Leader Guide

Heart Object Lesson

Display the dried ball of mud.

What would you say if I told you that I have a very valuable gift for you and then handed you this ball of dirt? 

On the outside it looks like nothing but a hard piece of dirt—worthless, right? Are you sure?

Break the mud ball apart to reveal the heart inside. Wash the dirt off the heart with water and dry with cloth.

The dirt ball looked useless and worthless on the outside, but it’s a good thing that we didn’t just give up on it and throw it away! The inner beauty wasn’t visible until we took the time to look beyond the dirt, and wash the heart clean.

How did Chris feel about Jason, the boy who broke into their home? Did he just look at the outside appearance?

In what way was Jason like the mud ball?

Do you think God saw Jason the same way that Chris saw him?

Do you see any similarities between Jason and Saul?

Have you ever thought someone was too much of a sinner for Jesus to save, based on how they looked or acted?

Does the story of Saul change your thinking?

We are like that heart, too! God created us to have a wonderful relationship with Him. But we sinned—doing, saying and thinking bad things. We got covered with mud. Sometimes the mud gets very thick and hard. But God knows that underneath all that dirt is a heart worth saving! Listen to what God said to the Israelite people who had rebelled and sinned against God.

Ezekiel 36:26 says:

“And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.”

God still looks inside today and sees a heart that can be changed regardless of what has been done in the past.

Let’s say our SuperTruth together: “No matter what I have done, God can save me.”