Leader Guide

Video Leader Guide

Welcome (1 minute)

Welcome, everyone! This is the last lesson of our Superbook adventure, “Elijah and the Widow.” God provided for Elijah during a drought and famine. Through Christ, God supplies all we need—even forgiveness for our sins and eternal life! Let’s stand and thank Jesus for all He does for us as we sing The Salvation Poem!

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

Salvation Poem

Be sure to preview the song so you can sing along with the children.   

SuperTruth and Discussion (2 minutes)

Our SuperTruth today is, “God provides all I need.”

Who provides all we need? God.

Let’s say it together: “God provides all I need.”  

What are some things you need when you start a new school year? Clothes, shoes, backpack, school supplies such as paper, pencils, calculator, binders, etc. 

Did you ever shop at several stores to get all of those items? For example, a clothing store, a shoe store, a different store for your backpack, and yet another for classroom supplies? Raise your hand if a store was out of an item and you couldn’t get all you needed. 

This will never happen with God! Everything we need spiritually, physically or emotionally can be found in Him. God is the source of all good things. He knows our needs before we ask and He will never run out! (See Matthew 6:8.)

Let’s say our SuperTruth together once more: “God provides all I need.” 

Introduce Condensed Bible Story (1 minute)

If most or all children watched the Bible story video in a previous lesson, omit it here and go straight to the SuperVerse.

Let’s watch a short version of the video about Elijah. If you’ve already seen it, Elijah declares that the widow will always have flour and oil in her containers until something happens. Listen carefully to find out exactly what Elijah says.               

Play Video 4: Condensed Bible Story (4Minutes)

Superbook takes Chris, Joy and Gizmo to meet Elijah, who is fed by ravens during a famine. In Zarephath, a widow gives Elijah bread even though she and her son are starving—then God miraculously provides food for them until the famine ends. Later, when the boy dies, Elijah raises him to life. The children learn to obey even when they don’t understand.

Play Video 10C: SuperVerse Graphic

SuperVerse

Graphic loops 2.5 minutes without audio; turn off or freeze video after children repeat the verse.

SuperVerse (2 minutes)

Our SuperVerse today is Philippians 4:19:

What unusual way did God bring food to Elijah when he was hiding by the brook? He sent ravens to bring Elijah bread and meat.

Can anyone think of another time that God provided food from the sky to feed His people in the wilderness? He sent manna and quail to Moses and the Israelites.

God can use any method He chooses to provide for His people. All of creation is at His command; animals, fish, birds, people; even the wind and the waves obey Him.   

Let’s say the SuperVerse again. Philippians 4:19:

Children will have more time to learn the SuperVerse in Small Group. If any children are not able to memorize the entire verse, be sure they understand its meaning.

Introduce Signposts Video (1 minute)

Let’s watch the Signposts video to learn some of the many ways in which the life of Elijah points us to Jesus.   

Play Video 6: Signposts Video (5 minutes)

Signpost Video

Prayer and Send-Off (2 minutes)

Let’s pray before we move to Small Group. Dear God, thank You for sending Jesus to be our Savior. We praise You for forgiving us and cleansing us from our sins so we can have eternal life. Through Jesus, all of our needs are supplied here on the earth, and forever in heaven. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen. 

In Small Group today you are going to play a fun relay game. Let’s go get the “scoop” on how to play!  

Teachers take children to Small Group classes for Grades 1–3 and 4–6. If the combined group is small, all children may stay together for Small Group time.

Game

Fill It Up! Play a game to be the first to fill the containers.

You may play this game outside, or put large baking trays on the tables to catch spills. Place flour in two containers and water in two containers. On each table, place a container of water and a container of flour at opposite ends, with two empty bowls in the middle. Put a scoop or measuring cup next to each container of flour and water. See illustration of game setup.

Note: for smaller classes you can play as a large group and a timer to see how quickly the children can fill both containers.

In the Bible story, God miraculously filled the widow’s oil and flour containers. We know that only God can perform miracles; so, that means you need to fill these containers by hand! Two teams will race to fill a container with flour and another container with water to represent the oil. 

First, let’s answer the question about the video in Large Group. Elijah declared that the widow would always have flour and oil in her containers until what happened? Until God sent rain.

Divide the children into two teams—they do not need to be equal.  

Have each team stand a few feet from a different table.  

Divide each team in half. Have one half make a single-file line by the water container, and the other half make a single-file line near the flour container— see image of game setup.   

