Leader Guide

Video Leader Guide

Welcome (1 minute)

Hello, and welcome back for the last lesson of our Superbook adventure titled “Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream.” If you were here last time, what does God enable us to do? Great things!

Yes, and what great thing did God enable Daniel to do? Tell the king his dream and also reveal the meaning of it.

Did you know that you can talk to God and He will answer?

Yes, God hears our prayer and everything we say and even think! That means He will hear us when we stand and sing The Salvation Poem!

Play Video 7: (Song) The Salvation Poem (3 minutes)

Game

Read Daniel 2:10–12:

¹⁰ The astrologers replied to the king, “No one on earth can tell the king his dream! And no king, however great and powerful, has ever asked such a thing of any magician, enchanter, or astrologer! ¹¹The king’s demand is impossible. No one except the gods can tell you your dream, and they do not live here among people.” ¹²The king was furious when he heard this, and he ordered that all the wise men of Babylon be executed.

The king’s wise men were helpless; their evil methods and practices of gaining knowledge and wisdom could not help them now. In the video, what did the wise men do? They scattered and ran to hide.

In this game, you are going to pretend to be the king’s wise men. You are going to flee from the commander and hide in a different part of the king’s palace. Read aloud the different signs on the wall in order.

Have a sixth grade helper or another older child play the commander of the guard. Have the commander stand in the center of the room as you explain the game.

Have you ever played a game called Four Corners? The game we are about to play is very similar. All of you will pretend to be wise men who are running from the commander. However, in this game, you must be as quiet as you can as you sneak around the palace. The commander’s guards are listening carefully for any movement! Your goal is to avoid being caught! The commander will stand in the middle of the room and, witheyes closed, slowly count aloud to ten. During the count, you will quietly move to the numbered room of your choice. With eyes still closed, the commander will say, “I think some wise men are hiding in room number __(1, 2, 3, or 4).” You never know which number the commander will pick! Everyone hiding in that room is “arrested” and must sit down in the middle of the room near the commander. The game continues until only one wise man remains and is the winner. Let’s play a couple of practice rounds to make sure everyone understands the game. If you’re caught in these two rounds, you don’t need to sit down.

To shorten the game, once a numbered room is named, you may announce that the door for that room is now locked so it can no longer be a hiding place. Place a cone or chair under that sign so the wise men know they cannot hide there. This limits play to three turns per round, after which there will probably be a group of winners in the fourth room. If you play the shortened game, this will allow you to play more rounds and keep children involved longer. Choose another commander for Round 2. Children who were “arrested” are freed to play again.

Conclusion: Did Daniel run and hide, too? No, he asked to speak to the king to save the wise men.

Why do you think he was so brave? He had faith in God.

Teaching

Have a child select the first Signpost card and read it aloud. Tape the card to the wall or prop it up so children can see it. Lead a discussion with the information below. Repeat for the two remaining Signpost cards. Additional material is included for Grades 4–6 to look up and discuss.

Signpost 1 Kingdoms of this World

Did you know that Nebuchadnezzar’s dream is about Jesus?

King Nebuchadnezzar had a very troubling dream. He saw a statue like the one on the signpost card. Point to the card.

Daniel said that the dream showed the king what would happen in the future. Daniel explained that each part of the statue represented different kingdoms. Do you remember what Daniel said would happen to each of those kingdoms? One day they would disappear, they would end.

Like all things in this world, earthly kingdoms will not last forever. Daniel described the different parts of the statue in the king’s dream.

You may hold up the Signpost card and point to the different parts as you speak.

1. The head was made of gold and represented Babylon, King Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom.
2. The chest and arms were made of silver and represented the Persians.
3. The waist to the knees was made of bronze and represented the Greeks.
4. The ankles and legs were made of iron and represented the Roman Empire. The Roman army was considered one of the strongest in history. Yet, it also would fall.
5. The feet and toes were a mixture of iron and clay. They represented the different kingdoms that tried to align together to be stronger and failed.

OPTIONAL VERSES FOR GRADES 4-6

Daniel 2:19–21:

¹⁹ That night the secret was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven. ²⁰ He said, “Praise the name of God forever and ever, for He has all wisdom and power. ²¹ He controls the course of world events; He removes kings and sets up other kings.
He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the scholars.”

