Leader Guide
Pick Up Game
- Two pairs of small or mini plastic tongs or kids’ plastic jumbo
tweezers
- Bags of large marshmallows—about one bag per six children, plus extras (To use just one bag of marshmallows for the whole game, see the optional rule below.)
- Two large plastic bowls
- Table
- Timer, such as a stopwatch, clock or watch with a second hand, or timer app
- Optional: board to keep score
Note: If you don't wish to play a game with marshmallows, you may substitute the "Sending Game" under the Additional Activities Game in this lesson.
Instructions: Pour out the marshmallows in the middle of the table.
Place each bowl on opposite sides of the table, about 2 feet from the pile of marshmallows.
Reach Your COALS: Play a fun game with tongs.
Seraphim are heavenly beings, like angels. In Isaiah’s vision, what did one of the seraphim touch his lips with? A burning coal.
Did the seraph pick up the coal with his wings? No, he used tongs.
The burning coal symbolized Isaiah being cleansed from his sin and guilt. Isaiah saw this in his vision. Would you ever really touch someone’s lips with a hot coal? No!
Hold up the tongs. In this game, you are going to use tongs to pick up burning coals—sorry, I meant to say marshmallows that represent coals—and place them in your team’s bowl. Was anyone hoping I would say you would place the marshmallows on your lips?
Divide the class into two equal teams; one child may need to play twice. Try to mix older and younger children on each team. The teams will form separate lines a few feet from the front of the table. One player from each team will play at the same time, standing at the opposite side of the table from the teams. Start the timer. Each set of players has fifteen seconds to pick up as many marshmallows as possible and put them in their team’s bowl—using only the tongs. When time expires, players will put the tongs on the table and return to the team line. (Leave all the marshmallows in the bowls.) When the next two players come to the table, start the timer again. Continue until all players have taken a turn. Count the marshmallows in the bowls. The team with the most marshmallows in their bowl wins.
Encourage players to cheer each other on! Play again if time permits.
Optional: To use just one bag of marshmallows for the whole game, count the marshmallows after each player’s turn and keep a running tally for each team on the board. Place the marshmallows back on the pile for the next player’s turn.
Close: That looked challenging and fun. I hope that no one burned their fingers! Does God use burning coals to cleanse and purify us? No.
How are our sins forgiven? Through Jesus; by Jesus’ blood.
Let’s find out more about being sent by God in today’s Teaching.