Fear, Inc.

October 8th, 2016 .:. .:. Room 301

Pathways Kids Weekend Small Groups

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This curriculum is for the 4th, 5th and 6th graders.

This Weeks Scope

Plagueslist
Bible Story: Plagueslist (Moses calling/10 plagues) Exodus 3; 46:12; 712:42
Bottom Line: You can do what you should even when you dont feel ready.
Memory Verse: Be strong and brave. Do not be afraid. Do not lose hope. I am the LORD your God. I
will be with you everywhere you go. Joshua 1:9b, NIrV
Life App: Couragebeing brave enough to do what you should do, even when youre afraid.
Basic Truth: I can trust God no matter what.

Welcome Time
Welcome kids and spend time engaging in conversation and catching up. Get ready to experience
todays story.
Before kids arrive, pray for each regular attendee by name. Pray for those who might visit your group
for the first time. Most kids will not ever feel ready to take on something big or new. Pray for your few
to have courage to do big things even when they dont feel ready. Ask God to help the kids feel His
presence as they do what they should do.
Bible Story: Exodus 3 Please use as a reference
Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to
the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of
the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on
fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, I will go over and see this strange sightwhy the bush does
not burn up. When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the
bush, Moses! Moses! And Moses said, Here I am. Do not come any closer, God said. Take off
your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. Then he said, I am the God of your
father,the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. At this, Moses hid his face,
because he was afraid to look at God. The LORD said, I have indeed seen the misery of my people in
Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their
suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up
out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honeythe home of the
Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has
reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am

sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt. But Moses said to God, Who
am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt? And God said, I will be with
you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people
out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain. Moses said to God, Suppose I go to the Israelites
and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, What is his
name? Then what shall I tell them? God said to Moses, I AM WHO I AM.[c] This is what you are to say to
the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you. God also said to Moses, Say to the Israelites, The LORD, the
God of your fathersthe God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacobhas sent me to
you. This is my name forever, the name you shall call me from generation to generation. Go, assemble
the elders of Israel and say to them, The LORD, the God of your fathersthe God of Abraham, Isaac
and Jacobappeared to me and said: I have watched over you and have seen what has been done to
you in Egypt. And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt into the land of the
Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusitesa land flowing with milk and honey.
The elders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to
him, The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Let us take a three-day journey into the
wilderness to offer sacrifices to the LORD our God. But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go
unless a mighty hand compels him. So I will stretch out my hand and strike the Egyptians with all the
wonders that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go. And I will make the Egyptians
favorably disposed toward this people, so that when you leave you will not go empty-handed. Every
woman is to ask her neighbor and any woman living in her house for articles of silver and gold and for
clothing, which you will put on your sons and daughters. And so you will plunder the Egyptians.
What You Need: paper, pens
What You Do:
Ask kids to create a list of things they would need to do in order to be ready for one of the
following activities:
o a midnight walk in the woods after a heavy snowfall
o playing a song on the piano in front of 100 people
o hosting a video game night at their house
o baking a cake for a surprise party for your grandmothers 80th birthday
When the list is complete, have kids decide which items are most important. Choose an item on
the list and ask what they think could happen if they didnt do or have that particular part done.
How would it change the experience? What would they do to improvise and make the activity
still succeed?
Lead kids to large group.

