Thermometer fun

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Use a candy thermometer to teach your child how temperature rises. (Alternatively, you can use a mercury-based medical thermometer, but do not leave it unattended.) Show your child that the red liquid inside rises when the thermometer is placed in warm or hot water. Similarly, demonstrate how the mercury falls when the thermometer is placed in cool water.

Use the discussion questions to help your children talk about their emotions. As a parent, you can then remind your child about the thermometer when you see that they are having a difficult moment. You may even wish to think up a fun code phrase to remind them to go to God for help in “cooling off.” Here are some ideas:

Time to find some ice!

Who needs to go for a polar bear swim?

Shall we throw some cold water on this situation?

Let’s ask God to help us stay cool.

Questions for discussion
  • What happens when I put the thermometer in hot water? How about cold water?
  • How are our emotions like the water?
  • What situations make you feel “heated up”?
  • Have you ever heard the expressions, “cool as a cucumber” or “hotheaded”? What do you think they mean?
  • How can you stay “cool” when something makes you feel heated up?
Key concepts

Our emotions are like the water. Satan likes to put us in situations where our emotions get heated. He then uses these “heated” times to tempt us to sin. The good news is that God’s Holy Spirit is like the cool water; He will help us keep our emotions under control.

Some examples of heated situations might include another child taking your favourite toy away from you without asking, a sibling who calls you a name, or when you see something in a store that you want, but you cannot have it. At these times, we need to go to God and ask Him to help us keep our emotions “cool” so that we do not give in to the temptation to sin.

Relevant Scripture

Ephesians 4:26 “ ‘In your anger do not sin’: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry…”

Proverbs 25:28 “Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control.”

1 Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.”

James 1:12-14 “Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial because, when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him. When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.”

James 1:19-20 “My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.”

Detecting temptation

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For this activity, you will need a smoke detector with a functional battery, a dead battery for the smoke detector and a noisemaker such as a whistle, a squeaky rattle or a toy. The ideas presented here emphasize that God gives us a conscience to help us be aware of temptation and potential sin, just as a smoke detector warns people of smoke and fire.

Begin by showing your children a smoke detector. Explain that smoke detectors are sensitive to smoke and will sound an alarm if there is smoke nearby. Have your child try pressing the test button on the smoke detector, or light and extinguish a candle close by to set off the alarm. Explain that the purpose of the loud alarm is to warn people living in the house that there is smoke in the house and possibly a fire.

This is an ideal time to discuss fire safety and review your planned exit routes in case of a house fire. See the “fire safety rules” activity in the hands-on options section of this lesson for some basic fire safety rules.

Questions for discussion
  • Do you know what this is? (A smoke detector.)
  • What is it used for?
  • What do you think will happen if smoke gets near it?
  • What should we do if the smoke detector goes off?
  • How would you get out of the house if there was a fire?

Read 1 Peter 5:8, which says, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” Explain how much Satan likes to make people sin. (Sin is doing anything that disobeys God’s rules outlined in the Bible.) Like a lion hunting, Satan waits until he sees an opportunity to tempt someone to do wrong. A lion loose in the house would be as dangerous as a fire. If we imagine Satan is a prowling lion, then whenever we think he is around, tempting us to sin, we need to go and sound off our “temptation detector” (our noisemaker) to warn everyone of the lurking danger of sin.

Questions for discussion
  • What is sin?
  • Who wants us to sin?
  • If Satan wanted to tempt you to sin, when would he be most likely to come prowling around?
  • Which would be scarier, a lion wandering loose in the house or a fire?
  • What should you do if you think Satan is trying to tempt you to sin?
  • Do we have any loud noisemakers in the house that would be good to use as our “temptation detector”?
  • How can you make Satan run away from you?

Discuss the concept of a conscience with your child. Explain that, just as we have smoke detectors in our homes, God gave every person an inner sense of right and wrong, which is called a conscience. Just as smoke detectors warn us of fire, our consciences warn us when we are tempted to sin. Smoke detectors are very loud, but our conscience is very quiet. We need to listen carefully when we have an uncomfortable feeling inside us that’s telling us we shouldn’t do something.

To illustrate the next concept, remove the battery from the smoke detector and replace it with a dead battery. (Or simply remove the “good” battery.) Explain that sometimes people take the batteries out of their smoke detectors because they beep too often. Expose the smoke detector to some smoke again and see what happens.

