 |
Hijos del Altísimo |
| (Children of the Most High) | |
Teaching Idea of the Month - May 2001 |
|
 
 
  |
On this page, you will find each month a new idea for teaching or for an activity with children.
Praise Banners
Biblical foundation:
"We will shout for joy when you are victorious and will lift
up our banners in the name of our God." (Psalm 20:5)
"A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Hosanna in the highest!" ... But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple area, "Hosanna to the Son of David," they were indignant. "Do you hear what these children are saying?" they asked him. "Yes," replied Jesus, "have you never read, "`From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise'?" (Matthew 21:7-8, 15-16)
God rejoices when children praise Him in a creative way. Why not literally "lift up banners", as Psalm 20 suggests?
What you need:
- Sticks about 50 cm (20 inch) long, one for each child
- Paper
- Colors
- Glue
Let`s start!
Let the children think about something they can draw or write in
order to bring joy to the Lord.
This is a good moment for explaining what praise means: to
express our thankfulness for what God has done, and what He means
to us. This pleases God, and it draws us nearer to His presence.
There are many ways how we can express praise (prayers, songs,
clapping hands, etc.), but for now we will do it by our drawings.
So every child will draw on his/her paper a symbol, or write a
statement, which expresses something God is or something He does
for us. (Below are some ideas as examples. But it is preferable
letting each child express and draw something coming from his/her
own heart.)
Every child pastes the left border of the paper with glue to the
stick, in the form of a banner.
You can sing some praise songs together while the children wave
their banners before the Lord, "showing Him" their
drawings and writings.
Ideas for symbols or statements
to be used on the banners:
Crown, Throne (Jesus is King)
Lamb (Jesus is the Lamb of God)
Lion (Jesus is the Lion of Judah)
Shining light or candle (Jesus is the light of the world)
Dove, Fire flames (Symbols of the Holy Spirit)
Outstretched hands (Jesus stretches his hands out towards us)
Broken chain (Jesus is the liberator)
Hand with globe (God holds the world in hid hands)
Smiling face (Jesus makes me happy)
"Jesus reigns"
"I love Jesus"
"Victory to Jesus"
"Hosanna to the Son of David"
"King of Kings and Lord of Lords"
etc...
Note: Large banners look better when they are made of crêpe paper because it is more flexible and follows the movements. On the other hand, it is more difficult to draw on crêpe paper (large felt pens recommended).
Hijos del Altísimo - http://www.altisimo.net
You can contribute to "Idea of the
Month"! If you have a good idea for teaching children, send
us an e-mail describing your idea. We will publish here the best
ideas, together with the name of the person who sent us the idea.
Write to: 
with the subject "Idea of the Month".