Activity #1

What You Need: Bibles, timer on phone

What You Do:
Sit in a circle.
Review the memory verse Be strong and brave. Do not be afraid. Do not lose hope. I am the
LORD your God. I will be with you everywhere you go. Joshua 1:9b, NIrV by looking it up with
your group and reading it together.
Ask kids if there were any times when they faced a new situation or something they werent
prepared for this week and it made them feel nervous or afraid. Did they think of Joshua 1:9?
How did God help them to have courage?
Help the kids learn the verse by playing the following game:
o Explain that, at your signal, someone (anyone) should say the first word of Joshua 1:9b.
o Then, in no particular order whatsoever, another kid should say the second word.
o Continue through the entire verse by having random kids speak one word at any time.
o Tell them that the goal is to avoid speaking at the same time as someone else. If that
happens, the group must begin the verse again.
Once theyve played the game successfully a couple times, try a time challenge to see how
quickly they can get through the whole verse.
What You Say:
Todays Bottom Line says, [Bottom Line] You can do what you should even when you dont feel
ready. Moses is a great example of that. God assigned him an incredibly scary task: rescue the
Israelites from the awful Pharaoh. There was no way Moses could be ready to complete that task
except to rely on God.
In our game, you may have felt reluctant to speak. What if you botched the game by speaking when
someone else did and caused everyone to have to start the verse all over? Can you imagine the terror
Moses must have felt as he stood in front of the most powerful man on the planet and basically spoke
for God and all of Israel? No wonder he didnt feel prepared or adequate. But what an amazing God we
have who uses people like Mosesand like all of usto do amazing things for Him! Remember
Joshua 1:9b this week when God nudges you to do something youre afraid to do. Make sure its not
something silly or dangerous, like taking a dangerous dare or lighting your hair on fire. Thats not
courage. Thats foolishness and God would never lead you that way. Do the right thing and do it with
the courage God gives you.

Activity #2

What You Need: Flames Activity Page; 1 flame for each kid, markers
What You Do:
Give kids a flame to color. If time and supplies allow, kids can cut out and decorate more than
one flame.
As kids are coloring, brainstorm things you can do to show courage even when you arent ready.
If kids struggle with ideas, give them a situation that might be scary and encourage them to
come up with ways to show courage in that situation. Examples could include:
o Your friend wants to go on the biggest, fastest rollercoaster in the amusement park. You
are scared and dont think you are ready to go on it. What can you do to show courage?
o Your teacher asks you to read out loud to the class. You are scared because you think
you dont read well and arent ready to read in front of an entire class. What can you do
to show courage?
o You have been practicing diving into a pool and now your swim teacher wants you to
dive off the diving board. You dont think you are ready. What can you do to show
courage?
Instruct kids to write a few words on their flames to represent showing courage when they dont
feel ready.
What You Say:
Heres a question for you: When God asked Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell him to let Gods people
go, did Moses feel ready? (No) No, Moses wasnt sure he was the right person for the job and he
doubted he was ready to do what God asked of him. What if the Israelites asked him questions he
couldnt answer? What if the Israelites thought he was making it all up? Moses wasnt sure he had the
correct words to use to handle this request God was making. But the thing is, God never asks us to
feel ready. God asks us to take the first step and trust Him. Although Moses didnt think he was ready,
he showed courage and did what he should do and listened to God. Moses and the story of the burning
bush is a great reminder that [Bottom Line] you can do what you should even when you dont feel
ready.

Prayer
Opposites

Time

What You Need: No supplies needed

What You Do:
The world of a fourth, fifth or sixth grader is getting increasingly bigger as they are given more
opportunities and responsibilities. The prospects can be both exciting as well as frightening as
they think about being prepared for their future.
Invite your group to discuss some things for which they will need help from God in ways that are
different from when they were younger. How might choices get harder as kids get older? For
example:
o What could become more challenging in their friendships?
o How might their attitudes or relationship with their parents and other family members
need their attention?
o What about a future job or career path?
o How might the use of their money, gifts, and other resources be stretched?
Let those who are willing pray aloud for some of the things that were shared, and then you can
close with a prayer similar to the following:
Dear heavenly Father, thank You for always being with us, even when we are afraid. Please help us to
trust You now and in the future. We need Your help to have courage even when we dont feel ready for
the things You want us to do. We know that You have all the events of our lives in Your hands and wont
let our faith fail if we continue to follow You. In Jesus name, amen.
What You Say:
Moses did something incredibly courageous, and it was all because he trusted God. He knew God was
more powerful than fear. That gave him the courage he needed to stand up to Pharaoh. [Bottom Line]
You can do what you should even when you dont feel ready. Amazing things can happen in your
life, too, when you have the courage to trust God and stand up to your Pharaoh-sized fears. God is with
you and promises never to leave your side. Have a courageous week!