Daniel 2:31–33:

³¹ “In your vision, Your Majesty, you saw standing before you a huge, shining statue of a man. It was a frightening sight. ³² The head of the statue was made of fine gold. Its chest and arms were silver, its belly and thighs were bronze, ³³ its legs were iron, and its feet were a combination of iron and baked clay.”

Signpost 2 God’s Spiritual Kingdom

During the time of these kingdoms, God would set up an eternal kingdom from heaven that will never fail! Daniel also prophesied about the Son of Man who would be given all power. Daniel said His rule would never end and His kingdom would never be destroyed. Do you know who the Son of Man is? Jesus.

Yes, Jesus is the Son of Man and the Son of God! He was born in the time of the Romans and He is the Son of Man who established the eternal kingdom. In the king’s dream what appeared and smashed the feet of the statue? A rock.

What did the rock become? A great mountain that covered the earth.

Jesus is the Rock! He is more powerful than any king and kingdom! Jesus’ kingdom is not a physical kingdom that you can see; it is a spiritual kingdom. Even though we can’t see God’s kingdom now, it is all around us. One day in the future God’s spiritual kingdom will become visible to everyone!

OPTIONAL VERSES FOR GRADES 4-6

Daniel 7:13–14:

¹³ As my vision continued that night, I saw someone like a Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient One and was led into His presence. ¹⁴ He was given authority, honor, and sovereignty over all the nations of the world, so that people of every race and nation and language would obey Him. His rule is eternal—it will never end. His kingdom will never be destroyed.

Daniel 2:34–35:

³⁴ As you watched, a rock was cut from a mountain, but not by human hands. It struck the feet of iron and clay, smashing them to bits. ³⁵ The whole statue was crushed into small pieces of iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold. Then the wind blew them away without a trace, like chaff on a threshing floor. But the rock that knocked the statue down became a great mountain that covered the whole earth.

Luke 1:32–33: (Gabriel talking with Mary):

³² “He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His ancestor David. ³³ And He will reign over Israel forever; His Kingdom will never end!”

Matthew 21:44:

⁴⁴ “Anyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on.”

Luke 17:20–21:

²⁰ One day the Pharisees asked Jesus, “When will the Kingdom of God come?” Jesus replied, “The Kingdom of God can’t be detected by visible signs. ²¹ You won’t be able to say, ‘Here it is!’ or ‘It’s over there!’ For the Kingdom of God is already among you.”

Revelation 21:2–3:

² And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. ³ I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among His people! He will live with them, and they will be His people. God Himself will be with them.”

Signpost 3 No Need to Wait!

The good news is that we don’t have to wait until we can see God’s kingdom with our physical eyes. We can be part of His kingdom now! How do you think we can join God’s kingdom? By believing in Jesus, putting our faith and trust in Jesus for our salvation, being born again.

That’s right! If you believe in your heart and declare that Jesus is Lord, you are a part of God’s kingdom today! When Jesus is our Lord and Savior, we can talk with Him any time and we can be confident He will listen and answer.

OPTIONAL VERSES FOR GRADES 4-6

John 3:3,15:

³ Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” ¹⁵ So that everyone who believes in Him will have eternal life.

Romans 10:9:

⁹ If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Now, let’s move on to the Discipleship Challenge and discuss the plan God has given us to do in His Spiritual Kingdom now!

Discipleship Challenge/Practical Application

Display the model craft from Lesson 1. Give a Journal Scroll Pattern to any children who missed previous lessons so they can complete the craft at home.

Our challenge from last time was to read 1 Peter 4:10, which says God has given us spiritual gifts that we should use to serve others. Can you name a gift God has given you to serve others? Children answer.

Why do you think some people never use the gifts God has given them? They don’t realize they have them. Maybe they don’t have a desire to serve but have their own plans for their lives. They don’t desire to serve God and others.

