Leader Guide
Relay Game
- Bible or the Superbook Bible App
- One old washcloth, rag or sponge
- Two plastic or metal buckets or containers that will not tip easily, holding enough water for each team to play the game
- Two small, unbreakable bowls or mugs that will not tip easily—they should be the same size
- Newspaper or paper towels to place under both the buckets and the mugs
- Towels to clean up any spills
- Two foam or plastic plates, or plastic flying discs.
- Tape or permanent marker
- Table
Cut the washcloth, rag or sponge in half.
Place the table near one end of the room, and cover it with newspaper or paper towels to absorb any spills.
Use tape or a permanent marker to mark a “fill line” inside both unbreakable bowls or mugs. For smaller classes, the fill line can be lower; for larger classes, you may make it higher, or simply tell the children to fill it to the top.
Mark a starting line about 12 feet from the table.
Place a bucket of water near each team at the starting line.
Note: Ideally, this game should be played outdoors or on a carpeted floor that can absorb small water spills. If playing on a bare floor, take care to instruct children that they must walk—not run—to avoid accidentally slipping. You may also ask sixth grade helpers or other assistants to wipe up water drips and spills as they happen.
Read Judges 6:36–38:
Then Gideon said to God, “If You are truly going to use me to rescue Israel as You promised, prove it to me in this way. I will put a wool fleece on the threshing floor tonight. If the fleece is wet with dew in the morning but the ground is dry, then I will know that You are going to help me rescue Israel as You promised.” And that is just what happened. When Gideon got up early the next morning, he squeezed the fleece and wrung out a whole bowlful of water.
Gideon knew how huge the Midianite army was. He did not see himself as the mighty warrior that God saw. So, Gideon asked God for a sign that God was really going to use Him for this mighty work. God patiently and mercifully did as Gideon asked and performed a miracle. The ground was completely dry, but the fleece Gideon had left overnight was so wet that he was able to squeeze out enough water to fill a bowl. Today’s game is based on this scripture passage.
Divide the children into two teams. They do not need to be exactly equal. Have the teams make two lines behind the starting mark. Hand a washcloth and a plastic or foam plate to the first player of each team. Each player must dip the cloth in the bucket of water, hold it over the plate to catch the excess water, walk quickly to the table, and carefully squeeze the cloth into their team’s bowl. The player then places the cloth on the plate, walks back to the line, and gives them to the next player to take a turn. The first team to fill their bowl to the mark or to the top wins!
That looked like a lot of fun! God truly performed a miracle that day for Gideon. The fleece was soaked with water while the ground surrounding the fleece was completely dry! But, guess what—Gideon still wasn’t convinced! The next day Gideon asked God for still another sign, and the Lord performed a second miracle. Do you know what happened? This time the ground was wet with dew, but the fleece stayed completely dry.