The object of this game is for each team to fill up both of their bowls—one with flour and one with water. Each player will scoop water or flour from their container and then empty it into the correct bowl of either flour or water. The player will then return to the line and tag the next player. That seems easy enough, doesn’t it! However, there will be a little surprise for you during the game. At some point, I will shout, “Switch!”  Each team will switch lines at their table. Players who were filling the flour bowl will line up by the water bowl, and players filling the water bowl will line up across from the flour bowl—then the game will immediately continue. The bowl is full when the flour or water comes to the very top but does not spill over. Does anyone have any questions?

Let’s try the switch to be sure. “Switch!” Both teams will switch lines at their table.

Okay, I think we are ready now! The first team to fill both of their bowls wins.

Say “Go” to start the game.

Notes and optional play:

·      The leader determines when a container is filled enough to win.

·      As an option, play for a set time and determine a winner for the fullest flour container plus a winner for the fullest water container (may be the same team).

·      Shout “Switch!” multiple times during the game for fun.

·      When teams get close to filling the flour container, stop the game to gently shake the flour container and tap its bottom on the table so it settles, and relate it to the SuperVerse: “Pressed down, shaken together, to make room for more.”    

Let’s say the SuperTruth together. “God provides all I need.”

God performed miracles to provide for Elijah and also for the widow and her son. Let’s see how Elijah’s life and miracles pointed to Jesus. 

Teaching

A Man of Truth: Elijah’s life points to Jesus.

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 other two Signpost cards. Additional material is included for Grades 4–6 to look up and discuss. 

Signpost 1 Prepare the Way for Jesus

The widow expressed her belief that Elijah was a man of God and that He spoke God’s truth. 

What two miracles did Elijah perform that caused her to believe this? 1. The endless supply of flour and oil until it rained again. 2. He raised her son back to life after his death.

In many ways, Elijah’s life pointed to Christ. Jesus was sent by God to speak God’s Words. John 12:49 says:

Elijah was filled with God’s Spirit and power—as Jesus was, centuries later. John 3:34 says this about Jesus:

The Old Testament prophet Malachi predicted that Elijah would return before the coming of Jesus the Messiah. Before John the Baptist was born, an angel told his father that John would be filled with God’s power and Spirit to prepare the way for the Lord. Jesus explained to His disciples that John the Baptist filled the role of Elijah. John the Baptist and Jesus were not recognized or respected by the religious leaders who abused and persecuted them. Both John the Baptist and Jesus suffered and were put to death on earth.

OPTIONAL VERSES FOR GRADES 4–6   

1 Kings 17:24 (NKJV):  

Malachi 4:5 (NKJV):

Matthew 17:11–13:

Mark 13:26 (NKJV):

Signpost 2  Jesus Provides For Our Needs   

Elijah’s life also points to how Jesus provides for us. God cared for Elijah while he was in hiding. Who was he hiding from? King Ahab and his wife Jezebel. 

God miraculously provided food and water during the drought. God then provided for Elijah and the widow who was running out of food for her family. God told Elijah that He had instructed a widow to feed him. Because of her obedience, God performed a miracle, feeding her family and Elijah for many days. Jesus also performed a miracle feeding people—giving food to a crowd of over 4,000, and another time to a crowd of over 5,000.   

In both instances, Jesus fed the crowds by multiplying two things; do you know what they were? Loaves of bread and fish.  

OPTIONAL VERSES FOR GRADES 4–6

1 Kings 17:14:

Matthew 14:18–21:

Matthew 15:34–38:

Signpost 3  Jesus Gives Life

Elijah’s life points us to Jesus by how he prayed for the widow’s son who got sick and died. God answered Elijah’s prayer and restored life to the boy. Jesus healed many people in different ways. He restored sight to the blind, healed leprosy and other diseases, and healed people who were crippled. He also brought dead people to life! Jesus restored life to a 12-year-old girl, to a widow’s son who was in a coffin at the funeral, and to his friend Lazarus who had been dead 4 days! Jesus defeated death when He willingly suffered and died on the cross and then rose again on the third day. Jesus gives eternal life to all who believe in Him. John 3:16 says:      

Only Jesus can give us eternal life—and only He can forgive our sins! 1 John 1:9 says:

Jesus will take care of all of our physical and spiritual needs; our part is to learn to trust Him. 

OPTIONAL VERSES FOR GRADES 4–6

1 Kings 17:20 (NKJV):

Mark 10:52:

Mark 5:41–42:

Luke 7:13–15:

John 11:43–44:  

It’s time for our Discipleship Challenge where you will be challenged to trust God to provide for your needs.  