Questions for discussion
  • How loud is a smoke detector?
  • What does your conscience sound like?
  • Why would someone take a battery out of a smoke detector?
  • Why would a smoke detector stop working?
  • If a “dead” battery causes the smoke detector to quit sounding an alarm, what could cause our consciences to quit warning us about sin?

When we are tempted to sin, we can ask God to help us choose to do right. The Bible says that if we go to God for help, asking God to give us a desire to do right, Satan will flee from us. The other choice we have is to ignore the warning of our conscience and decide to sin. If we ignore our conscience often enough, it becomes like a smoke detector with a dead battery – it no longer sounds the alarm to signal potential danger. A conscience that has been ignored is called a “dull” or “dead” conscience because it loses its effectiveness in warning a person about the dangers of sin.

Finish your time together by praying. Ask God to help each of you have a sensitive conscience that will warn you to do right, even when Satan is prowling around tempting you to sin.

Relevant Scripture

James 4:7 “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

John 16:7-9 “But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. When He comes, He will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment…”

Fizzy mess

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This exercise in simple science is designed to help your children understand the importance of dealing with emotions before they get to the point of “boiling over.” This project should be done outside or in an area that is easy to clean up.

You will need soda pop in a clear bottle and a suitable place to make a mess

  • Shake the bottle of pop up a lot. As you are shaking the pop, explain that life has its shake-ups, too. Life’s shake-ups are times when we feel a lot of pressure. For example, perhaps teasing from a sibling shakes you up; maybe it is feeling as though you’re not getting your fair share or being treated unjustly. Use examples of things that press your children’s buttons.
  • Next, take the top off the bottle of pop and fizz from the pop will fly everywhere. Explain that when we lack self-control, we are just like the bottle of pop. Just as the pop flying everywhere makes a mess, we make messes when we lack self-control.
Questions for discussion

Read Galatians 5:13-15 and 25-26 and ask the following questions:

  • What kind of messes do we get ourselves into?
  • Is it a mess when we hurt someone’s feelings?
  • What other messes can you think of?
  • Would you rather live in a family where people encourage each other or devour each other?
Key concepts

When we do not use self-control, we end up “biting and devouring” each other, and “provoking and envying” each other. This is not God’s plan for our lives. He would rather see us encouraging and building one another up. When we feel like fizzing all over everyone, it is time to get alone with God for a talk.

Help your children make plans for what they will do when they feel like they are going to lose self-control. Challenge your children to hold one hand in a fist and clamp the other hand over top of it, pretending that it is a bottle of pop ready to explode. In order to “keep the lid on,” he/she can to come to a parent who will help them bring their frustration to God. As your children are able, have them go directly to God with their concerns.

Relevant Scripture

Galatians 5:13-15 “You my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.”

Galatians 5:25-26 “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.”

Hebrews 10:24-25 “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let is not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Rotten envy

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This activity illustrates the truth of Proverbs 14:30, that envying what others have can rot the attitude of our hearts.

You will need a cup, a white egg and a can of cola pop.

  • Have your children immerse an egg in cola overnight.
  • The next day, have your kids try to brush the egg with toothpaste to remove the stain on the egg. Use the discussion questions to explain that even though the pop is good tasting, it did some damage to the eggshell.
  • Read Proverbs 14:30. Most kids have been told many times that too much sugar can cause cavities in their teeth. Explain that when we envy “stuff,” it can rot the attitude of our hearts, just as the cola will rot the eggshell. (If left longer, the cola will eat away at the eggshell.)
  • Use the questions listed below to further your discussion.
  • Pray a simple prayer to conclude, asking God to help you be content in life circumstances and with what you have. Ask Him to give you a hunger for healthy foods and for knowing Him better.
Questions for discussion
  • Do you like the taste of pop?
  • How did the pop damage the eggshell?
  • Do you ever envy anyone? If so, in what way?
  • How does envy damage your heart?
Relevant Scripture

Proverbs 14:30 “A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.”

Caught in a trap!

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This hands-on option helps illustrate the truth of 1 Timothy 6:9-10 – that a desire for riches is one of Satan’s traps.