Your new challenge is to pray daily and trust God to help you with His plan for your life—even when you may not understand it. Read and discuss Psalm 32:8 with your family if possible. Pray and thank God for His plan for you, and ask Him to help you trust Him no matter what happens, especially when you don’t understand. Write down any questions or things that God reveals to you in your scroll journal. Remember, we can always talk to God and He will listen and answer!

Optional: Daniel was actually a captive. He was taken away from his home and brought far away to Babylon to serve the king. Daniel and his three Hebrew friends could not have understood all that happened in their lives. Yet they were faithful to God and gained favor with Him and the Babylonian king!

SuperVerse

Have children make a large circle around you, standing at arm’s length from others on both sides.

Have you ever shared something very important and personal with someone only to discover they weren’t really listening? Maybe they were texting, or perhaps they turned to talk to someone else before you finished. How did that make you feel? Irritated, frustrated, hurt, unimportant.

As we discussed in Large Group, our SuperVerse is part of a psalm written by King David. He prayed because he knew God would listen and then answer. God is never too busy or distracted to listen to us!

In this activity we are going to learn the SuperVerse by doing motions together. I will say a part of the verse and demonstrate the motion, then you repeat it while doing the motions.

Put hands together in prayer: I am praying

Point up and look to heaven: To You

Point to forehead: Because I know

Point to mouth: You will answer, O God.

Bend down and cup one ear with a hand: Bend down and listen

Straighten up and put hands together in prayer: As I pray.

Conclusion: We can be confident like David and Daniel that we can talk with God and He will hear and answer us!

Prayer

Have the children sit in a circle.

The king gave Daniel time to seek God in prayer. Daniel went home and asked his three friends to do something. Their Hebrew names are Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah—and their Babylonian names are Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Did he ask them to pack their suitcases so they could run away from the angry king? No! Daniel asked them to pray.

Read Daniel 2:17–18:

¹⁷ Then Daniel went home and told his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah what had happened. ¹⁸He urged them to ask the God of heaven to show them His mercy by telling them the secret, so they would not be executed along with the other wise men of Babylon.

That night, the secret was revealed to Daniel in a vision. There is great power in prayer when we gather together as followers of Christ. Here is what Jesus tells us about praying together in Matthew 18:19–20 (nkjv):

¹⁹ “Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. ²⁰For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.”

Jesus is here with us today. Think of a prayer need right now. It could be for you or a friend or family member. Allow several moments of silence for children to think.

Now, let’s agree in prayer for those needs, asking God to answer each one.

Dear God, thank You that You are with us right now. We praise You that when we call upon You, You hear us and answer us. Right now, we have some needs, and we want to share them with You as we pray silently in our hearts. Allow time for children to pray silently.

Ask the children: Would anyone like to pray out loud for any needs? Allow time for prayer.

Conclude by praying: We agree in prayer for each other, and we thank You for answering us as we pray together in Jesus’ name. Amen!

Scroll Activity

Raise your hand if you were here for the lesson when we helped Daniel pick up the scrolls that spilled. We are going to help Daniel again, using a different way to place the scrolls in the basket. Call up a volunteer to demonstrate how to pass a scroll properly.

This game is so easy, I think you can do it with one hand behind your back! Hmmm, let’s see if that is really true! In this game, players must pass ten scrolls, one at a time, to the next player, using just one hand. And you must keep your palm up with your hand and fingers straight the entire time! Hold one arm out with your palm up. Have the volunteer do the same.

You must keep your other arm behind your back, or at least by your side. You can never use it during the game.

The first player takes a scroll from the floor by sliding a hand underneath it, with palm up and fingers straight. Carefully pass it to the next player’s hand—which is also palm up with straight fingers. The two players can raise, lower, or tilt their arms to maneuver the scroll as long as their hands are kept flat, palms up, and fingers straight. You cannot bend your fingers to grab or hold the scroll at any time. Demonstrate passing the scroll back and forth several times.

Does that look like a fun challenge to you?

Divide the children into two equal teams and have each team form a circle. Players should stand at arm’s length from the player on either side of them.

For each team, place a basket or box between two children. Place a pile of ten scrolls next to each basket or box.

The first player on each team begins lifting scrolls from the floor one at a time and passing them to the next player. Scrolls are passed around the circle until the last player drops them into the basket or box.