Last time, part of our challenge was to memorize Luke 6:38. If you did, say it aloud?

The other part of our challenge was to share something with someone else. Would anyone like to share what happened when you did that?

Did anyone experience God giving back to you as it says in Luke 6:38?   

Why can it be difficult to share at times? We can be selfish or the item can be very valuable to us and we are concerned it will be broken or lost. We may not like the person God has asked us to share something with.   

Our final challenge for this course is on Raven #3. Ask God for something you need, then thank Him. Pray for God to provide something that you really need. Then thank Him for it by faith—even before you receive it. Like Elijah, be persistent in prayer each day; don’t doubt, and don’t give up!

The second part of your challenge is to memorize Philippians 4:19 and discuss it with your family, if possible. Let’s start working on that right now.

SuperVerse

Superbook on Top: Memorize the SuperVerse with a group activity.

At the top of the board, write these words: Christ, supply, God, riches, given, care, needs.

Write the SuperVerse in the center of the board. Philippians 4:19: 

Our SuperVerse is part of a letter that Paul the apostle wrote to the believers in the city of Philippi. In the letter, he thanks them for the gifts they have sent to supply his needs. (Philippians 4:15–18.) Paul knew that God does not have favorites; He loves everyone! So Paul was confident that what God did for him, He would also do for others. All the riches of heaven and earth belong to God; He will provide whatever we need—and more! We should share this wonderful hope with others.   

Let’s read our SuperVerse on the board together. Philippians 4:19: 

Erase the individual words in the SuperVerse that are written at the top of the board, but do not erase the words at the top of the board!

Read the SuperVerse slowly and stop at each space. Have the children raise their hands to fill in the words using the words at the top. If someone answers incorrectly, call on another child until the correct word is given. Now, erase the words on the top of the board and do the activity again, stopping at each space and having children supply the missing words from memory.

If time permits, erase the entire verse and ask if anyone can say it from memory. 

Conclusion: God supplies all that we need and more when we believe in Christ and trust Him to provide.      

If any children are not able to memorize the entire verse, be sure they understand its meaning.

Prayer

Provision Prayers: Communicate with God.

Raise your hand if you’ve ever gone to bed at night but couldn’t sleep because you were worried about something.

We have all experienced this. Yet God doesn’t want us to worry.  In Matthew 6:31–33, Jesus talked about trusting God for our daily needs:  

How wonderful that God knows what we need before we even ask! He sent Elijah to the brook and fed him by sending ravens. Then when the brook dried up, God sent him to a widow who supplied his needs as God miraculously supplied hers! God hasn’t changed; He knows exactly what we need. He wants us to come to Him, then trust and not worry.

To begin our prayer, let’s close our eyes as if we were going to sleep and say the SuperTruth together. “God provides all that I need.”

I would like you to do that at home as you lie down to sleep as a reminder to trust God and not worry. Now, with your eyes still closed, silently share with God any worries or fears you have. Allow children a moment to pray. Ask God to replace those thoughts with His peace. Pause a moment. Now tell God that you trust Him to supply all of your needs. Give children time to pray silently.

Let’s pray. Dear God, You have promised to meet our needs as we seek You and Your kingdom. Instead of worrying, help us to trust in Your power to provide for us, Your beloved children through Christ. We ask you to replace any fear, anxiety or worry with the peace that can only come through You. In Jesus’ powerful name we pray, Amen!   

Review Game

Skip the Review! Play a game to review the Bible lesson.

This is the last lesson about Elijah and the widow. So, we are going to play a fun review game to help us remember the important truths we have learned. This is a True and False question review. Raise your right hand for a true answer. Have children raise their right hands with you.    

Raise your left hand for a false answer. Have children raise their left hands with you.    

You score five points for a correct answer. I’m sure some of you have skipped stones into a brook, lake or pond. God told Elijah to hide by Kerith Brook to protect him from King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. You can also score points by skipping or tossing a pebble into the brook. Demonstrate skipping a pebble toward the bedsheet.

Each player is given two pebbles and scores one point for each pebble that lands in the brook or touches it then skips out. Let’s play!

Divide the children into two teams—they do not need to be even.

Have each team line up a few feet behind the mark.  

A player from each team steps up to the mark and answers the same question by raising their right hands for true or their left hands for false.  

Then the players have a chance to toss or skip two pebbles into the brook.

If the floors are finished wood, be sure to use rubber erasers instead of pebbles.