You will need a mousetrap, bait and stuffed animals

  • Set up a mousetrap, complete with bait.
  • Have your children choose a stuffed animal and ask what their animal loves to eat.
  • Put this item in the trap. Pick up the stuffed animal and pretend that it is sniffing or trying to eat the bait. (Make sure you are the one to do this, and instruct your children to keep their fingers clear!)

Note: If you prefer, you can also use a roll of paper towels to “sniff” the bait and allow the paper towels to be caught in the mousetrap.

The questions for discussion are provided to increase dialogue and learning. For a Biblical perspective, read or paraphrase 1 Timothy 6:9-10. Paul uses the illustration of a trap to explain that the desire for more money and getting rich is one way that Satan can trap us and cause us to wander away from God.

Conclude by praying that God would help you see Satan’s trap of discontentment and greed before you get caught in it.

Questions for discussion
  • Have you ever seen how an animal trap works? If so, how does it work?
  • Would the trap work if the animal did not try to get the bait?
  • Does it hurt an animal to get caught in a trap?
  • Did you know that one kind bait Satan uses, when he tempts us to sin, is the bait of always wanting more?
  • What kind of bait do you think Satan would try to use on you?
  • How do you think that loving money or the things that money can buy could tempt you to sin?
  • How can we be wise and not fall into Satan’s traps?
Relevant Scripture

1 Timothy 6:9-10 “People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”

Water and oil

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You will need:

¾ cup of water
3 tbsp. of cooking oil
food colouring
1 cup of flour
a mixing bowl and a spoon.

  • Colour the water with food colouring so that it will contrast with the oil when the oil is added.
  • Add the cooking oil to the water and ask your child to mix the two ingredients together. The water and oil may appear to mix initially, but will eventually separate again.
  • Explain that the water and oil represent two people who are having a hard time getting along or accepting each other’s differences. Give examples that are appropriate to your children’s lives.
  • Next, measure out the flour. Explain that the flour represents the Holy Spirit. Have your children mix the flour, water and oil together. When the flour is added, the other two ingredients will no longer separate.
  • Finish by reading Ephesians 4:2-3. Explain that when we allow God’s Holy Spirit to fill us, we will find it easier to be humble, gentle and patient with others. The result of God’s Spirit living in us is that we will experience more peace in our relationships with others.
Relevant Scripture

Ephesians 4:2-3 “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”

Garbage busters

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Hold your nose! For this exercise, you will need a bag of rotten garbage and some shiny silver coins. These props will help to illustrate the truths in Luke 6:45 and also Proverbs 10:20.

  • Plan ahead and don’t empty your kitchen garbage for a few days. Make sure some meat, vegetable and fruit scraps have been left to produce a rotten smell. Have your children observe the refuse. Ensure they get a big whiff of the dreadful aroma. Ask them if they see anything in the garbage that is worth keeping.
  • Next, open your wallet or purse and show them some shiny silver coins. Ask your children if they see anything valuable in your wallet.
  • The concept you’ll want to convey is that our attitudes and words flow from our hearts. Explain that when we have sinful or selfish thoughts in our hearts, what we say will be of little value – like the garbage. Words of little value can be silly talk, or words spoken with a selfish or mean intent. When our hearts are pure in thought (like the refined metal used for making coins), then the talk that comes from our mouths will be like precious metals – kind, gentle and respectful words that encourage others.
  • Write each of the following examples of “garbage talk” and “precious words” on a separate slip of paper. Read the words aloud and ask your children to identify where the words belong – in the garbage or in your wallet. Scrunch up the garbage words and throw them away. Place the precious words in your wallet or a piggy bank. Feel free to add your own examples to this list:

“I hate peas!”
“This is a great supper, Mom!”
“Get out of here!”
“Please stop doing that.”
“I don’t like you!”
“That is an ugly drawing.”
“You stink.”
“I like your artwork.”
“I love you.”
“I’m glad God gave me you as part of my family.”

  • Close by praying, asking that God would put kind and loving thoughts in everyone’s heart so that you will be a family who speaks choice words, rather than words of no value.

Reaffirm these truths with your children and have some fun by referring to “garbage talk” or “precious words” throughout the days to follow.

Relevant Scripture

Luke 6:45 “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.”

Proverbs 10:20 “The tongue of the righteous is choice silver, but the heart of the wicked is of little value.”