Players must keep one arm behind their backs and the other hand palm up with fingers straight at all times.

The first team to move all of their scrolls from the pile to the basket wins. If a scroll falls to the floor, the player who was passing it must pick it up and pass the scroll again.

Conclusion: That looked fun. You actually can play with one hand behind your back! Daniel worked faithfully for the king of Babylon and gained favor with him. Even in captivity, no matter what he was doing, Daniel knew that God was near him and always heard his prayers.

Guessing Activity

Daniel and his three Hebrew friends served King Nebuchadnezzar as scribes. They translated important writings and records on clay tablets onto scrolls. Now, it’s time for you to have some fun and draw pictures from the video in clay or modeling dough. You will work in small groups and take turns drawing and guessing items you saw in the Bible story or Signpost video.

Divide the children into small groups of 3–6 children depending on the class size.

Explain the activity and demonstrate how to roll out the clay or dough on a sheet of wax paper and scratch a symbol onto it.

Give each group some clay or dough, a sheet of wax paper, paper towels, toothpicks, craft sticks, or pencils, and a bag of game cards. Place the stack of cards face down in the middle of the table.

On their turn, each child will roll out the clay or dough on the wax sheet, take a card from the stack, read it without letting the other children see what it says, then try to draw the item by scratching it onto the clay or dough as the rest of the group tries to guess what the object is.

Groups can slowly count to 30 seconds or use a timer as each player draws.

Assist any children with special needs.

Conclusion: How did you do; was it difficult to draw the object onto the clay? Can you imagine how long it took to write a record of an event, a law, or a decision on a clay tablet? I am very thankful for pencils, pens and keyboards, aren’t you?

Craft

Let’s see if you can say the SuperTruth with your eyes closed: “I can talk with God.”

Give a coloring page, crayons, colored pencils, or markers to each child. Lead a discussion using the questions below as the children color their pages.

Who are the four men in the picture? Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego (also called Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah),and Daniel.

What are they doing in this picture? Praying to God.

What are they asking God to do? Reveal the secret of the king’s dream. (See Daniel 2:17–18.)

Why couldn’t the wise men tell the king his dream? Only the king and God knew what it was.

Daniel urgently needed God’s help to know the dream and what it meant. That is why Daniel and his friends prayed to God until He answered.

Have you ever prayed for something important? Children discuss.

We can pray anytime and any place, whether we are all by ourselves or in a crowd of people—and God will hear us. Yet there’s something very special about praying with other people for something. Have you prayed with other people for something? How does it feel? Supported, cared for, confident, hopeful, strengthened.

Yes, it is wonderful to experience the support, strength, and compassion of others when they support us in prayer.

Have children put their names on their papers and share their coloring pages with the class if they would like.

Bible Study

Let’s say the SuperVerse together. Psalm 17:6:

I am praying to You because I know You will answer, O God. Bend down and listen as I pray.

We know that Daniel and his three friends prayed in a very stressful time. God answered their prayers in a vision showing Daniel the king’s dream and its meaning. Daniel was a man of prayer. He didn’t just come to God in emergencies. He talked with God every day! In this activity, we are going to read and discuss some other prayers Daniel prayed.

Give each child a Bible. Have children look up the verses and take turns reading one verse at a time. Then lead a discussion with the information below.

1. Daniel 6:10–12

¹⁰ But when Daniel learned that the law had been signed, he went home and knelt down as usual in his upstairs room, with its windows open toward Jerusalem. He prayed three times a day, just as he had always done, giving thanks to his God. ¹¹ Then the officials went together to Daniel’s house and found him praying and asking for God’s help. ¹² So they went straight to the king and reminded him about his law. “Did you not sign a law that for the next thirty days any person who prays to anyone, divine or human—except to you, Your Majesty—will be thrown into the den of lions?” “Yes,” the king replied, “that decision stands; it is an official law of the Medes and Persians that cannot be revoked.”