For safety, make sure no one is standing behind the bedsheet during the game.    

Have a sixth-grade helper or another volunteer keep score and also watch closely to see when a pebble touches the brook as it skips over it.   

The players then retrieve the pebbles for the next player in line after the score is tallied.

The team with the most points wins. 

Optional: when the answer is “false,” ask teams for the true answer and award a bonus point if it’s correct. You may also ask additional bonus questions related to the original one.       

Action Game

Found In Christ: Play a game about God’s provision through Jesus.

Let’s say our SuperVerse together. Philippians 4:19:

Everything we have is because of Christ. Jesus was the perfect sacrifice who took away our sin and put us in right standing with God again. Because of this, we are blessed now on this earth and forever in heaven. If you were here for the first lesson about Elijah and the widow, what did Chris’s mother tell him to do on a Saturday? She gave him a long list of unusual items to buy at different stores.

Hold up the twelve Provision Cards. In this game I have many things that God provides to us through Jesus. Your job is to find all of them in the three boxes located in three corners of the room. 

Divide the class into two teams. Teams form separate lines in the corner of the room with no box.

The leader picks a Provision Card, holds it up and announces the word on the card, then places it face-up on the floor.

The first player of each team walks quickly to any of the three boxes to search for that card.

If the card is not in that box, the player must quickly move to another box until the card is found.

Each player takes the correct card to the leader, who places it on the matching card already on the floor.

The first player to bring the matching card to the leader wins a point for the team.

Tally points on the board.

Play continues as the leader picks another Provision Card for the next players.

The game continues until all twelve cards are collected. The team with the most points wins.

Conclusion: Did you find all of the cards in one place? No.

That’s right; you found God’s provision in different places. God provides for us in different ways and in different places; yet, only through one person—Christ Jesus!  Now, let’s say the blessings that you found today! Hold up one provision card at a time and say each card aloud together.

Craft

Time To Eat! Find all of the ravens with food for Elijah.

Give a Ravens Feed Elijah Page to each child. Provide black and assorted colors of crayons, colored pencils, or markers to the children. Have children search for all of the ravens that are carrying bread and meat to Elijah in their beaks, and color them black. Then have the children share the location of the ravens on their pages. Use the key to verify their findings. Children may then color the entire page.     

1. The ravens didn’t just come one time—God had them on a schedule! By His command, they brought bread and meat each morning and evening until Elijah left that place. (See 1 Kings 17:4–6.) How can that help you trust God to provide for you? He can do anything through anything or anyone; it shows His care and love for us.  

2. How do you think it would feel to have a flock of birds bring you food? Strange, weird, a little afraid or nervous, uncomfortable, kind of gross. 

Even in a severe drought and famine, God is the source of all we need and is able to provide for His people. Let’s say our SuperVerse together. Philippians 4:19:

Bible Activity

My Provider: Look up verses to identify things God supplies to us through Jesus.

Let’s say the SuperVerse together. Philippians 4:19: 

As God’s children, we are abundantly provided for through Jesus Christ His Son. In this activity we will look up verses to discover some of the many things God provides through Christ.   

Note that the suggested answers are from the New Living Translation. If children are using different translations, their answers will vary.

Write the scripture references, one at a time, on the board for children to look up and find the answers. Assist children as necessary to help children not familiar with the Bible or pair them with a more experienced child. Have children raise their hand to answer.  

1.    Philippians 4:13. Through Jesus, God provides _____. (Strength)  

2.    Titus 2:14. Jesus gave His life to _____ us from sin. (Free)

3.    Romans 6:23. God gives us eternal _____ through Christ Jesus. (Life)  

4.    2 Corinthians 12:9. In Christ, God gives us _____ to replace our weakness. (Power)  

5.     Romans 3:24. God makes us _____ in His sight through Christ Jesus. (Right)  

6.   1 John 2:1. Jesus is our _____ with God when we sin. (Advocate)  

7.  Isaiah 53:5. Through Jesus’ suffering and death on the cross we are ______. (Healed)  

8. 1 Corinthians 15:57.  Through Jesus, God gives us _____ over sin and death. (Victory)  

9.  John 14:27. God gives us _____ through Jesus Christ that the world cannot give. (Peace)  

10.  Ephesians 1:7. Through the blood of Jesus, God _____ our sins. (Forgives)  

Conclusion: These are just a few of the many riches we are given by God through Christ. Let us pray and ask God to give us a hunger and thirst for His Word so we might discover and experience even more of His gifts and blessings!