Matching words and actions

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Use this matching lesson to explain the truth of 1 John 3:16-18.

First, cut out some cardboard shapes, making matching pairs of squares, triangles and circles. Have your children identify which items match and which ones don’t.

After you have had fun playing “the matching game,” explain that our words should match our actions. Give examples that your children will understand. For example, hold up a triangle and say, “I love you.” Hold up another triangle and say, “You can share my doll,” while you place the triangles on top of each other to show that they match.

Next, use an example where words do not match what we do. Hold up a circle and say, “You are my friend.” Then hold up a square beside the circle and say, “I will not share my cookies with you.”

Following this discussion, speak a blessing to your children when their words and actions match. Conversely, you can remind them of the shapes when their words and actions are not congruent.

Relevant Scripture

1 John 3:16-18 “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.”

Rocks and roses

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For this hands-on option, you will need a vase, small rocks, sand and flowers. You’ll also need to introduce the activity by telling your children a story about another child who is afraid of water. You could make up your own story, or check out your local library for a suitable children’s book.

  • Fill the vase with water (right to the top). Explain that the water represents fear. Then ask your children how someone who is afraid of water could overcome their fear. To prompt ideas, read Philippians 4:6-7 and Psalm 5:11-12.

Philippians 4:6-7 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Psalm 5:11-12 “But let all who take refuge in You be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread Your protection over them, that those who love Your name may rejoice in You. For surely, O Lord, You bless the righteous; You surround them with Your favor as with a shield.”

  • Explain to your children that thankfulness chases fear away. In other words, when we praise God, it helps get rid of fear! Allow your children to place one flower in the vase every time they suggest something to thank or praise God for. Wipe up the water and show your children that the water (which represents fear) is going away each time they thank and praise God.
  • As you read your choice of the following verses, have your children fill the vase with rocks.

2 Samuel 22:32-33 “For who is God besides the Lord? And who is the Rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect.”

Psalm 18:2 “The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”

Psalm 18:31 “For who is God besides the Lord? And who is the Rock except our God?”

Psalm 18:46 “The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior!”

Psalm 56:3 “When I am afraid, I will trust in You.”

  • Ask how God is like a rock. As you wipe up the water, remind your children that when we trust God to be our “rock” and to provide us with strength and courage, He helps us overcome our fears.
  • Your children may point out that there is still water remaining in the vase. Last of all, have them pour the sand in the vase. When the vase if is full of sand, it will appear that all the water has gone. Read Jeremiah 5:21-22.

Jeremiah 5:21-22 “ ‘Hear this, you foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear: Should you not fear Me?’ declares the Lord. ‘Should you not tremble in My presence? I made the sand a boundary for the sea, an everlasting barrier it cannot cross. The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail; they may roar, but they cannot cross it.’ ”

  • Explain that God made the sand, and that He designed it to keep the sea where it belongs. He made the whole world and is in charge of it all. Truly, the only thing anyone should really “fear” (or be in respectful awe of) is God Himself.
  • Close by thanking God for His greatness and power. Acknowledge that He is the Lord of the universe, who created us and is in control of everything. Thank Him for chasing our fears away when we praise Him and trust in Him.

Note: To ensure the flowers last, you may wish to dispose of the sand, fill the vase with fresh water and arrange the flowers in the vase, using the rocks as filler. Throughout the days to come, as you enjoy looking at the bouquet of flowers, review the meaning of the flowers, the rocks and the sand.

Snuff out fear

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Light a candle and talk about how scary fires can be. Have your children put their hands close enough to the flame to feel the heat. Remind your children to be careful around fire.

Explain that when fire gets too much fuel, it can get out of control. Fear is like fire; if we feed it, it can get out of control too. The good news is that God is stronger than fire and He is also stronger than fear.

Take a candle snuff or paper cup and put the candle out. As you demonstrate how a candle snuff puts the fire out, explain that God is more powerful than any fire. Even when our fear is out of control, God can put a stop to it if we ask Him.

Note: You may wish to combine this activity with a review of basic fire safety rules. See the lesson on righteousness for a “firefighting” hands-on option that provides a list of fire safety rules, along with a spiritual application.

Relevant Scripture

Joshua 1:9 “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

Matthew 14:25-27 “During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw Him walking on the lake, they were terrified. ‘It’s a ghost,’ they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’ ”