duct tape can fix just about anything! [Bottom Line] When you forgive others, it can change them. It’s not a guarantee or a magic spell, but forgiveness can change people in surprising ways.”

-Wednesday Treehouse

3. Changing Hearts - Nicolas [Talk about God | Bible Story Review] Made to Create: an activity that explores spiritual ideas through the process of drawing, building, and designing

What You Need: “Changing Hearts Origami” Activity Page, four-inch squares of colored paper, dollar bills (optional)

What You Do:  Read through the “Changing Hearts Origami” Activity Page together and then pass out the paper squares.  Help the kids fold their papers according to the instructions.  Provide some extra papers in case kids either need some extras for a retry or they finish early and want to make more.  For a challenge for the older kids, follow the instructions to make origami hearts from dollar bills.  When everyone has made at least one heart, set them aside and talk about the Bible story.

What You Say: “It just took a few simple folds to change this paper [or dollar bill] into a heart. What did it take in our story to change Zacchaeus’s heart? (Jesus coming to his house; Jesus forgiving him) What was Zacchaeus like before he met Jesus? (selfish, cheating, mean) Why do you think he changed? (Allow time for discussion.)

“Our Bible story shows us that [Bottom Line] when you forgive others, it can change them. We know that forgiveness makes us feel better—that it is great to let go of anger—but have you ever thought of how the person you forgave feels now? What does it feel like to be forgiven?” (Invite conversation.)

-Wednesday Treehouse

4. Zacchaeus Bingo – Nicki

Self Directed TBA

-Wednesday Treehouse

Wednesday Groups

Into Whole [Live for God | Application Activity] Made to Explore: an activity that extends learning through hands on experimentation and discovery

What You Need: Two cut poster boards; duct tape, staplers, glue sticks, yarn, twine, etc. (K1 do this as a whole group.)

What You Do:  Divide the group into teams and give each team a “broken” poster board.  Challenge them to come up with the strongest way to reattach the two sides, using the materials provided.  Supervise them as they make the posters whole again.  Help kids navigate the conversation if they have competing ideas about how to solve the problem. Encourage creative compromises!  When all teams have the posters whole (they can hold them up by their corners without the sides coming apart), set them aside to use during prayer.

What You Say: “These posters started out broken, but you changed them! You made them whole again. How did you decide what to use to change them? (Allow conversation.) Often, when someone does something mean to us, it can feel like that relationship is ripped apart. Forgiving that person can change the broken relationship into something whole again. Is it the same as it was before it was ripped? (Allow answers: no, it’s different; maybe it’s stronger than it was, maybe it’s a little weaker; you can still see where the tear was; etc.)

“There were some ‘reconnection’ sticky tools that didn’t work so well in this activity, like glue sticks. Sometimes forgiving someone doesn’t have any effect on them, and that relationship might not be changed, but a lot of times, [Bottom Line] when you forgive others, it can change them. They might become more forgiving of people they know, and they might become kinder because of your kindness. We know that holding on to anger doesn’t help anyone, but forgiveness has the power to change people’s hearts.”

Coin Rubbings

What You Need: Coins, thin paper, pencils, glue, index cards

What You Do: -Glue Coins on cardboard before small group -Set out pieces of scrap paper -Children use crayons, pencils, colored pencils to make crayon rubbings of the coins and discuss things they notice.

What You Say:

-Wednesday Treehouse

Zacchaeus was a tax collector, and he stole from people. If he was supposed to collect one coin, he asked for more than one, and he kept the difference. But when he met Jesus, everything changed! His story teaches us that [Bottom Line] when you forgive others, it can change them. When people paid their taxes to Zacchaeus, they used coins, although they were different from these! As you make rubbings of these coins, tell me about what you see. Is your coin from the United States? Is it in English? Is it old? What color is it?

Pray and Dismiss [Pray to God | Prayer Activity] Made to Connect: an activity that invites kids to share with others and build on their understanding

What You Need: Poster boards from the “Broken Into Whole” activity, markers

What You Do:  Set the posters in the center of the circle, and hand out the markers.  Encourage kids to write or draw something they need to forgive (or have recently forgiven) someone for.  When everyone is finished, close in prayer.

What You Say: “Dear God, thank You for Your endless forgiveness for us and everyone around us. Please help us to forgive others and change our relationships for the better this week. Show us how to love others in a way that shows them Your love. Amen.”