• This story happened many years later. Some of the king’s officers were jealous of Daniel and how the king favoredhim. The officers tricked King Darius into signing a law about prayer that Daniel would not obey. If someone prayed to anyone other than the king, they would be thrown into a den of lions. According to verse 10, was Daniel afraid and did he hide in a closet when he prayed so no one would find out and arrest him? No, he went home and prayed with his windows open as always.
• According to verse 10, how many times a day did Daniel pray? Three times a day.
• Verses 10 and 11 tell us two things that were included in Daniel’s prayers; what were they? Giving thanks to God and asking for His help.
• According to verse 12, do you think Daniel believed he was safe because he could talk the king into changing the law? No, Daniel was an officer of the king, so he would know that a law could not be revoked or changed once it was signed by the king.
• Do you think it is important to have a regular time to pray like Daniel? Why or why not?Yes, it can help us not to forget and to look forward to our time with God. Sometimes we may not feel like praying, yet those may be the times that we most need to pray. Praying regularly shows we value our relationship with God above anything or anyone else.

2. Daniel 9:1–6

¹ It was the first year of the reign of Darius the Mede, the son of Ahasuerus, who became king of the Babylonians. ² During the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, learned from reading the word of the Lord, as revealed to Jeremiah the prophet, that Jerusalem must lie desolate for seventy years. ³ So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with Him in prayer and fasting. I also wore rough burlap and sprinkled myself with ashes. ⁴ I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed: “O Lord, You are a great and awesome God! You always fulfill Your covenant and keep Your promises of unfailing love to those who love You and obey Your commands. ⁵ But we have sinned and done wrong. We have rebelled against You and scorned Your commands and regulations. ⁶ We have refused to listen to Your servants the prophets, who spoke on Your authority to our kings and princes and ancestors and to all the people of the land.”

• According to verse 2, how was truth revealed to Daniel? By reading God’s Word.
• When Daniel learned the truth revealed to the prophet Jeremiah, what was his response in verse 3? To plead with God in prayer and fasting.
• In Bible times, people would put on rough burlap or sackcloth and sprinkle themselves with ashes when they were in mourning because someone died or to humble themselves in repentance before God. How did Daniel humbly view God in verse 4? A great and awesome God who faithfully keeps His promises and has unfailing love for His people who obey Him.
• According to verse 5, how did Daniel see himself and others? As sinners who rebelled and disobeyed God’s commandments and laws.
• In verse 6, who did the people refuse to listen to? God’s prophets who spoke by His authority.
• Why is it important to humble ourselves when we seek God in prayer? So we see ourselves as we truly are: helpless without Him; needing His mercy, compassion, and love; dependent on Him. Acknowledging His Lordship and greatness and our inability to please Him except through Christ.
• In verse 4, Daniel praised God for who He is; why should we also do this when we pray? It builds our faithin who God is and what He can do, it pleases God when we worship and praise Him. God inhabits the praise of His people. (See Psalm 22:3 kjv.)We give Him the praise that is due only Him.

3. Daniel 9:20–23

²⁰ I went on praying and confessing my sin and the sin of my people, pleading with the Lord my God for Jerusalem, His holy mountain. ²¹ As I was praying, Gabriel, whom I had seen in the earlier vision, came swiftly to me at the time of the evening sacrifice. ²² He explained to me, “Daniel, I have come here to give you insight and understanding. ²³ The moment you began praying, a command was given. And now I am here to tell you what it was, for you are very precious to God. Listen carefully so that you can understand the meaning of your vision.”

• According to verse 20, was Daniel only praying for himself? No, he was pleading on behalf of God’s people and God’s city, Jerusalem.
• What happened in verse 21 as Daniel prayed? God’s angel Gabriel came to him.
• According to verse 22, why was he sent to Daniel? To give him insight and understanding.
• According to verse 23, how much time passed before God heard Daniel’s prayer? The moment Daniel began to pray, God sent Gabriel with the answer.
• How did God describe Daniel? Daniel was precious to Him.
• What news did Gabriel bring to Daniel? The meaning of his vision.
• Does this encourage you to pray, and why? Yes, to know God loves us and values us and hears immediately when we speak and will answer.

Conclusion: God may not answer immediately as He did with Daniel; yet, He always listens and will reveal things in His time, to give us insight and understanding when we ask! We are precious to God and He wants to spend time with us every day!